“There’s a way to walk that says ‘Stay away’
And a time to go around the long way”
Romeo Void deserved to be more popular than they were. This San Francisco band was founded in 1979 and released three studio albums between 1981 and 1984. Categorized as new wave and post-punk, their sound was at times more sophisticated than that of their contemporaries, fusing elements of jazz and funk into their punk roots. Debora Iyall’s smooth, moody voice was as cool as the saxophone and she wrote poetically subversive lyrics that were political in a way, but not overt protest songs. They named themselves Romeo Void to indicate a lack of romantic notions in their work. It’s often been said, and it’s not hard to believe, that racism and sizeism directed at Debora are the main reasons the band was dropped from their label after their third album.
Debora is Cowlitz Native American. In 1969, when she was 14, she briefly took part in the Occupation of Alcatraz. I’ve read that she didn’t stay long, but I still think it’s an interesting part of her history. She has continued to make music, and in 2019 she received a lifetime achievement award from the Native American Music Awards.
“A Girl in Trouble (Is a Temporary Thing),” which you can listen to above, and “Never Say Never” are the band’s best known songs. With access to all the world’s music at our fingertips, there’s no reason we can’t all get to know Romeo Void.
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