Before obtaining a copy of, and reading, the book I was a bit worried that it would be written for the academic market, and that it would tend towards dryness as a result, and be laden with theory (I got this impression from reading the review on Wears The Trousers) but it isn’t at all: It’s very vivid and readable. Marcus does write it from the position of an insider, which is a definite strength in this case as previous books on riot grrrl haven’t been written by insiders, but her perspective doesn’t mean she is uncritical: she is setting up the cracks as well as showing the strengths.

The analysis of the frequently contested, maligned, and misunderstood activity of writing on the body is interesting. Through Kathleen Hanna, Marcus links it to art history and artists such as Barbara Kruger and Jenny Holzer, to ACT UP and straight edge, revealing prededents and possible influences. I also like the way Susan Faludi’s ‘Backlash’ (which I read just prior to this on the basis that it was probably long overdue that I did), Madonna, and the post-punk film ‘Ladies And Gentlemen The Fabulous Stains!’ are mentioned and discussed. She sums up writing on the body this way:

a girl’s body was contested territory; this was a way to rewrite its meaning.

I begin to see more and more that the riot grrrls essentially, consciously or not, picked up the gauntlet laid down to women at the end of ‘Backlash’, where Faludi wrote, and I’m paraphrasing here, ‘This is how it’s been in the 80′s, what will happen in the 90′s?’

I also think that Marcus sums up a crisis point beautifully when she writes in the 1992-3 section “Riot Grrrl was edging its way, involuntarily, towards the cultural mainstream, and it wasn’t ready to be there.”

In terms of the way punk and riot grrrl have been fetishized and the nostalgia aspect has become damaging, I found a section of the book where Marcus discussed Seanna Tully’s introduction into riot grrrl particularly poignant: Tully became a riot grrrl in 1992, and she proudly wore a ‘Riot Grrrl; shrinky dink necklace, but was acutely aware of it not coming from the first batch of such homemade neckaces.

 ”I had first-generation-shrinky dink envy,” Seanna laughed later, aware of how silly it sounded, but her comment pointed to something real: how easy it is to idealize things that happened in the past, or are happening to somebody else, as more enticing than what you could make out of your own life.

Another general strength is that the book clearly makes a strong case for music as a serious tool in feminisms arsenal: How many girls would get to tour a feminist lecture tour? and how many would attend? What would be the entry requirements to speak on such a tour? And what would be the entry requirements for a group of young feminists to form a punk band and tour?

I also like that Marcus isn’t afraid to discuss the violence bands like Bikini Kill and Huggy Bear faced, from men and women, and from some of the riot grrrls in the end. She also acknowledges the chilling impact of murder and rape within the punk scenes, and of Kurt Cobains suicide.

The decline and fall section is very good, in that she recognises the impact of burnout, sheer disillusionment, the searing impact of media intrusion, failure to address issues of class and ethnicity (I should probably say race, but the ghost of A Level Sociology lingers on…) and the subsequent battles within that ensued as a result of this, also the impact of Jessica Hopper’s breaking of the media embargo, and individual acts of profound selfishness on the various chapters and scenes. I like the postcript very much, in that she acknowledges the enduring impact and influence of riot grrrl, whilst also pointing to the fact that American society has got worse, not better, since riot grrrl.

Needless to say, the book focuses on the U.S scenes and chapters, so whilst the U.K gets a mention, it’s only in the form of London, Huggy Bear, Linus, and Lucy Thane’s film of the Bikini Kill/Huggy Bear tour in 1993: ‘It Saved My Life’. There’s a vague reference to chapters, bands, and scenes, in ‘the north of England’, but that’s it. This is to be expected though as it’s clear that the book was never intended to take a much wider view than the U.S. One day, fuller, worldwide accounts of the impact riot grrrl had on girls in Britain, Holland, Belgium, France, Brazil, Poland, Spain, Italy, Croatia, and beyond will be written, but scrappy accounts are what exist at present, and I don’t expect that to change anytime soon.

