Music has been a significant part of my life, according to my parents, since about birth. My father used to pipe classical music into my room when I was an infant, hoping that by osmosis I would one day become a world famous pianist. Alas, I failed him. My brother became the professional musician, not me. But music inevitably became a major part of my life.
Where and how does the love of music begin? My parents listening to Getz and Gilberto playing Jobim? (When I was five, I thought that I was the Girl From Ipanema.) Those first Disney albums, rocking out to "Thomas O'Malley the Alley Cat" from the Aristocats? Or making my mom take me to the mall to pick up the first B-52s album on the way home from Girl Scout camp because one of the counselors said she was from "Planet Clare" and played "Rock Lobster" for me? I can't lie, for me it was pop music that drew me in. I like a beat and I like catchy tunes. As I got older, I discovered the beauty of slow and depressing as well as fast and angry.
Discovering music without an older sibling, I believe, was a challenge. There's no one to tell you about all the great stuff that you should love or at least know about. So there I was with my GoGo's and Kiss 45's, my Supertramp 8-track, a Joan Jett hair cut, and it was ALL good. I did somehow manage to discover Prince and convinced my parents to let me see him in concert on the Purple Rain tour. Madonna and Cyndi Lauper became staples. Later, thanks to some friends at the end of high school, I listened to Depeche Mode, the Violent Femmes and U2. Then I went to college and found some new sounds, Nine Inch Nails, Jane's Addiction, Sinead O'Connor and older ones, Kate Bush, The Cure, Siouxsie, and the list goes on. I also discovered the college radio station and an endless selection of music to check out and play on my 'dark wave' show. It then seemed appropriate to work in a record store in my spare time. A career I clung to much longer than I would have liked, but there weren't many jobs to choose from in the early '90's, particularly if you had blue hair.
Most of the people who worked in record stores, were obviously musicians. So I dated one, managed his band, and formed a record label with him. Again, probably something I clung to much longer than I would have liked. It was fun. Mostly. I think he's still kickin' around, sounding a bit like Tool or Ministry.
I began to wonder, probably starting in college, 'where are the women?' Sure we had Aretha, Tina, Janis, the GoGo's, Joan Jett, Sheila E, Pat Bentar, Madonna, and more and more record breakers. But there didn't seem to be as many of us playing a 2am gig at CBGB's on a Tuesday, working in the record stores and recording studios, or even reviewing the music, let alone running the labels. And whenever I picked up Rolling Stone or Spin, women were rarely on the cover. When women did make the cover, they were half naked and often not even a musician but an actress or model. (Seriously, take a look at Rolling Stone Cover to Cover: The First 40 Years).
Lately I've noticed that things haven't changed much. So I finally decided, after being out of the music industry for more than 15 years, that it was time to engage again. At least beyond just buying and downloading, making mix CDs for friends, or spinning at the occasional new years eve party. A blog seemed like a good place to start. I can tell people what I'm listening to and pontificate on random music related topics.
The acronym SWIK (Strongest Women I Know) must be credited to two college friends. He called smart, cool, women with strong personalities SWIK. She was a SWIK and thought it would make a great license plate. They married. It was awesome. I always loved the phrase.
So the SWIK blog written by a woman and mainly about women musicians. I think there's a view out there that women don't get that 'into' music. Part of the problem may be that in an industry dominated by men, they approach music like so many other things, technically and without the emotional or social context. It's all about the guitar riff, the vocal, or production quality. I think women want to learn more about music, but it's not always written about in a way that engages them. So this is my attempt to not only highlight women musicians but also to engage more women in music. I won't pretend to be an expert on music. I like A LOT of music and I know a fair amount about music. But I refuse to compete with those critics (mostly men) who believe that you must be able to name every Led Zepplin album, the drummer who played on Miles Davis's Kind of Blue, all the samples used on 3 Feet High and Rising, and the last concert the Dead played with Jerry...before you can have worthwhile opinion on music.
This blog is just that, my humble opinion. It covers music that I like. I don't buy into definitions of good and bad or the snobbery of most music critics. You either like it or you don't. I hope that this blog can be a guide for people who have similar tastes to mine. I'll try to add some reference and background when I can. Maybe you'll find something new or that something old is new again.
Enjoy.
~DJ Kyrawoman 9 May, 2009
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