Culture Dose | She-Punks | Come Hell or High Water

Read: Revenge of the She-Punks

book - revenge of the she-punks by Vivien Goldman, A feminist music history from Poly Styrene to Pussy Riot

Vivien Goldman opens Revenge of the She-Punks with a manifesto, Womanifesto, with an honest critique. “Women still have no controlling say in the multidimensional music industry…within show business, we are often regarded as replaceable fresh meat, best consumed when young. That’s why punk is so great for girls – it allows or even encourages the artist to roar the anger that always pumps beneath the style’s skin- and our own.”

As a music journalist and punk musician in the 1970s, Goldman was witness to the birth of the genre in the wake of the British government’s reign. Triumphs were not without torments. Her excitement seeing a woman play guitar on stage for the first time, singing along to feminist lyrics, and publishing her first “Women in Rock” story was met with a crushing realization – women would never be recognized like their male counterparts. This narrative that continues today fails to recognize the work, talent, and right to stand on the stage.

Through a mix of history, interviews, and personal experience She-Punks works to unpack and dismantle decades of oppression in punk. Kicked off with themed playlists, Goldman traces identity, money, love, and protest as boundaries that have both prohibited and influenced the development of the music.

Each page is outlined with a similar sentiment. Punk has and always will belong to women. As a confrontational form of expression with chaotic guitar riffs and rebellious wails gain recognition, hold an outlet for self-expression and inspire the next generation ahead.

Get it here or at your local library

Watch: Come Hell or High Water

Come Hell or High Water: The Battle for Turkey Creek follows the painful but inspiring journey of Derrick Evans, a Boston teacher who returns to his native coastal Mississippi when the graves of his ancestors are bulldozed to make way for the sprawling city of Gulfport. Derrick is consumed by the effort to protect the community his great grandfather’s grandfather settled as a former slave. He is on the verge of a breakthrough when Hurricane Katrina strikes the Gulf Coast. Over the course of a decade, Derrick and his neighbors stand up to powerful corporate interests and politicians and face Hurricane Katrina and the BP oil disaster in their struggle for self-determination and environmental justice.

Listen: Make me sick Make me smile

The long awaited full length Pretty Sick album has arrived, it’s time to rejoice. Make Me Sick Make Me Smile is an ode to the end of adolescents; each song from the alternative-rock band will tear through your speakers and awaken everything and everyone in sight. Sabrina Fuentes’ echoing vocals contrast with unapologetic outbursts, and the album captures experiences of love, longing, and the complexities that come with city night life. While the sound is reminiscent of the punchy ‘90s Riot Grrrl movement, it’s clear that the band is paving its own way to success.