Dig Me Out
Sleater-Kinney
1997
Album Summary
Dig Me Out is the third studio album by the American rock band Sleater-Kinney, released on April 8, 1997, by Kill Rock Stars. The album was produced by John Goodmanson and recorded from December 1996 to January 1997 at John and Stu's Place in Seattle, Washington. Dig Me Out marked the debut of Janet Weiss, who would become the band's longest-serving drummer. The music on the record was influenced by traditional rock and roll bands, while the lyrics deal with issues of heartbreak and survival. The album cover is an homage to The Kinks' 1965 album The Kink Kontroversy. Two singles were released in support of the album: "One More Hour" and "Little Babies". The title track "Dig Me Out" peaked at number six on the KEXP Top 90.3 Album Chart in 1997 without being released as a single. The album was acclaimed by music critics, who praised the album's energy and feminist lyrics. Retrospectively, Dig Me Out is considered the band's breakthrough record and is frequently included on several publications' best album lists. In 2020, Rolling Stone ranked it No. 189 on its list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
WikipediaThis entire album just worked for me, the dissonance, distortion, the low production value, everything about it just clicked
Lots of feelings and vulnerabilities exposed with this one. I first heard Sleater-Kinney when they opened for Pearl Jam in 2003. I was…not a fan. My ears felt assaulted. In the almost 20 years since I first heard them, I have tried several times to like them. I SHOULD like them because they have all the pieces of a band I should love. Women who rock and pull no punches. A sound that is unique and a message I can get behind. I can’t quite figure out what I turns me off so much and I have spent way too much time pondering this question. I thought at first that it was the way her voice sounds like reverb to me, but I think that could be really interesting used in the right way. I actually really dig the music so that isn’t it either. I think what it boils down to is that it feels like she is just shouting at me. Now stick with me here because this is the soul bearing part. It turns out that I have a huge double standard. I can listen to a man scream into a microphone and find it earnest and impassioned. I listen to a woman scream into the microphone and I find that I want her to tone it down, pretty it up, not be so emotional. Oh fuck, how did I get to be so sexist?! And now you know my deepest shame. It turns out that I want to smash the patriarchy but in a nice (and more melodic) way, which is really not smashing it at all but just succumbing to my programming. I’m giving this album 5 stars and I will keep listening to it because this album, more than any other, has made me think about myself and how I view the world and who taught me to view it the way that I do. It turns out I disliked Sleater-Kinney because it feels like an exposed nerve, which I think is kind of the point. And one that I want to keep exposing.
S-K makes the good music. The guitar tone is consistently excellent across the album, very raw to go with the vocals. My ear for drums must still be amateur, as this is where most notice a change for the better with the introduction of Janet. But I haven't listened to any of their live material post-departure, and it's about time to return to their latest.
3.4 - The songs rock but I find the vocals shriek-y, like I'm being yelled at by my girlfriend for 35 minutes straight.
This is one of the best albums that I didn't know and I'm listening now with this site. This is just a great and classical rock album with all the strength and soul that was expected from a real rock album. For sure, it is a five-star album
This one his hard. I mean, it's punk, right? You don't expect pretty vocals from a punk album. And, as a fan of punk, I'm not much bothered by harsh, off-tone, or grating vocals. Nor do I have issues with female vox that are brash and rough. I kinda dig the riot grrl thing, to be honest. That said, I do think that the main vocalist is the primary issue here. The problems are two-fold. First, the vocals are super inconsistent. One track will be great, the next will be indiscipherably mumble-shouted. The next will start great and then turn into atonal nonsense. The second issue is Corin Tucker's leaning into her vibrato too heavily. Her vocals on this album are a one-trick-pony that's asked to perform so often that the trick loses its novelty. Overall, though, this is a solid punk album and I'm here for the riot grrl schtick. It works for me.
A Sleater-Kinney song could possibly work for me in a soundtrack but I’ve never been able to get involved in their stuff
This was like listening to my angsty 14 year old sisters band in 1993.
