Babes in Hart: Natalie Carol of Valley Queen
I am so excited to feature our next Babe in Hart: Natalie Carol of the indie rock band, Valley Queen. Natalie just finished her tour with Ruston Kelly. Below she shares her fashion inspiration, what makes a great stage outfit and where she shops for her killer vintage wardrobe in LA.
P.S. We made Natalie a custom charm necklace for her tour! I love how she wears it as a choker... so cool. She also rocks the Black Topknots.
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Do you have any pre-show rituals? Do you ever get nervous?
I usually just try to stretch and tap into what I need....sometimes I'll go for a walk, or drink hot lemon water with cayenne to relax my body. I will sit down and meditate if I feel I'm lacking focus. I usually do vocal warm ups. I do still get nervous from time to time, unexpectedly!!
Your style icons / muses…
When my grandmother passed, I was lucky enough to go through her closet. I feel like I got to know her better through that experience and took home some of her big over-sized linen jackets, old furs, funky art pins, clunky jewelry and Victorian knick-knacks. She's certainly a style icon to me. Also the late Laura Peters, of Psychic Love. She's a local legend and evoked glam like no other.
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What makes a good stage look / outfit?
I like textures--satins, velvets....something evocative. I love a little sparkle and glitter, something to catch light and spark the audience's imagination. I like feeling sexy on stage.
Your desert island discs. Please name 3-5 (I know, this is probably a tough one).
Well, to be quite honest, the first two would be any Yo Yo Ma record or a choral evensong record. This is choral and classical music and they both soothe my nervous system, which I assume I would really need, being alone on a desert island. To go more classic, I can't not mention Led Zeppelin III. I know im certainly not the only one, but Zeppelin changed my life when I was eighteen. No denying that. Also would add Alice Coltrane's Journey In Satchidananda.
You get a dream jam session with up to three musicians (alive or dead). Who would you invite over?
Erykah Badu, Mark Ronson, Lucinda Williams. Fuck it, invite Rod Stewart too.
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Describe your personal style. What brands / shops / styles are you digging right now?
My style fluctuates. I'm usually oscillating between flowy, satin, no bra kinda vibe and very structured form fits with boots. Always collecting band t-shirts, too. I do think what you're wearing is an expression of your essence, fashion is very telling and personal in that way. I like to feel either very sexy and loose or very structured and put together. I lean Victorian with my interior decor style. There's so much good shopping in LA, I love my friends at Avalon Vintage over in Highland Park, or I'll brave Melrose ave.
Tell us something we'd be surprised to know about you….
I've developed a fear of driving over bridges recently after having a series of very vivid dreams of falling off of overpasses. I usually have one of the guys drive when we are going through San Francisco...
What are you absolute favorite places in LA?
I'm late to the game but a friend of mine just took me to one of the oldest restaurants in LA, Philippe's. They only charge 50 cents for coffee. Permanent Records just opened up a record store, diner, and venue called Permanent Records Roadhouse and I love it. It's got an old school vibe, red lightbulbs. It reminds me of places I grew up going to down south. If you want to go super classic, you gotta go to Dodger Stadium for a game and keep your eye out for Roger Owens, he's been selling peanuts at Dodger games for 60 years. Also gotta mention seeing a show at Hollywood Bowl, listening to music in the canyon as the sun sets is as close as this town gets to perfection.