ONCE UPON a time, Greta Odrezin told buddy and co-worker Josh Sterno (Crazy Bag Lady) that she’d always wanted to start an all-girl or female-fronted band called Toxic Shock. Sterno was interested, but it took a good year for him to convince Odrezin, who had never been in a band.
When Sterno found out Philadelphia’s Mannequin Pussy was looking to play Savannah, he set up a show at Hang Fire and added Toxic Shock to the bill. They’d never had a rehearsal.
“We got an opening gig before we started writing songs, so it was a do-or-die,” says Toxic Shock drummer Daniel Lynch (Crazy Bag Lady, Sunglow).
They’re fitting in a couple more practices before Tuesday’s gig, but Odrezin, Sterno, and Lynch aren’t worried.
The first practice, Odrezin says, “felt pretty natural for me, who’s never done anything like that in my life. I mean, I guess I did karaoke one time,” she laughs.
They wrote four songs in 45 minutes, with Sterno on guitar, Lynch on drums, and Odrezin on the mic. They’re scorchers—ferocious, hardcore-leaning punk coming in 30-second and minute-long clips. Odrezin, who grew up on old-school punk rock, is a natural, ripping through Sterno’s chords and Lynch’s furious rhythms.
She’s not the only one trying something new for this show; Savannah’s never seen their favorite frontman wield a guitar. Sterno learned by watching Crazy Bag Lady bandmates, the brothers Lynch. “I’d see [Daniel] and Derek play chords and be like, ‘I think I can do that,’” he says.
Though you might see some of Sterno’s signature stage antics (granting he can still hit the notes), Odrezin is the main focus.
“We’re the backing band,” Lynch explains.
“We’re like The Roots,” Sterno suggests with a grin.
“She’s Jimmy Fallon!” adds Lynch.
And if you’re gonna be on stage for the first time, who better to do it with than old friends?
“They’re so supportive,” Odrezin says. “I’m asking questions like, ‘how do I hold a microphone?’ But it wasn’t like I felt stupid or uncomfortable.”
“I am so ready to do this,” she says excitedly. “If everybody loves it or everybody hates it, I know I’m gonna have a good time with two dudes that I’m so glad to be doing this with.”
