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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 1, 2003)
august 1. 2003 ■ Jumt Mrt 39 MUSIC ▼ ............ A girl needs hep role models reative The Gossip’s Beth- Ditto is m ore th a n ju st a p re tty body ^ a fe BY C O R l TARATCX)T Specialties hen Beth Ditto and her band The Gossip play Nocturnal on Aug. 8, the show can be considered a sort of home coming. Olympia is yesterday’s news: The band is shacking up in Portland permanently. But make no mistake: W hile the sounds of Olympia’s riot grrl scene linger in D itto’s musical vocabulary, she is, first and foremost, a Southern girl to the bone. Ask about her favorite musician or movie, and the lexicon— and pop culture leanings— of the singer’s Arkansas upbringing cannot be muffled. “In high schtxjl, I really loved Reba McEntire,” says Ditto. “I still love Reba M c Entire. I really love the Dixie Chicks. I think they’re fucking awesome. Oh, Loretta Lynn. She’s really cool.” Given that The Gossip often finds itself lumped in with those other minimalist From left: T he Gossip’s Beth Ditto, Kathy Mendonca and Nathan Howdeshell play Nocturnal on Aug. 8 blues duo-trio acts (W hite when it comes to putting gcxxJ old rcx:k ’n’ roll There’s a soft underbelly sweetly hiding Stripes, Black Keys, The Kills), 1 wonder aloud if Ditto’s been tracking the latest Jack White- on record, a bass player really helps.”) But underneath Ditto’s brazen stage persona. You can hear it when she talks about her “sweet Christgau is a grumpy old man. Loretta Lynn adventures. (Lynn told M TV ’s heart” (a brave drag-king lover who recently Kurt Loder that hearing the W hite Stripes for To fully appreciate Ditto’s radical mission, posed with Ditto for the cover spread of On Our you’ve gotta leave the house, you’ve gotta the first time “sounded like someone was Backs). And you can hear it when she fantasizes breaking into a bank.” The Stripes’ Jack White smash yourself into a crowd, you’ve gotta be about the musical possibilities in her near future. willing to get off your ass and dance. This is a promptly requested Lynn’s onstage presence at “I want to do a solo project and make music some Stripes shows. And now Renée Zell participatory thing— drop your self-conscious ness. Ditto’s dropping hers. And her bra and with people that are queer and tour with queer weger’s broken-fingered boyfriend is slated to people. I love The Gossip, and I love Kathy panties, too. produce a few tracks on the country legend’s and Nathan. But there’s something special “Sometimes taking my clothes off on stage next record.) about making music around queer people, with feels liberating. Sometimes it feels empowering. “T hat’s so cute!” shrieks Ditto. “Loretta queer people. We understand each other.” Sometimes it feels really silly. Now sometimes Lynn is amazing. She comes off simple, in this And Ditto understands the lure of change. girls in the audience do it, and that’s cool. If total backwcxxJs hillbilly way. But then she has they feel gcxxl enough about themselves to do “I don’t think The Gossip will ever be any a head on her shoulders. I think that’s really that, that’s really rad. It’s thing but one guitar and important. She’s so damn smart. Here’s some dmms and one singer. For cool that there’s a space one who didn’t have an amazing education, me, later, I think that I where they can do that. who married at 13, had a bunch of kids, and will definitely want some now she has this successful career. Especially in Because it’s just a shirt. It’s thing crazy, something just a Kxly. But yeah, music. Especially in country music! Her mes prcxluced with all kinds of sometimes I do feel silly— I sage is important, and it was really controver instmments and all kinds sial in the 1970s. C oal Miner's Daughter is my mean, I’m up there in my of sounds and all different underwear, y’know? But for favorite movie. Sister Act 2 and C oal Miner's genres of music." Daughter." the most part it feels gixxJ.” How would Ditto Sister Act 2? Yup, Whcxipi Goldberg’s 1993 And as members o f describe the sound she homage to singing R & B nuns ranks right up The Gossip expose them hears in her head when there for Ditto. “Lauryn Hill’s in that movie. selves to a bigger and she imagines a sound sep Whixipi Goldberg? C ’mon. It’s so g<xxi” broader audience, Ditto is arate and independent from The Gossip? Her coming to terms with their power and responsi A girl needs her role mcxiels, after all. Espe voice quiets. “The sound would be really full bility. “It’s important to spread this message. cially a proud fat girl who identifies loudly as and moving and melixlic. And pretty to watch. People are really scared and repressed. We live queer. For Ditto, 22, role nuxlels are everything. And pretty to hear. I want to perform in really in a country where no one wants you to be out “In high schcxil, I listened to a lot of Mama of the closet. They don’t want you to talk long dresses and keep the makeup on my face Cass,” she laughs. “I was always on the lcx)kout on. A lot of piano. A lot of nice mekxlies that about it." for people that were big. Or queer people. I was get stuck in your head for days.” JH really into Janeane Garofalo and Rosie O ’Don Not only that, they don’t want to pay you nell and Ellen DeGeneres. Even before Ellen for it. “Ltx)k at the bands that have success,” and Rosie came out. I was kx>king for some Ditto continues. “They fit the beauty standard. Sleetmute Nightrnute and Paradise Island open for thing so bad. And I really loved Annie Lennox They’re white, they’re straight. You can see the T h e G ossip 8 p.m . Aug. 8 at Nocturnal, and Tori Amos, Bikini Kill and Cat Power.” 1800 E. Burnside St. Tickets are $8 from system working. You can see how fucked up the TicketsW est or at the door. industry is. You can tell by who gets famous. It’s itto is a trailblazer, even if self-professed important for someone who looks like me, for Free-lance music unter C ori TARATOOT is Dean of American Rix:k Critics Robert someone’s who’s queer, to actually be success Christgau may not think so. (“A fat, sexy, ful, to let people know exactly who you are and working on a biography o f the Polyphonic Spree. In lesbian teen-ager whose entire trio escaped what you’re about, that you have an agenda or her free tune, she drafts speeches firr Lisa Arkansas for Olympia? And face it, folks— an issue that you want to address." Bradshaw's 2004 mayoral campaign. W “Sometimes taking m y clothes off on stage feels liberating.... Because it fs just a shirt. 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