Verlaine's guitar, Patti's yodel, Joey/Dee Dee/Tommy/Johnny's/'s pithiness, Thurston/Ranaldo/Gordon's turbulence. It's amazing when a band can wear their influences so proudly, yet still sound utterly unique. Every song is an anthem to be played while the world collapses, and during its reconstruction.
This is the kind of album that makes me regret not listening to it sooner, because I could have been enjoying this one for years already. Perfect blend of punk, indie & menacing, angular post-punk vibes. Great strong vocals. Whole album is lean as hell with no spare flabby moments. 5* quality.
такое, конечно, под настроение заходит - и вот сегодня как раз было настроение=)
I love the Riot Grrrl sound so much. Not only is this important music, it is also impressively powerful, raging, and Righteous.
Sounded like pumk to me. I liked it the energy and rawness of the guitar and vocals. Will listen again!
One of the greatest albums of the 90s. Guitar interplay is amazing. Corin Tucker's vocals are incredible. 9-10/10
The third SK's studio album of 1997. Nice punk rock from 90s. I like the energy raw sound and nice vocals of this album. The cover is an homage to The Kinks' 1965 album The Kink Kontroversy.
Record labels did a horrible job exposing gems like this to me when I was 27 years old. That's the only explanation for why I never heard this until now. What an absolute fucking joy. After 309 albums, I live for moments like this: Finding something new (to me) and immediately falling so hard it that a band becomes a new obsession. This warranted a repeat listen right away, since I didn't want it to end (but props to Spotify for following it up with a banger by The New Pornographers). We could all use a little more Sleater-Kinney in our lives.
I really love this album. Riot Grrrl greatness! Corin Tuckers voice—powerful, and that tremolo or whatever it is… ❤️
Great album, really liked it. V 90s, intense, quite grungy. Excellent.
1997, great year for music. I listen to this all the time, but probably only discovered it about 10 years ago. One More Hour, right in the feels. Oh you've got the darkest eyes.
Love Sleater-Kinney! This is probably in my top three of theirs (behind One Beat and The Woods in that order). But honestly all their records are great. Corin has such a great voice! She and Carrie's guitar interplay is always so exciting and full of energy. Janet is a badass. A shame she's no longer with them. All together, great band.
Hole that sounds good. Really nice riffs. Somehow sounds like '70s rock. Banger vocals Really don't like "Turn it On" All and all 8/10 would listen again
I have a gigantic enormous middle-school-style crush on Carrie Brownstein. The rest of the band is also awesome. This band is awesome and cool.
My general musical opinion of the 90’s is that 90-96 is pretty golden then 97 onwards is a mixed bag. Sleater-Kinney seems to be the one of the better bands of the late 90’s this music sounds so fresh, emotive and primal while sounding like the classic punk bands of the late 70’s. For a more 90’s example Sleater-Kinney sounds like a more primal and less wire-y American elastica. The rawness of the album gives off the illusion that you’re in a sweaty rehearsal room standing right before them playing their instruments it’s surprisingly amazing. Something about this band strikes an exact inner rage, I don’t exactly know how though but it’s a great power the band has on me, and this is my first listen. It’s a 5/5 for me but I could easily see the next person giving this a 1 for the exact reasons why I like them it’s all pure matter of taste.
Can't believe it took me this long to finally listen to Sleater-Kinney!!
These rockers are full of vigor, and I cannot relate, for I am merely a sentient blob wasting away into nothingness over time. Seriously, though, this was riot grrrl all the way. Having always had a tough time getting into punk (not into such brash vocals for any gender at all), I actually enjoyed this? Sometimes I liked being able to focus on the instrumentals a bit more, but I think that's just my musician bias showing. A 3.5 that's getting pushed into 4 territory.
