W♥M (Archive)

Le Tigre at First Avenue, Minneapolis (08/09/2005)

Le Tigre at First Ave (11/06/2004) [Canceled] poster: Amy Jo, flickr.com Read More Le Tigre Le Tigre, "The Tiger", is undoubtedly the best project that Kathleen Hanna's been involved in since Bikini Kill. Originally, this band was conceived to be a "live" version of her solo effort, Julie Ruin, but as it developed …

You should know by now that I love riot grrrls, so, of course, I naturally followed Kathleen Hanna in her then-latest project, Le Tigre.

Clearly I have very poor memories. I thought Bratmobile opened up for Le Tigre, but that's not the case, at least I could not find any evidence of this on their 2005 show. The reason why I thought I've seen them twice, is because I did have tickets to see Le Tigre on their November 6th, 2004. According to Le Tigre's website, that show was canceled only two days before the event: "We are sad to report that the Minneapolis show on November 6th has been cancelled due to the closing of the venue. Please contact the venue's info # or place you bought tickets for a refund."

According to the poster artwork for the 2004 that the Gossip were the opener.... Now that would've been a pretty awesome bill.

According to Maura McAndrew, via howwastheshow, she wrote "The stage setup was easily the most eye-catching I’ve seen at any show. It was mostly dark, with a screen lit up by large polka dots, art collages, and film of people dancing against neon walls, all synchronized in time to the music. The band was dressed in matching outfits of glow-in-the-dark green, blue, and white, and throughout each song performed perfectly choreographed 1960s-inspired dance routines with the enthusiasm of crazed Hanna-Barbara characters. The crowd was extremely eccentric, consisting of lesbian couples, pierced and tattooed riot grrls and boys, hipsters, Abercrombie and Fitch kids, and toe-tapping middle-agers in plaid shirts. "

It's not mentioned, but I remember that half-way into Le Tigre's set, Kathleen Hanna had a cake brought on the stage. It was an anniversary of some sort, I didn't know or heard what it was celebrating. I only knew it was something extremely personal to Hanna. Like perhaps a sexual assault of some sort? I was a little confused at the whole thing.

The end of their set was really, really fun, they played all the hits: "Hot Topic", "TKO", and the finale "Deceptacon".

I don't care what you say, Le Tigre has pretty much broken up already. JD Samson is currently touring (we just covered her Chicago appearance) and Kathleen Hanna will be heading out on tour with her own project, The Julie Ruin (we are also covering that show).

Le Tigre at First Avenue, Minneapolis (08/09/2005) photo by By Divine Right's Alysha Haugen, flickr.com

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com

JD Samson & MEN - Empty Bottle, Chicago 1/31/14

MEN Tour Poster photo: facebook.com Setlist Credit Card Babie$ Club Thang Semenya Who Am I To Feel So Free? (She) Deconstruct Me Simultaneously All the Way Thru Next Making Art -- Encore -- Be Like This Tour Dates 02/03/14 The Frequency, Madison WI 02/04/14 The Basement, Columbus 02/05/14 Comet Ping Pong, Washington DC 02/06/14 Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia 02/07/14 Pittsfield, Massachussetts 02/08/14 Great Scott, Boston 02/09/14 Space Gallery, Portland Maine 03/06/14 Bar Pink, San Diego 03/07/14 Bootleg, Los Angeles 03/08/14 The Chapel, San Francisco 03/10/14 Holocene, Portland 03/11/14 The Cobalt, Vancouver 03/12/14 Chop Suey, Seattle Read More JD Samson It’s hard to believe it’s been nearly a decade since the last Le Tigre album (2004’s This Island), and six years since the band with the roller-skate jams went on hiatus. While Kathleen Hannah has been re-exploring her punk roots…

When I took my ex-girlfriend to see Le Tigre back in 2005, she was convinced that JD Samson was a dude. We argued about it for awhile, and then JD started singing. “Ohhhhhhhh, she IS a girl!” This perplexing androgyny is both a blessing and a curse. Serving as an icon to transgendered and queer youth provides JD with a visibility and purpose she probably would not have found if she were more traditional looking, but her unusual appearance also dogs her with a cruel “freakshow” vibe. (“That’s the band led by the chick with the moustache.”) Fortunately, JD is much stronger than her detractors and has blossomed in her lead role in MEN. “Visibility” and “Freedom” are the two principles expressed most often in MEN’s songs, and these concepts came shining through in her joyful, positive performance at the Empty Bottle in Chicago on Friday.

