Recently I sat down with Flynne Collins, the driving force behind one of Athens’ more explosive young punk bands and discussed changes within the band, Athens punk, and her Riot Grrrl influences. Collins grew up in the Athens scene, but with Nihilist Cheerleader’s new EP, Truth or Dare, she has asserted herself as a visible force among young local artists.

The band was originally the brainchild of Collins and drummer Lewis Gutierrez, but on the new EP bassist Audrey Hinkle and guitarist Dylan Loftin lend extra clarity to the punchy tracks. The expansion from a duo to a four-piece was somewhat intentional, but mostly just a natural progression for the band. It was Gutierrez who initially had the idea to expand to a four-piece, and the fact that it worked out so well was mostly coincidental. “We were pretty shitty for a while and I was okay with it,” Collins elaborates. “I still want to keep it lo-fi, though. I don’t want our music to be touched upon much after we record it.” It’s this punk sensibility that guides the band even as they seek to grow and evolve their sound. Consistency is important to Collins, even now that there are four opinions floating around rehearsal and the studio.

The guitarist and vocalist owes much of her inspiration and aesthetic to Riot Grrrl Kathleen Hanna, which won’t surprise anyone who has listened to either of the band’s records, last summer’s Parkour EP and Bleach Boy demo. Like Hanna, Collins’ punk identity was borne out of feminism. As a result, despite her love for the music, she isn’t quite sure if she would consider herself a tried and true punk. But whatever the categorization, hearing Bikini Kill transformed Collins’ perception of music. “I played guitar before that, but not really seriously,” she explains. “When I saw her, I realized I needed to start a band.”

In addition to being an inspiration musically, Hanna was also a political influence on Collins. However, unlike Bikini Kill, Collins doesn’t believe Nihilist Cheerleader has a feminist mission. Instead, she believes the feminist themes on the recordings are simply an organic part of her songwriting. “[Hanna] opened my eyes to feminism in general and how gender roles affect us. I don’t know if we are like Bikini Kill. We don’t necessarily exist to be feminist, but it definitely shows through the music,” says Collins.

“Even though a lot of people like what we do, I still feel objectified by the guys who come watch us, but I’m not really mad about it.”

Collins takes the same matter-of-fact perspective when considering Athens punk in 2016. Whether a definable punk scene even exists is debatable to Collins, but she agrees with Flagpole’s assessment that 2015 was the year of loud music for Athens. Within this resurgence, she is concerned that female fronted acts get lost in the shuffle. “Clearly, there aren’t as many as there are guy bands,” Collins explains, “but I feel like there are a few really good female acts that are aggressive, even if they aren’t punk — bands like Penny Lame which still have that feminist perspective.”

Despite Athens’ reputation as a progressive city in a red state, Collins believes there is still much work to be done before gender equality is reached in the DIY scene. “Even though a lot of people like what we do, I still feel objectified by the guys who come watch us, but I’m not really mad about it,” she clarifies. The antidote for this sad reality is two-fold. The first step is (apparently not so) simple civility. “I don’t know how things could really change, apart from people just being respectful,” she says. Second, the double-standard that female bands face needs to go. “Female musicians are compared more harshly to one another than guys are; people act like we are all copycat musicians, but if there were a bunch of guy jam bands that all sound the same, no one would ever say anything.”

Despite these challenges, Nihilist Cheerleader shows no signs of slowing down. Collins and crew are committed to Athens as they work on their debut full-length. Though there is no specific release date yet, look for the record late this summer followed by a tour throughout the Southeast.

Nihilist Cheerleader will perform on Thur., Mar. 3 at Caledonia Lounge in support of Broken Windows and Bourgeois Girl. Doors open at 9 p.m. Admission is $5 for 21+ and $7 for 18-20.

More Info
Bandcamp: nihilistcheerleader.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @NihilistCheerleader
Instagram: @nihilistcheerleader