Lisa Prank
Seattle’s rising star too bright to ignore—Lisa Prank-oka Robin Edwards; photographed by Sarah Cass.
Lisa Prank has been one of the rising Seattle phenomenons in recent years, collaborating and inspiring many of your favorite northwest favorites. Fronted by the minimalist pop art DIY-icon in her own right Robin Edwards was heard contributing vocals on the recent Childbirth album Women’s Rights, sharing stages with almost everyone on the Hardly Art roster—her guitar/vocal/drum-machine chemistry magic has had many from the local Seattle scenes talking and anticipating Robin’s next move. We now are pleased to announce that the Lisa Prank album Adult Teen is available now via Father/Daughter on vinyl and Miscreant Records for cassette that will inspire you to take crush on you off repeat.
The opening single “Starting Again” is a shining example of the perfect Lisa Prank song that plays off of memory anecdotes and picking up yesterday’s habits and more without living in the actual moment. With the combination of Robin’s wry and earnest delivery and a very clever timing of drum machine sequences and punk riffs that you can hear for an eternity. The Lisa Prank world takes your fairy tale, neon dipped dreams and bursts them with the terse wake up of reality in hyperdrive.
For those outside of the Seattle scene, describe the origins and rise of Lisa Prank.
Lisa Prank began in the basement bedroom of my old house in Denver, Colorado at a time in my life when I was pretty bummed out. I was in a few bands that had broken up and I had also been in a few romantic relationships that had broken up, and I didn’t really have much else to do besides write emotional songs and teach myself to use this old Roland MC-505 drum machine I bought off of Craigslist. From there, the band Tacocat pretty much kidnapped me and brought me to their enchanted Seattle punk mansion where I now live and write songs about my feelings in an upstairs bedroom.
Tell us about the expansion in terms of your live show with recruiting more members on stage, and how you feel that has effected the live presence and overall performance of the live Lisa Prank experience.
The live show is still usually just me and my drum machine, but for the last tour I went on the members of Childbirth were kind enough to back me up on a few songs. It’s a welcome change from how lonely the stage usually is and Tacocat is going to do a few songs with me when we’re on our tour together, too. It’s very comforting to look forward to my friends coming up on stage at the end of a set.
Describe the sort of 90s nostalgic elements that inspired you to take on such an iconic and brighter than Rainbow Brite moniker.
When I started playing these songs I guess it just felt safer to put an alter ego pun name on my solo project about my vulnerable feelings rather than use Robin Edwards. I’m also absolutely a fan of the great American trapper keeper artist Lisa Frank and all those psychedelic dolphins jumping over rainbows and brightly colored kittens wearing crowns. Have you seen the Lisa Frank tarot deck that artist Ariel Hart just made? It’s really a beautiful combination of my interests, and I felt very understood the day it came out when all of my friends sent me links to it on social media.
The continued adventures of Lisa Prank; photographed by Amber Zbitnoff.
What types of growing up and adolescent inspiration informed the making of Adult Teen for you?
I guess I feel more like a teenager now than I ever felt when I was actually a teenager, and the songs I wrote for this record were mostly a tool for me to process my adult emotions while still not quite feeling like a grown up. I never went to the prom or dated anyone when I was in high school, and the way my life is now is closer to the way high school movies made me feel like it was supposed to be when I was 16. I feel wild feelings and stay up late and live in a house with my best friends and feel like I’m still growing. I hope I’m always still growing. The divide between the sort of never-never land my life is in right now and the life of what I would consider a real adult feels so vast.
As one of Seattle’s most beloved, inspirational, and influential artists around; what do the rest of us outsiders need to know about the various Seattle scenes and sectors right now?
Aw, shucks. Seattle is a really special place for music right now that’s always inspiring me. Some of my favorite Seattle bands are Childbirth, Tacocat, Pony Time, Chastity Belt, Dogbreth, So Pitted, Big Bite, Dude York, Mommy Long Legs, Sick Sad World, Michael Abeyta, Hoop, Iji, Briana Marela, and Nirvana.
The Lisa Prank summer plan?
I want to tour the world and also go night swimming with my friends in Lake Washington next to Kurt Cobain’s old house.
Can you impart any advice of interest for fans, aspiring artists, etc?
In the words of Dolly Rebecca Parton, “The magic is inside you. There ain’t no crystal ball.”
The new Lisa Prank album Adult Teen is available now from Father/Daughter/Miscreant Records.
