And speaking of gals with spunk, young readers or parents of future estrogen-powered rock and rollers should take note of the Rock 'n' Roll Camp for Girls. Happening August 20-25 in Portland, Oregon, the camp aims to provide a space where "girls can experiment with making music and find empowerment through self-expression--and really loud noise!" Age range is grades six through 12, and 100 lucky girls will experience feminist- centered workshops on electric guitar and bass, vocals, drums, lyric and zine writing, operation of light and PA systems, as well as panel discussions on topics such as body image and opportunities for women in the music industry. And since the Northwest boasts a wealth of female talent, you can bet there'll be plenty of performances by and chances to gab with several of our most radiant rock stars. The camp will be held downtown at Portland State University. Want to help out? Organizers are seeking fiscal sponsors as well as donations of instruments and equipment, guest musicians to play or instruct the girls, and speakers to educate them. For more info on the camp, visit www.girlsrockcamp.org; if you'd like to volunteer, contact Libby Beaman by e-mail at libigail@earthlink.net or call (503) 284-8630. You can bet this won't be anything like the guitar camp I attended in fifth grade, way back when girls were supposed to be strictly folk singers.... My instructor Ms. Wolf may have been stoned out of her mind and wearing no underpants beneath her rainbow-embroidered, micro-sized cutoffs (she sure didn't need any body-image workshops, but is the superfuzz muff supposed to hang lower than the shorts?!), but she was no more progressive than the fake progressive times. Ask me to play a special rendition of "Streets of Laredo" anytime.
Be sure to check out our new weekly Northwest Top 20 (p.59) list of local releases, compiled by local independent record stores--except for Fallout Records, who refuses to participate, probably on account of its punk rock ethos and all. When I wrote about a local band's poorly selling album, the store pitched a fit. Apparently, it's not "punk rock" to report unpleasant facts.
Be sure to show your support next time you're in the store by shouting out a popular punk rock slogan like "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all!" Or "Let a smile be your umbrella!" Or how about this gem: "If life gives Sub Pop lemons, don't expect an album called Rock Star God to sell a lot of lemonade!"