Loved the final song, emotional and raw voice lines accompanied by clear and playful guitar sounds
De esa música que creo que debí haber explorado hace años, cuando me empezó a gustar Pearl Jam (a los que le abrieron el concierto de 2003 en México al que no pude ir). Me gusta mucho la voz de Corin Tucker (en este disco) con ese vibrato que transmite enojo o tristeza. Y bueno, el detalle de en 1997 tener una banda sin bajo, de puras chicas y con una exrelación tortuosa entre ellas.
Although I love bass, I also enjoy a duel guitar setup. Lots of fun interplay here. Like a good trio too cause you can hear each element so distinctly. Wish I woulda caught a show back in the day.
A great album, love the driving grunge, lyrics with vulnerability and aggression. Had listened only to their more recent album from 2019, which was also very good. Coincidentally I was recently listening to a This American Life episode from 1997 in which they featured "Words and Guitar," which made me like that song even more. I did not learn until after that there is no bass, which I was impressed with because they have achieved a full sound without it.
A very cool album. I would never have head it but I am so lfad I did. Bands that started as punk bands make for cool bands.
Dig Me Out is the follow-up to Sleater-Kinney's highly acclaimed second album Call the Doctor, released in 1996 by the queercore independent record label Chainsaw Records. Call the Doctor confirmed the band's reputation as one of the major musical acts from the Pacific Northwest, rebelling against gender roles, consumerism, and indie rock's male-dominated hierarchy The song "One More Hour" is about the breakup of Tucker and Brownstein's romantic relationship Like its predecessor, Dig Me Out also features songs that show frustration with sexism and gender stereotypes.[12] "Little Babies" is a protest against the traditional maternity role, while the title song "Dig Me Out" exposes a woman in a dominant role.
Cuando vi que tocaba punk otra vez pensé que no me iba a encontrar en ánimos de escucharlo. En realidad fue una sorpresa bastante grata, de nuevo un disco sencillo pero muy correcto musicalmente, no trata de explayarse más allá de lo que debe, 36 minutos y 13 canciones. En este caso, a diferencia de Wire creí por un momento que debían de ser como del 86-89 y me agradó mucho ver que había gente haciendo punk propiamente dicho en el 97, sin exagerar en tratar de evolucionar melodías, hacer pop-punk o meter demasiado sonido de rock alternativo, ni esos sonidos que vendrían casi ya en ese momento para el garage revival. Un disco de punk muy bien hecho, que se oye clásico para cuando salió sin escucharse anticuado ni trillado en sus sonido. Me agrada que sus letras no suenan quejosas ni a sermón pero sí tienen bastante fuerza de un mensaje feminista, incluso cuando pareciera que algunas solo hablaran de "desamor." Creo que los grupos de mujeres en el punk siempre le dieron algo de frescura a una escena que se presta a ser club de Toby y es aun más agradable conocer a un grupo que vale bastante la pena incluso sin tomar en cuenta el género de sus integrantes. Este disco suena muchísimo mejor y vale más la pena que cualquiera de los que nos han tocado de garage revival y en este caso sí es un disco que podría verme escuchando de nuevo en un futuro cuando estuviera de humor punksoso.
There are some awesome guitar tones on this thing. I enjoyed much more than I expected to.
Dig Me Out is a super strong opener. Though I don't really love the dual guitar no bass setup, sonically it works. Though Corin Tucker's vocals cut like a frenzied, razor sharp knife. Not What You Want is great multi-layered track. I do love how the backing vocals are so distinctive on the album in general. Jenny is a strong closer.
Generally I would give it a 3, but the day wanted me to have the mindset for this. Fun ride.
Super fun riot grrrl stuff. Gets a little samey, but not in a bad way. It wants you align with its vibe, and if you won't do that then fuck you. I like that energy.
Sleater-Kinney find their stride on this album full of angst and polish. Girl rock deserves some special attention as this exemplifies what the genre can offer.
I know Carrie from Portlandia, but this is the first I've heard of S-K. Great energy, interesting chord progressions for punk (I -> ii -> I, etc.). The vibrato starts to grate..
