Valley Favorites The Venomous Pinks Are Growing Up Right Before Our Eyes

It’s been quite a year so far in 2022 for Mesa, Arizona’s The Venomous Pinks, and it certainly feels like the band is just getting started.

For the uninitiated, The Venomous Pinks feature two members of the Valley punk rock royal family, singer/guitarist Drea Doll, and bassist/vocalist Gaby Kaos, who have been fixtures on the greater Phoenix scene for two decades. The three-piece band is rounded out by California-based drummer Cassie Jalilie, who hits the drums with the type of strength and precision that will have would-be drummers around the world aping her style. These three women lay down a powerful sound that oozes punk rock roots, sure, but is also something newer, and quite honestly, better.

To say the band has pedigree is an understatement. Doll was initially in local faves My Doll, who started out in 2004 when she was just a teenager before joining another excellent east side band, The Dames, in 2005. Kaos also has been active in the local scene as a solo musician, podcaster (Sound Sisters AZ), and more recently as the founder of Kaos Merch, which creates all The Venomous Pinks’ shirts, patches, and more. According to Jalilie, if you have bought any of the band’s merchandise recently, “Gaby has touched it.”

Jalilie has been playing drums for over 15 years, and has toured extensively in the United States and Europe with bands like Glam Skanks and Union 13. A California native, she and her bandmates met when The Venomous Pinks and Glam Skanks played shows together prior to joining forces. Apparently, each of the women had the same end goal in mind after their initial meeting. When fate brought them together again, everything fell into place for the current lineup to take their music careers to another level completely.

In June, The Pinks, as they are often referred to by fans and by the band itself, released their first full-length album, Vita Mors, on Austrian punk rock label SBÄM Records. This took place while they were out on an East Coast tour with the legendary Dead Kennedys.

“It was totally brutal. We did the backline for the entire run, so we were at the clubs by 2:30 p.m. or so each day and didn’t get to load out until after the DKs [Dead Kennedys] were finished. The Dead Kennedys are freaking awesome, though. They were amazing people and they never acted like rock stars,” says Doll.

Another great part, though, according to Doll, was the reaction her band got from the East Coast crowds.

“Everybody was like, ‘I don’t know who the fuck you are, but now I do, and you guys are fucking awesome.’ So, all the blood and sweat we put in to go on this tour, to get our music out there to people who hadn’t heard us, and now they can go spread the word, that was rewarding in itself,” adds Doll.

As if that wasn’t cool enough for the punk rock trio, who have been killing it on local stages for almost a decade, their summer fun was just getting started.

When the Dead Kennedys’ tour concluded, The Venomous Pinks got a short break before heading to Europe for the first time. They played with bands like Descendents, Bouncing Souls, and DFL, just to name a few. For two of the three Pinks, it was the first time playing in Europe. And the band had more than its fair share of fun with only a few slight hiccups such as dealing with rude French people and a 16-hour ride between Toulouse, France, and Linz, Austria.

“Every night the crowds were fucking awesome to [us], a band from Mesa, Arizona, that no one’s heard of. Seeing some people actually singing along and buying merch … the whole experience was crazy. My favorite part was getting to be part of a bass player sandwich standing between Karl Alvarez of the Descendents and Bryan (Kienlen) from Bouncing Souls. Those are my favorite bass players and I was just having a beer with them in Austria of all places. It’s so weird. (Laughs) It’s weird what’s happening in my life,” says Kaos.

It is easy to see why fans on the East Coast and on the continent were falling in love with these local heroes. Their record, Vita Mors (Latin for life/death), absolutely rocks. For longtime fans of the band, it must be inspiring to see how The Venomous Pinks have grown during their career. Without taking anything away from former members, when Jalilie (formerly of Union 13 and Glam Skanks) joined in 2019, the band took a giant step forward, and it is more than apparent on its first SBÄM release.
Vita Mors is a top-notch punk rock record. From the opening salvos of “Mercy,” the band just explodes under the talented engineer and co-producer, Cameron Webb. The band members credit Webb and first-time co-producer, Linh Le (Bad Cop/Bad Cop), with helping them take their sound to such an accomplished level. Webb’s production credits include bands like Motörhead, Pennywise, and NOFX. So the guy is no slouch when it comes to making a band sound good, and his work here is nothing short of kick ass.

“Everything changed for me [after working with Webb] on a musician and songwriting level. [I want] to take the tools we learned from Cameron and implement them on everything we do. We used to be super-DIY [do it yourself] and just hit record and there you go, but when you work with someone like Cameron, man … (pauses) he totally showed us what to do in the studio going forward,” says Doll.

Kaos did not disagree.

“Cameron Webb is a fucking amazing producer. It was terrifying, at times, because well, wait for the documentary to come out, you’ll see," she says. (The recording process, which took place in October and December 2021, was filmed for a forthcoming documentary that does not yet have a release date.)

"I walked out once, and I cried once but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. He literally just changed our lives in the two weeks we were with him,” Kaos adds.

Even Jalilie, who is no stranger to the demands of the recording studio, found working with Webb inspirational.

“Everything was under the microscope, before we even started recording. We went through every song with him, and he just dissected them. It was very cool but also very nerve-wracking. Once we learned, though, how he worked, it wasn’t as intense anymore, but he did push me. There were times, because our songs are fast, I didn’t feel like I had the energy to do another take, but he would say, ‘You can do it. You can do one more,’” says Jalilie.