MIXTAPE FOR A GIRL – Rebel Girl or You don’t deserve my fucking speech (click to download me)

1. Bad Reputation  -  Joan Jett
2. Rebel Girl  -  Bikini Kill
3. Herjazz  -  Huggy Bear
4. Cool Schmool  -  Bratmobile
5. Cherry Bomb   – The Runaways
6. Kool Thing  -  Sonic Youth
7. 50ft Queenie  -  PJ Harvey
8. Olympia  -  Hole
9. Jumpers  -  Sleater-Kinney
10. Johnny Sunshine  -  Liz Phair
11. Deceptacon  -  Le Tigre
12. Itty Bitty Piggy  -  Nicki Minaj
13. Dang-a-Lang   -  Trina ft. Nicki Minaj & Lady Saw
14. Bust Your Windows (Remix) –   Jazmine Sullivan feat. The-Dream
15. These Boots Are Made For Walking  -  Loretta Lynn

Well, this is ironic. This time last year I was finishing the first draft of the book and noting that between the time that Primal Scream recorded the apathy-lamenting title track of their XTRMNTR album (“No civil disobedience”) in autumn 1999 and the album’s release in early 2000, massive civil disobedience had broken out at the WTO summit in Seattle. “Seattle surprised me with its militancy,” said Naomi Klein, who published No Logo around the same time. “It surprised the organisers. It surprised everybody.”

Well, now I know how Primal Scream and Naomi Klein felt. A few weeks ago I signed off on the final proofs, including an epilogue in which I related the decline of protest music to the absence of serious street-level dissent. “Who would be compelled to write songs for the barricade when there are no barricades?” I asked. And then this happened:

It’s hard to tell exactly where all this energy goes now that the rise in tuition fees has been passed but for now I’m glad to be proved wrong. At the beginning of 2010 who would have predicted university students and sixth-formers taking to the streets with such anger and focus? Who foresaw the return of the sit-in? Who knew that the role of Mick Jagger at Grosvenor Square would be taken by Johnny bloody Borrell? It is an inspiring, bewildering time.

The protesters seem to be doing perfectly well without any political anthems. The BBC’s Paul Mason, one of the few reporters to try to understand the students while the likes of Sky News cry anarchy because Charles and Camilla had a bit of a scare, snappily calls it a “dubstep rebellion”, based on the music played on the sound systems in Parliament Square. Still, I hope this will remind young bands that political songwriting isn’t a busted flush, that the appetite is there if the songs are good enough. The Agitator can be a wee bit blunt for my tastes but at least he’s in the fray, playing the UCL Occupation and voicing the anger of the moment.

I thought back to the demos I attended circa 1993 (small-fry by comparison, it must be said) and a song which still has the right mix of ferocity, jubilation and youthful militancy.

But of course the ultimate snitch is Huggy Bear himself, who for unknown reasons opens heart and home to the two detectives. He’s the rickety third stick propping up the show, a classic narrative device and plot convenience, purveyor of coincidentally invaluable information helping the story along while providing a colorful glimpse into the street culture of Bay City. Huggy’s colorful dialogue and poetic turn of phrase provide some of the most entertaining moments in the series. He’s a snappy, perceptive, complicated guy making the best of things, his on-and-off-again bar The Pits as well as various street-level businesses marking him as an entrepreneur as well as a hustler. He’s always able to make a buck, willing to do anything, anywhere yet continues to be the main snitch of Starsky and Hutch. Why he does this is never revealed. Huggy can’t possibly get paid enough to make snitching worth his while; at most it’s fifty bucks here and there, and cohabiting with two detectives can’t be good for business. Sometimes you get the feeling he’s doing it for moral reasons – he’s quick to tell Starsky about Slater in “Survival”, a slimeball so bad other slimeballs want him off the street – and sometimes for friendship reasons (most remarkably, helping to dry out Hutch in “The Fix”), and yes, he obviously finds the detective business exciting, which explains his naïve foray into the trade with The Turkey. But most times you get the feeling he feels snitching is at best an inconvenient, an embarrassment, a yoke he is forced to wear. He can be grumpy, obstreperous, stubborn and unhelpful, but he always comes through in the end. It’s interesting to speculate what Starsky and Hutch did to deserve this kind of allegiance. Frankly, they’d be lost without his help.

Is it simply because providing information enables Huggy to keep the cops off his back? He makes no secret of his nefarious activities, like providing a hot watch in “The Trap”, having various ladies of the evening lounging at his bar (most likely at his behest, although he is refered to as a pimp only once, by Hutch, in “Iron Mike Ferguson”) and his odd jobs hawking what looks like stolen merchandize. There are various hints the relationship as primarily one of mutual back-scratching, mostly provided by Dobey, who is suspicious of Huggy and loathe to accept his help (most vividly in “Bloodbath” but also in “Iron Mike Ferguson” and “The Fix”, among others).

