Anyway I am sitting in my room listening to Tuberculosis, raging female fronted hardcore punk from East LA, and thinking about what an idiot I was for missing them when they played up here with Rayos X (also from East LA) and San Francisco’s own NN. It was, by everyone in attendance’s account, the show of the year, and upon listening to this recording, it’s clear that the weird random anti-social mindset that plagued me that night shoulda been contained... www.myspace.com/rawponxlosangeles is the website that will link you to these kids and their endlessly inspiring activities. A summer tour is planned, that they still need help with some dates; you should make them play your town!
Shit like that is super inspiring to me. Martin and Jose talked about playing the aforementioned show in the NN interview in the last issue of MRR, touching on the idea of punk as an exchange where kids and aging punks get equal inspiration from each other. Rather than one copy-catting the previous generation, and the other being bleary eyed grumpy old man style. Growing old and writing off what the kids are doing? Fuck the “good old days mentality!” That shit is weak, old-man-in-a-sports-bar-by-himself style. Complaint rock! I think what makes punk refreshing compared to other underground r’n’r movements is the aspect of theft, the idea you can take something and re-appropriate it in the subtext of your own life and idea of a good time. Forcing something new out of the old and stale. The post-card punks eternally frozen in time no longer exist; a tourist attraction is not punk. Replicating the past is for those historical re-enactment groups…
Sometimes it feels like the youth are willing to use their sound and scene as a stepping stone to some bogus pseudo-major label boredom, or sneaker sponsorship, but there are always pockets of kids that understand that punk isn’t something you can package. That as soon as you do it loses meaning, becomes an image rather than an idea. It’s depressing to me that the idea of doing something for your community, for reasons other than to make it big have lost currency in other circles. The mid-level indie rock doom of rock festivals, sponsored by sneaker and jean companies—is that what you do this for??? I just read this interview with Beth Ditto, of the Gossip, and while I think she makes a great pop-star, I am slightly irritated at the fact that she feels the need to dismiss the punk scene from whence she came as a collection of people who are achieving nothing because they’re just “preaching to the choir.” I personally do not have a set of goals that can only be achieved by becoming part of the tabloid consciousness, and the playing shows to shithead jocks and vacant trendsetters who just wanna party is also not in my “to do” list. I understand that having transgressive icons in mainstream pop culture is important, but I am not interested in participating in said culture, that’s why I am a punk. That doesn’t make what I’m doing insignificant…
I think it’s also important for punks to be aware of the possibilities of what our culture has to offer, and to not take it for granted. To rise above being a shitty one-dimensional bro-dawg that disparages women and queers. The post ironic Mugger wannabe bro-mags attitude that seems so pervasive currently is tiresome and sometimes makes me wonder why I am still involved in punk.
Here are some current reasons: 1)Destino Final Live and LP 2)Turboslut tape and tourzine 3)Zombie Dogz demo 4)Tuburculosis/Rayos X/Asko CDR sampler 5)Nuclear Family/Secret service: killer Albany punx 6)Foreign Objects demo 7)Mika Miko new LP 8)Skitkids! 9)Dunes! Whatwewantisfree.blogspot.com layla@maximumrocknroll.com
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