Photo Essay for Stephanie Bailey of The Black Angels & Julie Edwards of Deap Vally.
Written by: Jenifer Marchain
Photographer: Cortney Armitage
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Under an October sky and beneath an unforgiving sun, music fans converged upon the Fairplex in Pomona California for an opportunity to whet their musical palettes at the Moon Block Party. The event was packed to the brim with great acts like Spoon, Band of Skulls, The Black Lips, Cosmonauts, The Black Angels and Deap Vally, all of which brought many kids to the yard, including me and Tom Tom Magazine photographer Cortney Armitage.
Our first stop was to watch the stunning firecracker that is Julie Edwards of Deap Vally. Both Moon Block Party founder and event manager, Julie is also the second half of the vivacious duo. If you could imagine Thelma and Louise behind the wheel of their instruments, you might have captured the feeling behind their energy. These girls hit it and hit it hard with Julie seemingly making the drum kit her bitch.
I originally covered Stephanie for TTM for the Beat Makers issue #7 and I was so thrilled to be given an opportunity to cover her again. Her dynamic and very consistent approach to playing is always mesmerizing to watch and I quickly was set in a trance as the band led off the set with their deeply rich track, You On the Run. The audience swelled and began to sway and some may have begun to float away. As I continued to watch the set a guy next to me turned and asked his who “the chic drummer” was. Clearly, this was his first Black Angels show. I sprang to attention and leaned over and said, “Her name is Stephanie Bailey.” He gave me an awkward smile but thanked me nonetheless. A few beats later he leaned over and said, “She’s pretty kick ass.” “Yeah,” I said. “Stephanie is my spirit animal.”
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