It’s interesting the series ends with an homage to the snitch: the unfortunate Lionel Rigger, played by Ted Neely, in the first part of “Targets Without a Badge”. Huggy trusts Starsky and Hutch to help Lionel, who has information about a crooked judge. They attempt to protect him, but fail. Following Lionel’s murder, Huggy explodes in a rage that seems to have been simmering for years, yelling “Lionel was a nobody as far as you’re concerned”, “just a snitch”, that “you let him down”, “you used him”. Explosive grief aside, this is a great scene precisely because it illustrates how complicated Huggy’s rationale for what he does is. He isn’t a one-dimensional sidekick, he isn’t an endearing oddball or the Groovy Black Guy brought in for ethnic legitimacy. He’s contradictory, conflicted, and by that yardstick becomes the embodiment of The Informer: a real-world Charon, the ferryman who navigates the rivers between the worlds of the living and the dead. Charon didn’t volunteer for this job and a snitch doesn’t either. It’s a grueling necessity, a cosmic pay-back for earthly transgressions. Just what Huggy’s transgressions are remains a mystery.

Paul Says:
Huggy Bear were of course the premier British riot girl band. Their sound and style are a lot more put together than a lot some of their American counterparts. Every angsty queer teen needs to hear this band!

Thanks Paul for all of your great picks this month! If you would like to be the next guest veejay here on Outsider Music Press email your favs to outsidermusicpdx at yahoo dot com

So I’ll be spinning records for Amoeba Music‘s Dusty Fingers DJ Night at The Uptown Nightclub in Oakland tonight! My pals Anna Marie and Erick Pressman will also be playing some tunes and we’ll be sticking to a loose theme of Twee, Indie, 60′s Pop and Pop Punk! It’s going to be a fun night!

DJ’ing was one of my bonus goals from my 4 Simple Goals post so I’m very excited about it! I absolutely love being able to share music with people! I love the idea of playing music and watching the room light up! It’s going to be fun so come out and enjoy it! I’ll be posting my set list tomorrow so if you can’t make it tonight then definitely check out what I play – you might just find something you like!

A little sampling of what I might be playing:

Belle & Sebastian

Azure Ray

Lee Hazelwood & Nancy Sinatra

Huggy Bear

Tegan & Sara

Lulu

Jawbreaker

<3′s to you!

Left to right: a) Kathleen Hanna, Billy Karren, Tobi Vail, Kathi Wilcox. Bikini Kill: Girl Power, no. 2. 1991. Photocopy; cover by Hanna; b) Kathleen Hanna, Billy Karren, Tobi Vail, Kathi Wilcox. Bikini Kill: A Color and Activity Book, no. 1. 1991. Photocopy; cover by Hanna; c) Molly Neuman, Allison Wolfe. Girl Germs, no. 5. c. 1993–94. Photocopy; cover by Miss Pussycat. All courtesy of The Museum of Modern Art Library, New York

You can watch a video of Gretchen talking about the Women’s Zine Movement here. I really love what she has to say about it!

Now I just need to find out if my own Riot Grrrl Zine – Girlwonder – is a part of the MoMA collection. That would make me BEYOND GIDDY!

PS. Let’s not forget about this online feature from the Experience Music Project in Seattle WA!

]]> http://loveistheslug.wordpress.com/2010/07/22/thursday-three-the-college-years-pts-2-theres-a-riot-going-on/ Thu, 22 Jul 2010 16:00:51 +0000 Chriso http://loveistheslug.wordpress.com/2010/07/22/thursday-three-the-college-years-pts-2-theres-a-riot-going-on/

Top to bottom: Bikini Kill, Huggy Bear, Heavens To Betsy

As stated in last week’s Thursday Three post, I am dedicating these next few TT posts to the great music that came out when I was in college in the early to late 90s. A big part of my musical world in college came about as a direct result of the Riot Grrrl movement, an underground feminist movement that initially seemed to be a reaction/antidote to the male dominated punk/indie/underground scene. RG soon evolved to be more of a general, radical feminist movement although music and punk were definitely still at its core. Like any movement, it was imperfect and sometimes not so inclusive. Criticism of the movement being centered around the needs and agendas of white, class-privileged women were an echo of criticisms aimed at the larger feminist movement.

