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In the lineage of JOAN JETT: Local women rockers say sex still sells
from: kansascity.com
by TIMOTHY FINN
Here's how Kathleen Hanna, lead singer of the "riot grrrl" band Bikini Kill, pays her respects to JOAN JETT:
"Only Joan can do the things she does the way she does because she was truly and irrevocably born to rock, and she will always, always, refuse to listen to the voices that say she can't."
That's Hanna's introduction to "JOAN JETT," the brand-new, authorized biography of the former leader of the RUNAWAYS, the godmother of girl rockers.
Jett has been the subject of countless recent stories thanks to several new releases, in addition to "JOAN JETT," which was written by designer Todd Oldham.
The most significant is the biopic "The RUNAWAYS," which opens Friday in Kansas City. The film tells the story of the all-girl teenage rock band that emerged from the outskirts of Hollywood in 1975. It created a whirlwind of hype and hysteria and more than a little scandal, most of it in response to the band's overt emphasis on the girls' sexuality.
In the film and in her biography, Jett makes it clear that for her, being in a band was about one thing: "We talked a lot about strategies and stuff like that," she tells Oldham, "and for the most part it was really about the music. ... It wasn't about showing skin a lot, it was about the music."
The RUNAWAYS were a novelty in 1975 because they were the first all-girl rock band to break into the mainstream. If their gender got them attention, it also brought them scorn, from men and women. As Hanna writes: "Some feminists didn't like that Cherie (Currie), the singer, wore lingerie on stage or that a man had crafted the band's jailbait image. Many male audience members felt threatened when they saw these teenage girls crashing their party."
Thirty-five years later, the sight of a woman playing electric guitar -- or any role -- in a rock band is not so unusual. But has popular music evolved completely beyond gender politics and biases?
Women in some Kansas City bands had varied views.
"In my opinion there is not a lot of gender bias in music these days," said Heidi Phillips. "I think the novelty of girls in music has worn off, pretty much. I think from the audience standpoint there might still be a little novelty, but not enough to make a big difference in a girl's music career."
In the mid-1990s, Phillips was the lead singer and songwriter for the all-girl indie rock band Frogpond, which signed a label deal with Columbia and released two albums before breaking up. She now fronts her own band.
Someone's gender may not be a big deal anymore, but sexuality can be, she said, depending on how it's played.
"I think if it works for you then use it," she said. "It's becoming more and more difficult to grab people's attention. ... There is so much music out there and so many different outlets for a musician and a music fan. This is good for the musician and fan, but it is definitely a much larger sea than before the age of the Internet. So anything you can do to get people's attention is going to help.
"Personally, I don't own the Ôskill,' but if you do, more power to you."
That "skill" is actually a marketing gimmick, said Lauren Krum, vocalist for the insurgent country band the Grisly Hand. It empowers only certain kinds of women.
"It seems artists, namely ladies, are still very much handled and marketed according to their gender," she said. "Women are allowed to push boundaries, but they have to do it in a push-up bra, or in a way that's appealing to men. Maybe I'm being dramatic, but it seems like Lady Gaga can Ôprove' she's not a hermaphrodite and Lady Minaj can hit on a girl, but only because they're in a bikini.
"I hate that women in music seems to be relegated to phases in music, a la Lilith Fair or Riot Grrrl. Women are not gimmicks. They are half the world."
Her point seems valid, especially in modern country, where the sexuality card is played on both sides -- Tim McGraw's biceps, Dwight Yoakum's tight jeans -- but almost completely by women. There is no female equivalent of Kenny Chesney -- a multi-platinum country star whose persona is, at best, asexual.
Even the Dixie Chicks, famous for being bawdy and outspoken, were initially marketed as a trio of pretty blondes as they crashed country music's boys' party in the late 1990s. They eventually became best known for their music (and then famous and infamous for their politics) and less for their poster-girl looks.
Krum, who cites Mariah Carey as one of her musical inspirations, said that's where it ought to be.
