The commencement of spring break can mean a variety of things, but none of them as exciting as the music portion of South by Southwest. Despite the relentless crowds and grueling Texas heat, SXSW brings the promise of free concerts, incredible food, freakishly hip people in outfits that should never look good on real human beings, and a lot of hot band members from obscure punk groups to fall in love with. MY KIND OF HEAVEN! If this quaint (huge and absolutely insane) Austin festival is a part of your spring break plans, then I implore you to at least consider checking out some of these badass lady-rockers.
1. Diet Cig– This casual pop-rock duo from New York started off as a “just-for-fun” bedroom project in 2015 but has very quickly gained popularity. The spunky lead singer, Alex Luciano, also acts as lead guitarist, songwriter, and professional on-stage-dancing-QUEEN. Luciano’s infectious energy unhinges every audience member and turns each show into a sweaty dance party.
2. Hinds- Hinds is a lo-fi garage-pop band from Madrid, Spain. Made up entirely of wildly cool and independent young women, this band is noisy and fun and perfect for anything from a crazy night out to a lazy morning of laying in bed and questioning your existence.
3. Frankie Cosmos- Greta Simone Kline is a singer-songwriter from New York who goes by the stage-name “Frankie Cosmos”. Her music is technically a part of the “anti-folk” scene, but if you, like me, have no idea what that means, all you must know is that her songs will cause you to transcend into a luminescent universe of flowers and glitter. Does that make sense? That definitely makes sense.
4. Tacocat- Tacocat is a feminist, queer-positive, post-punk band from Seattle Washington. With 90s riot grrrl music as their inspiration, this high energy quartet’s discography features subject matter that ranges from satirical criticism of cat-calling to more serious topics like living with seasonal affective disorder.
5. La Luz- La Luz is an all girl group from Seattle with a restless vibe and a surf-rock sound. After surviving a traumatic car crash in 2013, the band returned with unprecedented vigor and intensity. If you find yourself in the audience at a La Luz show, prepare yourself for a rowdy night of unruly crowds and daring stage divers.
6. L.A. Witch- This trio is made up of 3 badass rockers from Los Angeles, California. If I had to take a crack at it, I would describe their sound as “dark lo-fi grunge-y punk rock with a psychedelic reverb and a lot of distortion.” However, I feel I must admit that I know absolutely nothing about music terminology so don’t just take my word for it, check them out for yourselves ya lazy bums!
7. Waxahatchee- The lovely and effervescent Katie Crutchfield is the talent and brains behind this indie-rock solo project. Lyrically, Crutchfield has busted out some honest and emotional MASTERPIECES in the past few years, and I am completely certain that her singing voice is what I want to have playing when I ascend to the gates of heaven.
While I am not too proud to admit that this very short list is completely reflective of my narrow and personal music tastes (a lot of California rock and white girls with bangs), appreciating some talented female artists trying to make it in a male-dominated industry is deeply satisfying. Having a collection of girl bands to rock out to is fun and empowering, so if the ladies on this list don’t appeal to you, I strongly suggest that you go out and find some that do, you will not regret it!