Patti Smith’s new poetic book, Fea’s fierce sophomore album, Raveena’s Tiny Desk Concert, and Cate Le Bon’s latest music—we’ve got you covered with our December Staff Picks.
If you haven’t read a book by Patti Smith yet, I strongly urge you to add this to your 2020 resolutions. The writer, musician, and visual artist has such a surreal and gorgeous talent of conveying ideas and memories through the written word. It’s lures you in, asks you to sit down, offers you a warm cup of tea, and then sends you on your way with much to think about.
Venice Beach, city of detectives. Where there’s a palm tree, there’s Jack Lord, there’s Horatio Caine. I checked in at a small hotel near Ozone Avenue, not far from the boardwalk. From my window, I could see the young palms and the back entrance of the On the Waterfront Café, a good place for lunch. The coffee arrived in a white mug decorated with an engaging blue starfish floating above their motto—Where the Brew Is as Good as the View. The tables were covered with dark green oilcloth. I had to keep swatting flies away, but that didn’t bother me. Nothing bothered me, not even the things that bothered me.
Excerpt from Patti Smith’s Year of the Monkey
Year of the Monkey drifts in and out of reality, showcasing a year of Smith’s solitary wanderings and thoughts during 2016. She reckons with aging, grief, and an extreme shift in our political landscape in America. Through her poetic narrative that drifts between fact and fiction, Smith offers us pain, hope, laughter, and resilience from one sentence to the next, interspersed with Polaroids she has taken throughout the years.
Fea is made up of Girl In A Coma’s Phanie Diaz and Jenn Alva, joined by lead vocalist Letty Martinez and guitarist Sofi Lopez. Their 2019 sophomore full length, No Novelties (produced by Los Angeles Chicana punk legend, Alice Bag) was released on Joan Jett’s Blackheart Records earlier this year. Fea weaves between Spanish and English lyrics, bringing both fierce energy and a whole lot of substance.
Earlier this month, NPR Music released a Tiny Desk Concert with the incredibly talented Raveena. Following her immensely popular 2017 EP Shanti, Raveena self-released her debut album, Lucid, this past year.
Raveena’s music often explores identity and culture of the South Asian diaspora and her latest album continues to beautifully weave those narratives together. To see her music in the mainstream is inspiring, and the visibility is so important. The Tiny Desk performance features the 2018 hit, “Honey,” as well as “Bloom” and “Still Dreaming” from Lucid. We featured the song, “If Only,” from the Shanti EP on one of our early She Shreds playlists.
Watch the full performance below and catch Raveena on tour next year. (P.S.: Shout out to Tiana Ohara on guitar!)
In the algorithms of Spotify and in the hearts of music critics, Cate Le Bon has long been grouped in the company of avant-garde and cult favorite artists like Arthur Russell and Broadcast. If heard as background music, however, the casual non-listener might not register anything sonically out of the ordinary from guitar-forward indie rock. Whereas her oddity has been expressed mostly lyrically and hinted at through her jerky, staccato guitar style, her 2019 release Reward saw those eccentricities actualized through every recorded instrumental performance.
After the release of such a methodically written solo album, Le Bon may have been ready for something more brash and carefree, which brings us to her release of Myths 004 in the final hour of 2019. A co-creation with Bradford Cox of Deerhunter, Myths 004 has plenty of head turning moments, including a monologue from a robot-voiced fireman. Having put out five solo albums of refined art rock, Myths 004 rips the mask off and shows Cate sounding as weird as she truly is, and we are here for it.
Existing as a Black femme in a predominantly white town like Fresno, California might not be the easiest thing in the world, but Vishinna Turner of Fatty Cakes and the Puff Pastries has no problem doing it. Even more radical is that she makes music that explicitly calls out white supremacy and patriarchal ideology in this environment.
“We’ve struggled as Fatty Cakes to find space here,” says Turner of Fresno. “We’re in such a conservative town that people don’t digest us well. We’re loud, fat-bodied, queer, of color—we’re all the things that make people feel uncomfortable and want to turn us off.”
When Turner first started playing bass, she had no idea that her creative energy would manifest into something bigger and more meaningful. As a sophomore in high school, she was asked a random question from her father: If you could play any instrument in the world, what would you play? Turner thought about it briefly, responded with “bass,” and the conversation ended. She didn’t anticipate anything else.
“The next day I came home from school, and there was a bass sitting on the couch,” she says. “It was [my father’s] and his brother’s old bass, so it had actually been passed down between them two to me. It was a really old Rockwood Hohner bass, and I was excited.”
However, it wasn’t until Turner was out of high school that she committed to learning the bass. Inspired by grunge and riot grrrl, she went through a couple of projects before ultimately ending up in her present all-femme band, Fatty Cakes and the Puff Pastries, which plays a fun mix of pop melodies and punk. Turner is joined by Audrey Johnson (drums), Amber Fargano (lead vocals/electric ukulele), Staci McDowell (backing vocals/q chord), and Victoria Crow (backing vocals/glockenspiel).
Fatty Cakes and the Puff Pastries is backed by iconic Bags vocalist Alice Bag, who helped fine-tune their sound and also produced their 2018 self-titled full-length debut. One of Turner’s favorite memories of this experience was Bags’ first visit to Fresno, when she bonded with the girls over Miss Piggy’s BBQ, which is owned by Turner’s mother.
“When Alice came to Fresno, my mom made food for us. We ate barbecue with Alice Bag, it was the craziest thing in the world,” says Turner. “[Alice] is such an influential spirit in my life, so it was cool to have her and my mom—who is another influential spirit—come together.”
Fatty Cakes and the Puff Pastries flaunts a cute aesthetic with bubbly personalities, but one would be amiss to mistake this for a lack of substance—Fatty Cakes tackles deep identity issues in their music, and they have no qualms challenging problematic views.
“Going out and screaming, ‘Fuck you and your neo-nazi friends’ in a conservative town is gonna make it so that a bunch of really scared white men are going to lash out at you,” Turner says. “But I feel like that’s the whole point of this, to make them feel uncomfortable in their skin, because they shouldn’t have space, and because we have this band that calls it out—that isn’t quiet about those things—we tend to get blacklisted, we tend to get lies spread about us so that we can be undermined.”
Turner recalls one specific example that targeted her and Fatty Cakes drummer Audrey Johnson who is also Black: “Audrey and I both were being called tokens actually, we were also called an all-white feminist band for a long time, and it really erases us. It wouldn’t be the same without us, but no matter what, we have to be tokens, we have to be stripped of all of our stuff to be palatable.”
The obstacles Turner has faced as a musician in the Fresno scene are issues prominently rooted in anti-Blackness. She has especially had to fight against the “angry Black woman” narrative that comes with being outspoken or even just standing up for herself.
“As a Black woman, no matter how I handle the situation—whether I say something or not, whether I get angry or stay nice, whether I try to be quiet or outspoken—I get the bully tag. I’m scary, I’m big, I’m Nlack,” says Turner.
It took Turner a long time to embrace her identity while navigating Fresno’s white spaces, and to reach a place of empowerment. She credits her bass and music in helping her achieve this. “I had an outlet for creativity that was effortless for me—that literally became the reason why I have a voice,” she says. “It created space for me to talk about issues in my life, and created space for me to be fully queer, fully Black, and fully present in this world, because not having a voice can kill you. So that’s really what the bass has done for me, it has created this platform for healing and for expression.”
This year, Turner decided to take her advocacy and music a step further with two new projects: Bruise Violet Collective and Squid Ink. The Bruise Violet Collective is made up of musicians, writers, and artists who organize events and safe spaces catering to marginalized identities. Squid Ink, on the other hand, is Turner’s new punk side project which features all Black women, including Johnson.
“Audrey and I would look around and there was nobody that looked like us,” says Turner. “For so long, our community was built on having spaces that catered to white men in the punk scene… and it’s so interesting because punk has always been Black, and Black folks have taken up that space since the beginning of punk, but we have never been pushed to the forefront, we haven’t had too much representation.”