"I'm the least sexy person in the world," she said. "I hope to attract fans with my dorky jokes and a little bit of that Mariah inspired vocal talent.
"Sexuality isn't something to be squelched or suppressed entirely to preserve one's integrity, but it should be a detail, not a priority. Women are sexy, and that's really lovely. But if you only want to be sexy, try modeling."
Amy Farrand, who plays guitar in the band American Catastrophe, said sex has long been a part of music marketing.
"Sex sells all," she said. "You could put boobs on a can of puke and it would sell. Yes, the music industry uses sexuality to attract fans. They want you to buy the record, watch the video, go to the concert and buy the poster and T-shirt.
"ÔBoy bands' were created for that very purpose. They want every teen and tween to have a crush on a different member of the group."
The backlash, however, hits women who don't want to be part of that, who want to be musicians, not commodities. Farrand said she felt the "boys' club" mentality early on in her music career.
"I started playing music at the age of 7, but it wasn't until my teens that I was exposed to the Ôboys' club' of rock 'n' roll. It was infuriating," she said. "Girls were supposed to play in little pop bands. They didn't have to be good; they just had to be cute. I hated that kind of music and the cute little girls who played it. I felt that they fed into a stereotype I was trying to fight against.
"I loved loud, aggressive music that had something to say and actually moved me. I also realized early on that a female player had to be two or three times as good as the average male player to be taken seriously, much less respected. There was only one thing to do. I had to become a bad-ass."
Kristie Stremel, who played guitar in Frogpond, said she, too, felt the bar was set higher for women when it came to playing rock guitar and performing rock songs.
"I tip my hat to women like JOAN JETT, (band mate) Lita Ford, Ann and Nancy Wilson (of Heart)," she said. "They paid their dues and made the path for other female rockers less painful. Not to say I haven't felt the guitar girl stereotype. I remember walking into clubs carrying my guitar and being asked if I was the band's groupie or girlfriend. And there were many nights on stage being yelled at and heckled like I was a stripper."
That bias still shows up, not only on stage but elsewhere, said Adrianne Verhoeven, who leads her own band, Dri, and is a former member of the local band the Anniversary.
"It's there, most of the time," she said. "I think women are generally expected to be sexy. Sorry for the lack of a better term, but it's the truth. It gets one further than if not expressed, and it doesn't have to be overt, either. It can be very subliminal. And it doesn't have to be on stage or for the public eye. It can be seen/expected behind-the-scenes, too, like in business or in person-to-person dealings. I don't necessarily think that's expected of men."
Heather Brecht, guitarist and songwriter in the country-rock band the Last Call Girls (and former guitar-store employee), agrees and disagrees. Sex and sexuality, she said, have long been a part of popular music, for men and women.
"I found a lot more bias working in a music store than I ever did in the local music scene, but honestly I always got a kick out of knowing more about guitars and being able to outplay the old-timers who thought I was just there to answer the phone and run the register.
"I think the emphasis of sexuality to attract fans is just part of rock 'n' roll and that it really transcends gender. Sure the RUNAWAYS really played upon that, but their significance was that they actually played instruments, which was very rare at that time for women.
"For the most part I think gender has become pretty irrelevant even in traditionally male-dominated genres. If anything I think being in an all-girl band is just a bit of an advantage. Only downside is hauling gear. That stuff is heavy."
Brecht thinks that change in perceptions and expectations is evident in other places, too. Like in music stores.
"I worked in a guitar shop for years, and one thing that has really changed in just the last decade or so is now instrument manufacturers are marketing to girls much more and making products specifically for them," she said. "There is a huge increase in the numbers of young girls picking up drums, basses and guitars, and I predict this is going to really start being evident in new mainstream music."
Farrand, too, has noticed a change, though she's not sure whether it's universal or personal.
"I don't notice that kind of treatment from male players anymore," she said. "Maybe the overall attitude has changed. I'm not sure when I will feel I have achieved Ôbad-ass' status, but I do know it's been quite a while since anyone told me I'm Ôpretty good for a girl.'"
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