The Slits
In a time of
free love and musical expression, two bands came together to create a punk rock
legend that bonded four women for life. The Slits joined forces in 1976 and
were created by members of the bands The Flowers of
Romance and The
Castrators. The band was made up of members Ari Up, Palmolive (Paloma Romero),
Kate Koris and Suzy Gutsy (who would later be replaced by Tessa Pollitt and Viy
Albertine). Palmolive would later be
replaced by drummer Budgie (Peter Clarke). The band may not have always been
made up of an all female cast, but Ari, Kate, and Suzy would always remain a
key in all the line-up changes.
The Slits
hit the scene hard. Without a world of knowledge in music they attacked the
scene and paved the way for girls all around the world to step out of the
shadows of punk rock and bask in the neon lights of the night. The bands self titled “The Slits” was released
in 1979 and produced hits like “Typical
Girls”, “So Tough”, and “I Heard It Through the Grapevine.” The
band received 4.5 out of 5 stars for the album and reviews are glowing at
Allmusic.com.
Many walks
of life held The Slits in high regard. They were trailblazers and founders of a
women’s musical moment that was for so long considered a man’s world and
domination.
"They
(The Slits) were loud brash bold and unrepentant.. they never compromised their
image or stance...they must have inspired loads of women to pick up a guitar
and form a band....they were pure punk driven by female power...they shocked a
lot of people, both on and off stage. They were dangerous, and their very
presence threatened those that considered rock to be a male-only pursuit."
Mark Perry 'And God Created Punk'(http://www.punk77.co.uk/groups/slits.htm)
The
group supported fellow punk band The Clash on their 1977 White Riot tour along with the Buzzcocks and the Subway Sect. Club performances of The
Slits during this period are included in The Punk Rock Movie (1978). In November 1978,
The Slits toured with the Clash again on the "Sort it Out Tour" and
were joined by The Innocents who opened the shows
(wikipedia).
The
band toured widely and released another album, Return of the Giant Slits before breaking up in
early 1982. Ari Up went on to be part of the New Age Steppers (wikepdia).
Tessa and
Ari came back together in 2005 to bring a new sound and new style to The Slits.
They brought in new members and released a new Revenge of the Killer Slits. The EP featured former members of the Sex Pistols. The group enjoyed
their new time together and new tours, seeing parts of the world they had never
seen before (Australia, Japan, America, etc).
In 2009, Narnack Records signed the girls to a real record
deal. They had accomplished something
most punk rock bands would only dream of and set the tone for punk rock girls
and rebellious teens everywhere.
Then
unexpectedly, on Oct 20, 2010, Slits band member Ari up died of an unspecified
illness at age 48. The world mourned the loss of an amazing pioneer and her
memory would live in infamy as a woman who gave her whole self to the music and
let nothing slow her down.
