Joanna Gruesome – Psykick Espionage
As it should have been clear when they first showed up on my radar, Cardiff’s Joanna Gruesome was one of my favorite musical crushes of last year. When I found out they had another full-length record in the pipe I was over-joyed, but that joy came with the bittersweet news that singer Alanna McArdle would be leaving the band. Alanna, along with Perfect Pussy’s Meredith Graves, emerged over the last couple years as a real strident voice for issues of gender equity and so her loss is a major one, not just for the band, but for all of indie-rockdom. But the reasons are the right ones. As Alanna described in her statement:
“Lately, my mental health problems have become a lot worse and I’ve gone through a pretty shitty time. I’ve realised I need to actually take some time out to focus on some kind of ‘recovery’, so I won’t be singing in Joanna Gruesome anymore. I hate to sound cheesy but the time I had in jgro was life-changing. I made friends with so many amazing people, had the chance to play with some of my favourite bands, went to places I’d never been before (metaphysically and geographically) and pissed off a lot of men in the process. I am really proud of everything I’ve done with the band, especially Peanut Butter, and I think we’ve made some really great records. Thanks to everyone who ever put up with me on tour, and anyone who stopped any assholes from hurting other people at our shows xo”
So, Peanut Butter acts as (perhaps) a swan song for the short, brilliant career of Alanna McArdle, but it’s nice that she goes out with a blaze of glory and that Joanna Gruesome has already re-grouped added new members and will continue to burn brightly in their own way.