On March 12, in the dark, upstairs stage of Fitzgeralds', in Houston, Tx; a large crowd (for Fitz', about 100-150 ppl) waited patiently for Sleater-Kinney to take the stage. During the last few songs of Versus' set, the band members of S-K emerged from the back room to sidestage one by one. First came Janet, then Carrie, and last Corin. Janet and Carrie danced around a bit, in the meantime, Corin fiddled with a videocamera. As they took the stage, the audience started to roar. While they were setting up, I noticed Corin had a tattoo on her lower right shin. My friend and I couldn't make out what it said, so we timidly asked. She replied softly, "Heavens to Betsy". I was surprised to hear that her speaking voice was sweet and small, opposed to her strong vocals. I observed the rest of the stage, from the sparkly stickers on Carrie's guitar strap, to Janet's glittery barrettes, to the stuffed Droopy Dog that was in Corin's case. I also noticed that Corin had an octazier, but didn't use it that often. (people have asked me if she used one or not) The stage guy drug out the drum set, that had "Hot Rock" in red glitter, with the diamond-like logo in the center. After a few words from Carrie, the set began. Throughout the whole time on stage, Carrie danced and jumped around engergetically (probably the cause of her injury). Carrie beamed a pretty smile at her band members and members of the audience the whole time. Janet banged away at her drums, also with a smile, singing along from time to time. During "End of You, Janet immitated a robot when the beat slowed, and drums were sparse. She struck one drum, sharply turned her head, then her body, and abruptly struck the next beat. Corin mantained a professional composure, only cracking a smile upon occasion. The only time, I can recall, that Corin became animated was when she added a humorous voice in, "Call the Dr." They alternated their old stuff with the new, so no one felt lost. Carrie sang angelicly, while corin belted out those lyrics we all know and love. The whole audience was dancing, and singing every word, like a choir. The mass of fans seemed to feed off the engery S-K was giving, just as the band fed off the engery the crowd was throwing. They played: Start Together, Little Babies, End of You, Wanna be Yr Joey R., God is a Number, Banned from the End of the World, Heart Factory, Call the Dr., Burn, Don't Freeze, Get Up, Turn it On, Hot Rock, Not What You Want, Words & Guitar, and Little Mouth. After a few words from Carrie, saying how we should stay safe on the drive home, (considering there were tornado warnings for our area), they left stage. The crowd became obnoxiously loud, hungry for an encore. Once again, the members of Sleater-Kinney emerged from the back room, looking tired, but happy to know we wanted more. The encore consisted of Good Things, Dig Me Out, and One More Hour. The crowd yelled and screamed for a third appearance, but to no avail. When it was clear that was the last we'd be seeing them, gutsy fans scrambled for suveniors. I snagged the set list Corin was reading off of (and got cussed out for it!), and I noticed someone grabbing Carrie's on the opposite side of the stage. One girl hoisted herself over the guard rail, and jetted across stage to grab Janet's list and a drumstick (by far the most brave). I feel very lucky to have seen them because, the show after they played my town, Houston, was their last show due to Carrie's injury. This show rekindled my love and respect for the group. I think I can put it best by quoting, 'Wanna be Your Joey Ramone', they left everyone wanting more. ~* Cherryll Sturrock *~