Random Rules Playlist 22: Vivian Girls Family Tree

Also: some thoughts on the last SXSW ever

Vivian Girls - original lineup. L-R Cassie Ramone, Frankie Rose, Kickball Katy

Ok, so full disclosure: I have been working on this piece & playlist on the Vivian Girls family tree (aka the Vivian Girls cottage industry) for weeks now, making sure I included all relevant side projects and putting the tracks in accurate chronological order. Also I have to point out that Vivian Girls and almost all of their side projects were PR clients of mine at some point in time, they were a very important band for me on a friend level, musically and for my business.

Having just returned from the SXSW festival / conference in Austin, there’s even more of a reason to post about the Vivian Girls now. While I was in Austin, I found myself and other music industry lifers that I ran into waxing nostalgic about the “peak” of SXSW unofficial day parties which had to be around 2009. There were a lot of hyped bands that year, but it was really the year of Vivian Girls, who I believe played 23 SXSW parties in the space of a weeek (only to be topped by a Canadian band called DD/MM/YYYY who played 26). If you’re wondering how this was a thing, it seemed to be a competition as to who could play the most blog parties at SXSW in the space of a week. It was a different time. Just take a look at the flyer for my 2009 SXSW day party:

Comparatively, the most active bands at SXSW in 2024 (bands like Chanel Beads, Lip Critic or TAGABOW) may have had twelve appearances, total, if they were lucky. There aren’t as many blogs around these days to throw showcases and it’s been years since there was a VICE party or a Fader Fort / Hype Machine type event in Austin. This year, the only thing that came close to the 2009 heyday was the Marshall Fun House which took over the Parish for most of the week.

It became abundantly clear that most of the SXSW sponsorship money had dried up when, on March 4, the band Squirrel Flower sounded the alarm by pointing out that the US Army was actually one of the main sponsors of the event this year, causing them to pull out from all official SXSW events in protest. (Further investigation has shown that the Army has been a sponsor of SXSW for about a decade but that’s almost irrelevant at this point) Quite a few other artists (60+, but I lost count) joined in with Squirrel Flower and canceled all of their official SXSW shows, including all 11 Irish bands that were scheduled to perform.

This made quite a few headlines, and cast an uneasy shadow / feeling over the entire SXSW proceedings this year. The official response to the protest, issued via the official SXSW Twitter account, made things even worse. SXSW made it clear they are happy to take money from the US Army anytime and completely discounted the concerns of the protesting musicians. It’s worth pointing out that SXSW is now owned by Penske media, whose owner is a Trump supporter and who have been known to have financial ties to the Saudis.

Social media lit up with declarations that SXSW was showing their true colors, and those colors were pure evil. Even Anthony Fantano weighed in with a biting anti-SXSW video. It’s clear the internal PR dept. at SXSW was just winging it at this point, when they should have been spending some of that military coin on a decent crisis PR team (and if you’re reading this, I probably don’t need to tell you that doesn’t come cheap!). Anyways, as a result of this complete and utter debacle, I feel like SXSW, as we knew it, is officially over. I have no plans to return, and I feel pretty confident that they’re going to have a helluva time trying to convince any decent artists to play in 2025. I’m sure the festival will trudge onwards, but it will be the absolute bottom of the barrel artists participating. Anyone who does decide to play next year is going to feel like a SCAB, for sure.

Vivian Girls circa ‘Share The Joy’ - L-R Fiona Campbell, Cassie Ramone, Kickball Katy

OK, so back to VIVIAN GIRLS! If you aren’t familiar with the band, they surfaced around 2007, when MySpace was the top social media platform. It was the middle of the blog era and the Brooklyn band explosion. They instantly found a devoted international fanbase with their combination of influences, which were namely 90s riot grrrl, 50s girl groups and the general garage / punk / DIY / lo-fi aesthetic. By 2008 they had isssued their S/T debut LP on the tiny Mauled By Tigers label. The LPs sold out instantly and the band signed to the legendary garage label In The Red Records to reissue the album. The band went through no less than three drummers over the course of their three original albums (the third album, Memory, was technically a reunion album, made after the band had broken up and remained dormant for about eight years). Each member of Vivian Girls, including all 3 drummers, was involved in at least one side project or solo project, making for a fruitful family tree and a great 5+ hour playlist.

Vivian Girls most enduring lineup - L-R Ali Koehler, Cassie Ramone, Kickball Katy

Vivian Girls members over the years and their related projects:

Cassie Ramone - As the frontwoman / vocalist for Vivian Girls, Cassie is really the heart and soul of the band. Her side projects include most notably The Babies (with Kevin Morby and Justin Sullivan aka Night Shop) as well as BOSSY (who are not on Spotify) and solo releases under the name Cassie Ramone.

Katy Goodman AKA Kickball Katy - Katy’s La Sera project was just as prolific as Vivian Girls. Katy also played on a track by Peach Kelli Pop and briefly had a project called All Saints Day.

Frankie Rose - the band’s original drummer, Frankie Rose wrote the fan favorite Vivian Girls track “Where Do You Run To” but left the band to pursue a solo career before she even really had a chance to tour with the band, so it’s the one Vivian Girls song you’ve probably never heard them perform live. Frankie has released a slew of great solo albums, and a Cure tribute album. Frankie also played in Crystal Stilts, Beverly, and the synth duo Fine Place. She toured with Dum Dum Girls as well but never actually appeared on any of their albums.

Ali Koehler - Ali joined the band on the 2nd LP, left for a bit and then returned for LP number 4. Koehler also fronts the amazing punk band Upset, which also includes Patty Schemel of Hole. Koehler was also a touring member of Best Coast for quite some time, but from what I can tell, did not play on any of their recordings.

Fiona Campbell - Fiona (from New Zealand) was the third drummer for the band. She also played in the bands Coasting, The Coolies, Chain and the Gang and TOP DOWN.