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Sound Check: September 2008

News and reviews of queer women in music.

“I love talking to people from AfterEllen.com” was one of the first things Tegan Quin told me when I got her on the phone from her record label’s Los Angeles office. Having recently made an appearance on This Just Out with Liz Feldman, she shared that she had a lot of fun filming the bit, though she was sweating from the intense heat, and Feldman had a strong drink ready for her upon her arrival.

“I drank a vodka and vitamin water,” Quin said. “Of course I drank it, it was 110 degrees and I was so flustered from my sweaty, sunburn drinking. I don’t usually drink, but if you have one poured for me …”

I warned her that this might become a new romance tactic among some adoring fans. She could be getting a lot of vodka sent to her backstage. And speaking of partying like the rock star she is, I had to know if the barbeque she met Liz at was how I envisioned it to be: full of celesbians.

“Oh God, I wish,” Quin said. “No, it was at a friend of mine[‘s] from Vancouver who moved here. He’s worked on The L Word so he met Raimy … Not very many famous lesbians, but Cam was there from Uh Huh Her.”

I took the opportunity then to find out about the Uh Huh Her/Tegan and Sara touring speculation for the near future.

“We wanted them to come tour with us in the fall, but they couldn’t because The L Word is still filming so Leisha couldn’t get away,” Quin said. Damn Leisha Hailey and her double life.

However, Tegan and Sara will be touring with Girl in a Coma, which is still a pretty wonderfully gay tour. But back to celesbians: Quin claims she doesn’t really have any famous friends because she thinks she’s not a rock star. (I know, she’s insane.)

“I had a friend, and I was talking about hanging out with [Uh Huh Her], and she was like, ‘Oh my God, do all famous lesbians know each other?'” Quin said. “And I said no, I don’t have any famous friends. These people I just see as other musicians. I don’t know, I don’t think any of us are famous. I have a lot of really great friends that are lesbians, you’re right. I met Liz at a barbecue with famous lesbians and I am friends with all of them.”

I’ll have more for you this fall in an upcoming Q&A, including some gossip on Quin’s new L.A. woman, and also some more scoop on her side project with Hunter Burgan.

Tegan Quin

RELEASES REVIEWED

A trio that would fit well on a Quin and Sara tour would be the New York-based new wave band Telenovela Star. The group (which includes out drummer Nikki McLeod) recently released their second album, Love, Lust, Sci-Fi & Monsters. Coming off of a small-time hit (their song “The Car Song” was featured on The N series Beyond the Break and was a finalist for Best TV/Film song at the Independent Music Awards), Telenovela Star has recorded an album that is post-punk ala Erase Errata with less politics and more pop.

Telenovela Star

“Vampire” is a standout track with McLeod’s alto vocals coming in below vocalist Maggie Argyro’s breathy and drawn out singing. The guitar chords are minimalist but the rhythm section is rocking, and there’s an admirable balance of both facets on all of the tracks. “Tell me what you want, what you want, what you want right now,” Argyros sings. “There’s a vampire on my back.” It’s a little dark, but in the most intriguing of ways, and the instrumental matches.

The album’s slow jam, “You’re All Over Me” is another testament to Telenovela Star’s rhythm section. The drums and bass are not just part of the background in this band. Not bad for a group that formed over Craigslist. These ladies were made for each other.

Another musician who isn’t afraid of the darker side of things, Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls, releases her solo debut, Who Killed Amanda Palmer, on Sept. 16. The bisexual piano player/cabaret-esque vocalist has embraced being an outsider, and her best songs seem to come out of that. Her lyrics are often observations and stories about other people, and she poetically puts them into song, her vocal dynamics aiding the narration.

The songs on Who Killed Amanda Palmer are still very much Dresden Dolls, which has to make fans happy. Obviously Palmer is one half of the Dolls and is at the helm of the songwriting (her band mate Brian plays drums in the band) so the solo songs are very similar to previous Dolls albums. However, she does collaborate with some other musicians, such as Zoe Keating on the song “Astronaut,” which adds something new to the fold. The song is one of the best on the album, in which Palmer sings passionately, “You are my love, the astronaut, flying in the face of science.”

One thing Palmer does not do on the album is sing any covers, which is a shame because she is one of those rare few who can take songs by others and recreate them to be completely new and (dare I say it) better than the originals. Her cover of Death Cab for Cutie’s “I Will Follow You Into the Dark” is blissfully heartbreaking; unfortunately, you can only hear it on her MySpace page for now.

Amanda Palmer

Death Cab for Cutie seems to have a talent for writing songs gay ladies can appreciate. Singer/songwriter Catie Curtis also chose to cover the indie band and recorded her cover of their single “Soul Meets Body” for her new album, Sweet Life. It’s probably the best song on her CD, yet it’s not reworked like Palmer’s cover. Instead, it’s a bland country-fied version that serves as a pleasant interruption to her predictable album full of other country-tinged folk.

Those who have enjoyed Curtis’ previous songs about love gone wrong will probably enjoy Sweet Life, but songs like “Lovely” come off as boring attempts at blues-inflicted tunes. It all feels a little too familiar, but not in a good way. It’s much blander than her past work such as “Magnolia Street.”

Gone is the magical day of “Radical” that brought something interesting to the singer/songwriter table Curtis sits at. Perhaps in her new Sweet Life Curtis has lost her inspiration for truly good songwriting.

NEWS AND NOTES

Kaki King will be playing live on Bravo! Canada’s new series, “The Berkeley Sessions.” The episode will air on Oct. 8.

Righteous Babe will release Ani DiFranco’s new album, Red Letter Year, on Sept. 30.

Out classical guitarist Sharon Isbin is a featured artist on iVideosongs.com. On the instructional music site, she shows viewers how to play her interpretations of Isaias Savio’s “Batucada” and Antonio Lauro’s “Waltz #3.”

Joan Osbourne was featured in a recent edition of the Sunday New York Times, where she gave a list of music she is “listening to now.” On her playlist; The Ting Tings, Cat Power and Al Green. Her new album, Little Wild One, released on Sept. 9.

San Diego’s MC Flow was featured as Venus Zine’s reader of the week, in which she discussed being queer and female in hip-hop.

Joan Osbourne (left) & MC Flow

Melissa Etheridge is the only out lesbian to be featured among several female pop stars who collaborated on the song “Stand Up To Cancer.” The single is available for purchase on iTunes. Her holiday album, A New Thought for Christmas, releases on Sept. 30.

Hip-hop duo Yo Majesty have released the first song, “Break Bread,” from their debut EP, Kryptonite Pussy, on Domino Records. Listen to the political track here.

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