New York, NY (Top40 Charts) The Cocktail Slippers, the raucous five-piece all-woman rock outfit from Oslo, Norway, have just released "Shout It Out Loud," their 5th full-length album (and first in 7 years.)
The album, out on Wicked Cool Records, was produced by the band, and co-produced by Stevie Van Zandt and Mike Hartung. A ten-song trip through the world of this fiery female troop who wear both their passions and their musical influences on their sleeves, 'Shout It Out Loud' boldly demonstrates that the best way to express one's self is at the top of your lungs, and trumpets the band's mission to prove just how intensely they mean what they say.
"Shout It Out Loud" On DSPs (+ Buy The Album On Purple Swirl Vinyl): orcd.co/shoutitoutloud
Despite the long time between albums, the band has kept busy with live shows, writing new songs all the while. The four satellite radio hits they've released as singles in the past few years - "Excuse Me" (co-written with popular Norwegian artist Ida Maria), "Night Train," "Like A Song Stuck In My Head" and "City On Fire" - all appear on an album for the first time here. "She Devil (Shout It Out Loud)," which lends part of its title to the album itself, got the group's 2021 started with a bang when the song was featured as Coolest Song In The World on
Little Steven's Underground Garage. The track features a satirically sexist, tongue-in-cheek spoken word cameo from The Mighty Manfred, frontman of longtime Wicked Cool labelmates The Woggles.
While staying true to the fast-paced Garage Rock sound that has cemented their reputation, the band is confident this new album marks a step forward in their songwriting. "We write all the time, and we can write about anything!" explains Rocket Queen. "But we've learned that writing is often about re-writing."
The album's tenth and final track is its only cover, an update of the late-'60s Joe South classic "Hush," originally made famous by Deep Purple. "We've been doing it live for awhile and this was supposed to be a B-side," says Hope. "Stevie heard it and said, 'This is too good for a B-side, it needs to be on the album.'"
After catching the ear of Van Zandt in the 2000s - interestingly, years before the actor, artist and impresario would go on to star in the Netflix original TV series Lilyhammer, about an American gangster in Norway - the group came to New York at his invitation and delivered a scorching set at the Underground Garage Festival with Iggy & The Stooges, The
Strokes and Bo Diddley.
The band has enjoyed other brushes with greatness along the way, like a London
Calling set on a bill with
Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen, as well as time spent with idols like Jimmy Page,
Joan Jett and Blondie.
When live performances return on a mass scale, the Slippers will support the release with touring in the U.S., U.K., Spain and Scandinavia. Norway shows are slated to begin this August.
The Cocktail Slippers' playful spirit is always on display in their music videos, including the recently released clip for "She Devil (Shout It Out Loud)" which captures them strutting around the streets of Oslo, and not quietly.
When all is said and done, the five Slippers are a tight-knit gang of friends. "When we're not hanging out as a band, we're hanging out as friends, with and without our families," Sugar shares. "Hope loves both cross-country and downhill skiing and is a mean captain on her own boat."
"Rocket finds great joy in renovating houses," Vega adds. Miss A-OK continues; "Sugar is a great photographer. Vega makes and edits movies. A few of us are more than a little geeky about cooking. Miss A-OK even grows her own vegetables on her balcony."
The group is thankful for Van Zandt's continued commitment to their music. "Mister Silvio
Dante a.k.a. Stevie Van Zandt gave us an offer we couldn't refuse," Rocket
Queen says jokingly of how they joined the Wicked Cool fold years ago.
Shout It Out Loud! is the latest Wicked Cool release distributed by The Orchard, another gem from the label which also boasts
Jesse Malin, The Dollyrots, WYLDLIFE, Steve Conte, The Woggles, Soraia, Marc Ribler, Kris Rodgers & The Dirty Gems,
Jessie Wagner, Ryan Hamilton & The Harlequin
Ghosts and The Empty Hearts on its expanding roster.
- "Their future is quite bright because they keep getting better and better! The secret of their longevity is their passion for the music, obviously!"- Stevie Van Zandt
- "The Cocktail Slippers sound a lot like The Go-Go's, but with gats instead of L.A. cheer, and a mule kick in their high heels," - Rolling Stone's
David Fricke
- "The five-piece, Oslo-based, all-female Rock band has a star-studded performance history sharing stages with Paul McCartney,
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and many more, and has a depth of commitment to live performance that shines through even on their confident and bold studio recordings."- Glide Magazine
- "The Cocktail Slippers brings pure fun and limitless energy into rock n' roll. The Oslo outfit blends a wide array of styles to formulate a pristine collection of infectious pop-influenced punk. Ephasizing melody over mayhem, Shout It Loud is a party that everyone remembers, and nothing was broken. All of Shout It Loud is a delight, and I really do not want to wait another seven years for new music."- Jersey Beat
The Cocktail Slippers are:
Hope - Lead Vocal
Vega - Guitar
Rocket
Queen - Guitar
Sugar - Bass
Miss A-OK - Drums
Website: www.cocktailslippers.com
Facebook: facebook.com/cocktailslippers
Instagram: www.instagram.com/cocktailslippers