The two women, along with fellow members Amber Williams and Janell Bowen, all hope to draw attention to this with their music and presence. “Our music is based around the Black experience, we talk about what it feels like growing up in Black communities… we get to talk about Black issues, issues that are never talked about in the scene, especially in the punk scene,” says Turner.
Additionally, the name of the band is meant to represent the type of Black power that the women are trying to harness. “When squid squirt black ink into the face of something that’s trying to harm them, that’s actually melanin,” says Turner. “They literally protect themselves with melanin, they protect themselves with their Blackness.”
Squid Ink is recording this year and will be playing the Punk Black Cali Fest II in Oakland this March. Fatty Cakes is planning a Pacific Northwest tour and will be in the studio next summer. As Turner prepares for new music with both projects, she aims to continue taking up space with aid from her most powerful tool: the bass.
“Everything we talked about in my life has flown in on this wonderful rhythm because of the bass… because I have the bass, because I have this community of awesome women. And because I get to create through trauma, I can heal this way,” she says.
With the sun in highly adaptable and spontaneous Sagittarius, we are interacting with life on a higher frequency. We are inclined towards our spiritual wisdom gained from our journey around the Sun, such as wrapping up the lessons and experiences we have gathered from the year, and weaving the wisdom we acquired into the patchwork of our existence. The design, however, is still a work in progress, and in the same notion, so are we.
Coming out of the shadows, we all (at some point or another) seek to expand ourselves beyond our comfort zone. The path on the great quest of meaning is not always a clear one; we may hit rough terrain, bumps, and bad weather. Your most powerful tools of getting through these difficult moments are optimism and an innate sense of direction. When you trust your wisdom from where you are in this moment, amazing things happen. We make fated connections, and opportunity and abundance make their way to us without force. What you are seeking is seeking you as well. Show up and show out.
The upcoming Full Moon in Gemini offers us open connection and communication, and the New Moon in Capricorn joins Solar Eclipse in Capricorn (last of the year) which illuminates the narratives around our sense of self and individuality linked to our karma, limitations, and decisions thus far. You might experience an awakening or two about your purpose in your life. The planets and aspects bring themes of results, understanding, expansion, new perspective, abundance, celebration, and creativity.
Going into Capricorn season, we can take the experiences and new-found wisdom we picked up during Sagittarius season and plunge into our New Year’s resolutions and long-term goals. With this enthusiasm, we can make the absolute most of opportunities coming our way.
Read your December 2019 Audioscopes below! I suggest reading both your Sun and rising sign (also known as your Ascendant), which is the zodiac sign of the sun ascending on the eastern horizon when you were born, indicating how you are perceived externally—aka your mask.
Taking initiative is probably your biggest attribute. However, applying that force and energy toward your own satisfaction and personal fulfillment is not. The narratives others have projected onto you may have warped your sense of self, and you’ve been fighting to change the way you’re seen. This year has brought up traumas related to your early life, and the wounds that have become apart of you. These vulnerabilities make you want to take action, but in a new and different way.
Aries, you are expanding the vision of what creativity and self-expression means to you. Your inner child wants to help manifest a stronger sense of self. Being able to express yourself freely, participate, explore, play, and laugh will help you build confidence in yourself, your gifts, and your natural abilities. You’re so much more than your shortcomings and traumas. You have boundless potential, as well as the ability to lead and guide others with an inspiring and warm impact. The painful experiences that have made you feel vulnerable in the past have also given you so much wisdom, just waiting for you to take it. Liberate yourself and allow your light to shine. Love for yourself means more than ego; it means trusting yourself, working on yourself, and most of all, believing in yourself.
Audio Tip: Put yourself out there to be seen: upload a video of a new song, or get yourself on stage!
You’re a creature of habit, probably more than any other sign. You stick with what works and find contentment with that—if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. But if something is broken however, you have a gift to hone in on the problem with great precision and tweak whatever needs to be adjusted. That is not to say that you don’t get wrapped up in your Venusian experience from time to time, being fixated on your five senses and indulging. The holidays can be an especially dangerous time, and you can tend to go all out. Soft, warm things, and all the beauty and love going around—how could you resist? With this energy, you want to express moderation and self-control.
You’re expanding the vision and meaning of your habits, routines, and health (in all of it’s forms: mental, emotional, physical, financial, and even your relationships and habits). Know when you need to put your foot down and say no, but also know when to say yes; just because you can doesn’t always mean that you should. Knowing when to tap into your wisdom to tweak what needs to be worked on makes the experience so much more enjoyable Handle your energy fluctuations with consideration, and think before you act; you can still have your cake and eat it too.
Audio Tip: Find a way to give back with your musical talents or equipment that needs purging.
Making a connection is as natural as breathing to you. It requires little effort on your part. People are jumping at the opportunity to connect with you, no matter where you go in the world, and very often people can connect to parts of themselves through you. What an amazing gift—but you may not be getting the absolute most out of it. With the upcoming full moon in Gemini, you may find yourself in broad conversations that go beyond the initial topic, but with that you are able to share your wisdom with someone that needs to hear it. So much can grow out of a conversation.Your voice, wisdom and experience matters.
You’re expanding your vision of what it means to relate to yourself, others, and things. You’ll find yourself in more diplomatic situations where you really have to consider both sides of the matter, and take actions that positively affect everyone involved, including yourself. Recognize that people often see parts of themselves reflected through you, and that it’s okay to do the same. Connect wholeheartedly with the people and things you truly relate to, and you will see the abundance take place within those interactions.
Audio Tip: Connect with a music buddy or make a new one. Create something out of that interaction, even if it’s just an idea!
The lessons of this year have put you in the hot seat on more than one occasion. Many uncomfortable situations and circumstances have laid themselves in your path, and you may have spent most of the year on your toes. These experiences were not just coincidence or for naught. Every difficult situation was put in your path to facilitate inner growth and awaken a part of yourself that was sleeping. This has stirred deep emotions that you may not have realized were there. Emotions that need to be purged out along with the limiting narratives, about yourself and abilities. As uncomfortable as it may have been, it’s a necessary part of the process that cannot be skipped. It’s a step that demands your fear in exchange for your power.
You’re expanding the vision of what transformation looks like for you. You’re going through a powerful evolution this year, and with that you are stepping into the person you’re meant to be right now. You can no longer retreat into your dark, comforting sanctuary. You’re shedding away your old self and stepping into a new life and consciousness. Thank the past for everything it has given you, and then let it go with gratitude. Go into the unknown, call upon your inner power and wisdom, and create the future aligned with your highest self.
Audio Tip: Make a playlist of the energy that you want to bring into the new year.
You have a strong natural ability to believe in yourself, even in your lowest moments. You have an internal reserve of confidence you tap into when you need it, a reserve that you are protective of, and can sometimes make it hard for you to deeply share and connect with others on a personal level. When you open up with trust and vulnerability, you gain more in the process than you lose.
You’re expanding the vision of what wisdom and higher connection mean to you. For you to manifest the abundance you really ache for, know that trust is a necessary part of the process. You’re not the type to put your faith into what you cannot see. But like almost all of the magical things that happens in life, we cannot see with the naked eye. Most things are not meant to be seen, but instead felt within. It has to be manifested first. When you open yourself to the unknown, you will start to notice opportunities around you that you may not have recognized before; Trust in your faith whatever that means to you.. A great way to tap into that is to get out of your comfort zone, go someplace new or foreign, or get into a new subject or topic you know nothing about. By embracing the connection with the spirit inside of you, inspiration and wisdom follows—and you may start to see the abundance that constantly surrounds you.
Audio Tip: Learn a new music skill or genre you’ve never played before.
