Drop Out Venus Aren't So Angry, Goddammit!

The 1234 Shoreditch festival is fast approaching, meaning the area will be more overrun with hipsters people having more fun than you than usual, as well as a buttload of great bands to listen to. One band doing the rounds is Drop Out Venus, a trio of Bulgarian musicians who decided to move to south London, for some reason. They're known for being intense, emotional, and for constantly encouraging their fans to "Be Brave". It's either like your mum pleasantly telling you to quit your blubbing after scraping your knee, or they know their music heralds the return of the Elder Beings, or something.

I tried to find out by talking to their singer, Iva Moskovich, but mainly ended up chatting about Friends, anger issues and the aristocracy, instead.

Noisey: Hello, Iva How are you?

Iva: Hey, Noisey! It’s going pretty good. I’m the luckiest person alive. You?

Not too shabby. Why are you so lucky?
I’ve got a very sexy man next to me. I just looked into his eyes and it just doesn’t get any sexier than that.

You’re breathing pretty heavily.
That’s my usual vocal style, breathy.

Not because you just had sex?
Oh no, I’m always like this. I’ve done it since I was little; I decided it works better for my voice.

Like Phoebe in that Friends episode?

Not quite, I don’t think I’m Phoebe enough. Phoebe was my favorite, but I never thought that anyone took her seriously. She was a bit of a joke, you know? She wasn’t like Rachel with all the boys and pretty clothes. She didn’t live in the city, she was an outsider and nobody really gave a shit. They always got together and spoke about how kooky Phoebe was, but I don’t think that was nice of them.

She had some intense stuff going on. Formerly homeless, people spitting in her mouth, that kinda stuff..
Yeah! And then she had triplets with her brother, who’s a famous scientologist, I believe, which is pretty fucked up. To be honest, they did some creepy stuff. I don’t think it was handled very well, none of the other friends were like, “Phoebe are you OK? Do you need someone to talk to?" Then, when Rachel gave birth to one measly baby, they were all like “Oh, Rachel, are you OK?" I think it's pretty fucked up.

Intense.
Yes, very intense. She had a twin as well, who was in the porn industry from what I remember. She was great—Ursula, I love that name.

Very Little Mermaid.
She’s been in my nightmares for years. She’s a terrifying monster, a pathological narcissist. She can’t empathise or relate to anyone; she’s not like a villain you can level with because of her sociopathic personality. There’s nothing likeable in her, she’s not like Gaston from Beauty and the Beast, who’s just an idiot who doesn’t know any better, and something probably happened in his childhood that made him a dick. No, with Ursula, she’s just evil. Born evil and going to die evil. She scares me. She’s this huge, fat monster with a massive chin.

She was only standing up for her beliefs.
But there are other ways of going about doing that, you know? I find her ways to be lacking in empathy. It’s fine if she wants to get her revenge on the king, but don’t touch the kids. There’s no need for that.

She crossed a line. Erm, do you reckon Pussy Riot went too far?
It’s horrific. It’s really terrifying—I’ve been watching videos on YouTube and reading people’s comments, which is something I really like to do, to see how people feel about it. It’s really fascinating how negative all the opinions are towards these women, who essentially haven’t really done anything wrong. It’s very overwhelming, the names they are being called. Sluts, whores, all this kind of thing, it’s just terrible.

I always hit YouTube comments for fair and respectful debate.
I know it’s not top-level criticism or well thought-out responses, but it’s people who are following it without having any kind of influence that really interest me. The fact that these are everyday people with normal lives, who have these terrifying feelings underneath.

Everyone secretly hates each other, I guess.
I saw someone arguing with a bus driver over something really trivial; it's amazing how much rage people keep to themselves. I remember another bus driver told me to “fuck off” because I was slow getting off from the top floor. I said “can you open the doors again?” and was very polite. He just turned round and said “no”, so I asked him again and he shouted “fuck off then, asshole!” I was like, “whoa, where’s that rage coming from?” When you think about it, it must be pretty fucking horrible driving a bus around all day with nobody giving the slightest thought to who you are and what your desires are.

This was in Deptford, I presume…
Of course! Home, sweet home.

What’s the music scene like around there at the moment?
Everybody plays in our local, the New Cross Inn. Skinny Girl Diet played there recently and I kept saying to them “if you can survive it you’ll be fine”. They survived it, but it was really horrible for them. The sound guy, Ben, does not give a shit. He hates music and wants it to die. He has a lot of repressed rage, so he never makes anybody sound good. The New Cross Inn is usually populated by people who want to be entertained—they don’t want to hear your heart bleed or hear about your opinions, they just want to be entertained. It doesn’t quite work like that all the time with music, so there’s a lot of shouting, a lot of heckling and booing, but they survived it. They got out and they were great. It’s so brutal—live or die, sink or swim, which I quite like, as it forces you to get your guns out and tell people to shut the fuck up.

So people can expect to be sworn at during your performances?
Oh, it depends! Yeah, sometimes I get angry on stage, but sometimes I feel pretty zen about everything. I read these reviews that are sometimes very nice, but they say that I’m incredibly serious and angry. I think it must be my face. I’m Eastern European so I just look angry, y'know? Stealing your jobs and taking your men. It’s just my face. I’m actually a really nice person.

I believe you! So, are you looking forward to 1234?
It’s difficult to not look forward to a gig, really, playing with people that I love most in the world. So yes, I am, although I’m a bit nervous about it. I’m always nervous before a gig.

So why should people go see you play?
Oh, I don’t know. Some people are moved by us, which is something I always strive to do when I perform. I hope they can expect that. But then again, there are lots of people that hate us, which is fine. I think we're quite popular with freaks, which is a good demographic, I feel.

Are you freaky people yourselves?
Well, I mean the way everybody is, we’re just a little bit more aware of it.

Me too. How do you relax outside music?

My cat! I have a little killing machine. She just went into heat for the first time and she was trying to mate with a potato waffle. She is a freak, for sure. I stroke her and I feel like the best person in the world when we are together.

Cute! Anyway, I'll let you get off. What are you doing for the rest of the day?
My man is going to cook for me, then we’re going to an exhibition, not sure what it is though.

Would your man like to say anything to Noisey?
He says he is not sexy enough to say anything.

Lies.
He is mute. He's from the aristocracy, you can’t get him to talk!

Is it Harry?
Are you kidding me? No. He is way better looking than Harry, come on!

William?
[Laughs] He thinks you’re famous! He’s kind of like from the lower circles. He went to Eton.

Is he naked apart from his crown?
Yes, he is, which is exactly how I like to keep him.

Sweet. Thanks Iva!

Follow Alex on Twitter @alexdonovan