Jesika von Rabbit has a legitimate gripe. The singer-songwriter wants to know why her prepubescent niece gets more action on Instagram posting herself lip syncing awful pop music while Rabbit's original tunes don't score deserved notice.
"There she is in Minneapolis posting stuff from her bedroom and getting all of this attention," von Rabbit said. "I just don't get it."
Von Rabbit, who will perform Sunday, May 11, at Che's Lounge, will deliver her electro-pop. Von Rabbit and her band will preview songs from her forthcoming album, "Bunnywood Babylon," which is full of quirky but catchy songs.
"I like to entertain people and bring a party to the stage," von Rabbit said while calling from her Joshua Tree, California, home. "I like to bring a variety of styles to the show. Some of my songs you can dance to and then there are songs that are deeper."
Von Rabbit is colorful, unpredictable and never boring. The charismatic entertainer grew up during the ’80s in Green Bay and was influenced by such theatrical innovators as David Bowie, The New York Dolls and Nina Hagen.
"I was always a huge music fan, and I just love those artists," Rabbit said. "I remember the impact the first big concert I went to had on me, which was Metallica's ‘And Justice For All’ tour.”
After catching Metallica in 1989, von Rabbit was hooked. The combination of heavy guitar heroics and electro is what drives her latest single, "Wacko."
"It's a fun song," von Rabbit said. "I like to mix things up."
When von Rabbit fronted Gram Rabbit she recorded a surprising version of Culture Club's “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me.” Gram Rabbit included the hit from a generation ago in the band's set at Coachella in 2005. "If you're going to do a cover, you should do something different than the original," von Rabbit said. "I wanted to go in a bit of a different direction."
Culture Club icon Boy George noticed. "He sent me a little message on Twitter," von Rabbit said.
Von Rabbit posted a photo of her at the age of nine, holding a Boy George poster. "The photo is me with stupid, short hair," von Rabbit said. "Ugh! I had beautiful long hair but I cut it off since short, punky hair was what was happening then. When we did the Culture Club cover, I was like, 'C'mon throw me a bone and Boy George did. That was so cool. It made me think back to my childhood when that song was popular."
Von Rabbit's earliest influence was her mother, who was a Green Bay lounge singer. "My mom was very glamorous and that she would sing in these clubs and perform with these cover bands," von Rabbit recalled. "I would watch her sing in the basement of a Ramada Inn. That had such an impact on me."
It was evident early on how much work was required to become a musician. Von Rabbit's mother gave her daughter piano lessons when she turned 7.
"You had to put the work in," von Rabbit said. "But I didn't have a problem with that. I love music and it never felt like work to me."
Unlike her mother, von Rabbit moved to Los Angeles a generation ago to pursue a career in music. "I was compelled to give it all I had," von Rabbit said. "To me it was all or nothing. I had to move out here to California. It's been great. I've made music, played Coachella and I'm still doing it."
Von Rabbit loves engaging the audience as much as she enjoys pop culture. Von Rabbit is a fan of such disparate entertainment as ’60s horror movies, ’70s sitcoms, ’80s MTV and the infamous Cecil Hotel, where serial killer Richard Ramirez struck during the ’90s.
“I love the dark pop culture stuff,” von Rabbit said. “I love the elderly witches in movies like ‘Rosemary's Baby.’ The weird stuff is cool."
Von Rabbit also loves the desert, which is why she looks forward to returning to Tucson. "You guys have the saguaro," Von Rabbit said. "It's different here with (the California Barrel Cactus). But it's all about the desert. I love it out here and I really like Tucson. It's different than Green Bay and I'm fine with that."
Jesika von Rabbit
WHEN: 7 p.m. Sunday, May 11
WHERE: Che's Lounge, 350 N. Fourth Avenue, Tucson
COST: Free
INFO: 520-623-2088, cheslounge.com
