Sasha Fere-Jones
New Yorker piece on Bikini Kill is a good place to start if you're looking for a good, condensed history of the band and the riot grrrl movement it sparked.
"The movement had obvious manifestations in things like Riot Grrrl Press tables selling zines at concerts and graffiti spray-painted on sidewalks (e.g., “George Stay Out of My Bush”), as well as in performers who weren’t necessarily linked in any way to riot grrrl but were perfect expressions of the spirit, and the day: PJ Harvey, Courtney Love, Madonna. Hanna is significant as a figure in the movement not simply because she is visible and charismatic but also because she packed so many issues into Bikini Kill’s brief career."
I feel like every time I read something praising Kathleen Hanna, or riot grrrl as a whole, I'm obligated to mention its failings: namely that riot grrrl was insular it had no chance of reaching those girls with limited resources -- no 'zines, no cool "indie" record store or radio station, and no access to anything underground, irrespective of message. I say this as someone who probably would have appreciated the liberation riot grrrl had to offer had I some knowledge that it existed before it had been reduced to a fashion statement by mainstream magazines.
Hey! I just clicked over here from Feministe and wanted to add that while Frere-Jones mentioned her appearance in that SY video (one of my favorite songs ever), he did not include Hanna's story that she was ripped to shreds in the riot grrl community for "selling out." Such internal acrimony led her to flee to the East Coast and start something completely new (Le Tigre).
ReplyDeleteI love riot grrl and in general and grateful for it, but disappointed that its history is so hidden from even these in the know.