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Ready to party with the boys
Jett doesn't fit typical Warped profile, but she's a natural for punk-rock
tour
from: nj.com
by Jay Lustig, Star-Ledger Staff
The traveling punk-rock extravaganza known as the Warped Tour has always
been a youth-oriented affair.
But even at 47, JOAN JETT is a natural for it.
She has had hit singles ("I Love Rock 'N Roll," "I Hate Myself for Loving
You," "Crimson and Clover") and acted in movies ("Light of Day") and on
Broadway ("The Rocky Horror Show"). But her music -- with both her'70s band
the RUNAWAYS and her current backing group, the BLACKHEARTS -- has always
stayed true to the loud, fast and bluntly honest punk-rock credo.
Jett, who debuted with the RUNAWAYS 30 years ago, is making her Warped debut
this summer and is, in fact, one the most prominent female performers this
traditionally male-dominated tour has ever hired. Despite being atypical for
Warped, in terms of her age and gender, she's fitting right in.
"I figured it was going to be this punk-rock circus atmosphere -- sort of a
rolling block party -- and that's exactly what it is," says the
singer/songwriter/guitarist, from a tour stop in Salt Lake City. She
performs at Warped shows in Camden on Thursday and in Englishtown on Aug. 6,
and will take a break from the tour to appear at the Toms River Fest on
Friday. (See accompanying stories.)
Her latest album, "SINNER," released on her own Blackheart label in June,
doesn't stray from her boldly assertive formula. But it does add something
new via songs like the politically oriented "Riddles" -- an attack on
governmental double-speak -- and "Change the World," a simple rock song with
an even simpler message ("It's time we stop all the hatin'/Let's start
today, go find a way to change the world").
"For years I've wanted to do this, to write about politics or spirituality,"
Jett says. "But how do you do that without coming off as preachy or corny? I
think we did it pretty well with those songs."
Jett hasn't been a distant diva on the tour, but has used her time offstage
to check out as many bands as possible. She practically gushes as she talks
about them.
"Anti-Flag -- great band, all very political songs, and it's very
encouraging to see," she says. "They always draw a big crowd, and the kids
are all singing every word. So that makes me feel good, that the kids are
somewhat engaged in what's going on today. The Casualties -- awesome
punk-rock stuff, very catchy stuff. Bouncing Souls -- another great band.
Helmet -- very heavy. A band that's been around for a while, but they're
awesome.
"The Living End -- I just caught them the other day. Really great band.
Against Me -- great songs, really great live. And NOFX -- what do you say?
They're funny, they're good. (NOFX's) Fat Mike is a comedian. It's just
really a lot of fun to be here, to be a fan, and watch these other bands and
then play your own stuff.'"
She also praises ShiraGirl, which performs on its own small ShiraGirl Stage,
devoted to all-female or women-fronted bands. But it hasn't escaped Jett's
attention that most of the tour's musicians -- especially on the two main
stages -- are men.
"I guess it's a process, like anything else, to break down those barriers
and try to get women involved on all levels," she says, sighing. "Women do
run the Warped Tour. You've got women in high places, coordinating all the
important aspects. But as far as musicians and bands, there's not enough,
probably."
But she has seen a lot of progress from the days when she started out,
right?
"In general, I think it hasn't gone very far at all," Jett says. "I'm quite
shocked and surprised. In the mid-'90s, there was an appearance that there
were going to be girl bands being successful. You had bands like Babes in
Toyland and L7 and 7 Year Bitch making some noise. Then it just sort of
disappeared. Bikini Kill, there's another one.
"People ask me why, and I don't really have a good answer. I know there's
still this extreme resistance in the music industry. Girls run up against
all these barriers. To me, it's not all that much different from 1976."
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