So I have a memory of going to a Pearl Jam show with Kate in Baltimore, and Sleater-Kinney opened. Kate was not a fan. And this is what I have always remembered any time Sleater-Kinney has come on or come up in discussion, especially around Kate. Now I have learned that this never happened. We did go to the show in Baltimore, but Sleater-Kinney wasn't there. (We may have both seen Sleater-Kinney open for PJ in '03, but weren't there together.) Not sure how this Mandela Effect of a memory got into my brain, but I'm gonna default to blaming the marijuana. As for "Dig Me Out," and Sleater-Kinney in general... I've listened at least 3 times trying to figure out where to land on this. I like female-fronted rock bands. Really like. It's what I listen to more than anything else. Sleater-Kinney should be right up my alley. But I've never quite gotten into them. I've always tolerated them more than Kate, who despite that false memory really doesn't dig Carrie Brownstein's voice. I've only ever listened to them in small doses - I think this was the first time I listened to a full album. My first reaction was an agreement that I don't love the warbling thing that Brownstein does with her voice. But by the time I got to the end of the album, it was growing on me a bit. Sometimes the warble is used very effectively, other times less so. On repeated listens, I came around more. She's still not in my top 10 of female rock vocalists (been thinking about that a bit), but I can tolerate and oftentimes enjoy/appreciate it. However, Corin Tucker's backing vocals on "One More Time" - "and you, and you..." - are annoying. And "Little Babies" is by far the worst song on this record - I'm not sure what hell-yeah sees there. "Dance Song '97" is my favorite. Throughout the album, though, the energy is great, full of punk and riott ferver. I still wound up stuck between 3 and 4 stars. So I'll complain about the 5-star system again. Untappd has a 5-star system, but broken up into .25 increments. If I give 3/5, that's a 60%. This album isn't "barely passing," but I've also gotta keep a scale on this system somehow that differentiates between B+ and B- albums. I promise not to whine about the star system for another 10 albums...
Remember that episode of Portlandia where they're at a 'cool' wedding and... No? Well all my friends tell me that I should watch and it's sooo funny... Sleater-Kinney was one of those bands that I should've spent time listening to but I never made time for them until now. Some of the tracks are familiar but most of it I'd never heard. I dig the repetition and the syncopated rhythms and raw energy. I bet they put together a great show. (They're at Merriweather in August). Some of the stand out tracks are 'Buy Her Candy', 'Heart Factory' and 'Jenny' but I really like 'One More Hour.' Such an interesting riff and the layered guitar produces a song to experience. I'm not tied to Carrie's voice, but it plays really well on this track. Perhaps in another 20 years I'll get around to watching some Portlandia. I understand it's something that I'd dig.
Enjoyed it. Band I'd never heard before -- One More Hour is a great tune.
Live this album such energy and passion. And the songs are great. The high-pitched, warbling vocal style is an acquired taste, but one that I have acquired and now crave. These women rock with enthusiasm and they have the chops...especially the drums which are exemplary. Can sound thin due to the 2 guitar no bass set up but never shrill, I can say as a bass player and bass lover that I don't miss it. 4 🌟
There are few things more pleasurable in music than chaotic dissonance cohering into blissful melodic order, and then crumbling back. And that's what Sleater-Kinney do time and time again, and the trick never wears thin.
A lot of fun, and super energetic and creative. I just wish a lot of the songs were looonger!
First new album in a while that I had never heard before and really enjoyed. Dig the riot grrrl’s! Need to listen some more, but this is good stuff.
