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186 pages

English

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'When was the last time you heard an all-girl band on the radio? Why don't all-girl bands get attention they deserve?'In Women Make Noise musicians, journalists, promoters and fans excavate the hidden story of the all-girl band: from country belles of the 20s-40s and girl groups of the 60s, to prog rock goddesses, women's liberationists and punks of the 70s-80s; from riot grrrl activists and queercore anarchists of the 90s to radical protesters Pussy Riot and the most inspiring all-girl bands today.These aren't the manufactured acts of some pop svengali, these groups write their own songs, play their own instruments and make music together on their own terms.All-girl bands have made radical contributions to feminism, culture and politics as well as producing some unique, influential and innovative music. It's time to celebrate the outspoken voices, creative talents and gutsy performances of the all-girl bands who demand we take notice.Including commentary from members of the original 60s girl groups and classic punk-inspired outfits like The Raincoats and The Slits, as well as contemporary Ladyfest heroines like Beth Ditto, this timely exploration shows the world that sidelining all-girl bands is a major oversight.Contributions byVictoria Yeulet,Elizabeth K.Keenan,Sini Timonen,Jackie Parsons, Deborah Withers,Jane Bradley,Rhian E.Jones,Bryony Beynon,Val Rauzier,Elizabeth K. Keenan and Sarah DougherThis book is a celebration of girl bands in all genres: girl bands who make music on their own terms. With a unique focus on the talented girl bands of the past 50years rather than casting female musicians inthe typical solo 'singer-songwriter' mode. New perspectives on each genre - from 1960s Motown groups to 1970s prog rock and punk to 1980s protest music, 1990s queercore, riot grrrl and beyond - written by musicians, performers, journalists, promoters and fans.ContentsIntroducing the All-girl Band: Finding Comfort in Contradiction |Julia Downes1. Female Pioneers in Old-time and Country Music |Victoria Yeulet2. Puppets on a String? Girl Groups of the 50s and 60s |Elizabeth K. Keenan3. Truth Gotta Stand: 60s Garage, Beat and 70s Rock |Sini Timonen4. Prog Rock: A Fortress They Call 'The Industry' |Jackie Parsons5. Feminist Musical Resistance in the 70s and 80s |Deborah Withers6. You Create, We Destroy: Punk Women |Jane Bradley7. Post-Punk: Raw, Female Sound |Rhian E. Jones8. Subversive Pleasure: Feminism in DIY Hardcore |Bryony Beynon9. Queercore: Fearless Women |Val Rauzier10. Riot Grrrl, Ladyfest and Rock Camps for Girls |Elizabeth K. Keenanand Sarah DougherEpilogue: Pussy Riot and the Future |Julia DownesNotesBibliographyReviews"Tales of race riots, intimidation and abuse by male music fans and management, and inspiring moments of in-your-face activism provide fascinating background to some of your favourite bands (and many you've never heard of). The greatest strength of Women Make Noise is that many of the contributors were themselves part of the bands they are chronicling. These women offer up inspiring, funny and enraging stories of being radical activists and prolific musicians in a world that worked constantly to push them down." - Gender Focus"Women Make Noise is a wonderful collection of essays, taking the reader from the days of Sassy country and Western women carving out a place in a horrendously sexist fledgeling music industry, all the way up to the Riot Grrrl movement of the 90s and beyond. Each chapter is written with such boundless enthusiasm for the subject matter that it'll keep you enthralled until you drift slowly out of your comfort zone without even realising it. Read the book cover to cover, have your eyes opened, discover your next favourite band and perhaps think about the role of Women in music a little differently from now on." -Intuition, review by Owen Chambers"Fascinating, diverse and, most importantly, inspiring - the title alone is as much a rallying cry as a joyous statement of the truth." -Zoe Street Howe, author of Typical Girls? The Story of The Slits, and other music titles"It's exhilarating to learn about different generations of female musicians from such diverse, strong voices." -Kathleen Hanna,American singer, musician, artist, feminist activist, pioneer of the feminist punkriot grrrlmovement"A very important and timely contribution to the debates about "women in rock". All-girl bands have too often been written off as novelties, and this exciting book sheds new light on an under-researched area." -Lucy O'Brien, author of She Bop: The Definitive History of Women in Rock, Pop and Soul

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Music

Informations

Publié par	Aurora Metro Books
Date de parution	26 février 2015
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9780956632944
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0164€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

