The Dead Queens - Band
Shows, portraiture, Design
The Smiths can go and shove it, because the iconic phrase “The Queen is Dead”, has a brand new meaning.
The Dead Queens are an Alternative Rock band with a bluesy bent from Leesburg, Virginia. Fronted by Bassist and Vocalist Aidan Bashore, with Ben Carra on Drums, and Alden Cizmic on Lead & Rhythm Guitar, the trio (supported occasionally on Keys by Alec VanLandingham), have played the Washington D.C. and Northern Virginia metro areas since their inception in 2023, and have left thousands of new fans and devout supporters rockin’ in their dust.
With sets at, but not limited to, Spanky’s Shenanigans (Leesburg), Lost Rhino Brewing Co. (Ashburn), James Madison University (Harrisonburg), Crooked Run Fermentation (Sterling), Neighbors Sports Bar and Grill (Broadlands), Galactic Panther (Alexandria), Ipanema Cafe (Richmond), Clementine Cafe (Harrisonburg), The Renegade (Arlington), The Pocket (Washington D.C.), Pie Shop (Washington D.C.), and their self-described “home base”, Jammin’ Java (Vienna), this up-and-coming group plays thunderously true-to-form renditions of the classics, while incorporating their own originals to give crowds something new to chew on and stick around for, long after they unplug.
Influenced heavily by Queens of the Stone Age (what’s in a name?), ZZ Top, The Police, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Van Halen, The White Stripes, and The Strokes, the Dead Queens sound is sure to get your feet stomping, hips moving, and head banging. Adjectives used to paint a picture for the uninitiated preparing to attend one of their shows would be “Groovy, Goofy, Heavy, Punky, and at times, Political”.
With a band made up of musical devotees such as these fellas, paying homage to the rock greats is a cornerstone mission for every Queen’s set, and that goal is supported by each band member’s personal pursuits off the stage.
Ben Carra, a current student in Shenandoah University’s Music Production and Recording Technology program, and member of the Conservatory’s Studio Big Band, is a rapt studio dynamo when it comes to adjusting tones, mixes, and microphone efficiency. Carra’s background in Jazz, Funk, and Fusion drumming lends a refined and traditional flair to the Queen’s kit, while never being a stranger to kicking it up a notch and blasting the beats away. With influences like Danny Carey of Tool and a backstory like Miles Teller’s in “Whiplash”, you are sure to get your dose of drumming frenzy a’ la “Pneuma” and “Caravan”, one way or another when Ben picks up the sticks.
Aidan Bashore, pulling double-duty similarly in line with one of his heroes, Sting, can both belt it out on the track and keep the low-end driving forward. A swaggering stage-presence, aligned with a recent affinity for sunglasses in the limelight, render Bashore the epitome of classic cool, with the sound rumbling from his baby blue Squier Jazz bouncing anyone still on the fence into his orbit. His voice can carry the raspy drawl of SRV, or modulate up to the Midwestern curl of the Black Keys’ Daniel Auerbach, and cover everything in between. Aidan’s not only a dual audio threat, but a staunch activist and personal advocate of using his voice and platform for Progressivism, as who in the music industry’s storied and interwoven-with-politics history hasn’t?
Alden Cizmic, a sly, rhythmic shredder often seen toting a Purple-sparkle axe that would make even Prince blush, illuminates the melodic section for the band with unapologetic abandon. His roots as a basement guitarist with something to prove are met with his two feet forward at every show, demanding you pay attention to every note he plays. His appreciation for the deep catalogue of the modern songbook spread across decades is astounding, and is akin to a Musical Rainman, which he embodies well in every live outing the Queens embark on. A master in improvisation, not only in his buttery slick solos and churning riffs, but also in stage-emergencies where strings are broken mid-song (no far cry to that of Benny the Jet knocking off the skin of a baseball in The Sandlot?) has Cizmic solidified as the calm, cool, and collected glue of the trio’s live persona, and he certainly looks the part during shows. Watch out ladies, and keep an eye on your moms as well.
The Dead Queens show no sign of stopping as they finish up their Sophomore year in 2024, with a litany of yet-announced shows to look forward to on the calendar in their Quartercennial campaign, and are soon to be releasing their eponymous first original EP, featuring the tracks, “Lucidity”, “Cut Me In (To The Bone)”, “A Night In Istanbul”, and “Bad Magick”. Recorded at Ivakota Studio in Washington, D.C, this 4-song heater will surely be a first explosion into the streaming world for the band, with many more to follow. The Dead Queens can be found on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/thedeadqueens/, and I highly implore you to not be a stranger about coming to one of their shows in 2025 if you live in the Northern Virginia & Washington D.C. areas.
You never know, you just might like 'em! ∎
