Miss Velvet unleashes powerful new single ‘Pistols At Dawn’

Goddess-voiced chanteuse, songwriter, and tastemaker Miss Velvet has unveiled her electrifying new single, “Pistols at Dawn”, marking the highly anticipated release of her bold, cinematic Triptych EP, out now via her own Mother Ride Records via The Orchard/Sony. 

“Pistols at Dawn” is a fierce, high-stakes anthem that captures Miss Velvet’s signature fusion of powerhouse vocals, rock-infused energy, and striking storytelling. The track pulses with intensity, blending classic rock grandeur with a modern, avant-garde edge, further cementing her status as a genre-defying artist.

The release coincides with Miss Velvet’s striking three-part Triptych EP, a groundbreaking audio-visual experience that seamlessly marries her passion for music, fashion, and storytelling. The EP’s accompanying short film, directed by Gus Black (Greta Van Fleet, Phoebe Bridgers, Teddy Swims), was shot deep in the Mojave Desert, immersing audiences in a breathtaking, otherworldly journey.

Following the success of her previous singles “Hallelujah” and “Strut” which showcased her evolution as an artist and storyteller, “Pistols at Dawn” continues to push boundaries, embodying the raw emotion and fearless artistry that defines Miss Velvet.

Raised in New York, where her mother had a production company, Miss Velvet literally grew up around operas and Broadway shows, witnessing both sides of the curtain up close as she did her homework backstage. This fueled a fascination for transforming the everyday into ornate artistic interpretations, which extended to her staging improvised theatre performances during grade school recess. By age 10, she was presenting The Sound of Music for her classmates, acting as creative director and bringing in costumes – the roots of a lifelong immersion in fashion which permeates her music and visuals today.

When she lost her father at age 13, Miss Velvet discovered the astonishing voice that’s been the throbbing heart of her adult career: a primordial Plant/Joplin/Tyler emoting that channeled and released a grief beyond words – an inner scream that we all carry but few can utter. “It felt wild and uncontrollable, kind of scary,” she recalled. “My mother and I were, like, it’s got to be  channeled, it’s got to be controlled!”

What followed was training at the revered Interlochen Center for the Arts and with top vocal  coaches in Italy and France. “In the beginning, people in the industry and classical world said,  y’know, ‘she looks a certain way – blonde, blue eyes, skinny –, she needs to sound a certain way.  That voice is not appropriate’,” Miss Velvet continued. “But I learned how to channel that voice  and use it in a really incredible way.”

On the strength of a snippet of her singing Janis Joplin’s “Summertime,” acclaimed musician/ producer Nick Littlemore (Empire of the Sun, Cirque Du Soleil) invited Miss Velvet to L.A. for seven weeks of writing and recording. With Littlemore, an artist who likewise thrives inside whimsical creations, the Miss Velvet character was born. Back in New York, her funk-rock band Miss Velvet and the Blue Wolf built a following and landed two world tours, over 150 shows, opening for George Clinton, who declared her voice “the definition of rock n’ roll.”

But then came the pandemic, marriage, and motherhood. In 2021, Miss Velvet found herself effectively starting over in L.A., heartbroken over her band’s breakup, raising an infant daughter, and navigating a postpartum identity crisis. “There was a six-month period when I was like, Who  am I? Who is Miss Velvet?” These questions found answers upon meeting songwriter/producer Esjay Jones (Billy Corgan, Dave Navarro), her co-writer, producer, bandmate and creative confidant ever since. Together, they crafted Miss Velvet’s 2023 debut solo album, Traveler, a freewheeling road trip of a record credited with rejuvenating classic rock and exposing that voice  – a force-of-nature fusing of wounded beast and cultured artist – to a wider audience.

If Traveler began to blur the lines between Miss Velvet’s roles as rock star, artistic adventurer, celebrity fashionista, and now young mother of two, Triptych’s enormous evolution all but erases them. It was recorded mostly at Matt Sorum’s GoodNoise Studios in Palm Springs, with the surrounding desert as daily inspiration; mixed by Kevin “Thrasher” Gruft (Gwen Stefani, Machine Gun Kelly) and Esjay Jones in LA; and mastered by Grammy winner Ted Jensen (The Eagles, Rolling Stones, Santana) in NYC. Released on her own Mother Ride Records via The Orchard /Sony, Triptych sharp-focuses Miss Velvet’s singular identity as a goddess-voiced beacon of liberation and self-love, leading by example in embracing beauty and fantasy as empowering coping mechanisms.

Written in the wake of betrayal by a beloved friend, Triptych traces the arc of Miss Velvet facing her fears and foe (Western-flavored opening track “Pistols at Dawn”), authentically owning the situation (assertive first single, “Strut”), and ultimately finding resolution and, still, love (the organic ascension of “Hallelujah”). It connects elegant, Heart– and Hendrix-flecked hard rock with choral interludes informed by opera and Middle Eastern music, the choir coaxing and supporting Miss Velvet through her journey and introducing its chapters.

Miss Velvet approaches performing, on stage and screen, as she does walking the red carpet as an international tastemaker at Fashion Week events in Paris, Milan, or New York – with impeccable style, instinctive class, and singular poise.

“No matter what craziness happened in life, I always have music and family, and when I step into the stage persona of Miss Velvet, maybe it’s like a painter picking up a brush, or a dancer making a new dance – my music and style is just my creative spirit that I’m able to unleash,” she concluded. “Nothing to lose because it’s my Miss Velvet who brings shape and sound to the emotions of my life! She’s authentically me; she is what’s at my core and she is ever evolving.”

The Triptych film ends like a mirage, with Miss Velvet walking alone towards her the next chapter of an already intriguing, multitiered story.