JD Samson in cartoon jeans

After opening sets by Gel Set and Teen Witch Fan Club, JD came onstage wearing the fun cartoon jeans shown on the front cover of their latest album Labor. Wearing such bulky apparel didn’t stop her from creatively dancing her way through the opening songs (she ditched the costume for stretch pants a few songs in), occasionally returning to the keyboard to play a few notes. For the most part, JD stuck to the microphone; the musicianship duties were handled ably by the other two members of MEN, guitarist Michael O’Neill and keyboardist Lorna Dune. JD filled the role of Entertainer. And entertain us, she did! From some quite amazing high leaping kicks in the air to wild hand gestures in time to the music to jumping around energetically with a wide smile on her face, she kept the groove going throughout the 11 song set. And kept the crowd smiling along with her.

JD Samson

Most of the songs were faithful to the recorded versions, and when MEN did veer off script it was with mixed results. A slowed-down opening version of “Credit Card Babie$” had me pining for the dangerously catchy upbeat recorded version. (I say “dangerously” because it’s often unwise to absent-mindedly sing, “I’m gonna f*** my best / I’m gonna f*** my best / I’m gonna f*** my best to make a little tiny baby” in mixed company.) Their most popular track, “Who Am I To Feel So Free?,” also suffered slightly from a spoken word interlude that slowed down the momentum of the song. But these are minor complaints; the crowd didn’t seem to mind, shouting along with the chorus enthusiastically.

MEN is a dance band at heart

Though MEN is a dance band at heart, their set contained a good mixture of songs both hard and fast and soft and mellow. In fact, two of the highlights for me were the downbeat “Next” (whose lyric, “Never afford a house / Never retire,” hits all-too-close to home in modern America) and the romantic ballad “Simultaneously,” which featured exquisite, delicate guitar by O’Neill. The most interesting song introduction occurred with the single, “Making Art”: “It’s about continuing to make art even though you think it sucks. This is dedicated to all the feminist artists in the crowd.” Naturally, feminism is a frequent theme in MEN’s songs, and a cardboard placard on top of JD’s keyboard contained a drawing of a book with the pun, “Our Bodies, Our Shelves” on it. This, JD’s Semenya t-shirt (referencing androgynous South African runner Mokgadi Caster Semenya, who also inspires a MEN song title), and JD’s custom tampon string hat, which she wore on and off throughout the set, kept gender and feminism in the forefront.

JD referred to this as their “tundra” tour due to the intensely cold, snowy weather, and indicated that this show, which started around midnight, would be shortened so they could try to outrun an incoming snowstorm. Unfortunately, that meant they cut two encore songs off the setlist, presumably including the anthemic “Off Our Backs,” which I was looking forward to hearing. But that was a minor disappointment. As the show ended with the lines, “Nothing is working, not even a little bit” (from “Be Like This”) I thought to myself, look at this crowd, look at their smiling faces, look at them moshing triumphantly in front of you, look at the empowerment you’ve given them. No, I think it’s working very well, JD. Very well, indeed.

JD Samson & MEN at the Empty Bottle, Chicago (01/31/14)

angela ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ menmakemusic.com

Men

Read more Many Manly Men.

Read More JD Samson So is the world. For example, JD Samson (of MEN and Le Tigre), organized a court room statement reading last week. Supporters and readers included Chloë Sevigny …

JD SAMSON & MEN
menmakemusic.com

It’s hard to believe it’s been nearly a decade since the last Le Tigre album (2004’s This Island), and six years since the band with the roller-skate jams went on hiatus. While Kathleen Hannah has been re-exploring her punk roots with The Julie Ruin, JD Samson has continued to mine the dance/electropop vein of late-period Le Tigre with her band MEN, whose sophomore album, Labor, was self-released in October to positive critical reception.

MEN’s latest single is “Making Art” (also available as a remix E.P. because that’s what dance acts do) and butch heartthrob JD Samson has been taking that term to heart by making custom tampon string hats which are available for purchase on their website. If hipster visuals with a feminist bent and a beat you dance to is your thing, come see MEN on their national tour which is currently zig-zagging its way across the country.

