Created in 2009 in the Los Angeles underground cabaret scene, the Dance Hall Pimps are a genre-bending show band, playing original music that ranges from rootsy, garage rock with a haunted swamp vibe to New Orleans-inspired rags and romps and a neo soul genre the band calls Gothspel. No matter how dark or twisted the subject matter, the Dance Hall Pimps sound exuberant. With inspirations including the Kinks, Elvis Presley, Electric Flag and early Rolling Stones, the Dance Hall Pimps prove they are anything but cookie cutter when it comes to music, fashion and performance.<br /><br />Playing off the unconventional direction, when finding a name lead singer RJC took to The Dictionary of Underworld Lingo; the Dance Hall Pimps’ persona synthesizes the band’s retro but uniquely pimped out sound and showy Victorian/goth/punk fashions. This is not a simple jeans and tee shirts band. <br /><br />After recording a 5-song demo and playing only a handful of gigs around Los Angeles, the Dance Hall Pimps were signed with Lakeshore Records in 2011. The band’s debut album, Beast for Love, will be released on March 6, 2012. Beast for Love was produced by Grammy Winner Matt Hyde (Porno for Pyros, Cypress Hill) and Rob Hill (Korn, Xzibit, Cypress Hill).<br /><br />After seeing the Dance Hall Pimps perform at the legendary Viper Room, the owner of Nightbird Studios at the Sunset Marquis Hotel, Jed Lieber (son of legendary lyricist Jerry Lieber), and the hotel’s owner, George Rosenthal, encouraged RJC to record Beast for Love at the famous Nightbird Studios. Although recording time at such a world-renowned studio would ordinarily be beyond the band’s budget, George and Jed were able to work out an arrangement, and the lead vocal tracks were recorded there. It truly was a one-in-a-million break for the band.