x

TIGER SEX / Blog

TIger Sex at The Griffin (DTLV Music)

Tiger Sex at the Griffin 10/9/13 by Shane Jackson

One of my favorite spots to go get my weekend freak on Downtown is the Griffin. The bar’s front room is classy and inviting, while the floor area in the back is perfect for dancing all night long to a DJ. However, until seeing Tiger Sex there on October 9th, I had never seen a live band perform in the space. Having been told in the past by Rusty Maples’ Dewane brothers that the acoustics in the Griffin’s back room aren’t exactly conducive to live band setups, I was a bit apprehensive going into the show. Fortunately, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the sound, and my only advice to future Griffin show-goers is to bring earplugs!

Tiger Sex is a local garage rock/proto-punk band led by charismatic vocalist Kelly TigerSex. Prior to the show, I watched the band’s music video for “Prostitution,” so I knew I was in for some hard-hitting, erotically charged punk music. What I didn’t know was just how much the provocative lead singer’s live performance would enthrall me. Wearing only tight black pants and a black bra for most of the show, TigerSex prowled around the room like an apex predator in heat. She seductively gyrated on her microphone stand like a beckoning stripper, but some primal fear inside of me told me that if I got too close, she’d tear out my throat and feed me to her tiger kittens. Channeling more animals than just tigers, the band could easily be called “Doberman Sex,” as TigerSex barks her vocals with the ferocity of a junkyard dog. Further contributing to the canine comparison was the studded collar adorning her neck, and the band even performed a cover of the Stooge’s 1969 classic, “I Wanna Be Your Dog.”

Though TigerSex is clearly the focal point, her appeal would diminish without the competent backing of her band mates. Guitarist Kei is more than just a power-chord pounder; he’s a fiery soloist who can turn a standard 12-bar blues into blistering garage punk gold. At one point, he was soloing so hard that he broke a string, but that didn’t stop him from plowing ahead at full force and finishing the song.

In all, I was more than impressed by this group of musicians, and I would see them again in a heartbeat. Hopefully they play more shows Downtown!

http://dtlvmusic.com/2013/10/tiger-sex-griffin/

Vegas Seven - Concert Review

By Jarret Keene

Before the band cranked up, someone in the crowd said to a pal: “I love tigers and I love sex, so I think I’m going to love this band.” Tiger Sex is an apt name for the feral, erotic punk quartet from Las Vegas. Singer Kelly Tiger Sex wasn’t a sequined magician’s white Bengal, cage-pampered and waiting for instructions. She was a famished panther, mostly ignoring the stage and prowling the room, ready to eat what she didn’t kill, kill what she didn’t fuck. I was scared of her, and I don’t say that about rock vocalists (except when riding shotgun with Vince Neil).

Tiger Sex grafted the Plasmatics’ raw poetry onto the Stooges’ hell-for-leather guitar-riffing. The songs weren’t a retro trip for vintage vampires, though. The band Montecore’d my ears with gutter-glittering tunes—from guitarist Kei’s wah-wah-pedal frenzy on “My Way” to the street walkin’-cheetah strut of “Prostitution,” bassist Paul French and drummer Chris Moon locking into relentless rhythms. Easily the most exciting rock group—sonically and visually—in Las Vegas right now.

- See more at: http://vegasseven.com/2013/09/30/concert-review-tiger-sex

Culture Of The Senses

By Michael M. Humel

I have seen Tiger Sex play two shows and this night was definitely the better of the two shows. Since the last time I saw the band they got themselves a new bass player. The guitar player Kei’s set that night was shredding. The band has only been in existence for a few months and already they have almost enough material for a first album. The muscle of their music is hard rock and punk with a skeleton of melodies. Kelly TigerSex morphs into a different person when she is on stage. She dances seductively, crawls on the floor, moshes with the audience and uses the microphone stand as a metaphor for sexual innuendo. She has the ability to project her voice in a loud, powerful scream as well as a soft blues whisper. “Monday Morning Blues” an original composition showed more diversity within the band. As the show went on the audience began moshing and the band played more punk. Toward the end of the show they played a cover of “Wanna be your dog” by The Stooges, while Amy Pate lead singer of Candy Warpop walked one of the audience members around on a leash while he was dancing. I liked the way two bands could be interactive within each others show.