Tour dates:

Dec 6 - Second Ward Foundation, Hudson NY
Dec 7- The Flywheel- Easthampton MASS
Dec 8 - Comet Ping Pong, Washington DC
Dec 14- Rough Trade, Brooklyn NY
Jan 25 - Il Motore, Montreal
Jan 26 - The Garrison, Toronto
Jan 28 - Blind Pig, Ann Arbor
Jan 29 - Beachland Tavern, Cleveland
Jan 30 - Radio Radio, Indianapolis
Jan 31 - The Empty Bottle, Chicago
Feb 1 – 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis
Feb 3 - The Frequency, Madison WI
Feb 4 - The Basement, Columbus
Feb 6 - Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia
Feb 8 - Great Scott, Boston

OF MICE & MEN
ofmiceandmenofficial.com

Of Mice & Men, a name stolen from John Steinbeck (by the way of William Shakespeare), has announced a third studio album called Restoring Force to be release on January 28th on Rise Records. The album is a follow up to the band's The Flood, which established the California-based band as a 'force' in the modern heavy metal music scene.

Frontman Austin Carlile explains, "What happens after a disaster? What happens after The Flood? You return to normal. You find balance again. That's what we felt like we were doing with this album. We wanted this record to bring equilibrium back to our band and music. We're letting everyone know that we're here to stay. We're Restoring Force."

Also, it's been announced that they will be joining Bring Me The Horizon for 'The American Dream Tour', which kicks off February 3rd in Orlando and ends on March 28th in San Diego.

The American Dream Tour:

Feb 03 Orlando, FL - The Plaza 'Live' Theater Feb 04 Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Revolution Live Feb 05 St. Petersburg, FL - Jannus Live Feb 06 Jacksonville, FL - Brewster's Megaplex Feb 08 Mexico City, DF - Jose Cuervo Salon Feb 10 Tucson, AZ - Rialto Theater Feb 11 Phoenix, AZ - Marquee Theater Feb 12 Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater Feb 13 Denver, CO - The Ogden Feb 14 Kansas City, MO - Uptown Feb 15 Sauget, IL - Pops Feb 17 Minneapolis, MN - Mill City Nights Feb 18 Chicago, IL - House of Blues Feb 21 Plymouth, MI - Compuware Arena Feb 22 Toronto, ON - Sound Academy Feb 24 Montreal, QC - Metropolis Feb 27 Worchester, PA - The Palladium Feb 28 New York, NY - Best Buy

Mar 02 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory Mar 03 Silver Springs, MD - Fillmore Silver Mar 04 Clifton Park, NY - Upstate Mar 06 Atlanta, GA - The Tabernacle Mar 07 Nashville, TN - War Memorial Aud Mar 08 Memphis, TN - New Daisy Mar 10 New Orleans, LA - House of Blues Mar 11 Houston, TX - House of Blues Mar 12 Mission, TX - Las Palmas Race Park Mar 13 San Antonio, TX - Backstage Live Mar 14 Austin, TX - SXSW Mar 15 Grand Prairie, TX - Quik Trip Park Mar 16 Oklahoma City, OK - Diamond Mar 18 El Paso, TX - Tricky Falls Mar 21 San Francisco, CA - Regency Grand Mar 24 Seattle, WA - Showbox Mar 25 Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theater Mar 26 Portland, OR - Roseland Theater Mar 28 San Diego, CA - Soma

THE BEST MAN HOLIDAY
best-man.com

Sales of the Universal Pictures' The Best Man Holiday Soundtrack quadrupled over last weekend, landing at #2 and #4 on this week's Billboard Soundtracks and R&B Album Charts, respectively.

Film writer and director, Malcolm D. Lee, commented on why the movie soundtrack is just as important as the film, "I am a firm believer that music is essential to the entirety of a film going experience. The Best Man Holiday soundtrack is no exception. The songs listed here not only make up the fabric of the movie, but many served as inspiration to the creation of the screenplay. With a combination of new R&B tunes and Christmas classics by contemporary artists, this is the soundtrack I heard accompanying this movie. I hope you enjoy it this holiday season and every year."

