“When I first played the electric guitar, it felt like a lightning bolt,” says Julia Pierce, lead singer and guitarist of the LA based, all girl, rock band Cherri Bomb. “I was instantly struck by the idea of starting a band. And so my search began.”
Julia wanted to find girls who shared her drive and were inspired by similar rock ‘n’ roll bands she grew up listening to like Garbage, Foo Fighters and My Chemical Romance. After months of placing ads online and in papers, flyering local music shops, and holding countless try outs, in walked Nia Lovelis – a fearless, hard-hitting drummer who fit the bill.
Nia, daughter of a singer/songwriter mother and musician father, was born with music in her blood, and had been drumming since the age of seven. “I have been surrounded by artists and musicians my entire life,” says Nia, “and I knew there was nothing else I wanted to do more than be in a band.”
As the difficult search continued they found a multi-talented girl named Miranda Miller who had been performing since the age of three and learned to read music by four. Not only could she play guitar, she also played keyboards and sang perfect harmonies. Miranda didn’t always planned to pursue a music career but somehow found herself gravitating towards rock ‘n’ roll. “Although I came from a different musical background than Julia and Nia, they inspired me to think outside of my musical box and crank the amp to 11.”
After many attempts to secure a bass player, the girls turned to Rena Lovelis, Nia’s younger sister. Rena, a guitar player, recalls, “I always wanted to be in Cherri Bomb, but I didn't play the bass. When they asked me to try out I said, ‘Sure, why not?’ I knew playing on stage with my sister would make a killer rhythm section. I quickly learned bass guitar, practiced, and landed the gig!”
Although sharing the same name as The Runaways’ song, the band name Cherri Bomb was actually inspired by the 2009 book titled “Cherry Bomb” which features many contributors, including drummer Samantha Maloney, (Hole, Motley Crue, Eagles of Death Metal, Peaches) who, in the summer of 2010, decided to put down her own sticks to manage the young, all girl band. Samantha recalls, “Cherri Bomb opened for my band Chelsea Girls in February of 2009, and they blew me away. They played exceptionally well, sang 3 and 4 part harmonies, and left myself and the crowd speechless. I knew these girls were destined for greatness.”
Cherri Bomb has since played the Sunset Strip Music Festival opening for Filter, toured with Smashing Pumpkins at the request of Billy Corgan and recently signed with Hollywood Records. They’re already being called one of the hottest up-and- coming bands to come out of L.A. This summer, they were the youngest band to play some of the biggest European festivals: Oxegen, Sonisphere, T In the Park, Reading and Leeds among others, and opened for the Foo Fighters in Cologne, Germany, where they played in front of 15,000 people.
Cherri Bomb will release a five song EP, STARK, on Oct. 18 with the band’s major label debut to follow in early 2012.