Cocktail Slippers
Norwegian all-female garage rock band with a camp visual style.
Cocktail Slippers is a five-piece all-female garage rock and power pop band from Oslo, Norway, formed in 2001. They have released five studio albums and are known for energetic live performances, having shared stages with artists such as Nancy Sinatra, Crowded House, Elvis Costello, and The Strokes. The band continues to tour regularly in Europe and the United States.
Quick Facts
- Origin
- Oslo, Norway
- Genre
- garage rock
- rock and roll
- power pop
- Years active
- 2001–present
- Label
- Wicked Cool Records
- Current members
- Rocket Queen (guitar)
- Vega (guitar)
- Sugar (bass)
- SMASH (drums)
- Flame (vocals)
Facts from the source article.
Background
Cocktail Slippers formed in Oslo in early 2001 from the remnants of the all-female band The Barbarellas, whose former members regrouped with a new drummer and adopted the new name. Their debut album Rock It! appeared in 2001 on the Norwegian label MTG, and the band quickly gained a reputation for high-energy garage rock and frequent live shows in Norway. The second album Mastermind (2004) had little commercial impact and limited national exposure, with no significant international breakthrough at that time. In 2003, while touring Oslo with Bruce Springsteen, Steven Van Zandt discovered the band after buying their debut album at a local record store; he began playing their songs on his radio show Little Steven’s Underground Garage and later signed them to his label Wicked Cool Records, stating that Cocktail Slippers were the reason the label was created. The 2009 album Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre, produced with Van Zandt, included two songs written by him and covers of Lesley Gore and Connie Francis; it received strong international reviews and brought the band its widest exposure, including festival appearances in Europe and the United States and repeated invitations to South by Southwest. During the 2010s, lineup changes and a shift toward a more pop-oriented sound occurred, most notably on the 2014 album People Talk. The band appeared in the television series Lilyhammer, participated in the 2012 national finals of the Eurovision song contest, and performed at Hard Rock Calling in Hyde Park, London alongside Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, and Iggy & The Stooges. The gap before the fifth album was caused by lineup changes, parental leave, and the COVID-19 pandemic; Cocktail Slippers returned with Shout It Out Loud! in 2021 on Wicked Cool Records, followed by the EP Talking About Love (2024), and have resumed regular touring.
Visual style
The band has been conscious of its visual expression, experimenting with looks such as sailor girls, tennis players, and gangsters. More recently, designer Cårejånni Enderud has added glam and glitter to their costumes, conveying a sense of girl power in a style reminiscent of WWE wrestling with exaggerated, superhero-like outfits covered in glitter. Camp is important to their stage names and overall style; the band's name references the look of Alexis from the TV soap Dynasty, and they typically use that series' theme song to start concerts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What genre of music does Cocktail Slippers play?
Cocktail Slippers's music is classified as garage rock, rock and roll and power pop.
Who are the current members of Cocktail Slippers?
The current members of Cocktail Slippers are listed as Rocket Queen (guitar), Vega (guitar), Sugar (bass), SMASH (drums) and Flame (vocals).
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