Originally published in ‘zine issue #5, 1992
Another Woman’s Perspective
by Erin Vaeli
I lost my temper at a show once and Richard asked me to express my feelings in his ‘zine. Of course, they deal with the infamous topic of music and shows vs. girls. I can only bet that most of the guys reading this are thinking this is another feminist talking, which isn’t true. I’m not going to make picket signs and protest every show that comes to town.
Anyway, it’s a shame how many guys look at girls as the idiots of the scene, only around to scam on every Tom, Dick, and Harry that has pretty hair or who spices up his supposed masculinity with makeup. The biggest problem is that most guys put up a wall between music and girls. Some girls really want to get involved in and introduced to a lot of music out there, but for some mysterious reason, most guys have a problem with that. It’s also pretty unfair how some guys give some stupid, elementary answer if a girl asks about a band she’s unfamiliar with. These guys tell the girls how they should think of the band and whether they are to like it or not.
Do these guys really want the whole female population that’s into music to turn into robots and show up at shows without a clue? If you’re a girl that’s reading this (if a guy isn’t keeping this ‘zine from you) and is into the scene, do you show up at shows because your friends or boyfriend are making it an obligation, or do you go for its real purpose? Not to be too negative, but I’ve rarely met many girls that are involved or are trying to be involved for good reasons.
I’ll end by saying that there’s not much anyone can do about these idiots, but if you’re honestly out for the scene and truly like music, then you’re obviously going to have to take the initiative for yourself, because these guys surely won’t help you. ■
Haha, finally got to read this 33 years later! Love you Erin. Much has changed since this article! Although you may still have the groupie. Many gorls are very involved, fans, musicians and photographers. ♡