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Sound Check: June 2008

I have to admit something: Back in February, I went to see Sia perform at an in-store in Chicago, and later that night, I went to the MEN DJ set. I had hoped I’d be able to confirm that Sia was dating JD Samson – so I could be a master of lesbian gossip – but unfortunately, there was no Sia in sight. I was unable to confirm any of the rumors after Sia’s AfterEllen.com interview that she was dating the ex-Le Tigre member.

However, a reader alerted me to a recent sighting in New York City, where the two were getting comfortably close at the opening event of House of Campari last week. Thanks to this hot tip, I can speculate further that Sia and JD are (maybe, possibly) sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g.

But this news I got straight from the horse’s mouth – more specifically, the mouth of An Horse. I made the trip to Milwaukee, Wisc. to see the Australian duo open up for Tegan and Sara on one of their last U.S. tour stops. Out front woman Kate Cooper met with me before sound check at the Mason Street Grill, where I discovered she is not a vegetarian (for those PETA card-carrying members keeping score).

Don’t hold that against her – she’s an incredible musician, and she has an accent. She’s also brave enough to open for crazed Tegan and Sara fans, whom she said are actually “so lovely and polite.”

“It’s amazing, a lot of fun, awesome and crazy!” Cooper told me. “It’s always scary when you’re opening for a big band, you never know what’s going to happen.”

The drawback? Her accent can be thick on some songs, and Americans don’t get all of the lyrics right.

“I like people to come up with what I’m saying, but I like them to have a meaning separate from what I mean,” Cooper said. “But then my sister called me and said, ‘Do you really sing about a large c–t? And I was like, ‘No I did not, where did you read that?’ Oh my God, I have to get to [making my lyrics available].”

And while she isn’t singing about monstrous girlie parts, she is always, as she admits, truthful.

“Otherwise I’d be a liar,” Cooper said. “I lie a little bit but not in music. Music, to me, is honest. Maybe if I was a little more dishonest, I’d be a little more popular. Otherwise I’d be a f—ing fraud. Much to my detriment sometimes.”

Hmm, so that line “You want to camp out/and I want to screw around in the dark” is her being honest? Honesty is good.

Releases Reviewed

Speaking of JD Samson, she’s been busy lending her production skills to other artists these days. She produced a track on Ferron’s new album, Boulder, which was also produced and engineered by Bitch.

Ferron is a musical veteran whose deep alto voice has been under the radar since she started recording in the late 1970s, but lesbians are familiar with her folk-soul work, which is why most will appreciate Boulder: It’s mostly a collection of songs from her past reworked with newer, younger musicians like Ani DiFranco and Julie Wolf.

This works to Ferron’s advantage, as it gives her an extra edge, showing that she can embrace change while maintaining her sound. Even on “In the Meantime” (the track with beats by JD), Ferron rises to the occasion by balancing a spoken word style with catchy stanzas over a drum machine, Bitch’s backup singing and piano chords.

Another longtime lesbian musician, Thalia Zedek, has released Liars and Prayers with her band (appropriately named the Thalia Zedek Band). Her indie rock orchestrations are worth several listens for her raspy vocals and dark and political songwriting. It’s not exactly something you’d hear in the Top 40, which is why it’s something you should add to your CD collection. Zedek has been working to perfect the marriage of classical and traditional rock instruments since the 1980s, and she’s damn near perfect on Liars and Prayers.

It’s not all politics, though – romantics might enjoy a good cry to “circa the end”:

Because I know that some day I’ll come back looking for you

guided by a spark of memory

keep your hands up and head down until when

I’ll say the words we decided on back then.

Perhaps if you’re looking for something a little more upbeat, Changing Modes is more your speed. The foursome has an out vocalist, Camille Atkinson, who also plays percussion while her band mates rock the keyboards, guitar, bass and drums. Their third album, Down and Out in Shangri-La, is their first with Atkinson in the band, a Letters to Cleo—lite mix of indie-pop.

However, it is a little yawn-inducing after the first few tracks. None of the songs stand out, so they drag on together with no real cohesion. Atkinson might actually be better off putting her pipes to use as a solo act.

News And Notes

Gossip’s leading lady Beth Ditto is referenced as a fashion icon yet again. This time, she’s featured in the music issue of Nylon magazine, out this month. There’s a fashion spread and a quick Q&A, both of which show the lovely lady’s sassy personality.

Queer quartet the Cliks is officially Logo’s No. 1 band. At the NewNowNext Awards, the band received the “Brink of Fame: Music Artist” award. You can catch the band accepting the award from musical maven Cyndi Lauper this Saturday on Logo and here on AfterEllen.com. The Cliks will also be on MTV’s “Total Request Live” today (June 4), so set your TiVos if you read this time!

CocoRosie has debuted a video for its new single, “God Has a Voice, She Speaks Through Me.” In typical CR fashion, Bianca and sister Sierra change personas throughout, with colorful imagery including diamonds, dolphins and unicorns.

The Blow‘s Khaela Maricich is saying goodbye to her two albums (Poor Aim: Love Songs, Paper Television) by sending them into “semi-retirement” with an all-ages show in Portland, Ore., on June 14. She claims the songs will “no longer appear in shows” after the concert at the Aladdin Theater, so now’s the time to book a last-minute trip to the Northwest.

Nervous but Excited claim to be recording a “green album,” as they are currently working on a CD that will leave “no ecological footprint” and “zero emissions.” In fact, the entire Riot Grrrl Ink roster will be touring green from now on. This includes artists including God-dess and She, Jenny Hoyston, Pamela Means and Andrea Gibson.

Speaking of tours, Uh Huh Her wrapped up their short Midwestern tour with a stop in New York City, taking some photos for Spinner.com of their pre-show mani-pedis. What a strenuous life they lead! The ladies have also launched behind-the-scenes webisodes on their homepage. Stalk away!

If you’re in California this week, you can catch the end of the West Coast Pass the Torch Tour that Queer Control Records has embarked on over the last week. Featuring the label’s queercore bands 8 Inch Betsy, Pariah Piranha, Tough Tough Skin, Fruit Punch and Oi-Gays, the last show of the tour will be on Friday in San Francisco at El Rio.

Ex-members of New York-based band Marla Hooch have formed the new trio Leo My Ego. Fans of their former band or Le Tigre-esque electro-pop will dig their songs like “Hipster Girl.”

Erin McKeown and her girlfriend Allison Miller have formed the musical duo Emma. They have recorded several unreleased songs available on their Myspace page.

On Tour: Catie Curtis, Ani DiFranco, True Colors Tour, Janis Ian, Von Iva, Melissa Etheridge, Dresden Dolls

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