Category / dance party

by amyc

Happy Quaran-time Dance Party

Hey. Hi. How’s your quarantine going?

Yeah. Weird, right? I hope you’re all (all of you, whoever you are) staying safe and good and well and sufficiently toilet-papered.

Anyway. There’s no good reason why I haven’t updated in a year, except for all the things going on in the world that make me want to curl into a ball and hide behind the furniture. But I figured I should at least update the semiprofessional part of the site with some fun work stuff I did recently—covering a Misty Copeland keynote for our annual conference (which was supposed to be in person but got canceled and then replaced with a new virtual event) and a super-fun interview with Samantha Irby, who is a stitch and if you ever get a chance to see her or talk to her or hang out with her in any capacity, you should absolutely make that happen.

Anyway, this Sports Boyfriend song has been my unofficial COVID lockdown jam. Enjoy!

by amyc

Tuesday Morning Janet Weiss Dance Party

These times are troubled, these times are tough
There’s more to come but you can’t give up
Why don’t you shake a tail for peace and love?

I’m so sad that Janet Weiss left the band. If I had seen Sleater-Kinney as a teen, I am absolutely certain I would have become a drummer. My favorite spot to stand at their shows was anywhere with a clear view of Janet’s wild, precise, powerful drumming, her black bob shaking back and forth with the beat.

Obviously, S-K existed before Janet, and they may continue on without her. But this feels like Pixies-without-Kim-Deal territory again. Something vital is lost.

by amyc

Friday Morning Freewheel Dance Party!

Hi. Hey. It’s been a while.

It’s been a big political week. I have a new alderman (yay!), and there’s gonna be a new mayor soon, too. Plus, I went to DC to meet my Congresswoman and tell her about libraries (oh, she knows).

Speaking of work, I wrote a couple of things recently.

But mostly I’ve been hiding from the cold, feeling blue, and getting older.

But in honor of Team Dresch getting back together and rereleasing a bunch of stuff and touring (!) again, here’s the song I put on all your mixtapes from 1995–2006.

by amyc

Thursday Night Dance Party

This is one of the finest damn songs ever written.

The first Pete Shelley song I remember hearing was his solo hit “Homosapien,” which was in heavy rotation when we first got MTV. A few months ago, I tried (and failed) to master the bass line of “Jerk” in my Merge Records Ensemble class at the Old Town School. I don’t usually think of Buzzcocks when I list my favorite bands, but then I remember how they’ve been a constant for me since adolescence and the songs that are still on my iPod because they are just so fucking good.

Rest in peace, Pete Shelley.