One More Hour

Acclaimed riot grrrl trio Sleater-Kinney carried the torch of feminist punk rock into the new millennium—and then went to couples therapy together. But by the time they did an intake with a Portland couples counselor (we like to think the intake appointment included an awkward but humorous explanation of how they are a band, not a couple, and that the therapist was also secretly thinking, "this is so cool! I'm gonna be the counselor for Sleater-Kinney!"), the band's two singer-songwriter-guitarists had long since broken up from a brief romance. The chemistry of Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker's early collaboration is captured in "One More Hour," which Rolling Stone called "one of the saddest songs ever written."

About the Song

Shmoop Connections

Sleater-Kinney is so punk, they don't even care what punk thinks of them. Which is why they had no problem referring to themselves as peppermint-tea-drinking "earth-mama" types in the 2003 interview where they also revealed they'd gone to therapy. Their willingness to be emo is one of the band's greatest musical strengths: the anger and intensity of all things punk combine with smart, reflective vulnerability. Their 1997 album Dig Me Out mines the contradiction so succinctly explained by band member Corin Tucker: "You can love rock n' roll and also be enraged by it."

By exploring the links between love and rage, Sleater-Kinney becomes part of a long tradition of lyrical explorers. From Shakespeare's tragic love stories to James Baldwin's courageous explorations of human desire, the bitter edge of heartache is a known source of great art. "One More Hour" knocked the socks off the bored music critics faced with the post-Nirvana era. Read on to find out how the staunchly indie riot grrrl trio made it happen.

On the Charts

"Sleater-Kinney have never had a hit," said Rolling Stone in 2003, "but for a devoted audience, especially what's left of the underground, they are more than just the best. They are the last band standing."

Sleater-Kinney is a die-hard indie band, not a hit-factory. But considering all their refusals of big-label offers, they've been critical darlings to an astounding degree, receiving near-perpetual, even exaggerated adoration from established critics all over the country (ex: "they could no more make a bad album than the Rolling Stones in 1967").

The title song on Dig Me Out was #44 on Rolling Stone's 2008 listing of the 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time, and Spin named Dig Me Out #24 on its list of 100 Greatest Albums, 1985-2005.