In honor of Black History Month, acknowledging the area of music I most like to listen to and learn about, I collaborated with a friend to curate a playlist made up of music by the Black women (as frontpeople, musicians, and songwriters) of classic rock1. It is very much meant to represent the history of Black women in rock, as it is organized in chronological order by the dates that singles or albums were released. Do understand that this is an inexhaustible list – no artists or bands within the parameters of the playlist were left off intentionally, and if you alert me to any who I forgot or if I learn of more artists/bands on my own, they will be added in time!
Which leads me to one other note I must make: while this playlist was curated in honor of Black History Month, it’s important that these artists/bands AND contemporary Black artists/bands ALL be appreciated and recognized for their talent and contributions to music throughout the entire year! (Which is also why I think it would be appropriate to continue adding to the playlist through the year – but that’s just my thinking.)
If you check out this playlist – which I sincerely hope you will – you may think it’s long, or depending on who you are you might think it’s too short. (I think it’s too short.) If you believe the latter, then don’t fear – the playlist is actually incomplete from how I originally compiled it because a few artists could not be found on Spotify. Luckily, I’ve added the missing artists to a Youtube playlist2, so you can either rediscover some artists/bands you once heard and forgot that you enjoyed, or you’ll get the chance to learn of some new-to-you artists and bands! Either way, I hope you’ll find these playlists enjoyable, because I certainly do.
So here’s a band I haven’t yet had the chance to talk about much, which seems like a crime because they’re easily one of the greatest GEMS of the ’80s. (And considering I’m bringing up the ’80s, even though, uh, I love ’80s music…and I’m calling them a gem…just give them a chance if you don’t already know of them. Trust me.)
Romeo Void’s music makes me ecstatically happy. What doesn’t make me happy is realizing how little their music is known or acknowledged, especially today. I don’t expect them to be considered on the level of ’80s pop greats, but in terms of new wave and post-punk bands, they have all the distinctiveness of being remembered alongside bands like The Pretenders, Talking Heads, and Siouxsie and the Banshees.
What’s so inspiring and amazing to me in spite of the band’s short-lived career is how unapologetic lead vocalist Debora Iyall was as a singer, songwriter, and frontperson. (Not to leave out or ignore the equally great musicianship of the band: guitarist Peter Woods, bassist Frank Zincavage, saxophonist Benjamin Bossi, original drummer Jay Derah and proceeding drummers John Haines and Larry Carter.) Iyall should undoubtedly be one of the most recognized Native people in pop/rock music, especially in regard to her nonconformist attitude and commitment to the DIY spirit of punk rock. Her resolve to form the band, and as the frontperson, should also be more acclaimed as a woman and as a fat woman, proving that music (and most importantly, rock music and music maintaining punk ethos) could be wielded despite race, gender, and bodily appearance/ability, and one could in fact prosper by drawing strength and creativity from these facets. You might think I’m being optimistic when I suggest one can ‘prosper’ from drawing on those facets – please be aware that I do not necessarily mean in mainstream, capitalism-conforming ways. 😉 If you’ve read my blog(s) before, you should know I believe in success beyond societal and capitalistic definitions.
Everything that categorizes rock music as great rock music is easily found in Romeo Void’s music, from the band’s growth sonically and creatively to Iyall’s command of it as their frontperson. But I know it’s a lot to ask for you to just believe me without hearing them (if you haven’t already), so let’s consider some of their greatest gems in my opinion.
Since I like to go chronologically, It’s a Condition‘s first single “White Sweater” is an excellent example of their burgeoning influence, the way it builds and how the story it tells is one that, by then, had not really been explored in music, especially from the perspective of a frontwoman. Not to mention that musically, the tension created by the bass line (by the way, Romeo Void has some of the best bass lines, I think), accented by the guitar and quick-paced beats, and then released by Iyall’s sustained wail wholly supports the theme of the song and makes it notable. Also, the fact that the song speeds up toward the end instead of choosing the easy pop-route and changing keys is another noteworthy method that points toward the band’s punk-focused influences over just pop or rock. And another thing: this was just the beginning of Romeo Void and the evolution of Iyall’s songwriting style (not to mention artistic style, too: Iyall is responsible for the album’s cover art). They set the stage for themselves with a song like this, damn what everybody else was doing. The clear dance element in their music and the addition of a saxophone is also what sets them apart from new wave, punk, and rock bands during that time, especially in the United States. Romeo Void were indie by those standards, but they knew what they were doing.
