Hannah Leah /// Staff Writer
On Monday, March 9, Chastity Belt (formed in Walla Walla, Washington – say that three times!) hit the stage of Lewis & Clark’s Co-op. How refreshing it was to see an all girl band rockin’ and rollin’.
The girls rolled in about an hour before the show and got all their musical accoutrement inside The Co-op with the help of some handy dandy rusty nail volunteers (I am ashamed to say I stayed in the corner this whole time doing astronomy homework). Before the show, I overheard them joke that they might have to call an intermission in case they ran out of songs. Nonetheless, all seemed super stoked for the show. Who doesn’t like a good musical performance on a Monday night?
Eventually, the lights dimmed and Chastity Belt’s lead singer, Julia Shapiro, hopped onto the stage with her pals Lydia Lund (on guitar), Annie Truscott (bass) and Gretchen Grimm (drums). Julia sported some cool floppy hair, which bounced around as she belted songs like “Trapped” and “Cool Slut.” Their performance was minimal but fun. Their attitude was aloof, yet you wanted to come up to them after and ask them the classic question “Hey, anything going on later?” In other words, we all want to be their friend.
The song “Cool Slut” was a really special treat. It was dope to see the usual Co-op goers jump around to a song about how it’s totally cool to be a slut. More than cool, it felt like a huge relief. Their lyrics are smart and pointed, yet witty and conscious. The mosh-inclined tended to gather towards the front and center (as per usual), banging into each other delightedly. The band kept interactions with the crowd to a minimum, mostly exchanging the cool, secretive BFF eye-contact communication that is so fun to observe. I got the impression that these girls are really just great friends sharing a sweet little slice of their lives with us.
As the show came to a close, everybody was looking up with puppy dog eyes hoping for more, and luckily they obliged. They did an encore with the song “Time 2 go home” (a pretty appropriate song to end off the evening with). So, alas, the lights flicked on and it was finally time to go home.
I think other ladies would agree with me when I say that it felt pretty darn good to see an all female band taking on the stage. LC’s music scene seems to be overwhelmingly male, and I don’t think I realized how much we need more female acts until there was one up front in center. I think it’s about time some female musicians at LC joined forces to create their own musical act.
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