But issues of inclusion and imperfection aside, Riot Grrrl spawned a lot of loud, audacious, passionate music, largely made by women with surprisingly varied voices, even within the limits of punk. For me, Riot Grrrl was inspirational in that I saw a bunch of people making music regardless of being experts or virtuosos. I heard people singing about things – rape, incest, sexism, queer identity, capitalism, etc. – in ways I’d never experienced. Although it wasn’t a movement for me or other men, it was inspirational nonetheless and a instrumental in me first sitting down and teaching myself to play drums. It’s hard to pick simply three songs from that era but not as hard to pick three bands that I loved.

Bikini Kill – “Rebel Girl”: Although they’d probably be loathe to admit it, if there were ever an anthem for the Riot Grrrl movement then this song would be it. Bikini Kill are often cited as the progenitors of Riot Grrrl, especially lead singer Kathleen Hanna, but always seemed to resist that notion, saying that it came about as the result of several young women in their scene and that the women in the band were all different politically and creatively and not all married to the Riot Grrrl dictum. All of that aside, Bikini Kill were a ferocious and surprisingly tuneful punk band with confrontational, political songs and a knack for slogan-worthy lyrics. And “Rebel Girl” is no exception. The song is a classic slice of punk rock fury and a celebration of rebellious womanhood. This version, recorded and produced by Joan Jett, was the moment BK seemed to move beyond being just passionate and exciting in their music and started showing some real chops as a band. The song is as catchy as it is confrontational – from Tobi Vail‘s opening snare hits right on through Hanna’s dare-you-to-not-sing-along chorus. When she screams “They say she’s a dyke but I know she is my best friend!” I still get chills to this day. (And if you want to watch a fun video involving this song I made an homage to kickass ladies of various types set to “Rebel Girl” about four years ago. Watch it here.)

Huggy Bear – “Her Jazz”:  Huggy Bear were the English, mixed gender, artsier cousins of Bikini Kill, full of noise and manifestos and possible queerness. (One oft-criticized aspect of Riot Grrrl and its participants related to proclamations of “girl love” and dubious claiming of bisexual or queer identities. But I always think it’s good for people to challenge their heterosexuality, so I was all for it, even if it was often used merely to destabilize normative gender/sexual roles) They also seemed to be spiritual relatives of The Nation of Ulysses in terms of sometimes inscrutable lyrics and often overly heady/pretentious political dogma. But luckily they were also a hell of a lot of fun. I had the good fortune of seeing them live my sophomore year of college when they played at the beloved Maxwell’s in Hoboken, New Jersey. They took the stage and proceeded to make noise for about 40 straight minutes – not even stopping fully in between songs. “Her Jazz” was and always will be my most favorite of their songs – and they had a bunch of good ones – an anthemic call-to-arms against dominant culture, mediocrity and dated ideologies. It’s a piece of punk rock perfection that never gets old. This performance of it on the English TV show The Word is wonderfully chaotic and raw.

Heavens To Betsy – “Me & Her”: Heavens To Betsy will always be a band associated with the Riot Grrrl scene that has a special place in my heart. Corin Tucker (who later went on to be one-third of Sleater-Kinney, possibly my favorite band of all time) and her music seemed to be the emotional core of the RG music world. Not that the aforementioned bands or any of their other peers were emotionless, but Tucker’s lyrics and voice and musical approach often revealed as much vulnerability, longing and pain as they did anger, rage or dissent. And then there was desire. Corin Tucker will always go down in history as one of the few voices in the often sexless world of indie rock to be able to sing about desire in a way that few others can. And not just sexy desire, but actual desire, with all of its messiness, darkness, confusion, joy and, yeah, sexy parts too. Unlike the aforementioned suspect queerness, Corin identified as bisexual and sang a number of songs about her relationships with women. “Me & Her” is a breakup song and even in its raw, shambolic, nature, Tucker’s knack for nailing heartbreak is evident. I’ve always admired her lyrical ability that can veer from literal to poetic within one song.

And, because I am feeling generous and I love this next song to pieces, I also want to include the Heavens To Betsy track “She’s The One”. A sort of brighter days predecessor to me and her, it’s a great example of Tucker’s ability to capture desire. It’s also a clear indicator of the pop sensibility that would inform some of Sleater-Kinney’s work as their career progressed.