The Best Man Holiday - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack track listing:

01 Christmastime To Me Jordin Sparks
02 Someday at Christmas Mario
03 What Christmas Means To Me Fantasia
04 I Still Have You Charlie Wilson
05 Christmas I'll Be Steppin' R. Kelly
06 This Christmas Mary J. Blige
07 Shelter John Legend
08 Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas Monica
09 Winter Wonderland Emeli Sandé
10 Can You Stand The Rain New Edition
11 I Want To Come Home for Christmas Ne-Yo
12 O Holy Night Jayda Brown & Jasmine Watkins
13 As Marsha Ambrosius & Anthony Hamilton

QUIET MARAUDER
quietmarauder.co.uk

MEN is the new album from Cardiff anti-folk Quiet Marauder. The album's tagline is, "111 songs. 4 volumes. 5 hours." The album is set for release in England on January the 27th 2014 on Bubblewrap Records.

With 111 songs and spanning over five hours, it made sense that it's some sort of Guinness World Record for longest debut LP in recorded popular music history.

Quiet tour dates:

11/30/13 Rhondda Rocks - Factory - Porth
12/06/13 Circus Punk - Warehouse 54 - Newport
12/08/13 Christmas Cwtch - Gwdihw - Cardiff
12/09/13 Bubblewrap Xmas Party - Four Bars

angela + vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com

W♥M151: Riot Grrrl

W♥M151 (44 mins)

Vu and Emily cover early Riot Grrrl bands. This is by no means some definitive guide to Riot Grrrls, but we covered the basics: Bikini Kill, Bratmobile, and some later Sleater-Kinney and Pussy Riot action. For even further riot love, check out our previous articles.

PUSSY RIOT: Feminist punk band that received a three year jail sentence for performing a protest song.

PUSSY RIOT! A Punk Prayer for Freedom is a new e-book, collecting letters from prison, closing courtroom statements by the defense attorneys, and poems in addition to the infamous punk prayer and new translations of the powerful courtroom statements. Also included are tributes from Yoko Ono, Johanna Fateman, Karen Finley, Justin Vivian Bond, Eileen Myles, and JD Samson.

All proceeds from the sale of PUSSY RIOT! A Punk Prayer for Freedom will support the Pussy Riot legal defense team. PUSSY RIOT! A Punk Prayer for Freedom (90 pg) is available now for $2.99. More details at freepussyriot.org.

BRATMOBILE: Jen Smith from Bratmobile inspired the name "riot grrrl". The short-lived band reformed in the 2000 with Ladies, Women and Girls and I finally got to see the band live! When they first started in 1993, I was a little too young to attend their shows.

Although Bratmobile never said they broke up, everyone just assumed so. In fact, they wrote, "We never had a certain incident where anyone said "I quit" or whatever, so it's been vague and drawn out. Sorry if that's been confusing to people."

BIKINI KILL: I misspoke on the show saying that Kill Rock Star was releasing the 20th anniversary single - it is being released by Bikini Kill Records. This is a brand new label that was formed in 2012. Their first release is the re-release of their self-titled 12" EP, available on November 20th, 2012.

The vinyl reissue will include a new fanzine in the form of a 34" x 21" poster. Interviews with Ian MacKaye (Minor Threat, Fugazi) and Molly Neuman (Bratmobile), and liner notes by Layla Gibbon (Skinned Teen, MRR). Plus excerpts from the band's zines (Bikini Kill #1 and #2, Jigsaw #4), and photos from bandmembers' personal archives.

Expect more Bikini Kill music to come out in the near future, including previously unreleased music on vinyl and CD (and of course digital downloads). Check out www.bikinikill.com.

LE TIGRE: Kathleen Hanna went from Bikini Kill's punk sound to a more dance/eletroclash/art rock band with Le Tigre. Definitely one of Hanna's finer moments.

They signed to Island Records, released one album, and then sort of disappeared. Officially the band is still together, as reported by Emily who said they recorded with Christina Aguilera.

A DVD called Who Took the Bomp?, directed by Kerthy Fix, was released last year. I reported it, saying that it was a tour documentary from the 2004-2005 era, and the DVD was being released by Oscilloscope Laboratories.

