As a whole, we like to set ourselves up with new goals at the start of each cycle around the sun. And never has that been more true than in 2021 because for many of us – the previous year was a whirlwind unlike any other. For Violent Vickie, she took advantage of the time she had to release her sophomore album, ‘Division,’ but when times got overwhelming she’d pop on Mariah’s “Vision of Love” and zone out for just a few moments. Now, she’s working on the release of a remix record, a Johnny Cash cover, and talking to us about her latest release, LA’s scene, and more.

Kendra: This year’s ‘Division’ is your first LP in seven years, but you started writing some of the songs found on it a year or so after ‘Monster Alley’ dropped. When you picked these songs back up to finish in the past year or so, did anything major change with the direction of any of them lyrically or musically given that some time had passed?

Violent Vickie: My collaborator E sped up The Game quite a bit. We also added some parts and lyrics and changed the mixes. Most of the songs became whole in the past year or two.

Kendra: Stepping away from music for a second, you were busy between then and now. Getting a Master’s and working at a rehab. You had a lot stacked on your plate, but do you think that ‘Divisions’ wouldn’t be the record it is without those major experiences?

Violent Vickie: It probably wouldn’t be the same. “Under the Gun” and “Circle Square” were written around some experiences I had while I was in school.

Kendra: When I pressed play on the record, especially “Serotonin,” I felt like I was watching a scene from the likes of ‘Euphoria.’ It had this definite night out in an undisclosed location feel. With that, if you could place any song from ‘Division’ on a current TV show, which song and show would you pick and why?

Violent Vickie: I only recently started watching TV again and I saw this show called ‘Good Girls’ that I thought some of my songs might work on since they had a Le Tigre song on there. Some horror-themed movies might be a good fit too.

Kendra: You noted that “Lovelace” was inspired after you watched a documentary on Linda Lovelace. I had never heard of her until the movie starring Amanda Seyfriend. Was she someone you had an interest in before you tuned in?

Violent Vickie: I had heard of her just because of her infamous porn, but that documentary was the first time that I heard that her experience was nonconsensual.

http://open.spotify.com/track/5Gsdtqg2J4r8rckgUJ5tFB

Kendra: Being based in Los Angeles, the lockdowns and stay-at-home orders have been particularly heartbreaking for the local music scene because live music is one of the reasons many people flock there. How adaptive do you feel LA musicians have proven to be in a time where they just cannot play live?

Violent Vickie: I mean tons of people have been doing livestreams and there have been some legal shows in Orange County and some illegal ones in LA.

Kendra: This year has pushed people in various directions personally, financially, creatively. For you, how do you feel 2020 has shaped your creativity and drive moving forward?

Violent Vickie: It gave me the time to finish and promote my new album and videos.

Violent Vickie’s ‘Division’ is available now on Bandcamp and Spotify.