Born and raised in East L.A., Alice
grew up in a home where speaking
a language other than Spanish was
forbidden. As a result, Alicia did
not speak English when she started
school and recalls crying when a
frustrated teacher yelled at her.
This memory led her to pursue a
career as a bilingual teacher so
that she could help other Spanish
speaking children have a better
experience with school.
Alice began singing professionally
at the age of 8, dubbing cartoons
into Spanish and recording the
theme songs. She attended several
Eastside schools and by the time
she left junior high she had become
fascinated with the glitter rock
scene and music by T. Rex, Bowie
and the New York Dolls. In 1976,
she and a friend (Patricia Rainone)
decided to form an all-girl punk
band and began auditioning
musicians, which eventually led to
The Bags.
The Bags were one of the first and
most popular bands of the early
L.A. punk scene and were notable
for having two strong female
members. Their music was fast,
aggressive and confrontational.
Alice Bag didn't so much perform
as explode on stage and The Bags
quickly gained notoriety. By the
time the remaining members of the
Bags were included in the Penelope
Spheeris film, The Decline of
Western Civilization in 1981, the
Hollywood punk scene was already
in its final days.
grew up in a home where speaking
a language other than Spanish was
forbidden. As a result, Alicia did
not speak English when she started
school and recalls crying when a
frustrated teacher yelled at her.
This memory led her to pursue a
career as a bilingual teacher so
that she could help other Spanish
speaking children have a better
experience with school.
Alice began singing professionally
at the age of 8, dubbing cartoons
into Spanish and recording the
theme songs. She attended several
Eastside schools and by the time
she left junior high she had become
fascinated with the glitter rock
scene and music by T. Rex, Bowie
and the New York Dolls. In 1976,
she and a friend (Patricia Rainone)
decided to form an all-girl punk
band and began auditioning
musicians, which eventually led to
The Bags.
The Bags were one of the first and
most popular bands of the early
L.A. punk scene and were notable
for having two strong female
members. Their music was fast,
aggressive and confrontational.
Alice Bag didn't so much perform
as explode on stage and The Bags
quickly gained notoriety. By the
time the remaining members of the
Bags were included in the Penelope
Spheeris film, The Decline of
Western Civilization in 1981, the
Hollywood punk scene was already
in its final days.
Alice went on to perform in many
different groups while she attended
college in Los Angeles, earning her
Bachelor's degree in Philosophy from
Cal State L.A. She began teaching at
inner city schools where there was a
need for bilingual instructors, work she
continues to this day.
In the late 80's, she joined the
pop-punk group Cholita! with Vaginal
Davis. Subsequently, she formed the
acoustic group Las Tres with Teresa
Covarrubias
(The Brat) and Angela Vogel (Odd
Squad), specifically to perform original
songs in a folk idiom written from a
Chicana perspective. The group was a
critical and local favorite and led to a
spin-off project, Goddess 13, which
became the subject of a PBS
documentary.
Following the birth of her daughter in
the mid-90's, Alice took a break from
writing and performing, during which
time she focused almost exclusively on
motherhood. Realizing that this role
alone was not completely fulfilling and
needing a musical outlet to express her
ideas spawned her latest project, Stay
At Home Bomb, an all female punk
rock group that addresses domestic
roles, socially enforced images of
femininity and the burning desire of
women to kick ass in a rock band. Stay
At Home Bomb includes Lysa Flores
and two ex-members of the hard
rocking Betty Blowtorch, Judy Molish
and Sharon Needles.
different groups while she attended
college in Los Angeles, earning her
Bachelor's degree in Philosophy from
Cal State L.A. She began teaching at
inner city schools where there was a
need for bilingual instructors, work she
continues to this day.
In the late 80's, she joined the
pop-punk group Cholita! with Vaginal
Davis. Subsequently, she formed the
acoustic group Las Tres with Teresa
Covarrubias
(The Brat) and Angela Vogel (Odd
Squad), specifically to perform original
songs in a folk idiom written from a
Chicana perspective. The group was a
critical and local favorite and led to a
spin-off project, Goddess 13, which
became the subject of a PBS
documentary.
Following the birth of her daughter in
the mid-90's, Alice took a break from
writing and performing, during which
time she focused almost exclusively on
motherhood. Realizing that this role
alone was not completely fulfilling and
needing a musical outlet to express her
ideas spawned her latest project, Stay
At Home Bomb, an all female punk
rock group that addresses domestic
roles, socially enforced images of
femininity and the burning desire of
women to kick ass in a rock band. Stay
At Home Bomb includes Lysa Flores
and two ex-members of the hard
rocking Betty Blowtorch, Judy Molish
and Sharon Needles.
| A 90 second video about Alice's childhood in East L.A. |
