The heroes of one of the most important IDIOTEQ interviews ever made are back with a new strong single called “Phallocentric”. PETROL GIRLS have released an interesting video for the track and offered a bunch of insights about its message, which is a huge bomb against the patriarchy. Watch and listen below.
Phallocentric came out of a conversation I had with a female friend about how uninspiring most of our experiences of sex with men were and how much our sex lives had improved the more we rejected heteronormative approaches. I really don’t think thats a reflection on those men as individuals, but more to do with our whole society’s attitude to sex. Everything from sex education in school to representations of sex in mainstream culture seems to focus on male pleasure in heterosexual sex. The definition of phallocentric is, “focussed on or concerned with the phallus or penis as a symbol of male dominance,” and this can be seen in art, architecture, advertising – all over the place. Culture doesn’t just reflect our values, it also produces and maintains them, so this song, as part of the counter culture, is literally saying “fuck what they taught us,” ridiculing conservative attitudes and celebrating the full rainbow of sex. “I can’t get no” is also a deliberate play on the Rolling Stones song ‘Satisfaction.’ Mick Jagger definitely used his sexuality as part of his performance, and this song is also partly claiming my right to do the same. Whilst the song is mostly celebratory and irreverent, it also points out that “I take the shame take the blame take the pain and its not right” which comes from my experiences as a woman in a society that still judges women for their sexual behaviour in a much more negative way than men, but I think can also be claimed by most people who aren’t typical straight men.
Lyrics:
I got no devotion,I got no
I got no devotion, no devotionUnleash disorder, fuck what they taught us
Unleash disorder, I can’t get noUnleash disorder, fuck what they taught us, Unleash disorder
Erect shaft-like monuments for your wars
Splatter canvas, paint the fucking walls
Place us on plinths, fetishise the female form
Exalt virgins, frustrate yourself moreUnleash disorder, fuck what they taught us
Unleash disorder, I can’t get no
Phallocentric, we’re not done when you are
Pallocentric, I’m bored of your artI want to play not perform a routine
I want pleasure not just here to please
Liberate us from these limited constraints
I take the shame, take the blame, take the pain
And it’s not right, not rightI got no devotion,I got no
I got no devotion, no devotion
Unleash disorder, fuck what they taught us
Unleash disorder, I can’t get no
Phallocentric, we’re not done when you are
Pallocentric, I’m bored of your art
About the video:
The video is based loosely on an old performance art piece by Yves Klein where he painted naked women blue and made them print their bodies. The video begins with a straight forward subversion of this idea – with fully clothed Ren painting a naked man blue – then goes on to play with it as a way of different pairs expressing their affection and/or sexual desire for each other, in a rainbow of different colours. As well as a music video (and excuse for us to get messy, lets be honest) the film is also part of an art project in its own right. We had no idea what each pair would do with the paint or what their body prints would come out like. It was important that they made their own choices about what they wanted to do depending on what they were comfortable with. It was decided before shooting, that the video would be made up of two screens, with the left side paced more like a classic music video, and the right more like an art film or documentation of performance art
PETROL GIRLS on tour:
Thu, 13 Nottingham Rock City – Club Night
Fri, 14 Bristol, Punk vs Rave @ Blue Mountain Club
Sat, 15 London Old Blue Last w. Sonic Boom Six
Tue, 18 Guildford, The Boileroom
Wed, 19 Birmingham, Rainbow Cellar
Thu, 20 Leeds, Brudenell Games Room
Fri, 21 Glasgow, The Garage Attic
Sat, 22 Sheffield, Corporation
Sun, 23 Liverpool, Liverpool Arts Club
Tue, 25 Milton Keynes, Craufurd Arms
Wed, 26 London, New River Studios