JD “Turkey” Turquet: Dale Robinette, Foxy Baker: Emily Yancy, “Scorchy”: Carole Cook, Sonny: Richard Romanus, Lady Bessie: LaWanda Page, Walter T Baker: Fuddle Bagley, “Dad” Watson: RG Armstrong, Yank: Joe La Due, Sugar: Blackie Dammett, Moon: Mickey Morton, Man: Darryl Zwerling, Doc Rafferty: Eddie Lo Russo, Milo: Titus Napoleon, Leotis: Stan Shaw. Written By: Ron Friedman, Directed By: Claude Ennis Starrett Jr.

QUESTIONS AND NOTES:

This episode was a pilot-to-be for a spinoff series starring Huggy and Turkey, but the fans didn’t care for it, and it remains one of the least-liked episodes, mostly because Starsky and Hutch have only three scenes in it, at the beginning, middle and end. Their parts are fun: undercover as an old couple (Starsky hides his handcuffs in his bra, and presumably Hutch later has to root around in there for them) and then as hairdressers Tyrone and Mr. Marlene (Hutch is Tyrone in this one; they switch names in Season Four’s “Dandruff”).

Turkey comes from nowhere and is never seen again. It’s a little difficult to imagine how Huggy would get to be so friendly with this good ol’ boy, with his folksy ways and wide-eyed innocence. There’s no way he could be from the old neighborhood (“Huggy Can’t Go Home”) and it’s unlikely he’d be a regular at The Pits. So where does he come from? Imagine how cool it would be if Huggy had teamed up with Collandra the Psychic to solve crimes.

Sonny tells his two henchmen to terrorize an elderly couple who owe his father money. Hilariously, he’s reading a typical 70s self-help book called “How to Like Yourself”.

Foxy Baker comes running into the street to beg Starsky and Hutch for help while they’re wrestling with one of the henchmen. How did she know it was them, considering how dark it is, how few street lights there are, and the fact that they’re still in undercover costumes as the elderly tailor and his wife (disheveled, sure, but not when Foxy was looking out the window a minute earlier)?

The sassy secretary/bartender lady comes out of nowhere with the same proprietary attitude the Turkey has, as if she’s been in the series since day one. Wearing a memorable paisley muumuu thing and waving a fan, she’s something else. But she represents a major problem with this episode. Namely, we’ve never seen any of these people before. And yet they’re making themselves right at home with the expectation we already like and trust them. It’s like Huggy has been plopped into an alternative universe with a bunch of strangers.

Turquet introduces Huggy as “my partner, Huggy Bear Brown.” This is the first and only time his last name is used. It should come as a minor revelation, but instead it emphasizes the feeling that something is slightly off-kilter here. One’s impulse is to think – hey, that’s not right.

“Foxy Brown” is an in-joke on a movie by the same name that Fargas starred in ’74.

When Turquet balks at the beginning of the case, Huggy protests that they badly need the money, indicating that the phone company is about to cut them off after a bouncy check. Later, we see they already have an office set up, fully furnished with plants and art and all very expensive-looking. Why all the preparation before their first case? Isn’t that a huge waste of money, especially since Huggy is, at best, a reluctant partner?

The scene with Turquet trying to sound “blacker” and Huggy doing his terrible Laurence Olivier impression (ostensibly the epitome of “white”) is either in horribly cringe-worthy or very funny in a pre-PC sort of way. Frankly, it’s a toss-up. Which explains why this episode is so weird – the feeling you ought to laugh when you shouldn’t, and roll your eyes when you should.

Caught out, responding to Bessie’s barking demand he say something, Turkey bellows that awful but strangely unforgettable line “when do the new Cadillacs come in”. What the? What purpose does that serve, other than making Turkey look and sound stupider than he already does? At least Lady Bessie gets it right when she sneers, “well that’s the dumbest thing I ever heard.”

The two leave Bessie’s apartment, going down the same rickety stairs we’ll see later in “The Collector”. The bad sets are one of the infuriating “cheap” aspects to the series as a whole. In this show in particular the quality seems especially cut-rate: the direction is lackluster, the acting shruggingly indifferent, and the props look like they were purchased at a dollar store. The only saving grace is the occasionally cheeky script by Ron Friedman.

