Women, Sex and Rock 'n' Roll: In Their Own Words

by Liz Evans

This collection of interviews with notable women performers from the rock world focuses on both new performers with a more radical approach and the more established, but still progressive, artists working today. Rock journalist Liz Evans talks to them about their experience of sexism in the music industry, the riot girl phenomenon, whether they see the recent proliferation of women's bands as a trend that's here to stay, their perception of rock music as a barometer of popular culture, and so on.

Genres: Music

276 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1994

About the author

Originally from the UK, Liz Evans is a journalist, author, former psychotherapist, and sessional academic currently based in lutruwita/Tasmania.

She spent the 1990s as a rock journalist in London, interviewing the like of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Bjork, Foo Fighters, Soundgarden, Marianne Faithfull, Tori Amos, The Cranberries, Red Hot Chili Peppers, plus hundreds of others. She has since written on film, books, women’s issues, health, travel, psychology, lifestyle, parenting and environmental topics, contributing lead features and interviews to a broad selection of magazines, newspapers, academic journals and digital platforms around the world.. These include The Guardian, The Independent, NME, New Statesman, Elle, Dumbo Feather, Lunch Lady, The Age, TasWeekend, Island Magazine, and Womankind, as well as academic journals.

Liz is now a freelance literary critic for The Conversation, and a regular contributor to Bookish on ABC Hobart.

She holds an MA in Jungian and post-Jungian Studies from the University of Essex and a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Tasmania where she is now an Adjunct Researcher. She has been awarded two Varuna Residential Fellowships, and a third from the Katharine Susan Prichard Writer’s Centre. She has also received an Arts Tasmania grant for an Education Residency.

Liz is represented by Curtis Brown Australia. She is currently working on her second novel for Ultimo Press.

Reviews

[Leiki Fae · Rating 3 out of 5]

I imagine I would have appreciated this book more if I had been cool enough to listen to these rockstars in the 90s, but I was definitely listening to like Spice Girls at that time. One major pet peeve I had is that the writer/editor used exclamation points excessively. It was interesting to hear these voices from the 90s and reflect on how much of their struggles still continue today. It was also interesting to note the shifts in vocabulary over the decades, like they spoke about what we would immediately identify as "toxic masculinity" without ever saying the words. They also used the word "female" quite a lot, even as a noun. I wa surprised also at how many of them were saying that being a woman gave them access to some unique knowledge and spirituality, but like I would have focused more on how men and women are socialized differently, which is of course the perennial nature vs nurture debate (it is definitely mostly nurture!). I at least started a cool new playlist with 90s women rockers, so that's been fun!

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really neat collection of essays written by various rocker chicks, including Kim Gordon from Sonic Youth, Kim Deal from the Pixies/Breeders, both girls from Lush, Babes in Toyland, Bjork, and Tori Amos.

[Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was kind of my bible when I was 12--I am eternally grateful for it introducing me to Kristin Hersh (and more good music)!

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A few really inspiring articles

[Tab · Rating 4 out of 5]

Varying degrees of misandry. Lots of filler but lots of good. Appreciate the informality