Friday, April 24, 2015

"you say you want a revolution?..."

a moment of clarity.

for your consideration...

words. 

"...when the media asks questions like, “Where have all the rock stars gone?,” what the writer really means is, “Where have all the charismatic, platinum-selling white guys in tight pants gone?”

From where I stand, rock ‘n’ roll is alive and well. It just doesn’t look or act like it used to. From Courtney Barnett to Speedy Ortiz’s Sadie Dupuis to Waxahatchee’s Katie Crutchfield to Torres’ Mackenzie Scott to Alabama Shakes’ Brittany Howard, young singer-songwriters who lead their own rock bands have released, or will soon release, some of the year’s best albums. They all also happen to be women.

... much of rock’s current boom revolves around this combination: hyper-articulate personal storytelling atop a reframing of musical traditions, be it ’90s alternative (Speedy, Barnett, and Torres), ’60s psychedelia and soul (Alabama Shakes), or ’80s college rock and lo-fi (Waxahatchee). What we’re seeing is the history of rock ‘n’ roll if women had been invited to the party in the first place.

...maybe the emotional complexity that has been used against women throughout history is actually working in their favor right now, as more women than ever find their place in rock. Or maybe it’s mere coincidence that all of these albums have at least one moment that recalls the relief of discovering a complicated feeling given a proper name in another language.

Yes, our experiences with gender can greatly affect our worldviews — particularly if we’ve had negative experiences — but the sense that female voices are exclusively for female fans is patently wrong. This is the sound of rock ‘n’ roll right now, and it’s as strong as it’s ever been."

FLAVORWIRE: “Woman” Is Not a Genre: Why the New, Female-Led Rock Revolution Is for Everybody

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