Kathleen Hanna and The Julie Ruin return
(St. Vitus Bar, Brooklyn, June 2013)

After a 6-year hiatus from performing, Kathleen Hanna returned to the stage with her latest project, The Julie Ruin, this past June. Debuting as a surprise guest for Pitchfork’s Northside Festival Pitchfork's Northside Festival Showcase, The Julie Ruin has already released an album (Run Fast, on Dischord Records) and toured with a handful of female fronted bands like Swearin', La Sera, and Priests. For many of us, it's a relief just to hear Kathleen's voice again, whether on vinyl or through a PA system.

NYC 1993: Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star at the New Museum
(New Museum, New York, February - May 2013)

Using 1993 as a focal point, this show at New Museum served as a reminder of (excuse the phrase) the real '90s. Against nostalgia, the show was a true intersection of politics, art and culture that recalled the height of the HIV epidemic, race during the "PC" era, and the violence of poverty. Bonus: the museum curated an accompanying music series featuring bands like Aye Nako and Potty Mouth.

Speedy Ortiz releases Major Arcana
(Death by Audio, Brooklyn, July 2013)

Speedy Ortiz has that intangible thing that makes you fall in love with a band. Major Arcana is equal parts heavy riffs, driving throwback pop music, and intoxicating vocal melodies by lead singer and guitarist Sadie Dupuis. The record feels like some of my favorite things about '90s music, a la Toadies, Veruca Salt, and early Superchunk.

Raymond Pettibon at The Highline
(Billboard next to The Highline, New York, June - July 2013)

A revered punk artist, Pettibon paid homage to the borough of Brooklyn for the month of June while featured on the billboard next to The Highline. Also known for his baseball-themed works, Pettibon illustrates Jackie Robinson stealing home base alongside Notorious B.I.G. lyrics, "Where Brooklyn at?" taken from his '93 freestyle with Tupac recorded at Madison Square Garden.

Punk Is Important: Salinas Records 10 Year Anniversary
(Silent Barn, Bushwick, August 2013)

Did you pick up a Waxahatchee record this year? Swearin', maybe? Detroit-based Salinas Records has been putting out the Crutchfields' music for over 4 years. If you've been invested in DIY music over the past decade, chances are you have a Salinas record in your collection. Cherished bands from the Salinas roster traveled across the country (in some cases reuniting for the first time in years) to celebrate the label's 10-year anniversary this summer at Silent Barn.

Guillotine Press releases PUNK by Mimi Thi Nguyen and Golnar Nikipour
(WORD Greenpoint, Brooklyn, June 2013)

In this release published by author Sarah McCarry's Guillotine Press, punk/scholars Mimi Thi Nguyen (author of Race Riot zine and recent book The Gift of Freedom) and Golnar Nikipour (of hardcore band In School and B|ta'arof magazine) talk punk, race, and their trepidation about the field of "punk studies." It's a brilliant chapbook filled with important interpretations of punk that are crucial to its history and future retellings of that history. Plus, I love both authors' sassy attitudes and penchant for getting real. At the release of PUNK, Nguyen paired up with the genius writer Jenny Zhang (ROOKIE, Dear Jenny, We Are All Find) for an intimate and inspiring evening that kicked off with a champagne toast to Wendy Davis.

Tenement, Waxahatchee, and Screaming Females tour
(NO FUN CLUB, Island Park, September 2013)

I kind of freaked out when I found out 3 of my favorite bands were touring together, and even more so that they'd be at a DIY venue on Long Island, where I'm from. This night in the back of a rug store was one of my favorites in recent memory. Amos from Tenement played a cinder block and all of it was pure magic.

The So So Glos play on Late Show with David Letterman
(Shea Stadium, Brooklyn, April 2013)

In the chorus of "Son of an American," Alex Levine sings, "I wanna sit in the stands and scream, I wanna root for the losing team." The So So Glos are not the losing team, but seeing them play on Late Show felt like watching Brooklyn's own underdogs win something big. The night it debuted, we gathered in front of the TV at Shea Stadium (Brooklyn venue and home to the 'Glos) watching the performance live and screaming along.

The Riot Grrrl Collection is released by Feminist Press
(New York University, New York, June 2013)

The Riot Grrrl Collection is both timely and every riot grrrl fan's dream, made possible by Lisa Darms (curator of the actual collection at NYU's Fales Library) and the Feminist Press. At the first release party hosted in the archives, Kathleen Hanna, Johanna Fateman (whose essay opens the book) and Ramdasha Bikceem (author of Gunk zine and owner of Klub Kid Vintage), as well as Darms herself, read selections from the book and commented on the reverberations of the riot grrrl movement 20+ years after the fact. Aside from having newfound access to these materials, one of the best things to come from the book is the conversations being sparked by feminist punks now.

Saves the Day plays a secret show at St. Vitus
(St. Vitus Bar, Brooklyn, September 2013)

I was fifteen years old, a sophomore in a Long Island high school when Saves the Day's Through Being Cool came out. Arguably the best time in your life, and the best place in the country to live, in order to enjoy this album to its fullest extent. One late night at St. Vitus bar, Saves the Day played the entirety of Through Being Cool and then solicited requests for whatever we wanted to hear, which unsurprisingly was more songs from the late '90s-'00s. A super intimate experience, it was kind of unbelievable to witness. You could tell as much when Chris Conley would stop after every song and say, "You guys are the best, can we do this every night?"

Kate is a Brooklyn-based writer, artist and curator who believes in the transformative power of punk. She edits International Girl Gang Underground zine and has recently written for Women & Performance, Maximum Rock'n'roll, and Hyperallergic, among other corners of the print and internet worlds. Kate is a founding member of For the Birds Collective as well as a classic virgo, coffee enthusiast, bass player, and rabble rouser. You can find her at katewadkins.com or e-mail her at mskatherinewadkins at gmail dot com