It was a homecoming for Jesika von Rabbit and her ever-faithful bassist/partner-in-quirk Lee Joseph when the duo hosted an album release party in their Joshua Tree stomping grounds on this month.
Prior to the June 13 show, they shared that it’s been five years since they played Pappy & Harriet’s, the storied Pioneertown roadhouse that has seen everyone from Paul McCartney and Robert Plant to Queens of the Stone Age and Lorde come through since 1982. But the unveiling of their third studio album, Bunnywood Babylon (Dionysus Records), was cause for a cosmic return.
In a tight, hour-long set, von Rabbit performed 13 songs, seven of which appear on the new album. Kicking off with the spacey “I Can’t Find Me” from Bunnywood, she launched the crowd into a synth- and bass-fueled intergalactic trip.
“The album’s sound is a combination of genres that I’m attracted to — classic Americana, psychedelia, and futuristic pop that transcends space and time,” von Rabbit said in a post-show interview.
That aural melting pot is consistent with her previous two albums — 2015’s Journey Mitchell and 2018’s Dessert Rock – so Bunnywood songs like “Gotta Keep My Buzz Going,” “Hooray for Hollywood” and “Wacko” (released as a single and video in April) blended seamlessly with fan favorites like “Psychic Spice,” “Going Down” and “Looking for a Weirdo.” And being an artist who embraces being different, von Rabbit made a point to acknowledge all the wackos and weirdos in the audience, many of whom were dressed in costume for the occasion.
As always, von Rabbit’s performance was more than just a gig; it was a pageant of playful absurdity and surreal visuals. Campy rabbits, dogs and aliens paraded onstage throughout the night, such as during the enduring Gram Rabbit gem “Cowboys & Aliens,” when a pair of female extraterrestrials blasted Pappy’s patrons with their bubble guns.
Throughout her career, von Rabbit has been known to insert a quirky cover here and there — from Cyndi Lauper’s “She Bop” to Culture Club’s “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” — and it was no different on this night. She primed the crowd with a recording of the “Golden Girls” theme (Andrew Gold’s “Thank You for Being a Friend”) before unleashing a reimagined version of Garth Brooks’ “Friends in Low Places” that was so uniquely hers it took a moment to recognize.
Black Crystal Wolf Kids (the self-proclaimed “world’s first indie rock tribute band”) performed sets both before and after von Rabbit. Their guitarist Jeff Miller and drummer Greg Levinson joined the band on the dis-track “Go Back to L.A.” — a new single that likely lands better in the high desert than in the hills of Hollywood — and the poodle-prancing encore “Dog at a Human Party.”
Co-produced by von Rabbit and Ethan Allen, Bunnywood Babylon was recorded both at her Rabbit Ranch in Joshua Tree and Royal Triton Studios in Silver Lake, Calif. The result is an album as colorful, eclectic, and emotionally charged as its creator.
“’Bunnywood Babylon’ emerged from personal and worldly conflict,” von Rabbit shared. “The album is its own personal wonderland of ups and downs.”
Across 11 tracks, von Rabbit weaves through playful satire and pointed reflection, from the sparkly indie-pop shimmer of “Pretty Dum” to the Beatles-flavored harmonies on “Surf Music” to the haunting, stripped-down closer “Desert Rain.”
As for the album’s unusual name?
“I was toying around with different titles and it was between ‘Babble On’ and ‘Bunnywood Babylon,’ in reference to the Kenneth Anger book, ‘Hollywood Babylon,’” she explained.
The album’s striking cover art, created by Palm Springs artist Peter Mikulak, wasn’t originally intended for the cover, but once von Rabbit saw it, she knew. “I thought it was quite iconic. I had the Tower of Babel added for extra symbolism and metaphor.”
Whether she’s channeling cosmic energy, leading a bunny cult, or calling out the L.A. elite in a desert anthem, Jesika von Rabbit continues to blur the line between music and performance art. And Bunnywood Babylon waves that freak flag with delightful abandon.
Donovan Roche is a longtime music writer and frequent contributor to Times of San Diego. Send your story ideas to [email protected].
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