Like Heather Go Psycho's EP? You ain't heard nothing yet

It's hard not to compare or think of Girl in a Coma when writing about Heather Go Psycho: they're both all-female trios, GIAC booked them and gave them early advice in their careers, Jenn Alva directed their "Favorite Record" video, and both bands have amazing singers. If you ask me, Jacklyn Alexandra is the best female SA singer since the advent of Nina Díaz. But Jacklyn (who also plays guitar) talks the way she sings: all-out, non-stop, fast, fast, fast, without mincing any words.

"We had a dilemma on whether to have a three-piece or a four-piece," Jacklyn told the Current. "We would ask, 'What do you think? Should we get a second guitarist?' [Girl in a Coma] would tell us 'Fuck no! You don't need that shit. You girls are good, just like own it. Get tight, and do it.'"

That's exactly what they did. Prompting Alva to tell Jacklyn recently: "Oh, it's so cute, y'all used to be little puppies and now y'all are like big dogs." "Those girls [in GIAC] are so fucking awesome," Jacklyn says.

"We were all excited to have another all girl group locally," Jenn Alva told the Current. "What little I knew back then, I was eager to share any pointers and experience with the girls. Heather Go Psycho have so much potential and are another one of many great bands to represent San Antonio positively."

Jacklyn goes on and on and on in her expletive-filled mix of gratefulness and admiration for GIAC. But the comparisons end there. Musically, Heather Go Psycho is a fast-driving, fun but fierce punk-pop answer to GIAC's more sophisticated approach. Its backbone is Jacklyn's powerhouse throat, the product of years of singing rancheras and gospel, and early music lessons.

"I used to sing raspy, but then I said, 'Let's do something that's us instead of mimicking what others do.'" Jacklyn said. "Now, I'm not going to try to sing like Courtney Love or the Distillers. I sing like me."

Wise choice. The band's first EP, Favorite Record, came out in December and proved to be a strong debut for Jacklyn, former The Great 85 drummer Diana Marie, and bassist Cristal Anette, who comes from Los Angeles. But they claim to be ready for their first full-length to be released in the summer, just before their West Coast tour. Until then, they'll keep performing locally, both as HGS and the band's turnaround alter ego, a two-piece called Ala Chiflada in which Jacklyn plays drums and Diana sings and plays guitar.

"It's the other side of HGS," said Jacklyn. "Sloppier, more real. Not so neat, it has a little more heart. It's us going back to our old-school punk rock roots."

But Heather Go Psycho is their baby, and their minds are in the summer, when they'll release what they say will be their best work yet.

"We have a shitload more songs that are even better than this EP," said Jacklyn with her usual eloquence. "We are fucking ready to fucking show the world what San Antonio is made of. Girl in a Coma is doing that, but we want more bands to rise up. We're just going to keep going, going, and going. And we're fucking excited." •