nola riot

You know how it is when you’ve been doing the same thing for so long and it becomes so normal that you forget why it was so important that you started doing it in the first place? Well, moving to New Orleans at the age of 30 has reminded me why I got obsessed with girl bands and punk rock over a decade ago.

I spent the last seven years of my life on the west coast, mostly in Portland, Oregon. I moved there when I was 23 and I was instantly so inspired by how active women were in the punk scene there, how many girls were in bands and how many women I was meeting who were influenced by riot girl. Even though I was the only black girl around, which would later prove to be a challenge, Portland felt like a dream to me at the time. There were local bands that were not only all-girl, but all-dyke playing basement and living room shows on a weekly basis. It felt totally normal to be at shows where the bands and audiences were majority ladies & queers. For girls who played music, it was a very safe and supportive environment.

Moving to New Orleans, I knew exactly what I was getting into. There used to be a queer/lady punk scene here but it dissolved a couple of years ago. Lots of people have moved away since Hurricane Katrina and things are slowly getting started up again. Me and some new friends I’ve met since I moved here started putting on shows for queer/lady bands on tour and things are going really well here.

The biggest problem, though, is local bands! An all-girl band comes to town and there aren‘t very many choices of women-fronted bands to put them with. As far as I know so far, there’s Crackbox, a crust punk band with a woman lead singer and there’s Ixnay an all-girl folky/poppy trio. The local scene here is a major challenge, so one of the things I’ve been trying to do is encourage the ladies who live here to start bands. The process of doing that is what helped me remember why I started actively seeking out girl bands when I was around 16 and 17 years old. It helps me remember how finding that music changed my life.

Since moving here, I’ve played music here with other women who are incredible musicians--much, much, much better than I am (which isn’t hard to be) but they have surprisingly little confidence in their own skills and ability. Some of these ladies even have songs that they’ve been writing on their own forever, but won’t bring them out into the public because they believe their songs “aren’t good enough.” There’s nothing wrong with making art for yourself if that’s what you want. But it really does kill me to hear talented people be so down on their own talent, especially because there have already been so many strong women who came before us who have proved that we are good enough.

The first time you try to play along to a Bikini Kill song and you realize it’s just two chords--that’s a moment of an enlightenment. You realize that music isn’t powerful because it’s technical. I can’t even describe where music’s power comes from, but believe me, it has nothing to do with being the best drummer or the best guitarist. It’s all about delivery.

I recently started playing drums for this band called Deny It with this girl Candice who’s in a band called Necro Hippies, and this other girl named Takiya who lives in Florida. I’m not a drummer by any means but I’ve come to realize that singing and playing drums are the most fun things you can do in a band, so I do it anyway. A few weeks ago, we played this show with two all-boy emocore bands from Florida (no comment) and a local woman-fronted ska band. We had to borrow drums from one of the Florida bands and when I sat down at that expensive drumset, I had a moment of feeling like, “Damn, I’m a shitty drummer and these boys are gonna be lookin at me thinking I’m a shitty drummer.” But another part of me knows so much better than that.

Ladies like Erin Smith of Bratmobile and Carrie Brownstein of Sleater-Kinney totally demystified the guitar for me. If it wasn’t for them, till this day I might still believe that I can’t play the guitar. Their single-note riffs were fucking fierce and then like a decade later, every indie rock boy band’s music is filled with jumpy single-note riffs trying to be just like them. I listen to UK riot girl band Skinned Teen and it’s sloppy and minimal but so good. It’s all of the energy behind it that makes it work. You can tell they believe in their songs when you hear them.

The long list of women I’ve been lucky enough to play music with are a definitely inspiration. My ex-bandmate Adee never had a drum lesson in her life and created her own beautiful style of playing. Whenever I pick up drum sticks, I definitely think of her and also my friend Ana Rodriguez who plays drums for Portland band Magic Johnson. Bands like the Raincoats and LiliPut/Kleenex teach girls that it’s okay to experiment and trust your own strange sound. You don’t have to sound like everyone else. You don’t have to be loud; you can sound delicate and be punk. And more recently, we’ve got bands like Finally Punk, Vivian Girls, Mika Miko, Explode Into Colors, New Bloods and others keeping the spirit alive.

I really could go on, but the point is, as people on the margins of punk rock, our lessons have been written for us, many times over. It’s time to look back on that short history and draw strength and courage from it. I have so much faith and optimism for the queer and lady punks of New Orleans to rise to the challenge and create a scene that is welcoming to all people regardless of gender, sexuality, race, or ability.

It’s the year 2009! We gotta get over this “we’re not good enough” crap and start really living, expressing ourselves without fear, feeling the euphoria of getting really sweaty playing music for a small room full of appreciative people. This isn’t just about music or punk rock. It’s about liberation, our self-esteems, and the confidence you gain by making shit happen. Now go start a band!

No More Fiction
Punk shows for the ladies & the queers in New Orleans
www.myspace.com/nomorefictionshows
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