All-female Indie Rock trio Sleater-Kinney were the most successful band to emerge from the Olympia, WA Riot Grrrl scene of the 1990s. Although they eventually transcended the limits of that genre, they promoted its feminist ideals throughout their career. After releasing seven critically lauded and increasingly popular albums, Sleater-Kinney disbanded in 2006.
Sleater-Kinney lead singer and guitarist Corin Tucker helped form Olympia Riot Grrrl band Heavens To Betsy, a duo with Tracy Sawyer. Early on, they played the 1991 International Pop Underground Convention. Organized by K Records, this event helped to galvanize the Riot Grrrl movement.
Before disbanding in 1994, Heavens To Betsy issued three singles and one LP, Calculated (1993). Guitarist and singer Carrie Brownstein helped form Queercore trio Excuse 17 in 1993. That band released two albums, Excuse Seventeen (1994) and Such Friends Are Dangerous (1995). Original Sleater-Kinney drummer Laura (Lora) Macfarlane played in several Australian bands before relocating to Seattle in the mid'90s.
Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein began playing together while Heavens To Betsy and Excuse 17 were still together. After each act disbanded, Tucker and Brownstein, with Macfarlane, committed full-time to Sleater-Kinney, named for a highway off ramp in Lacey, Washington, just outside Olympia.
The group then traveled to Melbourne, Australia to record their 1995 self-titled debut. The record was released by Chainsaw Records, a Portland, OR Queercore indie label run by Donna Dresch. In the Riot Grrrl mode, the album was comprised of intense DIY Punk Rock with feminist lyrics. Sleater-Kinney received mixed reviews, while its 1996 follow-up, Call The Doctor got high marks, as the band sharpened their sound.
Macfarlane returned to Australia in 1996. That same year, Janet Weiss successfully auditioned to be Sleater-Kinney's final drummer. Since 1993, Weiss has also drummed and sang with keyboardist ex-husband Sam Coomes in Indie Rock duo Quasi. In 1997, the sonically improved Sleater-Kinney released their third album, the universally acclaimed and incisive Dig Me Out, on Olympia's Kill Rock Stars. The record showcased a stronger leaning toward pop hooks, as well as Tucker and Brownstein's trademark interplay on vocals and guitars. Their next album, 1999's The Hot Rock, built further on these strengths.
A year later, Sleater-Kinney returned with their third Kill Rock Stars album, All Hands On The Bad One. While certain songs reflected the feminism of their Riot Grrrl roots, the album also featured several upbeat tracks. As with their prior three LPs, the record received mostly glowing press. Sleater-Kinney's sixth album, and their last for Kill Rock Stars, was 2002's One Beat. Many of the lyrics were a reaction to 9-11, while the musical arrangements broadened to include horns, strings, theremin, and vintage synths. As usual, the album was strong from start to finish and reviews for it were quite positive.
In 2003, Sleater-Kinney toured extensively with hard-rocking Grunge band Pearl Jam. Influenced by this experience, and revealing the band's appreciation for classic Hard Rock acts like Black Sabbath, Sleater-Kinney's seventh album, 2005's The Woods, showed a marked departure from the lean, Punk-inspired sounds of their previous works.
Released by Seattle's Sub Pop Records, and produced by Dave Fridmann, Sleater-Kinney's final record was often loud and sprawling. Despite the radical change, critics raved and most fans appreciated the new sound. On June 27, 2006, the band announced it would go on "indefinite hiatus." Sleater-Kinney played their final show in Portland, OR on August 12.