Babe Haven Previews New Album at The Underground

Dan Russell-Pinson – March 30, 2024

Babe Haven, a female-fronted queer band currently based out of Durham, NC, had the honor of opening up for punk legends Otoboke Beaver for two stops of their current US tour (Carrboro and Charlotte). Their Charlotte appearance on March 27, 2024 marks the band’s first time playing at The Underground.

Babe Haven consists of Lillie Della Penna (lead vocals), Naomi Poesel (guitar & vocals), Julia Lynn (bass) and Brendan Martini (drums). Inspired by the Riot Grrrl movement among other influences, Babe Haven’s sound is raw, heavy and angry but not without a sense of humor. While they’re currently hard at work on a new album called “Nuisance” (to be released in late spring of 2024), fans are still enjoying their 2023 album Uppercut and their 2021 self-titled EP.

Lillie Della Penna, lead singer, performing at The Underground (Photo by Dan Russell-Pinson)

Most of Babe Haven’s Charlotte gigs take place at much smaller venues such as The Milestone and Snug Harbor, however, they clearly felt right at home at The Underground playing for hundreds of people. At one point in the show, Poesel asked the audience to make noise if they had, and if they hadn’t, seen Babe Haven before. Although the veteran Babe Haven fans made a lot of noise, this unscientific poll revealed that the vast majority of people in the crowd were first-timers. By the end of their set, it was clear by the audience’s response that Babe Haven had made a lot of new fans.

Naomi Poesel, guitarist and singer, performing at The Underground (Photo by Dan Russell-Pinson)

The band opened their set with the female-empowerment song ‘GIRLS TO THE FRONT’ which often appears in the middle of their set but is very effective as an opener. The song starts off slow and dark, slowly builds in intensity and tempo and then peaks with the word “girls!” shouted over and over again. With a quick transition into the edgy rocker ‘Jaws’, Babe Haven was able to bring the excitement level to maximum in just sixty seconds.

Julia Lynn, bassist, performing at The Underground (Photo by Dan Russell-Pinson)

Next, we got a preview of the new album with the performance of three new songs: ‘Bubbleguts’, ‘Gas Pedal’ and ‘Die (and Rot)’. ‘Bubbleguts’ features verses with choppy guitars and rapid-fire vocals followed by riff-heavy choruses that hit harder than any other Babe Haven song I’ve heard before. That is until I heard the next song – ‘Gas Pedal’ – a non-stop rocker with heavy guitar riffs and aggressive vocals which Della Penna explained was written about getting hit on at the gas station. Closing out the new songs was ‘Die (and Rot)’, slated to be the band’s next single, which features screaming vocals and a more complex arrangement. This song really allows Lynn’s bass playing to shine both on the main riffs and during the really cool breakdown midway in. If these three songs are any indication, the new album is going to hit really hard.

Brendan Martini, drummer, performing at The Underground (Photo by Dan Russell-Pinson)

Poesel then took the mic and expressed the privilege she felt sharing a bill with all Asian artists before introducing the next song – ‘Kung Pow’. “It’s about the Asian-American experience living in white America”, Poesel explained.

“Criticize me/ Sexualize me/ Fetishize me/ Martyrize me/ I don’t want to be your American girl”

Babe Haven concluded their set with crowd favorites ‘Uppercut’, ‘Lauren’ and ‘Daddy’s Lil Grrrl’ and made it clear that they can thrive on bigger stages and brighter lights and that their music is big enough to fill any size room.