For nearly a decade, Death Valley Girls have made it their mission to remind the punks, psych rockers, garage aficionados, and desert mystics of the communal, transcendental, and triumphant power of music, as evidenced most recently in the riotous affirmations of their 2022 track “When I’m Free.” The song fuses Bonnie Bloomgarden’s passionate vocals, Larry Schemel’s anthemic guitar chords, rousing sing-along choruses, and feverish organ lines into a perfect three-minute shot of adrenaline and dopamine. Despite the old-school nature of their instrumentation, Death Valley Girls are well aware of the revolutionary power of the dance floor, so they approached one of their heroes to help re-envision “When I’m Free” for the club crowd. What better way to reinforce in the liberating spirit of the song than to give it to Peaches—an artist who continues to push boundaries in a career that spans over two decades, and who has helped so many people navigate sexuality, gender, identity, and being comfortable in one’s body in the new millennium. Under Peaches’ meticulous care, “When I’m Free” transforms from a scrappy rock song to a throbbing, minimalist club banger. The musical key switches from major to minor, taking the song from celebratory mode into a leaner and meaner message of empowerment. Bloomgarden’s impassioned vocals remain in place along with a few organ glissandos, though the rest of the original is excised in favor of stark four-on-the-floor beats and pulsing synth bass. The sound may prompt a different type of gyration than the original, but the spirit of freedom and revelry remains and takes on a whole new angle under Peaches’ masterful manipulations. Suicide Squeeze is proud to present the Peaches remix of Death Valley Girls’ “When I’m Free” in Spring 2022.
Tom Heyman documents life in San Francisco circa 2023, refusing to succumb to easy characterization & instead capturing the city’s nuance. Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 22, 2023
The latest album by the Los Angeles rock outfit showcases their varied musical influences such as zydeco, folk, R&B, and cumbia. Bandcamp New & Notable Jul 30, 2021
supported by 11 fans who also own “When I’m Free (Peaches remix)”
Like so many others, this came like a bolt out of the blue and, even though it's well before payday, I had to have this astonishing album on vinyl to prove it exists. The feel of the tunes makes me feel like the Impressions do, Curtis Mayfield, the big spaces and instinctive horns and stuff drifting in and out. Great grooves and I can see lots of ghosts nodding along to this with big smiles on their faces. At last! Anthony Cottrell