You operate best when things make sense. Your practical nature creates practical solutions. However, things can go from practical to impractical in a split second. You may have felt the direct effect of other people’s karmic situations play out in your path. Practicality only makes up for a certain percent of reality, and life is really just a game of cause and effect. We know that our actions and decisions not only affect us, but others around us. With that, you have your place in the world. You may not be able to control the karma that comes your way, but you can control the way you handle the situations. Often, these challenges presented are almost always opportunities in disguise.
You’re expanding the vision of your purpose and what long-term goals mean to you. What it truly takes to achieve your goals and the greater vision you desire for your future. You can get so wrapped up in all the little details that you lose the big picture, the purpose of why you wanted to achieve the goal in the first place. You can have all the knowledge and methods in the world, but if you don’t have wisdom and trust, you will never experience what you need to. Take a risk. Let the chips fall where they may. Who knows, you might catch a lucky break.
Audio Tip: Wrap up the project you’ve been working on and release it out into the world with confidence. Be proud of yourself.
When it comes to one-on-one connection, you’re a pro. Your aura for love and union doesn’t compare to any other in the Zodiac. The lessons of this year have taught you what it means to believe in yourself against all odds. You’ve been put in difficult situations that are teaching you what it truly means to be an individual, trusting in something bigger than yourself, and having hope and faith that it will all work out. To where you can create something that others can see themselves in, or just appreciate you for you.
You’re expanding your vision of what the future looks like for you. Being an individual doesn’t mean that you’re alone, it just means you have a unique path to follow, and along this path you will meet other individuals—people who can equally support and inspire you to think in new ways. To access this wisdom may involve getting a little more unconventional than you’re used to. Experiment with new ideas that come along the way. Know that as long as you’re true to who you are, you’ll always meet the right people who can help accomplish your dreams. Trust that you’ll find your tribe, or better yet, they’ll find you.
Audio Tip: Get out of your musical comfort zone and connect with someone you look up to.
This year has been a trying time for you. Coming face to face with emotional turning points, and realizing who and what you can really count on. It may have felt tortuous, but the difficult part is nearly over. Wrapping up the end of the year, you can finally begin to unpack the emotions and experiences you tucked away and lay them all out. Not over analyzing or trying to make sense of them, but recognizing their real value when looking back on the ‘losses’ of this year.
You’re expanding the vision of what healing means to you. In reality, your losses are not really losses. Some things had to be severed because they will not help facilitate your growth into the next stage. Through these heavy transformations, you must be kind and compassionate to yourself. Pushing through with force is not the way, and will only cause you more pain and suffering. Trust the unknown, and find ways to hold space for yourself to process these raw emotions. Don’t allow them to take power and control over you. Wisdom comes when we allow ourselves to know that it’s nothing personal, but the way of life. The leaves that fall can never take away from the tree itself.
Audio Tip: Start over and use your experiences as writing material.
When push comes to shove, you know how to get things done. Somehow, someway, it will get done. Not with minimum effort, but with every ounce of conviction. Ask for two and they’ll receive 20. You can get wrapped up in your personal beliefs and stick to what you know is true to you.
The lessons of this year have expanded the vision of yourself, who you believe yourself to be, and what you believe you can do.
The narratives you tell yourself and the person you want to be seen as often don’t look alike. You bring abundance and growth to every person or situation you come across, yet you have a hard time seeing yourself as anything less than larger than life. The truth is, it’s okay to share when you’re feeling deflated, tired. Vulnerable. You’re allowed to feel less than 1000%. Being ruled by the largest planet in our Solar System, you are gifted with a spirit that expands all that you touch, a gift that become a burden really quick if that energy is not managed properly; It can make you feel quite small or burned out. When this happens, remember that healthy boundaries are always encouraged and you are a person, not a superhero. Taking care of yourself does not make you any less extraordinary. You deserve to hold yourself in the highest regard, save room for compassion and understanding.
Audio Tip: Clear your plate of all your musical works-in-progress, then take a break before the year ends.
The lessons you went through this year (and are continuing to go through) haven’t been easy. But you know better than anybody the truth behind ‘who said it would be easy’? With the upcoming solar eclipse in Capricorn, you’ll be coming face to face with the person you carved yourself out to be, along with the sacrifices made along the way. The biggest lesson this year of all, however, are related to self-nurturing, re-parenting yourself, and assessing your emotional needs. You can’t fill another cup without filling up your own first, and you can’t build an authentic foundation by denying your personal needs.
Capricorn, you are expanding your vision of what your resources and values mean to you. You’ve gone through the lessons and sacrifices necessary to get on the other side of the difficult circumstances, and the universe wants to award you. It’s your turn to kick off your shoes and celebrate your successes. Don’t get lazy or too comfortable (as if that was possible) as this is the time to reflect and look at where you started to where you are now. You deserve to feel the love and warm embrace of comfort. Enjoy how far you’ve made it with the people and things that enrich your soul.
Audio Tip: Enjoy your holiday, then plan out your next music-related goal.
You have a vast amount of knowledge. You tend to pick up on information without trying, and your internal library exists of not just your life experiences, but the experiences of everything around you. The freedom lover in you has a natural inclination to go beyond the ‘Do Not Enter’ sign, curious of what information and experiences llay beyond the barrier. You covet that information, and do what is necessary to get it. But knowledge is power, and with power comes responsibility. It’s not what you have, but how you use it.
Aquarius, you are expanding the vision of how you use your ideas, thoughts, and connections with others.
You may prefer a stealth’ approach when it comes to manifesting your ideas, and lock yourself in your inner world to make it happen. You visualize the ‘great idea’ of the future and want to achieve it in your own unique way. At this time, flexibility and versatility is required on your part. Really look at your immediate environment, and open your eyes to the opportunities all around you. See the abundance in the connections you have and will make along the way, and be open to them. You never know what will come, but you’ll gain insight and wisdom regardless. All you have to do is ask, and you will receive.
Audio tip: Use your voice and speak your truth openly, whether that be through your lyrics or the feel of your instrumentation.
You feel most at home in your inner world, but it does a crap job at nurturing and embracing your tender. It’s a shame, but that does not mean there isn’t a place for you in the world. Learning to carve out that space for yourself, regardless of what others may project onto you, is the most powerful tool that you could use. Holding space for yourself and others allows more room for growth, more room for you to expand. Remember: you are never alone in this. You’re here to bring your imagination and dreams to life. You’re here to take up space, and to express your truth and its validity. But it all begins with being grounded in yourself first.
Pisces, you are expanding your vision of what home and emotional security looks and feels like to you. Emotional security is the foundation where you can plant your seeds, in which your dreams can flourish upon. Sharing your resources with others who hold space for you, and allow you to be vulnerable, creates for more nourishment and growth. Trusting your wisdom, intuition, and security in the validity of your emotions, motivations, and greater vision can and will do wonders for your belief system. It will create so much more abundance and opportunity than you could ever dream of.
Audio Tip: Have a group jam session with your closest music buds, or join a drum circle.
Music is sacred. It heals us, navigates our emotions, and makes us truly feel. It brings people together, drives musicians across the world, and gives us purpose. It’s the reason why She Shreds exists, and why you’re reading this today.
We’re living in a time when everything sacred is being commodified, when big companies try to make you believe that they care at all. It’s so easy to feel blue about the state of music, especially when streaming services are decreasing record sales and labels are taking advantage of indie artists. But there are people out there who truly care, who want to uphold the integrity of vinyl and the music industry at large, and Third Man Records is one of them.
From their incredible facilities, their cutting-edge artists, and their innovative music gear, Third Man Records is engaging the music community in meaningful and useful ways while keeping the sacredness of music at the forefront of all that they do.
In 2001, Jack White (The White Stripes, Dead Weather) bought a building in his hometown of Detroit, MI to store his gear, reissue the early White Stripes 45s, and start Third Man Records. Over the last 20 years, the label has grown exponentially to encompass almost all aspects of the music industry.
