Mere months after the demise of her former project, the critically
acclaimed Beat The Devil, Shilpa Ray is already stirring a raucous
with her new band. Shilpa Ray and Her Happy Hookers hits the ground
running, taking Shilpa's voice and songs to new heights: grinding
blues, sleazy jazz, and disturbing rock tied together with pop and
punk sensibilities; the result sounding something like a vulgar Ella
Fitzgerald crooning in front of a wall of distortion and thunderous,
pounding rhythms.
The band reads like a who's who of recent NYC rock
luminaries including members of Creaky Boards, Soft Black, Kapow!, and
cult rock producers The Negatones. Their live shows are already a
notorious commodity: they were the featured act at the Rock For
Rights benefit at Lincoln Center later and rocked the BAM
Sounds Like Brooklyn Festival. Their debut album, 'A Fish Hook An Open
Eye' captures the band's raw and unique sound in 8 solid tracks,
demonstrating depth, ability, and emotional scope, eclipsing anything
from Shilpa's already lauded past. But Shilpa is not looking back: ‘A Fish
Hook An Open Eye will be released on April 8 and then Shilpa and her band will
viciously tour throughout 2009.
