Kathleen Hanna Returns To London With The Julie Ruin
Published
I haven’t been as excited for a gig as I was about The Julie Ruin’s show at The Electric Ballroom for a long time. Kathleen Hanna is a personal hero of mine, as she is many people; her work with the riot grrrl movement, being a spokesperson for feminism and obviously making kick-ass music for 25+ years with Bikini Kill, Le Tigre and now The Julie Ruin. I never really thought I’d get to witness her show womanship or prowess on stage, so when I got hold of ‘Run Fast’ (and listened to it religiously) and then heard of tour dates, I was pretty bloody thrilled. So, yeah, I was pretty excited about this one.
Opening up were Londoners Feature and Woolf. I pretty much fell in love with Feature, they reminded me a bit of Honeyblood if you turned the too-cool-attitude down a bit, turned the grunge up and added a big splash of punk ethics. Their multi-layered lush harmonies combined with some melodic post-punk vibes are definitely worth checking out.
Woolf I could see setting up camp right in the middle of Olympia in the early 90s and infusing themselves with the riot grrrl scene. Their short-sharp punk songs, I have to say, were a bit brash for me but it was pretty inspiring. They describe themselves as a “DIY queer punk band” and that’s pretty spot-on.
The build-up of anticipation before The Julie Ruin took to the stage was incredible and the atmosphere was full of excitement. I think for many, this moment had been long-awaited. The band’s 2014 shows were cancelled due to Kathleen’s unfortunate battle with Lyme’s disease, meaning she hadn’t played the UK for nine years (since she was last here with Le Tigre).
So, furore builds and out come Kathi Wilcox (also ex-Bikini Kill), Kenny Mellman, Carmine Covelli & Sara Landeau who enter in to a whirring, pro-longed riff, leaving us all wondering where it’s leading and where Kathleen Hanna is. And as soon as the tension is suitably built there she is; a vision of energy and sass all in lyrca and sequins.
Their set is just as dynamic as expected; a smooth blend of pop, punk and politics. Between the band's lock-in pop-perfect tightness and Kathleen's trademark on-the-spot dancing came well versed political discussion about Ireland's recent gay marriage referendum and abortion rights - all important discussions.
At times it was like being in a chat show audience - no bad thing, and the band even joked about it themselves. It was enamoring to see the connection between Kathleen Hanna and Kenny Mellman - not only do his Fred Schneidder-esque vocals add an extra special zang to the set, he is a good banter-buddy and seems to be the lynch pin that really hones the band's sound and brings them together.
Despite only having released one album, the band played a full and energetic set, although I was very disappointed at the lack of "Girls Like Us" (it has too many words to remember, which is actually fair enough) and I was kind of unfairly hoping for a Bikini Kill or Le Tigre song but, different band, different set. I'm already itching to see the band again. The passion, the energy and fuck-it-let's-have-fun spirit from both the band and the crowd made it one of the best gig experiences I've had to date. If you ever have the chance to see them and don't take it up, you're a fool.
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Words by Sara Davey