In 2009, Third Man opened its Nashville, TN location, which includes a record store, recording studio, the Record Booth (with a refurbished 1947 Voice-o-Graph machine that records and dispenses a one-of-a-kind 6″ phonograph disc to the user), label offices and distribution center, photo studio, and the world’s only live venue with direct-to-acetate recording capabilities—aka produces a vinyl master in real time.
In November 2015, the label returned to Detroit with its second location, the Third Man Records Cass Corridor, which contains a record and novelties lounge, mastering studio, in-store performance stage, and record pressing plant where you can get your own band’s records pressed. Third Man Pressing opened in 2017, with the intention to keep vinyl alive but to also improve upon it. “I think a lot of people think, oh, you’re a Luddite, or you live in the past, or this is nostalgia or golden-age thinking, all that,” White told Popular Mechanics. “I disagree. I like to take what’s beautiful about what’s already been proven—what works—and ask, how can we marriage that with what’s happening right now? And what can we do with that tomorrow?”
The preservation of vinyl records is crucial today—especially to those of us who collect, record, and appreciate the importance of tangible recordings—and Third Man is at the forefront, taking old technology and improving upon its quality.
Third Man is home to tons of musicians and bands pushing musical boundaries. From Olivia Jean’s latest bubblegum garage release, Night Owl, to Third Man Live recordings, the company is releasing some incredible music. Below are highlights, as well as a playlist of some of our favorite songs released on Third Man Records.
Before her solo career, Nashville-based multi-instrumentalist Olivia Jean started out as the singer/guitarist of the goth garage band The Black Belles. In 2014, she released her first solo album on Third Man Records, which showed off a poppier side of Jean’s songwriting. This year, she released her latest solo full-length, Night Owl, putting Jean in full control as producer for the first time. Night Owl is filled with rolling guitar licks, layered vocal harmonies reminiscent of ‘60s girl bands, and a mixture of surf rock and bubblegum garage to keep you moving all night long—here’s one for the night owls, for sure!
If you’ve been reading She Shreds for a few years now, then you know we’re huge fans of Wata, guitarist/keyboardist in Boris. The heavy experimental, genre-defying band from Tokyo has released over 20 full-length records since it’s start in 1992, and thanks to Third Man, we’re able to experience some of those releases on vinyl for the first time. In October, the label showed Boris lots of love: they issued Feedbacker (2003) for its first ever North American release, reissued Akuma No Uta (2003), and released the band’s most recent full-length, LOVE & EVOL.
Americana and country musician Lillie Mae has been shredding the Americana circuit with her incredible songwriting and impeccable style. She released her last two full-length albums on Third Man Records—2017’s Forever and Then Some and this year’s Other Girls. The Nashville-based musician started playing guitar at just four years old, and toured with her family band for many years. Before her solo career, she did session work with Third Man and on Jack White’s solo records, and she’s since released three solo albums, some of which feature her siblings.
One of the coolest things about Third Man Records is their recording facilities. At both of their venues, live sets are recorded and released on 7” and 12” vinyl.
“Playing Third Man was a highlight of my tour,” says Katie Crutchfield of Waxahatchee, who played Third Man in the summer of 2017. One of Cruchfield’s most beloved covers to play live, Lucinda Williams’s “Greenville,” had never been recorded prior to her set at Third Man. “To have my cover of such a great song be on this single is very exciting for me.”
Third Man’s Blue Series invites musicians on tour to record a song or two in the Third Man Studio at their Nashville location. The songs are produced by Jack White, released on both 7” vinyl and digitally, and include cover photos taken in Third Man’s blue room. Our Issue #15 cover artist, Courtney Barnett, recorded two songs for the Blue Series: “Boxing Day Blues (Revisited)” and “Shivers.”
Perhaps one of our favorite of the many parts of Third Man Records is (surprise, surprise) their extensive line of music and guitar gear. From instrument cables and tuners to sound gadgets and synthesizers, Third Man offers a variety of gear (and honestly, is a really great place to do some holiday shopping), but it’s their Third Man Exclusive Black Flex Pedal by Mantic Pedals that really stands out.
Third Man teamed up with Mantic Pedals to create a monophonic phase-locked loop synth-fuzz effect. Jack White has been using the Mantic Flex pedal since 2014—most notably heard on his guitar solo in the song “Why Walk a Dog?”—and it’s clear why it’s such a hit. With its wide tonal possibilities, the Mantic Flex can go from a sweeping phase to a fluttery thereminesque effect in the turn of a knob. The Mantic Flex has been used by multi-instrumentalist and musician Carla Azar (who played drums on three of White’s albums) and bassist Julie Slick to create synth and fuzz driven effects that will make you’re off-the-wall guitar dreams come true.
So, let me break this down for you: Third Man Records releases records, reissues records, presses records, hosts live music, has a line of music gear and merch, publishes books, and develops film—that’s a lot for one company to do, but that’s just how much they love this industry. If music is sacred, then Third Man Records is one of its keeper—ensuring that vinyl is kept alive, music stays collective, and we all get a piece.
Our new She Shreds Winter 2019 merch and bundles are here, just in time for the holidays and for you to spruce up your wardrobe and accessories in the New Year! Watch our She Shreds Winter 2019 merch video below to see the new merchandise in action. And then read more about bundle options that will both save you money and deck you out in some She Shreds!
The Opener is for those who always show up to the gig on time to see the first band, who wear their shreddable heart on their sleeve—or in this case, on their shirt, sticker, or patch!
The Opener includes:
Carry the spirit of shred with you wherever you may roam with the Touring Band bundle for all of your on-the-go She Shreds essentials!
The Touring Band includes:
The Headliner is full of solid hits, but also desperate for clean (and v cute) clothes after being on the road for so long!
The Headliner bundle includes:
If you’d rather purchase your She Shreds gear à la carte, below is a list all new merchandise, including our Shred Forever pencil pack and our She Shreds Manifesto poster!
If you’ve been trying to think of somewhere to donate this Giving Tuesday (if you have the means), we compiled a list of some of our favorite artists and the organizations they support to give you some ideas!
Sadie Dupuis is a strong advocate for naloxone, or Narcan, a nasal spray that can bring someone out of an opioid overdose. The guitarist and singer in Speedy Ortiz and Sad13 carries Narcan on her at all of her shows (the medication can be obtained with many insurances), and speaks openly about harm reduction on stage. She urges people with the means to donate to the Harm Reduction Coalition, an organization that supports communities impacted by drug use, and has been fundraising for the advocacy group at Speedy Ortiz shows. For more information, watch the video below and consider donating!
Katherine Paul, a musician who grew up in the Swinomish Indian Reservation in NW Washington state, speaks openly about the history and truth behind the land we inhabit: “For far too long, the music and entertainment industry has profited off of stolen land without giving back to native communities. I hope to change that with making space for indigenous people at my shows, within my tours by being respectful and acknowledging those before us. Land acknowledgments are the least we can do – and in fact, we must do more.” The singer-songwriter has been donating $1 from every pre-sale ticket from her current headlining Black Belt Eagle Scout tour to the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center, an organization with a mission to enhance the lives of Native women and their children. Black Belt Eagle Scout released their sophomore album, At the Party With My Brown Friends, this past August.
In October, Madame Gandhi released Visions, the second installment in her album trilogy and ongoing project that elevates women’s voices. The electronic musician, drummer, and activist also released a fall merch line, Vision 2020, in which she collaborated with several women and queer-owned clothing brands to create colorful and uplifting pieces—and better yet, 5% of proceeds from Vision 2020 are donated to Planned Parenthood.
Songwriter, poet, and activist Tasha released her debut album, Alone at Last, last year. Tasha donated $1 from each LP sold to #NoCopAcademy, a collective of organizers working to prevent a $95 million police academy from being built on the westside of Chicago.
Our Issue #15 cover artist Jenny Lewis organized a listening party for her latest album, On the Line, this past March, and in support of the Los Angeles Downtown Women’s Center. Co-hosted by actress and comedian Vanessa Bayer, the three-hour live event featured a variety of comedians and musicians (including St. Vincent), and made over $10,000 for the LA Downtown Women’s Center.
