Nervous Breakdown
I spent one of the more enojoyable evenings in recent history with my sister tonight. We drank beer after work, and then met up with her amusingly gay bearded friend John, and another friend of hers, James. We went and saw "American Hardcore" at Cinema 21. This movie is a surprisingly well-made documentary about the advent of the American hardcore scene which began in '81 in DC and LA, amazingly reminiscent of the argument of who started punk first, Ramones or Sex Pistols?
All in all, I enjoyed it immensely. Lots of awesome footage I hadn't seen before, and the slightly depressing revelation that legendary Portland hardcore band, Poison Idea, was no more. Sadly enough, beloved hero of the obese, Pig Champion, passed away recently. Anyway, numerous times during this movie I had intense moments of euphoria. Remembering the days of old, hanging out at the Paris Theater as a young lad of 15. At the time, this group I hang out with was truly like another family. Half of these kids would never have known my name, but if they saw me on the street nowadays, they'd still give me the coats off their own back.
Really, the American hardcore scene was an amazing movement. Not so much a music movement as it was an art movement, as much of the punk rock scene would fall into. They weren't playing loud and fast purely because they were untalented...it was because this was the first time that the American middle-class suburban youth had something to be upset about. Reagan was president, and a return to 1950's era culture was upon us. These particular youth had something to say about it, and they said "you know know what...fuck you. I'm not like you."
Watching this movie made me miss a lot of things, but also reminded me of some important ones. I alone was the impetus that brought me into the punk rock scene to start with. I never felt as though I fit quite right, even with my own family. Not that I didn't feel accepted, but I knew that I didn't subscribe to the same school of thought as the rest of my clan. I found punk rock, and with that, I found others who felt the same as me. We didn't have much to complain about or rise up against, but we all found solace in knowing we weren't quite like everyone else.
In recent years, I feel like I've forgotten those feelings. Seeing this movie made them come back and helped me to remember. My 15 year old self still reminds me. I'm not normal, I'm not like everyone else. I'm proud to have my own voice, and I'll do all the I can to make myself heard and not fade into the mass. I like being me, and I'm a force to be reckoned with, and if you have anything contrary to say about it, then fuck you. You're wrong.
End ranting, love to you alls.
All in all, I enjoyed it immensely. Lots of awesome footage I hadn't seen before, and the slightly depressing revelation that legendary Portland hardcore band, Poison Idea, was no more. Sadly enough, beloved hero of the obese, Pig Champion, passed away recently. Anyway, numerous times during this movie I had intense moments of euphoria. Remembering the days of old, hanging out at the Paris Theater as a young lad of 15. At the time, this group I hang out with was truly like another family. Half of these kids would never have known my name, but if they saw me on the street nowadays, they'd still give me the coats off their own back.
Really, the American hardcore scene was an amazing movement. Not so much a music movement as it was an art movement, as much of the punk rock scene would fall into. They weren't playing loud and fast purely because they were untalented...it was because this was the first time that the American middle-class suburban youth had something to be upset about. Reagan was president, and a return to 1950's era culture was upon us. These particular youth had something to say about it, and they said "you know know what...fuck you. I'm not like you."
Watching this movie made me miss a lot of things, but also reminded me of some important ones. I alone was the impetus that brought me into the punk rock scene to start with. I never felt as though I fit quite right, even with my own family. Not that I didn't feel accepted, but I knew that I didn't subscribe to the same school of thought as the rest of my clan. I found punk rock, and with that, I found others who felt the same as me. We didn't have much to complain about or rise up against, but we all found solace in knowing we weren't quite like everyone else.
In recent years, I feel like I've forgotten those feelings. Seeing this movie made them come back and helped me to remember. My 15 year old self still reminds me. I'm not normal, I'm not like everyone else. I'm proud to have my own voice, and I'll do all the I can to make myself heard and not fade into the mass. I like being me, and I'm a force to be reckoned with, and if you have anything contrary to say about it, then fuck you. You're wrong.
End ranting, love to you alls.