This indie-rock supergroup — all-female, to boot — includes former members of Sleater-Kinney, Helium, and, um, the Minders. And if you think the sum of these parts wouldn’t amount to much more than Sleater-Kinney without Corin Tucker, hold on tight for a thrilling ride and one of the best albums of the year. With singer and guitarist Carrie Brownstein leading the charge, Wild Flag’s self-titled debut can sound like a Sleater-Kinney side project at times. But Mary Timony (the other singer-guitarist here, and former leader of the underappreciated Helium) adds an extra level of guitar fury that pulls many of the songs in a brighter, more amp-shredding direction. Brownstein is all hiccups and clipped words on "Romance" and "Short Version," flipping the concept of girl groups and supergroups on their pretty little head.
This article appears in Sep 7-13, 2011.