Donna Dresch is an American punk rock

musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...

, perhaps best known as founder, guitarist and bass guitarist of

Team Dresch Team Dresch is an American punk rock band originally formed in 1993 in Olympia, Washington. The band made a significant impression on the DIY punk movement queercore, which gave voice through zines and music to the passions and concerns of LGBT p ...

. Dresch has been actively involved in the

queercore Queercore (or homocore) is a cultural/social movement that began in the mid-1980s as an offshoot of the punk subculture and a music genre that comes from punk rock. It is distinguished by its discontent with society in general, and specifical ...

scene since the 1980s, as the creator of the

fanzine A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...

''Chainsaw'' and contributor to several other

zines A zine ( ; short for ''magazine'' or ''fanzine'') is a small-circulation self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images, usually reproduced via a copy machine. Zines are the product of either a single person or of a very sma ...

such as ''

Outpunk Outpunk enjoys the distinction of being the first record label entirely devoted to queer punk bands. The label was run out of San Francisco and began as an extension of Matt Wobensmith's fanzine, ''Outpunk''. ''Outpunk'' ran for seven issues, from ...

'' and '' J.D.s'', as well as contributing and being featured on the front cover of issue five of Deke Nihilson and

Tom Jennings Thomas Daniel Jennings (born 1955) is a Los Angeles-based artist, known for his work on FidoNet and for his work at Phoenix Software on MS-DOS integration and interoperability. Work He is the creator of FidoNet, the first message and file ne ...

' zine ''

Homocore Queercore (or homocore) is a cultural/social movement that began in the mid-1980s as an offshoot of the punk subculture and a music genre that comes from punk rock. It is distinguished by its discontent with society in general, and specifical ...

''. Additionally, she was a contributor to

Tobi Vail Tobi Celeste Vail (born July 20, 1969) is an American independent musician, music critic and feminist activist from Olympia, Washington. She was a central figure in the riot grrl scene—she coined the spelling of "grrl"—and she started the zi ...

's influential proto-

Riot Grrrl Riot grrrl is an underground feminist punk movement that began during the early 1990s within the United States in Olympia, Washington and the greater Pacific Northwest and has expanded to at least 26 other countries. Riot grrrl is a subcultur ...

fanzine, ''Jigsaw'' and

Tammy Rae Carland Tammy Rae Carland (born January 27, 1965), is a photographer, video artist, zine editor, current provost at California College of the Arts (CCA), and former co-owner of the independent lesbian music label Mr. Lady Records and Videos. Her work has ...

's zine ''I (heart) Amy Carter''. In 1992, she appeared in the

cult film A cult film or cult movie, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage ...

The Yo-Yo Gang G. B. Jones (born 1965) is a Canadian artist, filmmaker, musician, and publisher of zines born in Bowmanville, Canada. She is known for producing J.D.s with her acclaimed''Tom Girls'' drawings before going on to create more musically, cinemati ...

'', by

G.B. Jones G. B. Jones (born 1965) is a Canadian artist, filmmaker, musician, and publisher of zines born in Bowmanville, Canada. She is known for producing J.D.s with her acclaimed''Tom Girls'' drawings before going on to create more musically, cinematica ...

. She founded the queercore

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

Chainsaw Records Chainsaw Records is an independent record label run by Donna Dresch that is devoted to Queercore bands. The label is in Portland, Oregon. History ''Chainsaw'' began life as a zine published by Donna Dresch in the late 1980s. Musicians and write ...

in the early 1990s. Shortly after, she joined forces with

Jody Bleyle Team Dresch is an American punk rock band originally formed in 1993 in Olympia, Washington. The band made a significant impression on the DIY punk movement queercore, which gave voice through zines and music to the passions and concerns of LGBT p ...

and

Kaia Wilson Kaia Lynn Wilson (born 1974) is an American musician from Portland, Oregon, best known as a founding member of both Team Dresch, a revered 1990s queercore punk band, and The Butchies, a pop-rock spin-off from her solo work. In addition to sing ...

to form Team Dresch. Once drummer Marcéo Martinez was added to the line-up, the group began recording. The first single was released in 1994 on

Kill Rock Stars Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but was originally known ...

. Their debut album in 1994, '' Personal Best'' and its follow-up, ''

Captain My Captain ''Captain My Captain'' is the second and final studio album by the pioneering American queercore band Team Dresch. The album was released on June 4, 1996, by Chainsaw Records and Candy Ass Records. It was reissued in 2019 by Jealous Butcher Recor ...

'', were released jointly by Chainsaw Records and Jody Bleyle's label

Candy Ass Records Candy Ass Records was an independent record label in Portland, Oregon that was run by Jody Bleyle, a member of the bands Team Dresch and Hazel and of the queercore bands Family Outing and Infinite Xs. The label is best known for the 1995 relea ...

. Team Dresch performs live and the members are interviewed in the documentary film ''

She's Real, Worse Than Queer Lucy Thane (born 1967) is a British documentary filmmaker, event producer and performer, living in Folkestone. Her films include ''It Changed My Life: Bikini Kill in the UK'' (1993) and ''She's Real (Worse than Queer)'' (1997). Life and work Thane ...

'' by

Lucy Thane Lucy Thane (born 1967) is a British documentary filmmaker, event producer and performer, living in Folkestone. Her films include ''It Changed My Life: Bikini Kill in the UK'' (1993) and ''She's Real (Worse than Queer)'' (1997). Life and work Thane ...

