Day After Day #121: Entertain

Day After Day is an ambitious attempt to write about a song every day in 2024 (starting on Jan. 4).

Entertain (2005)

Nostalgia is a powerful thing. One could argue this entire year-long feature is an exercise in nostalgia. My take is nostalgia is fine as long as you're not consumed by it. But when you're a rock band, the line between nostalgia and "inspired by" is thin indeed. 

One of my favorite bands of the last 25 years or so is Sleater-Kinney, who got their start as part of the riot girrrl movement and became one of the most influential indie rock acts going. The group was formed in 1994 in Olympia, Washington by Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker, inspired by punk and indie rock. There were three drummers before Janet Weiss of Quasi took over in 1996.

Over the course of seven albums, Sleater-Kinney developed a reputation as one of the best bands in the business. The band was known for Tucker's caterwauling vocals, which had a polarizing effect; eventually, Brownstein started singing some songs. Tucker and Brownstein both played guitar, while Weiss was a powerhouse on drums.

In 2005, they released The Woods, their loudest album to date. The band had opened for Pearl Jam in 2003, which influenced their foray into a harder rocking style. There are echoes of Led Zeppelin, from the massive guitar riffs to Weiss' Bonham-esque pounding. It's a visceral and thunderous affair.

The lead single "Entertain" slams the seeming appetite for nostalgia acts.

"So you want to be entertained?/Please look away, don't look away/We're not here because we want to entertain/You can go away, don't go away/Reality is the new fiction, they say/True is truer these days, truth is man-made/If you're here cause you want to be entertained/You can go away, please go away."

The song is also a broadside at bands who were emulating post-punk icons like Joy Division, the Cure, Gang of Four and Wire (think Interpol et al). Brownstein angrily swipes at the wave of early aughts nostalgia in indie rock.

"You come around looking 1984/You're such a bore, 1984!/You star child, well you're using it like a whore/It's better than before, oh it's better than before/You come around sounding 1972/You did nothing new, 1972!/Where's the fuck you?/Where's the black and blue?"

She calls herself out as well. 

"1-2-3! You can drown in mediocrity, it feels so nice, sublime/1-2-3! Yeah, it sounds like someone pushed the rewind/1-2-3! Yeah, give it to me easily, fill your mind this time/1-2-3! Yeah, make it sweet and syrupy with wine."

The album reached #80 on the Billboard Top 200 chart. It was the last Sleater-Kinney for nearly a decade. Weiss joined Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks for a few albums and a tour. Tucker recorded a few solo albums and Brownstein started Wild Flag with Weiss, Mary Timony and Rebecca Cole. Brownstein also became a TV star after she and Fred Armisen launched the IFC sketch comedy show Portlandia.

Sleater-Kinney reformed in 2014 and released three albums before Weiss left after the recording of The Center Won't Hold, citing a lack of creative input. Since then, S-K has released two more albums and toured with multiple backing musicians. The albums are decent, but they don't have the spark of that first run of releases.