Can you imagine Suzi Quatro writing a real punk rock record? Or Joan Jett not being sucked in by glam rock limelight? SMALLTOWN TIGERS hail from Romagna, North/East of Italy. Deborah, Giulia and Serena (who replaced Antonio later this spring) cut their teeth on The Rockaway Bitches, playing Ramones’ songs and spreading their love for surfboards and punk rock antics. The trio earned their stripes playing squat clubs and beach parties, before scooping the support slot for NYC powerpop aces BABY SHAKES on their jaunt around Italy this spring. Already being talked up on the Euro garage-punk scene, SMALLTOWN TIGERS have dropped their debut album ‘Five Things’ early this year and will be playing a bunch of UK dates to support it.

Who the hell  are Smalltown Tigers?

Smalltown Tigers are a young female trio from North Italy who play raucous rock and roll with a 70’s punk vibe. We were due to come back to England in May but that has been cancelled because of the world crisis. The tour dates have been postponed, for the moment it seems that November it could happen and we are really looking forward to it. We are still optimistic that when this crisis ends we can go on tour and bring “Five Things” to the live stage in London and Italy.

The group, which consists of Valli (bass, vocals), Monty (guitar, vocals) and latest recruit Castel (drums), was formed out of the remnants of a Ramones cover band and played their first UK shows last year.

So Where do you guys come from?

We come from different cities of the same region (Romagna). We – Valli and Monty – live in the same small village on the outskirts of Rimini; Castel comes from the biggest (but still small though) city in the area, Forli.

How did the band come together?

Smalltown Tigers were born in 2018, when after years spent playing the Ramones, we decided to create our own songs. It all started from the desire to try to play something of our own, to experience our creativity, and somehow we succeeded, still remaining glued to the sound of the Ramones.

Any previous recordings available?

We don’t have previous recordings, “Five Things” was our first recording experience. It was amazing. We recorded the whole album at L’Amor Mio Non-Muore studio in Forli, Italy. It’s an all analogue studio, where they use old reel-to-reel recorders and a 70s mixing desk.  No computer tricks, just a bunch of tube amplifiers. It has been recorded live, loud, fast and powerful.  That’s the Smalltown Tigers.