The band’s take-no-prisoners attitude is the real draw of the entire project.
From their rise from the ashes of punk band Butt Trumpet in 1998, Betty Blowtorch were in the process of blazing a path of sleazy, in-your-face, girl-powered rock and roll across America. They had songs with titles like “Shut Up and F*ck” and “Part Time Hooker.” The band was also infamous for their low-tech pyrotechnics show, which was essentially off-the-shelf Roman candles and sparklers being set off by a roadie as the band played.
Unfortunately, before they were able to garner much in the way of mainstream attention, lead singer and bassist Bianca Halstead (stage name: Bianca Butthole) died in an automobile accident. Filmmaker Anthony Scarpia followed the band for two years, documenting everything they did including the recording of their first full-length album and the ensuing tour. Considering the band only stayed together for three years, he captured almost the entire run of the band on film.
Betty Blowtorch and Her Amazing True Life Adventures features interviews with the surviving members (Sharon Needles, Judy Molish, and Blare N’ Bitch) as they tell their version of the events leading up to the end of the band. Bianca and her band mates were also interviewed at many points along the way and that footage serves as the narrative for the film.
The band’s take-no-prisoners attitude is the real draw of the entire project. Bianca was a former drug addict and incest survivor and her experiences fueled the band’s raw and aggressive lyrics. At the time of the band’s run, pop acts like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera were all the rage. Betty Blowtorch were the polar opposite of that type of female artist and were unapologetic about how they portrayed themselves. Based on their appearance, many thought of the band as a novelty act. That opinion usually changed once people heard the band’s music.
If one is interested in a behind-the-scenes look at the life of a band on the road, Betty Blowtorch and Her Amazing True Life Adventures is likely going interest you. What it doesn’t offer, though, is much depth beyond Bianca Halstead’s musical journey. We don’t learn much about the rest of the band other than how they relate to Bianca.
Thankfully, Bianca Halstead was a dynamic personality. Her bawdy sense of humor and ability to roll with the punches life threw at her makes her story immensely watchable. I got the sense from the film that the world lost a force to be reckoned with when she passed away. Perhaps you will too.
3.5 out of 5.0 stars
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