Soundscape #36: "What Are You Rebelling Against?"... "Whatever You've Got"

The other night I watched American Hardcore with a bunch of friends. It's a documentary about the american hardcore punk scene in the late 70s. What really struck me is not the riots and the violence that ensued during some of the gigs or the strong community that surrounded these badass pioneers of the punk scene. Instead, it was their conviction—some of them as young as 14-15—that the mainstream music at that time was not for them and they felt this need to rebel against the status quo of their times. And they gave it their all too. They embody the very first indie spirit if you think about it: making their own records, flyers, organising gigs and as Ian Mackaye (Minor Threat, Fugazi) said, sitting there and literally cutting, folding and gluing thousands of cd sleeves.

But if you think about it, youth is like that regardless of place or time; there is a single-mindedness that you have to admire. It made me think about what I was doing when I was 14-15... probably nothing much. My parents put me in a good school and I was expected to do well, go to university, find a good job, get married, have kids, grow old and die. These are the very same things that the hardcore punks of the 70s were rebelling against. Some things just never change.

For a while, I thought that was what I wanted too. I mean, it's so easy! I wanted a good cushy job that doesn't demand much, you know? Go to work, gossip a little with your colleagues, do a bit of work, email, have lunch and about 4pm, your boy/girlfriend calls and asks if you want to have dinner, you have dinner with said bf/gf, go home to watch some crap korean drama that you just can't miss, sleep, wake up, repeat.

But I can't. And I don't know why. Maybe I'm not wired that way. I did try that for a while (not the korean dramas though, please) and I can feel my mind slowly rotting away; I literally felt stupid. People ask me why? what the hell is your problem? And I don't know what to say. Thing is, I don't know what I want; I only know what I don't want. But that's another topic for a soundscapes episode altogether.



Playlist:
1. (0:00) Ted Leo And The Pharmacists - The Sons Of Cain (Living With The Living)
2. (3:59) Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit (Smells Like Teen Spirit)
3. (8:58) Nada Surf - Popular (High/Low)
4. (12:48) Jimmy Eat World - If You Don't, Don't (Bleed American)
5. (17:21) The Hold Steady - Your Little Hoodrat Friend (Separation Sunday)
6. (21:14) The Go! Team - The Power Is On (Thunder, Lightning, Strike)
7. (24:31) Green Day - F.O.D. (Dookie)
8. (27:22) The Thermals - How We Know (Fuckin A)
9. (30:42) Longwave - We're Not Gonna Crack (There's A Fire)
10. (33:12) And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of The Dead - Mistakes And Regrets (Madonna)
11. (37:05) Finch - What It Is To Burn (What It Is To Burn)