STRAIGHT-EDGE TERM PAPER

From internet – source and author unknown

For over forty years in American culture, conditions have continuously produced generations with subcultures bent on rebellion and subversion. However, visible characteristics of each one demonstrate their respective ineffectiveness as a movement of revolution.

For example, LSD-loving hipsters of the "Beat" generation, heavy-drinking "greasers" of the fifties, and even today's drug-numbed "Deadheads" pose no true threat to the establishment which they oppose. In fact, the groups previously mentioned and their counterparts only collaborate with the system by (for one example) using intoxicants to lull themselves into complacency.

In order for a group to be truly dedicated to the abolition of the presently standing social structures and established traditions, it is inherently necessary for this group to reject the dogma and excesses of these institutions. Failure to resist is to collaborate, and in American society, the most elite "revolutionaries" are usually the quickest to finance the tobacco and alcohol industries: both large contributors to environmental and social decay and ardent supporters of the political right (I.F.L. 1994, 2).

Most sociologists would probably contend that a group completely free of all ties to "the system," governed by a system of ethics advocating total self-reliance, does not exist. On this count, however, they are wrong. Hardcore, which can be traced back to the late-seventies demise of punk rock, is a sub-culture of the rebellious "rock and roll" genre. In the late seventies, the concentration of punk rock moved from the self-destructive nihilistic school, into a new incarnation which espoused the values of "do it yourself" or "D.I.Y." but also stressed a life of clear thought unhindered by intoxicants such as alcohol or drugs (McClard 1994, 6.)

Hardcore had its humble beginnings in such large cities as New York, Washington, and Boston. One night in D.C., for example, the manic sonic dissonance of one urban hardcore band, Bad Brains, influenced a certain D.C. scenester to start a band of his own (Robbins 1989, 365). Ian MacKaye's stint in several small noisy hardcore units eventually led up to his post as front man of Minor Threat, and the dawn of 80's hardcore. Mackaye's bands and subsequent label, Dischord Records, created the Straight Edge scene. The messages contained in the lyrics were in a pure political vein, with a positive twist (Robbins 1989, 365). The fans of the music took it one step further. In D.C. clubs, to signify that a patron was under 21, unable to consume alcohol, a large black "X" was marked on his hand (Unknown 1992, 34). Punks of the D.C. scene came to the shows with fat X's scrawled across their fists in defiance, reluctant to consume alcohol or use drugs to numb their minds from reality. A revolution was born.

The Dischord records sound, as it came to be known, exhibiting the stylings of bands such as Teen Idles, Government Issue, and Minor Threat themselves, had a widespread influence on America. The positive message and fast, chaotic fury of punk influenced the Boston quintets S.S.D. and D.Y.S. New York followed in suit, building a scene for the first time on the foundation of the sounds of Agnostic Front (Robbins 1989, 8) and Reagan Youth. On the West Coast, in Reno Nevada, the band 7 Seconds burst forth to deliver their own contribution of positive punk.

Mirroring the success of its D.C. sister, Dischord, a small New Haven label called Revelation began to grow increasingly in size and influence. It continued the legacy of the 1983 scene into the 1986-1988 "Youth Crew" years. The label experienced success with bands such as Sick of it All, Bold, and Chain of Strength, but had its finger truly on the pulse of hardcore with the re-release of the 1986 Wishingwell 12" "Break down the Walls" by Youth of Today in 1988. This trend-setting album combined the traditional Straight Edge rhetoric with the usual banter about personal relationships, but added yet another new twist. Vegetarianism was now pushed as part of the basic philosophy of the hardcore scene. Their war-cry "Physically strong, morally straight. Positive youth... We're the Youth of Today!" left many club-owners shaking their heads in disbelief.

At this point, new labels took to the scene, outdating and making obsolete their predecessors. Taking up the role of Revelation as pilgrims of new hardcore ground were labels Conversion, covering mostly Cleaveland material such as Die Hard, and Face Value and Califronia's New Age Records that introduced bands such as Pressure Release to the '88 scene. The major development of the 1988 scene for Straight Edge hardcore would have to be Youth of Today's releases of "Can't Close My Eyes," their first 7" remixed with redone guitar tracks, and "We're Not in This Alone" on Caroline records (White 1988, 4). The latter contains such blistering and emotionally charged hardcore anthems as "Flame Still Burns" and "No More." The album also produced a subsequent video for "No More," attempting to introduce hardcore and vegetarianism to the MTV generation (White 1988, 8)... to no avail. The video got nearly no play on MTV. After Youth of Today's break up soon after, the concentration moved onto New Jersey, the new capital of Straight Edge Hardcore in America. Mike Hartsfield of New Age records saw promise in bands like Turning Point, whose album "It's Always Darkest Before the Dawn" was released in 1990, Ressurection, whose "moniker was purposely misspelled" (Arenas 1993, 27), featuring Rob Fish from Release, Lifetime, featuring drummer Ari from Ressurection on vocals, and soon-to-be Straight Edge legends, Mouthpiece.

Around 1992, however, it was obvious who was still "standing hard." While Revelation records began to sign bands like Into Another and Iceburn, Hartsfield stuck to his quirky policy of only signing Straight Edge Bands (White 1988, 14).

The aforementioned bands, Ressurection, Lifetime, and Mouthpiece all went on to put out full length 12" releases on New Age from 1992-1994. Also, around 1992, another fore-runner to New Age as "the" big Straight Edge label emerged. Victory records, spearheaded by Tony Brummel of the defunct Chicago Hardcore unit Even Score, realized the small-fortune to be made in marketing Straight Edge hardcore.

