Twin Cities Mix 2
Hi, welcome back!
Sometimes you just need to crank punk music on full-volume and dance in your bedroom until you cry, laugh, or both. Lately, punk has been my go-to when I need to release my frustrations and have a bedroom concert for one. While there’s nothing like seeing a punk show live, I hope the second edition of the Twin Cities Mix brings you to that DIY basement show we’ve all been missing.
This past week has been an emotional one, both on a personal level and in the Twin Cities music scene. With social media changing as a place to find information and community support, many artists have come forward exposing abusive behavior and misogyny in local music. In the wake of this, the second playlist of the Twin Cities Mix is dedicated to sharing music from the badass women, trans & non-binary led groups in our community. I wanted to highlight punk as it’s the music that’s been keeping me sane during this time, also the genre is rooted in anti-establishment views and breaking the status quo. Punk history is mostly shown through a whitewashed lens, but the movement and music itself comes from Black artists, who play a large role in keeping it alive today in the Twin Cities music scene.
In order to talk Punk 101, I had to kick off the playlist with the X-Ray Spex. Hailing from England, this punk group came to fame in the seventies with the track Oh Bondage! Up Yours!, a song about liberating oneself from the holds of society. Their frontwoman, Poly Styrene, wrote from her experiences as a young woman of color in England at the time. She was a punk feminist icon, speaking out against capitalism and societal restraints forced onto women. To share some of our local histories, I included tracks from Babes in Toyland and The Soviettes. These two women-led groups brought a raw and honest sound that heavily influenced punk in the Twin Cities and beyond.
As the DIY scene continues to grow locally, it’s important to acknowledge that it would not exist without the Black musicians that pioneered punk. The idea of DIY came about in the ‘70s punk scene as a rejection of the mainstream music industry. Many of the artists who started punk belonged to historically marginalized communities and found ways to create outside of the societal restrictions of record labels and the music scene. This brought about the concept of DIY that is still alive in punk and many other genres today, even in the Twin Cities.
Just as punk is rooted in non-conforming, the sound of the genre continues to change with time. This playlist features some of the many new directions punk has taken in our local scene, led by women, trans & non-binary musicians. A few of my personal highlights include Gully Boys, a three-piece punk band and Minneapolis favorite, the group explores melodic punk tunes in combination with lyrics that show they’re tough as nails. Similarly, the group Bruise Violet describes their music as “sugar, spice, and a kick in the teeth.” In another pocket of punk, Seaberg explores the relationship between jazz and punk through instrumental experimentation. Lastly, I closed the playlist with an honorable mention, Joanna Gruesome. Although the group is not from the Twin Cities, this pop-punk track is a must-listen on full volume.
While we enjoy local music anywhere, we must continue to cultivate a safe community where the fundamental contributions of women, trans & non-binary folks are appreciated. Continue to celebrate and support through streaming this playlist, purchasing work directly from the artists, or donating to collectives such as Black Trans Femmes in the Arts. This music helped me get through a tough week, I hope it can do the same for you.
If you dig a certain track, feel free to share & tag the artists and us @trashmagtrashmag.
Thanks for tuning in!
Maddy
(@muddymelloy)
Follow TRASH MAG on Spotify and listen here!
See below for tracklist and playlist.
