June 22 1991
Inside Out, In Motion, Mexican Pets
Charlies Bar
Ian from Meantime Records was organising a tour for American band Inside Out. They were an all-female band and they seemed interesting so it was great to be able to say they could play in Dublin. In June 1991 it was rare to have women in bands in Dublin. If Inside Out could be used as an influence for more women to get involved then great. Doing the main organising of ‘Hope’ gigs at this stage were 4 people – 2 men + 2 women. Quite a few women went to the gigs but it seemed they played a less active role (if doing more than listening makes one more active of course).
Unfortunately, this is something that hasn’t changed too much. Mexican Pets had a woman who played guitar and wrote songs, so hopefully Jill proved influential for others. A question often asked has been why women aren’t more involved in music. Normally I pay no attention to the gender balance of a band but faced with an all-women line up it gets me thinking as to why more men are involved. I really don’t know and I hope that we never discriminated at our gigs for whatever reason
