Dead Sara

Although they've been active in Los Angeles since the early 2000s, dynamic alt-rock combo Dead Sara broke through in 2011 with the fiery "Weatherman," a single that channeled the wailing rally cries of <a href="spotify:artist:2d0hyoQ5ynDBnkvAbJKORj">Rage Against the Machine</a> and the urban blues-punk of <a href="spotify:artist:5BYuBzqmTXwUDw2rYkwExr">the Kills</a>, filling a gap left after the decline of grunge. In 2015 they issued their sophomore LP, the crowd-funded Pleasure to Meet You, which soared to the number two spot on the Billboard Heatseekers chart. They inked a deal with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Atlantic%22">Atlantic</a> ahead of the release of the 2018 EP Temporary Things Taking Up Space, and in 2021 they issued the anthemic single "Heroes" ahead of the release of their next studio LP.

With straightforward, guitar-driven rock & roll anthems in the spirit of <a href="spotify:artist:2zMQOJ4Cyl4BYbw6WqaO3h">L7</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:5SHQUMAmEK5KmuSb0aDvsn">Hole</a>, Dead Sara is fronted by the powerful rasp of singer Emily Armstrong and lead guitarist Siouxsie Medley. The band earned the admiration of female rock icons like <a href="spotify:artist:3wNX7r7t4Vaahrx9XzyYIY">Grace Slick</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:4vI0xGbQl2cMnMiagUEBOj">Courtney Love</a>, rising from D.I.Y. heroes releasing music on their own <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Pocket+Kid+Records%22">Pocket Kid Records</a> to landing songs in television shows like Banshee and video games like Playstation 4's Infamous: Second Son in 2013, to signing with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Atlantic+Records%22">Atlantic Records</a> in 2017.

Friends since their teenage years, Armstrong and Medley played their first official show as Dead Sara in 2005, releasing their first EP, The Airport Sessions, in 2008 on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Viscount+Productions%22">Viscount Productions</a>. After several different rotations, the band's rhythm battery was eventually rounded out with bassist Chris Null and drummer Sean Friday, both of whom have previously played with Sonny Moore (<a href="spotify:artist:5he5w2lnU9x7JFhnwcekXX">Skrillex</a>). As the group started gaining a fan base by touring, Dead Sara's acclaim reached the ears of <a href="spotify:artist:4vI0xGbQl2cMnMiagUEBOj">Courtney Love</a>, who invited Armstrong to sing on an upcoming <a href="spotify:artist:5SHQUMAmEK5KmuSb0aDvsn">Hole</a> album. After seeing them live, <a href="spotify:artist:2qFr8w5sWUITRlzZ9kZotF">Jefferson Airplane</a>'s <a href="spotify:artist:3wNX7r7t4Vaahrx9XzyYIY">Grace Slick</a> talked the band up in several music publications, feeding the hype for their self-titled full-length, released on Dead Sara's own <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Pocket+Kid+Records%22">Pocket Kid Records</a> label in spring of 2012. Having gained some attention and success through their debut and the "Weatherman" single, the band signed with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Epic+Records%22">Epic Records</a> in 2013. The union would prove to be short-lived, with band and label parting ways the following year, leaving Dead Sara to release their follow-up, Pleasure to Meet You, on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Pocket+Kid%22">Pocket Kid</a> in 2015. Following the departure of Null, the band carried on as a trio, compiling several previously released cover songs, including one of <a href="spotify:artist:6olE6TJLqED3rqDCT0FyPh">Nirvana</a>'s "Heart-Shaped Box," for 2017's The Covers EP. That same year, Dead Sara signed another major-label deal, this time with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Atlantic%22">Atlantic</a>, which released their EP Temporary Things Taking Up Space in 2018. Two years later the band issued the gritty standalone single "Hands Up," followed in 2021 by the rousing "Heroes." ~ Jason Lymangrover