Scan barcode
rhiannatherad's review against another edition
4.0
Refreshing.
I was most interested in the more feministy woman-oriented pieces. Currently looking up some of the bands that were written about that I hadn't heard of before (Mecca Normal, ohmygod)
I was most interested in the more feministy woman-oriented pieces. Currently looking up some of the bands that were written about that I hadn't heard of before (Mecca Normal, ohmygod)
blewellyntaylor's review
5.0
Whether revealing why a festival’s outsized appeal will never beat a basement show or casually comparing Cat Power to Rick Ross, Hopper either assumes the reader cares as much about music as she does, or knows she will convince us to. And she’s right on all counts. Prophetic in its assessment of sexism within the punk scene, and refreshing in its ability to really critique bodies of work in an age where album reviews often equate to artist PR, Hopper’s collection is refreshing and insightful throughout. I was surprised at how much I loved pieces on artists I didn’t know as much as those I did—a testament to Hopper’s passion for music. I only wish it were a hundred pages longer.
ubemedusa's review
4.0
I actually want to give this 4.5 stars. I haven't followed music criticism too closely for quite awhile, so, shamefully, Jessica Hopper wasn't on my radar until Bust featured an article about her and this book. Hopper's writing is smart, funny, and real. What I love most are the essays/articles where she marks her position where she addresses gender and what it's like to be fan and/or musician who happens to be a woman; whether we like it or not, gender (and feminism) is important, and I love that she directly addresses it.
samdej's review
informative
medium-paced
2.5
As a Puerto Rican woman in my 20s who grew up in the late 2000s/2010s hardcore/punk/emo scene, I found myself drawn to this text, particularly after seeing “Emo: Where the Girls Aren’t” be recommended so heavily in response to this current wave of emo nostalgia. It’s definitely a standout, although due to personal bias I did find myself feeling a little bit defensive of the scene in question. This is partly because her overall point is both true and deeply relatable - but also because even the bands who showed her that “[SHE] MATTER[S]” are still within a scene that is intensely white! Others have mentioned that discussions of race are notably absent, with mentions in her interview with Jim DeRogatis on his reporting on the R. Kelly accusations (another standout) and in “Pogoing Across Borders,” a brief dive into Chicago’s Latin punk DIY scene that deserves a whole book of its own. Even if I liked these three essays (and quite a few more), I cannot help but find Hopper’s explorations of feminism to be hollow without substantive discussions of race (and vice versa). A frustrating but fast read. Seek out DeRogatis’s actual reporting if his interview struck you. If her accounts of the punk/emo scene interested you, read Tranny by Laura Jane Grace of Against Me! and Sellout by Dan Ozzi.
quietjenn's review
4.0
I've been reading Hopper off and on since the Hit It or Quit It days and even when I don't agree with her or feel particularly invested (or, um, even knowledgeable) of the artist and/or issues she'w talking about, I've consistently found her writing to be intelligent, interesting and thought-provoking. And I'm super keen on her voice. All of these things are found in abundance here, including my own failing knowledge of the kids these days and their music. I do wish that there were more bits of her more recent work and conversely wish that there were more fanzine stuff, if only because I suspect all my old music zines got tossed from a closet at my mom's house a long time ago. But I'm sure that the internet will help out with those things, at least until the Second Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic comes out.
fluffdragon's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 rounded up. I liked most of the articles, but I didn't like separating them out by subject.
mishnah's review against another edition
funny
informative
reflective
fast-paced
3.75
Would’ve liked more scaffolding. Funny to read pitchfork pieces in print. Hopper is still a great writer.
rdoose's review
4.0
This was very enjoyable, at times powerful, and definitely thought-provoking. The first essay after the intro, "Emo: Where the Girls Aren't" really stuck with me because it spoke to something I had never really considered: the majority of emo songs are by men about how women have destroyed or wronged them, or at minimum made them sad. It made me look at how my music tastes have changed over the years; I always thought I fell away from that music because I was no longer a distraught teenager, but I think there's something to the theory that emo died in part because women couldn't identify with it. They moved on and found something better. While that wasn't a conscious progression on my part, it's certainly what happened to me.
Her interview with Jim Derogatis, the journalist who fought against R. Kelly from the get-go, was also very powerful. And while I was reading her interview with Hole, I kept wondering if Taylor Jenkins Reid read that piece before writing Daisy Jones & the Six, because it read so much like the book.
This was issued by a small press and there were some editing issues. But overall a great collection.
Her interview with Jim Derogatis, the journalist who fought against R. Kelly from the get-go, was also very powerful. And while I was reading her interview with Hole, I kept wondering if Taylor Jenkins Reid read that piece before writing Daisy Jones & the Six, because it read so much like the book.
This was issued by a small press and there were some editing issues. But overall a great collection.