Now the song that anyone who at least knows of Romeo Void would know – the bold declaration that “I might like you better if we slept together/but there’s something in your eyes that says maybe…/that’s never/never say never.” As I alluded to, Iyall had no qualms singing about controversial topics like sexuality, in this instance. But as it originated from a fat Native woman, you pretty much can’t get more punk rock than that; leave it to a Native woman to embody the genuine spirit of punk rock by shamelessly telling her story and subsequently epitomizing important ideas like feminism and decolonization during a period when such an act was rare to find or hear in music. However, truth be told, I’m not the biggest fan of this song. While I’m intrigued by the story it tells, the music isn’t quite my taste as far as Romeo Void’s music goes. But I must acknowledge that it matters as a piece of music and as a part of their discography, and that I cannot talk about them as a band without showcasing it. By the way, the video is kind of cheesy but I love the studio scenes where the band’s performing – it’s so cute. Don’t judge me for saying that.
Finally, this song is, to me, the nitty-gritty of what made Romeo Void great. Lyrically, it follows the evolving themes of Iyall’s songwriting style, which I would define as exposing double standards and, at the same time, reinforcing her humanity on behalf of herself and underrepresented groups. (I can’t be sure she would agree with my estimation especially if she never took herself that seriously! Oops, but that’s how I see and understand the themes of her writing – telling the truth because it’s her truth, as well as acknowledging countless others’ truths which are often inaccurately represented.) At the same time, I think you could also hear the band imploding in this track – seeing as this was on the last album they released, the tension musically and lyrically seems obvious. But just look at The Beatles and Fleetwood Mac – tension like that is what made great music, historically. Although it does seem like the album might’ve benefited from that considering it reached #68 on The Billboard 200 chart, and the single “A Girl in Trouble (Is a Temporary Thing)” peaked at #35 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart – so I can’t complain too much about that. While “A Girl in Trouble (Is a Temporary Thing)” is definitely my favorite track on the album, “Your Life is a Lie” stands out to me as an altogether interesting song in a way that makes me think it could’ve been skipped over in consideration of the album; in other words, it’s a real gem.
Now, I know that I heaped tons of accolades onto lead vocalist and songwriter Debora Iyall (she is amazing, though, so sorry not sorry), but I mean to say that the band as a unit is equally as important and part of the appeal, to me. While they had a couple lineup changes when they were first together and releasing albums, they still managed to sound cohesive throughout their discography which makes their music so worthwhile. While I can’t ignore that it must’ve helped to have such an uncompromising, visionary frontperson as Iyall, the band’s instrumental tracks like their cover of “Apache” and their song “Going to Neon” showcase their creativity and investment into coalescing as a group – perhaps besides co-founder Frank Zincavage’s distinguishable bass lines which obviously carry much of their music, there seems to be little perceptive ego present. (Besides, egotistical bassists seem pretty rare, so I don’t see a big downside to that for them, anyway.) Maybe it’s my opinion that less ego musically results in a better, more consolidated sound, but honestly, what music is really worthwhile that chiefly pays tribute to one or two instrumentalists and sidelines the rest? You know? Maybe it works for one-person bands or duos, but especially for bands of four members or more…that just wouldn’t seem right. So if that were the case, then by definition, it shouldn’t be “a band.” Perhaps it would work all right for studio musicians, though. But as far as my ears can tell, Romeo Void fit the description of “a band,” and that’s an important element to acknowledge.
I could probably go on and on about Romeo Void, honestly, but for an intro post to them, I think I’ll leave it at that. I would love to analyze their lyrics or perhaps review one of their albums some time, though, so don’t think this is the last time I’m discussing Romeo Void – they are SO worth mentioning on more than one occasion.