Rough-edged Tiger Sex scores with rock 'n' roar

By JASON BRACELIN LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL 8/1/13

Kelly TigerSex is recalling the moment when it clicked, when singing in front of people felt as natural to her as singing in the shower.

It was at a gig in the room where she now sits, venerable dive the Double Down Saloon, where, with her ripped red fishnets and well-worn tank top, she’s practically indivisible from the decor.

“When I laid on the floor and a bunch of girls were putting their butts over my face I was like, ‘This is rock ’n’ roll right here,’ ” she grins over the roar of the jukebox and the loud conversations of post-happy hour revellers nearby.

“Oh yeah, I remember that,” says one of her bandmates, guitarist Kei, who recalls her transformation from tentative, first-time singer to brassy frontwoman with a bullhorn for a larynx. “I was going to just jam with her on acoustic guitar, and then she sounded very loud. I said, ‘Wow.’ ”

The band they started together, Tiger Sex, played their first show in April, but already the quartet (rounded out by drummer Chris Moon and bassist Paul French) have become a much talked about live act, largely because of TigerSex’s in-your-grille presence.

Aside from its singer, the group is composed of scene vets who’ve done time in notable Vegas bands such as The Tinglerz, Jupiter Shifter, M.I.A., Shattered Faith and F.S.P.

Together, they’re like a coiled spring under pressure, all tension aching for release, with TigerSex often sounding as if she was traversing hot coals with bare feet.

“She can sing the blues and carry a melody, but at the same time, is very aggressive,” Kei notes approvingly.

Kei is a flamboyant, flashy guitarist who possesses the aplomb of a Johnny Thunders but is a much more precise player, while the rhythm section possesses the hard swing of a badass ’60s R&B combo.

The group initially began with Kei and TigerSex bonding over the Beatles, but it’s the Stooges who are the band’s most palpable influence, mainly in the way they wed a combative rock ’n’ roll bluster with a cocksure, seductive swagger.

TigerSex, who moved here from Florida a year ago, has an uncle who once traveled with the Ramones and who gave her compilations of obscure punk bands when she was a kid. As such, her influences tend to extend far beyond her years with little taste for contemporary sounds.

“I like a raw, garage-y, in-your-face type of sound,” she says.

The band plans on hitting the studio for the first time later this month and is gigging constantly. (You can catch the band at Beauty Bar on Thursday night and Saturday). For TigerSex, it’s a way to be a part of something that’s always been a part of her.

“Before, I’d just go to a bar and listen to music,” she says. “Now, I’m doing the music.”

Rich's R'n'R Rants & Raves

By Rich Coffee 5/17/13

Wow! What a totally fun night of terrific rock’n’roll! Favorites has now morphed into the Dive Bar, fittingly, as it is run by people who worked the old (original?) Dive Bar. Anyone who’s ever read this blog knows that I am a huge fan of Tinglerz and their guitarist Kei, so I had to check out Tiger Sex. In this project, Kei simply mangles his guitar while Kelly takes over the vocal chores like a raw Joan Jett or like the “little girl with a big voice” popularized in the 80’s by bands like Tex & the Horseheads. The rhythm section is dynamite and once again, Kei has a band who knows how to write real songs. They have no problem playing different tempos and are right at home with a slow, smoldering, heavy blues (that sounded like a mix of the Stooges “I Need Somebody” and the Jeff Beck Group or something!) as they are with a high energy punk rocker. Their choice of covers gives a good indication of their influences and style - “Cherry Bomb” by the Runaways and “I Wanna Be Your Dog” by the Stooges. Kei rips it up in the best Ron Ashton/Wayne Kramer style - cool riffs with plenty of noise and wah-wah and just teetering on the edge of chaos - as r’n’r always should! He really is one of my fave guitarists in town and with this excellent rhythm section and dynamic lead singer, he has an amazing new project. Once again, Vegas proves that there is some real rock’n’roll here! Make sure you get out and see some of the great bands that we have!