Singer-songwriter and activist Diana Gameros won the 2014 Emerging Leaders Award from the Chicana Latina Foundation, an organization that promotes professional and leadership development of Latinas. Gamero’s songs are often focused on the immigrant experience, including her own. Her latest record, Arrullo, was recorded with the support of the Women’s Audio Mission.
Bringing together art and advocacy, The Lantern Tour is in its second year, and stands with families seeking safety at the U.S. border. The acoustic tour features a variety of musicians, including Sheryl Crow, Thao Nguyen (who we interviewed in Issue 15 interview), Emmylou Harris, and more. Proceeds will benefit the Women’s Refugee Commission, an organization that works to improve the lives and protect the rights of women, children, and youth displaced by conflict and crisis.
It would be impossible to pair a musician with Girls Rock Camp—there’s just too many, and rightfully so! You can find your local Girls Rock Camp and donate to them directly, or you can donate to Girls Rock Camp Alliance, the international network (who we profiled last month). Either way, you’ll be supporting young shredders, and you can’t go wrong there!
It takes patience for me to tackle new and difficult guitar parts—but the patience required to paint my own fingernails? That kind eludes me. Until a few years ago, it was no great loss. I’ve been an avid guitarist since age 13, so on the few occasions I did get my nails done, the polish on my picking hand would wear away quickly. But the parts I write tend to be a blend of fingerstyle, heavy strumming, and outright shredding, often within the same song. This is fine in a recording session, where it’s easy to treat each part on its own with overdubs and effects. On stage, however, I found it harder to seamlessly recreate what came easily in the studio. If I played with my bare fingertips just after playing leads with a plectrum, my guitar dropped in presence and clarity. This is where the guitarist’s manicure comes in.
In 2015, backstage at a festival in Chicago, I got my first gel manicure. I didn’t expect it to last through our set, but the gel saw me through almost two weeks of touring. The heavy protective layer of polish allowed me to grow my nails a bit longer, achieving more control and volume than my short, bare nails, which would rip or break when I plucked 11s without polish. Eventually, I upgraded to acrylics and dipping powders, which allowed me to forego picks altogether. When I do gear-centric interviews and am asked what part of my rig has made the biggest change in my playing, I give props to my pedalboard but ultimately answer, “My nails.”
Folk multi-instrumentalist Johanna Warren was inspired to get acrylics after seeing virtuosic twelve-string player Alexander Turnquist. After she asked him for lessons, Turnquist told her simply to grow out her nails. “Best lesson I ever had,” Warren tells me. “Getting acrylics opened up so many compositional possibilities and transformed my relationship to my guitar. The nails let you get in there! You can get very specific about the timing and attack of every note, and play intricate rhythms with precision and power or lightly with a lot of nuance and delicacy.”
Etta Friedman, a riffer in the Los Angeles band Momma, first tried playing with press-on nails in an attempt to channel “some type of Rob Crow, Paul Simon, melodic picking genius.” After switching to acrylics, they were impressed at how well their nails were protected from their heavy playing’s usual damage to their fingers and cuticles: “[Acrylics] have provided me with a less painful and a more tonally interesting way to play guitar.”
Kaki King, an incredibly unique guitarist whose expansive style incorporates fret tapping, had to develop an equally unique signature manicure after she began playing with acrylics nearly 16 years ago. “You have to find that happy medium,” she tells me. “My tapping will suffer because I don’t have as much direct downward perpendicular force [due to the acrylics]. I’ve learned to fingerpick with slightly shorter nails in order to allow the tapping to function.” She keeps her fretting hand bare, and wears acrylics with a tip extension on the picking hand except for the pinky.
If you’re considering augmenting your nails with a long-wearing polish, here are the three most popular options:
At the salon, be very clear about your intended length and shape. I usually show up with my fretting hand nails cut down as low as possible, because it’s rare for nail techs to believe I want them as short as I do. Warren, King, Friedman and I all opt for almond-shape nails, which mimics the curves of a normal pick, although Friedman is considering experimenting with something like stiletto nails to closer approximate their favorite Tortex Sharp picks.
Two to three millimeters is a good starting length for your first set of extensions, although you may wind up growing them longer (Warren and I prefer them about twice that length). You’ll also want to be conscious of how many coats of polish you want—I like about three, but your mileage may vary.
“How thick do you really want them? It’s about pick preference, it’s about tone and timbre, it all has to do with your personal style. It’s a rabbit hole to go down but it’s like you’re creating a new body part, it has to be very specific to you and what your playing is, so just be patient with the process of discovering that,” advises King, who calls nails her “favorite topic.”
You’re likely to get some strange looks for wanting one hand short and one long, but every once in a while you’ll meet a nail tech or customer who relates to the strangeness of musically necessitated mismatched nail lengths, which is a nice conversation to have in the 45-90 minutes you can expect to spend at the salon (I typically allow about two hours, just in case). And speaking of salons, Warren has some good advice: “I try to find salons that seem relatively on top of good hygienic practices and aren’t too intensely fumey, as I’m scent-sensitive and that can be rough.” She does concede that “on tour sometimes, you have to just take what you can get.”
While aestheticizing your nails is by no means a necessity, one of my favorite parts of performing with long nails is that it’s one more opportunity for artistic expression onstage. I love matching my polish colors to the album art of bands I’m touring with, or even my own record cover during the launch of a new release.
One of the best parts of needing nail maintenance on tour is accessing the infinite spectrum of nail colors available nationwide; between heat-sensitive mood colors, chromes, rainbow pastels, and ombres, I’m never restricted to the offerings of a single salon—and Friedman’s with me. “I’ve decided that I might as well go all out and be as bold as possible and try to make a real statement out of my nails,” they told me, also noting that gender dysphoria initially made them hesitant to embrace acrylics for their playing. “I never fully felt, or have wanted to outwardly express myself as too femme. However, understanding the notion that my gender presentation doesn’t invalidate my internal gender identity, I developed a newfound confidence in reference to my nails. Subconsciously, I believe getting acrylics has helped me become more explorative of my identity, and has allowed me to lean more into my fluidity.” Warren, who occasionally dons black polish on top of her acrylics, echoes that sentiment: “I love the asymmetry of having one hand with no nails at all and one with crazy talons. It pleases all my genders.”
Even with the best salon care in the world, it’s best to be emergency prepared. King and Warren travel with nail kits and superglue; King even carries a pouch of recycled acrylic nails she can re-glue quickly, having learned her lesson after losing a nail or two into the crowd from the stage. That’s happened to me, too, and while it’s an entertaining source of stage banter, it’s not so wonderful for finishing your set on a high note.
Make sure not to let your nails grow out longer than three weeks (or less, depending on how fast your nails grow); the space between your cuticle and the base of your thick polish can catch on the undersides of your strings, muting something you want to sustain and resulting in a shred fail. Regular maintenance is key, especially as prolonged contact with strings creates tiny indentations in the sides of the nails you pick with most, which can also snag as you play.
“My biggest piece of advice is to file and file and file. You can’t file enough,” warns King, whose initial filing on a new set of nails can take as long as an hour. “I think sometimes people go and get nails done and they come back to their guitar and it’s unplayable. What they don’t realize is you have to create a flat edge underneath and all around. It’s an epic amount of filing. Be aware that this is a lifestyle.” A lifestyle that determines your playstyle. It’s work, but it’s also a lot of fun, and can open you up to a whole new arsenal of rhythmic and tonal choices. Hope you enjoy picking with your brand new nails!
Want to carry She Shreds? Email accounts@sheshreds-staging.jzck3hem-liquidwebsites.com.
Thank you to our Issue #19 sponsors: Fender, Martin & Co., PRS Guitars, Sennheiser, Taylor Guitars, Reverb.com, Sam Ash, Ernie Ball, 6131 Records, Father/Daughter Records, Red Panda Lab, Strymon, ZT Amplifiers, Walrus Audio, Third Man Records, and Park the Van Records. We literally would not be able to produce this issue without their support.