Editor
Julia Downes is a Research Associate in the School of Applied Social Sciences at Durham University where she is currently working on a longitudinal study into the impact of community domestic violence perpetrator programmes on the safety and freedom of women and children. Julia’s ESRC-funded PhD critically examined contemporary queer feminist activist music cultures in the UK including riot grrrl, Ladyfest and grassroots collectives.
She has lectured on popular music and society, feminist cultural activism and queer girl cultures at the University of Leeds, University of Derby, University of Birmingham and Durham University.
Julia has been active in DIY queer feminist cultural activism for over ten years within Manifesta, Ladyfest Leeds, Ladies Rock UK, Star and Shadow Cinema and even clean hands cause damage ( http://evencleanhandscausedamage.wordpress.com ) and as a drummer in the bands The Holy Terror, Fake Tan, Vile Vile Creatures and the Physicists.
First published in the UK in 2012 by
SUPERNOVA BOOKS
67 Grove Avenue, Twickenham, TW1 4HX
www.supernovabooks.co.uk
www.aurorametro.com
WOMEN MAKE NOISE © 2012 Supernova Books
Reprinted 2015.
Series editor: Rebecca Gillieron
With thanks to: Lesley Mackay, Kim Evans, Martin Gilbert, Alex Chambers, Candida Cruz, Simon Smith, Neil Gregory, Jack Timney, Richard Turk, Ziallo Gogui, Imogen Facey.
All rights are strictly reserved. For rights enquiries contact the publisher: rights@aurorametro.com
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
In accordance with Section 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, the authors assert their moral rights to be identified as the authors of the above work.
This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
Cover design by Hayley Hatton.
Cover images © Rex Features except Tobi Vail and the Sissy Boyz © Red Chidgey, Pussy Riot protestor © Lilian Levesque, Trash Kit © Ochi Reyes and courtesy of Upset the Rhythm, Gina Birch © Martin Jenkinson and The Dum Dum Girls © Claire Tatlier.
Printed by Ashford Colour Press, UK
ISBN: 978-0-9566329-1-3 (print)
ISBN: 978-0-9566329-4-4 (ebook)
WOMEN MAKE NOISE
Girl bands from Motown to the modern
ed. Julia Downes

