The Real Michael Lee

The Julie Ruin – Hit Reset

Kathleen Hanna has been a fixture in the punk scene since the 80s and has influenced countless budding musicians with her bands Bikini Kill and Le Tigre. Her THIRD band, The Julie Ruin, released their second album, Hit Reset, in 2016 and it includes some of the best songwriting to date. Coming off a multi-year hiatus due to a bout with Lyme disease, Kathleen shows us she’s not going to let a setback like that get her down. Hit Reset sees her and the band expanding on the sounds of both Kathleen’s other bands by blending the more classic punk sound of Bikini Kill with the electro-punk of Le Tigre to create a sound that fans of both bands can enjoy. Kathleen’s signature bratty singing style is front and center as she takes the listener on a journey through her childhood traumas and more than a few toxic relationships (including the personal favorite retort “start a kickstarter for your heart”). The band, consisting of Sara Landeau, Kathi Wilcox, Kenny Mellman, and Carmine Covelli, are there alongside Kathleen to flavor each song with just the right amount of pep or grit to nicely accentuate the at times deeply personal lyrics.

I first got into Kathleen’s work in the early 00s with Le Tigre’s album “This Island.” It was during a time when my musical tastes were budding and I was looking for anything and everything new and different. Her unique writing and delivery led me down the rabbit hole of her catalog as well as similar acts like Sleater-Kinney. Admittedly she had fallen off my radar for quite some time until I discovered Hit Reset, which knowing what I know now about her health problems, makes sense and makes this album seem all the more important to her body of work. She kicked Lyme disease in the ass and now she isn’t pulling any punches (not like she ever really held back anyway). She’s making the music SHE wants to make and her fans, both old and new, are ready for it.

Violent Femmes – Violent Femmes

The Violent Femmes self-titled debut is part of a small club of albums that helped define the “alternative” rock genre. They brought a unique sound and angsty lyrics that was accessible and relatable. Focusing on an acoustic-oriented setup (with occasional electric guitar and in one memorable case, xylophone) which stemmed from their days busking on the streets of Milwaukee, the three-piece band played their music as loud as those instruments could handle. Brian Ritchie’s pounding acoustic bass and Gordan Gano’s chunky guitar combine with Victor DiLorenzo’s ramshackle drums to create a fat and gritty sound that was practically unheard of at the time. Couple that with Gordan’s unique nasally voice and lyrics chock full of with horny teen anxiety and you have a recipe for an album that shouldn’t work, but very much does to the point that it’s practically generation-defining.

The Violent Femmes’ first album is another one of those that I’ve purchased multiple times over the years. First a ratty used CD copy, then the deluxe edition a few years later, then a vinyl copy. It’s responsible for my love of chunky acoustic guitar sounds and has really inspired me to do more with less. You don’t need all the fancy instruments and production. As long as your heart is in it and you give it all you got, it’ll sound good. I mean really, Victor’s drum setup included a literal bucket and it slaps! It’s an album I come back to again and again and seemingly can’t get enough of. There’s so much to love here beyond the hit singles and if you somehow HAVEN’T heard it, go now and give it a spin. You will NOT be disappointed.

Olivia Jean – Raving Ghost

Released earlier this year, Olivia Jean’s Raving Ghost is an album that sees the darkly fashionable rocker cutting loose and really having fun after two plus years of the pandemic. We have the catchy guitar riffs and cherry-picked retro song styles Olivia has always successfully employed, but now we have some choice synth sounds added into the mix, expanding her sonic palette and creating an interesting and exciting aural mash-up. Utilizing a core band of seasoned players, Olivia brings us along on a fascinating late-night journey where we meet a cast of interesting characters throughout these 11 songs, including one that imagines if Enya decided to pick up a guitar and walk on the wild side. Ok, that’s not what the song is about, but Olivia’s cover of Enya’s Orinoko Flow is something that shouldn’t work, but surprisingly does. This album goes from sleazy to manic to almost bouncy and beyond and is a solid argument for the strength of albums over singles.

I remember first learning of Olivia from the single her band (The Black Belles) created with Stephen Colbert and the silly photoshoot they did for that release. Since then she’s struck out on her own and I’ve really grown to enjoy her musical output. She has a unique style that has range and her versatility allows her to work well in a variety of settings beyond rock and roll. She clearly studies her influences closely and is an excellent example of someone who can effortlessly apply what she’s learned from those who came before and truly make it her own. 

Devo – Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!

Devo’s 1977 debut album “Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!” is punk inspired not by politics, but by science. It embraces the parts of humanity that are weird and different and uplifts them to a whole new status of “cool.” I put cool in quotes because I don’t believe Mark and the boys were ever TRYING to be cool. They are just being their silly and slightly off-kilter selves. Here we see them take pop culture and mutate it into a late-night infomercial parody of itself. Their take on the Rolling stones “I Can’t Get No (Satisfaction)” is a perfect example of this as they devolve the classic into something that’s jerky, awkward, and more believable as the singer is NOT a swarthy up-and-coming rock god. (I’m mean that in the nicest way possible, Mark!) There is a lot to take away from this album and each song, while seemingly simple, is subversively complex. There was nothing like it at the time and while this sound has influenced countless other bands, nothing has quite compared to it since.

I previously covered Devo member Gerald Casale’s solo album here on Sound Selections, so it’s shouldn’t be a surprise his legendary main act is appearing here as well. Their sound has influenced me for YEARS and they remain one of my favorite bands. Their sound and ethos is just so unique that no one (with the exception of Weird Al) has been able to successfully copy it. You can successfully imitate The Rolling Stones or Bruce Springsteen, but to try to capture what Devo “is” is to become a parody of yourself, which plays into Devo’s whole deal. They’re a truly unique band that has carved out a very specific place in the pantheon of rock and roll.