The Donnas Issue #34

The quartet has come a long way from its humble high school beginnings to its Bitchin’ present

By Elizabeth Rhodes
Published: December 1st, 2007 | 1:40pm

Brett Anderson still remembers the Donnas’ first gig in 1993. It was in a junior high school cafeteria at lunchtime before a crowd of hungry, hormonal, hypercritical teens in Palo Alto, California. Under the temporary name Ragady Anne, the four 13-year-old aspiring rockers played covers by the Muffs, L7, and others until the bell rang. “We were really scared,” Anderson says, “but we banded together and did it.”

Countless explosive, freewheeling shows later, the inexperienced eighth-graders have become bona fide rock goddesses. Legions of Donnaholics meet the band at every international tour stop for a straight-up shot of brash, shout-along party metal. But despite their larger-than-life image, the Donnas remain relatable. “We grew up in a band and never had much to do,” Anderson says before a show at the Brickhouse Theater in Phoenix. “We never had any friends besides each other, and our fans have enjoyed watching us grow.”

And how they’ve grown. After 14 years and six full-length albums, Anderson (lead vocals), Maya Ford (bass), Allison Robertson (guitar), and Torry Castellano (drums) released their seventh LP, Bitchin’, in September on their very own, brand-new label, Purple Feather Records. To cap off their successful year, Venus Zine readers voted the Donnas first place for Best Band and first place for Best Record Label. “Thank you, we’re flattered and honored, and we worked really hard for it,” Anderson says. “Too bad there’s not some huge awards ceremony!”

The 27-year-old says she grabs any opportunity to meet fans face-to-face and thank them for their support. “I think our fans connect with us because we connect with them,” she says. “We listen to them and meet them outside of shows. The reason they like us is because they can hear the honesty in our music, and they can sense that we’re music people and not just posers.”

Starting with the tight, leather-clad ass gracing Bitchin’s cover, there’s nothing understated about these head-banging tracks. The Donnas channel the heavy metal of Mötley Crüe and Cinderella while continuing to branch out from their trademark, high school delinquent, Ramones-meets-Runaways hybrid. “When we formed the band, I was into L7’s Bricks are Heavy,” Allison Robertson says. “Now one of my favorite albums is Cinderella’s Night Songs.”

The first Bitchin’ single, “Don’t Wait Up For Me,” nods directly at Joan Jett. Robertson rips through the party anthem, showing off her increased technical prowess, and Anderson doesn’t stutter while screaming, “Loosen up, drain the cup, it’s time to tear it up!”

“I think we were ready to make a big, arena-rock, party, balls-out rock record,” Anderson says. “We thought that’s what the world needed right now — an escape. We also considered, ‘What are we really good at doing?’ It’s always been good time rocknroll, and that doesn’t mean all the songs are positive but that’s a way you can relate to people and make them feel like they’re escaping their problems.”

The songwriting on Bitchin’ is sharp, clean, and mature, distancing the foursome from the early days when some critics accused them of relying heavily on songwriter and independent record exec Darin Raffaelli. The Donnas toured and recorded relentlessly throughout those would-be college years after scoring a record deal straight out of high school. “There’s nothing I’d wanna do differently, but I wish we’d known that we could party a little more when we were kids,” Robertson says. “We were so worried about our performance. I wish we’d gone even crazier on our first few tours.”

“I agree with that,” Anderson says. “I thought everything was such a big deal and we had to be so professional. The more time goes on, the more we enjoy it because we realize this is what we’re dedicated to. It’s really nice to have our priorities described away.”

The Donnas moved to the majors, signing with Atlantic Records in late 2001, and 2002’s Spend the Night became their first album to break into the Top 100 pop charts. But writing the follow-up to 2004’s polished and increasingly pop-oriented Gold Medal was a frustrating ordeal. “When we started writing this record, we were on Atlantic and it was really hard to get a feel from them for what they wanted,” Anderson says of the Bitchin’ sessions. “We thought, ‘God, we wish we could just do it ourselves.’”

After deciding to split with Atlantic, the Donnas entered a series of negotiations with other labels. However, every time the group came close to signing, the deal fell through. “Finally, we felt like we were the only people we could rely on,” Anderson says.

Co-producer Jay Ruston (the Polyphonic Spree, Meat Loaf) helped the band trim 30 original, roaring songs down to 14 final tracks about wild parties, boys, and booze. “We were kindred spirits,” Anderson says. “Certain producers think they have to listen to the artist and the label, and Jay didn’t have to worry about that. He was very nurturing.”

The Donnas say they don’t know exactly what’s scheduled for 2008, but they have a guess: “Probably just touring, touring and touring,” Anderson laughs. The Donnas hope that they inspire some other junior high girls to pick up guitars and form bands along the way. “When we were kids, we listened to Jane’s Addiction and Faith No More, but we didn’t think of starting a band until we saw L7,” Robertson says. “It made us feel like we could do that too.”

Label woes and living together on a bus for months at a time have destroyed many other bands. The Donnas say they’ve survived by making team decisions and always resisting the catty temptation to push one another’s buttons. “We’ve been through a lot,” Anderson says. “We’ve done things the big-budget way and we’ve done things the no budget way, and so it’s really hard to surprise us. We’re a tight-run ship at this point.”