The following interview with Violet is featured in Panic! Zine Issue 4:

.What are your influences, musically or otherwise?
I have so many, from life experiences to the fear of growing old and not having the determination to make my dreams come true. Time passes by so quickly and I want to have something to show for my life and my beliefs when I'm old. I guess that is one of the main things that drives me to make music. And to piss off all the people I'm not friends with anymore, to show that I am living life just fine without them. revenge can be very inspiring! musically...? I don't want to be cliché and say that early 90's girl bands were a big influence on me but I'd be lying if I said that they weren't. I just want to give back the strength that I found in the female musicians I adored back then to the next generation. There is something very empowering in hearing a woman scream about things that you thought you were going through alone.

.How did you start playing bass?
I originally started playing guitar when I was 17 on an old acoustic I found in a dumpster while squatting in Vegas. A few years later I started learning bass to play in a band with one of my exs. We broke up so that kinda dissolved that. Then a friend of mine who played guitar wanted to make a band with me and bassists are hard to find, so I figured I would play bass instead of us both being guitarists. We wrote a few songs together and Ali joined the band. We ended up kicking the other girl out of destitute and it's been Ali and I ever since.

.How would you describe your live shows?
Hmmm, how does someone describe their live shows without sounding pretentious? Loud, fierce and emotional would be the most accurate I suppose. Oh and random banter and lots of drinking!

.Do you feel that living in Portland, OR has had an effect on your music?
Yes, but not in the way that you would think. I would have found female fronted punk bands regardless of where I grew up and my life experiences probably would have remained the same, hence I would probably sing about the same things as I do now. However since Portland is known for its large musician base, it has helped us find people to play with a lot easier than say if we were in North Dakota or something. Portland is known for having a few "girl bands" hailing from here so the public is more used to seeing females onstage and that has probably helped us book shows easier here too.

.In what way has feminism shaped your music and or philosophy?
Feminism was always something that I was interested and believed greatly in. I think it should be something that every female thinks about. No one should become complacent with the way anything is, thinking for yourself and standing up for what you believe in is the only way for the world to change. Being females in a male dominated field, it is obviously going to have an effect on what we do and say. I can't count how many times I've been asked what male band member I'm dating just because I'm hanging out in a rehearsal space or during sound check. Our country has come a long way since the first feminist wave but when people still assume that a girl backstage is fucking a musician or is just a "groupie", it shows that we still have a long way to go. I'd like to believe that destitute is more about EQUALITY rather than feminism though.

.Destitute has come a long way from addiction to line up changes, but your cd has made it despite all of the obstacles. How does it feel to finally have all the years pay off?
It's amazing to finally have our dream to start coming true. When we started playing, it was never about becoming "rockstars" or anything like that. We just were bored girls that were musically inclined. To come from playing a few barely strung acoustic songs together in my bedroom to having 14 finished songs, playing good shows and now being signed to a great music label, its just... awesome. I can't even really describe it. We were on hiatus when Unrepentant Records contacted us regarding putting our songs out, the offer came at a really strange time for us! but it renewed our faith and desire to find a new drummer and to continue on. We may never become famous but at least we can say that we lived our life doing what we loved... and made it.

.Where do you hope to see Destitute in a year?
This last year saw destitute getting signed and finding our new drummer, Jazz, now I want to take those things and build upon them. Hopefully within the next year we will put out a full length cd. We certainly have more than enough finished material for it and other songs still in the works. I've talked to other bands in our same genre that want to at least do a west coast tour with us, if not a longer one.

.Do you have a scariest or best Destitute show experience?
I would have to say that our first show was definitely the scariest. We were well rehearsed but had never played publicly before and the venue (hawthorne theater) was huge. Many national acts perform there and to play on the same stage as some of my favorite bands was both exciting and scary as shit. I had no idea how hot all of the lights would be or the fact that I wouldn't be able to see the audience at all. Afterwards, many people we didn't know came up to us to either congratulate us, ask us questions or attempt to buy merchandise. When we thanked them and answered that it was our first show and that we didn't have a cd, it seemed to have taken them by surprise. It was then that I started to realize the power that our music could have on people, and on ourselves. I will always love playing live, nothing compares to the feeling of being onstage, screaming your heart out and baring your soul for all to see and hear but that first show will always remain my favorite.

.Are you involved in any creative endeavors besides Destitute?
Not currently as much as I'd like to be but I have some in the works. I like to sew a lot but I don't have as much time for it as I'd like to since starting nursing school. Down the line I want to start my own record company so I can sign all of the great bands that I'm in contact with that are underrated and sadly still unknown. It would not only give them the much deserved exposure that they need but it would be a way to bring a lot of like minded people together. I've always had a soft spot for keyboards and also want to start a synthpunk band with my fiancée Evan. Foxcore music has always been my main focus but there are so many other things I want to do, say and experience that I cant with destitute. One band cant fulfill all of my needs and desires, I'm too eccentric and erratic. I'd like to take this time to thank everyone that has supported me and the band all of these years. It has meant the world to us and we hope that you enjoy our ep, "left for dead".

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