Heather: There are a lot of them, but they actually have respect once we prove our presence. Before the show they are like: "Hey are you gonna show your tits?"

Om: We've been called dykes.

Sylvia: The nicest thing is that there has been an amazing female response to this as well. We have had a lot of men respond, but the nicest thing is the women getting into it. It's empowering for them.

Laura: We had a guy in Olympia have us sign his Back in Black album. He said he was going to put it next to another one he had signed by AC/DC.

Heather: I think we're just a really good reminder of a really good band...and AC/DC doesn't come around very often.

Back to women feeling empowered. Do agree that because you are women, and you are singing songs about women being objectified a little bit, that the message has a new perspective? It almost seems to uncover a bit of genius because now the energy has come full circle.

Om: Damn dude, you're getting deep! The part that I like about Bon [Scott, RIP] singing is that a lot of the time he doesn't win. He gets "Shot Down in Flames." It's not all conquest. He tries. I think some it is far more realistic than, say, Van Halen.

Heather: Regardless of whether the lyrics are "he" or "she," everyone has been in those situations. The lyrics are so straightforward.

Om: I think it fits with us.

It seems to make more sense coming from five women.

Amy: A friend of Sylvia's put it really well: "It's subversive."

[And that really is what rock 'n' roll is all about. Craig and I then get interrogated about which AC/DC song is our favorite. I excitedly admit that mine is "Touch Too Much" and go into a fevered story about the first time I had seen them. I had told my friend Boris that if the band played that song I wouldn't be able to stand. Well, we both lived up to our ends of the deal. It was far too good. Om then asks if it made me want to sleep with her, and I reply that it made me want to sleep with all of them.

Craig blurts out without his hesitation that his favorite AC/DC song is "Hell's Bells," and goes on to explain that, encouraged by a similar wish from a friend, for some time he has wanted to have "Hell's Bells" played at excruciating volumes during his funeral service. Seizing the opportunity to amend his grand funeral plan, Craig asks Sylvia, Amy, Om, Laura and Heather if they would promise to play the song live when the time comes, even if it means reforming years down the road. The band eagerly accepts the offer with sinister smiles.]

Does anyone from AC/DC know that you exist?

Om: This guy named Josh gave them our t-shirt.

Amy: Brian Johnson lives on Bainbridge.

Laura: Hey, that's two degrees of separation.

What do you think has fueled the recent influx of tribute bands in this city?

Amy: If you ask a person who lives in Lynnwood, they don't come to Seattle much to see music. They used to come to the Crocodile Café or RKCNDY [RIP], but the scene is smaller than it was before, and they recognize it. From a musician's standpoint, it's fun--a no brainer.

We've all slogged away for years in the clubs. Nobody comes to see you. You practice two or three times a week, you write good songs, and nobody gives a shit. So you get to a point where you say, "I'm going to do this for fun and stop trying to do something that someone else wants to hear or what this record company wants to hear or what these other musicians want to hear. I just want to have fun." So you ask yourself: "What's my favorite band? AC/DC. Okay, I'm going to form an AC/DC band."

I think that's why people are doing it.

Heather: I also think that there are a lot of good bands in this town, but music as a whole is stagnant. That's industry wide. There is not this new cool thing going on. So we are forced to get back into rock 'n' roll, and one way to do that without trying to make your band sound like the rockers of the '70s and '80 is to redo your style. I think that's a big push and people are simply missing rock 'n' roll. People just want to rock.

What is the newest AC/DC song that you will play?

Amy: Its gonna be a surprise.

[I now get chastised for making an off-handed comment regarding AC/DC not having put out a decent album since 1981's For Those About to Rock.]

Laura: Not to say you're wrong about that however, but...

How did you get the Megadeth gig at the Paramount Theatre?

Om: Kathy Faulkner and David Stewart at KISW.

How did it go?

Hell's Belles: It was fun, fabulous, awesome.

Om: The Paramount is so pretty from the stage.

Are there other AC/DC cover bands that you know of?

Amy: Yeah, there is Powerage in San Francisco, and Dirty Deeds in Los Angeles. There are a ton of AC/DC cover bands--mostly guys though.

It seems like you have used the momentum that Hell's Belles has gained to help with philanthropic purposes. What are some of the causes you've played for?

Amy: They seem to be fire related. Kate Becker lost her house to an arsonist. That was our second show at the Sunset Tavern. And then the most recent one was for a Bremerton artist named Smitty who lost his house and two children to a fire. We raised a good bit of money for him. And then we've done another for benefit for the Radio Women's Center.

Are the Gibson SG guitars on purpose?

Amy: What do you think? Just kidding... I've actually owned one before but I couldn't keep it in tune.

Where do you see yourselves taking this? Are you looking that fare ahead or are you just enjoying it?

Om: We are just taking it with a grain of salt. We are just enjoying it.

Amy: When it's over, it's over. We'll just play as many shows wherever we can.

On the web:
Hell's Belles

Inside Earpollution:
Live review (23 February 2001, Seattle, WA)