BETTY BLOWTORCH - Last Call

Posted: 8/3/04

Reviewed by: Dirt

Category: Punk / Hard Rock

Released: 2003

Label URL: www.foodchainrecords.com

Artist URL:

Betty Blowtorch’s debut, Are You Man Enough?, quite impressed the writers here at Metal Dreams when it arrived on our desks in 2001.  Tragically, bassist/vocalist Bianca Butthole (a.k.a. Bianca Halstead) was killed in a car crash in December of that same year, ending Betty Blowtorch.  Are You Man Enough? presented the ladies (?) as a punky pissed off version of UK cult legends Girlschool.

Last Call is a 29-track rarities collection featuring demos, live tracks, outtakes, and some interview footage.  It includes an alternate version of “Shut Up And F***” (which appeared Are You Man Enough?), “Get Off,” “Party ‘Til Ya Puke,” “Fish Taco,” and “Diarrhea” (Yeah, the…’no pain, no strain, just sit and let it drain’ song) from the Duff McKagen (ex-Guns N' Roses) produced Get Off E.P.  If you can’t tell from the titles, these girls are a tad dirty, covering song topics that you may not want your parents (or children, depending upon your age) to hear.  Admittedly, rock music often needs some humor so if you’re not a stiff, you’ll laugh your ass off while listening to a lot of this stuff.

The Bloody Truth: Last Call is a rarities collection so the sound quality is raw but definitely listenable.  Just don’t expect Def Leppard production.  Are You Man Enough? is the better sounding representation of the band so that should be your first purchase if you want to hear some great female punk/hard rockers.  Last Call is for the diehard Betty Blowtorch fan, someone who enjoys twisted (as the bio says) lyrics, or a combination of punk and hard rock.