guest mix: Personal Trainer
We collaborated on this femme-forward playlist not only to ruminate on the sounds and moods that inspired “Backyard” and our history as a band in general, but also to create our idea of a perfect playlist to play while getting ready to go out with friends. A little throwback, a little catharsis, a lot of love.
Below, give a listen to the band’s new single, and then enjoy their mix! I also added ‘Backyard” to the mix for easy listening!
“Let’s Make Out”—Dream Wife We can’t get enough of Dream Wife. They have been a huge inspiration to us from their provocative stage performances to their mission to support women and non-binary folks at! all! costs! This song is a perfect confidence booster and encourages us all to be brave and pursue our own desires, which is what “Backyard” is all about.
“Not the Doctor”—Alanis Morissette Personal Trainer could not have existed without Alanis. We grew up trying to yodel and curse just like she did on Jagged Little Pill. We took turns screaming her songs in the “nostalgic pop” a cappella group (shhhh) that brought us together in college. We love her deeper cuts (like this one) and her take-no-shit vocal style, and we’re grateful to her for showing us that REAL, VULNERABLE, and ANGRY can be cool. Pro Tip: if you dig deep enough into YouTube, you’ll find a grainy video of Melina and Molly covering this song the very first time they ever hung out.
“Magic Man”—Heart Last halloween, we played a really fun show dressed disguised as wizards. We strutted onstage to this song in THICK beards and pretended like Heart, our dear rock n’ roll icons, were singing about us. Would do again.
photo: Ellen Giddings
“Real love”—Big Thief This is a love song that doesn’t sugarcoat. We come back to it again and again because it reminds us that songs about love don’t have to be soft and squishy. Love is natural; it’s full of pain, wonder, and anguish, and the songs can be too. Plus, Adrienne Lenker’s guitar solo absolutely rips.
“Moving On Up”—M People This song is for stomping around the city after an argument. You’re dreaming of all the better things you could have said, but then you decide to go shopping instead. We love the ‘90s club vibes, and every single one of Heather’s video outfits.
“H.W.C”.—Liz Phair Nothing but respect for OUR president! Ms. Liz pumps hard through our veins. We chose this track to highlight the radicality of women speaking frankly about their sexuality through their art. Sometimes you’re so literal, you’re figurative.
“Fascist”—Tetchy If you needed a little push today to call out the fascists / racists / homophobes / emotional abusers in YOUR life, here it is. You’re welcome. Keep the catharsis flowing and go see Tetchy live—they rule.
“I wanna be your girlfriend”—girl in red The blurred boundaries between friendship, romance, queerness and reimagining your teenage love life is what “Backyard” hopes to evoke, and girl in red’s music transports us right back to that lusty uncertain teenage angst.
“Anthems For a Seventeen Year Old Girl”—Broken Social Scene This was a literal seventeen-year-old anthem for us, but it took on a deeper significance when we covered it a while back. As women starting out in music, we spent too long thinking our songs had to be complicated, intricate, “deep” creations in order to be worth sharing. Rediscovering this song gave us the freedom to trust our instincts and the courage to do whatever the F we want with our songs.
“Goodbye Earl”—Dixie Chicks A femme-solidarity anthem!! We covered this song our very first show we ever played together in NYC because it made us feel powerful and fearless. This song just touches on the ferality of friendship. Plus, it’s an incredible karaoke choice.
“Tomboy”—Princess Nokia We LOVE this song and are obsessed with Princess Nokia (first saw her play at Vassar) not only for her fierce artistry and advocacy, but also for her equally iconic contributions to the @everyoutfitonSATC comments section.
“Everywhere”—Michelle Branch Ok let’s be real, this song, which has perfect and highly underrated production ioho, should be on every getting-ready playlist. “Everywhere,” like a scent, immediately transports you back in time—not necessarily to a good place, but to a place you needed to revisit nonetheless. The night before we started recording “Backyard” in LA, we bumped this song SO LOUDLY the entire way home from the studio, and something clicked. Our souls left our bodies and combined into a giant jelly bubble that burst all over the car. Out of that ooze came the production landscape for “Backyard.”