. Since its inception,

has housed many well-known bands such as

Tracy and the Plastics Tracy + the Plastics is an American electropop and video project group from Olympia, Washington, United States. The members include Nikki Romanos on keyboard, Cola on drums, and Tracy as the lead vocals. Although the name implied the group was m ...

and

Sleater-Kinney Sleater-Kinney ( ) is an American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington, in 1994. The band's current lineup features Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar) and Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), following the departure of longtime member J ...

. In 2004, she founded a new band, Davies vs. Dresch. In 2006, Team Dresch reunited and began touring again.

Other appearances

Dresch has appeared on many other artists' recordings, including

Amy Ray Amy Elizabeth Ray (born April 12, 1964) is an American alto singer-songwriter and member of the contemporary folk duo Indigo Girls. She also pursues a solo career and has released six albums under her own name, and founded a record company, Daem ...

's ''Prom''; Third Sex's ''Card Carryin' '' (as producer, engineer and mixer);

Phranc Phranc (born Susan Gottlieb; August 28, 1957), is an American singer-songwriter whose career began playing in several bands in the late 1970s Los Angeles punk rock scene. Her musical style later shifted during the 1980s as a solo artist, into ...

's ''

Goofyfoot ''Goofyfoot'' is an EP by folk singer-songwriter Phranc, released in 1995. Recorded in Olympia, Washington with session musicians including Donna Dresch and Tobi Vail, as well as members of Satan's Pilgrims, ''Goofyfoot'' is an independent trib ...

'' EP (bassist);

Some Velvet Sidewalk Some Velvet Sidewalk was an experimental lo-fi rock band from Olympia, WA on the independent label K Records. History Some Velvet Sidewalk was formed in Eugene, Oregon in 1987 by Al Larsen (vocals/guitar) and Robert Christie (drums). Their fir ...

's ''Shipwreck'' (guitarist and bassist);

Hazel The hazel (''Corylus'') is a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K. (1999). ...

's ''Are You Going to Eat That?'' (producer); and

Fifth Column A fifth column is any group of people who undermine a larger group or nation from within, usually in favor of an enemy group or another nation. According to Harris Mylonas and Scott Radnitz, "fifth columns" are “domestic actors who work to un ...

's '' 36-C'' (guitarist). Dresch temporarily replaced

Van Conner Van Conner (born March 17, 1967) is an American rock musician, best known as the bassist for Screaming Trees. Career As a bass player in high school, Conner formed the band Explosive Generation with his brother Gary Lee Conner and Mark Pick ...

in the

Screaming Trees Screaming Trees was an American rock band formed in Ellensburg, Washington, in 1984 by vocalist Mark Lanegan, guitarist Gary Lee Conner, bass player Van Conner, and drummer Mark Pickerel. Pickerel had been replaced by Barrett Martin by the tim ...

, and had a brief stint as bassist in

Dinosaur Jr. Dinosaur Jr. is an American rock band formed in Amherst, Massachusetts, in 1984, originally simply called Dinosaur until legal issues forced a change in name. The band was founded by J Mascis (guitar, vocals, primary songwriter), Lou Barlow ( ...

, accompanying them on their US and Australian tour in 1990. She collaborated with

Slim Moon Matthew "Slim" Moon (born October 15, 1967) is an American musician and the founder of the American independent music label Kill Rock Stars (KRS). He also started its sister label, 5 Rue Christine. Slim ran KRS from 1991 to 2006, during which t ...

in the 1980s Olympia-based garage band Nisqually Delta Podunk Nightmare, and played bass in the Olympia grunge/punk band Dangermouse. She has also worked with Rastro! (with Jen Smith),

The Go Team The Go Team was a 1980s band from Olympia, Washington, consisting of Tobi Vail and Calvin Johnson of Beat Happening. Career The Go Team was founded in 1985. As Vail described: The Go Team released several cassettes and 9 singles on the ...

Mary Lou Lord Mary Lou Lord (born March 1, 1965) is an indie folk musician who started performing as a busker in Boston. Life and career Mary Lou Lord first gained attention playing acoustic guitar and singing in and around Boston's subway stations, particu ...

, and

Lois Lois is a common English name from the New Testament. Paul the Apostle mentions Lois, the pious grandmother of Saint Timothy in the Second Epistle to Timothy (commending her for her faith in 2 Timothy 1:5). The name was first used by English C ...

Publications

*McDonnell, Evelyn; Powers, Ann, editors: ''Rock She Wrote'', Delta, N.Y.C., US, (1995) *Darms, Lisa, editors: "Riot Grrrl Collection" (2015)

Guest appearances

– Guitar "Prom" LP *

–Bass " Strumpet" LP *

- Bass "Page Two" 7" *

- Bass "Shipwreck" LP *

– Guitar "36c" LP *

– Bass "The Wagon" 7" *

– Bass "Goofyfoot" 10" *

– Guitar "Some Jingle Jangle Morning" 7"

References

External links

Chainsaw Records, Dresch's record labelInterview with Donna Dresch The Zines of Donna Dresch
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dresch, Donna American punk rock bass guitarists American women guitarists American lesbian musicians Living people Third-wave feminism Riot grrrl musicians Screaming Trees members Women bass guitarists Year of birth missing (living people) Queercore musicians Women punk rock singers Team Dresch members Fifth Column (band) members Feminist musicians 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people 21st-century American women

Other appearances

Publications

Guest appearances

See also

References

External links