At last I gave myself permission to start learning ballroom dance, which Dianne has wanted to do for some time. I was reluctant at
first but ever since we browsed your site and ordered two DVDs
I discovered that I really enjoy it! In fact because we have to trust each other more on the floor and communicate with our eyes, and touch, it made us even closer as a couple. — Bill Quinn (email)
Before language or tools dancing instantly separated mankind from the beasts as an Art form, primal demonstrations of our humanity, communicating, interpreting, and celebrating feelings by moving in a rhythm. — René Blanco
Acid Rock-Goddess Vocals, Heavy Metal Drums & Bass, Lancing Guitar Chops
Dark-underbellied punk boasting vocalist/visual centerpiece Paige Harvey and a history dating back to the '90s.
The Livid Kittens are:
PAIGE ALISON HARVEY / vocals, style...... born Nov.20th (Scorpio, of course), Syosset, NY...AKA 'SuperJade', Ms. Harvey grew up in Coral Springs, FL, and currently resides in Ft. Lauderdale
FRANCIS CAST / guitars, backing vocals...... born Feb. 26th (Pisces), Miami, FL...AKA 'El Destructo', Francis lives in Hialeah, FL
DAVID HEIKKINEN / bass, backing vocals..... born Jan. 29th (Aquarius), in Detroit Rock City ...AKA 'Ponyboy', Dave lives in Coral Springs, FL
ROB WILSON / drums, antics...... born Feb.18th (Aquarius), somewhere in FLA ...AKA 'Case', Rob lives in the boondocks of Palm Beach County, FL
Founded in the early 90's, The Livid Kittens quickly established themselves as a marquee act in a hot Ft. Lauderdale music scene that included such groups as Six Silver Spiders, Load, Jack Off Jill, and Marilyn Manson. The band began as a project of bass player David Heikkinen and singer "Scyndie" Dietz, along with guitarist Bryan Bullett and drummer Tony Telschow. To join the Kittens, Scyndie had to split up her duo with guitarist Scott Putesky, IndiaLovesyou. Suddenly left without a band, Putesky...aka Daisy Berkowitz...joined with rookie journalist Brian Warner and started Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids.....
Meanwhile, Scyndie lasted less than a year as a Kitten. Now singerless, the Kittens signed on local punk-goth fashion plate, Paige Alison Harvey. Bullett and Telschow soon moved on, and the Kittens were then blessed with one of the greatest rock & roll guitar players South Florida has ever seen, Chris Simon. With his blazing Les Paul, and Jeff Willhite on drums, the real original line-up was complete. With glamour and a ferocious live show, The Kittens rocked up and down the coast, building a reputation. Scoring hits on local radio (Bliss, Fangs), the band sold over 1,500 copies of their first release, the 5-song cassette Fuzz-drenched and Dripping (1993). Then bizarre
circumstance and personal tragedy intervened, plunging the band into disarray. The ensuing years saw the Kittens struggle to remain a group, with Paige and David managing to release an 8-song cassette, Alone with Everybody (1995), and working with various local players (including another South Florida guitar master, Jonny Five) before finally clicking, in 1996, with a young Miami guitarist by the name of Francis Cast. With the addition of the dapper Madrid native Vicente Garcia on guitar and Dan Carson on drums, the band hit the studio in 1998 and recorded the 5-song CD Undercool. Featuring an array of punk power, goth atmospherics, and hot-rod rock, the EP records the emerging chemistry of the Heikkinen/Harvey/Cast team.
In 2000 the band changed drummers, with Ed 'Moneyshot' Malone taking over the stickwork. In 2001 the Kittens completed their fourth release, More Flames to Fall in Love With. Recorded by Joe Butera III at Avalon Studios in Port St. Lucie, Florida, the 8-song CD is easily the Kitten's most accomplished work to date. Sessions had just wrapped when the Kittens sadly parted ways with Vicente, deft foil to Francis' guitar pyrotechnics. In early 2002 the Kittens landed a song on an Instinct Records compilation called "12 TALES". The CD also includes cuts from The Creatures, Cranes, Rasputina, Miranda Sex Garden, and Legendary Pink Dots, among others. In 2004 the Kittens' song Flying was included on the CMJ list "The 1000 Greatest Indie Rock Songs of All Time" (#937). With the 2003 addition of drummer Rob Wilson, The Kittens continue to evolve the sound and enjoy taking the stage more than ever. Gigs of note have included opening for Iggy Pop, ToiletBoys, Fear, Samantha 7, Rasputina, Rev. Horton Heat, The Damned, The Cramps, and X.
The Livid Kittens, one of South Florida’s enduring alternative-rock acts, “can’t find a reason to quit.” In addition to opening recent concerts by psychobilly outfit The Reverend Horton Heat and the cello-driven Rasputina, the Kittens contributed a track, “Flying,” to the Instinct Records compilation 12 Tales, sharing the disc with The Cranes, The Legendary Pink Dots, The Creatures and other goth-leaning acts. The Kittens, in fact, have downplayed their goth-rock origins in the past few years, adding elements of punk and “hot-rod rock” into their sound. On the recent album More Flames To Fall in Love With, the group even covered The Beatles’ ”She Said She Said.” For more information, visit www.angelfire.com/fl/thelividkittens.
Other previous members: Michael Contreras (guitar),
LIVID KITTENS 
