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. 
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.
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.
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.