Freelancette

I so wish I could take credit for that astute observation, but it came from Carl Wilson by way of Jody Rosen at Slate. After listening to Avril Lavigne's chart-topping new album, "The Best Damn Thing" one too many times, both critics concluded that behind the spunky beats and cheeky cheerleading riffs lies a disturbingly misogynistic message. As Rosen puts it, "Lavigne has girl issues. She's always been full of unkind words for ne'er-do-well guys, but on the new album, she pours scorn on women." In her latest songs, Avril champions bullying boyfriend-stealers ("Girlfriend") and disses gold-diggers ("One of Those Girls") and "bitches, sluts and psychopaths" ("Everything Back But You"). These critics seem especially bummed out by the video for the album's hit single, "Girlfriend," which features a battle of two Avrils: as a bespectacled prep in a pleated skirt, and as a nasty, raven-haired rocker with an entourage. Bad-Ass Avril pulls some low punches (and kicks, and golf swings) in order to physically wrest Preppy Avril's boyfriend out of her undeserving arms, much to the delight of everyone in the video except, of course, for Preppy Avril, whose only crime seems to be her sartorial cluelessness. Says Rosen, "...the idea that we're supposed to cheer a revolution in which the ruling elite is replaced by creeps who enforce their will with golf-ball beanings seems like a perversion of the punk ideal."

Now, I--like many people, both fans and foes--would never consider the twenty-two year old pipsqueak with pipes to be punk (she's shared producers with Britney Spears and Hilary Duff, and didn't she just get married? In a Vera Wang Dress?), but this is not the time to quibble over Avril's musical or personal style. That's been adequately addressed here, here, and even here (sorta), by Avril herself. It's fair to say that Avril, as a voice in "Over the Hedge" and the star of a manga comic, sold out her authenticity and her punk cred long ago. But selling out her lady-peeps? Her sistahs? Her grrrls? An Avril who puts other chicks down in order to make herself look cool is worth griping about, and I applaud Rosen and Wilson for doing so. The chorus of "Girlfriend" has been translated into no fewer than seven languages (including Mandarin). Here's hoping that other girls and “sk8r bois” around the world taste the arrogant, anti-woman sourness bubbling up in “The Best Damn Thing’s” sugary punk-pop.