Just when you think you’ve figured out Alynda Segarra, a.k.a. Hurray for the Riff Raff, they flip the script; shape-shift, dematerialize, then pop up again in another guise, location, and musical form, with more tattoos, a radically different sound and look, even a new middle name. (Last time we checked, they were on
No. 3: Mariposa.) And who can forget when they piled their hair into a 10-inch beehive and dressed up as Ronnie Spector to perform “Be My Baby”? As witchy as their current digs—New Orleans—do you even see their reflection in the antique mirror behind them? They look ready to pounce, even transmogrify into a black leopard à la Nastassja Kinski in Cat People. Well, whichever form they take, no one’s gonna tell them to get off the table.

Thanks for reading CREEM. This article originally appeared in our Spring 2023 issue. If you prefer to read in print, grab a copy here and subscribe to never miss another one.