It is necessary to realize that bands in the Straight Edge scene usually don't last very long (Unknown, 1992, 35). Others have lasted far too long. But, scene history aside, there are some prominent trends in the present-day mid-1990's Straight Edge Scene.

The first trend is the influence of religion in the scene.

In 1990, Ray Cappo and John Porcelly of Youth of Today applied their new found beliefs of Krishna Consciousness to their music, and released "Perfection of Desire" by their new band, Shelter. Decidedly, the beliefs of Straight Edge and Hare Krishna were similar to the point where they could both share an audience (Porcelly 1994, 17). Krishna Consciousness has had a mixed response from the Straight Edge audience. Many scenesters have devoted their lives to the proposition of vegetarianism, celibacy, rejection of sense gratification, rejection of material attachment, and transcendental chanting. Others have rejected this, as they reject all religion as "concepts and words to explain what cannot be explained" (McClard 1994, 33). Some other famous Krishna Conscious scenesters, besides Cappo and Porcelly, include Vic DiCara from Inside Out, Shelter and 108, Rob Fish, the members of Prema, and Justin Solace.

The second trend dominating the scene today, just like vegetarianism became accepted in the late eighties, is veganism.

Veganism replaces lacto-ovo vegetarianism (when one eats eggs and dairy, but no meat) by removing all dairy products from the diet (McCarthy 3, 1994). In Syracuse, NY, perhaps the new Straight Edge Mecca, veganism has even become violent in some instances, where disciples have used hostility to spread their message of intolerance towards supporters of meat and dairy industries.

An example of a rift in the scene is the one between veganism and Hare Krishna. Vegans charge that Krishnas support the corrupt American dairy industry (Grabelle 1993, 40), Krishnas explain that it's the will of God (Porcelly 1994, 4). The general consensus in the scene is that both of these groups leave something to be desired.

Girls, fed up with the idea of Straight Edge being a "boy's club" (Rooks 1993, 14) have also decided to get their say in the scene. These ladies have made a major impact on the scene, taking the politically correct aspect of the lifestyle to new heights, and making more and more people aware with every show, fanzine, and record that they produce. Their message condemns violence at shows excluding ladies from the fun, and sexism inherent in the scene. For example, the term "brotherhood" is a widely used term in early Straight Edge. The word, or at least the idea, makes an appearance on nearly every album. The idea of "Sisterhood" was foreign only up to a few years ago.

The "Emo" (standing for "emotive" as "beat" did "beatific) scene, including bands like Still Life, the now-defunct Downcast, and Antioch Arrow have found a new audience in the Straight Edge scene though labels like Ebullition and Yuletide. These bands have a more punk-styled sound, politically driven lyrics, and also a touch of emotion.

Fanzines are as prominent as ever in the Straight Edge scene, not to say that this is anything new. Ever since the late seventies 'zines have been an integral part providing news, a forum for thoughts, and reviews. Like other types of underground music before it, hardcore has experienced a gradual stride towards the mainstream. Major labels have claimed such bands as Rage Against the Machine, with Zach De la Rocha from Hard Stance and Inside Out, Quicksand, with Walter from Youth of Today and Gorilla Biscuits, and Tom and Alan from Beyond, and, most recently, Downset from Los Angeles, (ex-members of Social Justice) the closest thing to an actual Straight Edge band on a major label.

Yet, the labels, bands, and individuals with integrity vow to stand by the "do it yourself" ethic and forever will fight the corporate infiltration of what they hold dear. In the eyes of the true, the blood-soaked dollars of major-labels, with their exploitation of factory workers in industrially underdevelopped countries, and frequent subjugation of artists' material and intended message, do not belong bankrolling hardcore records. To allow rich, avaricious, capitalist robber-barons to over-produce, mass-produce, and exploit hardcore is not only a grave infraction of the D.I.Y. ethic, but it is also "sharing your bed" with the manifestations of evil that one opposes. Asks Kent McClard, "How can you attack success and the world of greed and the culture of wealth from the position of success and wealth? Are you not what you oppose? (McClard 1994, 41.)" "Do it yourself... or don't do it at all!" quips militant edge, militant vegan band Chokehold on their first 7".

Though the essence of the Straight Edge movement in and of itself is revolutionary, as a subculture, it is too only a "trend" with its own style of music and its own dress code. Whenever a group of people, especially teenage people, stumbles upon an ideology, there will always be those who will turn it into cheap fashion and a way to make a fast dollar. Even in the past 12 years many have passed in and out of the "Straight Edge Revolving Door" (Porcelly 1994, 16). More accurately in the mid-eighties, the band Half-off had a song about how people were becoming obsessed with a philosophy about not becoming obsessed with things. (Algeria 1994, 64).

Yet, anyone who adopts this philosophy is making a positive step forward in his life. By not smoking, one refuses to support the corrupt tobacco industry (notorious bankrollers of the right wing), one refuses to poison oneself and others with toxins, and one promotes economic awareness by making wise consumer choices. By not drinking, one refuses to support the alcohol industry, which uses racist and sexist advertising to tout its poison predominantly to the less-fortunate, and one also acts in a socially responsible manner by refusing to cloud one's reasoning. Obviously, not using drugs is a boycott of the same worthless intoxicants for which thousands of people die every day on the streets of the inner-city and in the fields of the Third World. Since 1988, hundreds of thousands of people have chosen vegetarianism for religious, health, ethical, and economic reasons because of Straight Edge hardcore.

"The personal is the political." Even if the youth who are Straight Edge just for fashion or for trend value stick with it just for those reasons, it is still more beneficial than most of the trends lurking around pop culture these days. However, I doubt tthat most of those who are true would debate Rob Fish's summary statement, "Straight Edge is not an end, it is a means to an end." (Arenas 1993, 28).