Kitty Finger

Album review

Australian punk band Matrimony were active only long enough to produce one record, 1989's Kitty Finger, but that album's quickly realized 15 tracks would serve as some of the initial inspirations for entire movements in punk that followed. Kitty Finger's snarly demeanor and undercurrents of sex, sardonicism, and unbridled self-expression all laid a foundation for riot grrrl bands like Bratmobile, Excuse 17, Kicking Giant, and the like to build on. The relatively obscure album made such an impression on Bikini Kill founder Kathleen Hanna that she encouraged Olympia label Kill Rock Stars to bring it back into print in the late '90s. Musically, the songs on Kitty Finger have a little less of the angsty fury that would become synonymous with riot grrrl, leaning into playful, exploratory songs that have more in common with other bands from the mid- to late '80s that presaged the coming of riot grrrl. Lighthearted blasts of minimal punk like "Fish and Chip Sweetheart" or "Two Storey Man" recall the same shaky bliss of Pacific Northwestern punk outfit the Neo Boys, and skeletal rockers like "Bleached" and "Prick" have the same giddy faux-rockabilly feel as the Beat Happening songs that tried to emulate the Cramps. Kitty Finger's only cover song is a languid reading on Scientists' "Frantic Romantic," which oozes by where the original compositions tend to jerk and sputter with excitement. The only document of Matrimony's sound is essential listening for anyone interested in the deeper roots of punk history. The songs paint the picture of five friends making music with no aspirations outside of having fun trying new things with their collective creativity, and the results of that purehearted artistry were powerful enough to quietly set off a chain reaction of influence and discovery for the next generation and beyond.

© Fred Thomas /TiVo