|
All news is attributed to the source from which it was received so that readers may judge the validity of the statements for themselves.
Have Joan Jett news to report? Email us at jettfc@aol.com, and please include the source of the information so it can be validated.
Going Stag: Amy Ray in Solo Mode
from: Women In Rock
by Pam Huwig
George Eliot once wrote, "There is no feeling, except the extremes of fear and grief, that does not find relief in music."
Eliot may have known a thing or two about drag and going stag, but she obviously never heard the likes of Amy Ray. With her debut solo album, Stag, Amy reaches right through your chest and rocks the hell out of your every inch, sparing no emotion, including fear, grief, and loathing.
Lucky for us music junkies, for an artist like Amy Ray, molding lyrics, riffs, and mood is all in days' work. For those of you who have been long-time Indigo Girls fans, strap-on your seatbelts (or whatever other strapables you have) for an exicting ride through Stag.
Amy's musical and lyrical versatility is thick throughout this record. Try not to clutter your mind with expectations of what the record should sound like, and just let yourself be overcome with its' handsome mix of punk, rock, and folk. The release of Stag marks Amy's evolution as a musician, but it doesn't mean you won't be hearing more from the Indigos.
"The Indigo Girls are still going strong. I think [Stag] just marks another facet of what me and Emily do," says Amy. "We do separate, and we do stuff together, you know? This solo record is very separate from Indigo Girls, but at the same time, everything overlaps so much that it doesn't really feel exclusive to any one thing. I don't know if I'll make another solo record. If I have the songs and the time, I will, I'm sure. But Emily and I definitely are still working together."
For Emily's part, to no surprise, she is completely supportive of Amy's solo endeavors. After all, they've been friends and playing tunes together for more than 10 years.
She likes it," Amy says. "She was very into it and responsive to it and had nothing but nice things to say about it."
Going stag not only has allowed Amy to move in a new direction by getting back to some of her fondest roots, but it gave her the opportunity to work with some top-notch bands.
"Whenever I've thought about doing a solo record, you know, just played around with it in my head, the seeds of it came from wanting to play with these bands that I was really into and record some of the stuff that we created together," Ray says. "So I decided rather than get just one band that I go out and find, to approach some bands I am familiar [with]. And I knew that the way they played would be easily fit into what I was doing."
Needless to say, Amy Ray has impeccable taste in music. She hand-picked artists such as The Butchies (who will be touring with Amy in April), Rock-A-Teens, Josephine Wiggs (The Breeders), 1945 (previously known as Three Finger Cowboy), Kate Schellenbach of Luscious Jackson, and veteran rocker JOAN JETT - not a bad collaboration, if you ask me.
"When I'm writing, I know I can hear my influences; when I'm playing I can tell that it's definitely something, let's say that The Butchies influenced or that type of thing," she says. "Kate and Josephine are two people I jam with off an on when I'm in New York, just for fun, and they're great players. I started to get to know The Butchies a few years ago. Kaia had gotten in touch with me about possibly working with Daemon [Amy's 11-year-old, self-founded indie label]. They've toured with the Indigo Girls a lot the past few years. Just through playing with them a lot I became familiar with how they play. So, I was really specific with what I wanted them to play on," she adds.
The Butchies contributed to several songs on Stag, including "Lucystoners," "Measure Me," "On Your Honor," and one of the most stirring tracks, "Laramie" - a song that by it's mere title conjures up the horrific and unforgettable murder of Matthew Sheppard.
"Poor man do the bidding for the rich man
Those rednecks are just doing
what the classy fuckers' thinking
And tolerance is ain't acceptance
I know you wanted it to be
when you're out in Laramie…
Hey all you jokers, hunting season's over
Hey coalition, lay down your mission…"
"'Laramie' didn't seem to be The Butchies style, but they wanted to give it a shot, and it was so good," she says. "Melissa's drum part on that song is really amazing. It's exactly what I had in mind; it's got the Neil Young feel but it's still got this reggae thing happening, and something different like The Clash."
With influences from Joni Mitchell to Hüsker Dü, Amy Ray has brilliantly made Stag accesible to old and new fans alike - simply by making it real and versatile.
"Stag is definitely punk in its' sentiment, and in its' approach in every way," Amy explains. "But musically, it's got songs that are rock, and some folk. But I would say it's in the spirit of punk. That's what I'm drawing from more than anything else on the record."
Like her music, Amy is authentic at her core. In addition to her full-time commitment to her own gigs and Daemon Records, she remains tirelessly devoted to environmental and human rights causes.
"JOAN JETT tumbled in after an all-night dress rehearsal for The Rocky Horror Picture Show on Broadway to sing the rather Broadwayish coda to the song and of course provide her unmatchable rhythm guitar backbone," Amy says.
Her bud Joan, who ripped out orgasmic vocals on "Hey Castrator," perhaps captures what is Amy best:
"Amy Ray is one person that walks it like she talks it. She is committed to doing whatever she can to make the world better, and to fighting injustice wherever she can," says Joan. "That is one of the many reasons I am proud to call her my friend. Amy was looking for a natural performance on 'Hey Castrator' without a lot a lot of polish. I think we had great energy and I am wishing her all the luck in the world -- she deserves it!"
|
| |
This Week:
No shows scheduled this week.
Click on the LIVE DATES link for upcoming shows |
Item Of The Month:
|
