“Where are all of the punk bands?”
That was something Tina Schlieske of Genital Panic asked the audience at the Seventh Street Entry Saturday night. It was also something Schlieske had found herself wondering as she pondered her current state of affairs. Schlieske was dealing with a lot; from menopause to misogyny with the ever present chaos of our presidency setting her emotions on fire.
Dealing with it all was the challenge. Schlieske chose to stand up with her increasingly culturally invisible and under-represented self as a fifty-something female in rock and give her angst a voice. With a leap of faith she formed the band with like minded women and directly addressed the emotions that she was dealing with in the form of songs. Songs that don’t beat around the bush, don’t employ double talk–straight up–her truth, not caring to soften the edges like women are expected to.
That is about as punk rock as it gets.
In fact, the edges were razor sharp Saturday night, the band was tightly sprung and the lyrics brought a misogynistic culture uncomfortably to task. Trump was quoted often, and criticized mercilessly. As a woman I found myself commiserating often as with the song “Misogyny Is Coming To Get Me,”–not much explanation necessary. “Pussygrabber” is directly informed by Trump’s recorded conversation in which he brags of his predatory maneuvers towards women and had me reliving my initial shuddering disgust.
My very favorite track of Genital Panic’s debut album Pussygrabber is undoubtedly “Action Pants,” a nod to the radical Austrian artist Valie Export, radical as in how dare she parade around with her genitals exposed in crotch-less trousers and confront the fantasy world that men cling to which portrays women as passive sexual objects. In fact the band’s name directly is taken from a series of six photos by the artist titled “Action Pants, Genital Panic” (1969).
The end of the evening featured a blistering cover of Patti Smith’s “Gloria” that had Schlieske jumping into the audience writhing and twisting as she gave it everything she had. Schlieske identified Smith as a mentor along with generations of women who admire Smith for her honesty and for her busting of female stereotypes in rock music.
Maybe you don’t have the stomach for this type of punk rock? Maybe your politics don’t align with those of Genital Panic? That’s okay. What might not be okay is letting someone else passively make your decisions for you, all the while thinking what can I do about it I am just one person with one voice?
I know sometimes it feels so utterly overwhelming coping with the politics of politics, but I think what Schlieske was actually getting at as she questioned where the punk bands were, is really about where is the punk rock attitude to rebel against what we don’t believe in? To protest what we feel is wrong in whatever way we can? She’s right to remind us to never forget that the government works for us, they represent us, and you owe it to yourself to get out there in November to let them hear your voice! Power to the people.
By Rebecca Marx, Photo Credit Tony Nelson
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