Lesbian singer/songwriter Bitch is back. And this time she’s not alone. Backed by her band The Exciting Conclusion, she has released the new five-song EP B+TEC (Short Story Records) on her own new record label. She’s also not alone on the label having just signed acclaimed lesbian and women’s music pioneer Ferron. We spoke about being a musician, a music mogul and her hopes for the future just as Bitch and The Exciting Conclusion were beginning their tour.

Gay & Lesbian Times: I want to begin by offering you congratulations on starting your own record label Short Story Records.

Bitch: Thank you!

GLT: Does that feel like a major accomplishment in your life?

B: Yes, it really does. I’m still kind of basking in the glow of it. It feels huge to me.

GLT: As someone who has recorded for two legendary indies – Righteous Babe and Kill Rock Stars – would you say that either or both are models for what you want to do with your own label?

B: Good question! Yes, working with both of them has been an education for me in how I want to run my business. Both of them were great experiences. Yeah, I feel like I’m going to take elements of both. With Righteous Babe – for Ani to be a prolific artist and to put out her work as quickly and as often as she wants, I really love that, the system that she’s set up. And, she’s taken on some artists, but not too many, which I would say is the difference between her and Kill Rock Stars. Kill Rock Stars has a huge roster and I think the label works in a way that is almost philanthropic. The way they find these underground musicians whose work they believe in and they just want to be able to support them in some way, I think both of those things are goals of mine.

GLT: You mentioned a roster, and in addition to releasing the EP by your band Bitch and The Exciting Conclusion, you have also signed women’s music legend Ferron. Can this be traced back to the legendary Queer As Folk Fest performance in Chicago from a few years ago?

B: [Laughs] It’s exactly that! That was the beginning. That was the first time I ever played with her onstage.

GLT: I was there!

B: She and I had known each other, but not all that well. We had a mutual friend in June Millington. At that festival, she asked me if I would play violin with her and, I think you’ll remember, we had this great banter on stage. I pulled her leg and she pulled mine back, and that’s how it all began.

GLT: When will Boulder, Ferron’s disc be released?

B: It comes out in stores in June (17) and it’s already available on-line for pre-sale (at shortstoryrecords.com).

GLT: And did you play at all on the disc?

B: I play on pretty much every track [laughs]. And then, of course, there are all sorts of all-star appearances by everybody else in the world who admires Ferron.

GLT: You’ve worked under Bitch and Animal, then there was Capital B, and Bitch as a solo performer. Now you are going by Bitch and The Exciting Conclusion. What is the genesis of the new band name?

B: Daniela (Sea) and I started that name together. We started that band together when I started working with Lee Free. It sounds dumb, but the actual words, “The Exciting Conclusion” came off of a hat that I found at a thrift store [laughs]. It’s actually (the name of) a racehorse. Then she and I started thinking about that and we wanted to come up with a name for the band. I have always been and will always be Bitch, so that’s the consistent through-line. It (The Exciting Conclusion) was a way to name a sort of hopefulness that I want to endow our future with and our people with, that there might be a beautiful grand finale to all of this pain that we’re going through politically and environmentally. I just want to keep that feeling of hope alive. That’s the exciting conclusion. It’s the possibility that all sentient beings on this planet could live happy, free and safe.

GLT: From your mouth to the goddess’s ears, honey!

B: [Laughs]

GLT: I’m really glad that you mentioned this difficult political time, because your political voice comes through loud and clear on “Left Lane” and “Red Roof” – which leads to the question of how active you plan to be during this election year.

B: I just want to be out there. I’d like to be as active as possible doing as much as I can. Sometimes it’s easy to get into these artistic bubbles, in a way, leading our own little lives, and I would like to try as hard as I can to feel part of a movement for these elections.

GLT: You also mentioned the environment and in the CD, there is a link to the lyrics online, which are described as “paperless innards.” Is that part of your effort to be green?

B: Yes, definitely. We wanted the EP to not have any shrink-wrapping. We folded them and put them together ourselves. And we didn’t want to print booklets, because we all know about our waste of paper and all of that. I figured if people really wanted the innards, they could go online and download them.

GLT: That’s a great idea. The new disc is a five-song EP, and I’m one of those people who are never satisfied with just five songs – you’re just a big tease!

B: [Laughs] I know!

GLT: So is there a full-length disc waiting in the wings?

B: Yes. It’s on the way. We’re going to record this summer.

GLT: Will it include the songs from the EP or are they meant to stand separately?

B: That’s what we can’t decide. We’re going to take a little time after this tour and do some writing. It just depends on how much we come up with. If we want to add songs – six or seven – to the EP, we have enough to do that. I’m not sure how it’s going to go.

GLT: I’ve seen the new music video for “Bullet” on YouTube. Are there plans for it to get into the hands of the people at Logo for airplay?

B: I hope so. We’ve got that in the works right now. We’ve sent it off in a DVD form to see if they approve of it content-wise. And then we have to go through getting it close-captioned and all of that. But I would like to see it on there.

GLT: 2008 is turning out to be a big year for queer music with albums and tours by B-52’s, George Michael, R.E.M. How do you see B+TEC fitting in or perhaps standing apart?

B: Those kinds of tours, I’ve always felt apart from. Of course, if George Michael asked me to open for him, I would in a heartbeat [laughs]. I’ve always been very grassroots and so very gay that sometimes I feel like those people who are involved in the corporate machinery of gayness are a little afraid of me.

GLT: But don’t you think that you and someone such as Beth Ditto (of The Gossip) offer hope for change?

B: Totally! I’m so happy about Beth Ditto’s success. It’s really inspiring.

GLT: Speaking of The Gossip, they performed on the 2007 True Colors organized by Cyndi Lauper. If Cyndi came to you and invited you to take part, would you be involved?

B: Of course!

GLT: Well, here’s hoping that happens.

B: Give Cyndi my number, would you? [laughs]