Huggy seems particularly upset at being called “skinny”. Why? Doesn’t he know how skinny he is?

Set problems again: the guys are escorted at gun-point through two offices, but as the camera follows them, it looks as if the office walls are fake. Here’s the same big henchman again, the one busted not long ago by Strsky and Hutch at the tailor’s shop. They probably would have charged him with assault with a deadly weapon, extortion, resisting arrest, possibly robbery. And yet, he’s out on bail, and quickly too. The Watson family lawyers must be very good.

Huggy refers to Bad Dad Watson as a “hood” right in his face – usually something that any self-respecting suit-and-tie-wearing gangster would shoot you for. But this guy lets the slight pass.

Turquet blithely names the two guys who threatened them earlier as “Sugar and Milo” – how in hell did he learn their names?

Watson tells Huggy that because he’s black he’ll have a better chance at tracking Walter T. Baker. This makes the fifth or sixth overt race comment in the show.

Leotis (packed tightly into slightly too-small clothes) doesn’t lack “basic logic” so much as he is gullible and takes things literally. He thinks a gun is a hot water heater. He also spills the beans to Sugar and Milo when they say they are FBI. He thinks pizza is a good breakfast. None of these three “goofs” are his fault, and the way in which he’s presented, as a simpleton in poor man’s overalls  – really grates. Turquet should not have called a gun a “heater”. In such a race-conscious episode as this, was he again trying to sound black again?

Leotis does a little parlor trick involving addition that puts him firmly in the mathematical genius category. It seems sad that both Huggy and Turquet find his talent simply amusing rather than mind-boggling.

Foxy tells the team they have to negotiate a settlement between her husband and the gangsters, delivering money from the terrified Walter T. to Bad Daddy. This is the exact plot of Huggy’s earlier starring role in “Kill Huggy Bear”, season one. Could they not think of anything else to do with him?

Cousin Leotis tells the guys there are two “mean-lookin’ dudes” watching the building, they rush to the window and look out. So does the camera … onto an anonymous street scene. No mean dudes. Not that I can see. And yet both Huggy and Turquet look frightened. “We’re in a heap of trouble here!” Turquet says. Later, we see the dudes waiting patiently in a van. How can you make out two people inside a van from the 4 th or 5th floor of an office building?

Why, if Sonny’s in on Foxy’s game, does he cry out, “I’ve got you, Walter T!” when she comes through the door in disguise? Who’s he kidding? Speculate on the thought that Sonny Watson and Foxy Baker are lovers as well as co-conspirators. One clue may be his taking off her glasses at the amusement park, a particularly intimate gesture.

Huggy tries to make up a reason “Walter T” took off when they came looking for him. “Maybe he doesn’t like interracial couples,” he muses. Okay, at this point in the show you want to say, I get it. You and Turkey. Ebony and Ivory. I get it.

Bad Dialogue Moment: “I don’t know about you,” Turquet says as they’re walking at gunpoint, “but I get the feeling these guys aren’t here on a mission of mercy”. Huggy replies that Sugar “is definitely unrefined.” Please make them stop.

The guys then get out of their predicament using a traditional Starsky and Hutch maneuver: they fake a fight to distract their captors.

Biographical note about Sugar, played by a rather sparkling Blackie Dammett, who will appear several more times in the series as various hoods and heavies: Dammett is the father of Anthony Keidis, lead singer of Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Huggy gets Starsky and Hutch to pick up “a coupla hunks of garbage”, Sugar and Milo. Oh yeah? On what charge? They can’t prove anything. An unregistered handgun, perhaps, but that’s a stretch.

Cut to Starsky and Hutch undercover at the beauty salon. Hutch as Tyrone is typically all in: hilarious heart-shaped shades, salmon-pink overalls and gauzy blouse. Mr. Marlene, his partner, is almost low-key in his stripey shirt and gold chains. The two guys really seem to relish their roles, include the quasi-flirting line by Starsky, “you know your eyes flash when you get angry?” Of course, he would know, having been “flashed” many, many times. They are also working the same protection-racket case as Huggy and Turkey ostensibly are. But how, one wonders, are Starsky and Hutch able to pass as hair-dressers over an extended period of time (later, they will adopt the same guise in the equally terrible “Dandruff”)? They would have to cut and style hair convincingly. Do they know how to do this? Also, how does a beauty shop fit into Watson’s extorition scheme? Is it the next small business to be hit up by the two henchmen? Does Mrs Watson come in for a wash and set, and is she an indiscreet chatterbox?

