Sleater-Kinney – BBC 6 Music Festival, Newcastle – 2015 – BBC 6 Music –
Sleater-Kinney to start the new week. Formed in early 1994 in Olympia, Washington, by Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein. The group’s name is derived from Sleater Kinney Road, in Lacey, Washington; where signs for Interstate 5 exit number 108 announce its existence. One of the band’s early practice spaces was near Sleater Kinney Road. Tucker was formerly in the influential riot grrrl band Heavens to Betsy, while Brownstein was formerly in the band Excuse 17. They often played at gigs together and formed Sleater-Kinney as a side-project from their respective bands. When Heavens to Betsy and Excuse 17 disbanded, Sleater-Kinney became their primary focus. Janet Weiss of Quasi is the band’s longest lasting and current drummer, though Sleater-Kinney has had other drummers, including Lora Macfarlane, Misty Farrell, and Toni Gogin.
Upon Tucker’s graduation from The Evergreen State College (where Brownstein remained a student for three more years), she and then-girlfriend Brownstein took a trip to Australia in early 1994. Their last day there, they stayed up all night recording what would become their self-titled debut album. It was released the following spring. They followed this with Call the Doctor (1996) and Dig Me Out (1997), and became critical darlings as a result. Produced by John Goodmanson and recorded at John and Stu’s Place in Seattle, the record was influenced by both classic rock ‘n’ roll and the band’s usual punk predecessors. From Dig Me Out onwards, the band’s drummer was Janet Weiss.
Critics Greil Marcus and Robert Christgau have each praised Sleater-Kinney as one of the essential rock groups of the early 2000s. Marcus named Sleater-Kinney America’s best rock band in 2001. Tom Breihan of Stereogum called them the greatest rock band of the past two decades in 2015.
The members of Sleater-Kinney announced a 2015 tour covering North America and western Europe.In 2014, the band released the vinyl box set of their previous releases as Start Together. It was reviewed by BUST Magazine, where writer Claire McKinzie stated, “With their feminist, left-leaning lyrics, Sleater-Kinney’s relevance today is obvious. While some singers back away from being labeled “feminist,” Sleater-Kinney exists partially to redirect society’s perception of the word.”
In January 2017 the band released their first live album, Live in Paris, recorded at La Cigale on March 20, 2015. As of January 2018 the band is working on their follow-up to No Cities to Love, though Brownstein has said that they’re “going to do this very slowly”.
This gig is from the opening night of the BBC 6 Music Festival in Newcastle, part of the above-mentioned 2015 tour.
Crank it up. Like this concert, the week promises not to be dull.