“We Do It Better” is the fourth track on the album, but it originally appeared on the 2017 EP of the same name. To listen to the original version and the revised version is a great example of how the band has grown. Seemingly a feminist anthem replete with playful, Ramones-ish gang vocals, “We Do It Better” is really a message for every listener that you can do anything you want if you give it your all. The improved breakdown at the two-minute mark showcases Kaos’ stylish bassline while pumping up the crowd for a big finish thanks to a little guest vocal help from Brenna Red and the Last Gang.

In fact, the whole record is quite positive and uplifting while maintaining the edge fans of punk and pop-punk will revel in. There is an element of "punk rock pep talk" happening here on Vita Mors that is really refreshing to the ear. Doll agrees:

“Yeah, for sure. Pep talk is a good point. In the second verse we say, ‘There’s no wrong or right / You have to live your life,’ which to me is saying, 'Do whatever you want. If it makes you happy, do it. Choose your happiness and fuck pleasing anybody’s expectations of you. We’re only here for a short time,'” says Doll.

Speaking of fun basslines, “Hold On” is another standout track. Clocking in at over three minutes, “Hold On” is the second-longest track on the album and is yet another great dose of “PMA” (Positive Mental Attitude), according to Jalilie.

“That one was very different from how it was originally on our EP," she says. (There is a live version on the Pinks’ 2021 EP titled Based on a True Story.) "That was Linh [Le]. That was her take on it. She helped us take what was there originally and put her spin on it. She used to cover that song when she would play acoustically. We went and saw her in Long Beach one time, and we were like, ‘Dang, listen to how she plays this melody.’ Our jaws were dropping because of how she played our song. It was flattering.”
For our money, the best track on the record is “Apothecary Ailment.” Maybe the purest pop-punk song on Vita Mors, there are traces of the best elements of Bad Religion in this song without being obvious about it. Upon closer listening, though, it’s really the combination of Jalilie’s driving beat and Doll and Kaos’ vocals that make it stand out just a bit above the rest.

With a chorus of, “You drowned your demon / to live another day / Temptation comes / with a heavy price to pay / You drowned your demon / to all of our dismay / never give up, you’ll find a way / we’ll find a way / we’ll find a way,” the song is an epic take on alcoholism. The band hopes it gives strength to those who are battling demons of their own.

“If you shorten it, it’s A.A., and the song is basically about alcoholism. There was one Christmas Eve, and one of my family members was in the hospital and they were telling us they needed a liver transplant. It was really just a huge blow. Alcohol addiction is something we really don’t talk about enough and many of us have been affected by it personally,” shares Doll.

Another delightful surprise is “We Must Prevail,” which closes out this excellent record. The song starts off with a guitar nod to True Sounds of Liberty (T.S.O.L.) before evolving into an almost H2O-style mid-section, then devolving into a full-on New York hardcore romp to close it out. Doll gets to show off the full-throated rage she has long been known for around town, and it is truly sublime.

“During the pandemic, we would get together and practice and [at one point] we said, ‘Let’s try to write a hardcore song,’ so that’s where the last part of the song comes from where it goes super-fast. Originally, we wanted it to be the first song on the record, because of the intro that’s all instrumental. But Cameron said, ‘We’re not doing that. I hate when bands do that.’ The lyrics are just based on what we’ve gone through as a band,” says Doll.

Jalilie chimed in on “We Must Prevail” as well.

“That was like three separate things at first. It was going to be an intro and an outro, and Cameron said to make it all one entity. We were like, ‘Really?’ But it all came together. We were listening to a lot of heavy stuff, and we decided to make a heavy song. That’s what came out,” she says.

What makes The Venomous Pinks so fun to watch, though, is the camaraderie between these three women. In the three short years they have been together with this lineup, it is clear a bond stronger than black leather and dark eyeliner has been forged. It is also clear from speaking to them separately that this is, to each of them, their “forever” band, and the sky is the limit for what they can accomplish if they continue to grow. Even though they weren’t on the phone at the same time, they almost finished each other’s sentences when it came to talking about how much they respect each other.

“You probably wouldn’t think it, but Drea’s the quietest one out of all of us. You’d never expect that of the lead singer, but she’s definitely more reserved. She totally blows me away with her words. A lot of our songwriting is the three of us together, but Drea will have a riff and then she’ll put lyrics on top of it and I’m just like, ‘How do you do that?’ She’s super-talented,” Jalilie says of her guitar player.

Kaos referred to Jalilie as her “rhythm sister” before expanding on her admiration for her drummer.

“Whatever you’re going through, Cassie has the right words to tell you. She’s a little shy, though, when talking to people but once you get to know her, she’s an incredible human. When we first toured with her in 2018 [when Jalilie was playing with another band], I would just sit there and watch her play. I remember leaning over one time and saying to Drea, ‘If she drummed for us, imagine how much farther we can get,'” says Kaos.

When asked about her bass player, Doll’s admiration was more than apparent.

“She’s funny and loyal and an amazing bass player. She’s probably one of the hardest-working people I know in our scene. From running her own small business to being in the band and everything else she freaking does. She’s also great at networking, which I am not good at. I love to hang back and just watch her work,” says Doll.

As 2022 rounds the corner into the fall (or as Phoenicians like to call it, “Not Hot”), The Venomous Pinks are busy getting ready for a show with Authority Zero on September 9 at the Nile Theater in Mesa. That precedes a short tour with The Queers in October (which includes a recently announced stop in Phoenix on October 6 at Pub Rock Live). Things are also looking good for 2023 as well, when the much-anticipated sophomore album will be recorded for another SBÄM Records release.

The future does indeed look bright for these three talented musicians and, goddamn it, they deserve it.