31 Days of Music -- Day 13

Your favorite songwriter:  Ani DiFranco

This was a hard one in a way and in a way, it was easy.  I really admire songwriting as an art and I have a great deal of respect for anyone who can set words to music in a moving way.  I could have made a list of songwriters I love but Ani has such a huge repertoire that covers so much musical ground, it is really impressive.  Her writing style seems to change as often as her hair style. Of course her catalog is full of pointed political commentary (true to her folk roots) and vignettes of life from a woman's perspective.  But then she'll follow a heartbreaking love song with a self deprecating look at her life on the road.   She will switch from first person narrative to stream of conscience meandering. She balances heavy, rhythmic almost hip-hop influenced lyrics with more delicate and melodious verses, all with unrelenting honesty.  The reason I chose her as favorite though is that I can listen to Ani and pick out lines in her songs that make me think, "Damn, I wish I wrote that."


I can't possibly post all of my favorites (she has released almost 20 studio albums) so I thought I'd choose a few topics and let Ani weigh in for herself:

Ani on Religion:

up up up up up up
points the spire of the steeple
but god's work isn't done by god
it's done by people

Ani on Gun Control:

and if i hear one more time

about a fools right to his tools of rage

i'm gonna take all my friends

and i'm going to move to canada

and we're going to die of old age

Ani on Urban Sprawl:  

white people are so scared of black people

they bulldoze out to the country

and put up houses on little loop-dee-loop streets

Ani on Customer Service:

maybe you don't like your job

maybe you didn't get enough sleep

well, nobody likes their job

nobody got enough sleep

maybe you just had

the worst day of your life

but, you know, there's no escape

and there's no excuse

so just suck up and be nice

Ani on Road Food:

the butter melts out of habit
the toast isn't even warm

and the coffee is just water dressed in brown 

Ani on the Record Industry:

i'm going to do my best swandive

into shark-infested waters

i'm gonna pull out my tampon 

and start splashing around

Ani on New York:

tending the garden of noise

where i grow the traffic

and the church bells

and the neighborhood boys

singing to myself

as the solitude sets in

in tune with the symphony

of south brooklyn

Ani on Breakups:

too bad you had to have a better half

she's not really my type
but i think you two are forever
and i hate to say it
but you're perfect together

so fuck you
and your untouchable face
and fuck you
for existing in the first place

Quiet Riot

Bearer of the flag from the beginning
Now who would have believed this riot grrrl's a cynic
But they took our ideas to their marketing star
And now I'm spending all my days at girlpower.com
Trying to buy back a little piece of me
               - Sleater-Kinney

And now, new for the 2009 Halloween season, feast your eyes on one of the the #1 must have girls’ costumes (hint – it’s not a clown):

From HalloweenCostumes4U:

"She's sure to turn heads when she wears this stylish Riot Grrrl Child's Halloween Costume. The Riot Grrrl costume includes the vinyl spike detailed dress and studded belt as shown. Add the Camo Girl boot tops as seen below and she'll be ready to riot in style."

I guess it’s no worse than when we dressed up as "punk rockers” in the 80’s but it always seems more offensive when it is MY generation that is being exploited. The real irony is that this post is lifted directly from Carrie Brownstein's blog. I wonder if when she penned those lyrics, she imagined eight-year-olds with inflatable plastic spikes and vinyl combat boots. I wonder if she's saddened or encouraged by this, I mean, Riot Grrl was all about gender equality in music so any exposure now is refreshing.  Especially set against today’s musical landscape which, thanks to American Idol, proves that it is all about being the most popular with the fans, not about the music.

But, don't get me wrong; I don't think that bands like Bikini Kill or Bratmobile were all that good – it’s just that they had something to say. I think a lot about this blog entry by Jean Smith of Mecca Normal. Though it is long, I would encourage anyone to read the whole thing but really, this part especially stands out:
As I click around the internet, looking at women presenting music — nice hair, lots of make-up, sexy clothes — I listen to their music. They want to be liked. They want fame and status and money. They dress and behave in a way that attracts people to them — to be liked and to sell music. Oh god, that awful Taylor Swift. Imitating music, pretending to be a rock star. Reprehensible crap. The whole package is a commodity. This is what people like — the masses. They want to be her. They would rather be her — or fuck her — than live in their own bodies taking on the challenge of inventing ways to feel happy with themselves and those around them. Popular culture offers escape in the form of Taylor Swift.

Of course, I say all this knowing full well that I am old enough to have an eight-year-old and the last rock show I attended was probably over four years ago. Still, a little part of me dies every time I see a Time/Life compilation meant to embody “Generation X” only to find bottom of the barrel selections by Blind Melon, Bush, and Candlebox.

Contributions Welcome

I’m always intrigued when a musician or group tries something outside the normally accepted practices of recording and distribution. I mean, how creative can you be when you’re expected to follow the age old pattern of: radio single, record release, tour, TV appearance, rinse, repeat?
It is probably the reason I loved so many of the DIY bands of the ‘90’s. They had to REALLY WANT to make an album to produce and distribute it themselves. I’m not saying it always made for better music, but artistic integrity counts for a lot.

I was recently surprised to find one ‘90’s artist still testing the boundaries of the normally accepted practices of the industry. Jill Sobule recently asked her fans to fund her next record. (You remember her, right? SHE made a song about kissing a girl long before Katy Perry).

This prompted the question, “Does Jill Sobule still HAVE fans?” Oh you betcha. And they put up enough dough for a record ($75k) in an impressive 53 days. The best part – contributors were rewarded for their donations. Here’s a sample of what fans got for their money:

$10 contribution: A free digital download of the album, when it's released.
$25 contribution: An advance copy of the CD.
$50 contribution: An advance copy and a "Thank You" on the CD.
$100 contribution: All the above, plus a “Junior Executive Producer” T-shirt.

And the prizes get better the more you contribute. There are free concert tickets and backstage passes, even a free concert in your own home. $1,000 earns a theme song written for your answering machine or personal cell phone. And for the really, really fanatical fan - $10,000 will allow you to sing on the CD with Jill herself! Now I’m not a fan or anything, but I gotta admire her motivation and creativity. And frankly, I’m hoping the idea will catch on. I’d be willing to contribute $100 to a new Hazel album. I wouldn’t even need any goodies – to hear new music from my favorite band would be worth the price. (Although I’d be tempted to hear what my own theme, as sung by Jody and Pete, would sound like.)

What artist could motivate YOU to contribute to their comeback album? How much would you be willing to give and what reward would you seek for your payment?