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At Genitorturers show, leave your inhibitions at the door

Adrenaline PR

Front woman Gen will be the leather-clad mistress of ceremonies at tonight's concert.

By CURTIS ROSS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 5, 2009

Updated: 11/06/2009 10:13 am

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Rum, sodomy, the lash and then some: The Genitorturers are taking to the high seas.

Florida's foremost purveyors of everything your mother warned you about (and much she never imagined) will headline the Devils and Dolls Hard Rockin' Cruise in May.

"We'll be performing as well as hosting masquerade parties," says front woman Gen by telephone from a tour stop in Seattle.

"Most cruises include your food and cabin but this one includes alcohol," she continues. "This is gonna be a fun cruise."

The hooch will be helpful for anyone who stumbles onboard with any lingering inhibitions.

The Genitorturers' live show is legendary/notorious, featuring piercings, whippings and all manner of depravity, with Gen as the leather-clad mistress of ceremonies.

What gets lost in the onstage antics is the fact that the Genitorturers are a band, something Gen hopes to stress with the new album, "Blackheart Revolution."

"I wanted to make a record along the lines of stuff I listened to growing up like (Alice Cooper's 1975 album) 'Welcome to My Nightmare,'" Gen says, "something that was a little more conceptual, that had some ebb and flow and dynamics. A lot of variety."

The album is the band's most polished yet, melding electro, metal and punk into a shiny, hard-hitting package.

"When we first started, the show was so provocative that people were not taking us seriously as a band," Gen says.

Besides Gen, the band includes bassist David "Evil D" Vincent, formerly of Morbid Angel, and guitarist Bizz. Rounding out the live lineup are drummer Angel and guitarist Eric Griffin.

Gen says the band was a reaction to Orlando, where she moved from her hometown of Albuquerque to study at Rollins College.

"It was so plastic," she says. " I was coming from Albuquerque which had a vibrant art scene with lots of multicultural art going on. I was really into the hardcore punk scene.

"So when I went to Rollins, it was a real culture shock for me," she says. "It absolutely inspired me to push the envelope."

That envelope never has recovered. But for all the taboos broken on the Genitorturers stage, Gen believes her gender is the most shocking thing of all for most audiences.

Onstage, "I'm the female Marquis de Sade," Gen says. "More than anything, it's the fact that it's a woman doing this that shocks people. There's still an element that men can get away with that women can't.

"That whole concept of femininity and strength that I portrayed from Day One in the band has been there on every single record - loud and clear and strong."