With the onslaught of talentless, trashy pop tarts all over the
charts and tabloids, the image of women in rock is in need of serious
rehab. Of the voluntary kind, not court ordered. I’m tired of
pre-packaged Barbie dolls lip-synching songs they never wrote, busting
out moves from their choreographer, and wearing the latest fashions
selected by their stylist.
Enough is enough.
The record industry as we know it is going down in flames, and I
personally am ready to dance around the bonfire. For years, they’ve
been force feeding us generic crap in all genres, but the absolute
worst has been the so-called “revolution” of female artists – Britney
Spears, Ashlee Simpson…and the so-called “punk” Avril Lavigne. (Oh, please.)
Revolution? Hardly. Sex over substance has been around as long as
the oldest profession. You record execs are just never gonna get it,
are you? We want the real thing.
The Riot Grrl movement gave us some hope for a real change. Bands
like Babes in Toyland, Bikini Kill, L7, 7 Year Bitch and Hole showed us
that not only could the girls rock as hard as the boys, but they were
just as talented, driven…and pissed off. Their guitars were more than
props. Their anger wasn’t a calculated marketing ploy for a certain
demographic.
It was real.
I had thought the riot grrls were long gone, with the breakup of all
those bands, and the plastic-surgeried, mainstreaming of Courtney Love.
But just as Love is coming back with a new album, closer to her roots,
I am browsing through myspace for new bands, and I see the seeds of the
new generation coming to fruition. Love’s video for “Mono” has a
certain prophetic quality — she lifts her skirt to reveal little girls
in frilly dresses and princess crowns, who in turn life their skirts to
reveal…power tools. And use said tools to go on a rampage.
The riot grrls gave birth to this new generation that is finally
coming of age. And ready to kick some ass — starting with the pop
tarts, whose 15 minutes of fame isn’t only over, but never should have
begun.
I don’t know if this revolution will be televised, but it will sure as hell be blogged.