Death Valley Girls and Bella and the Bizarre: live review and photo galleries

Tour finales are emotional at the best of times, but Death Valley Girls brought something altogether more spiritual, unhinged and cathartic to their last night at The Lexington, London – a gig that felt like both a sermon and a séance.

Support came from Berlin’s Bella and the Bizarre, making their London debut in a riot of 60s girl-group grooves and gleeful chaos. Equal parts garage rock, soul and camp theatrics, the band powered through their self-titled debut with energy that teetered between punk menace and lounge-act kitsch. Every riff landed like a punch, but it was Bella Khan’s stagecraft that stole the set – eventually ditching her guitar to fully embrace a wild hybrid of Go-Go dancing, interpretive mime, and genuine possession.

A quick interlude involving their tour manager shouting for pizza orders only added to the chaos – and in case you’re wondering where that garage-glam fire comes from, Bella is the daughter of King Khan (of Shrines fame). The punk lineage runs deep.

Then came Death Valley Girls, wrapping their tour with a performance that felt more like a seance than a set. Drenched in twangy fuzz and cosmic vibes, they pulled the crowd into their spell immediately. Bonnie Bloomgarden, part high priestess, part punk mystic, took to the stage radiating Stevie Nicks energy and Beth Gibbons intensity – think Sleater Kinney meets the Ronettes in a desert church full of smoke machines.

The band’s covers of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Sisters of the Moon’ and Link Wray’s ‘Fire and Brimstone’ were particular highlights – both newly released tracks that have taken on a deeper resonance following the recent wildfires that destroyed Bonnie’s home. The latter, in particular, felt emotionally charged; a howl into the void transformed into a cathartic, full-throated exorcism. Bonnie has spoken about the inner turmoil of performing a song so tied to her trauma, and yet here it was – loud, defiant, and healing.

“I thought to myself, ‘what would Tina Turner do?’ And I realized she would definitely keep it in the set and use the song to transmute fear into freedom”

By the third song, Bonnie was off the stage and in the crowd, howling from the bar, hands raised, as if channelling something far bigger than rock’n’roll. There were hugs, shouts, one last joyful chaos dance with Bella Khan back on stage, and a proper emotional farewell to their road crew.

For a band that’s so much about transcendence and transformation, this was a perfect finale. Even by Lexington standards – a venue that’s seen more than its fair share of magic – this one felt charged. Holy. Emotional. Unforgettable.

Follow Bella and the Bizarre Here: bandcamp | website | instagram

Follow The Death Valley Girls Here: instagram | suicidesqueezerecords | facebook | bandcamp