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From page 16 of Classic Rock Magazine October 2005
Cover of October 2005 issue.
WORDS: SLEAZEGRINDER
Wasn’t Slayer’s first ever gig opening for Bitch?
Correct. It was in 1982. They played Judas Priest covers and wore red spandex pants. Slayer, I mean; Bitch wore next to nothing. Didn’t Bitch whip their audience? Only if they really begged for it. Bitch were one of the sleaziest, most over-the-top metal bands in LA in the early 1980s, and when you consider the competition at the time, that’s saying something.
Musically, they were a plodding, derivative mess of chugging Brit-metal riffs and wobbly glam-punk hooks, but they will forever be remembered for their wild, semi-nude S&M stage show, performed by a leather-’n’-latex-bound heavy metal dominatrix named Betsy (pictured). With a whole pegboard full of weapons to choose from, Mistress Betsy would fill in the idle moments during extended flash metal guitar solos by beating the shit out of her adoring slaves in the front row.
So where did they find the leather chick? Some dungeon?
Actually she escaped from a ska band called The Boxboys. “They wanted me to skank,” she shuddered in a recent interview. “I fled in horror.”
Did Bitch release any records, or was it all just blood and bruises? They released many, but Be My Slave (Metal Blade, 1983) has the best cover, so get that one. If you actually listen to it, you’ll find some solid sex metal inside. And even if you don’t like the music, the album comes with an awesome poster. Calling your band Bitch is sorta stupid though, isn’t it?
The band finally figured that out seven or so years into their career. In 1987 they changed their name to Betsy, dropped the sleazy porn-metal image, and went for a more ‘mature’ melodic power-glam sound. Little did they realise that the only thing more stupid than calling your band Bitch is calling it Betsy. They changed back to Bitch just long enough to break up in late ’89. So, is the Bitch back, or what? The bitch never really goes away, does she? The last confirmed Bitch sighting was at the 2003 Bang Your Head festival in Germany. According to reports, she looked great and sounded like a bucket of mud – which is just how I remembered her. Things on the Bitch front seem to have gone quiet since then, but something tells me that Bitch: The MILF Years are just around the corner...
