A BITCHING GOOD TIME

How did a Sydney girls’ night get so big that it could take on the world? Renee Schembri has the lowdown for LOTL International.

Sydney lesbians, and many Australian dykes, know Bitch as their regular Friday night party in Sydney town. Well girls, Bitch has expanded into an international phenomenon this year, and is now running in London, Ibiza and Sydney for this year’s international tour.

This August was the second time we have taken Bitch over to the UK after a great tour in 2007. This year Bitch co-produced their own events for the first time, and the feedback has been amazing. The tour this year has been headed up by DJ Neroli, Sista P and hot red-deaded vocalist Kyla Sexton. They even secured a Bitch event in party capital of the world - IBIZA - as their last leg of this year’s tour.

It didn’t just all happen overnight. Bitch has been joining forces with some of the biggest international lesbian clubs, and UK Pride events, kicking off with a huge night at Vanilla in Manchester, followed by a Brighton Pride Bitch gig with infamous drag king innovator Sexy Galexy, and topped off with Bitch with Pulse @ Profile bar Soho.

Bitch and the popular Candy Bar hosted the official Soho pride girls’ recovery at the world renowned Punk in London. After the Bitch & Charly’s Angels co-produced women’s party in Ibiza late August, the Bitch crew staggers home for a smashing September Bitch session Sydney style on September 5th at Mars lounge! If you are a Virgo and can be in Sydney you will have a rocking good time.

Renee Shembri is thrilled with all the events, in spite of a touch of jetlag. “It’s been an amzing journey so far; the girls have really done us all proud as we carry the Bitch banner and Aussie invasion title all over the UK. It’s been a blast. The UK girls just love Kyla, Penny, and Neroli, who have rocked many dancefloors here. We love it and the girls are really inspired with some fresh new sounds, and great feedback. This is just the beginning of amazing things to come. We have secured some big acts and a huge surprise guest coming to join Bitch from December through to Mardi Gras, that we know all of you will be very excited about!”

Australia has had an explosion of female DJ talent in recent years and Neroli is no exception. Neroli has become one of the most recognisable and finest female DJs in Australia, delivering her funky driving uplifting, sometimes progressive house sets to dance floors in her hometown of Brisbane and nationally for the last 13 years. The 2007 Inthemix top 50 DJ poll showed how far Neroli has come being voted #7 DJ in QLD (the only female in the QLD top 10) & #34 in Australia! Now Brisbane’s “Queen Of Dance” Neroli is taking the Northern Hemisphere by storm in her 6 month European tour with Bitch.
A very well-known face at Bitch events is Sista P, who has been spinning tunes for over 10 yrs and has a well established name on the Sydney DJ circuit. Best described as a ‘Greek Goddess’ trapped in a ‘crowd pleasing, groove loving, DJ’s body,’ her mixing techniques and constant fiddles with the EQ knobs keep the music fresh and exciting and surprises even the best in the industry. She has played alongside artists including Frankie Knuckles, Freemasons, Stonebridge, Sneaky Sound System, Inaya Day, Mike Kelly, Alex Taylor and Kate Monroe just to name a few. Sista P is currently about to hit the International Club Scene after touring with Bitch throughout London in July and August.

Kyla, an amazing live vocal performer who knows how to get you in the mood to party, is a star on the rise. We’re hoping to hear that she caught the eyes and ears of some European mega-producer while on tour, so we’ll keep you posted. In the meantime, visit kyla.com.au to catch her gig listings. Follow the tour online at bitchnews.com.au and make sure that if you’re down under on Friday September 5, head to Mars Lounge