LAST MINUTE PLANS: Taylor Momsen At Beat Kitchen

By Michele Lenni in Arts & Entertainment on Mar 10, 2011 8:00PM

Before we even begin to talk about the obvious with this one, let's get a little background on this elegant and fiercely classy model, actress, singer and songwriter, Taylor Momsen.

Momsen grew up in St. Louis, MO with a strong Catholic upbringing. The first thing we remember seeing her in was 2000 Jim Carrey vehicle How the Grinch Stole Christmas as the iconic, wide eyed innocent Cindy Lou Who. From there Momsen dabbled in singing, acting and modeling until she happened upon the vehicle that most of us know her for, the intellectually stimulating CW network teen drama: Gossip Girl. In 2009 she announced that she and her new band, The Pretty Reckless, were moving full throttle with a debut album and a tour, stopping here tonight at Beat Kitchen.

Now let's discuss the obvious about this one. Underneath the pounds and pounds of makeup and the day-shift hooker / Cherie Currie / Courtney Love wannabe gear, lies a 17-year-old brat girl. Momsen, ever the ambassador of taste and sophistication, is not only known for her demure wardrobe, but her carefully chosen poetic words. Us Weekly reported that during an interview with a New Zealand Radio show earlier this year she spoke of one of her favorite tools: her vibrator.

"I'm not a whore for masturbating, so fuck you if you want to call me one...I think women should equally be allowed to pleasure themselves as much as men. I think that if that has any more controversy than a man talking about pleasuring himself, then there's something wrong with the world."

The one thing we really lose, besides this teenager's innocence, in this refined young lady's push for stardom is, well, we forget. Oh yeah, she plays music and writes her own songs, that's right! Amidst the slutty firestorm that is her career, Momsen has a band!

After spinning Momsen's Debut, Light Me Up, we wondered all the grit, filth and hard-edge talking that she does in her appearances and interviews? Instead of getting the guttural scream, we got a run of the mill, mid-tempo, over-produced and overtly bland pop album. Something akin to what Avril Lavinge or Liz Phair did in the mid '00s. Kind of a let down if you ask most of our music staffers.

Either way, after watching the cavalcade of YouTube clips of The Pretty Wreckless' live performances we are going to make our way to Beat Kitchen tonight to see what the hell this young (emphasis on young) lady has to offer.

The Pretty Wreckless plays tonight at the Beat Kitchen, 2100 W. Belmont Ave., 7 p.m., $15, All Ages