Curated by Willa Rudolph / Words by Fiona Tagami
Willa’s note: Yeah, we’re New Yorker’s but everyone needs a lil’ Cali in their life now and again. Check out Whisper Doll’s West Coast tour diary below. How does East Coaster and front woman Fiona Tagami fair in the Golden State?
Friends of The Deli Mag [our review of their debut album, Perfume Garden], NYC based band Whisper Doll west coast Mini Tour: A scrapbook report ⋆｡°✩
May 29th- June 2nd: San Fransisco
I began the trip by heading to Neck of The Woods for Kara’s (Father Koi / bass, backing vocals of Whisper Doll) solo show to DJ and sing background vocals. After sound check, we strolled around the neighborhood and got pho, which is the very best pre show meal.
After the show, a bunch of us went to a casino called Lucky Chances and ate at the attached Filipino restaurant. The SF artists on the bill said it was their favorite post show spot because it’s open 24/7. Casinos always have a time-stopping energy, but this one, with its mirrored walls and busy carpet, was especially liminal.
San Fransisco is one of my favorite cities, right behind New York. I went there last summer, to visit a friend I met at a TAGABOW show at Baby’s All Right that spring, while he was visiting the city. He showed me around the The Bay and it was magical. I’ve been in love with it ever since, and felt really lucky to be able to go back this summer and dive deeper into the city and explore the music scene and more pockets of the city.
I spent the rest of the time in San Fransisco exploring Height Ashbury and Chinatown, going on hikes and late night walks through north SF with Izayah (who I met at the show), dancing at raves, and checking out Amoeba Records, where I purchased “Split Milk” by Jellyfish (a local band from the 90s that was recommended to me by the store clerk).
One of the days, I walked through the Mission district alone, stopping into various shops. On the street, a woman sat making jewelry with a few others. They looked like your typical crust punks. After living on st marks place in nyc for 3 years, I’ve come to know the look quite well. But they seemed to be a bit softer, perhaps the weather and general vibe in SF played a part. She had kind eyes, that locked with mine as I walked passed. I noticed a guitar laying down next to her. She stopped me and asked me to pick a ring from her collection to take. Any ring. I offered to pay but she told me that she likes to give them away. She said knowing her art is out there is enough. I took a ring with moonstone and wore it for the rest of the trip.
On the road: San Fransisco to LA (overnight in Big Sur)
Kara and I opted for the cheapest rental car option to get us down to LA, but when we got to Avis’s garage, the only car they had left was a ford mustang convertible….. I thought it was a Jaguar. The only car I’ve ever driven is my moms 2002 Toyota Prius, so I was super nervous to drive anything nicer then that!
After 30 min on the road with the top down, it wore off. Couldn’t imagine a better way to experience a California road trip than driving down the 1, top down, blasting music. We stopped at many cute little towns along the way, including Half Moon Bay, Caramel by The Sea and Monterey. ⋆︎˚｡⋆
After many hours of driving, we arrived to Deetjens Big Sur Inn (recommend to me by Nicole from Lynsey The Band!) and fell fast asleep⋆☾⋆⁺⋆
June 3rd- June 8th: Los Angeles
The rest of the drive from Big Sur to LA was much less magical. I drove us down the 101 and 5 highways. [Willa’s note: Fiona, it’s just “the 101 and the 5” 😉 no “highway”… some weird cali thing lol] We couldn’t make many stops since my show at The Smell was that night. After 8 hrs of driving (along with a vibrant gas station pickle and multiple repeats of the new Addison Rae album) we made it.
GET TIX TO WHISPER DOLL’S NEXT SHOW
The show was so wonderful, I was super excited to book the smell with LA angels Katrina Wiessman and Nymphlord, all of which was made possible by DIY booker Noise Ect. <3
While in LA, Kara, Emma and I spent an afternoon sitting in Katrina’s Yard in Echo park, looking over a view of the city. The palm trees jetted above the foliage and cottages, which made for quite an exotic view as an East Coaster. Mia from My Veronica joined us. We chatted about music scenes in LA vs NYC, the different ways each of us try to make money and sustain our music. We talked about our different songwriting processes and throwing shows. I remember sitting there and feeling really lucky.
A lot happened in LA, but some notable moments were:
★ Pleasure Tapes show at Non Plus Ultra (finally got to meet Kayla! Check out the CDs they made for our debut album, Perfume Garden!)
★ Meeting three graffiti artists and train hoppers on the top of Angels Point. They had many interesting stories
★ Finally meeting and hanging out with the lovely Emma Aibara, hyper pop artist and friend from Japan
★ Seeing Dax Flame at 4100 bar….
June 9th: Back to NYC…
Some shows we played in June:
On July 9th I threw another acoustic house show in Brooklyn, featuring Mia from My Veronica, Silvia K and Kenneth Takanami. Before the show, I took Mia to see Broom and Moderate Rock play in Tompkins Square Park. Then we made our way to Brooklyn.
The house show was a magical affair…. more house shows to come 😉
AND… Finally! A show announcement! We are opening for Boston band Don’t Tell Iris with Babe City on August 20th at Mercury Lounge [TICKETS].
Thank you for reading!! <3
xx Fiona