Voluptuous Panic

Voluptuous Panic is an American indie rock duo founded in 2013 by Gretchen DeVault, who is the primary singer and songwriter in the prominent indie-pop group The Icicles,[1][2] and music journalist/author Brian J. Bowe.[3][4][5][6] The duo’s music has been described as hypnotic, textured and dreamy, mixing elements of shoegaze, dream pop and trip-hop.[7]

Voluptuous Panic
OriginGrand Rapids, Michigan
Genres
Years active2013 (2013)–present
Labels
  • Danish Crisis
  • The Blog That Celebrates Itself Records
Websitevoluptuouspanicmusic.com
Members

Bowe and DeVault met in 2008 when he wrote a cover story chronicling the Icicles' success in the indie pop world -- including placements in international commercials for Target Corporation and Motorola[8] -- for the alumni magazine of their shared alma mater, Grand Valley State University.[9] The pair stayed in touch and began collaborating. In 2010, they recorded Bowe's score for the film "The Death of an Imam",[10][11] which was nominated for a regional Emmy[12] and won the Best of Festival Award at the Broadcast Education Association's Festival of Media Arts.[13]

Following the release of the Icicles’ dark “Renegade Parade” album, DeVault found she needed an outlet for the more melancholic side of her writing—particularly after her struggle with postpartum depression.[14] During that period, Bowe was living in France and teaching at CELSA Paris. He began sharing song ideas with the Michigan-based DeVault remotely. This process of recording separately is one the group retains. In an interview, Bowe called the remote recording process one of Voluptuous Panic’s defining characteristics. “It’s a slow conversation, but it allows us to access deep emotional spaces that might not be possible in a room with a lot of other people,” he said.[7]

The group adopted the name Voluptuous Panic in 2013, after Bowe came upon the phrase in the book "Frame Analysis" by sociologist Erving Goffman while conducting Ph.D. research.[7]

Starting in 2014, Voluptuous Panic began releasing a series of singles.[15][16] The group earned notice as “one of the most stylish guitar bands to emerge on the shoegaze scene” [17] and has drawn frequent comparisons to Slowdive, which the group cites as an influence.[18][17] In 2015, they collaborated with French electronic musician Human Koala on the song “Zyva,” which combined psychedelic guitars with modular synthesizers and drum machine beats.[19]

In 2016, Voluptuous Panic released an EP titled “Une Sorte de Panique Voluptueuse,” which was a remixed collection of its earliest demos.[20] The group also appeared on the compilation “Big Day Coming,” a tribute to the band Yo La Tengo.[21]

Voluptuous Panic rarely performs live. For a few shows in 2013, the group was augmented by a rock rhythm section that included Icicles drummer Zane DeVault; in 2014, they performed with Icicles keyboardist Joleen Rumsey.[22]

Discography
  • ’’Fall Away’’ (2014)
  • ’’Polar Vortex’’ (2014)
  • ’’Zyva’’ (2015)
  • ’’Petit Ciel Bleu’’ (2015)
  • ’’Midnight Chrome’’(2015)
  • ’’Trapped in Amber’’ (2015)
  • ’’Une Sorte de Panique Voluptueuse’’ (2016)
  • Appears on ’’Big Day Coming, A Tribute to Yo La Tengo’’ (2016)

References
  1. "The Icicles - Biography & History - AllMusic".
  2. Andy Von Pip (13 October 2007). ""Ice, Ice Baby!" – The Icicles Interview".
  3. http://www.washingtontimes.com, The Washington Times. "Creem stirs".
  4. "Profile: Rockin' & rollin' with writer/musician/cyclist Brian J. Bowe".
  5. Hayden, Jim. "COLUMN - Thank you, Brian Bowe".
  6. Hayden, Jim. "Laketown author debuts book in 'Rebels of Rock' series".
  7. Tbtci (7 January 2017). "The Blog That Celebrates Itself: Midnight Chrome with Voluptuous Panic - An Interview".
  8. "The Icicles on Target".
  9. "Grand Valley Magazine, 2008 (Spring) :: GV Magazine".
  10. "The Death of an Imam". 1 December 2010 – via IMDb.
  11. "Death of An Imam » Credits".
  12. "Two Grand Valley faculty member's films nominated for Emmy Awards - GVNow - Grand Valley State University".
  13. "The Broadcast Education Association Announces the 2011 Winners of BEA Best of Festival King Foundation Awards Ceremony - BEA - The Broadcast Education Association".
  14. "Indie-pop Icicles Return from Dark Journey of Infertility and Postpartum Depression".
  15. "Voluptuous Panic - Fall Away".
  16. Bussa, Jayson. "TRACK OF THE WEEK: "Polar Vortex" by Voluptuous Panic".
  17. "Voluptuous Panic - Fall Away".
  18. Noize, Oyèmi (1 April 2014). "I ♥ Shoegaze -- April I".
  19. "NEW MUSIC PREMIERE - Voluptuous Panic w/ Human Koala - Zyva • Primal Music blog". 16 July 2015.
  20. "Voluptuous Panic explores emotional, sonic textures on debut EP".
  21. "Big Day Coming, A Tribute to Yo La Tengo, by The Blog That Celebrates Itself Records".
  22. "Shows! - TRUMBULLPLEX - Page 20".
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