Alice Bag deserves all the happy birthday wishes in spite of the fact that I’ve kind of dropped the ball this year posting happy birthday wishes to my favorite musicians especially since I abandoned my other blogs. So I’m not letting her down!
Y’all should check out her discography if you didn’t see my excessively detailed reviews of her albums already, and you can find her discography on Spotify, Youtube, Bandcamp, and other music streaming platforms. (But you should also buy her albums, if you can. TRUST me – they’re worth it. You will not be disappointed.) One thing I wanted to add that’s so amazing about her and her career in music: to me it seems like she’s sincerely continued the DIY tradition of punk rock, all the way up through now. Which – just saying – makes her a true representative of punk rock. You can’t say that’s not respectable…
In honor of it being her birthday, and knowing how steadfastly she supports and promotes other women musicians, I’m also listening to the band Fea for the first time, and I’ll probably continue my weekly tradition of listening to Fatty Cakes and the Puff Pastries (because I adore them and their music!). I’m not done listening to Fea’s album yet, but so far I’m impressed and I appreciate their music a lot!
So happy Alice Bag day! It’d probably also be appropriate to put a paper bag over your head and jam out to some badass punk rock (by women, for sure…or by fellow Chicanx/Latinx! I’m sure that’d also be great!).
I haven’t talked about Thunderpussy or new music in awhile, I feel like, so excuse me while I yell about it for a bit.
If y’all didn’t know, allow me to update you: Thunderpussy released their second EP Milk It today and it’s all I’ve been listening to since about 1:30am (I thought I was going to check it out right at midnight but I lost track of time).
I’m not intending for this to be a review exactly, but my basic thoughts about it are that I’m a fan of every song except for “Powerhouse.” Conceptually, I want to like “Powerhouse” (it’s like the rock version of “Dear Mama,” but from the heart of women – no offense, Tupac), and musically it’s nice, but something about the vocals bothers me. I’m not sure if they could’ve been mixed better or maybe if lead vocalist Molly Sides could’ve enunciated better (“And she’ll take you out” would seem a lot more forthright if I could be sure she was saying “out“), but when I listen to it I just feel like it could be better. Honestly, I wondered if performing/recording it with their drummer might make it better. Even though I have yet to personally see them live with Lindsey Elias, from what I heard of recordings they posted of shows at the beginning of their tour, Elias just seems to work really well with them. Not that I’m questioning Chad Smith’s or even Elias’ abilities, but like I’ve said before…drummers are not that easy to replace. I think they just sound good as a band with Elias, which is lucky since Ruby Dunphy was SO FUCKING GOOD. But I digress.
Otherwise, “Never Know” is an instant classic that I already figured out is about performing, “On the Line” is completely gorgeous and the strings are so unexpected but it makes me cry so I love it!, and I’ve been listening to “Trust a Man” on repeat for the past five hours so that’s how I feel about it (it’s important – especially the sentiment in the chorus), plus I vividly remember hearing this when I saw Thunderpussy live in June which makes it that much sweeter. I’m definitely trying to savor this EP before I start wondering when their next album comes out and what it’ll sound like. I think there’s great likelihood that they’ll wholly improve on their debut album when their second album comes out (which is to say I believe that their next album will be AMAAAAAAAAZING).
There is another band whose new music is also worth mentioning, though, and that would be Sleater-Kinney. (That, and now I get to mention that I’m officially seeing them for the first time next month and I will SCREAM about it every day until the day of the concert because I am that excited. I feel like, in terms of amazing rock bands that I’ve become obsessed with over the past few years, I HUGELY missed out on getting to see Pearl Jam live last year, so I’m not missing my chance to see Sleater-Kinney!) They put out their newest single “Animal” earlier this month and I listened to it soon after it was released, and man, it knocked me out. On one hand I felt like it was a song written and put out in response to The Center Won’t Hold naysayers – as though to prove they could reach for their roots any time they wanted (and that Corin Tucker could wrangle her rock vocals into a new arrangement any time she damn well pleased) – but I could also hear it as an extension of the album’s social commentary leanings, which I completely appreciated. And this might sound strange, but musically – not lyrically – the song reminds me of Halloween which makes me think it was released at an appropriate time, too.
