By: Tiffany Mull
Sleater-Kinney hasn’t lost their fire. The show opened with the dramatic, almost industrial “The Center Won’t Hold” with fast-flashing, panicky lights. The band insisted that the show be open to all ages which meant special restrictions on alcohol (they’re cognizant of the influence their music had on a generation of adolescents and mean for that to continue).
I’m drawn to artists who examine the dark side of life, and Sleater-Kinney does that very well. Not only will they not look away from what’s ugly about this world, they’ll drag it onto the stage and shout about it. The night was strewn with the dark-yet-empowering themes of songs like “Bury Our Friends” and “What’s Mine Is Yours.” Carrie Brownstein jerked and spasmed to the beat and showboated on her guitar while Corin Tucker ululated at the mic. Janet Weiss, who sadly left the band earlier this year, wasn’t present, but Angie Boylan proved herself a powerful drummer. The band was also accompanied by Toko Yasuda and Katie Harkin.
Tucker set her guitar aside for “Animal,” coming to the center of the stage and encouraging the healthy jumping and jostling in the audience. After a false start, Brownstein joked that she’d forgotten the lyrics to “Love” because they require her to translate Indo-European into English in her head (lol). “The Dog / The Body” is not only my favorite song off the new album, it’s one of my favorite Sleater-Kinney songs of all time. It’s a devastating number about the ways people accept little assaults on their dignity in exchange for companionship and, at the end, escaping that mentality (my interpretation). It was delivered with a little more attitude live than on the recording.
It was a good, old-fashioned riot grrrl concert. Songs were fast and frantic, flirting with disorder yet maintaining cohesion. I was delighted that “Dig Me Out” was included in the encore. The rage is still there, the angst, the agony, the honesty, all of it. This band is cool. They’ve always been cool.
Setlist:
The Center Won’t Hold
Hurry on Home
Bury Our Friends
The Future is Here
Jumpers
Reach Out
No Cities to Love
Ruins
What’s Mine is Yours
Ironclad
Words and Guitar
Bad Dance
The Fox
Love
A New Wave
Animal
Encore:
Oh
Dig Me Out
Modern Girl