I saw Betty Blowtorch play once. It was a few years ago at the Dragonfly in Los Angeles, Wednesday night when all the rockers would come out for Taime Downe’s Pretty Ugly Club, a surefire evening of sin wrapped in black latex. I knew Betty Blowtorch by their name only, I had never heard their music, but four or five beers later I got one f**k of an ear and eyeful as four rowdy chicks took the stage and whipped everybody into a drunken frenzy with their smutty metal tunes. It was an awesome night. These girls rocked harder than L7 and gave Motley Crue a run for their money in the sleaze department. Goddamnit, I liked ‘em, so I was totally keyed up to watch this documentary on the band that would come to be known as Hell on Wheels!
“Betty Blowtorch and her Amazing True Life Adventures” is jam packed with live footage of the band playing various shows. It also features interviews with the band and those fortunate enough to come in contact with them. The history of Betty Blowtorch is pretty well laid out here, giving plenty for the die-hard fans out there to drool over, and maybe even opening a few eyes and ears to their brutal power.
But for some of you that come across this movie, you may wonder why a documentary has been made on these rockin’ chicks. After all, it’s not like they’re a major hit-making force on the radio (and that’s a good thing), you more than likely haven’t even heard of them. Well, this is the sad part of the story and, I presume, a major part of the reason why this film was made. Two years ago, Betty Blowtorch’s lead a*s-kicker, Bianca Halstead, was killed in an automobile accident. This film serves as a loving goodbye to a woman who had more balls than a lot of us do and be a fan, or someone who has just heard about the band, once the film has ended, you can’t help but feel the tremendous loss documented here.
Bye, Bianca.
