Ok, so I've been reading Starhawk's The Spiral Dance, about (feminist) Witchcraft as a Goddess religion and source of all kinds of groovy hippie lovin', and today I came across the following passage (emphasis added):
Male images of divinity characterize both Western and Eastern religions. Regardless of how abstract the underlying concept of God may be, the symbols, avatars, preachers, prophets, gurus, and Buddhas are overwhelmingly male. Women are not encouraged to explore their own strengths and realizations; they are taught to submit to male authority, to identify masculine perceptions as their spiritual ideals, to deny their bodies and sexuality, to fit their insights into a male model. (32-3)
Those last two words got Track 9 of Sleater-Kinney's 2000 album, All Hands on the Bad One stuck on infinite loop in my head, so now I'm noding its lyrics in an attempt to purge it. Interestingly, much of what Starhawk has to say about the world of religion applies to the male-dominated field of rock 'n roll, and no band has rocked out harder about that fact than Sleater-Kinney. "Male Model" is no exception. Like the rest of All Hands on the Bad One, it builds up to a truly bitchin' punk rock "fuck you" to the boys' club of major-label music. Yum.
Lyrics
He's got a perfect face
Turn away before you go and turn me on
I cannot look away
I'm stunned, it's that Je ne sais quoi, uh huh
He talks to me in my sleep
Does he write my songs for me?
Should I try to play just like him?
Kick it out, could you show me your riffs?
You always measure me by him
Don't get me wrong, I'm not opposed to something big
I'm so sick of tests
Go ahead and flunk my ass
You don't own the situation, honey
You don't own the stage
We're here to join the conversation
and we're here to raise the stakes
Now do you hear that sound
as the Model breaks
Take the Stage!
Let the image of him fade away
Go back and tear the pictures from the page
It's time for a new rock n' roll age
And if you're ready for more
I just might be what you're looking for
Written and performed by Sleater-Kinney