- Date:
- 2013 - present
- c. 1995 - 2006
Sleater-Kinney
What movement did Sleater-Kinney arise from?
Which album marked Sleater-Kinneyâs move to the label Kill Rock Stars?
What was unique about Sleater-Kinneyâs album One Beat?
Sleater-Kinney, American rock band that arose from the feminist punk rock movement known as âriot grrrlâ and was acclaimed for recordings that combined a lean and aggressive sound with passionate socially conscious lyrics.
Sleater-Kinney originated in Olympia, Washington, as a collaboration between friends Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein, of the early 1990s riot grrrl bands Heavens to Betsy and Excuse 17, respectively. (Sleater-Kinney was named after a street in Olympia.) The two singer-guitarists recruited drummer Lora MacFarlane to record their self-titled debut album, released in 1995. Though the songs on the recording were somewhat unrefined, the bandâs essential musical elementsâTuckerâs fierce, often caterwauling lead vocals and chugging rhythm guitar, as well as Brownsteinâs jagged lead guitarâwere already in place. Janet Weiss became the bandâs drummer in 1996.
Sleater-Kinneyâs sophomore release, Call the Doctor (1996), brought the band attention with its sharp attacks on consumer culture and gender inequality. On songs such as âI Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone,â the group even skewers the very indie rock scene in which it had become widely celebrated. With Dig Me Out (1997), Sleater-Kinney moved to influential independent label Kill Rock Stars and also introduced new drummer Weiss. By this time Brownstein had also emerged as a strong secondary songwriter and vocalist. The Hot Rock (1999) further raised Sleater-Kinneyâs profile, and All Hands on the Bad One (2000), with its intimations of 1960s girl-group vocal harmonies, showed a marked turn toward pop songcraft while maintaining the bandâs distinct edge.
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One Beat (2002) proved to be an even more expansive affair, incorporating classic rock song structures as well as instruments such as horns and synthesizers. Tuckerâs lyrics drew inspiration from her newfound role as a mother, as well as the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. Perhaps the groupâs most radical departure, however, was The Woods (2005). Working with noted producer Dave Fridmann, the band displayed a new sense of open-ended improvisation, along with its most dense and bombastic arrangements. Having earned a reputation that far outpaced its moderate commercial success, Sleater-Kinney disbanded at the conclusion of its 2006 concert tour.
Tucker subsequently released solo albums under the name the Corin Tucker Band. Weiss, meanwhile, drummed for the indie rock groups the Jicks (the backing band of former Pavement front man Stephen Malkmus) and Quasi. In addition, she and Brownsteinâwho had spent the intervening years as a writer and an actressâhelped found the band Wild Flag, which debuted with a self-titled album in 2011. In addition, Brownstein was a creator, writer, and actress on the popular television show Portlandia (2011â18).
In 2013 Sleater-Kinney reunited for a surprise performance at a Pearl Jam concert. They followed that appearance with a well-received album, No Cities to Love (2015), after which they resumed touring. The same year the band released No Cities to Love, Brownstein published a memoir, Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl.
The band took a new, experimental direction with their next album, The Center Wonât Hold (2019), which was produced by Annie Clark (byname St. Vincent). Just before its release, Weiss announced that she was leaving the band.
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In 2021 Sleater-Kinney (now a duo composed of Brownstein and Tucker) released the self-produced Path of Wellness. The 25th anniversary of Dig Me Out was celebrated in 2022 with a tribute album titled Dig Me In, which featured covers of the original tracks by St. Vincent, Wilco, and other musicians. That year was also marked by the death of Brownsteinâs mother and stepfather in a car accident in Italy, a tragedy that informed the tone and themes of Sleater-Kinneyâs next album, Little Rope (2024).