SLEATER-KINNEY: A band out of the ashes of Riot Grrrl band Excuse 17 (Carrie Brownstein) and Heavens to Betsy (Corin Tucker). Currently Brownstein is in Portlandia television show, Janet Weis drumming with Pavement/Stephen Malkmus, and Corin Tucker is in Corin Tucker Band.

GIRLS TO THE FRONT: Billed as "The true story of the Riot Grrrl revolution" this 2010 book, written by Sara Marcus, tells the story of the rise and eventual fall of riot grrrl and riot grrrl fanzines and conventions. This book is published Harper Perennial, more details at girlstothefront.com.

WOMEN MAKE NOISE: The email I got said this is a new book from Supernova Books, but I checked amazon.com and they are listing it as Aurora Metro Press - to be published December 11, 2012.

Billed as "girl bands from Motown to the Modern" goes beyond riot grrrl, but it certainly covers their share of grrrl bands in their "girl gang bands" section.

The whole thing was edited by Julia Downes.

Full disclosure: I did not read the book. Any opinions I expressed in the show is a first impression. I did flipped through it, most the bands are more obscured from the 50s and 60s and early girl punk bands like The Slits.

BONUS: Chia Pet, the Sassy band. Those Darlins dirty girls from Tennessee. Plus, Hospitality just played 400 Bar.

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Archive of this show at archive.org. More information on podomatic.com

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ +W♥M

Everything old and new again

Urge Overkill: Effigy

URGE OVERKILL RETURNS
urgeoverkill.com

I couldn't believe it when I read the news that Urge Overkill have returned to the music world from a fifteen year absent! They have a new album called Rock&Roll Submarine, to be released on May 10^th under their own label, UO Records.

You may recall that hearing the band's biggest hit, a cover of Neil Diamond's "Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon" in the Quentin Tarantino movie, Pulp Fiction. I sort of never kept up with the band, but apparently they went on to selling over 2.5 million albums and eventually broke up in 1997.

So, yeah, they're back again with the original duo that started the band: singer/songwriter Eddie "King" Roeser and Nash Kato.

Urge Overkill Tour Dates:
05/13: Los Angeles, CA @ The Troubadour
05/14: San Diego, CA @ The Casbah
05/17: New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
05/20: Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge

WHO TOOK THE BOMP?
www.oscilloscope.net

We get a lot of emails and in my quick scan, I thought Le Tigre was playing at this year's SXSW. Technically true, but since the band's been pretty much inactive since their major label debut of This Island, it's actually false. But the next best thing is that they are showing a tour documentary of Le Tigre at the height of their popularity, circa 2004-2005:

03/17: Austin, TX @ State Theatre, Film Screening, 6:15pm
03/19: Austin, TX @ Vimeo Theatre, Film Screening, 2:30pm
04/04: New York, NY @ MoMA, 7 PM

The DVD will be released June 7^th via Oscilloscope Laboratories. The documentary, directed by Kerthy Fix, will focus on the band's idealism (feminism, LGBT, political) and their devoted fans throughout their tour through four continents and ten countries.

I have seen the band twice, once with Sleater-Kinney and once with Bratmobile, and both times that "Deceptacon" song rocks like no tomorrow.

UPDATE: Recently released video from the film:



THERE IS NO LOVE
plantingseedsrecords.com

The Jesus and Mary Chain broke up in 1999, and when the band eventually got back together in 2005, and they asked Mark Crozer to join the band. They did some reunion tour in 2007, and again, Crozer was there for the band. When Crozer is not with JAMC, he's busy with the music-thing, with several solo albums, as well as having his own band called International Jetsetters with fellow JAMC member Loz Colbert (a band that Sally seems to love).

I got a note that Mark Crozer's latest single is called "There is No Love", which is available for stream via soundcloud. I'm told that there will follow a full length album and plans are in the works for a US tour. Details of the three track single is listed below.

There is No Love
1. There is No Love
2. To Get to You
3. A Night Like This

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

W♥M Podcast #20: Home Taping is Killing Music

NEVER GET OUT OF THIS   Spin - Not In Love

WOW, another epic podcast, with co-hosts Derek & Soup. Although this episode is more topics-centric (RIAA, MP3s, and state of music), I think the next podcast will be half-topic and half casual.

