Zombie Nurse Performed at Conbust

Zombie Nurse, a local all-women’s band that specializes in theatrical gore, recently performed at Conbust, Smith’s annual convention organized by the Smith Science Fiction and Fantasy Society (SSFFS). The band brought a self-described “soulthrash” sound and a presence reminiscent of B-movie horror films and zombie apocalypse aesthetic to the stage.

The band consists of alum Phoebe Camilletti ’11 on bass guitar, Amanda Kimball on guitar and Hilary Graves on drums. All three members are also vocalists.

“They put it together [in] March of 2011, and I joined in June,” said Camilletti. “I was looking at local bands in the area, and they had a status that said they were looking for a bass player, so I reached out to them.”

Camilletti, having played violin nearly all her life, was ready for something different. “I’ve just always been part of the classical music scene my whole life, and because of that, I’ve always wanted to play in non-classical type settings,” she said. “It was time for a change of pace.”

But for a band that calls itself Zombie Nurse, their music is far less violent than it is eerie and melodic.

“We classify ourselves as ‘soulthrash,’ we have the whole thrash thing going on, but there is a whole mellow, kind of expressive, lyrical and soft kind of thing we do,” explained Camilletti. “It’s not just all thrashing; there’s more substance to it. We have stuff ranging from funky stuff to slower, more melodic songs, some thrash songs, some all together. We’re not defined by any particular genre.”

Zombie Nurse usually plays in the Pioneer Valley, performing in the Northampton and Greenfield areas. Theatrical gore plays a large part in their performance.

“We try to make our performances mostly music but we also do make an effort to bring in theatrical elements for every show we do,” said Camilletti. “We have a guy who comes and pretends to be a doctor and eats hearts, which we make out of edible materials.”

Additionally, Zombie Nurse has attracted a solid fan base that comes to the majority of their shows. Part of the fun is the free makeup: “We offer totally free zombification to anyone who wants it at our shows,” said Camilletti.

As far as playing in front of an audience goes, most performances go off without a hitch, but their Conbust show was hard for many fans to attend. “People thought that we were playing at the Conbust dance party in the Campus Center, when we were really playing a separate show in the Davis Ballroom before the party,” explained Camilletti.

While the band was glad to perform at Conbust, they were frustrated at being put in Davis Ballroom.

“We were pleased to be invited and we had fun,” said Camilletti, “but it would have made more sense for us to play for the dance party itself so people wouldn’t get lost trying to attend our show.

“We don’t blame SSFFS, but hopefully in the future, bands will get to play in the Campus Center, where the main party actually is.”

Zombie Nurse will be recording a full-length album in June and July. Anyone interested in Zombie Nurse can visit their Web site, www.zombienurse.net, or their Facebook page, www.facebook.com/zombienurse911.