The opinions expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of Her Campus.

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Bowling Green chapter.

2 albums in, Riot Grrrl band Sleater-Kinney were set for world domination. Their self-titled debut put them on the map and showed the world what ‘Sleater-Kinney’ was – blending melodies and roaring guitars with an unapologetic feminist flare. ‘Call The Doctor’ proved them furthermore, with tighter vocals and a bigger emphasis on gay rights. The success of their second album caused the bandmates to leave their other projects to focus solely on Sleater-Kinney. Come 1997, they were poised to knock it out of the park one more time – as long as the personal matters plaguing the band were settled.

The band had been struggling to keep a drummer since the beginning. The original drummer heard on the first album had to leave the band because her visa ran out, and the second album’s drums were noncommittally recorded by two separate drummers. Along with this, members Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein had both been outed by Spin Magazine as having dated. Despite the band’s wishes, the world knew that the two Sleater-Kinney guitarists were in a relationship with each other. All in all, their third album was either going to be a masterpiece or a mess.

Janet Weiss of Quasi joined the band for this album, becoming their longest standing drummer. Her sound became essential to the band, bringing a classic rock quality to their music. Janet cites John Bonham of Led Zeppelin and Topper Headon of The Clash as her biggest influences. The band incorporated Janet’s classic rock sensibilities into their sound, and even based Dig Me Out’s cover off the Kinks’ 1965 album ‘The Kink Kontroversy’.

The first thing you should know when listening to Sleater-Kinney is the unique role of each member. All percussion (including hand claps and tambourine) is done by Janet. Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker are both guitarists and vocalists, often trading lead and backing roles with one another. This band has no bass player – which producer John Goodmansan said allowed him to “make the guitars sound as big as [he] want[ed].” The two dueling guitar and vocal parts in every song gives this album a unique voice that well illustrates the emotional state of this band during this album.

Not only were Corin and Carrie entangled in gossip about their sexuality, but they were also breaking up with each other. The tension between the members creates a driving force for this album’s sound. The song “One More Hour” is a prime example of this.

The song starts with a simple riff played by Carrie, which is then intersected by sharp, high power chords pummeled out by Corin. The vocals begin, Corin singing about leaving Carrie. When the chorus comes the guitar parts become one, but the vocal parts begin to interrupt each other. Corin wails “I need you” while Carrie immediately responds with “I know it’s so hard for you to let me go.”

Dig Me Out is an album that can be enjoyed by anyone. First and foremost it is indie punk, but there are also elements of new wave, blues, and grunge. Sleater-Kinney is one of the most influential all female bands in the world, and they absolutely deserve more credit than they get. If you’re interested in noisey, heavy, sapphic music, you should definitely give Dig Me Out and Sleater-Kinney in general a listen.

Sources:

http://www.sleater-kinney.com/

https://www.allmusic.com/album/sleater-kinney-mw0000023187

https://www.allmusic.com/album/call-the-doctor-mw0000182190