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Stag is punk done in the tradition of Patti Smith and the Replacements rather than the Sex Pistols. It is punk in its rebellious spirit, its contagious energy, and its anti-establishment calls to action. More than that, though, it is pure Amy Ray -- her activism and her artistry melding and achieving something remarkable.
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Alternative PressStag for the most part rocks with biting fierceness and vibrant energy. [#155, p.81]
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An extraordinarily potent recording, one that will likely be among 2001's best.
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Ray at last gives full voice to her riot grrrl urges, and if the CD isn't exactly combustible, it does evoke the spirit of such Ray heroes as Husker Du and mid-period Replacements.
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Entertainment WeeklyStag might have been a drab discourse on gender politics, but Ray's rocking songs earn her honorary riot grrrl stripes. [3/16/2001, p.68]
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For those who only know Amy Ray as an Indigo Girl, or as a socially active label owner will find this record a snarling, beautiful surprise.
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Q MagazineUnexpectedly vibrant, like riot grrrl with tunes. [Oct 2002, p.100]
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Angry, bold, pointed and eclectic as hell, Stag suggests that Nirvana and Sleater-Kinney are just as important to Ray as Simon and Garfunkel.
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It's too bad this independently released album will most likely fall through the commercial cracks, because Stag is one of those rare albums that fuses aggression, good music and sharp institutional critiques without sounding strident or, um, stiff.
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Stag is a diverse non-Indigo mix (the only song that makes me go hmmm starts, "She brings me Spanish clementines, I eat them by the waterside"), intermingling Ray's canny ear for melody with a lo-fi, raw sensibility and attitude aplenty.
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Ray offers up a wonderfully realized survey of underground rock.... Stag is the strongest solo debut in recent memory.
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