The award-winning flamenco guitarist, who made a name for herself as a television personality and La Cuchi Cuchi, contains multitudes. Charo opens up to She Shreds about her journey from Spain to the United States, the ups and downs of her career, losing her husband, and how music has saved her through it all.
Tegan and Sara Quin are visionaries. The twins have been releasing confessional pop music since 1998, and most recently released an album of re-recorded demos from their youth, as well as the memoir, High School. Tegan and Sara spoke with twins Katie (Waxahatchee) and Allison Cruthfield (Swearin’) about working together as sisters and band mates, not pandering to the moment, and going back to their roots.
Emily and Sheyla Rosas were born in the United States, but are passionate about keeping Mexican traditions alive in their musical project, Dueto Dos Rosas. From San Marcos, CA, the sisters are proud of their indigenous Oaxacan roots and Mexican-American identity, and speak to paying tribute to their heritage by performing campirana and old Mexican folk songs on the requinto guitar, how they got their start on YouTube, and the feedback from family and fans.
Tierra Wilson, aka UMI, recently dropped out of high school to to fully commit to music. The Seattle-born musician expresses her purpose as an artist to heal people through relatability, how she protects her energy in the music industry, and the value of sisterhood.
Blending folk with hip hop and R&B, Mereba’s lastest release, The Jungle is the Only Way Out, joins expressive vocals with impressive rap skills, guitar work in beautiful love songs, and tracks about police brutality and the legacy of blackness in America. In her interview, Mereba opens up the creation of the album, her approach to instrumentation, and her definition of “the jungle.”
The legendary British singer-songwriter has been releasing music under multiple genres since the 1970s, with an attitude that is anything but compromising. In this feature, Armatrading shares her early experiences in the music industry, her influence on a younger generation of songwriters, and her unwavering righteousness.
In our Scene Report, we profile 50 innovative women luthiers, gear builders, and repairers across the world who are doing incredible work with their businesses.
Adrienne Hailey, bassist in Sammus and 79.5, joins issue #19 as guest editor, offering up her pre-show rituals, a lesson on rhythmn, and “the feel” of playing music.
17 Scene Report: 50 Builders and Repairers in the Guitar Industry
27 The Righteousness of Joan Armatrading
33 How to Turn a Radio into an Amp
37 Cover Story: Tegan and Sara
45 Cover Story: Charo
53 Dueto Dos Rosas
61 UMI
69 Mereba
77 Tabs: “I’ll Be Back Someday” by Tegan and Sara
79 Guest Editor: Adrienne Hailey
80 Adrienne Hailey’s Essential Tour Rituals
83 Lesson: Adrienne Hailey’s Lesson on Rhythm
Last week, Stevie Knipe, singer-songwriter of Adult Mom, posted a series of tweets addressing their recent issues with Tiny Engines, a label that has grown largely since its start in 2008. Tiny Engines had neglected to pay out royalties to Knipe over the last few years from the Adult Mom releases Momentary Lapse of Happily (2015) and Soft Spots (2017). In the tweets, Knipe recounts their experience with the label, which included a demand to return the Adult Mom master rights due to Tiny Engines’s breach of contract, an unsettling phone conversation with the owner about money, and getting a lawyer involved. The tweets resulted in days of silence from Tiny Engines, which created feelings of confusion and anger amongst other bands on the label, especially those who recently signed a contract or released a record during the label’s disappearance.
Knipe started an email thread with every Tiny Engines band they could find a contact for, checking in and starting a dialogue on how they could support each other during this time of limbo. Knipe received responses from an overwhelming amount of musicians on Tiny Engines claiming that similar issues over royalty payouts had been happening to them for years. “At this point, we’re all in it together and supporting each other, and reaching out to the same lawyer,” says Knipe. “We’re trying to do anything we can as a team.” Bands without an upcoming release were worried about what they would do next, while bands with releases scheduled in 2020—or bands like Pendant, who released a new record during the label’s silence—were fearful of what would happen to their work. “Everyone feels like a chicken with their head cut off,” says Knipe. “No one knows what to do. But I think the coolest part of this so far is figuring out ways people can support Adult Mom and other bands without supporting the label itself.”
While Tiny Engines has yet to make a public statement, they have started reaching out to bands, and last Friday they responded to Knipe with an offer to return their masters. Tiny Engines co-owner, Chuck Daley, emphasizes that the label’s number one focus right now is to fix the inconsistencies in accounting: “We recognized the issue a couple of years ago, and it stemmed from us being a hobby label. And then things started to go well. We started to do contracts, and then suddenly realized that this accounting is way more than what we’re qualified to handle.”
Tiny Engines recently started working with a bookkeeper to make sure payments are made on time moving forward, and hired a royalty firm with a platform that sends out automatic emails, generated statements, and has a dashboard that all bands will have access to for transparency and timely payments. The label has also been attempting to make amends with bands, allowing anyone with a scheduled 2020 release (that’s not too far into the process) and bands contracted for a second record to walk away. “It’s been a chance for us to reevaluate, and take responsibility for the stuff we messed up on, and how to fix that going forward,” says Daley. “I do think there’s some valid points being made about masters versus licensing, and going forward I’m definitely open to discussions. Maybe there’s a middle ground.”
Of course, those recent changes made by Tiny Engines do not mend the professional and personally damages experienced by Knipe. And the ever-contentious conversation between musicians and labels about master rights shows how similar the music industry can be at different levels, from major to independent labels. However, Knipe urges the industry to remember that Taylor Swift, who is also in the middle of a master rights battle, is a multi-millionaire, and one of the world’s highest paid celebrities—when it comes to low income and indie artists, owning master rights can make a significant difference in income, or even affect making rent month-to-month.
“Think about how any union has started—the workers set the standard,” says Knipe. “If all of us say no [to label’s owning masters], then they will have to change the standard.”
Joseph D’Agostino, frontperson of the now defunct Cymbals Eat Guitars, recently signed to Tiny Engines with his new project, Empty Country. Having been fully immersed in the music industry for over a decade, he believes that any label permanently owning a musician’s master rights should not be the norm, and that figuring out a deal that respects a musician’s right to their own art and a label’s need to run a stable business should be negotiated. “Generally, I feel that a 7-year license should be long enough of a term for any label to figure out a way to recoup a reasonable initial investment,” says D’Agostino through email. “On the other hand, I don’t necessarily think that master ownership deals are inherently evil. They’re definitely not unusual, but I think there needs to be very good communication about all possible options.”
With Tiny Engines, D’Agostino was offered a choice between a seven-year license with no advance, or to buy his masters outright: “It points to the larger questions many artists are asking ourselves, about how to value our work and feel viable in a time when few people buy records.” Last week, D’Agostino announced that Empty Country got out of their contract with Tiny Engines, and are looking elsewhere for a label to release their debut album.
Since leaving Tiny Engines, Knipe has been working with Patreon to help support their music and livelihood as they finish up Adult Mom’s third record and look for a new label. The money Knipe receives through Patreon goes directly to them, and creates a community of fans that the musician can interact with and create content for specifically. “At the end of the day, I want the fans to know that we’re doing this together—it’s a mutual exchange,” says Knipe. They add that fans are more understanding than ever of how important their direct purchases are to a musician’s livelihood.
Lily Mastrodimos, singer-songwriter in Long Neck, a Tiny Engines band that currently has an album release scheduled for 2020, mentions that fans should not boycott the label, but keep supporting the bands that are still on Tiny Engines: “Don’t punish the artists for the label’s mistakes. A lot of the artists impacted by these developments have just released music—it’s important that people continue to circulate those albums online, share them, buy them at their shows (or once they’re online under the band’s own account), go to those shows. We’ve all been put in very precarious positions.”