Download this episode (41 min)

Some topics we touched on:

RIAA vs Muxtape, CDs are too expensive, music blogs, internet radio royalties going up twice as much as traditional radio, taping off the radio, whatever happened to recording hunting?, Taping Kills Music, concerts, what we're listening to...

Music used:

♥ David Yazbek - Introduction (davidyazbek.com)
♥ Weird Al - Don't Download This Song (weirdal.com)
♥ Hellsongs - Breaking the Law (hellsongs.com)
♥ Le Tigre - Get off the Internet (letigreworld.com)
♥ S*M*A*S*H - Take Your Breath Away ( myspace.com/llyc)
♥ Spin - Not In Love (spinrocks.com)
♥ Ladyscraper - Gangbanger (hellsongs.com)
♥ Ironlung - Liar (myspace.com/lifeironlungdeath)
♥ Jeff Hanson - I Don't Quite Remember (jeffhanson.net)
♥ P. Hux - Wear My Ring (parthenonhuxley.com)
♥ Elastica - Operate (live)
♥ AIDS Wolf - Down, Holy Ground (myspace.com/aidswolf)

If you want to join us on the podcast, send me an email - I will need your telephone number or Skype username.

Links: weheartmusic.com weheartmusic.mypodcast.com

Le Tigre

Le Tigre - Deceptacon Le Tigre Discography [1999] Le Tigre [2001] Feminist Sweepstakes [2004] This Island Read More Le Tigre http://weheartmus... I have all of Le Tigre's albums and EPs on CD as I am a pretty big riot grrrl fan. I actually hav... Riot Grrrls http://weheartmus... I've always been fond of this music genre, which started in the early 90s through music and fanz...

Le Tigre, "The Tiger", is undoubtedly the best project that Kathleen Hanna's been involved in since Bikini Kill. Originally, this band was conceived to be a "live" version of her solo effort, Julie Ruin, but as it developed between Johanna Fateman and Sadie Bennings, they quickly realized this was a birth of a new sound and a new band.

 

 

Le Tigre - Hot Topic

Although Bikini Kill was more DIY/Riot Grrrl, Le Tigre's sound, although still involved in feminism, seems to emphasize on dance, visual performance art, and electro. Take a listen to their first single, Hot Topic to hear what a wonderful tribute to strong women throughout the years, backed by a great drum beat and chorus.

My favorite moment was when I was listening to this song, quite loudly in my car, at a stop light. I wasn't really paying attention to my surroundings, but apparently these black youths in the car next to me were rocking out to this song. They absolutely loved it.

I listened to their debut album constantly around this time, and I can tell you these are the songs that never got skipped:

"Deceptacon": absolutely love this song. This is also a great track to play at a dance club, I remember hearing this at Popscene in San Francisco and the audience loved it.

"Hot Topic": See comment above. I love hearing and picking up on all the artists mentioned, including Sleater-Kinny, Yoko Ono, Cibo Matto, Leslie Feinberg, etc.

"The The Empty": Contains the best lyrics: "I went to your concert and I didn't feel a thing/Oh Baby, why won't you talk to me?/Oh baby, you just want me empty!"

"My My Metrocard": When I was in New York, I suddenly realized how much this song is so closely tied to the metro: "Next Stop: Atlantic Avenue/Next Stop: Christopher Street/Next Stop: Transfer to the/Next Stop: A, C, or E"

"Les and Ray": The lyrics to this song suggests that these were Kathleen's neighbors when she was very young. She used to put her head next to the wall to hear these two guys composing music and it really inspired her... at least that's what the song is about.

 

 

Le Tigre - Bang! Bang!

While waiting for their sophomore album, I found this little EP, From the Desk of Mr Lady, at Circuit City. I think, also by this time JD Samson came on as a full member of Le Tigre, while Sadie retired quietly in the background.

I thought there were a couple of good songs on the EP: "Get Off the Internet" (relates to me...) and "Gone B4 Yr Home" (a nice pop song)

I did wanted to talk about their song "Bang! Bang!", it's about Amadou Diallo, who was shot 41 times by four officers. When I saw Le Tigre live, when they performed this song, they asked us to note how long counting to 41 was (it was the longest part of the song it seems).

