Toxic Moxie’s brand of glam punk is taking over RVA and for good reason

Toxic Moxie is a band of musical misfits.

Toxic Moxie is a band of musical misfits. Emerging from the worlds of glam, punk, jam, disco, and fuzz, they have honed in on a sound that is completely their own. This feat is that much more impressive due to the fact their achieving this within the two and a half year lifespan of the group. There’s a reason their fans have gone to great lengths to sing their praises and support one of the most exciting outfits to emerge in town over the past few years.

This article originally ran in RVAMag #21, our Summer 2015 print issue. Check out the entire issue here.

During the summer of 2012, bassist Mitch Kordella and drummer Danny Crawford were experiencing the disintegration of their previous group, Apache Radio. “Mitch and I had been playing music with each other for close to ten years, up until the point where we were seeing our band die in front of us. We weren’t really sure what to do,” Crawford recalls. Witnessing a number of performances at The Republic around this time, they took notice of guitarist Justin Shear, then performing with The Dream Machine. The two felt like he would be a good candidate to nab for a new project. “We approached Justin with the idea of trying to work on something with more structure, as opposed to the jamming nature of his other bands. That immediately piqued his interest,” Kordella says.

The trio began to write songs in September of 2012, and even played out a few times as a trio before vocalist Sera Stavroula joined the group. “They had a Facebook page for a band that didn’t have a singer, and they had a message up looking for someone to fill in that role,” Stavroula says. “I knew Mitch and wanted to pursue this. I went to one of their shows and missed their set. I didn’t want them to think that I didn’t care–I really wanted to be a part of this.” Stavroula, a VCU graduate, had previously sang in choirs, and attempted to pursue music during her college days. “It was a bit challenging maneuvering within that system, but I still remained active,” she says. “When college was over, I didn’t know what to do at first. Then, Toxic Moxie happened.”

“We made her audition twice,” Crawford jokes. “The great thing about Sera is that when we are working on songs, she will be sitting on the couch and calculating a potential melody. Then she gets up and adds something that I never would have ever even considered.” Toxic Moxie played their first show with Stavroula on board at Tobacco Company on January 20th, 2013. “It was probably the craziest place we could have a first show, but after that, we kinda shrugged it off and figured it can’t get much crazier than that,” Kordella says. “Lightfields played with us and they were dressed up in collared shirts. We joked about how we didn’t know if they worked at Tobacco Company and were playing a set on their break,” Crawford adds. “Also, there was someone on the bill who kept shouting ‘fuck the police’ in the middle of this dining room where families are eating dinner and there are businessman everywhere. It was just something else.”

Soon after Stavroula joined the band, the four began to start work on their debut release Episode IV, which was released in August of that same year. Crawford helped to mix the recording, a role he’s retained for every Toxic Moxie release up to this point. “Our first release probably took longer in general due to our inexperience with recording,” Shear says. The band was also playing out frequently, which helped them develop a unique sound almost immediately. “Our first set of songs gravitated more towards our punk leanings, but our other influences were still being captured,” Kordella says. “Our influences jump from LCD Soundsystem to Rapture to Gang of Four to Prince to David Bowie, and I think glam and post-punk pops its head out in a lot of our songs,” Shear adds.

The band approaches every aspect of their process with a completely different mindset. “It’s crazy with how we go from songwriting mode to playing out live mode to recording mode and still function,” Crawford jokes. This is even more challenging due to the band’s apparent love for playing as many live sets as possible. “We wanted to try and start saying no to shows unless they were super cool, but we keep getting asked to play cool shows that are hard to turn down,” Stavroula explains. Their frequent appearances have only helped them to acquire a reputation as one of the hardest working groups in town, absolutely owning the stage at every performance.

Soon after Episode IV was released, Toxic Moxie began working on Episode V. The process of creating this follow-up ran a bit smoother and helped further shape their sound. “I found myself working more with synthesizers, as opposed to locking in my parts on bass,” Kordella says. “It also helped us work towards increasing more space in our songs.” Crawford found that he was a bit more prepared for the process of recording and engineering Episode V. Things ran much more smoothly, and the band gained a better sense of the way to translate the Toxic Moxie live sound on record. With the rising theatrical crescendos of “Grand Illusion” and the reverb-laden synth introductions of “Spacious Angle,” these sentiments are perfectly articulated.

