 Take a knee. Take a bow. Take a moment to pay respects to rock n roll’s regal and rebellious Queen V.
In her iron fist, this ferocious singer clutches a mic and claims sovereignty over your senses with that hard-edged, bombastic rock sound you’ve been missing. With her new album Death or Glory, which features contributions from the likes of Vernon Reid (Living Colour), Tom Morello (Audioslave, Rage Against the Machine) and the infamous Lemmy Kilmister (Motorhead), V prepares to turn the rock world on its ass with bold and sexual lyrics, palpable passion, and a generous dose of caustic wit.
Not just a powerful female voice but a force to be reckoned with, V has been spearheading the growth of her own career from day one, never having an agent or a manager. Shortly after her brother taught her to read using the lyrics of Queen’s “We Will Rock You,” our own soon-to-be-Queen was already calling the stage home. After years of piano lessons, V ditched the keys in favor of the six-string, later claiming, “It’s easier to jump around with a guitar than a piano.”
Musical chops in place, V needed a name fit for a woman who would one day be rock’s leading lady. “‘Queen V’ was a reaction to the way women were portrayed in music at the time, shaking their asses, looking pretty, and having nothing at all to say,” V said. “I wanted to bring something else to the table and by calling myself ‘Queen V,’ it was the perfect way to challenge myself to raise the bar, to throw my hat into the ring.”
V joined the fight with two self-released, self-promoted projects, beginning in 2002 with her “Critical” EP, which featured Lez Warner (the Cult) on drums. The EP marked the beginning of V’s work with longtime songwriting partner and producer Phil Schmoll. “‘Critical’ was basically a ‘coming-out’ party for me,” V said. “It was a great learning experience that helped me get my sea legs.” The singer proved she was out in full force when, while performing at Don Hill’s the following year, she caught the attention of Twisted Sister’s manager and embarked on a tour with the band. Six months later, she was invited to tour with Billy Idol, further honing her onstage persona with rock’s best.
The singer used her experience with the rockers to add an even grittier edge to her full-length, self-titled release and proved she had absorbed some of the on-stage charisma of her touring mates when she took off on her own trek in 2005 and was asked to open for Bon Jovi. While V can easily deliver a balls-to-the-wall rock show, she decided to set out on a solo acoustic tour in 2006, sparing no level of intensity. “I thought it would be a nice change of pace to be one on one with the audience,” she says. After having seen V perform at the Viper Room, Morello asked her to join him for several “Axis of Justice” shows featuring his solo acoustic act, The Nightwatchman. V happily obliged and shared the stage with other acts such as Ben Harper, Jon Foreman (Switchfoot), Jill Sobule, and Cypress Hill.
V's latest offering, Death or Glory, (set for a 2009 release) encapsulates that dichotomy as she straddles the line between hard rock and singer/songwriter. The first track, “Continental,” is 100% unadulterated fun. “I had the opportunity to ride in a 1960's Lincoln,” V says, “and it just made me want to call a girlfriend, jump in the car and get into some trouble.”
“Revolution Baby” opens with boot camp commands and is fueled by a stomping beat throughout. V's gritty vocals deliver lyrics about leading your own “personal rebellion. Sometimes you just need to kick the fucking doors down and start over,” says V.
“My Machine,” an unrelenting, speeding ride, is about being “a proud sexual woman in the face of all the guilt and shame women are supposed to feel.” She explains, “It felt good to vent my frustrations with people who are afraid or intimidated by my Catherine The Great size appetite for passion and intensity.” V makes her case for wanting to “just get down to it,” with her deep, heavy breaths layered over Tom Morello’s ferocious guitar riffs.
V takes it down a notch for “One and Only,” which opens with the sound of ice cubes tinkling in a cold glass of vodka and explodes with a blistering guitar solo from Reid. The singer’s vocals, alternately breathy and furious, lead the dark love song, that explains “how deep and dark it can get, and the lengths you’ll go to for something or someone you want that bad.”
But V hits her darkest moment on the deeply emotional “Cry For A Minute,” a song about “needing to fall apart sometimes when you just can’t cope anymore.” The song took on a more personal tone during the recording process when a close friend and supporter of V’s, Eric Emanuel, died tragically in a car accident. “It made the song really hard to get through without getting really choked up. He was a mentor and an inspiration and I hope his memory will live on through this song.” That seamless shift from screeching rock to soulful balladry is classic V. “There’s no nicey-nicey girly thing with me,” V says of her determination to express her emotions, no matter how raw or how revealing.
V’s fans will get to watch the singer wrestle with those demons once again as V plans to bring her utterly intense live show to stages across the country following the release of her latest album. Will you join her court?
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