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Subject: Typical Girls: Women in Punk/Post-Punk/Underground Music (Circa 1975-1980s)

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: "Dina Hornreich" <dina.hornreich AT gmail.com>
  • To: "Typical Girls" <typicalgirls AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [TypicalGirls] must-have list (final edit)
  • Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2007 11:21:47 -0600

Dear friends,
 
I am submitting the final edit of the TG recommendations for the "Rock Camp for Girls" for your perusal. It has already been submitted. So please do not ask me to make any more changes.
 
We pared it down to some basic items that collectively seemed to give a decent *snapshot* of the essence of the music discussed on the TG listserv. (It is not a reflection of my personal tastes, but something more collective.) No, it's not representative of everything discussed all the time! Remember: You are not the target audience, the rock campers are!
 
Thanks to everyone who contributed to the discussion. I gave careful consideration to every idea mentioned (even though the final product may not appear to be all inclusive). If I decide to revisit this project again in the future, I am certainly willing to explore other avenues and approaches (e.g. downloadable formats, etc.).
 
-Dina
 
===================================================================================
 
The Typical Girls Listserv Presents: Must-Have CDs for Girl Rockers!
Compiled by the List Moderator, Dina Hornreich
With editing help from long-time List Member, Kevin John Bozelka

Bush Tetras: "Boom in the Night" collection of demos and EPs 1980-83 (ROIR)
"Boom in the Night" and "Too Many Creeps" come to mind almost every time I
walk home in the middle of the night by myself, pondering the ideas of
walking home alone with gross dudes yelling at me from their cars, and why I
leave the house if I know it'll end with this. All of the Bush Tetras'
lyrics veer towards repeated phrases that run from political to personal to
nonsensical and their music borrows elements of punk, funk, art, and life at
night to make something exotic, aloof, and a sound track to sing-a-long
dance parties. (Marissa Magic)

Delta 5: "Singles and Sessions 1979-81" (Kill Rock Stars)
A funky, feminist-minded group.With two bass players and songs like the
often-covered "Mind Your Own Business" and "You", Delta 5 stand out as one
of the best from a scene that featured several female-friendly bands. (Bob
Moore)

Essential Logic: "Fanfare in the Garden" 2CD retrospective (Kill Rock Stars)
Early tracks like "Aerosol Burns" and "Popcorn Boy" feature neckbreaking
changes in tempo and mood, with Lora Logic's self-assured vocals and
presence making it all seem easy.  It's the sound of a recent high-school
graduate wondering if her entire childhood and teenage life was a sham.
Later tracks went for a more straight-ahead dance beat and a more spiritual
approach, but are no less fascinating.  Sounds like nothing before or since.
(Mike Appelstein)

ESG: "A South Bronx Story" retrospective (Universal Sound)
The Scroggins sisters often speak of their childhoods in the 1970s Bronx
housing projects where they'd hear James Brown and the earliest rap records
wafting through the air at neighborhood block parties.  Their own music
mixed the most elemental rhythms of funk (some songs are just bass and
drums) with hopscotch chants and adventurous production from Ed Bahlman and
Joy Division producer Martin Hannett.  A huge influence on everyone from
hip-hop producers to The Gossip whose "Standing In The Way of Control"
features huge chunks of the ESG sound.  When Renee Scroggins invites you to
"Dance" or "Come Away," you really have no choice in the matter.  (Mike
Appelstein)

LiLiPUT: (formerly named Kleenex) self-titled 2CD complete collection (Kill
Rock Stars)
This two-disc set covers the 1978-83 oeuvre of LiLiPUT, Swiss riot
godmothers who began life as Kleenex before a lawsuit occasioned a name
change. Rather than blindly speeding forward, Kleenex/LiLiPUT pasted
together sections of energy rush for some of the wildest sound collages of
all-time. A battalion of squeaky toys, whistles, and non-words brought them
closer to punk's supposed roots in the early 20th century anti-art movement
Dada than any other band of the era. This was punk not as an opportunity for
_expression_ but as a strange new world to take up residency in. And many
have - the original import from Switzerland is the album I have taped most
often for seekers of great music. Pick to click: the several-songs-in-one
disorder of 1981's eternal "Eisiger Wind." (Kevin John Bozelka)

The Raincoats: self-titled 1979 debut album reissue (Rough Trade)
The Raincoats' 1979 debut found the perfect ground between the Slits and
[the Velevet Underground's] "White Light/White Heat" with its John Cale-ish
violin, discordant but oddly gorgeous vocals, clattering
stream-of-consciousness percussion and cachet of unpredictable songs. It
still sounds like absolutely nothing else; in fact, its forthright and often
witty approach to gender politics (including a killer cover of the Kinks'
"Lola") makes it feel utterly contemporary. (Mike Appelstein)

The Runaways:  self-titled1976 debut album import reissue (Cherry Red UK)
This all female band could very well be considered the bridge between glam
and the festering underground of the punk scene. Their songs are all about
being a teenage bad girl and many a band was influenced by them (including
later LA bands like the Germs).  The band proved to be much more than just a
rockin' teen girl band; they also launched the solo careers of Joan Jett and
Lita Ford. (Theresa Meire)

