The Gore Gore Girls Motor On

Swirl all the swagger of gritty garage rock with the sparkle of Motown’s legendary girl bands, and you still wouldn’t get the pumped-up, full-throttle sound of the Gore Gore Girls — not without those guitars. The opening chords of those black-and-white Gretsch hollow-bodies lets you know that this is rock and roll with a sneer and a high-heeled stomp. Sure, the Girls are pretty, but all that glitter is broken glass, and the glitz gives way to high-octane gasoline. Amy Gore and company’s gloriously retro romp is straight out of grindhouse celluloids. We recently spoke with Gore about the history and future of the Gore Gore Girls.

Westword: You collaborated with Runaways co-founder Kim Fowley on your latest album, Get the Gore. Can you describe how you hooked up with the legendary producer and what it was like working together?

Amy Gore: Kim has known about my band since our first 45 came out in 1999. He was floored with the concept, but we hadn’t had a chance to work together until last year, when we got together on the phone. Kim moves around a lot, and at the time, he was living in Redlands, California, and considering moving to Detroit. The lyrics were dictated over the phone, and fit — almost cosmically, perfectly, wildly — to the music Hammer and I were working on that became the song “Pleasure Unit.”

“Where Evil Grows” is a bit of a sonic departure, with almost dreamy, sitar-like riffs. Can you explain how it ended up on the album?

“Where Evil Grows” is a Terry Jacks song, originally performed by the Poppy Family. He’s better known in the U.S. for “Seasons in the Sun.” I’ve had that 45 since I was a kid; I remember it being on the radio in Canada. The vocal effect pre-dates Cher’s voice trick on her last club hit and what I hear other artists doing in pop music now with their voices. Another great Poppy Family song, “There’s No Blood in Bone,” was a close second choice for a cover on Get the Gore.

You’ve been at this for ten years now. How has your sound evolved?

The concept of Gore Gore Girls has been in me since I was a kid. It’s really, like, a fantasy that I’m still pursuing. I just hadn’t gotten the playing and boots and girls together until my early twenties. The sound has changed; that is bound to happen. I’m still really proud of the first 45 and the first album, Strange Girls.

You’ve been compared to the girl bands of the ´60s, garage, and, of course, the Runaways and the Stooges. Do you ever shy from those comparisons?

No. We’re part of Detroit’s history, whether you like it or not. So is Kid Rock, so go fucking figure.