“Dress in clothes you love for a world you hate” or how Carrie Brownstein turned to music to overcome a tragedy

Despite the rise of capitalism and the isolation to which social networks paradoxically condemn us, the community spirit of Riot Grrrl remains latent.

The latest wave of feminism and sorority turn Sleater-Kinney, one of the girl groups that championed the scene of the nineties (along with Bikini Kill, Babes in Toyland or L7), into paradigms.

There are phenomena like the series

We are lady parts

(Filmin) or Spanish bands like Melenas, Cariño or Ginebras.

Not to mention the wonderful essay published by Contra publishing house in the middle of last year,

The Girls in Front: The True Story of the Riot Grrrl Revolution

, by Sara Marcus.

During the hiatus that Sleater-Kinney took (from 2006 to 2014), Carrie Brownstein (Seattle, 49 years old), guitarist and singer of the group, did not sit idly by.

Along with Fred Armisen, she wrote and starred in the satirical series

Portlandia

,

about the excesses of the

hipster

phenomenon .

Since her return in 2014, Sleater-Kinney has released four albums and toured around the world.

We spoke with Brownstein about

Little Rope,

her new album, an album marked by the death by car of her mother and her stepfather.

Carrie Brownstein, in full performance.

How has art helped you channel pain?

Creativity helps us communicate with the unknown, art raises more questions than answers.

Examines and processes ideas that do not have a concrete definition.

Creation is a ritual that makes us feel alive: the songs will last beyond death.

On this occasion, it made me appreciate the conversation that songs allow us to have with the world.

His relationship with his bandmate, Corin Tucker, dates back to high school.

How has recording an album under such difficult circumstances strengthened your friendship?

It has brought us even closer.

For us, composing is a way of communicating, of transmitting our mood with that vocabulary that we have created.

Music allows us to express what happens to us in a way that transcends language.

Little Rope

even allowed him to talk to his past self: they had many songs when they entered the studio, songs written before the tragedy, like

Dress Yourself.

That's right, the song says: “Dress in clothes you love for a world you hate.”

That topic was very personal because it deals with wounds that I have had for a long time.

That's why it was so strange to feel that he was talking to me about my mother's death, it was like a gift that I gave myself to go through those difficult moments.

More information

'Girl power' resists oblivion

Tucker sings more on this album than on the previous ones: apparently it was out of necessity, because sometimes it was difficult for you to do so.

What creative process is most cathartic for you: composing, singing, playing guitar?

I have always used the guitar as my voice, to express myself.

On

Dig Me Out

[the opening song on Sleater-Kinney's 1997 album of the same name], I communicate through the

riff,

and Corin offers the equivalent with her voice.

I feel comfortable playing the guitar.

She emulates the voice: it can be sad, beautiful, discordant...

With the rise of social media and liberalism, society is increasingly individualistic.

There are movements, like the Riot Grrrl, that create community, as has also happened with the latest wave of feminism.

Could you tell us about the sorority behind your band and what the

Riot Grrrl phenomenon meant

?

We founded the group in a context of very communal political activism, that was Olympia [Washington] in 1994. With Riot Grrrl it was important to help, support, credit and disseminate the work of others.

In art, community is important because it's about sharing ideas.

At that time, the scene, not only in the United States, but elsewhere, was anti-capitalist and anti-materialist: the difference between the

underground/indie

and the

mainstream

was clear.

That model no longer exists.

And artists suffer from it.

Exact.

Especially in the United States, art is discredited.

Cities are expensive and people want everything for free, so artists can't pay rent or live near other artists.

I don't blame the musicians.

They try to make money in a complicated context.

We do not have the system or the resources to support them.

We were lucky enough to work at an

indie

record label and we did not sell our principles.

Musicians today have it difficult.

But I think the spirit of Riot Grrrl survives.

Which bands remain faithful to those values?

The camaraderie remains, there are many groups with girls who support each other: Big Jonie, Palehound, Black Belt Eagle Scout... There is a very interesting scene.

'Little Rope' is their new album.Tutu Lee

They learned to play together, today

online workshops are triumphing.

Has the magic of the physical been lost?

We are more isolated every day.

Many people don't have space at home or elsewhere to meet with other creators.

Playing together, with or without an audience, is a unique experience;

a fundamental part of music.

During Sleater-Kinney's break, his comedic side was seen with the series

Portlandia

.

There were hilarious scenes: the neighbors chasing a ray of sunshine or the obsession with knowing the origin of a chicken they are going to eat... Humor is a medicine: don't you miss it?

I miss him.

Humor is a filter to see the world and process what happens to us.

Being involved in this series for eight seasons made me feel lucky.

Brownstein and Tucker have been playing together since they were teenagers.

What was it like returning to the studio in 2014 to record

No Cities to Love

after an eight-year break?

Music has been a constant in my life since I was a teenager, and Sleater-Kinney, since I was 20 years old.

Re-recording was natural.

From the beginning I was clear that it was not about having a meeting to play classics.

We wanted new topics.

And how has the dynamic changed as there are two?

Corin and I have been writing together since the beginning.

I liked that Janet [Weiss] added the drums: she's brilliant.

We learned a lot from her, she is a great arranger.

Corin and I like to lock ourselves in to compose with the guitar, we throw ideas at each other in a very elastic process.