Basically, I’m just super excited about some of my favorite bands’ new music, and I’m even more excited to see them live.
And now, for the first time in a long time, I get to brag about the bands I’ll be seeing this year (unless another artist/band chimes in that they’re touring/performing at a venue near me, in which case it might be more) in addition to new music excitement: Sleater-Kinney in November, The Black Tones in November, and Thunderpussy with Bear Axe on New Year’s Eve (a couple other bands who I’m mildly interested in will also be playing, but out of them I’m most excited about Bear Axe who I’ve already listened to). Not to get too off topic, but considering I didn’t get to go to my first concert until 2015, the fact that I’ve been to three shows this year and am planning for three more is a dream I didn’t anticipate having for a LONG time. Maybe six shows doesn’t seem like many to you but my record of seeing bands live is two in one year, so this year has DEFINITELY improved for me! It’s a good year for live music, apparently. It’s a good year for music, too, I must add, if you look in the right places.
Okay, here’s an unnecessary, wholly-opinionated rant for you all that I’ve been thinking about:
Pearl Jam wishes they could be as relevant as Sleater-Kinney.
Seems weird that I’m comparing two bands that are pretty much nothing alike, right? Except, you know, they’re both political af and they have punk rock and alternative rock in common even if Pearl Jam’s musical influence encompasses much more than that (though I am not suggesting Sleater-Kinney is weakened in any way by employing fewer genres as their main influences). Plus they toured together 2-3 times. I dunno – you could get them confused. (Just kidding.)
But, being a fan of both bands (and I’ve been a Pearl Jam fan for three years now, whereas I’ve been a Sleater-Kinney fan for just half a year), I’ve seen comments that other fans have made on their social media accounts and on their Youtube videos. Long story short, PJ fans are annoying af asking for “the new album” every single time their account posts anything at all, and it seems like there are a lot of ignorant dudebros minimizing Sleater-Kinney’s ingenuity (not to mention the mindless comments toward SK by PJ fans that I’ve read).
A few months ago I started writing a post where I ranted about how I couldn’t care less about a new Pearl Jam album because, based on their last album, it doesn’t seem like they’re about to go anywhere new musically or lyrically. (Side note: I read an interview where Eddie Vedder mentioned that he wrote Lightning Bolt lyrically the way he did because he wanted to stop playing “word games.” But after reading the lyrics to those songs, I was like ‘Shit, man, at this point, BRING BACK THE WORD GAMES. THOSE WERE BETTER.’) And while I doubt all fans are literally salivating for a new album, I wish, for the ones who DO care so much, that I could push them toward Sleater-Kinney and be like “LISTEN TO THIS FUCKING BRILLIANCE IF YOU WANT SOMETHING NEW, RELEVANT, AND AMAZING. *whispers* It will change your life…“
I have to wonder if people aren’t willing to pay attention to Sleater-Kinney because they’re a trio of women (now duo, PLEASE DON’T REMIND ME – I AM SAD) and maybe they think, ‘Oh, there’s no way I’ll relate to this.’ I say: if you’re willing to listen to and enjoy bands like The Police, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Nirvana, and Green Day, then Sleater-Kinney are 100% worthy of a chance. Plus, they’ve released nine studio albums throughout their career – there’s bound to be something worthwhile for everybody. Seriously, not only are they geniuses lyrically, but also musically in the way their arrangements interact with each other and the fact that THEY TOTALLY HAVE THEIR OWN SOUND THAT, APPARENTLY, NOBODY ELSE IS WILLING TO REPLICATE which is why they came back and thank the UNIVERSE they did. Unlike Pearl Jam who had posers in the fucking ’90s when they were still relevant…yikes. You sadly misguided, straight, white dudes in rock. I wish you’d know when to stop trying because there is N-O-W-H-E-R-E LEFT FOR YOU TO GO. Cry about it! Support women, queer people, and people of color. Those are the voices we need to hear. The end. Also, you could argue that I am saying this @ Pearl Jam, too, if you’d like. I mean, I won’t stop you.
