In the past week or so, the punk media has seen the wide circulation of a very interesting story : Patricia Day, lead singer and bassist of Danish psychobilly outfit HorrorPops has filed a lawsuit against Mattel, Hard Rock Cafe International, Wonderama Toys and Rainbow’s End collectibles. What sparked Day’s ire? Hard Rock Cafe Barbie. Day is alleging that the companys listed created the doll, released last Spring by Mattel, in her image without her permission or any compensation. The folks over at DyingScene.com were nice enough to put Barbie and Day side by side to let the public make their own decision.
Seeing double?
Does she have a case? Honestly, at first glance I thought ‘Hard Rock Barbie’ was an Amy Winehouse doll. Day’s style elements are definitely present— retro pin-up hair, slim pencil skirts, tattoo sleeves— but plenty of ladies rock similar rockabilly looks. The Barbie bass, however, is a different story. While enough people share Day’s fashion sense to make a case against Mattel based solely on Hard Rock Barbie’s similar look a long shot, I can’t think of any other musician, male or female, who plays a double bass covered in tattoo flash. Not only does Hard Rock Barbie’s bass use the same icons as Day’s, but the placement is even the same—a blue bird in the top left, a heart in the bottom right, and a pink star in the bottom left adorn both Barbie’s and Day’s instruments. Put the look and the bass together, and I think Patricia has every right to be pissed off.
What to you think? HorrorPops rip-off or totally original? Let us know in the comments!
