On Threads, Your Best Nightmare frontwoman Erin is currently bemoaning the fact that men have very short-sighted—if not relentlessly sexist—ideas of what being punk is and why she labels herself as such. “Bros on the internet are mad that I call my music punk, but they aren’t ready for the dissertation I can write on the nuance of genre,” she smirks. Erin isn’t at all wrong.
The point of punk is that it is a movement made for those who don’t fit into an oppressive society and seek to destroy the status quo. Unfortunately, this has also attracted people who are only there for the anger and destruction—who only use punk rock for the catharsis and the resources, but contribute nothing as far as its intent to change the world and uplift those who feel they don’t fit in. Such hijacking of an important movement has plenty of people creating different sectors of punk to represent themselves; Queercore, Afropunk, Riot Grrrl…
Your Best Nightmare is a band that belongs to the Riot Grrrl movement, but the band’s more folk-punky approach makes it feel subversive. Erin’s weapon of choice is her ukulele, but just because her music sounds as sweet as her voice doesn’t mean anything more than the fact that the sweetness is what hides the venom underneath. And anyone who crosses her can get a taste. So goes the thesis of Your Best Nightmare Presents: The Simple Solution to Toxic Masculinity.
By tackling the need for safety, dignity, respect, and a sense of individuality, Your Best Nightmare tackles all the boxes of Riot Grrrl, even if it means in the pursuit of such, she also has to confront pick-me types who look down on her. “I’m drowning myself tonight in lipstick, beer, and ice cold misery while I try to fit in with the girls who do not like me,” sings Erin on “Promising Young Woman” before loudly and proudly proclaiming that she is a “monster,” a “nightmare,” and “the girl your parents warned you about.” Trust, if the rest of the songs say anything, being such a woman is a promise that Erin is all too happy to keep.
The short-and-hardly-sweet “Don’t Mess With Me” says that anyone who comments on her favorite dress might get knifed up during a chorus you won’t be able to help but sing along with. “Really Cute” throws up the middle finger towards weak, power-hungry men who are not aware of how their arrogance turns off women. “Talk down to me, baby / That’s just how I like it” is one of the most cutting lines of the song. Even the bouncy sway of “Eyeliner” threatens the next abusive person that their next attempt to speak down to a woman would lead to their painful downfall. Essentially, Your Best Nightmare is the simple solution is to let men know she isn’t afraid or even remorseful about making mincemeat out them and their choice of pick-me’s if she has to. And the songs are just catchy enough to be your potential date’s theme song.
Whether “punk” bros will admit to it or not, Your Best Nightmare fits within the punk space simply because of the aim to empower the downtrodden and constantly abused while pissing off the more privileged of the group. She doesn’t need to scream or shout. She doesn’t need to put on an ugly voice. She doesn’t need to make songs shorter than 1 and a half minutes. By volunteering to be Riot Grrrl’s “Joan of Arc” and crooning sweetly with a razorblade sneer underneath, she aims to be a woman’s punk rock hero and the sworn nemesis of trash men. In this climate where women are one of the most targeted for their rights in America, she just might be.
