biography
The name alone has you thinking; who are these old broads out on the prowl for fresh meat? Actually, Cougar Party is made up of three twenty something ladies who come from a wide variety of experiences, musically and otherwise. At first, you may think they’re just screaming about sex, crappy bosses and inconsiderate friends. However, this group is guided by DIY dogma and the concept of ‘the Personal is Political’. Based in Toronto, they create “a fiery punk that smashes the notion of ‘just another girl band’”. Cougar Party have been together for just over a year and include members of queercore rioters The Plath and the hardcore two piece Mach Tiver. Playing many shows in and around the Toronto area, they are most proud of playing the Wavelength music series, Pride Toronto, Trade Magazine’s Fruit Market, NXNE, Ladyfest Toronto and Ladyfest Ottawa. You can catch their track “Lakeboat Fantasy”, exclusive to the Good Grooming for Girls compilation, which is a collaborative effort between Shameless Magazine and Permafrost Records. Cougar Party recently arrived back from playing some well-received shows on the east coasts and just released their debut record “Heartbreakers/Homewreckers”.
There aren’t a lot of all-girl metal bands out there and Cougar Party know this. In fact, they’re desperate to change the scene’s state of affairs when it comes to female musiciansÖIf a new wave is on the way, Cougar Party are leading the charge with their teeth bared. [They are] political and DIY to the boneÖ[The CD] sounds damn fine too. On Heartbreakers/Homewreckers, Cougar Party prove they can do metal with the best of them. Clocking in at about 22 minutes, it’s one of the shorter full-lengths you’re likely to hear, but each minute is simply packed.” -Chart Magazine
“Heartbreakers/Homewreckers works best when cranking up the volume and the Iommi factor while retaining the tough/vulnerable stance and pointed political bent (as seen in the band's previous incarnation as punchy indie rockers The Plath). -Eye Magazine
“Miss the days when a fanzine was a photocopied work of art, not a URL? When grrrl punk was all about Daisy Chainsaw and skateboards, not Avril and Sk8R Boi? Look no further than scrappy local trio Cougar Party, who offer up shouty DIY punk rawk without rehashing old-school Riot Grrrl. With a pedigree that includes members of Mach Tiver and the Plath, Cougar Party capably pull off neo-feminist rallying cries and tender love songs with an aggro edge. Their debut [Heartbreakers/Homewreckers] is quite well produced, foregrounding sludgy walls of guitar noise and pulsating drums.” -Now Magazine
“Cougar party has a bracing power and lyrical honesty lacking in most of the music scene around Toronto and the rest of the country. They are hard fighting and uncompromising realists in a landscape of poseurs and manufactured imagery” -Sean Condon of CFBU-FM
“[Cougar Party’s] femininity comes at you at a very different angle, where loud and heavy guitar riffs lead the way into discontent. This trio can out gun any man any day of the weekÖthey came to the stage and played this loud hardcore aggressive musicÖ[their] abrasive sound brought me back to the days when there were more all-female bands out there.” -Xtra! Magazine
“Bent Punk” -Now Magazine
“[Cougar Party is] made up of three 20-something women who make hard, thrashy punk-influenced hardcoreÖThe band's four track demo, released last year, made number one on one of CFBU's specialty charts. Their full-length debut, is already number 12 on the station's top 30.” -The Brock Press
“[Cougar Party] have never adjusted their unapologetic musical and lyrical approach. - Xtra Magazine
“Cougar Party, a fierce hardcore band featuring young members of The Plath & Mach Tiver ended the night with screamo historanics and drummer Shannon G’s good words about women getting exposure by playing shows that would otherwise be exclusively male” -Now Magazine
“Aggressive Sludge Rockers” -Eye Magazine
“When I got the chance to see Cougar Party perform again at Fruit Market I felt the power pouring off stage, and my friend commented ‘ I think this is the best band I’ve ever heard. Do you think I can marry them all?’” -Trade Magazine
“This is a fiery punk that smashes the notion of ‘Just another girl band’.” -Toronto Star