Selecter: "Too Much Pressure" classic 1980 debut album reissue + singles
(Captain Oi!)
And out of the 2-Tone 1980s ska revival comes Selecter from Coventry.  Led
by Pauline Black and armed with a driving backbeat, The Selecter, along with
English Beat and the Specials, are considered one of the trademark bands of
the 2-Tone era.  Although the rock influence is inescapable, Selecter's feet
are firmly planted on the original ska/rocksteady/reggae music of the 1960s
originators as evidenced by the cover tunes they choose.  Fast and upbeat
music to make you jump and shout! (Theresa Meire)

Siouxsie & The Banshees: "Once Upon A Time/The Singles" (PVC)
Sioxusie Sioux rose to prominence as a Sex Pistols groupie and indeed her
early songs rode the first wave of British punk. But soon she slowed the
tempos down, swirled the guitars up, and became what few would deny today -
The Queen of Goth. This best of was released before such undeniable later
classics as "Cities in Dust" and "Peek-A-Boo." But it's a perfect
introduction nonetheless, each song like a room in a haunted house
investigated with creepy, childlike curiosity. And that first wave punk
blitz is still very much present in burners like "Love in a Void" and
"Spellbound." (Kevin John Bozelka)

The Slits: "Cut" 1979 debut album reissue (Island)
Taking an overt cue from dub rhythms, the Slits harnessed their raw feminine
energy to create a unique essence of "girl punk" (before there was such a
thing). Their lyrics mock everything society dictates you need to be female
(like going shopping just to "satisfy this empty feeling" in "Spend, Spend,
Spend"). This can be best experienced when listening to (the song that our
listserv borrows its name from) "Typical Girls," which says it all when it
asks, "Who invented the typical girl?" As they defied conventional gender
stereotypes, the Slits embraced their own inner spirits. And, in doing so,
liberated females everywhere. (Dina Hornreich)

Tom Tom Club: self-titled 1981 debut album reissue (Sire)
Too long have they been considered a novelty side-project from some [members
of] Talking Heads. Centered around the bass and vocals of Tina Weymouth,
they were pioneering in mixing New Wave, Funk and Hip-Hop, had a few chart
hits, and created several all-time dance floor classics like the Mariah
sampled "Genius of Love," and "Wordy Rappinghood" which was recently covered
by Chicks on Speed. Also worth checking out is "This is a Foxy World" on the
second LP, my new fave DJ selection. (Dan Selzer)

X: "Los Angeles/Wild Gift" 1980/1981 albums reissue (Slash)
A marriage made in punk heaven/hell. And not just between quintessential
bohemians Exene Cervenka and John Doe but also between them and the rest of
the band - the well-named DJ Bonebrake on drums and, especially, Billy Zoom
and his gloriously junky punkabilly guitar. With two of the most
accomplished musicians in the LA underground behind them, Exene and John let
us watch as they whizzed through their roller coaster relationship. Whether
it was Exene turning into a beer to get John's attention or John fretting
over a passed out Exene, they gave great soap opera as the band sped towards
Armageddon. This CD combines their first two (and best) albums and the hour
is over much too quickly. Just like Exene and John. (Kevin John Bozelka)

X-Ray Spex: "Germ-Free Adolescents" 1978 album reissue (Castle)
It was really all about Poly Styrene. Clearly light years ahead of her time,
she used her penetrating vocals and razor-sharp lyrics to critique the
modern world in all its consumerist glory. And she did it with great style.
The songs are energetic, short, caustic but melodic, and utterly addictive.
"Oh Bondage, Up Yours" is her most famous song (covered by Kim Gordon's
side-project Free Kitten). It begins with a punk-feminist affirmation
proclaiming, "Some people think little girls should be seen and not heard,
but I think...oh bondage, up yours!" Lora Logic (from Essential Logic) was
the talent who originally introduced the unrelenting saxophone element to
the band -- and things wouldn't have been the same without it. (Dina
Hornreich)

Y Pants: 1980 self-titled EP + 1982 "Beat it Down" album reissue (Periodic
Document)
Melodic No Wave played exclusively on toy instruments.  The songs are
largely about everyday events, only barely hiding unresolved and unsettling
emotions underneath.  "That's The Way Boys Are," a sweet a capella song that
gradually gives way to terrified screaming, is one of the scariest songs I've
ever heard.  (Mike Appelstein)

Young Marble Giants: "Colossal Youth and Collected Works" 3CD collection
containing 1979 album reissue with bonus material (Domino)
There were only a few ingredients to this Cardiff trio's sound - just a
guitar, bass, female vocals and metronomic drum machine.  Yet they made an
album that through its very minimalism and quietness actually broadened the
palette of punk and underground music.  Colossal Youth has never aged, and
its legacy has only grown since its original 1980 release.  It's an album
that has literally changed lives - it certainly did mine at age 15 - and its
latest reissue includes the band's two singles, an entire bonus disc of
rarities and demo versions, and (in the early copies), another bonus disc of
Peel sessions.  They recently played their first concert since 1981 to
celebrate; perhaps the straight world is ready to give them credit after all
these years.  (Mike Appelstein)

The Typical Girls listserv is an e-mail based music dialogue and discussion
group for the discovery of (and appreciation for) the unknown legends in
women's punk/post-punk/underground music history. Typical Girls ideally
focuses on the pre-riot grrrl female innovators in music starting around
1975 and ending around 1984.

For more information, please go to our website at
<
http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/typicalgirls>.



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