“Dating School” is the title of the new music video from Miss Cactus & the Desert. The single/video is from the bands’ forthcoming debut EP, Oasis, slated to drop in March.
“Dating School” is about Miss Cactus’ encounters, as a woman of color, with pervasive chauvinist conventions and attitudes in the world of dating
As Miss Cactus says, “I’m going to have to learn to forget all the advice from my mama’s friends.” She goes on to add, “I want to spread this video as a means to spreading positivity and encouragement to women. Especially for brown girls who need to hear something relatable.”
Miss Cactus, aka Alondra Ramirez Ladd, is a Mexican singer and dancer who fronts “The Desert,” a six piece band made up of William Candelario (drums), William Graves (bass), Evad Campbell (keyboards), Yanni Giannakopoulos (guitar), Leonardo Varella (guitar), and Thomas Antonio Debelian. The band’s sound blends tropical flamboyance with new wave psychedelic soul music. It’s a sound best described as new wave tropical pop.
“Dating School” opens with an exotic bass line flowing into a sultry calypso-flavored pop melody suffused with oozing horn accents and syncopated drums. Kaleidoscopic colors attended by sensuous undulations infuse the tune with smooth voluptuous textures. Soft interludes, full of dreamy, psychedelic surfaces, imbue the harmonic stream with creamy savors.
Miss Cactus’ voice, smoldering with erogenous timbres and simmering eroticism, secures the song’s flow and rippling tumescence. This is a diva’s voice, rife with buff suggestive hues, alluring and hypnotic.
The video, directed and choreographed by Miss Cactus, delivers cool, stylish visuals, opening with Miss Cactus on skates, and then cutting to the band performing as Miss Cactus coquettishly narrates the ins and outs of her dating experiences. The settings range from Mango’s on Ocean Drive to a dance studio to a parking lot.
“Dating School” is deliciously flavored with charming Caribbean colors, an infectious rhythm, and the yummy sensuality of Miss Cactus.