Cut to Huggy and Turquet at the dentist’s office (in a useless, meandering scene), and a really vulgar exchange with a porn actress– er, nurse. The grossness is amplified when Huggy remarks that her body should be registered as a dangerous weapon. She later– shockingly– refers to Turquet, whom she believes is French, as “Froggy”. More racial epithets in a show replete with them.

At this point, with Huggy and Turquet back at the office going over the details of the case, the plot, always slow, grinds to a preposterous halt. Even the wonderful Fuddle Bagley, with all his twitchy energy, can’t save the episode at this point.

Leotis ventures across a narrow I-beam across two buildings (with a what, hundred-foot drop?) as a short-cut to deliver pizza? “All the neighborhood kids” use it? Give me a break.

After a brief stand-off, the guys are rescued by the sudden appearance of Starsky and Hutch, who descend on the rooftop with their customary no-nonsense grace and power, and the relief is palpable. Even the actors seem to be thankful this is nearly over.

Tag: Here’s Darryl Zwerling, reappearing from “The Set-up”, this time as a mustachioed victim of a robbery. What is everybody thinking? That a week later, we’ve forgotten all about him? Incredible. The final question, “uh, which one of you is Turkey?” can be answered thus: THIS ENTIRE EPISODE.

Weaponry Listens to Love was the first Huggy Bear album i owned. It’s the only album they ever released, but you know what i mean – the first Huggy Bear i could take home with me. I was not at all ready for it. All i had heard was the obvious: Dissthentic Penetration, Pansy Twist, Her Jazz. All i expected was straightforward. in anger, intent and music. Like the English Bikini Kill. I don’t mean to say that Bikini Kill were straightforward, just that they were instant with me.

It is kind of hard to go back and remember how impenetrable and disappointing this sounded the first time i played it. It is everything but to me now. I’m wary to say that i get it, but i do, in the most vital way. It was after reading the amazing, self-authored Huggy Bear chapter in this book (i can’t remember the title of but as soon as i go back to university i’m going to read it again) about women in rock that just in print, in their words, that they came to be an indispensable thing in my life, impenetrable or not.

So from the beginning i went, Rubbing the Impossible to Burst onward, finding even more avant garde-y material that should have baffled me even more but this time blew me away just as i needed it to. They really are the most incredible and important band. Weaponry Listens to Love i think is considered not their brightest hour, that something was lost, but that hour came all at once for me so i can’t gauge that. If i’m expected to mitigate love for it, i can’t. It’s everything i love about the band. Every inspiring, incendiary thing. Rhythm and detonation, exactly.

Dizzee Rascal to headline Glastonbury 2010, yeah?

The Twittersphere has already spewed forth a selection of suggestions, propelled byJimmy Page of Led Zeppelin‘s remark (when asked by 6 Music if the band would consider replacing U2): ‘I never rule anything out.’

Coldplay, best buds of Glasto organiser Michael Eavis , have already been tipped to take Bono and co’s place, with some rumours maintaining Eavis got on the blower to them as soon as he found out for sure U2 wouldn’t be able to make it. Chris Martin and his fellow crooners have headlined the bash twice before.

Dizzee Rascal has also already been asked by Eavis to step up to the mark next month, according to speculation. At the moment he’s second on the bill below U2 but we could well see the man known as Mr Rascal to Newsnight’s Jeremy Paxman (legendary clip below for your viewing pleasure) follow in Jay-Z’s rap-tastic footsteps.

Kylie Minogue

The 41-year-old had to pull out of Glastonbury 2005 because of her breast cancer bombshell, but she’s admitted as recently as last week that she still has her sights set on bagging a prime-time festival slot.

Snoop Dogg

Fans of the D-O-Double-Gee want him to be the big dogg at this year’s Glasto

Also lined up for the Pyramid stage on 25th June, Huggy Bear himself was the subject of Glasto headline rumours a couple of months back. Michael Eavis said his daughter Emily – co-organiser of the bash – was intent on giving the D-O-Double Gee the top slot after her Jay-Z coup in 2008. Handily, the hip-hop star’s allowed to apply for a UK visa again now after a four-year-ban. What’s that – you can’t remember why he was barred in the first place? Click here .

