The Butchies

After leaving pioneering Portland-based queercore band Team Dresch and moving to Durham, North Carolina, in 1996, singer/guitarist Kaia Wilson eventually snagged Team Dresch's drummer Melissa York and formed the Butchies. Once they'd added bassist Alison Martlew, the band began working with Mr. Lady, the label Wilson had started with her girlfriend Tammy Rae Carlson. They released their first three albums on Mr. Lady before the label dissolved in 2004. A tour with the Indigo Girls' Amy Ray, the Butchies' champion and biggest fan, followed the release of their third album, the aptly titled Three. Make Yr Life, the Butchies' fourth album, came out on Yep Roc in 2004.