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L7 Get Ugly In The Eyes Of Fans

Band sponsors drawing contest and offers odor-eaters to person who draws most horrendous depiction.

L7's Donita Sparks and her bandmates may be in touch with their inner stink. But

now the band wants its fans to be the same -- in touch with L7's stink, that is.

Currently without a label after parting ways with Reprise last fall, the group,

who named its 1994 album Hungry For Stink, are offering fans an

odoriferous perk in a unique online drawing contest.

"We call it the 'Ugly Drawing of L7 Contest,' " said bandleader Sparks about a

contest the band has been running for the past few months, whose deadline has

just been extended until Feb. 28. The prize? "We're giving some of our used

odor-eaters away," laughed Sparks, who was surprised by the amount of entries

the group has received, 11 of which are posted at: www.smellL7.com/drawings.html.

The childlike, ugly scrawl the band deems the ugliest will win framed,

autographed insoles with a letter of authenticity. Seven runners-up will receive

hand-customized L7 car fresheners.

"We've been inspired by the ugly drawings people send in on a regular basis,

it's weird," Sparks said. "Some young girls send in these drawings that they

think are pretty and they're actually really horrible. So we decided to do a

contest and now the kids are drawing really intentionally horrible stuff, just

look how ugly [drummer] Dee [Plakas] looks in some of them."

Jessica, a 16-year-old L7 fanatic who didn't give her last name, said her

childlike cartoon-image of the band as "stick girls, playin' loud," was inspired

by the group's live prowess. "I did them live just because I always picture them

as a live and loud sort of band, really energetic and lots of fun. And I love

L7, so I thought I would do a little picture-tribute to them and send it in."

Otherwise, Sparks said the hard-rocking punk band are keeping busy writing new

songs and trying to figure out what their next move is. "We won't make a new

label decision until early in 1998," Sparks said. "[Guitarist] Suzi [Gardner]

and I are writing every day and working on our website."

Sometimes Sparks said she feels like the new songs the pair are working on "sound like they should be soundtracks to [cheesy cop show] 'CHiPs.' Not because they're funky wah-wah stuff, but just crap."

And while the band have been experimenting with new sounds, Sparks said, somehow

they still can't seem to "suppress the angry, punk 15-year-old girls inside of

us." [Sat., Jan. 17, 1998, 9 a.m. PST]

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