 

Le Tigre - On Guard

By the time Feminist Sweepstakes came out in the winter of '01, I was still in love with Le Tigre. I thought this album was a little militant and I kind of felt slightly discriminated because I wasn't "a lady or a fag", as they put it on "LT Tour Theme".

Some may argue that it's not anti-men, but I really felt like this album didn't want any men to listen to it. The women-only theme continues on "F.Y.R." (which stands for "Fifty years of ridicule"), "Dyke March 2001", "TGIF", just to name a few.

One of the few favorite off this album, for me, was "On Guard", which contains a catchy line: "En Garde, let me see you shake it baby, shake it some more"

After picking up the rather disappointing Remix EP, containing remixes by various DJs, I was pretty much convinced that I should stop buying remix EPs (which is why I've avoided getting This Island Remixes). Like Randy, I'm not a fan of remixes (although occasionally, I will admit, some remixes are much better than the original).

I would only recommend people to pick up the Remix EP if you're a hardcore Le Tigre/Kathleen Hanna fan, otherwise, I couldn't endorse this.

Le Tigre - TKO

Le Tigre - I'm So Excited

In 2004, This Island made its debut on a (gasp!) major record label, Universal Records. No idea why a major label would want to pick up a band with such a niche audience (no offense, but Le Tigre are more political and feminist-charged rather than "mass appeal").

There's a couple of good tracks off the new album, which is tame compared to Feminist Sweepstakes.

I liked "Nanny Nanny Boo Boo", which was a fun song, The Pointer Sister cover song, "I'm So Excited", and "TKO". They tried to market the later as single, it contains the ironic line "TKO/heard it on the radio", which as you know never quite made it to popular radio.

There was another effort to release After Dark as a single, but I have never found this single (and never bothered to do ebay, etc).

So, where are Le Tigre now? They're currently taking an extended break since 2007. The band (minus Kathleen Hanna) formed Men, but I haven't heard anything from this band yet. I'll definitely keep my eyes open for new material from Men, Le Tigre, or Kathleen Hanna, so keep on livin'.

Links: www.letigreworld.com myspace.com/letigre

 05/30/2008 00:46:52  ♥ written by vu ()

Riot Grrrls

In answer to Cock Rock and Wizard Rock, comes: Riot Grrrl!

Let's be clear about this, this is not a definitive guide to all things Riot Grrrl, but just some selections of music that I have and liked.

I've always been fond of this music genre, which started in the early 90s through music and fanzines. The origin of the name seems to have come from Jen Smith (Bratmobile) writing a letter to Allison Wolfe about how the Summer of 1991 was going "to be a girl riot." Soon afterwards, Wolfe, Kathleen Hanna and Tobi Vail were inspired to create a fanzine called Riot Grrrl.

The explosion of Riot Grrrl music and political and social message leaked into the mass media. Soon, there was a backlash of Grrrl being "anti-men". Imagine that! By 1994-1995, there were hundreds of bands in this genre. Although Riot Grrrl still exists to this day, it's not that prevalent (at least in music).

Here are some Riots I like:

BIKINI KILL THE Riot Grrrl band. This is just a quick summary, I'm sure I will be revisiting for a more in-depth look at Kathleen Hanna's career. The first song I heard from them is "New Radio", so I got into them late in the game. But it was the most amazingly different song I've ever heard. I didn't have a record player for the longest time, so I'm glad they compiled all the 7" into Singles on CD in 1998 (by which time they had broke up).

Bikini Kill - New Radio

BRATMOBILE The other band that's closely tied to the Riot movement. I have Pottymouth (1993), but I did not actually see them live until years later when they reformed and toured with Le Tigre. I picked up Ladies, Women and Girls (2000) immediately and discovered that after a seven years gap, that they sound EXACTLY the same! There's something very comforting in that. Trivia: I think one of the girl dated Graham Coxon, so they did a medley of "There's No Other Way" and "No You Don't" on John Peel's radio show.

Bratmobile - Cheap Trick Record

TEAM DRESCH I only have Personal Best (1994), which I'm assuming the cover is also a recreation of Mariel Hemingway's movie "Personal Best" (1982). They're known as a queercore band, but I've never really thought of them that hardcore (loud) as Lunachicks or Babes in Toyland. They broke up, but reformed in 2004 for some shows.

