🔗 Share this article

When asked about the most punk act she's ever done, Cathy Loughead responds instantly: “I played a show with my neck injured in two locations. I couldn't jump around, so I decorated the brace instead. It was a fantastic gig.”

Cathy is a member of a rising wave of women reinventing punk expression. Although a new television drama highlighting female punk premieres this Sunday, it echoes a movement already flourishing well beyond the screen.

Igniting the Flame in Leicester

This momentum is most intense in Leicester, where a recent initiative – now called the Riotous Collective – sparked the movement. Cathy participated from the beginning.

“At the launch, there weren't any all-women garage punk bands in the area. By the following year, there we had seven. Currently, twenty exist – and counting,” she remarked. “There are Riotous groups around the United Kingdom and globally, from Finland to Australia, recording, gigging, taking part in festivals.”

This explosion extends beyond Leicester. Around the United Kingdom, women are taking back punk – and altering the environment of live music in the process.

Revitalizing Music Venues

“Various performance spaces throughout Britain flourishing due to women punk bands,” said Loughead. “Rehearsal rooms are also benefiting, music teaching and coaching, production spaces. The reason is women are filling these jobs now.”

Additionally, they are altering who shows up. “Bands led by women are gigging regularly. They attract broader crowd mixes – ones that see these spaces as secure, as belonging to them,” she continued.

A Rebellion-Driven Phenomenon

Carol Reid, programme director at Youth Music, stated the growth was expected. “Females have been promised a vision of parity. But gender-based violence is at crisis proportions, the far right are manipulating women to peddle hate, and we're gaslit over issues like the menopause. Women are fighting back – via music.”

Toni Coe-Brooker, from the Music Venue Trust, notes the phenomenon altering local music scenes. “We're seeing varied punk movements and they're contributing to community music networks, with local spots programming varied acts and building safer, friendlier places.”

Entering the Mainstream

Later this month, Leicester will present the inaugural Riot Fest, a weekend festival featuring 25 all-women bands from the UK and Europe. In September, Decolonise Fest in London honored ethnic minority punk musicians.

The phenomenon is entering popular culture. One prominent duo are on their debut nationwide tour. The Lambrini Girls's initial release, their record name, charted at sixteenth place in the UK charts recently.

A Welsh band were in the running for the a prestigious Welsh honor. Another act earned a local honor in recently. A band from Hull Wench played the BBC Introducing stage at Reading Festival.

It's a movement originating from defiance. Across a field still plagued by sexism – where female-only bands remain less visible and music spots are closing at crisis levels – female punk bands are creating something radical: space.

No Age Limit

At 79, Viv Peto is evidence that punk has no age limit. The Oxford-based percussionist in a punk group picked up her instrument only twelve months back.

“As an older person, all constraints are gone and I can pursue my interests,” she declared. One of her recent songs features the refrain: “So shout out, ‘Fuck it’/ This is my moment!/ I own the stage!/ I'm 79 / And at my absolute best.”

“I love this surge of older female punks,” she commented. “I didn't get to rebel during my early years, so I'm doing it now. It's fantastic.”

A band member from the band also noted she couldn't to rebel as a teenager. “It has been significant to finally express myself at this late stage.”

Another artist, who has toured globally with various bands, also considers it a release. “It involves expelling anger: going unnoticed in motherhood, as a senior female.”

The Freedom of Expression

That same frustration motivated Dina Gajjar to create her band. “Standing on stage is an outlet you didn't know you needed. Women are trained to be obedient. Punk rejects that. It's loud, it's raw. It means, when negative events occur, I think: ‘I should create music from that!’”

Yet, Abi Masih, a band member, said the punk woman is all women: “We are typical, working, brilliant women who enjoy subverting stereotypes,” she commented.

Maura Bite, of her group the band, agreed. “Ladies pioneered punk. We were forced to disrupt to gain attention. We continue to! That fierceness is part of us – it feels ancient, instinctive. We are amazing!” she exclaimed.

Challenging Expectations

Not all groups fits the stereotype. Two musicians, involved in a band, aim to surprise audiences.

“We don't shout about certain subjects or use profanity often,” said Ames. Her partner added: “Actually, we include a small rebellious part in all our music.” Julie chuckled: “Correct. But we like to keep it interesting. Our last track was about how uncomfortable bras are.”