Kathleen Hanna

If I could only meet two of my favourite musicians, they would have to be Joan Jett and Kathleen Hanna.

Kathleen Hanna represents everything great about females in music- she's a feminist, a zine writer, a big part of the Riot Grrl scene (whether she believes so or not, she did write a riot grrrl manifesto) and also created some of the best female fronted music there is from her shouty punk riot grrl noise with Bikini Kill, to the feminist electro of Le Tigre and her solo project Julie Ruin.

She was brought up as a feminist from a young child, and has been involved in plenty of activism over the years, she is a icon in the riot grrl scene, it's such a shame that she is still not exactly a household name.

I wish I had been into Bikini Kill and Le Tigre when they were out instead of crappy pop like Spice Girls but at least I found them eventually. I really hope that a lot of young girls who now are more likely to be inspired by the likes of Lady Gaga and Cheryl Cole will eventually scratch a little deeper beneath the surface, like I did, and discover bands like Bikini Kill, and maybe even be inspired to pick up an instrument themselves, or write something, or take part in a march. There are still bands with the riot grrl ethos, they are just in the background of this never ending merry go round of X Factor style shows and manufactured pop bands. I am so glad that women like Kathleen and Joan still continue to inspire women in so many ways.

Since I'm mentioning it, I can't go, but if you can still get a ticket you should go along to Ladyfest Ten fundraiser "More Crackers Please- a Le Tigre themed benefit" on Sunday 29th August. Tickets are £9, it's taking lace at Bethnal Green Library in London, they will be showing a very special preview screening of the forthcoming Le Tigre documentary DVD(which isn't even finished yet) as well as giving people an opportunity sing, dance and be filmed for our karaoke music video of the Le Tigre song Keep On Livin', for submission to the band's contest, which you can find details of if you visit Kathleen's blog which you can find the link to on my side bar.

I'll leave you with some Kathleen Hanna flavoured videos to wet your appetite...

Cover Versions

this week I thought you might enjoy some Pigtails and Army Boots approved cover versions, remember I play one at the end of the show every week! I'm afraid some of these don't have videos, so just enjoy the music!

girlVIRUS UK and International

I've wrote about the rather lovely Catherine Elmsbefore but if you haven't checked out already then please do so- especially if you like artists like Tori Amos and Amanda Palmer, as her music really is beautiful and she's just been recording her full length album in a Leeds studio.

Anyway I digress..

Catherine has just made herself even more lovely by setting up girlVIRUS UK now to be honest I somehow bypassed girlVIRUS but I think I vaguely remember being in touch with it's creator Clementine Cannibal via MySpace a few years back. But since then I have got more and more into feminism, and the whole politics of the riot grrrl scene, I feel more knowledgeable than I did back then when it was mostly about the music. It's about more than the music now, I've been on a feminist march, I'm attempting (although very slowly) to set up Southend Fawcett Society and gotten into debates on facebook and twitter.

So now, I'm happy that Catherine has pointed me in the direction of girlVIRUS as it sums up exactly how I feel, it's about liberating women, not only to be equal but to be creative, to make music, to make zines, TO MAKE A MARK ON THE WORLD.

I hope that I am spreading girlVIRUS vibes through Pigtails and Army Boots, and other ways eventually.
Anyway, go join the group if you're on facebook or check out the details on Clementine's blog(linked above) and download flyers to spread the grrrl love!