History & Biography New Jersey-born Betsy Weiss, the leather-clad frontwoman of Bitch with a dominatrix
image, had absorbed much influence from the likes of Alice Cooper and The Runaways. The Bitch name was actually a suggestion of guitarist Carruth, who would also later be Betsy’s boyfriend/husband. Settles and Carruth were the band’s founders and recruited Betsy through a classified ad. Incidentally, drummer Settles would later marry Weiss’ sister! Badaxe also featured Dana Strum who would go on to play in Slaughter. The monicker existed even before Betsy was recruited.
Betsy Weiss was originally a ska singer in the band The BoxBoys circa 1980. Bitch appeared on the LA scene with a 1982 EP called Damnation Alley and was something of a staple on the Los Angeles’ Sunset Strip. Damnation Alley featured Betsy on the cover. The act’s first song was called Live For The Whip. The group appeared on the original Metal Massacre and was the first to be signed to Metal Blade. Slayer opened for Bitch. That first EP was self-financed. Bitch also appeared on a compilation called The Sound Of Hollywood Girls from which a 7" EP was culled. Betsy’s mother managed the band. Betsy’s parents were divorced, which resulted in Betsy moving to California, but her father contributed saxophone to The Bitch Is Back album.
Betsy-fronted Bitch (or is that Bitch-fronted Bitch?) changed monickers to Betsy in 1988 in order to be more accessible, make a TV appearance and sell more records. The band reverted to Bitch when it ended up selling fewer records than before! Betsy also planned a project called Bet-z, but eventually canned the idea. A Rose By Any Other Name was a compilation EP, featuring a new song and remixes, issued by Metal Blade in 1989.
Bitch got off an S&M image and was often described as having a rough 'n ready Motörhead sound. One of the records is obviously released under the Betsy monicker.
In late 2002 Bitch reappeared on the street and was booked at the Bang Your Head Festival. This would be the band's first European show. The reformed band also contributed a song called Infatuation to the Metal Blade anniversary compilation. Dave Carruth left in 2003. The band confirmed a one-off show in Los Angeles at Roxy on October 10th, 2006. The band also played a one-off show at Paladino’s in Tarzana, California in 2007. Singer Betsy joined Witch in September of 2008. The band had last disbanded in 1991.
Bitch appeared at the Keep It True XIV festival, which was held April 29-30, 2011 in Germany, with the band Anger As Art backing singer Betsy. The act was billed as Bitch Featuring Betsy. Robby Settles had died due to cancer in 2010 and honoured with a memorial jam. Bitch has been working on a new album with a new line-up since. As of 2013, Chris Cardenas was the guitarist and Randal West (Jenna Syde And The Watchers) was on drums. The band was booked for Street Metal Massacre II in Philadelphia with Whiplash, Plague Dogs and others in 2019. The group was booked for the LA Burning Fest III in 2022.
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