SUPERNOVA BOOKS
List of Images
The Carter Family - Rex Features
The Ronettes - Rex Features
The Shangri-Las - Rex Features
Goldie and the Gingerbreads - Rex Features
Fanny - Rex Features
Mother Superior - Peter Simpkin
Suzi Quatro - Rex Features
Kate Bush - Rex Features
Fran Rayner - Teresa Hunt
Drum workshop - Teresa Hunt
Ova - Rosemary Schonfeld
The Slits - Rex Features
The Raincoats - Martin Jenkinson
Ut - Claire Tatlier
Hysterics - Brit Reed
Adrienne Droogas - Chrissy Piper
The Braphsmears - Anthony Ledbetter
The Braphsmears - Janice Morlan
Bibi McGill - beyonceworld.net
PJ Harvey - Hayley Hatton
Secret Trial Five - from their website
Wetdog - Billy Easter
Beth Ditto - Rex Features
Dum Dum Girls - Claire Tatlier
Warpaint - Hayley Hatton
Vivian Girls - Billy Easter
Trash Kit - Claire Tatlier
Ladyfest images - Red Chidgey
Pussy Riot - Igor Mukhin
Pussy Riot protestor - Lillian Levesque
Girls Rock Camp images - Elizabeth K. Keenan and Sarah Dougher
Contents
Introducing the All-girl Band: Finding Comfort in Contradiction
Julia Downes
1. Female Pioneers in Old-time and Country Music
Victoria Yeulet
2. Puppets on a String? Girl Groups of the 50s and 60s
Elizabeth K. Keenan
3. Truth Gotta Stand: 60s Garage, Beat and 70s Rock
Sini Timonen
4. Prog Rock: A Fortress They Call ‘The Industry’
Jackie Parsons
5. Feminist Musical Resistance in the 70s and 80s
Deborah Withers
6. You Create, We Destroy: Punk Women
Jane Bradley
7. Post-Punk: Raw, Female Sound
Rhian E. Jones
8. Subversive Pleasure: Feminism in DIY Hardcore
Bryony Beynon
9. Queercore: Fearless Women
Val Rauzier
10. Riot Grrrl, Ladyfest and Rock Camps for Girls
Elizabeth K. Keenan and Sarah Dougher
Epilogue: Pussy Riot and the Future
Julia Downes
Notes
Bibliography
Introducing the All-Girl Band: Finding the Comfort in Contradiction
Julia Downes
What is an all-girl band?
‘We get compared to those bands [Dum Dum Girls, Vivian Girls and Best Coast] more than we do to the people we know, the people we play shows with on a regular basis, and we affiliate ourselves with, and that comparison is purely based on gender […] If someone asks me what I do I don’t say, “Well I spend a lot of my time being female”. Why should that define my music? Our gender influences our perspective and consequentially our creative output, but it isn’t the whole of our identity.’ 1 Lillian Maring from Grass Widow
There is something about being in an all-girl band… It is the place in which I first picked up some drum sticks and as part of a gang of girls created our own interpretation of what music is. With puzzled glances and questions, ‘But is that really a song…?’, we made our own rules, our own sounds and our own agendas. I started learning about the legacies of feminist punk music and all-girl bands: The Raincoats, Skinned Teen, Erase Errata, The Donnas, The Shaggs, The Shangri-Las, ESG, The Runaways, Lung Leg, Fifth Column, LiLiPUT/Kleenex, The Slits, Sleater-Kinney, L7, Frightwig, Babes in Toyland and Slant 6. I became addicted to that girl gang feeling. We figured it out along the way. From The Holy Terror (who later became The Ivories), Fake Tan and Vile Vile Creatures to The Physicists, the all-girl bands I have played in have always felt like home to me. But my experience in these bands has not been without awkward attitudes, complications and bad feelings.
All-girl bands occupy a precarious position in local music scenes and the broader cultural landscape. Like Lillian Maring, the drummer for all-girl trio Grass Widow, in the opening quotation, I wondered: Should our gender solely define our music? Did we get gigs and attention just because we were an all-girl band? Did putting us on with an otherwise male line-up mean the problem of women and girls’ under-participation in the local music scene was solved? Was there only ever enough space for one credible girl band? Would we always play pretty well… for girls? Did the constant comparisons, and gigs, with other all-girl bands, who sounded completely different, marginalise us or offer us community? Did any attention to what we looked like undermine what we were doing? Should we dress down or dress up? When we wrote songs, gave interviews and performed were we speaking for all girls and women or just ourselves? Were we defining ourselves as feminists just by getting up and playing? Was anyone actually listening or interested in why and how we were making music?
When Supernova Books first sent out a call for contributors for this book several people emailed me to object to the focus on all-girl bands. The term in itself had touched a nerve. Here are a few examples of the kind of emails that hit my inbox:
‘I have been in bands with men and women. It is way easier to be in an all-girl band (plus at what point do we get to be “women?”). People love all-girl bands. There are record labels, promoters and festivals that will likely be more interested in an all-girl band than a female-fronted band.’
‘I am a woman fronting a band with men. People (including feminists, band members, the public) often assume I am just a performer and not a creative leader. Men will typically get the credit for my song writing and women have a hard time getting taken seriously by band members, studio people and the music press. It is much harder being a woman in a band with men, men stand back and let you fight your own battles or fight against you, you have to work harder to be noticed and be given credit for your work. By focusing on all-girl bands you are invalidating my experience and your academic distinctions between female-fronted and all-girl are trivial .’
‘By focusing on all-girl bands you are excluding some of the most important and groundbreaking women in music. There have simply not been any good all-girl bands. By focusing on all-girl bands you are being sexist and separatist and distorting music history.’
The responses reveal the ‘all-girl band’ as a contested, ambiguous and controversial term. On one hand all-girl bands are said to have more (possibly undeserved) popular appeal and sit in positions of privilege and opportunity. However, the first responder expresses her frustration at being described as a girl instead of a woman, resisting connotations of being inexperienced, naïve and childlike. (Here I am interested in how the term all-girl band is used, by who and to what effect.) The second respondent argues that life for a woman in a band with men is the most marginalised position in music-making. Interestingly, instead of taking issue with masculine entitlements circulated in music culture (including the behaviour of male bandmates) that construct women’s participation in narrow ways, the implication is that this book will reinforce the marginalisation of women with an unfair focus on all-girl bands (who have it much easier). Finally, the last speaker insists that there are no successful all-girl bands to talk about and accuses this book of producing a sexist, separatist and distorted music history. Here I would draw attention to the measures used to