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How Le Tigre Changed Feminist Punk in 1999

Poetic Wax | December 12, 2025



In the fall of 1999, Le Tigre released their self-titled debut album. The band stemmed from Riot Grrrl pioneer Kathleen Hanna’s desire to create music more playful and light-hearted than that of Bikini Kill while also maintaining the inspiration from feminism and political activism of her other band. This is the story of that debut album, how the band formed, and the members within.

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CHAPTERS:
0:00 How Le Tigre Redefined Feminist Punk
1:09 Kathleen Hanna’s Transition From Bikini Kill to Le Tigre
2:15 The Birth of Julie Ruin
4:22 The Other Faces Behind Le Tigre
6:31 Fun Feminism: The Exploring the Birth of Le Tigre
7:58 The Making of Le Tigre’s Self-Titled Album
10:29 The Ongoing Legacy of Le Tigre

#letigre #feministpunk #riotgrrrl #bikinikill #kathleenhanna #johannafateman #sadiebenning #jdsamson #vinylcommunity #vinylrecords #vinylcollection #andyfenstermaker #fensepost #vinylchannel #poeticwax

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Written by Poetic Wax

Comments

This post currently has 44 comments.

  2. @WhisperHousePress

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    I really appreciate this video, as I know next to nothing about this area of music history. I'm listening to Kathleen Hanna's "Rebel Girl" now in preparation for a Riot Grrrl inspired feminist horror novel my press is releasing next year. I just so happened to be listening to your video and Hanna's book at almost the exact same time, and I came across her story about apartment-made recording of Julie Ruin. Hanna says she recorded it on an 8-track recorder she got from Adam Harovitz. She liked that she felt like the 8 tracks (as opposed to 4) gave her superpowers. She could use four of the tracks for vocals alone, and it was the first time she was able to do that so it really hit her. Thanks for the history! I really got a lot out of this.

  3. @KingDawg72

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    Cool video, man! I actually ran into this vid while I was working on my own Le Tigre analysis video months ago and yours is much better.

    Keep making more music analysis works! 👍

  5. @briteness

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    Bikini Kill were a truly exciting band live, at least sometimes. Le TIgre were really quite boring, at least when I saw them play in DC. I hadn't been expecting that at all.

  6. @vincentgascoin

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    Someone needs to make some real research… Deceptacon was a direct response to Fat Mike's lyrics in Kill Rock Stars from NoFX… if every piece of info in this video is as far fetched as the Deceptacon analysis, then it's not worth believing anything it says…

  8. @JL0ndon

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    The best part about being gay and in NYC i always would see JD spinning at bars. They are one of my favorite people, spent a few hours over the years talking to them

  9. @AndrewPope-p7m

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    The problem with feminism is that it went past equality and went to supremacy. Obviously women in general can create life, something men can't do, so there is a special Ness in it.

  12. @Britneygurl

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    Thanks for the review. The 90's was my generation's music era. Unfortunately when I listened to music at the time I didn't really listen. I liked the beat and everything, but had little to no emotional connection to it and didn't pay much attention to the lyrics. 25 years later I have found music, I have found politics and I have also found feminism. I kinda wish I could go back in time and relive this era. I found myself at such a late age, such is life. At least I can enjoy it now.

  14. @dmc4426

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    She married Adam Horovitz from the Beasty Boys. The Beasty Boys had some sing lyrics that were misogynistic. Always wondered why a woman who considered herself a feminist would do that?

  15. @Stoplyingtopeople

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    Think most people just forget music for the sake of music and add all this crap on top. I want to hear samples of the music not some hipster waffling on. Off to listen to some of their music as sick of waiting for some samples of their music to see whether I like it or not,

  28. @arclight2012

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    As a Gen X white cis het dude who just happened to be weirdly (I guess?) into feminism and pro-queer advocacy in the early 90s, by the time Le Tigre came out, it was a breath of fresh air! I can’t tell you how many playlists I have and continue to put their music on.

  31. @JeremyLeeBrownBear

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    I FUCKING LOVE Le Tigre!! Saw them on the feminist sweepstakes tour. Really appreciate the coverage and some stories I’d never heard. Something about his delivery tho… whatever tho-I’m sure people think that about dumb shit I say too🤷‍♂️🫶

  34. @nickmatthaes5344

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    Great video! As a late 90s early 2000s college radio DJ they were always in heavy rotation on my show. I can't believe you didn't bring up that the "Who put the bomp… ramalamadingdong" lyrics were from the Barry Mann song 'Who Put the Bomp (in the Bomp, Bomp, Bomp)'

  39. @tomlotti240

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    They had one song that I really liked. Think it was off the second album. This stuff made sense, because around the time this band formed, there was another group doing something similar–Chicks on Speed. Something in the air for sure. Zeitgeist. Also, in the late 90s and early aughts, I let go of any pretensions of disliking "techno" music. Music snobs here and there would be like ewww. It's fun to hear stuff that makes you wanna move though (It was after hearing that last track on Stereolab's "Dots and Loops" that set me off. Shout out to Casey Rice). Realize that not everyone's a fan of KH, but she seems ah'ight.

    Liked.

  40. @Dawhud

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    Our barrel with Heritage is called La Tigre Tears.

    Also, you in the Oly area because this and the lathe cut video just ooze Oly music history.

  42. @pjt3887

    December 12, 2025 at 6:22 am

    Thank you for doing such a great job on this. Hanna and Le Teg are so much more than " feminist punk".
    It always bothered me that the Riot Girl movement was always labeled feminist.
    It was really just women who wanted to have their own punk rock bands.
    They were sick and tired of being told to stand there look pretty and they could only sing.
    A bunch of girls decided that's not how it's going to go down! Out of that came the Riot Grl movement. Evergreen College being a liberal arts college was the melting pot for this movement to occur.
    I always find it interesting how when women want to stand up for having some agency they're called a feminist.
    I've always found that response to have a air of misogyny behind it. Not saying that's you. Noooo. Just that some older white men use "feminist" as a way to radicalize those that they oppose.

Comments are closed.

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