Grrl Powered Cock Rock!!

I took this Anthropology class which discussed the implications that art has on globalization and how art has and is an expression of an individual's culture from their own viewpoint. Basically, the whole issue of globalization is seen as a negative, however through the medium of art, which is constantly crossing international boundaries, there is a positive take on globalization. There is a crossing over of genres and new ideas being added to old sounds. Exciting stuff really. This blog however is not about that. No, this blog in fact is about feminism and rock music. One of the girls in my class gave a presentation where she exposed the class to, as she deemed them, "girl cover bands of cock rock bands." I know what you are thinking; "some chicks out there are doing their own version of Ratt, Poison, WASP, etc." See, when I hear "cock rock" that's what I think of. Overly masculine, horrible 80's power metal bands. Perhaps I'm mistaken in that definition. If I am, please correct me.

The cover bands she featured were "Lez Zeppelin," "AcDshe," "Kisses (female Kiss cover band)," and "Iron Maidens." For the most part, these bands sound like cover bands. They play the songs decently well, don't sound terribly original, and overall have bad vocals. Still the implication that these bands are taking what is perceived as a hyper masculinized form of rock music and making it their own is an indication of female empowerment (mind you, this was still the presenters assertion). I would like to disagree with this.

First off, I will admit that it isn't a huge stretch to reach the conclusion she made. However, my first problem is that these bands are not doing anything new. A cover band is meant as one thing; to pay tribute to a band that you enjoy to listen to. To regurgitate someone else's artistic accomplishments and then say that what's being done is new and empowering, is recursive. There is little ground made by a group of women covering "Number of the Beast" in a smoke filled bar in Southern California. Sure the idea is neat, and the whole "taking back the phallic symbol" of the guitar does have some implications, but really it's not going to advance the state of equality and feminism. These tribute bands come across as more of a shtick than anything else and I think most people would view it as such.

Second, the idea of simply doing something that's been done before lends little credibility to someone as an artist. These women could very well try and create music of their own, something that allows them to say what's on their minds. This in and of itself could be a source of motivation and empowerment for younger women who see these original female groups. The idea of, "I want to do what she's doing." The young woman would then go home, learn an instrument, and start the process of creating something new. With the right mindset, the lyrics and the music could be a vessel for change, much as rock music has been in it's short history. A cover band does little to nothing to advance these goals.

Third, focusing on these types of bands as the source of empowerment does not give credit to the real force of change going on in the metal community; female fronted metal bands. If you are even remotely familiar with the heavy weights of the metal scene at the moment, you know that Arch Enemy are huge. Arch Enemy are fronted by none other than Angela Gossow. Otep (not Opeth) are also a female fronted metal band who have gained a fair amount of popularity. Both of these bands feature aggressive vocals (of the "cookie monster" variety), places that have been dominated exclusively by males. The fact is, these women (along with many others) have taken the most unintelligible, aggressive and what would typically be thought of as "masculine" vocals and done them extremely well. Sometimes better than most guys. If you want to talk about women taking over something that has been seen as masculine and domineering, talk about this. Not only are these women creating something of their own, but they are also placing themselves in the position of authority (the singer) and doing it in a hyper masculine form (death metal style vocals).

There is still a breach though. There are very few female guitarists out there. Very few female drummers. There seem to be a disproportionate number of female bassists though. Also, while Gossow and Otep have talked about empowering young women by being on stage, the majority of the metal fan is still male and still only sees "the hot singer." While this in itself is nothing new to rock (there has always been the "hot singer" in rock, male or female) there are still more "hot" sentiments towards the women. This is a chasm that the rock/metal community may never pass.

I've only touched on the surface of a very complex issue here. Mostly, it's me reacting and raving. However, I think I've got something here. I would suggest going and looking up some female fronted metal bands. There are some good ones out there. I'll even give you a short list too. Look at me, all nice and shit. :P

Arch Enemy
Otep
Straight Line Stich
In This Moment
Nightwhish
Within Temptation

And there are more. Those are simply the ones I can pull off the top of my head.