Vice Interview: Heartsrevolution

Interview with recent signees to Kate Moross's fledgeling Isomorph Records.

Heartsrevolution

Heartsrevolution are a cute band born from the cute concept that a cute girl from LA called Lo had one day to turn up at shows and parties and yard sales and pretty much wherever she fancied in a cute 1960’s ice cream truck and sell cute stuff out of the back of it. The truck was called Heartschallenger and became an all purpose vehicle dedicated to spreading cuteness. You should be getting the whole ‘cute’ thing by now. I’ve kind of been hammering it home.

The whole selling weird organic ice cream, fluorescent 7” singles and limited print run t shirts by local artists with no other outlet was in fact such a cute concept that we featured the Heartschallenger ice cream van in an episode of The Cute Show on VBS.

Since then the pair realized that the ditties that Lo’s pal Ben had been knocking up to blear out of Heartschallenger as they sold their wares were actually really great. As an extension of the whole ‘everything under one roof’ ethic that governs Heartschallenger’s mini-world they decided to start performing the tracks live. Out of the back of the truck. Everyone went monkey-nuts about Lo and Ben’s ice cream jingles come to life and no one more so than our buddy Kate Moross. Kate provided the newly christened Heartsrevolution live experience with artwork, a label and live visuals. She helped out so much in fact that Lo and Ben made her an official member of the band . Why does no one ever want me in their band?

VICE: How did you two cutie pies meet up and decide to start rolling around town in a pink ice cream van?
Lo (voice): We worked at the same hotel in LA. I had always wanted to drive an ice cream truck and I was into Riot Grrrl and all that kind of stuff growing up so the idea of a totally independent little unit that could sell it’s own special little things that you can’t get anywhere else seemed totally logical to me.
Ben (keyboards and effects): And she just needed me to write some tunes which we just based on the Aphex Twin song ‘Flim’.
Lo: I had been a straight edge chick in South Central until I was 14 and getting shit all the time then I dropped out of school, went to a rave in the dessert, did a bunch of drugs, heard that song and knew it would make perfect Ice Cream van music.

The tunes seem to have become more popular than the van. Who’d a thunk it?
Ben: Those tunes got me thrown out of my band, they were like: “its the band or the ice cream”. I went with the ice cream.
Lo: That’s ‘cos it’s more fun. I knew we were onto a good thing when my daughter started dancing to the songs. She comes to all of our parties and hustles outside the van. She runs the show.

Do you have seperate outfits for stage and ice pop vending?
Lo: For the truck we dress pretty normal but for stage we get a little dressed up. Capes, matching hoodies, a little facepaint maybe.
Ben: We have recently got into balaclavas for the live show. They would be handy for getting ice pole out of the deep freeze.

Jay Kay

Heartsrevolution’s 7” vinyl Switchblade EP is forthcoming on Kate Moross’s Isomorph Records.

www.myspace.com/heartsrevolution