In telling their story, Knipe breaks down the illusion of musicians living ideally, whether it be an indie band or a mainstream musician: “It’s cool to get the general public to understand what happens behind closed doors. [Some] people have romanticized opinions of how records get made, how tours go, how shows are. It’s a business based upon the rock star projection—that’s when things get really messed up, abuses get covered up. That’s one of the biggest problems in music: the romanization of artists. Things like this help bring us to a level playing field. I just want fans to understand that this is a mutual act. We have to give to you, and you give back.”
With the sun in powerful, deeply transformative Scorpio, we are called to rise up and step into our inner power, as well as assess and evaluate parts of our life that require rebirth to align ourselves with our highest goals and desires. Now is the time to purge anything that is draining or not serving us in the long term; the process isn’t pretty, but it’s a necessary part of growth. Mercury retrograde in Scorpio (Mercury rules communications, plans, technology, and short term travel) brings deep intimacy to the forefront on all levels. Thinking will be more critical and conversations will be more honest.
The upcoming Full Moon in Taurus offers us stability and comfort in such a trying time. Despite the heavy energies, the planets and aspects bring themes of vulnerability, trust, expansion, collaboration, abundance, and deep healing.
Entering into Sagittarius season, we can take the painful lessons and wisdom we gained through Scorpio and reclaim the future we deserve—on our terms.
Read your November Audioscopes below! I suggest reading both your Sun and rising sign (also known as your Ascendant), which is the zodiac sign of the sun ascending on the eastern horizon when you were born, indicating how you are perceived externally—aka your mask.
You seem to have this boundless amount of energy, and even more so when it comes to projects you’re passionate about. Your hardworking nature allows you to put your all into everything you do, but can also leave you exhausted and without much reward to show for it.
Scorpio season shines a light on your routines and how you can better manage and distribute your time and energy, avoid burnout, and make sure your return matches the effort you put in. You’ve been learning lessons around healing the wounded masculine energies (asserting yourself, taking action, etc.). Taking the time to look at the little details and getting things in order may not be your inherent nature, but it will give you a chance to see where you’ve misplaced your energy in ways that don’t serve you in the long term and help you create a stronger sense of personal value and empower you in a more efficient way. Slow down and celebrate your accomplishments.
Audio Tip: Pick a designated day of the week as your “Music day.”
It’s time to transform your partnerships—whether it be work, significant other, or friendships—and really take stock of them. Are these mutually beneficial connections or are they surface level? Are these invested partnerships going to make it into the next stage of your life? Will these relationships help facilitate your growth in the future or keep you stagnant?
As one of the most stable signs, you’re known to hold on to your investments and possessions with a death grip, material and otherwise. Looking at the true quality of your relationships brings you closer to your inner divinity, including who and where you are in this moment. Whatever gets lost in the process wasn’t meant to follow you into the next stage, and the partnerships that do make it tell you everything you need to know.
Audio Tip: Share your creations (even if they’re not complete) with someone you’re close with.
With Mercury retrograde in Scorpio, there will be an increased effect on you communications, conversations, and plans. Logic and reason won’t be as effective and reliable; you’ll notice a veil lifted on the communications you share with others. The conversations you choose to engage in will tell you much more beyond just words—it’s not what you say, but how you say it.
This is the perfect time to embrace and be transparent with feelings you might have pushed aside. Take the time to really understand your inner dialogue. Be aware of what you share with others and watch out for arguments, but be willing to open up. Staying present and honest are the most powerful tools you have.
Audio Tip: Write a song inspired by an honest conversation or situation.
This may be the perfect time to take the ideas you’ve been sitting on and finally put them out into the world. Work with whatever energy comes up. As heavy as things might feel at the moment, they’ll come to pass; trust your intuition and the universe. You’ll be making some fated connections and opportunities—luck and abundance is on its way to you—but in order to receive these gifts, you’re asked to release past emotional burdens that are holding you back.
This is the best time to really connect with your highest self and visualize your future. Don’t be afraid to dream a little bigger than usual. While you may be confident in your own ability to make things happen, let the universe do the heavy lifting. After all, there are some things outside of our jurisdiction. Emotions will come up, but trust that things will work out for your highest benefit.
Audio Tip: Visit your local record store, explore, and find a new album that inspires you.
You have certain qualities that others dream of: a natural born talent for leadership as well as the confidence and ability to succeed in anything you set your mind to. However, sometimes your ego can put you in a box, limiting you from living the life you truly want to be aligned with. Scorpio season is going to hold you accountable.
During this time, assess the decisions you’ve made thus far. You’re the only one responsible for your happiness and satisfaction, and you owe it to yourself to be honest and really dig deep. Feelings related to your career, purpose, and legacy will come up. If the structures you’ve invested in aren’t serving you, step into your inner power and be brave enough to take matters into your own hands. Create a future that satisfies your soul.
Audio Tip: Watch a documentary (or a few) of your favorite musicians. Pay attention to their stories.
You have the ability to close certain parts of yourself off when you are hurt, which is not something that everyone in your life may know about you. It will seem that Scorpio season is making a mess of your social circles and sense of community, but on a deeper level Scorpio is presenting the truth behind your social ties. This may show in the form of not having your needs met, being taken advantage of, or even a betrayal.
You’re being asked to release the expectations and projections you put on others, and the disappointment that follows when you’re let down. By radically shifting your perspective and allowing people to show you who they really are (and believing them), you’re given the opportunity to connect to your inner divinity and step into your own power. Remember who you are, and through this you will open yourself up to equally beneficial connections that can truly help you heal and grow.
Audio Tip: Have a jam session with your friends who have the best taste in music.
You strive for harmony and peace, and are known for putting yourself out there in the name of love. However, Scorpio is known for peeling back the layers and revealing parts of ourselves that we hide away, things we don’t want to integrate. Acknowledging your less than aesthetically pleasing attributes isn’t your cup of tea; you might try to push away uncomfortable feelings of envy, shame, loneliness, and anger. Reclaim your emotions and own them fully.
Scorpio season will shine a light on your subconscious behavior and hidden motivations. You may have been hurt in previous partnerships, and now you’ll start to see how it’s manifesting and mirroring into your reality. Notice when you tuck parts of yourself away and recognize where it stems from. Opening up to compromise and empathy can help you unpack the difficult emotions and heal your relationship with yourself in a transformative way.
Audio Tip: Channel your emotions and write an angry punk song.
You’re going through intense lessons on how you view yourself, and how you move through the world. You prefer the elusive approach, and don’t like to force or cause too much friction. You know how to make your presence felt in your own unique way and still maintain that hint of mystery. There’s so much to be seen beneath your surface; you hold so much power and strength. You’re a natural born leader who leads from the heart rather than the ego. With Mercury in retrograde, logic and reason are on vacation. Initially, things might not make as much sense, but with your intuition being your guiding force, things might eventually make more sense to you right now.
Now is the time to fully believe in yourself and your abilities. You have the power to see the true nature of things, beyond surface level projections, and not only that: you can harness the inner power to face it head on. That gift isn’t given to those faint of heart; it’s given to those who are real and honest enough to handle it.
Audio Tip: Play or sing a song in front of a mirror.
One of your best talents is knowing how to take your passions to the next level, and expand them beyond measure. On the other hand, it’s quite easy to get caught up in the energy of the moment and over do it. With the Jupiterian influence of abundance, optimism, and luck, things can get beyond your control real quick if you’re not careful. This month you will be re-evaluating your relationship with finances, personal values, and how you use your resources.
Get grounded and practical with your means and financial resources during this time. You can still have fun, and your shadow side can come along for the ride, but make sure you’re the one in control. There is such a thing as “too much.” Pay attention if you get a hard “NO.”
Audio Tip: Write a song using your most cherished method, instrument, or program.
You can be rather restrictive on what you choose to share. You have so much knowledge and wisdom, but you keep a tight grip on what you want others to see. Vulnerability is not something you feel comfortable sharing with the world, but Scorpio season puts all of us in an uncomfortable position, whether we like it or not. How humbling and humanizing that experience is; but nonetheless, it’s not your style.
