TemperMental: The Next Generation of Rock 'n Roll

TemperMental is an all-female, full on rock band from Los Angeles, CA. It's comprised of young girls with ages ranging from 12 to 15 years old. These girls are quickly gaining notoriety in the L.A. music scene as they are being featured across local radio stations and performing at world famous venues such as the Whisky a Go Go and the House of Blues. We met the girls at their San Fernando Valley rehearsal studio to learn about how they got started, how they define their style, and about what the experience is like to be a kid in a rock band.

From left to right in the photo above, TemperMental is Ruby on bass, Carli on drums, Kristina on vocals, and Marilaine on guitar.

How did you meet and decide to create TemperMental?

Carli We met while working on the set of Wet Hot American Summer and we all kind of got to know each other there. One day, it was like a month after the set, I decided that I wanted to start an all-girl rock band. So I called up the girls and we got it started.

Kristina She got up on a chair on set and screamed, "We need a drummer! Who can play drums? We need a drummer for our band!"

Carli Little did I know that I was gonna be the drummer.

I thought that it wasn't right that most of the bands out there are all boys with one girl singer or just all boys, and that those are the most popular bands.

How did you come to the idea to start an all-girl band?

Carli I thought that it wasn't right that most of the bands out there are all boys with one girl singer or just all boys, and that those are the most popular bands. I thought it would be cool to have an all girl, kid rock band that was more into rock and punk and more grungy type music.

How did you come up with the band name "TemperMental"?

Ruby Well, my family and I were thinking of band names, and one of my family members said 'temperamental'. I brought it to the girls and we all thought it was just the perfect name for us because we are actually all temperamental.

What were each of your past experiences playing music?

Carli Well, I played in a band for a few months before TemperMental, but I was playing guitar in it and I didn't know drums at all.

Ruby I've been in a band, and I'm still in it now, for my performing arts school. It's a rock band too, but I sing and play piano in it.

Marilaine I'm in another rock band. I've been in that one for a while. I play guitar and I sing in that one and I've been playing music for like three years.

Kristina I started singing when I was five and I started out in opera and musical theater and then I kind of evolved into doing pop. Then I met these guys and started falling in love with rock music.

Based on your past musical experience, how did you find the sound that you have now? Is it a collaboration between all of you?

Carli Marilaine, Ruby, and I were more the rocker type. Krissy was more the cutesy rocker.

Marilaine Krissy liked a lot of the pop music and stuff but once we started playing together it kind of seemed like a 'duh' kind of thing, that we should be playing rock.

Kristina Rock is my favorite style to sing now. Out of all the styles I've sung before, it's definitely my favorite. I totally had to warm up to it.

Do you have family members that also play music or that have helped you learn how to play your instruments and get into musicianship?

Marilaine Well, my mom tried to teach me piano when I was really little and I had literally no interest.

Carli My dad is a recording engineer, my sister is a singer/songwriter and my brother plays keyboard, and ever since I was really young my dad has tried to get me to play music and I thought it was the lamest thing ever because it was my dad. And then I met Marilaine and she introduced me to music and I fell in love with it.

Ruby My dad and both my brothers play music and they always help me with my bass.

Kristina My dad played trumpet for like a really long time so he kinda had an ear for music and he helped teach me to sing.

What type of music did you listen to growing up?

Marilaine When I was younger I used to listen to a lot of like pop music but there was a time where I had barely listened to any music at all. Since I was like nine, I started listening to a lot of rock.

Carli I originally lived in Massachusetts, but once I moved out to California I started getting into music a lot more. I would listen to all different types of music but mainly rock, punk, and grunge because my dad had a lot of those kinds of bands in his recording studio.

Sometimes I'll go on Instagram and somebody would post "Oh this band's so cool! This band's so great!" Then I'll look them up. That's how I find new bands that I like.

Ruby My dad usually listens to rock so that was what I would usually listen to growing up, but I like all types of music and I listen to everything.

Kristina Yeah. Me too. I like jazz and weird stuff. I really started out enjoying musical theater and then I started liking pop and then I got into rock.

Marilaine I did musical theater a lot when I was little too so I've gotten into that stuff and I still like that kind of stuff, but I'm a rocker inside and out.

Do you find yourselves sharing different styles of music with each other?

Marilaine Oh yeah, all the time. Each of us have specific bands that we like: Panic at the Disco, Rage Against The Machine. I like a band called Hollywood Undead.

Kristina Other than the ones we’ve shared there are so many others that I like, it’s tough to name them all.

Carli I have a ton of favorites. Weezer and Paramore are probably two of my biggest influences.

Marilaine I like lots of the rock-rap kind of stuff like Linkin Park, Hollywood Undead. I like Eminem.

Do you take influences from any of those bands and put them into your own sound?

Kristina Yeah especially Panic At The Disco for some reason.

Carli A local band influence is Every Other Year. We played a show with them and I really liked their sound, especially the drumming, so I wanted to kind of make our songs more like that style.

How do you find new music that you like to listen to?

Carli We share the music we listen to with each other and most of the time it's new.

Marilaine Sometimes I'll go on Instagram and somebody would post "Oh this band's so cool! This band's so great!" Then I'll look them up. That's how I find new bands that I like.

Are you on social media a lot?

All the girls YES!

Marilaine I'm not on social media all the time but a healthy amount. I don't go crazy with it.

Carli If I have a day at home, probably half the day is doing social media, but there's not a lot of time that I'm at home.

Are you interacting with fans or other artists?

Marilaine Fans and other artists, yeah definitely.

