It was 1995. I was a sophomore in small-town West Michigan—an angsty punk girl, trapped in a rural farming community. I had already been in a few bands after picking up a guitar at 13 years old, but I was starting to find a louder voice–one that was fueled by other women rockers.

In those pre-internet (gasp!) days, we had to find our way through the music world with CMJ samplers, college radio and Spin magazine…