Sleater-Kinney

Call the Doctor (1996)

Johnathon1069

                While

Sleater-Kinney already had one album under their belt at the time Call the

Doctor was released, this was when the band became a full time endeavor for

Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker. And that moment couldn’t have come soon

enough, while both of their former bands, Excuse 17 and Heavens to Betsy,

respectively, were powerhouse bands in the riot grrl/queercore genre when they

brought their powers together they created the greatest band to come out of the

state of Washington and gain notoriety in the nineties. Yes, better than

Nirvana. Yes, better than Pearl Jam. Yes, better than Bikini Kill.

                This was

the album that allowed them to begin building that legacy. Written in less than

three weeks and recorded in less than three days, this album was put in the

express lane in terms of its composition. It also continued the tradition of

the band consisting of two guitars and a drummer, which likely added to their

unique sound. One of the things that set them apart from other bands playing

punk rock at that point, was they were able to span the gap between

unadulterated fury and pop sensibilities in a manner most other bands were not.

This can be found in the manner the guitars on the album play into and out of

one another, never searching to overpower the listener with speed but, rather

beat them into submission with sheer force.  Songs like “Call the Doctor”, “Little Mouth”, and

fan favorite “I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone” are testament to this.

                I will

happily defend Corin Tucker as being the greatest female vocalist in the

history of punk rock to anyone, anytime, and anywhere. That being said, the

emergence of Carrie Brownstein’s own powerful voice on this album gives the

band as a whole more tools in their chest and they benefit immensely from it.

While Tucker’s vocal abilities blow my mind every time I hear them, the

powerful accent provided when Brownstein takes leads or sings harmonies is immeasurable.

                While

the voices are important, the lyrics those voices are singing are just as

important. And in the case of Sleater-Kinney those lyrics tend to hold great

meaning and be very powerful. The first lyrics on the album, “They want to

socialize you, they want to purify you, they want to dignify you, analyze you,

and terrify you,” seem to be coming from the same place that Bikini Kill was on

“Statement of Vindication” released the same year. Both bands were railing

against trying to find yourself in standards that exist anywhere other than

inside yourself. Elsewhere the band would sing about being with someone who is

afraid to come out on “Anonymous,”  sexism playing a huge factor in which

musicians get idolized on “I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone,” and they would also

touch on the day-to-day events of relationships on a number of songs.

                The

influence this album had is also significant, playing off of something that was

once said about the Velvet Underground, the album may have only moved 6,000

copies a year after its release. But, it seems like every single person that

bought a copy of the album started a band because of it. To think of the bands

that currently exist that owe some debt to Sleater-Kinney is easy, off the top

of my head Screaming Females and War on Women were and likely still are huge

fans of this band. While this album may not be the first one Sleater-Kinney

fans picked up, or even their favorite, much of the band’s current sound and style

started with this release. And for all of these reasons, it’s very much

deserving of being called a classic.