The Gits & Home Alive

As a music writer living in a city with a rich and storied music scene, every now and then I'll check out various films and documentaries about Seattle's ongoing role in the music world in an attempt to educate myself. Last week I watched The Gits, the 2005 documentary about the post-punk group and the 1993 brutal rape and murder of their lead singer Mia Zapata.
For me, a non-native Seattleite, these kind of movies promote a better understanding of historical events that took place before I moved here, and The Gits fit the bill. Grunge-era names are dropped, venues and shows referenced, and among the film's many touching moments: the mention of non-profit organization Home Alive, the self-defense studio Zapata's friends created in response to her murder. Sadly, after 16 years, Home Alive is closing within the month. Lack of funding and debt is to blame.

This news aside, for anyone with an interest in Seattle music history, I recommend The Gits. I had heard of Zapata but never grasped how universally loved and respected she was within the music community and beyond until now. Concert footage shows Zapata's amped, electric performances, her voice commanding and gravelly; friends and family remember her loving spirit and offbeat goofiness. Home Alive says: "Mia was a living, thriving, raging testimony of the power of unleashed artistic expression."

Curse of the rising star: she was 27 at the time of her death.