Rolling Stones

Mick Jagger and the guys were the bookies’ favourites to headline a few months back, followed by Coldplay and David Bowie. And, now that they’re celebrating their first number one album in 16 years with the re-release of Exile on Main Street, their fans are holding tight that their wish may still be fulfilled.

Gorillaz

Damon Albarn ruled it out a while back, but fans of the animated artistes are keen to see the Blur frontman headline the festival for the second year in a row.

Other suggestions for U2′s replacement, courtesy of Twitter users:

Cheryl Cole

Prince

Daft Punk

The Strokes

David Bowie

The Glee cast doing U2 songs

The Glee cast doing Led Zeppelin songs

Paul McCartney

Nick Cave

Rod Stewart

Phil_87, however, remains alone (so far) with his suggestion: ‘Les Dennis playing a medley of his favourite bagpipe songs.’

Les Dennis, possible Glastonbury 2010 headliner (but not really) with former wife Amanda Holden (yes, THAT Amanda Holden!)

Watch this space, Glasto fans!

Then I asked myself, ‘Hm…has he always been this fun?’ The answer is yes. And how!

Music

“Gin and Juice” (1993) – The epitome of chill. Whether it be a house party, BBQ, or drive…any relaxed setting is enhanced by this song.

“Drop It Like It’s Hot” (2004) – I can’t get tired of this song or the music video.

“I Wanna Rock” (2009) – 16 years later, and a collaboration with Dr. Dre is still a great idea.

TV

KING OF THE HILL – Season 5, Episode 13

“Ho, Yeah!” (2001)

As Alabaster Jones, an Oklahoma City pimp.

MONK – Season6, Episode 2
“Mr. Monk and the Rapper” (2007)

As gangsta rapper MurderUss. Snoop remixes the Randy Newman theme song.

I hate reality TV so we won’t talk about SNOOP DOGG’S FATHER HOOD.

Fashion

His clothing line, Rich & Infamous, is nothing special. (Read more here.)
But the Snoopermarket makes me laugh.

Film

Of his many movie characters, Huggy Bear is my favorite.
Starsky & Hutch (2004)

Wikipedia tells me you’re 39 this year.
But, Snoop, you’re timeless to me.

Diggin on this video! One of those videos that makes you really wanna be there.

Huggy: Nervous, cautious, loyal to a fault but with no genuine or lasting ties. Middle of a child in a large chaotic Caribbean family (something about Huggy makes it clear there was no father or father-figure in the house). He can have a slippery relationship with truth and authenticity, and he’s not easily angered, but capable of great and lasting grudges. Huggy is an exploiter, an entrepreneur, with a big “us and them” complex. Can be genuinely cruel, although this is more a residue of a harsh past than it is intentional. He likes power and control, and yet never has any, except over weak and frightened women. He is capable of tremendous perseverance, and, despite a casual, slangy, laid-back blasé, is intensely watchful and calculating. His fascination with Starsky and Hutch’s partnership results from his own alienation in the world, and his sense that he has no real anchor to keep him steady. His willingness to associate with them despite the danger comes from a strong sense of justice bordering on vigilantism, and a certain curiosity about their relationship. He doesn’t understand how they work, or why they work, but he sees the results. He can be credulous, gullible. A survivor, a nonconformist, suspicious of intellectual smoke-screening but quite capable of affectation. By the way, where did Huggy Bear get his name from, anyway? There couldn’t be a more paradoxical name for a tall skinny hustler who is as far from a cuddly toy as is possible to be. Is it like calling wrestlers “Tiny”, or bald hit-men “Curly”? Huggy explains to Nick Starsky “Huggy’s the name and my game is the same. The ladies they love me ’cause they all want to hug me.” This is either a boastful lie or he has quite the secret life, as we never see anything remotely like this. Still, we don’t know everything, do we?

I found a site last night where to download some out of print, hard to find queercore so it isn’t lost to time. Some queercore stuff has been lost to time like the animated Green Pubes by Anonymous Boy. The website for rare, out of print downloads is: http://soulponies.com/. It’s an amazing reference to get your feet wet with queercore. Such classics on the site are Youth of Togay, Gayrilla Biscuits, Mukilteo Faeries, and Fifth Column. As well as some riot grrrl; Bikini Kill and Huggy Bear. I also found a link where you can download the Go Team! here.