SLEATER-KINNEY Eilidh Rogers (top left) and Rachel Aggs of Sacred Paws; R: Sleater-Kinney
GRRRL INTERRUPTED
After winning over the mainstream media in the early 90s, feminist-punk trailblazers Sleater-Kinney left their fans hungry for more. After a decade-long
wait their devotees are inspired all over again, fi nds Nicola Meighan
Y es, of course it was thrilling when David Bowie dropped an album out of nowhere. And granted, Aphex Twin delighted with his blimps and cryptic new LP campaign. But Sleater-Kinney knocked these dudes for six when they hid a brand new single – their i rst for a decade – in plain sight last year. The 7” white-label was titled ‘Bury Our Friends’, and arrived (to mass excitement) as part of a boxset, Start Together, chronicling the band’s discography to date.
Start Together served two vital purposes. First, it amassed Sleater- Kinney’s seven excellent albums and reminded us how, and why, the feminist punks from Olympia, Washington, became one of our most acclaimed and inl uential bands. They kicked off as a queercore / riot grrrl rammy in 1994 (founders Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker played in Excuse 17 and Heavens to Betsy respectively), and were joined soon after by drummer Janet Weiss (Quasi). They’d go on to l oor the mainstream media: Rolling Stone deemed them ‘best American punk band ever’; Time proclaimed them ‘America’s greatest rock band’. Second, ‘Bury Our Friends’ heralded the end of the band’s almost ten- year hiatus. The single was a searing, riled teaser for their vociferous new album, No Cities To Love, in which Sleater-Kinney sound as angry and urgent – and relevant – as they ever did.
70 THE LIST 5 Feb–2 Apr 2015
Their feminist DIY ideology casts long shadows, too: Sleater-Kinney were a leading force behind global femme-pop hoopla Ladyfest, whose i rst grassroots venture outside the US was in Glasgow in 2001. Its last Glasgow bash, in 2013, staged Ela Orleans, Hector Bizerk and Glasgow-London tropical-punk duo Sacred Paws, who issue a terrii c, kaleidoscopic new EP via Mogwai’s Rock Action this March. ‘Playing Ladyfest was great fun,’ recalls Sacred Paws’ drummer / vocalist Eilidh Rogers, also of Golden Grrrls, ‘And it’s really important. Most DIY feminist promoters are underground and it takes time to get to know these scenes – Ladyfest is an accessible concept and it represents something bigger. Anything that encourages more women to make music is a great thing.’
Sleater-Kinney’s music also impacted on Rogers’ sound. ‘I love Janet Weiss’ drumming, she’s incredible!’ she says. Her bandmate, guitarist / vocalist Rachel Aggs, also of Golden Grrrls and Trash Kit, nods. ‘I love Sleater-Kinney – I really like how there’s no bass and two guitars weave these lines together that always keep you on your toes, keep you moving,’ she offers. ‘I also love Mary Timony [Autoclave, Helium, Wild Flag with Brownstein and Weiss] – I think she’s an incredible guitarist.’ Indeed, Aggs has yet to hear the new Sleater-Kinney album on account of Timony’s genius. ‘I’m too busy listening to Ex Hex on repeat!’