Hole for Valentine's Day.
getting girly with pink punk rock for valentine's day.
I love Valentine’s Day, or at least the kitschy side: the cupcakes, the flirty fonts, the Charlie Brown special, and the candy hearts. It also feels like a break from winter, with the pink and red hues cutting through the gray, signaling a step towards spring. However, from a commercial standpoint, I can see why not everyone is into it where the clichés have made it easy to hate on heart day. Where to start? Mass-produced long-stem red roses, lace teddys (an old-fashioned term, for sure, but it always makes me giggle while reminding me of Blanche from the Golden Girls who definitely owned a collection of teddys), not to mention, the Zale’s jewelry commercials that coat just the idea of the day in Dorito dust. But there are ways around it and one of them is taking back the day to make it your own. I do this with vinyl. Hole vinyl, to be painfully specific, featuring Valentine’s-centric art work, because fuck every kiss beginning with Kaye. Not in this house. Here, nothing says I love you more than a screaming blonde with a guitar.
Here are some gifts of Valentine’s Day past….
Hole Live Through This (pink vinyl reissue)
I’ve dreamed of owning Live Through This in sparkly pink vinyl since I was a teen. Like a crush, I often envisioned this item that didn’t even exist yet but knowing I’d never have it. And then last year, while getting lost in the deep caverns of vinyl Instagram, I found it. Like a unicorn, I couldn’t believe it existed and reacted accordingly with a gasp, which had my husband rushing in from the next room. Even though I knew he was getting it for me, I opened it with the eyes of my 13-year-old self, admiring it as if were a sparkly diamond. Live Through This will definitely get its own post, so consider this an amuse-bouche into an album I can say without a stitch of irony, changed everything for me.
Hole Beautiful Son EP (gorgeous* green vinyl)
This was an exciting one to get back in 2017. Not only is the creative direction pure perfection with Kurt Cobain’s young face framed by gift bows, but I believe the three songs on this EP is Hole at their peak. A stunning example of pop-punk with stacked vocals and back-up na na na’s, it’s done Courtney-style with lyrics about California king-sized beds, shout-outs to pioneer punk band Big Black plus a little shade towards the riot grrrls who were not fans of Ms. Love, if you’re nasty (despite pop culture history pairing them as allies).
I owned this on CD (which was already hard to find in 1994), but when I unwrapped this vinyl version to see it’s gorgeous green gloss (something that was less commonplace back then, validating my point that Courtney will be always ahead of the trends), it made me melt, admiring it with starry eyes like a Jem doll. The back cover is classic Courtney with strewn candy hearts and pills, plus all her scratchy stream of thoughts, her signature red lips and a sad bouquet, making it a true Valentine’s Day record for the girls with the most cake. (I couldn’t resist.)
*opinion and not the official classification
Hole Miss World 7” single
A limited edition of 5000, this is classic early Hole art direction with the candy hearts, glitter and 1950’s Little Miss photo. I bought this one back in the day and uncharacteristically of me, I don’t remember where. I envision Mr. Cheapo’s on Long Island but a limited edition, hand-numbered vinyl back then would have most likely been found in Manhattan. I have no big story for this one other than I cherish it and put on display every year. The candy heart sticker that says Hole, I actually owned a real version of from Courtney herself when she threw them into the crowd at a Hole Valentine’s Day show back in 1995. By 2004, the edges were starting to disintegrate, so I threw it away. It still makes me sad.
Hole Teenage Whore single
This one feels more like an EP than a single since it includes two songs not on Pretty on the Inside. Although edgier and rougher than the Beautiful Son EP, this still captures the pop-punk sound with harmonizing vocals, sexy slide guitars, and power chords that have yet to sound dated. Laced with destructive lyrics, Courtney aims her wrath at several American states on “Drown Soda” with the utmost impressive of rhyming because only Courtney can find a word to rhyme with Ohio and Illinois, and make is sound forceful not corny. But the real star on this record is my all-time favorite Hole song “Burnblack.” Because it’s not available on the music streaming services I use, this is the rare case where I have to drop the needle in order to hear it. Again, taking the pop-punk sound with the same ingredients and Eric Erlandson’s always on-point guitar work, it conveys images of vultures in hair, with blood and feathers everywhere, dead moons, death and whores and truth, which doesn’t exactly say Happy Valentine’s Day, but it does for me.
With that, I say happy Valentine’s Day, my friends. Make the day your own.
And while I have you, my new novel Somewhere in Hollywood comes out today! Here’s what indie book critics are saying:
“Touching, fierce, romantic in a good way, sharp-witted [from] a very talented author. I pretty much loved everything about this.” - Book Mark!
“A poignant blend of humor and melancholy….a heartfelt exploration.” - The Bookish Hermit
“Hooked! Vivid and realistic, it played out like a movie. Definitely a read everyone needs for 2025!” - Titles with Tyler
“Lots of sass, illuminating prose…one for music lovers.” - TB Honest Book Reviews
Come join the fun! (Retailer links here.)