Carli Actually a few of the artists we interact with are Every Other Year and Speed of Light. Speed of Light is actually a family that plays together as a three-piece. Disrupted Euphoria: it's actually a boy band with a girl singer but the singer is a screamo. She goes from screamo to opera. It's crazy.

The name TemperMental really does fit us. We're always at each other's throats. The arguments can get pretty bad sometimes, but we always find a way to make it work.

What's the most exciting part about being in a band?

Marilaine I just like playing shows with my best friends and the energy of the crowd.

Ruby Being on stage and being able to look at your friends and just feel happy inside.

Carli I like that they're all my best friends. But at the same time, I'm doing what I want to do with my with my life. So I get to have the life that I want while hanging out with my best friends.

What's the most challenging part of being in a band?

Marilaine Well, we're an all-girl rock band so sometimes we can get on each other's nerves. The name TemperMental really does fit us. We're always at each other's throats. The arguments can get pretty bad sometimes, but we always find a way to make it work.

Kristina We're so similar but so different at the same time.

Has it been challenging to balance school and other responsibilities at home with putting work into the band?

Marilaine Yeah it can be kind of challenging. I go to an art school for like eight to 10 hours a day. That can be challenging with recording, writing, and band practices but it's always worth it in the end.

Ruby I'm homeschooled so I just need to plan out everything and make sure to get everything done on those days that I rehearse with the band.

Kristina You kind of get in a groove when you're homeschooled. It's like you do this every day and things just kind of work out.

Carli I go to a private school and they have a bunch of cool activities going on after school and I always have to turn them down for TemperMental but it's definitely worth it. If I had to choose between the activity and TemperMental, I definitely choose TemperMental.

You've already played a number of shows throughout L.A. including shows at the famous Whisky a Go Go. How would you describe the experience of performing in front of an audience?

Carli It's probably one of the best feelings ever.

Marilaine I love the energy - the energy from the crowd bounces off you and it's like an adrenaline rush.

Kristina If they're excited, you're excited and if you're excited, they're excited. It's unbelievable. My favorite thing to do.

How do you prepare for a show? Do you girls have any rituals or routines?

Kristina OK a huddle always helps.

Carli We have a few pictures of us doing a huddle and it's pretty weird looking but it's good. We just like get in a circle and then we starting jumping.

While in Huddle "You guys can do this!" "Krissy, think about beans!" "I will!" "Lobsters!" "I like your jeans."

Do you help each other pick out your outfits and your wardrobes?

Carli Every now and then we're at the store and we find a really cool shirt for one of us and we get it. Like literally today, Ruby surprised me with a cat shirt because I really like cats and I got really excited.

Kristina And when we do thrift stores, like shopping sprees, we're always like "Oh that would totally look great on Carli" or "that would totally look great on Ruby."

Marilaine I don't do too many shopping sprees 'cus I hate shopping. I can't handle a store.

How would you describe your individual styles?

Marilaine Theatrical rocker crazy person.

Kristina Oh gosh I hate to say but anime-ish.

Carli I'm more punk rock cat person.

Ruby I have a 'rock' style but like more fashionable.

Carli A big fashion influence for all of us is kind of Avril Lavigne's style. That's more like Krissy, Ruby, and I. Marilaine is more just straight up rock.

What is the process like when you're creating music?

Ruby Well we usually start out with chords on an acoustic guitar and then we write lyrics and melodies and put it all together. After that, we add all the other instruments and see.

Marilaine Then when we're ready to record, we record scratch tracks, scratch guitar, and vocals and then we have to do the drums and then we do all instruments, main vocals, and harmonies. Mix it all together and voila, you got a song.

Carli It's always awesome seeing how a song starts and ends up. One time with "Far From the Tree" - it was at first this really acoustic country type of song. And then Krissy didn't hear the recording of it - she sang it before I drummed on it and there was only scratch guitar in it. She sang it before all the crazy stuff was put in. So she walked in and she was like "Oh, what song is this?!" We were like, "It's 'Far From the Tree' it's your own song, Krissy!"

Kristina It changes. It's so different. Hearing the acoustic guitar versus how it finishes.

Carli It's hard to choose whether you want to make a song more rock versus keeping it just acoustic because it sounds good both ways most of the time.

Marilaine There are some songs where it's like ok that needs to be a rock song. Most of the time it sounds good either way though.

The songs that you've put out so far have been singles. When should we expect a full album?

Ruby We're already writing songs for an EP and hopefully, we'll get a full-length album soon.

Is there any advice that your friends and family have given you that has really stuck?

Kristina Perfect practice makes perfect.

Marilaine Yeah because if you practice something wrong then you're going to perform it wrong. You're perfect is actually just gonna be wrong.

What advice would you give to any other group of friends that want to start a band?

All the girls Just do it! Just go for it. Not sponsored by Nike.

Carli It takes time and a lot of practice.

Marilaine Yes, it takes a lot of commitment so you gotta make sure everyone is committed.

TemperMental's live performance at Wolf Creek Brewery in Valencia, CA was recently recorded by Local Music Channel. You can find more recorded performances of other great independent bands at the Local Music Channel website and YouTube channel.

We had a great time hanging and talking with the girls of TemperMental. It was clear when we met, that the group has great mentors behind them in the guidance of their parents, and they have the right attitudes towards their craft to continue growing and making a bigger and bigger name for themselves. Expect to hear much more from this band in the coming months as they rise in the L.A. scene.

Keep up to date with TemperMental on Facebook and Instagram.