Bikini Kill’s empowered riot grrrl legacy lives on at Palace Theatre

Bikini Kill performed at Palace Theatre in St. Paul on Thursday, April 20, 2023.Sara Fish for MPR

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April 21, 2023

Returning to the Twin Cities for the first time in over 30 years, feminist punk legends Bikini Kill are still kicking down doors for young women and marginalized people. They played an introspective and intersectional set Thursday night at Palace Theatre.

The Olympia trio — powerhouse Kathleen Hanna on vocals, Kathi Wilcox on bass, and drummer Tobi Vail — brought touring guitarist Sara Landeau along for the ride to a raucous 25-song set in St. Paul. Along the way, they shared still-relevant messages of feminist empowerment that have grown to be more inclusive. So much and so little has changed since the trio pioneered the feminist, DIY, riot grrrl movement and the band began in 1990.

The band is known for their activism and the unique space they carved out for women and femmes in a time when the hardcore and punk scenes were more rife with toxic masculinity. Femininity was presented for consumption and the male gaze. They called “girls to the front” of male-dominated crowds, with Hanna encouraging the ejection of badly-behaved men in the crowd, and the band often faced abuse because of it. Hanna, at the peak of the riot grrrl movement in the ‘90s, called on her swarm of fans to do a media blackout because riot grrrls were being misrepresented. She held so much influence in the palm of her hand, and Thursday night, she had the crowd there, too.

Bikini Kill’s abrasive sound comes from their sometimes grinding, droning guitars and steady drums, paired with Hanna’s political lyrics from her high voice, occasional purrs, and frequent yowls. She performs sporting pastel and sequinned babydoll dresses for a combination that’s all at once pink-washed, punk, pretty, and vicious. Their presentation is solely for themselves and others like them. Hanna encourages women, girls, and femmes of all genders and backgrounds to unapologetically take up space. They performed to the generation they grew up with, and as well as newer generations pushing for positive change at the Palace.

A woman sings into a microphone — CB Radio Gorgeous opened for Bikini Kill at Palace Theatre in St. Paul on Thursday, April 20, 2023.
Sara Fish for MPR

Chicago’s CB Radio Gorgeous started the night with their playful, ‘70s-tinged punk and dirty rock ‘n’ roll. Lead singer Anna Kinderman kept a cool demeanor and melodically and theatrically talk-sang in a voice that was vaguely reminiscent of the Slits’ Ari Up. Bassist Jill Lloyd Flanagan’s dark silver bob swayed as she brought the energy on stage, bunny hopping in her pink and blue dress. By the third song, guitarist Matt Revers’ mean and drilling guitar, Joseph Seger’s driving drum beats, and Kinderman’s pointed vocals had the crowd moving. Kinderman’s banter mentioned learning to play Bikini Kill’s “Rebel Girl” as a teen and feeling empowered to start a band and even made a call out to Minneapolis’ May Day Parade, which the band will be attending in a few short weeks. All together, CB Radio Gorgeous’ spirited set got the crowd simmering and primed for Bikini Kill.

With the Palace’s main floor packed in before their set, Bikini Kill took the stage to roars of applause for a set full of anecdotes and shoutouts of local love. Between Hanna and Vail, local grunge legends Babes in Toyland were name-dropped multiple times. “Lori [Barbero] was the blueprint,” said Hanna of the kindness and generosity she received from the Babes drummer as Bikini Kill was starting. Hanna said, “Lori Barbero started riot grrrl on accident,” to whoops and cheers from the crowd early in a set that covered many of the songs from their 1991 demo, Revolution Girl Now, 1993’s Pussy Whipped, and 1996 Reject All American.

Nearly every tune was punctuated by banter that gave background on the band, their experiences as they were writing songs and coming of age. A few times in the night, Vail rotated to lead vocals, Hanna swapped to bass, and Wilcox jumped to drums for “I Hate Danger,” “In Accordance to Natural Law,” “For Only,” “Tell Me So,” and “Magnet” and showed off their multi-instrumental chops, each member’s skills tightened from three decades of practice together and sounding better live than recorded. The crowd had reached a full boil when they launched into “Carnival.” The sea of bodies created bobbing waves, riding the peaks and valleys of Hanna’s “woooaahhhs,” and led sing-alongs during their encore of “Double Dare Ya,” and “Rebel Girl.”

A four-piece band performs on a lit-up stage — Bikini Kill performed at Palace Theatre in St. Paul on Thursday, April 20, 2023.
Sara Fish for MPR

Although the crowd was overwhelmingly white, Hanna made it a point to bring up race, class, and gender throughout the night and condemned racism, homophobia, sexism, and transphobia. She referenced Black race and gender educator Kimberlé Crenshaw’s theory of intersectionality — how multiple overlapping social identities can enhance a person’s marginalization or privilege.

“Feminism is a verb we live every day,” Hanna said while encouraging the crowd to unite, continue educating themselves, and stand up for the most vulnerable. Bikini Kill’s well-placed rage remains relevant today as the rights of marginalized individuals remain under attack by legislators. Along with the warnings and calls to action, there was a sense of power in a room holding the band that no doubt inspired many of the strong, unapologetic performers we know and love today.

It’s hard to know whether we’d have the Scrunchies, Pink Shifts, Mannequin Pussies, Sleater-Kinneys, and Alanis Morisettes without Bikini Kill. They have incited action and motivation in so many bands, and yet-to-be-known smaller acts playing in basements, making zines (online or in print), and still taking up space. They scream for empowerment and recognition, and to set an example for others that need to see a version of themselves onstage. For one bright night, it lit up the stage at the Palace Theatre in St. Paul, no doubt sparking the next generation of local feminist punks to-be.

Bikini Kill