When you get three long-time friends like Kim Shattuck (frontwoman of The Muffs and longtime bassist of The Pandoras), Melanie Vammen (also of The Pandoras and formerly of The Muffs), and Palmyra Delran (solo artist and creative soul of all-girl group, The Friggs) together, they’re bound to create something great, and their new project, The Coolies is nothing short of just that. With their debut EP, the three have joined forces to create the ultimate female power pop punk band and just today dropped their debut EP, Uh Oh! It’s… The Coolies in an effort to combat ALS. With 100% of proceeds from the record sales going to support research for The ALS Association, not only is the trio’s debut EP worth listening to because of its warm, timeless summertime vibes, but also because it’s going to a great cause.
Get to know a bit more about The Coolies and listen to the EP now below!
Can you tell us a little bit about The Coolies for anyone who might not be familiar?
Palmyra Delran: We all sort of hatched from the same music scene, and dug a lot of the same music – British Invasion, garage, power pop, mod, and bubblegum stuff. Why not start a band?
You’ve all been involved with other bands prior to forming The Coolies – what inspired you to get together for this project? What makes it special to you?
Melanie Vammen: We’re all best friends. Kim & I have played together in the Muffs and Pandoras. I also play in Palmyra’s band on the west coast and Kim has recorded on some of Palmyra’s records. It was time for the three of us to be a band! Being able to make music and being creative with these badass chicks is the best!
The main goal of this new project is to use your platform to help combat ALS. What makes this an important issue for you?
Kim Shattuck: It runs in my dad’s side of the family and it is so sad to watch it hit a great deal of my family members! Thanks for asking!
Later this month, you’ll be releasing your self-titled EP, of which all proceeds will go to support research for the ALS association. If listeners want to get involved further than purchasing the EP, what suggestions or recommendations do you have?
Kim Shattuck: Giving money to the ALS association of course! They are so great! Thanks!
Did you have any goals in mind when you began working on the EP?
Melanie Vammen: To have fun!
Palmyra Delran: And it worked! We are having a blast! It was also in our minds the whole time to get further involved with contributing to finding a cure for ALS. It’s so important to all of us.
Given your combined experiences in other bands, was there anything that you wanted to do or experiment with that you haven’t been able to try in the past?
Melanie Vammen: We thought it would be cool to each play multiple instruments on the EP!
What was the most exciting or rewarding part of working on the EP?
Kim Shattuck: I got to work with Palmyra in a band together for the first time! I adore her and always wanted to try and do something musical with her! And Melanie, I wanted to put a band together with her ever since we became friends again. We are musical soul mates for sure!
Palmyra Delran: It’s funny how musicians are – when we have similar musical tastes and have fun together, the logical next step is to have a band together. It’s like an extension of our friendships!
With the EP out soon, do you have any other big plans for the rest of the summer?
Kim Shattuck: We are waiting for just the right event to pick.
Thank you for taking the time to chat with us! Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Palmyra Delran: We love working together, and hope everyone digs it! We’re aiming to cause a big stink!
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