Cruella D'ville
What a way to start 2008 with the signing of U.S. Hard Rock group Cruella D'ville. Cruella D'ville are not just another L.A. style late 80's, early 90's band that were left behind in Kurt's grunge shuffle. These guys had it all - the looks, the talent, the killer hooks; basically these guys had the X factor.
Cruella's sound was classic melodic hard rock with a tinge of sleaze for good measure. Cruella have a sound combining all the best L.A. elements but ultimately have a sound of their own. I usually like to give the fans a couple of comparisons to other bands but this one is tough. If I had to compare Cruella D'ville with someone else, I would say a cross between Shotgun Messiah and Skid Row. But as always, everyone will hear something different, so make sure to check out the sample track featured below.
Cruella D'ville
Here is the Cruella story in full:
Valentine was formed in 1986 in Tampa Florida with Rick Bales on Vocals and Guitar, Jon Bales on Guitar, Rick Howard on Drums and Marc Togie on Keyboards. Frankie Baker joined soon after adding Bass Guitar.
Rick Bales, Jon Bales and Marc Togie had previously been members of the band Next Exit and Rick Howard’s last band was called Cruella D'ville. Frank Baker then relocated to Florida in 1986 and joined the band at that point.
Valentine played their first big show at the Florida Fairgrounds in 1986 to a few thousand people. After an appearance on V32 television (the local version of MTV in Tampa Bay) The band played the local rock clubs from 1986 to 1988. The Volley Club, Mr. T's Club 19, The Stadium Lounge, Squires, The Sunset, The Yankee Rose, The London Victory Club the list goes on…
In 1986, Valentine recorded a song called 'Heavy Gloves' for Southern Championship Wrestling. The song was used as the opening theme song and snippets were used for their commercial breaks. The song was featured on the show until it went off the air a few years later.
In 1987, Valentine met up with Keith Kollins, the bass player from Savatage. He produced a 4 song E.P. at American Music Works Studios in St Petersburg Florida. The E.P. featured the songs "Room Without A View", "Lace And Leather", "Lover's Hell" and "Your Eyes". At the time of the recording, Hugo’s Giant Records signed band Valentine were running hot, touring and recording their one and only album. Valentine decided to change their name to Cruella D'ville to prevent any future confusion. The E.P. was completed in 1988.
The E.P. got some airplay on 98 rocks local show in Tampa and the band continued to play the local clubs, doing covers and original concerts. Soon after the completion of the E.P. Marc Togie and Cruella parted their ways. The band continued as a 4 piece without any keyboards.
Cruella D'ville
Things were going well in Tampa, so the band decided to move to L.A. to be a part of the huge metal scene that was exploding there in the late 80s. Rick and Jon Bales moved to LA in August of 1989 and attended the Guitar Institute of Technology (GIT). Rick Howard moved out shortly afterward and Frankie Baker then left the band.
Juan Croucier, the bass player from Ratt heard the Cruella E.P. and expressed much interest in producing a new project for the band. Finding the right bass player was not easy and before the replacement for Frankie was found, Juan moved on to produce another project.
Ray Caron joined the band in 1990 after many bass player auditions. Cruella started gigging in LA at the Troubadour, The Whisky, Gazzarri's, FM Station and many other venues. They scored a weekly gig at the Troubadour playing every Wednesday night for over a year in 1990 at the Jon E Jam. Cruella was featured in all the local magazines, such as Rock City News and Screamer.
Broadening their horizon, Cruella added a couple of female backup singers in 1990. They were with the band for about a year. Jon Bales left the band in 1990 and was replaced by Bruce Hunt from St. Louis. Over 100 guitarists auditioned for the gig.
Cruella D'ville became a big draw card on the Strip packing the Whisky and Gazarris every time they played. A distribution deal was signed with Big Time Records to distribute the E.P. through magazine orders, while the band sold tapes at the shows and in local record stores.
The band was approached by a record company which shall remain unnamed and signed a deal to record an album. They continued to gig and write songs for the album. They collaborated with songwriter Steven Rosen. When all the pre-production was complete they recorded 11 songs for the album. There was a falling out with the record company and the album never got released.
In 1993 Ray Caron left the band and was replaced on bass by Jon Bales. The band gigged for a few more months after that and then Cruella D'ville decided to call it quits.
Cruella's D'ville's album is due out in the next couple of weeks as everything is ready for press. The title of the upcoming album will be "Showdown In Tinsel Town". Showdown In Tinsel Town comes with amazing artwork, 12-page booklet as well as being fully re-mastered. The first 4 tracks off Showdown In Tinsel Town were produced by Keith Collins of Savatage.
Now to what you've all been waiting for, the opening track off Showdown In Tinsel Town entitled "Room Without A View"
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