Sleater-Kinney Guitarist Stars in Portland Film

As well as running the top class music blog, Monitor Mix, over at NPR it seems the ex Sleater-Kinney guitarist has been working away on a movie.

Carrie Brownstein stars alongside Shins frontman James Mercer in Portland filmmaker Matt McCormick's first feature film Some Days Are Better Than Others.

Brownstein stars as Katrina a twenty-something, she can get away with it, TV junkie and video diarist who realises the things she values in life might not count for much. Mercer plays Eli a 30-something slacker who makes excuse after excuse and blames society for why he won't get a job.

Though we only have a trailer to go it's fair to say it looks pretty bleak. The press release describes the film as such:

Some Days are Better Than Others is Matt McCormick’s poetic, character-driven debut feature-length film that asks why the good times slip by so fast while the difficult times seem so sticky. The film explores ideas of abundance, emptiness, human connection and abandonment while observing an interweaving web of awkward characters who maintain hope by inventing their own forms of communication and self-fulfillment.

The trailer certainly demonstrates the 'emptiness' and 'abandonment' that McCormick wants to demonstrate. We see Brownstein emptily sit by a toliet bowl, two people in a car looking at a miserable horizon, a woman look out from a bus window into the unforgiving wilderness that is our world. I could give many, many more examples.

though it looks as I said bleak I'm still looking forward to seeing it when and if it comes to the UK. It at least takes a stab at being intelligent rather than the mass produced rubbish that I've had to review lately, I name will no names.

Some Days are Better than Others (trailer) from matt mccormick on Vimeo.

For more information: http://www.somedaysthemovie.com/

Everett True on the myths of Riot Grrrl

Ok I'm late on this one too, like PJ Harvey but I just found this article by riot grrrl lover, music journo and 90s scenester Everett True about the myths surrounding Riot Grrrl.

Now the article does not really clear up as many myths are it says and it kinda makes some up as it goes along, when did anyone question whether there was only one version of history or not?

Whether you like True or not, the piece is informative and interesting on a subject we always crave more on from a journo who was there when it all kicked off.

To read the whole article click here.

*MIXTAPE ALERT* The Best of Riot Grrrl- part 2

The second part of my Riot Grrrl mixtape, enjoy x.x.x.

The Best of Riot Grrrl Part 2 tracklisting:

Her Jazz- Huggy Bear

We Don't Wanna Go Home- Frumpies

Girl Germs- Bratmobile

(Yr So Sweet) Baby Donut- Cold Cold Hearts

Stepping Up To The Mic- Kathleen Hanna

More Than a Feeling- Sleater-Kinney

Resist Psychic Death- Bikini Kill

Terrorist- Heavens To Betsy

Tony Randell- Bikini Kill

Call The Doctor- Sleater-Kinney

Violet- Hole

The Punk Singer- Julie Ruin

There's No Other Way (Blur cover)- Bratmobile

We're Not Like Other Girls...

This is a music blog, but I love zines, and the people who put so much time and effort into making them, and this seems like a really good idea that I think you guys would love.

A one off zine is being created called I'm not like other girls.

The zine creator, Phillipa from Rebel Grrl Zines says:

" What I want women and girls to do is to complete the
sentence, 'I'm not like other girls because...'"

A zine will be made of the responses which will make pretty good reading. I really want to post the PJ Harvey line "I'm not like other girls, you can't straighten my curls" but I'm not sure everyone will get it.

To contribute email your response to mailto:toincurable.hippie@googlemail.com

For more information click here.

New PJ Harvey, New PJ Harvey!!!

I'm probably a bit late on this one, well three months late to be exact I'll better I promise, but 'recently' my favourite English rose PJ Harvey debuted two new songs. If your as big a Harvey fan as me you'll be pretty excited by this. Her new songs are called 'The Last Living Rose' and 'Let Engalnd Shake'. She first included the songs as part of her set at the Dorset festival Bestival.

'The Last Living Rose' a first glance sounds like a tribute to the best and worst parts of English life. "For all that's European take me back to beautiful England" sings Polly. Of course our Polly is quite intelligent to say the least so I would take my interpretation as the only meaning. It reminds me a lot of the Is This Desire era sound. It is possible that PJ may be going back to that sound again for her next album as she a lot more songs from that era, 'Nina in Ecstacy' and 'Angelene' to name a few.

'Let England Shake' is a completely different sound for Harvey. It features, and don't quote me on this, the first sampling track Harvey has done. Harvey samples an unknown blues records and plays the vocals of a deep baritone voice repeating "Take me back to Constantinople, no you can't go back to Constantinople" in the background. Harvey adds her ususal beautifully bleak laments over the track, "I fear our blood will rise again."

Can't wait till the new album comes out, can you?

Heavens To Betsy- Demo

This is a recording of Heavens To Betsy's first demo tape. Heavens To Betsy were made up of Tracey Sawyer and Corin Tucker (later of Sleater-Kinney fame). The group was born during the full rage of the riot grrrl scene in Portland in the early 90s.

The songs include the various themes that riot grrrl was interested in e.g. sexism, rape and domestic violence. Corin even mentioned in an interview that she based her vocal style, in the early days, on Kathleen Hanna's, of Bikini Kill fame, infamous scream.

The recording is from a cassette so the quality isn't too good but it's worth it to hear rare songs.

'Seek and Hide' and 'Good Food'- HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Tracklisting:
Good Food
Factory
Seek and Hide
Stay Dead
My Red Self
Ain't Never Goin' Back
Baby's Gone
My Secret

Heavens to Betsy- Demo