Photos and review by Jennie Book
@jenniebookphotography

The Flannel and the Fury tour with Sleater-Kinney and Liz Phair, plus Soccer Mommy opening, hit the Greek Theater in Los Angeles on September 8^th for a sweltering night of riot grrrl rock. There’s a great throughline happening with women and live music right now– a couple weekends before this was Daisy Chain Fields festival with an all-women bill, The Breeders are touring, and Bikini Kill are on the road too. And now with Sleater-Kinney and Liz Phair onstage it’s officially a great summer for the original women of rock.

The crowd was made up of lots of women who wore both flannel and fury in the 90s, plus their daughters, plus lots of dudes who love a good rock show. Soccer Mommy opened the night with a solo set sans a touring band, and there were plenty of people on the barricade to see her play songs like “Lost,” “Royal Screw Up,” and “Driver.” Her aesthetic has been coined “bubblegrunge” by someone clever, and her sound and style were complimentary to Sleater-Kinney and Phair, so her opening the show was a great fit.

Sleater-Kinney took the top spot of the shared headlining bill, and kicked right into “Hell,” with Carrie Brownstein kicking literally with her legs, plus her super dynamic guitar playing and jumps. Corin Tucker sang hits like “Needlessly Wild,” “You’re No Rock N Roll Fun,” “Dig Me Out,” and “Entertain.” They were in great form and the fans on the barricade were thrilled to be so up close and personal with them, everybody sweating it out together. Brownstein was funny and chatty between a few songs, and at one point urged fans to use Sleater-Kinney as a “ballast” to “turn up the volume on your life and also for people who don’t have a voice” and “bring up the volume whenever you can.” Just not you, Macklemore.

Liz Phair came out next and started off with “6’1” and moved into “Help Me Mary.” She played around 17 songs, many of which were favorites from a large part of the crowd’s college days, like “Never Said,” “Stratford-on-Guy,” and “Flower,” then “Extraordinary” and “Why Can’t I?” got the crowd joining in for singalongs. She had an impressive array of cool guitars lined up behind her, including a fully clear model she played for her first three. Her performance was more laid back than the S-K set, but her connection with the crowd was strong.

The Flannel and The Fury will stay on the road in select cities through the end of September, wrapping up with a spot at the Oceans Calling Festival in Maryland. For all the latest news, tickets, and to see who’s opening in different cities, check out sleater-kinney.com/tour