Biography
Originating their name from a term for an ornamental purse popular among women in Lithuania's Klaipeda area, the British garage-pop outfit the Delmonas first operated as the Milkboilers. The resemblance to the Milkshakes, the group fronted by Billy Childish, was deliberate: the three women began by providing backing vocals on the Milkshakes' sessions while romantically involved with its members—Sarah paired with Mickey Hampshire, Hilary with Russ Wilkins, and Louise with Bruce Brand. They stepped forward to sing lead on a version of the Beatles' "Boys," then issued two four-track EPs of their own in 1984, Comin' Home Baby (the Mel Tormé favorite) and Hello, We Love You (the Doors' "Hello, I Love You"), both featuring the Milkshakes as accompanists and most original material supplied by Childish and Hampshire.
Their debut album arrived the next year as Dangerous Charms, assembling the earlier EP cuts, three unreleased tracks, and five songs taped for radio; the collection later surfaced again as Delmonas Plus Delmonas with further BBC material added. Personal friction created a multi-year recording hiatus and prompted a changed roster for the 1988 sequel Delmonas 5!. Louise had departed, after which Hilary and Sarah adopted the names Miss Ida Red and Ludella Black—the latter possibly nodding to British singer Cilla Black—and the new lineup was supported by the original Thee Mighty Caesars lineup of Childish, Wilkins, and John Agnew. The revised group produced a louder, more aggressive sound that carried over into the 1989 release The Delmonas, which retained the same assertive tone and incorporated the previously unheard title track from Dangerous Charms along with two earlier songs reworked in French; Delmonas 5! and The Delmonas were eventually paired on a single CD.
Later that year the band issued its last collection, Do the Uncle Willy, drawing together earlier recordings, alternate takes, and a fresh rendition of the Milkshakes' "Lie Detector." Across their discography the Delmonas blended 1950s and 1960s covers with self-penned material styled after that period—bright, energetic numbers in the vein of the Shangri-Las, Lesley Gore, Nancy Sinatra, and similar resilient girl-group acts. Although their voices did not match the range of those performers, they compensated with spirit and conviction. The same approach later informed the Headcoatees, whose members included Ludella Black and Holly Golightly (by then Brand's primary partner), functioning both as backing singers for Thee Headcoats and as a fronted unit supported by that band. In 2000, after both groups had disbanded, Black issued her debut solo album She's Out There, again accompanied by Hampshire and Brand, the musicians with whom she had first performed.
Their debut album arrived the next year as Dangerous Charms, assembling the earlier EP cuts, three unreleased tracks, and five songs taped for radio; the collection later surfaced again as Delmonas Plus Delmonas with further BBC material added. Personal friction created a multi-year recording hiatus and prompted a changed roster for the 1988 sequel Delmonas 5!. Louise had departed, after which Hilary and Sarah adopted the names Miss Ida Red and Ludella Black—the latter possibly nodding to British singer Cilla Black—and the new lineup was supported by the original Thee Mighty Caesars lineup of Childish, Wilkins, and John Agnew. The revised group produced a louder, more aggressive sound that carried over into the 1989 release The Delmonas, which retained the same assertive tone and incorporated the previously unheard title track from Dangerous Charms along with two earlier songs reworked in French; Delmonas 5! and The Delmonas were eventually paired on a single CD.
Later that year the band issued its last collection, Do the Uncle Willy, drawing together earlier recordings, alternate takes, and a fresh rendition of the Milkshakes' "Lie Detector." Across their discography the Delmonas blended 1950s and 1960s covers with self-penned material styled after that period—bright, energetic numbers in the vein of the Shangri-Las, Lesley Gore, Nancy Sinatra, and similar resilient girl-group acts. Although their voices did not match the range of those performers, they compensated with spirit and conviction. The same approach later informed the Headcoatees, whose members included Ludella Black and Holly Golightly (by then Brand's primary partner), functioning both as backing singers for Thee Headcoats and as a fronted unit supported by that band. In 2000, after both groups had disbanded, Black issued her debut solo album She's Out There, again accompanied by Hampshire and Brand, the musicians with whom she had first performed.
Albums
