With Orlando, Florida as its basis, this ElectroPop band was started in late 2007 as a joke trio (including also Rebecca Fugate and Christopher Mongillo) by David Jesus Torres (henceforth known as Davhie Vanity) under the original monicker of Love The Fashion, but the joke soon grew into the more serious BotDF!
The band hit the studio and recorded its first album Let's Start A Riot, and in stead of touring it stayed in the studio to record the second album It's Hard To Be A Diamond In A Rhinestone World (both albums were released in 2008, during April and September respectively), but both Mongillo and Fugate left the band. While touring the Orlando area, Vanity met Garrett Ecstacy, whom joined the remaining duo then known as BotDF, and started working on material, which resulted in the release of the three EP's I Scream I Scream, OMFG Sneak Peak, and Extended Play, all released in the first part of 2009. While on tour in September, Ecstacy was kicked out of the band, due to allegations that he was stealing from Vanity. He was soon replaced by Jeremy Brian Griffis, better known by his stage name Javy Von Monroe...and a new chapter started for BotDF!
The new line-up played a short tour, and started recordings for a new full-length near the end of 2009, with Vanity's musical hero Jeffrey Star recording three songs, before embarking on two other tours with Star in early 2010. During the tour situations between Star and BofDF became hostile (for reason, see later), resulting in Star pulling out of the recordings, and the already recorded songs not making it to the eventual album, the September 2010 released Epic (which became the first BotDF album to make it into the charts with a #5 position in the Billboard Dance and a #12 position in the Billboard Heatseekers charts...and was also the first release on the band's own imprint, Dark Fantasy). Even before the release of that album, recordings had started for the band's 4th album, All The Rage!. Featuring guest appearances from many artists (see the band's Wikipedia page – from which this article is culled for the most part – for more details), the album was released in June 2011, while the band was touring on the Warped Tour. Charts-wize the band again made good, making it to #13 on the Billboard Top Electronic Albums and to #26 on the Billboard Heatseekers charts. Multiple US tours followed, and in between the duo again recorded material (again including several guests) for the Evolution album, which was released in June 2012, and followed the January 2012 released EP Epic: The Remixes (on which 4 songs were remixed in DubStep versions). One day after the release of Evolution, BotDF also released the free 3-track EP Clubbed To Death! as a gift for their fans. In October 2012, the band released the compilation album The Revolution Pack (featuring remastered versions of songs off the band's first 4 albums), which was originally set to be released on Halloween 2011 (original title The Legend Of Blood On The Dance Floor), in celebration of the band's 4th anniversary. In between, the band toured relentlessly, and all of that left Vanity feeling rather empty at the end of the year.
According to Vanity, “I was worn out. We toured for almost 9 months straight, and I came back broken, homesick, in pieces, and angry. I went through so many emotions,” and about some of the topics on the new album he states, “Once I started writing music, the record brought me piece. I finally got the chance to say everything that upset me. That's what this album is about. It captures our blood, sweat, and tears, it's anthems for the broken, poor, abused, and unspoken.”...
Time to turn toward a rather seedy side to Mr. Vanity's character! You see, he's a widely accused child molester, his first known offense arising in 2009 when he was convicted for having sex with a minor. In 2011 a petition was started by concerned parents whom, afraid of exposing their children to Vanity's repeated reputation of sexual abuse to minors, felt compelled to try and ban BotDF from playing on the Warped Tour.
Of course, history tells us that money talks, right!? Meanwhile, several former fans, support acts and crew members have come forward about this quirky sexual taste of Vanity's (check (http://) truthaboutdahvie.tumlr.com if you feel so inclined), and in 2010 tweets Jeffree Star was found stating: “Being on tour with that child fucker has made me see the truth. I regret ever doing a song wiith that pig. I' gonna speak the truth 'til I die, we saw Dahvie bring under-aged girls to his hotel rooms and do sexual things... I no longer support BotDF and how disgusting Dahvie is. Touching children and enjoying the attention is evil... If you support that piece of shit then unfollow me, because you're supporting child molestation. Dahvie is the lowest worthless scum I've ever met...”!
Nevertheless, the man's apparently been able to talk himself out of all the judicial trouble...seen as he's (still) not in prison, and in fact in early 2012 BotDF made up with Star, collaborating (along with electropop act Millionaires) on the as yet unreleased song “Fuck Me I'm Famous” (which seems like quite over-the-top song title, considering what drove the artists apart to begin with). So, on Bad Blood, as part of “everything he'd had to say”, Dahvie gets back at all the “backstabbers” and “traitors” from his past, who caused him to be “crucified” by their “lies”. Personally, I'm here to judge the man's music, and not his personality, but I'll simply forward this warning : “no smoke without fire”. And another thing: anyone who was there when he was molesting under-aged girls, is equally as guilty for not having stopped him!
So, the music...I'll admit that part of it is somewhat mushy make-out music, with softer music in accordance. The more excited/ exciting songs however, have an Industrial touch which I like very much. Besides the 13 regular songs on the album, there's also two bonus tracks (probably meant for a limited edition – couldn't say, as the info was lacking), and one of 'em, “Revenge Will Have It's Day”, even has some guitar played in it...or something which is strongly reminiscent of that instrument, anyway! On the home page of band's own site (www.) ilovebotdf.com, you'll find a link for a download of the album via iTunes (no for free, of course!), and some video footage of the band on the road, as well as an “interview” video with Vanity, at the end of which he has the guts to invite you into “the place where the magic happens”, akà his bedroom on the tourbus!!! In the “Videos & Music” section, you'll find a link for a stream of the complete album, for you to listen to...(if you're not disgusted with Dahvie's “way of life”, that is)! Rating is based only on the quality of the music!