Growing up in the ’90s exposed me to a ton of terrible music and the horrifying idea of a baggy pants society. In 1991, the infamous Nevermind album was released and the mainstream flocked to dreary Seattle to find the next grunge sensation. As with most scenes, there is a story here that is not being told. Being from Wisconsin, myself, I can tell you grunge stretched much farther than the Northwest.
Enter L7, a female-fronted grunge rock outfit that would go on to inspire riot grrrl bands like Bikini Kill and Calamity Jane. I grew up listening to bands like them, not on some third wave feminist jargon the mainstream was pitching, but because they rocked. I was stoked to hear the band was reuniting with the original lineup in 2014, and am now of rejuvenated enthusiasm due to their most recent announcement of a documentary.
The band has launched a kickstarter campaign to fund the film. Give ’em a hand if you can. Full press release below.
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The infamously fierce, feminist pioneers of American grunge punk have announced a documentary film, directed by award-winning documentary filmmaker, Sarah Price (American Movie, The Yes Men, Summercamp) Titled L7: Pretend We’re Dead, the film takes viewers on an all access journey into the 1990’s grunge movement that took the world by storm and the band that helped define it as the genre of a generation. Today they launch a Kickstarter, offering fans a remarkable array of rewards- including a potential séance with the band- as thanks for helping to fund the project. Go to the Kickstarter project HERE to check out the full list and grab them while they are still available.
Culled from over 100 hours of vintage home movies taken by the band, never before seen performance footage, and candid interviews, L7: Pretend We’re Dead chronicles the early days of the band’s formation in 1985 to their height as the ‘queens of grunge’ and follows a roller coaster ride of triumphs and failures. It offers particularly revelatory insight into the band’s eventual dissolution in 2001.
The formula: one part Donita’s love of pop and punk and one part Suzi’s hard rock and blues, charged with lyrics that had political bite and humor proved irresistible to the disenfranchised, the marginalized, and the punk. The excitement around the L7: Pretend We’re Dead announcement has catalyzed a recently announced and widely anticipated reunion of the band in its original line-up. L7 will kick off a European tour, bringing their high-octane energy and anthemic chops to the stage to ignite audiences once again.
Original Line-Up Reunites For Tour!
6/19: Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain @ Azkena Rock Festival – TICKETS
6/20: Clisson, France @ Hell Fest – TICKETS
Watch: Reunion Announcement Video