Team Dresch - Fagetarian and Dyke

THE SMEARS I have always associated these three girls to be part of Riot, but I don't think these girls actually wanted to be part of that movement. Their album Love is Fer Suckers (1994) is fantastic. I believe they named their album off a Twisted Sisters song! They sound like a girls version of the Ramones!

The Smears - Honey Jar

EXCUSE 17 Excuse 17 was a short-lived band, releasing only two albums, Excuse Seventeen (1994) and Such Friends Are Dangerous (1995), before breaking up. Carrie Brownstein went on to join this band called Sleater-Kinney.

Excuse 17 - Special Guest, Me

HUGGY BEAR I've always thought they were a girl band, but when I bought the album, Weaponry Listens to Love (1994), I was disappointed to hear that it's mostly driven by singer Chris Rowley. If you're looking for more sound like "No Sleep" off of Taking the Rough with the Smooch (1993), then don't get Weaponry (unless you like Punk music, it's a pretty good punk album). Trivia: Nude Records wanted to sign these guys really badly. Huggy Bear said they'd only sign if Nude drop Suede. Suede was Nude's biggest money-making band, so of course there was no deal.

Huggy Bear - No Sleep

 

CHIA PET Inspired by Riot Grrrls, the girl editors at Sassy Magazine form Chia Pet in 1992. They were not that serious about it, but managed to release one single and contributed one song on the Freedom of Choice CD. Their "Hey Baby" song is quite good and I think really represented the Riot sound.

Chia Pet - Hey Baby

Before you mention that I am missing certain bands, that is because I don't have their albums.  I know regrettably I don't really have any Babes in Toyland or Lunachicks.  Although I do have cover songs they both did, which may surface on cover lover.  Here's Lunachicks' Heart of Glass and watch for a Carpenters cover by Babes in Toyland.

Related: Bangs - Scorpi-oh, Le Tigre - Bang! Bang!, and Chia Pet - Hey (Don't You Want Me) Baby

 July 14, 2007 2:55 PM  vu my w♥m posts [email protected]  hot-topic.org/riotgrrrl

Bang! Bang! On the Door, Baby!

I got inspired by BAng BAng PArty !, so I'm adding a few in. I do have a lot more "Bang" songs, including that awesome "Bang a Gong" song by T.Rex, but that's already mentioned in that post.

So a short introduction to each Bang songs:

● Bangs (not "the Bangs") are from Olympia, Washington, so I often associate them with Sleater-Kinney. I love this song, "Scorpi-Oh".

● S*M*A*S*H are another personal favorite. They've only have one album before breaking up due to drugs and depression. They reformed a few years ago, and I have an official/fan website on them (s-m-a-s-h.net).

● Bertrand Betsch has a French version of "Bang Bang", it's pretty good.

● I also like Isobel Campbell's version of "Bang Bang" as well ... if you listen on headphones, it uses "stereo" so you'll hear some sounds in the left and right speakers.

● Art Brut has an album and title track called "Bang Bang Rock & Roll".

● I have all of Le Tigre's albums and EPs on CD as I am a pretty big riot grrrl fan. I actually haven't really liked the latest Le Tigre's stuff, but am more of a fan of old Bikini Kill.  However, the first Le Tigre album is amazing.  Maybe in my next post, I will talk about another favorite, Bratmobile :)

● Lastly, here's the Archies doing "Bang Shang a Lang", which I believe was a big hit for this cartoon band :) The real "band" are session musicians, assembled by Don Kirshner. Most of the hits were written and sung by Jeff Barry.

● SMAP is not my audio. It's in Japanese.

Super-easy, but bonus points for anyone who can guess where the title of this post came from.

 

 

Art Brut - Bang Bang Rock & Roll

The Archies - Bang Shang a Lang

Bertrand Betsch - Bang Bang

Bangs - Scorpi-oh

Isobel Campbell - Bang Bang

S*M*A*S*H - Bang Bang Bang

Le Tigre - Bang! Bang!

vu wikipedia.org/Bangs | s-m-a-s-h.net | bertrandbetsch.com | isobelcampbell.com | artbrut.org.uk | letigreworld.com