Overall, I just want to tell everyone to listen to Sleater-Kinney – including their new album The Center Won’t Hold – and Pearl Jam fans need to calm the fuck down and ALSO listen to Sleater-Kinney (it should sate your appetite for awhile).
P.S. I’m guessing that Pearl Jam themselves probably don’t care about being relevant. But the fans do, obviously, or they wouldn’t be hounding all of the band’s social media accounts for a new album.
At this point, I’ve forgotten how long it’s taken me to officially write about More AM Than FM, but of all the punk bands I would want to recommend and to see live, they’d be it. Yep, really! Of all the punks bands, More AM Than FM is my favorite quintessential punk band.
If you’re wondering how someone all the way out on the west coast of the United States found this D.C.-based band, I learned of them when I was doing research for my old blog, perusing Wikipedia’s [not comprehensive – not even close] list of “all-female bands.” It still surprises me that their band name intrigued me enough to forget my research and immediately start listening to them, especially considering my tendency to ignore contemporary bands (not ignoring due to preconceptions – just for the purpose of my blog which documented women in rock music history), but I did and I have ever since been grateful for that impulse.
The first time I heard “Andre,” I was immediately blown away and excited by their sound and the arrangement references to classic punk rock. And as I kept listening to their first EP, I realized, Holy shit. There is not a SINGLE bad song on here! Which is to say, there was not a single song on the whole EP that I didn’t like. While that may not be super impressive considering I was listening to an EP and not an LP (I’ll admit I can be much harder to please when it comes to full-length albums), it was still significant enough to me to continue listening to their next EP. And again I realized there was not a single bad song on it, either. So basically, they don’t have any bad songs.
When I think about them now, since I’ve been listening to them for over a year, I fervently wonder what their first LP will sound like, because based on their EPs alone, I would bet the money I’d set aside specifically for that future LP that it would be COMPLETELY AMAZING (and then I would have enough money to buy their LP twice! SCORE. I WOULD SO DO IT).
What I’ve wanted to write about the most since discovering and falling in love with their music is the way it’s helped me. Yes, it’s punk rock, and it’s not even necessarily that I could relate to all of the subjects that their songs are based on, but at the time that I discovered them I was thoroughly unable to put into words how strong of an effect their music had on me. Now, thanks to hindsight, I feel I can finally justify why I fucking love this band so much.
Transitional periods – lots of laying in the middle of the floor, weeping, feeling like I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing or who I am or why I am and what the FUCK does the world want from me. Cue my discovery of More AM Than FM. Fucking timely.
That’s it, really – long story short. I discovered them a month before I would graduate from college with my BA in creative writing, and while I remember the way my therapist explained transitional periods to me and that it would feel a lot like grieving, her explanation seemed to go in one ear and out while I was worried about wrapping up school and what I would do afterward (because I had literally no idea). So, in spite of the fact that she told me that in good time, I still felt like I was drowning in a puddle of completely unidentifiable feelings. And then I heard More AM Than FM for the first time, and suddenly my feelings had a SOUND. I still couldn’t explain what or even how I was feeling; I just knew those feelings now had musical accompaniment and it was credited to THIS BAND and THIS BAND ALONE.
By the time I’d finished listening to their first EP all the way through I felt like WHY DID IT TAKE ME SO LONG TO DISCOVER THIS? THIS HAS BEEN HERE THE WHOLE TIME AND I DIDN’T KNOW? WHY?! HOW. On the positive side of things, that’s the beauty of discovering new music. On the bittersweet side, once you discover new music that you LIKE that undeniably speaks to you like nothing else has, you feel like you’ve been missing out this whole time.
That’s what More AM Than FM’s music did for me. This superb trio of punks restored my faith in life, if you will. Their music reminded me that if I kept on keepin’ on, I would continue to have experiences with music where I would get to hear my feelings unequivocally put to music. And that experience is priceless! It’s why I enjoy researching music and artists and bands that aren’t often found or included in the mainstream – because you just never fucking know when and where you’ll find the sound that speaks to your heart. And finding that, and searching for it, is worth it.
