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In the recently released video for “Surface Envy,” there’s a “stop Bush” sign in the background of one of the many live performances that comprise the clip. Written about their reunion after about eight years apart, “Surface Envy” is the story of Sleater-Kinney in that it is the story of bands—groups of people, really—that attempt to go against the grain: “We win, we lose, only together do we break the rules,” goes the chorus. So while the No Cities to Love standout is not about “the system” per se, it is one of the best fight songs they’ve ever written—a fact underscored by the pummeling version that appears on their new live album.
If there is one unifying thread among many of the songs that make the cut on Live in Paris, it’s not just that they’re late-era Sleater-Kinney highlights (five of the 13 songs come from No Cities to Love, four from 2005’s The Woods). From the post-recession terror of opening track “Price Tag” to the sly sendup of capitalist femininity on closing song “Modern Girl,” the tracklist emphasizes what Sleater-Kinney does best: playing not just with urgent feeling, but in service of immense meaning. Corin Tucker, Carrie Brownstein, and Janet Weiss came back swinging in 2015 as strongly as they ever had—a gift considering how rarely it happens in rock. Live in Paris is the victory lap leaving us wanting more.
The setlists for S-K’s comeback tour throughout 2015 were maximized to show the band’s power after the better part of a decade away, and Live in Paris—recorded at the historic venue La Cigale about a month into the trek—has enough of it to make anthems out of lesser S-K songs. Girl-gang harmonies originally made One Beat’s “Oh!” sound delightfully bratty, but Tucker’s exaggerated vocals on the chorus resemble a demented Mickey Mouse; it’ll stick with you like a childhood trip to Orlando. Old live footage suggests she hasn’t always sang it so idiosyncratically, which can be said of numerous vocal takes here from both Tucker and Brownstein. The latter’s blood-curdling bird squawks on “I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone” will make you A.) wonder why Carrie Brownstein hasn’t formed some avant-garde metal band for the sole purpose of squawk-singing (could also work as a “Portlandia” sketch); B.) love it even more.
Listening to Brownstein and Tucker sing together now, 20+ years after Sleater-Kinney’s founding, you can hear how their voices have changed. On early Sleater-Kinney records, their vocals often recklessly (and joyfully) clashed, like a pit of dance-punks tossing their bodies at one another. These days, it's more common that their voices fall into worn, soulful grooves when they harmonize, like in the chorus of No Cities’ “A New Wave”; Tucker hoists her voice up above Brownstein’s like she’s casually hopping out of a pool.
The obvious downside of being a band with serious history is that fans who prefer the old stuff are probably always going to be a given. Sleater-Kinney toured around the January 2015 release of eighth LP No Cities to Love, so clearly those songs were prized. It was an excellent album, but S-K also played older fan favorites like “You’re No Rock n’ Roll Fun,” “Words and Guitar,” and “Little Babies” throughout the tour and they don’t end up here. That’s the only real downside to what is surprisingly the first live album from a touring rock band that remains one of America's best.
Sleater-Kinney’s existence as, in their own mocking words, “the girl band” may seem less revolutionary now than it did on the other side of their hiatus, but it’s partially because S-K helped pave a way for the women who now lead indie rock. In this sense, their presence is inherently political, even when they’re playing a characteristically Corin love song like “Turn It On.” With that and with our current world in mind, Live in Paris makes an inspiring mixtape for the various battles at hand. Like Tucker belts on “Surface Envy,” “We've got so much to do, let me make that clear.”
Thu Feb 02 06:00:00 GMT 2017