City

Olympia

Washington, USA

Olympia appears in 2 Songsheets issues: Riot Grrrl and C86 and Indie Pop. 6 artists in the archive came from here, including Bikini Kill, Sleater-Kinney and Bratmobile. Key places include Capitol Theater, Yo-Yo A Go-Go and Evergreen State College. The issues date 3 events here, from 1990 to 1991.

College town turned riot grrrl capital. Bikini Kill, Sleater-Kinney, and Heavens to Betsy built a feminist punk movement from Evergreen State College and the International Pop Underground.

Scenes

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Riot Grrrl
Primary
050
C86 and Indie Pop

Artists from Olympia

  • Bikini Kill

    Bikini Kill formed in Olympia in October 1990, and from the start their shows played out like small wars.

  • Sleater-Kinney

    Sleater-Kinney formed in 1994 when Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein, coming out of Heavens to Betsy and Excuse 17, built a band around a dual-guitar attack that did away with bass entirely on the early records.

  • Bratmobile

    Bratmobile started as a joke, or close to one, hatched in theory in the bathroom of a University of Oregon dorm in fall 1989 by Allison Wolfe and Molly Neuman.

  • Heavens to Betsy

    Heavens to Betsy was Corin Tucker's first band, an influential first-generation riot grrrl outfit that played the 1991 International Pop Underground Convention in Olympia.

  • Team Dresch

    Team Dresch grew out of Olympia at the intersection of riot grrrl and queer punk, founded by Donna Dresch, who also ran the influential Chainsaw zine, and Kaia Wilson.

  • Excuse 17

    Excuse 17 was Carrie Brownstein's band before Sleater-Kinney, a raw three-piece that toured the riot grrrl circuit in the early nineties and lived out the movement's DIY ethos onstage night after night.

Places

  • Capitol Theater
    1924-present · Riot Grrrl

    The venue that hosted the International Pop Underground Convention in August 1991, including the historic 'Love Rock Revolution Girl Style Now' all-female night that became riot grrrl's public debut.

  • Yo-Yo A Go-Go
    1994, 1997, 1999 · Riot Grrrl

    The K Records festival that continued the spirit of the IPU Convention, providing ongoing performance opportunities and community gathering space for riot grrrl bands throughout the 1990s.

  • Evergreen State College
    1971-present · Riot Grrrl

    The progressive liberal arts college where Kathleen Hanna studied and where the Olympia riot grrrl community took shape, with its radio station KAOS broadcasting riot grrrl music and ideas.

  • Yo-Yo Studios
    1989-2008 · Riot Grrrl

    K Records' recording space where many riot grrrl recordings were made, embodying the movement's lo-fi DIY recording aesthetic and independent production values.

What happened here

  1. 1990
    Bikini Kill Forms

    Kathleen Hanna, Tobi Vail, Kathi Wilcox, and Billy Karren form Bikini Kill in Olympia in October, pioneering riot grrrl's confrontational feminist punk aesthetic.

    Riot Grrrl
  2. 1991
    Revolution Girl Style Now Released

    Bikini Kill self-releases demo cassette Revolution Girl Style Now in summer, establishing their raw, urgent sound and feminist manifesto.

    Riot Grrrl
  3. 1991
    International Pop Underground Convention

    K Records hosts IPU Convention in Olympia in August with "Girl Night" featuring Bratmobile, Heavens to Betsy, Bikini Kill side projects—riot grrrl's coming-out party.

    Riot Grrrl

Records made by artists from Olympia

Connections

Olympia → Washington, D.C.

Riot grrrl emerged simultaneously in Olympia and DC, connected through zine networks, punk tours, and the International Pop Underground convention.

← Washington, D.C.

DC hardcore's DIY infrastructure and feminist consciousness directly seeded Olympia's riot grrrl movement through touring networks and zine culture.