"You can't help but think that with any of them, anything along the lines of, "Hi, I'm John, I'm a Virgo, you chicks fancy a drink?" would get you a well-deserved kicking." [1]
Dickless was a Seattle-based grunge rock band signed to Sub Pop records in 1990. Dickless is notable for their unique growling shrieking vocal style. Kelly Canary, the original vocalist, had a distinct growling scream that lead the quartet through short (approximately 20 minutes) and loud live performances. During their first few years, their loud and abrasive sound was new and unusual for an all-female music group. Simultaneously, their short discography included song titles and a song cover, "I'm a Man" by Bo Diddley, that were blatantly ironic given their abrasive sound and female members. The band name itself is meant to be satire. The group's period of activity coincided with the emerging "Riot grrrl" music culture. The band opened for other Seattle-based acts such as Tad and Nirvana, and Canary, along with Kurt Cobain, contributed to some records by Earth. After leaving the band, she joined the Teen Angels.
Links to Peel
JP played the group's material with regularity (even revisiting one track for a listener years later) during the early 90s, while acknowledging their somewhat fearsome attitude. He read an article in which Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth described their sound, among other female bands, as 'Foxcore', leading him to segue five tracks of this material. [2] The paucity of their back catalogue (they only released seven short songs) meant that Peel recycled the same three tracks on his shows.
Festive Fifty Entries
Sessions
- None
Other Shows Played
- 02 May 1990 / Best Of Peel Vol 4: 'Sweet Teeth (7 inch-Teriyaki Asthma Volume III)' (C/Z)
- 10 May 1990 / Best Of Peel Vol 4: 'I'm A Man (7")' (Sub Pop)
- 14 May 1990: 'Saddle Tramp (7" - I'm A Man)' (Tupelo Recording Company)
- 19 May 1990 (BFBS): 'Sweet Teeth (Compilation 7"-Teriyaki Asthma Volume III)' (C/Z)
- 23 May 1990 / HO John Peel 22 1990: Saddle Tramp (7" - I'm A Man) Sub Pop
- 26 May 1990 (BFBS): I'm A Man (7" - I'm A Man / Saddle Trap) Sub Pop
- 26 May 1990 (BFBS): Saddle Tramp (7" - I'm A Man b/w Saddle Tramp) Sub Pop
- 02 June 1990 (BFBS) / Peel 147 (BFBS): 'Sweet Teeth (Compilation 7"-Teriyaki Asthma Volume III)' (C/Z)
- 05 June 1990: Sweet Teeth (v/a 7" EP - Teriyaki Asthma Volume III) C/Z
- 05 June 1990: Saddle Tramp (7" - I'm A Man b/w Saddle Tramp) Sub Pop
- 09 June 1990 (BFBS): I'm A Man (7" - I'm A Man / Saddle Trap) Sub Pop
- 16 June 1990 (BFBS): Saddle Tramp (7" - I'm A Man b/w Saddle Tramp) Sub Pop
- 29 August 1990: Saddle Tramp (7" - I'm A Man b/w Saddle Tramp) Sub Pop
- 03 November 1990: I'm A Man (7" - I'm A Man / Saddle Trap) Sub Pop
- 22 December 1990: 'Saddle Tramp (7 inch-B side of I'm A Man)' (Sub Pop)
- 29 December 1990: 'Sweet Teeth (7 inch-Teriyaki Asthma Volume III)' (C/Z)
- 12 January 1992 / HO John Peel 38 1992: Sweet Teeth (v/a 7" EP - Teriyaki Asthma Volume III) C/Z
- 24 January 1992 (BFBS): 'Sweet Teeth (7 inch-Teriyaki Asthma Volume III)' (C/Z)
- 16 October 1992 / DW Tape 28: unknown noise, sounds like Dickless
- 07 July 1995: I'm A Man (7 inch) Sub Pop
- 25 January 2000: 'Saddle Tramp (7")' (Sub Pop)
- 30 January 2000 (BFBS): 'Saddle Tramp (7"-B side of I'm A Man)' (Sub Pop)
- 27 March 2003: 'I'm A Man (7")' (Sub Pop) Played to satisfy a listener request. The Pig had to go out to the garden shed to locate the copy, a deed that involved climbing up shelves to reach it because there was no step ladder
