Believe the hype: Von Iva is the new purveyor of soul, and it's got the groove-drunk fans to prove it. Singer Jillian Iva, drummer Kelly Harris, keyboardist Becky Kupersmith, and bassist Elizabeth Davis-Simpson hit all the right notes with their sublime, high-energy blend of danceable bass lines and keyboard riffs. This white-hot quartet dispenses with the grating coyness of bands like the Donnas, fusing gospel funk with a gutter punk sensibility, fucking with all sorts of genre labels along the way and getting even the rhythmless to shake their rumps. The eponymous frontwoman is way sexier than Karen O., and her husky, blues-inflected voice consistently brings audience members to their knees. Sure, the highlight of a typical show involves Iva gyrating in stilettos and showering the adoring crowd with whiskey, but the other ladies hold their own, pounding through a set with three-minute anthems like "Dance Revolution" and "Not Hot to Trot." Von Iva's even approachable and unpretentious: Get to a show early and you might catch the musicians in the crowd, dancing to the opening band. --SF Weekly

It's always a neat thrill when San Francisco's Von Iva bring their soul train to town. This fashion-forward trio of X-chromosomes somehow manage to set every dance floor on fire and let loose that pent-up inner shimmy. It's no wonder, once the music starts, there's a primal urge to grind with anybody in arm's reach. Or, at the very least, to want to lick singer Jillian Iva's legs. Their latest release, Our Own Island, is a treasure trove of stripped-down, luscious booty waiting to be, er, plundered. The music's a saucy little affair somewhere between Tina Turner and Tubeway Army with Giorgio Moroder in the middle. --Kat Jetson, LA Weekly

Von Iva is a fierce force to be reckoned with on the independent music landscape. The San Francisco trio has successfully accomplished some pretty daunting tasks - they've managed to embrace a DIY attitude toward recording, promotion and management that has given them total control over their musical careers, they've achieved their goal of replicating their studio sound for a live audience and they've imaginatively mastered the art of creating a rich and raw dance album with only keyboards, percussion and vocals on their latest Our Own Island. --Performer Magazine