The Goops bridge punk gap between U.S. coasts

Tuesday, April 16, 1996

By Nisha Gopalan

Daily Bruin Contributor

Given the innumerable punk-pop bands emerging out of the New
York scene, one wonders what makes The Goops so special.

For one thing, The Goops stood out enough to attract major label
interest. They just released their debut, entitled "Lucky," on
Reprise after a stint with the independent label, Blackout!
Records. Apparently, Reprise president, Howie Klein, likes the band
so much that he brought Morrissey to The Goops’ recent show at the
Troubadour on April 2.

"We were really flabbergasted that he showed up," says Eleanor
Whitledge, singer for The Goops, which also includes guitarist Brad
Worrell, bassist Steven Mazur and drummer Jeff Bennison.

"I don’t think he is a Goops fan," she continues. "(Then again)
I didn’t buy any of his records."

Instead, Whitledge cites pop icon, Ronnie Spector (of "Be My
Baby" fame) as a major influence.

"I just love Ronnie Spector," Whitledge enthuses. "I like her
hoarse, raw (vocal) sound."

Whitledge herself beholds a raw voice that fuses The Goops’ pop
and punk elements. On "Lucky," her voice sometimes resembles a more
raw-sounding Debbie Harry.

"I was and am a Blondie fan," Whitledge says. "I just love the
way both Blondie and the Ramones take the sensibilities of ’50s pop
songs and give a punk edge to them. That’s definitely what The
Goops are about."

"To us, there’s not a conflict that there’s a lot of pop in our
music," Whitledge adds. Certainly, the brevity of their tracks and
often light subject matter give their songs a pop feel.

Even the horse racing-themed artwork for "Lucky" echoes the look
of English pop band Blur’s "Parklife" album. But Whitledge points
out that the similarity occurs merely as coincidence.

"Our guitar player designed the artwork on the record. Basically
what we were setting out to do was make a cover that, when you look
at it, looks totally different than every other record that’s next
to it in the store," Whitledge says. In fact, the band is not even
familiar with Blur’s music.

Unlike other punk-pop bands, The Goops firmly root themselves in
American music. "We’re very much of an American sounding band, and
we kind of hold to that," Whitledge says.

Still, one cannot easily state what defines the American sound.
Oftentimes, a sonic dichotomy emerges between New York and West
Coast punk bands. The Goops learned this from experience.

"In the past, we really wanted to fit in, and of course we’re
not West Coast punk or hardcore by any means. We’re completely East
Coast," Whitledge says. "So that kind of troubled us at first, but
we’ve definitely garnered a following for what we are."

Whitledge attributes part of The Goops’ success to the fact that
they actually left New York.

"There’s a lot of New York bands that don’t leave New York. And
we were one of those bands for the first two years of The Goops.
Then we realized we were going nowhere fast," Whitledge says. The
band soon landed an opening slot for a nationwide Guttermouth tour.
Since then, The Goops conquered America using the live show as
their medium.

"Speaking for myself, that’s my favorite part ­ touring and
playing live," says Whitledge, who has noticed her audience
becoming more diverse. "We’re show-offs. We love playing so
much."

Well, maybe there is one problem to playing live ­ male
audience members who heckle Whitledge with the moronic, "Show me
yer tits."

"It’s so boring and it’s so biker, you know?" Whitledge says.
"Sometimes guys jump up on stage and grab my tits."

Suffice to say, Whitledge kicks them where it matters. She is a
no-shit kind of person, and the songs "You Wish" and "Hard Candy,"
that confront sex, are testament to Whitledge’s refusal to be
pigeonholed by the "biker" contingency.

"I respect any woman that’s successful doing music because it’s
so easy not to be taken seriously," Whitledge says. "Yeah, it’s a
challenge."

Getting attention in a highly populated genre also proves to be
a task. In a culmination of Whitledge’s strong female presence and
the band’s live efforts, The Goops are currently pursuing their
first headlining tour.

What distinguishes them from other punk-pop bands is that
Whitledge and her bandmates live up to their potential.

The Goops are promoting their new album "Lucky" on their first
headlining tour.