I am not familiar with SLEATER-KINNEY or their third album DIG ME OUT at all. I’m not into the Riot Grrrl movement, except for the exposure and loving THE SLITS’ CUT from the 1001 Albums Generator. I know THE SLITS are more an inspiration to the Riot Grrrl movement rather than being part of the movement itself. The only other indirect exposure I have with the band prior to listening to DIG ME OUT is that I am aware of and like CARRIE BROWNSTEIN very much as an actor from the television series PORTLANDIA. After listening to DIG ME OUT, this album is very good, but it lacks that special something. In 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, SLEATER-KINNEY - DIG ME OUT, is one only album listed. Rate Artist: SLEATER-KINNEY (4.0) Rate Album (Year): DIG ME OUT (US 1997 Original) (4.0) Ranking of SLEATER-KINNEY - DIG ME OUT songs No. Title Length Ranking 1. "Dig Me Out" 2:40 09.0/10 2. "One More Hour" 3:19 09.0/10 3. "Turn It On" 2:47 09.0/10 4. "The Drama You've Been Craving" 2:08 09.0/10 5. "Heart Factory" 3:54 10.0/10 6. "Words and Guitar" 2:21 10.0/10 7. "It's Enough" 1:46 08.0/10 8. "Little Babies" 2:22 10.0/10 9. "Not What You Want" 3:17 08.0/10 10. "Buy Her Candy" 2:02 09.0/10 11. "Things You Say" 2:56 08.0/10 12. "Dance Song '97" 2:49 10.0/10 13. "Jenny" 4:03 08.0/10 US 1997 Original Release 117.0/130 = 9.00 / 2 = 4.50
Auuuu prejak album, Sleater-Kinney ide na detaljno slušanje čim se vremena uhvati, zaljubljen sam.
Ako spominješ indie rock i nalaziš se u godinama krajem devedesetih? Ovaj bend je neizostavan. Nema dvojbe. Opasna godina, gdje je izašao LCW od Modest Mousea, Perfect From Now On od Built To Spill, I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One od Yo La Tengo...and so on. Ovaj album znam po tome jer sam tražio albume bar malo sličnim takvim kao što su ova prva dva što sam nabrojao. Sviđa mi se, daj što više ženskih bendova, i'm up for that. super album, nije na razini tipa eto već spomenutog Lonesome Crowded West i Perfect From Now On, ali je zadovoljavajuć i dobar. vrijedi poslušati.
Great punk rock with the occasional bubblegum pop nod thrown in. The warbling vocals can get a little bit much across the whole album, but you can't fault its passion. Best Tracks: Dig Me Out; Words and Guitar; Little Babies
Don’t know what happened with side 1 but the minute side 2 hit, I was hooked. Not the most ground breaking rock, but still very very good. Fav song is probably little babies
Super fun. This album is the reason I need to do this. I've never got around to listening to a full Sleater-Kinney album despite knowing they informed a load of music I like. Some of that uncontrolled vibrato in the vocal annoys me and a love a heavy bass, which is inevitably not ever going to feature in an early SK record. Still, enjoyed and will return.
Never heard of them, but I love this asthetic. At some points I felt that the vibrato or whatever it was called was a bit overdone, but otherwise super.
Holy shit what a surprise. I've been meaning to get into this band but didn't realize they were this good. I really am a fan of the riot grrrl movement. Tucker's vocals scream energy and emotion, often haunting or filled with ambition or desperation. Drumming is consistent and powerful, not too complex, but adds to the chaos, necessitated by the lack of bass. The guitarists have a post-punk sound to them, making them stand out in the 90s indie sphere. You can hear some grunge influence, such as the finale "Jenny." Songs are fast and short, with an average running time of just a mere 3 minutes. I applaud the feminist lyrics, which use extensive settings and metaphors (nothing obnoxious or meaningless), utilizing both vocalists well to engage the audience. Fan of the whole album, although the formula could get a bit tiresome near the end. Favorites: Dig Me Out, One More Hour, Heart Factory, Words and Guitar, Little Babies, Buy Her Candy, Dance Song 97, Jenny
Hated it the first listen but it really grew on me. The dueling guitars are interesting and got a little jangly which I’m all for. Not crazy for the lead singers voice but that easy to move past. Tons of slappers on here.