What does it mean to be punk?
Much of today’s music culture seems to exploit the idea of punk, as stores like shopping mall mainstay Hot Topic profit by misinforming the consumer with their pre-packaged lifestyle. Punk has become t-shirts served with a side of radical idealism.
Those who understand what it means to be punk were never looking for it in the first place. Sure, the hairstyles, the leather jackets, and the pretentiousness were soon to follow, but current trends miss the intent that began it all.
More than anyone, District of Columbia inhabitants should have a firm grasp on the magnitude of what being punk really means. As a hub for political and social grievances in the states, D.C. is the perfect petri dish to sprout a defiant culture, refusing to blindly follow flawed leadership into a life deemed normal.
Finding punk, therefore, should ultimately lead to the history of D.C. The front man for influential hardcore outfit Minor Threat, Ian MacKaye, called Georgetown home; at one point, he worked at the Häagen-Dazs on M Street. MacKaye would become a pioneer, first discovering punk after seeing The Cramps perform on Georgetown University’s campus. He fell in love with the intimacy of the scene and the dynamic of a punk rock show.
MacKaye eventually became one of the most recognized faces of the scene: co-founder of Dischord Records; musician and voice of The Teen Idles, Minor Threat, Fugazi, and many other projects; and father of a movement that the D.C. punk scene still proudly embraces—straight edge.
Although most associate punk with an intense, drug-addled lifestyle, MacKaye screamed “I don’t smoke. I don’t drink. I don’t fuck. At least I can fucking think,” on 1983’s “Out of Step (With the World).” A personal refusal to take part in the substance abuse that he had seen tear apart friends and family, the song takes a stand against the self-destructive lifestyles and general ignorance of his contemporary rock’n’rollers—and, more importantly, fellow punks. Although straight edge may run counter to what many perceive as “punk,” that’s the beauty of the movement.
Punk is not a constricting medium of expression, so it can accommodate MacKaye’s voice and philosophy within the larger movement. Straight edge does not appeal to everyone, but it exemplifies a key tenant of the punk movement: to awaken and think for yourself.
Abandon your typical Friday night, find your way to a punk show, and see what I mean. At first glance, you’ll only see a room that can hold no more than 50 kids and a band, more focused on energy than musicianship. And when a young twenty-something starts to scream his ideas at you, just listen.
Ask James for directions to the shadiest venues in town at jmcgrory@georgetownvoice.com
