Image credit: Alice Baxley
Beloved Los Angeles punk band The Linda Lindas release a video for their new holiday single “Groovy Xmas.”
Of the song, The Linda Lindas say “There are so many cool Christmas songs that we love to dance to, and a lot of them are by our favourite punk bands: Alice Bag, Red Kross, Shonen Knife… We were inspired by them to write our own carol that you can add to your jolly playlist and enjoy at holiday gatherings! Please sing along and share: and we hope you have a very Groovy Xmas and an awesome new year!”
The band’s debut album was released earlier this year to wide critical praise with The New York Times calling it “a combination of wholesome and fierce” and Pitchfork hailing it as “the most heartwarming record of the year.” Growing Up is out now via Epitaph Records.
MORE ABOUT THE LINDA LINDAS:
The Linda Lindas first played together as members of a pickup new wave cover band of kids assembled by Kristin Kontrol (Dum Dum Girls) for Girlschool LA in 2018 and then formed their own garage punk group soon after. Sisters Mila de la Garza (drummer, now 11) and Lucia de la Garza (guitar, 14), cousin Eloise Wong (bass, 13), and family friend Bela Salazar (guitar, 17) developed their chops as regulars at all-ages matinees in Chinatown, where they played with original L.A. punks like The Dils, Phranc, and Alley Cats; went on to open for riot grrrl legends Bikini Kill and architect Alice Bag as well as DIY heavyweights Best Coast and Bleached; and were eventually featured in Amy Poehler’s movie Moxie.
The Linda Lindas went on to self-release a four-song EP, make their own videos and grow a following beyond Los Angeles. But they never expected or could have even dreamed that their performance of “Racist, Sexist Boy” for the Los Angeles Public Library in May 2021 would put them smack in the middle of the cultural zeitgeist. “It can be comforting, in times like these, to be slapped cold by undeniable truth. And so it is with The Linda Lindas a band made up of four Asian and Latina teens and tweens [who] have generated a significant wave of attention in the three years since the band was founded,” said the New York Times. “And this new song, which Eloise said was inspired by a real-life experience, is a needs-no-explanation distillation of righteous anger. It’s severely relatable.” The blistering performance amassed over four million views on Instagram, and earned major praise from the likes of Hayley Williams, Questlove, Flea, and members of Rage Against the Machine and Sonic Youth.
A month later, The Linda Lindas got to work on their first full-length LP. Having written a mountain of new material individually while sheltering in place and attending class virtually, the band was more than ready to enter the studio where Carlos de la Garza oversaw recording and production. The Grammy-winning producer’s work includes Paramore, Bad Religion, Best Coast, and Bleached.
A product of generations of underground music in L.A. and beyond, The Linda Lindas’ debut channels classic punk, post-punk, power pop, new wave, and other surprises into timelessly catchy and cool songs sung by all four members—each with her own style and energy. With an ever-maturing writing prowess and expanded life experience, The Linda Lindas is Growing Up.
