Re-Start Together: The Return Of Sleater-Kinney

SLEATER-KINNEY

KNITTING FACTORY

SPOKANE, WA

08 FEBRUARY, 2015

Unbeknownst to us at the time, but perfectly in keeping, Sleater Kinney had spent the last 18 months of a nine year hiatus plotting and planning their resurface. Not content with milking the hits, they boiled up new material, honed it mercilessly, and somehow kept the whole process dark from the public, no mean feat in this age of 24/7 internet-driven gossip. During their hiatus, the band: Corin Tucker, Carrie Brownstein, and Janet Weiss, certainly had no problem keeping busy, with Tucker forming the Corin Tucker Band, Brownstein blogging for NPR, reuniting with Weiss for Wild Flag, and bringing Portlandia to life, while Janet Weiss focused on her ongoing Quasi project, in addition to being one of the top on call touring drummers. Last fall, Sub Pop dropped a career spanning box set, and what caught the eye when plowing through the bonus materials was a white label 45 that simply said: "01/20/15". Containing their first new music released to the world since 2005's The Woods, it set off the proverbial avalanche. No Cities To Love was the album that matched up with the Date Of Mystery, and it is a corker, Wasting no time, they announced a tour, prefacing it with a scorching David Letterman appearance, and that brings us to Spokane.

While the rest of what's left of the Industry focused on their annual congrat-fest known as the Grammys, this Sunday evening marked the return to active duty for the band, adding Katie Harkin from Sky Larkin to fill out the proceedings. The Knitting Factory in Spokane was sold out to its 1500 capacity, and the faithful came from as far away as the UK to be present for this moment. Any notion of a sepia-tinged nostalgia gig were quickly dispelled as they kicked off with the first two cuts from the new LP, economic anxiety anthem "Price Tag" and "Fangless". Over the course of the night, they would work in almost all of No Cities To Love, cherry-picking their robust back catalog to fill in the rest. First foray into the past was The Hot Rock's "Start Together", which gave its name to the aforementioned box set, and the frenzy escalated when they moved into "Oh!" from One Beat.
Back to the new for a thundering "No Anthems", before dropping a trio of "Get Up", "Ironclad", and "One Beat" into the proceedings, and it speaks to the power of the set that they can drop lead single "Bury Our Friends" into the middle. "What's Mine Is Yours" was the shredding showcase that set up the gut punch of "One More Hour", still an emotional touchstone in the group's work. Title track of the new album and "Surface Envy" followed, and it was time again to marvel at the new material's strength, before dropping headlong into "Words and Guitar". The peak of the night for me was the closing quartet of the main set. When the screams died down after Corin Tucker belted out the first line of "Sympathy", it was replaced by the crowd bellowing back at her, fully engaged. After a breathless take on "A New Wave", the band laid out a double shot from The Woods, with a snarling "Entertainment" giving way to "Jumpers".

The shows of their final (pre-hiatus) tour in 2006 had a desperate car crash intensity, where every emotion was magnified, and it was actually a relief that the tenor of this show was celebratory-a lot of smiling and winning chemistry between the ladies. It could have easily been a cash-grab, but Sleater Kinney were never about half-measures, and this night proved that, no matter what, they would do it their way.

Lizzo, (from Minnesota), got the prized opening slot on this tour, making the most it with a burning set, her intensity matched by her DJ. "Batches and Cookies" was a high point, and the live drummer added extra punch to the sound. It was a great introduction to a talent whose skill and heart showed through, and I'll look forward to catching up with her again.

 

LIZZO

"Please Bring The Flag"

Ever since the ill.fated Blind Faith experience, music critics have scampered to apply the tag, rightfully or not, of supergroup to any conglomeration of musicians with a previous track record, however dubious. Also, what exactly is the line when a 'side project' becomes a 'supergroup'...
Wild Flag is the newest recipient of said tag, & while its members priors certainly range from well regarded to sterling, i still cringe whenever i hear the label.

That aside, it's always a treat to be present at the birth of a band, and watch those first fumbling steps become a cherished memory, or a long forgotten blip on the cultural radar.

Eux Autres started the night with an earnest set of indie pop.

Grass Widow, from San Francisco, (pictured), opened up their own special blend of surf influenced noisy goodness. They threw out a crackling set that marked them as a band to keep an eye on, and their latest album, 'Past Time', came out in August on Kill Rock Stars.






Anticipation reached a fever pitch for the foursome that sprang from the ashes of the hiatus of Sleater Kinney, (Carrie Brownstein & Janet Weiss), along with Rebecca Cole (The Minders), and Mary Timony (Helium).

From the first crashing notes, it became apparent that this was a volatile combination. Brownstein's humble asides, ('we're trying out this whole band thing...'), underlined the fact that it was a work in progress, with space still being worked out for all the members, but when things clicked, (as on the raucous 'Racehorse', it was something special.

Their sound ranges from the uptempo strut of "Romance", (above), to the all out maelstorm of what i believe is called "Glass Tambourine", (below). Breathtaking...Their clutch of original tunes is a nice skeleton for a record...I really can't wait to see where it goes from here.

They fleshed out the set with covers of The Standells "Dirty Water" and The Rolling Stones "Beast Of Burden".
In only their sixth show, Wild Flag has laid the groundwork for some interesting times ahead. They've got a 7'' single forthcoming, and apparently a commitment from Merge Records whenever they feel they have the material. It bodes well if they can harness the sparks of this evening...