I just wanted to mention who I’ve been listening to lately while I sit on at least ten ideas for new posts, most of which I have not started yet (but I’ll get to them – eventually, at least).
First and foremost, Sleater-Kinney. Once I realized the day that their new album came out, I eagerly waited until midnight to start streaming it. I heard “Hurry On Home” and “The Future is Here” about a month ago, but besides “Hurry On Home” I wasn’t SUPER excited about the new album…until I heard the “Can I Go On” single that got mixed in to my L7 radio station on Pandora. Since this is a quick post I won’t go too deep into my thoughts on it, but personally I like about half of it, and all of it I respect the band for trying in the first place. I wish I could see the band when they come to Seattle in a couple months but I’m hesitant to buy a ticket because I don’t know that I’d want to see them (for the first time, I should mention – since I became a fan just earlier this year) without Janet Weiss. I LOVE SLEATER-KINNEY, BUT COME ON…fucking great drummers are not easily replaced. Which I will surely say about any band, including my favorite ones.
While I’ve been doing research trying to broaden my knowledge and listening experiences of rock bands consisting of Black women (and I don’t just mean bands fronted by Black women), I discovered Big Joanie. I’ve listened to Sistahs (2018) and I loved all of it but a couple tracks, which is to say, for a debut effort, it’s PRETTY AMAZING.
Thunderpussy goes without saying. For me, it’s almost like, a day without listening to Thunderpussy isn’t a day lived well. And their new single, “Never Know”? Let’s just say I’M DYING WITHOUT THE NEW EP just kidding I’m fine but I’ll be better than fine once I get to hear the rest of it the band hasn’t disappointed me musically yet. I’m grateful for their existence (and existences) every freakin’ day I wake up on this planet. You could say I appreciate them a lot.
Another band I discovered whilst researching, from this SUPER great article I read on them (which I read before I’d heard them), T-Rextasy. They’re coming to Seattle soon and I’m DYING to see them but I don’t know if I have the time or resources to go…which I’m super disappointed about. I love Prehysteria (2019) and most of Jurassic Punk (2016).
After knowing about this band for awhile now via my favorite punk artist Alice Bag, I FINALLY started listening to Fatty Cakes and the Puff Pastries today and OH MY GOD. The bite, humor, and shamelessness woven into the great music is such a fun and positive experience, I’m totally going to listen to them when I’m feeling shitty. I especially love that their songs take on subjects that are not often covered in punk and rock (like “Fat Girl Tears” and “Best Friends”). Their self-titled is a great debut album (and was produced by Alice Bag! Even better!).
Finally, L7, since I mentioned that I’ve been listening to the L7 radio station on Pandora. I discovered through the station that I like a few other artists/bands that I hadn’t listened to much before, too, which is cool (like PJ Harvey and 7 Year Bitch). I’ve also probably been listening to L7 every day, like Thunderpussy, because I just don’t get tired of them.
Okay, so I’ve never written an album review, or like…formally reviewed an album before. But I felt compelled to start with Alice Bag because she’s one of my heroes, and if anyone and their music needs more exposure, out of all of my faves, I think Alice is most deserving.
Though I’ve read my share of album reviews, I’m going to do something different and go track-by-track, then end with an overall summary of the album as an entity. For any reviews I endeavor to write in the future, this will be my format. (Unless I decide to be more creative and try a different approach. I might…in which case, I’ll let y’all know.)
And because this post is rather long (I’m reviewing both of her solo albums), I’m putting the important part of it under a read-more so you have a choice if you do really want to read it.
Since supporting artists is my thing (especially because I’m also an artist), you can buy her albums here (debut & second album), and/or check out the albums on Youtube (1 & 2), Spotify (1 & 2), Apple Music (1 & 2), or Amazon (1 & 2). Or, you know, just look up her music on whatever music streaming service you ordinarily use, I guess.
Writing for Pearls 