Frightwig

Frightwig is an all-female punk rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1982 by Deanna Ashley and Mia Levin. After many line-up changes, Frightwig retired in 1994, but reformed in 2012 with Rebecca Sevrin and Rachel Thoele.

 

Ashley was raised by a "hippie" mother who introduced her to Buffy Sainte-Marie, Joan Baez, Jimi Hendrix, and The Beatles. When Ashley was 16 years old, she moved to San Francisco. She met Levin at a movie theater in the city. When the band first formed in 1982, Frightwig received a certain amount of attention for being female, including catcalls that made them feel it necessary to defend their "right" to be on stage with the men. On "A Man's Gotta Do, What A Man's Gotta Do", Frightwig invited men onto the stage to strip as "a sexist turnaround." The bandmates worked minimum wage jobs to support themselves. In San Francisco, Frightwig played the Valencia Tool & Die, The Fillmore, Mabuhay Gardens, the On Broadway, and The Farm. 

 

Frightwig toured the United States several times, British Columbia many times, and Europe in the fall of 1985, opening for D.O.A., and in 1994 for a Swiss tour. In New York City, they often performed at 8BC. The band gained momentary fame after Kurt Cobain was seen at Nirvana's MTV Unplugged concert wearing a Frightwig T-shirt. Frightwig also toured with Flipper, Funkyard, The Butthole Surfers, Snakefinger, GBH, Redd Kross and No Means No, and played with Dead Kennedys, Sonic Youth, Lydia Lunch, L7, SWA and Bikini Kill. Bands and performers who list Frightwig as influential include Hole, L7, Bikini Kill, and Faith No More. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA]