"Punk Rock Fundamentalist Blues"

Last time, I seemed to have some luck starting out my column with a quote from a song, so let's try this again:

"Hardcore formulas are dogshit / Change and caring are what's real
Is this a state of mind? / Or just another label
The joy and hope of an alternative / Have become its own cliche"
"Chickenshit Conformist" - Dead Kennedys

I attended the Fuck Yeah Traveling Festival, held last Friday at the Starlight Ballroom. The bill featured headliners, the Circle Jerks, Dillinger Four, local boys Paint It Black, Matt and Kim, Monotronix, and Team Robespierre, along with a little bit of conceptual art and a limited amount of standup comedy. I can't judge the evening as a whole in a fair way because, due to work commitments and the limited late night SEPTA schedule, I arrived late and left early. That said, the time I did spent at the show was, while overall a positive experience, also fraught with some of the annoying punk traditionalism and fundamentalism which has, on occasion, had me shaking my head in the past.

First, there was some kind of weird robot thingy set up with a bunch of flashing lights. As we all watched - well, some of us couldn't see too well - Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA" played loudly. Slowly and surely, the lights became more annoying, and the song began sticking in places, ultimately freezing altogether in the loudest, most obnoxious fashion fathomable. Wait, was this a subtle message that our country is in some state of disrepair? Well then, conceptual artists responsible, you might have wanted to have chosen an ACTUAL patriotic song and not one which addressed post-Vietnam in a cynical and, ultimately, liberal way. Reagan's campaign misinterpreted the song the same way years ago.

Okay, that was a lame gripe. How about the actual fundamentalism I spoke of? Well, first of all, it's a punk show. I expected mohawks, hair color, and a certain amount of "uniforms." Why, though, do people still insist on wearing these denim vests with patches all over them, with acid washed jeans, Doc Martins, along with (of course) the obligatory colored spikes in their hair? I mean, geez. The funniest is when you see a band like Jawbreaker on the vests. You just get the feeling that it's covering up an H20 patch which is covering up a Saves the Day patch which is covering up a Korn patch.

Then, there was Paint It Black's Dan Yemin. I want to say first that I do have tremendous respect for Mr. Yemin. After all, a Kid Dynamite song did give this site its name! His rhetoric at the show last Friday is what had me feeling a little jaded and left me with a "REEEEALLY?" look on my face. First, there was a strange anti-cop rant that even Dan backed down from. Following, later on, was this statement (I'm paraphrasing):

"And in case you haven't guessed from our songs, we are in total support of gay rights and reproductive freedom..."

YES, Reverend Yemin! Preach on! I'm with you!

"And anyone who does anything to get in the way of those things, I will knock you on your back. Just bring it on..."

WHOOOA!

Now, this is where he lost me. Liberals have adopted the hardline philosophy? Since when!? What happened to the whole "peace punk" thing? Well, simply enough, I guess Paint It Black are an old school style hardcore punk band. I will say that their set absolutely smoked at the F-Yeah Fest. Still, what's with a statement like that? Was it just overzealous? Or was it deliberately militant?

Either way, I didn't like it. Yes, call me a wuss if you must.

Finally, Circle Jerks frontman Keith Morris said something that got under my skin a little bit. He spoke about the good times CJ's had on the Vans Warped Tour, mentioning the friends that they'd made and, specifically, the friends they hadn't made. He singled out Fall Out Boy and the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. Now, Fall Out Boy bashing is the hip thing for the kids to do these days, but why target the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus? For a hit crossover pop punk song that tackled the subject of domestic violence on mainstream radio? Shouldn't they be given a "pass" for trying to do something positive with their great exposure? Maybe I'm still bitter at Keith for all the slags at Green Day years ago, despite the fact that Circle Jerks' Group Sex is a personal favorite of mine.

I'll close with one of the many positive things I heard at the F-Yeah Fest (among the sparse negatives I've mentioned and whined about above). Keith Morris urged the current crop of punk and hardcore fans to treat each other with respect - in fact, to not hit each other and act stupid for practically no reason. In effect to not "make the same mistakes we [the original hardcore scene kids] made." Bravo for that. Was Dan Yemin listening?

Seriously, Dan, we kid. Sorta. I mean, we've got a ton of respect, you know? Don't look at me like that, Paint It Black fans! The tunes are amazing, and Dan's a very respectable fellow. No knocking me on my back, okay?

Totally with you on the human rights thing, by the way.