Last Thursday I headed over to Williamsburg to check out newest
Righteous Babe signing and self proclaimed leaders of the
Pussy Revolution, Bitch and Animal. North 6th Bar was packed
with that same unstoppable dyke energy that catapulted the likes
of Ani [DiFranco], Melissa [Ferrick] and KD Lang into cross-over
stardom. The Butchies played their last song as I walked
in… a full tilt punk rock number by players who knew their way around
their instruments. (Note to self: Don't miss the next Butchies gig).
Drag King Murray Hill was hosting the show, bringing the
crowd around for Bitch and Animal.
Bitch entered violin in hand and Animal set down a beat on the bongos.
It's a bit like watching acrobats, you're never quite sure they're
going to make it, but somehow the trick always works and no one
falls to their death. Song two, Bitch switched to the bass and stayed
with it for most of the show. Before the song started, Animal yelled
out to the crowd, "I need to free my areola" and after corroborating
the law in favor of women going topless in New York State, she tore
off her big black T-shirt and set those bad boys free. The crowd
went wild. As out of the box as Bitch and Animal get, you can't
help but be drawn in by their musicianship, their honesty, their
lyrical talents and their showmanship. Here's what Bitch had to
say about their release, their philosophies, the drama, the road…
WOMANROCK:
You two met in Chicago after a play rehearsal. Were you both attending
theater school there?
BITCH:
Yeah.
WOMANROCK:
How does the theatrical background play into your present performance?
BITCH:
It plays into it a lot. Hard to separate what influences what, but
we do consider our show just as much theater as it is music. Theater
in the way that the audience gets to be voyeurs into our lives or
brains or something, not theater in the way that there's a script.
We are all out improvisational types… and complete drama queens.
WOMANROCK:
What were the circumstances of the initial request for you to open
for Ani DiFranco in 1999? Was the recording of your first
album a direct result of that request?
BITCH:
She heard a four song demo tape. We were in the middle of booking
our first cross country tour, and she invited us to play like 4
months in advance, so we of course said yeah and we made a CD so
we could look like we were a real band who actually had a CD.
WOMANROCK:
When Ani asked you to come record new material with her in Buffalo,
was it implied she wanted to release your CD on Righteous Babe?
Or did that come later after the album was finished?
BITCH:
She said she would release it, but it was up to us if we wanted
that. Then we decided, let's make the 'it' first, then figure out
what the hell to do with it. After the album was done, we decided
to go with Righteous Babe.
WOMANROCK:
What was it like recording half the songs with Ani and half with
Dutchboy? Was the vibe very different?
BITCH:
Yeah it was totally different. One was away from home, one was here
in the city. We didn't really know Dutchboy before we started working
with him. Our time with Ani was I think 8 fourteen-hour days. With
Dutchboy, we stretched it out over like 30 or 40 4-hour days.
WOMANROCK:
What kind of deal do you have with Righteous Babe? Do they own the
master recordings or do you have a split ownership for the album?
Do they give you tour support funding or do you support your tours
with what you make at your live shows?
BITCH:
They own the master. We support our tours by what we make at the
shows. Their tour support is more muscle than money.
WOMANROCK:
Do you have a publishing deal?
BITCH:
We own all of our publishing. Anyone who wants your publishing sucks,
remember that.
WOMANROCK:
Is there a guiding philosophy behind Bitch and Animal… are you just
partisans for the Pussy Revolution disguised as indie/art/rockers?
BITCH:
There are definitely guiding philosophies behind our music, and
we are disguised or not so disguised pussy pushers posing as indie/art/rockers.
I like that... um, back to the philosophies. Open your mouth. See
what comes out. As long as you feel the groove everyone else will
too.
At our first ever show as Bitch and Animal, we were astounded at
how much shade we were getting from the roomful of girls before
we played. Then after we played, those same chicks were all clingy
and nice. It seemed so fake, and made us sad that as women and as
people we don't instantly endow each other always with respect,
even before they've earned it. I like to think people are pussy
until they prove otherwise. That night, we made a pact to somehow
add that to our pocket of missions - getting people to respect each
other as much as they respect the people on stage. Obviously you
can't force something like that. But part of how we do it, and this
is bringing in another of our philosophies, is we purposefully leave
space in our music. We try not to fill in all the holes, so people
who are listening are forced to imagine the other parts.
WOMANROCK:
Language informs culture and culture informs emotional well-being
or it's opposite, how does the language of the pussy revolution
change the way we feel about ourselves?
BITCH:
A big thing about what we are is about reclaiming words. I'm not
sure if that's a philosophy, or us just carrying on the tradition
of playing with language as an ever-morphing thing that directly
affects and is affected by our societal roles, attitudes and isms.
I think women have definitely internalized the sexism in our language.
We grow up saying these things, just repeating things before we
are questioned enough to question it. I didn't even learn about
feminism as a concept until I was in college! I was dieting before
I had even had my period. Hopefully incorporating the word pussy
to be a compliment and the word eggs to mean courage will be a gesture
to some girl somewhere that her body is powerful, beautiful and
flowing.
WOMANROCK:
How much of what you do is lesbian-centric… is your art about all
people everywhere or do you work at bringing attention to issues
faced by lesbians in particular?
BITCH:
I think the only way to make art is to make it from a personal place.
And when we do, no matter who you are or what you live like, everyone,
everyone will be able to relate.
WOMANROCK:
My sense is that you are a couple. If that's right, you work together
and play together on so many levels. Is it challenging or just pure
rock-n-roll fun?
BITCH:
Oh no challenges here.
WOMANROCK:
I recorded two of my albums in Saline, MI, so I was surprised to
see Ypsilanti as your jumping off point for live shows. Ypsilanti
is a pretty small town. How do you feel about the long road you've
traveled since then?
BITCH:
That's a big one. I mean, I'm a totally different person because
of that road. I wouldn't change it for the world, except I wish
I had a truck that ran on vegetable grease instead of gasoline.
But the "out there" is not at all what I expected in a way, and
exactly like Ypsilanti in a way. Same thing, different towns.
WOMANROCK:
What's been some of the best experiences becoming successful touring
artists?
BITCH:
Not waiting tables. Every day, when I have to go to the post office
a million times or pack and unpack my van a million times, I'm still
like "I love my job so much." because it's always with me. My life
is my music is my time. Some of the best experiences are the traveling,
the constantly getting to create something. Meeting other musicians
and performers that also live in the strangely solitudinal yet totally
social lifestyle like we do. There's really good parties. I like
the fact that people show the really nice parts of themselves to
you when they feel inspired by you.
WOMANROCK:
Some of the worst?
BITCH:
Those same people can also act really strangely towards you if they
feel inspired by you. Like act all fake, or take pictures of you
when you're doing something you don't want documented. Breaking
down always sucks. Being a perma-house guest started to really suck,
so that's why we got a bus. Now we bring our house with us.
WOMANROCK:
What would you never ever do again under any circumstances?
BITCH:
Ooh. Hmm… play two shows in the same night the first night of a
two and a half month tour. The rest of the tour my voice was cashed.
I sounded like a chain smoking bingo lady.
WOMANROCK:
I personally think that Eternally Hard is an amazing
and beautiful album. What are your plans for future projects? New
albums or something different?
BITCH:
Thank you! Well, we're recording again in November (in Hawaii--with
our friend June Millington) We're also going to go into the
studio probably before November and make a children's album. That
has been on the burner for a while. Also, we're working on a musical.
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