5 Records That Embody Riot Grrrl’s Radical Punk Rock
From Bikini Kill to Bratmobile, these five records capture the radical politics and explosive punk sounds of riot grrrl.
Riot grrrl originated in the punk scenes of Olympia, WA and Washington, DC in the early 1990s as an explicitly feminist rebuke to the sexism and macho attitudes still prevalent within what were supposed to be punk’s progressive and countercultural spaces. Composed of a network of bands, labels, and zines, riot grrrl brought third-wave feminist politics to punk and hardcore and created new paths and communities for female musicians, artists, and organizers.
While pointedly averse to mainstream media’s attempts at the time to document, categorize, and ultimately capitalize on the movement, riot grrrl nevertheless left behind a wealth of their own DIY documents, from zines to films and recorded music. The legacy of riot grrrl has gone on to inspire generations of bands, from Sleater-Kinney to the Linda Lindas and Arkansas-to-Olympia transplants the Gossip, whose 2024 album Real Power marks their first release in 12 years.
Discogs takes a look at 5 crucial records that capture the radical politics, ferocious punk sounds, and inspiring example of riot grrrl.
Bikini Kill
Revolution Girl Style Now (1991)
From the hand-drawn art on the homemade cassette inserts to the album’s rallying cry title to the raw, rebellious punk tracks contained within, Bikini Kill’s self-released 1991 debut album crystalized the energy, politics, and aesthetics of riot grrrl into a single landmark document. With songs like “Double Dare Ya,” “Suck My Left One,” and “Carnival,” Bikini Kill presented feminist politics as catchy punk songs and as calls to action. Bikini Kill members Kathleen Hannah, Tobi Vail, Kathi Wilcox, and Billy Karren would trade off on instruments and vocal duties, although Hannah was typically portrayed as the frontperson and sang on several of the band’s most iconic songs. Bikini Kill would go on to perfect their approach across two studio albums and on singles like “Rebel Girl,” “Anti-Pleasure Dissertation,” and the one-two punch of “I Hate Danger” and “I Like Fucking” (posthumously collected on The Singles).
Heavens To Betsy
Heavens To Betsy (1992)
Corin Tucker’s band prior to the formation of Sleater-Kinney, Heavens to Betsy were active participants in Olympia’s early riot grrrl scene. In keeping with the movement’s DIY ethos, the duo of Tucker and drummer Tracy Sawyer self-released this 1992 demo cassette. While the recording is lo-fi, with drums clipping and tape noise and hiss around the edges, Tucker’s undeniable vocal presence and sharp songwriting shine through on tracks like “Stay Dead,” “My Red Self,” and “My Secret.” And if the recordings are somewhat gestational, the deft intertwining of the personal and political that would typify both riot grrrl and Tucker’s later work is already in full effect.
Bratmobile
Pottymouth (1993)
As the name and debut album title suggests, Bratmobile presented a playground-taunting version of riot grrrl as catchy and fun as it was dead serious. From Allison Wolfe’s opening shout on “Love Thing” and the deadpan chorus of “Stab,” Pottymouth announces itself as a confrontational exercise, but it’s also a compelling one. Built around the taut combination of Molly Neuman’s drumming, Erin Smith’s surf-inflected lead guitar lines, and Wolfe’s alternately shouted and sing-song delivery, Bratmobile’s songs on Pottymouth are lean, hooky blasts of punk pop, almost all clocking in at well under two minutes a piece. There’s no dead weight here, but standouts include a winking cover of the Runaways’ “Cherry Bomb” and Bratmobile’s own sneering, scene-critiquing anthem “Cool Schmool.”
Huggy Bear
Taking The Rough With The Smooch (1993)
On the other side of the pond, UK band Huggy Bear formed in Brighton in 1991 and began carving out their own uniquely localized take on riot grrrl punk. If the third-wave politics were much the same, expressed by the co-ed Huggy Bear as “girl-boy revolution,” the contexts were very different. “Selling out wasn’t important. Punk rock wasn’t important,” the band told author Amy Raphael. “Fanzines were seen as a sad joke, so we had to explain stuff that might have been obvious to American kids but was alien to young British kids.” On the 10” compilation Taking The Rough With The Smooch, Huggy Bear get their points across in a series of bombastic, incendiary, and deviously catchy punk tracks, from the explosive chorus of “Her Jazz” to the Sonic Youth guitar line and tortured emotional (male) vocals of “Pansy Twist” to the Beastie Boys-subverting anthem (long before Kathleen Hannah’s marriage to Ad-Rock) “No Sleep.”
Slant 6
Soda Pop * Rip Off (1994)
Representing riot grrrl’s Washington, DC contingent on this list are the trio Slant 6. Slant 6 was formed by Christina Billotte on guitar and vocals, Myra Power on bass and vocals, and Marge Marshall on drums and trumpet, following the break-up of Billotte’s previous band Autoclave with Mary Timony. The D.C. punk scene had a long history of self-critique, from Minor Threat’s “Straight Edge” to Fugazi’s rejection of hardcore tropes, and riot grrrl both fit within this tendency and brought to it a distinctly feminist edge. Fittingly, while many riot grrrl bands released music on Kill Rock Stars or Donna Dresch’s Chainsaw Records, Slant 6 recorded and released both their studio albums and their debut EP from 1993 via D.C.’s local DIY institution Dischord Records. On debut full-length Soda Pop * Rip Off, Slant 6 emerge as maybe the most immediately polished of the bands here as a ripping guitar-driven trio with chops and hooks for days.
You might also like
-
-
-
-
-
-
FontanelleBabes In Toyland2023Alternative RockVinyl, Album, Limited Edition, Reissue, Orange & Black Marbled
-
KEEP DIGGING
Don’t miss a beat
Subscribe to Discogs’ email list to learn about sales, discover music, record collecting guides, product tips, limited edition offers, and more.