Last month was a great one for queer music. I hung out with Missy Higgins while she did her sound check in Chicago, and then we chatted in her dressing room, where she had an abundance of fruit available but was readying herself to dine at the swanky vegetarian restaurant the Green Zebra before her show.
I also chatted with Kaki King, who spilled some gossip that I tried to keep out of the article but feel like I should share. (Hint: She has been romantically involved with one of the Quin twins, whom she refers to as “the wrong one.”)
But before I get into trouble with Ms. King, I should discuss my excitement for this month instead. On April 15, the Gossip’s CD and DVD combo, Live in Liverpool, comes out on Columbia’s Music With a Twist label. It features several songs from Standing in the Way of Control as well as covers of “Careless Whisper” and “Are You That Somebody?” Leave it to the Gossip to make Wham! and Aaliyah sound even better than before.
(Go to the next page to listen to the Gossip’s cover of “Careless Whisper” and other songs mentioned in this month’s column.)
Also this month, queer trio New Bloods release their debut, The Secret Life, on Kill Rock Stars; it’s a contemporary spin on riot grrrl (think Erase Errata). Pick it up on April 8.
And if you’re going to see Tegan and Sara in concert this month, make sure to get there early to catch the lesbian-fronted duo An Horse. Kate Cooper is the singer and guitarist for both An Horse and Australian band Iron On (whose EP I reviewed in January). An Horse’s EP, Not Really Scared, will be available to purchase on the Tegan and Sara tour and on iTunes this month.
Releases Reviewed
If you were a fan of the Murmurs, or Tattle Tale’s tantalizing song “Glass Vase Cello Case” from But I’m a Cheerleader, Midtown Dickens might be your new duo. With clean, two-part harmonies and straightforward lyrics that are sarcastic bordering on silly, the ladies from Durham, N.C., unabashedly mix folky banjo and acoustic punk. Their debut CD, Oh Yell, plays like a mixtape; happy-go-lucky songs about romance and cherry licorice are intertwined with strangely sad songs such as “What a Bore.”
Band members Kym Register and Catherine Edgerton have been BFF since they were teens, so they are literally in tune with each other – even when singing different lyrics in unison on “Tetris.” Their Southern roots are also charming on songs such as “Cowboy”: “We can walk outside together with our hands on our pistols tonight/We can take 10 paces and turn around, and aim at the city streetlights.”
Solo artist Swati is much more spiritual on her album Small Gods. She reminded me of Joan Osborne right off the bat, and not just because they both enjoy singing about a higher power.
Swati has a deep, husky tone that complements her storytelling style, whether she’s singing about picking up prostitutes out of boredom in the song “Blackjack” or about post-midnight city life in her sexy song “2 O’Clock in the Morning.” The latter is one of the best on Small Gods, but it makes me wonder about the romance that lesbian songwriters have with New York City at 2 a.m. Kaki King has a song called “2 O’Clock” on her latest album, Dreaming of Revenge. Is there a secret Meetup group I’m not aware of?
Maybe Tin Kitchen knows. They’re a band from the East Coast (New Jersey, specifically), and their three-song EP, Grace, was recorded in Brooklyn this past winter. If you’re into queer new-wave bands like Boyskout, you’ll dig their post-punk sound. Though I wasn’t digging the vocalist’s nasal tone, I was way into their overall distortion, especially on the title track. I’m hoping for more from Tin Kitchen in the future, but a new singer might be too much to ask for.
News and Notes
Mentioning Tattle Tale above got me thinking back to the duo’s breakup and about what the old members are up to. That’s how I found out ex-member Bonfire Madigan (aka the queer half) recently released the album I Bleed: A Decade of Song, which features some old Tattle Tale tracks as well as solo songs she’s made since the band’s demise.
I’ve also got a lot of exciting album release information for you: Uh Huh Her‘s debut album will be released May 20; Kirsten Price will finally release her debut, Guts and Garbage, on June 17; Yo Majesty‘s first full-length album is scheduled for late summer; in August, Joan Jett releases her greatest-hits CD and DVD on her label, Blackheart Records. (Yes, “Bad Reputation” and “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” will be included.)
And because there’s never enough news about Tegan and Sara … Tegan has started a new side project with Hunter Burgan of the punk band AFI. Their project has yet to be named, but Tegan told Spinner.com that they are working on a record in between tours. At the rate T&S are touring, that album most likely won’t come out anytime soon.Speaking of side projects, J.D. Samson has yet another musical endeavor, and this time it’s named Hirsute, after a condition described as “excessive and increased hair growth in women in locations where the occurrence of terminal hair normally is minimal or absent.” On their three MySpace tracks, the band already sounds like the best electro parts of Le Tigre mixed with J.D.’s affection for ’90s dance-pop.
Short-lived trio Ex-Members has joined the likes of Triple Creme and Electrelane in announcing its demise. The band, which featured Melissa York of the Butchies on drums, played their last show on March 5 with MEN.
Two upcoming festivals are chock-full of lesbian music, as usual. The Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival has booked Betty, Hanifah Walidah, Bitch, Von Iva, JenRO, Yo Majesty, Boyskout, Ellis, Natalia Zukerman, Kinnie Starr, Patty Larkin, Erin McKeown, Holly Near, and Toshi Reagon and Big Lovely. Across Lake Michigan, the National Women’s Music Festival has moved to Madison, Wis., for this year’s gathering, which will include Andrea Gibson, Christy Snow, Cris Williamson, and God-des and She.
Queer hip-hop outfit Scream Club is still on tour, but they are in need of some help: They’re looking for a female and/or genderqueer sound person to help them with their live shows. “We would love someone to DJ our instrumental tracks as well as adding new remixes to the repertoire,” they write on their MySpace page. To audition, find them when they’re in your town and they’ll give you a tryout that night.
Venus Zine made a list of the greatest female guitarists of all time, and some notable queers made the grade, including Carrie Brownstein, Kaki King, Ani DiFranco, Joan Jett, Sharon Isbin and Toshi Reagon.
Mirah‘s “Make It Hot (Over Remix)” and The Blow‘s “Hock It (We Too Remix)” are both featured on the new YACHT remix album, Our Friends in Hell.
On tour: Chris Pureka, Rachel Sage, Indigo Girls, Bitch, The Cliks, Pamela Means, Erin McKeown, Lesbians on Ecstasy, Sick of Sarah and New Bloods.
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