To experience true transformation, you must reclaim your voice. You’ll be coming face-to-face with the issues you have in expressing yourself and your ideas, especially when deep emotions are involved. Whatever you’re feeling, stand with full conviction of what you saying. Allow yourself to be contemplative and curious in your thoughts, and don’t be quick to judge yourself or others—Mercury retrograde in Scorpio is playing with all of our minds. Be compassionate to yourself when times get tough. Open up your heart and your mind will follow.
Audio Tip: Experiment with new sounds or instruments and play with someone you trust.
You may not be where you expected, but you are where you need to be for now. The size of your heart is larger than you realize; you constantly put yourself on the line for others, ready to risk it all, and you’re exceptional at being the carrier for other’s emotions. But now it’s time to give yourself as much as you give to others and to really put your emotional satisfaction on the table. Get down to your roots.
Aquarius, reclaim what nurturing and self-care means to you on an emotional level. Habits picked up in childhood or adolescence aren’t serving you like they used to. It’s okay to have ties to the past; however, learning to re-parent yourself, establish boundaries, and put your needs first is a gift that Scorpio season offers for when things get beyond your control or expectations. Welcome and accept it with open hands and an open mind.
Audio tip: Revisit old albums, songs, or poems that you’ve written.
You might be having X-ray vision right now, Pisces. You might be seeing things play out in the real world that have only been in your mind thus far. Now is the time to really let your creativity loose without judgement or fear.
Scorpio season highlights the depth of emotions you feel on the daily, and now the spotlight is on you. Don’t take things too seriously; find outlets that allow you to express yourself fully, and share your vision with the world. You’ll not only create a deeper, universal understanding, but you’ll also allow others to see and accept the depth of their own inner world. Be as freaky as you want to be.
Audio Tip: Karaoke!
For a brief but beautiful time, Vivian Girls were pioneers of mid-00s noise-pop. Across three LPs—their self-titled debut (2008), Everything Goes Wrong (2009) and Share The Joy (2011)—singer/guitarist Cassie Ramone, bassist Katy Goodman, and drummer Ali Koehler crafted a rambunctious, textural landscape that blended sighing harmonies, peppy percussion, and reverb-coated guitar. They were vital, distinctive, and ahead of the curve, but at the height of their career, the group also proved to be one of the most divisive in the genre.
Subjected to aggressive and ignorant commentary from anonymous trolls, as well as reviews from male journalists claiming they were incompetent instrumentalists, Vivian Girls were targeted with a nauseating and incomprehensible force. After playing their final shows and disbanding in 2014, the members worked on solo projects, started families, and left the echo of roaring, unnecessary criticism firmly in their past.
Five years later, Vivian Girls are back with Memory, released today on Polyvinyl Recording Co. The band’s fourth studio album produces a heady reflection that shuns the pleasant sentimentality of nostalgia for a darkened, realistic narrative. It creates a haunting aspect that, in our current sociological climate, feels urgent and inevitable. “I guess for risk of getting too personal, I was pretty depressed for the past few years,” says Ramone, who moved from New York to Los Angeles specifically for the band’s reunion. “Vivian Girls was my life, and then it ended—I didn’t really feel like I had a purpose. [Memory] is mostly about living in the past, not acknowledging reality, and living at a time that is not in the present.”
While the band reveals that the writing process for Memory was very similar to their other records, there was one essential difference: they created it in secret. Goodman describes the approach as “insulated from outside opinions and voices,” something the band were conscious to execute after years of external slander. “Not sharing any part of it with anyone was a pretty unique way to make a record now,” says Goodman. “We felt like Kylie Jenner’s baby or something! It felt cool to be making something without everybody knowing about it and chiming in.”
Tucked away in the studio with engineer and producer Rob Barbato (Kevin Morby, The Fall), Vivian Girls stuck to their true, unapologetic sonic landscape. Washy guitars still adorn the backbone of the band’s output, but as Ramone reveals, she was able to be more exploratory in her instrumental approach. Using a Balltip guitar slide, Ramone and Barbato spent 14 hours playing around with a variety of guitars to produce weird, experimental sounds that make up the crux of the new LP. “It was important for us to capture the same energy that we had—especially on the second record—because that was a very good moment for us,” says Ramone. “We wanted to create that same feeling, and I feel like we were successful.”
The sessions took place during mid-September and Halloween week, when the golden hue of Los Angeles continues its unfaltering reign. While the city is the band’s new home base, desert imagery is something that has always played a role in Vivian Girls. “Moving to a new city after living in New York for 14 years definitely inspired me, just because I was learning how to live in a different way in so many facets of my life,” says Ramone. “That really sparked a creative urge in me.” From Memory’s album art that depicts an early evening palm tree scene to the video for “Something To Do” in which each member runs to the top of a sunset-soaked hill in Elysian Park, the LA environment clearly agrees with the band’s latest direction. Much like the video’s optimistic finale, which sees them embrace on the hill overlooking the cityscape, Memory feels like Vivian Girls will finally get to tell their story, their way.
Reflecting on their career, Ramone describes Vivian Girls as motivated, tenacious, and creative people. Making music in this way is something that has solidified itself as one of the most important aspects of each band member’s life. “It has always been that way with us, and I just thought that’s how all bands were,” says Koehler. “And then in the time that’s passed since, I’ve learned that that’s a very rare thing, to get all members on the same page. It’s special, for sure.”
Vivian Girls are tentatively hopeful about re-entering the industry; Ramone now has a personal ban on reading anything about the band online. “I try to make music about the painful stuff in my life, and I always hope that people come away from it feeling therapeutic,” she says.
“I like music that’s melodic but also painful emotionally, so that’s why I’ve always liked Vivian Girls,” Goodman adds. “I feel like Memory satisfies that need. I was just recently listening to these songs and thought, ‘All of these make me feel heavy.’ It’s like when you push on a bruise—you know it’s going to hurt, but in the end it’s satisfying.”
Aptly named after a game of solitaire, Lina Tullgren (who uses they/them pronouns) explores themes of alienation and a search for order on their sophomore effort, Free Cell, released by Captured Tracks in August. While on tour for their debut album, Won, in 2017, Tullgren found a comparison between the game and writing music: it’s an introverted process in which, at the end, everything falls into place.
Originally from Maine but now based in Queens, New York, Tullgren wrote Free Cell while in a transitional period, starting in between tours while living at their parents’ home in New England, and fully materializing as they moved to Queens to be closer to their music community.
Tullgren self-produced Free Cell with help from friends, stating that the production was a “combination of intuiting my friends super powers, learning how to best communicate with them in order to extract the sounds I wanted to hear, mania, fun, and also learning to let go at the proper junctures.”
Along with the album, Tullgren filmed four songs from Free Cell in their bedroom. With the help of friend and collaborator, Ty Ueda, who directed and shot the videos, Tullgren visually portrays the intimacy of the album:
“This series captures an integral part of my creative process: writing and conceptualizing music in my room or in solitude. I don’t intend to make music that is universal, but often times I end up doing just that—writing music about coping mechanisms, retreat, communication, isolation… all things we experience in our day to day whether we want to face them or not.”
Lina Tullgren
In the live video for “Free Cell,” everyday noises from the street seep in among images from Tullgren’s home: art on the wall, DVDs, a spice rack, and a friend pensively listening as Tullgren’s strumming breaks through the noise. “The addition of another person in each video takes music that I write for only myself and offers it to the intentional listener,” says Tullgren. “I struggle a lot with the idea of audience and their purpose—why give away music so personal to strangers who know nothing about my life? Why play shows on stages to people staring at their phones? It’s complicated… This series finds a happy medium where I’m in my room (the place I feel most comfortable) with my friends (the people I feel most comfortable sharing music with).”
This month, Tullgren will be supporting Frankie Cosmos on a North American tour. Check out the dates below!
