Hardcore Music: A Journey

Ben Martindale

4/19/12

Mr. Trueblood

Current Events

Hardcore Music: A Journey

As a very young teenager, possibly what would be considered a tween, I was introduced to a music that I, in my pre-pubescent ignorance, referred to as "screamo." I hated it. It was loud and incoherent and unnecessary. I couldn't understand the words. I thought that every single "screamo" band most certainly had to be linked to satanism, witchcraft, murder, crime, anti-love, drugs, alcohol, sex, sorcery, and every other variation of malevolent forces that plagues God's green earth.

My horizons were not much later broadened by a band called Underoath. I know that they aren't exactly considered hardcore, and considered more post-hardcore, but at the time I thought of them as that. They had melodies and singing and a Christian message. Because of Underoath I have developed a love for this style of music and am involved with the local scene. I am currently missing a show because of this paper, and am in a post-hardcore band. I have taken this opportunity to not only to write a paper on something I love, but also understand the origin of something in which I would say I am currently involved. In this paper we will be discussing, the definition of hardcore, the origin of the term, the subcultures involved, the bands involved, of course the ever famous, or infamous (depending on point of view), hardcore show, and hardcore right now.

First, to understand what this paper is on we need to discuss the actual definition of hardcore music. Hardcore music was originally called hardcore punk, and was known to be heavier and thicker sounding than traditional punk rock. This sound is why it is called hardcore punk; it was punk but more hardcore, more stripped down and raw. In other words, hardcore punk is more punk than punk. The origin term "hardcore" is unknown, but is said to be linked to Canada's D.O.A., because of their album "Hardcore '81."

Today if you asked the average music listener about hardvore music they would probably point you to metal, but it was and is a subgenre of punk. Black Flag, known as the "Godfathers of hardcore punk", sprung up during the seemingly British exclusive year of punk, 1977. It did not really take root as its own scene until the 80's. It was fueled by the hatred of the mainstream, and frustration with the false reality portrayed by the media, and with life itself. Keith Morris of Black Flag and the Circle Jerks depicts the hardcore mentality perfectly in Sony Classic's documentary American Hardcore "We'd been made all these promises. You go to school, you do your homework, you go to college, you get a great job, you make lots of money, you get married, you have a couple of kids, dog, cat, goldfish, two-car garage, and that's just not the way that it is."

In many ways hardcore was also a reaction to the election of Ronald Reagan. They hated him and his administration, because they felt as if it was a new order. They felt as if America was saying the white man has come back to take his rightful place in political office. They felt that the new administration was a backlash to Jimmy Carter's human rights ideals and the women's rights movement and African Americans' equality rights movement. Black Flag's name came from an that anarchy would fix what was going on with the government; they thought that if a white flag meant surrender, then a black flag meant anarchy. Their logo was actually a black flag, which is for the most part unknown

Along with that there was a backlash to the increase in accessibility and popularity of drugs in the 60's and 70's, and also the sexual revolution. This backlash was named the Straight Edge movement. The term was coined by Washington D.C.'s very own Minor Threat because of their song "Straight Edge." The term Straight Edge describes a group of people among the punk community that refrains from partaking in alcohol, drugs, tobacco, and in more militant cases promiscuous sex.

Even more prominent among the hardcore punk scene was DIY ethics. DIY, standing for do it yourself, meant that bands were recording their own records, printing their own shirts, distributing their own music, booking their own tours, and doing their own promoting. One of the first DIY record labels was a company called SST which stood for Solid State Transmitters. SST was run by members of Black Flag and some of their roadies. It paved the way for indie record labels of a wide variety of genres.

The DIY ethics stretched past the business aspect of hardcore, and also into the live show aspect. Many of the venues in the 80's were not ready to try out experimental genres like hardcore punk, especially with its aggressive tendencies of the crowds they would bring. Many of the shows needed to be held at houses, basements and garages.