In terms of their presence as a live band, Toxic Moxie remains one of the most inventive in Richmond today. Their onstage aesthetic has always leaned towards elaborate stage arrangements, allowing their creative energies to be presented through light shows, costuming, and other thematic elements. “Bottom line is, we like to put on a show and have a really cool time with the audience,” Kordella says.

They are also prone to frequent collaboration with an enormous and varied list of local musicians–a further testament to the accessible versatility of the band. “We’ve brought Coldon Martin from Lightfields on stage to play tambourine on some songs. Lindsey Spurrier of Hot Dolphin has added vocals and Tristan Brennis of Dumb Waiter has jumped up to play saxophone,” Crawford says. “The good thing about our band is, we are pretty good at jamming out. If we bring someone up on stage with very little prepared, we can usually infer something on the spot and really create a cool moment for the crowd that night.”

One of the biggest moments for the band came at a show they played this year on Valentine’s Day. Stavroula discovered on the day of the show that she had lost her voice. “When Sera told us that she didn’t have a voice, I thought she was overreacting. I just figured it would be Toxic Moxie with a little more of a rasp,” Crawford recalls. “We have never cancelled a show and I figured we could manage a weird set while still playing this show with [Franz Nicolay’s solo project, which featured] guys from Against Me! and Leftover Crack,” Stavroula adds. The show went on, and after a few songs, it became apparent that Stavroula wasn’t going to be able to sing at all. This is when Kordella took the initiative and flipped the microphone towards the audience. “I figured we could just see what would happen at this point,” Kordella says. The crowd immediately took to the opportunity to participate in a Toxic Moxie karaoke night. Fans and friends ran to the stage to sing the parts Stavroula couldn’t, and it was a true testament to the impact the band had achieved up to that point. “After we were done, one of the touring bands approached us, and thought that was our thing. He thought were going for this disco crust thing–I think we all were stoked to figure out our niche in the scene,” Stavroula says.

Toxic Moxie has never been shy about supporting causes around town and nationally. They have been strong supporters of Girls Rock RVA, ROSMY, and the Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project. They were also one of the main musical participants in the recent Frack Off! Fest, created to raise awareness about energy sources that are detrimental towards the welfare of the planet. “We have always operated within the DIY scenes of this community, and that’s never been something we’ve wanted to lose. Working with as many different causes around town is integral to us,” Kordella says. The band has always been notorious for bringing zines to every show in order to raise awareness about issues they feel strongly about. Their punk ethos is also on full display through Stavroula’s lyrics. “In a lot of Toxic Moxie songs, there are things I write and sing regarding my thoughts on capitalism, gender inequality, and my thoughts about the state of affairs,” Stavroula explains. Through several of these outlets, the band has succeeded in raising awareness and generally voicing the opinions of the underrepresented minds in Richmond.

While continuing to perform regularly, Toxic Moxie is also intent on finishing up their Episode VI EP in the coming months. “We hope to put it out by August and hopefully start touring a bit more,” Crawford mentions. “We also want to figure out a way to put out all three episodes in some fashion, and maybe even take that further to figure out a way that we could present each release,” Kordella adds. After the release of Episode VI, the band is already envisioning a potential full-length LP. “I think that the releases may have been slightly overlooked on first glance due to being shorter,” Crawford ponders. “After we complete the trilogy, I think we could focus on doing a proper full-length and writing with that in mind.” “As we write more and more together, we are just further understanding what we want Toxic Moxie to sound like,” Shear adds. “There’s a song where it has me essentially playing one note. And at first, it drove me a little crazy. Now, I see how it fits and it just lets me trust the instincts of the band more.”

There is an unmistakable energy to Toxic Moxie. They captivate audiences, turning them into sweaty messes as they dance to their heart’s desire. Their songs are instantly catchy and raise the bar even further for the Richmond music community in terms of quality of songwriting. They are also a band that helps bridge many Richmond bands together. “What I love the most about Toxic Moxie is how we can pretty much exist on any bill and it never seems to throw anyone off,” Crawford says. “Playing weird shows is the best because it is an even bigger challenge for us to show that audience a great time,” Kordella adds. “The best shows are the ones where you just look out at the audience and there’s a little of every scene represented. There is nothing separating the people that enjoy our music, and for that moment, the connection is just unbelievable,” Stavroula says. This is the true beauty of Toxic Moxie. Their music is a soundtrack not just for the rebellious but for everyone. It’s dance music for a revolution.