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Ian MacKaye’s article on DC skateboarding for Thrasher magazine, 1983
04.04.2018
09:04 am
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All photos by Glen E. Friedman
 
A few months ago, I told you about the Cedar Crest Country Club and the importance it played within DC’s skate punk scene. The political climate of the capital in the early eighties inspired a revolution significant of the times, one that would continue to influence underground culture up until present day. And we have Ian Mackaye to thank for much of it.

The origins of skateboarding are rooted in Southern California surf, but many can say its attitude came from DC punk. Bands like Government Issue, Bad Brains, SOA, and of course Minor Threat, brought a much needed edge to the sport, substituting the sunny beaches with grit and concrete. The only issue was, in DC there was nowhere to skate. So, the punks had to improvise. Later in 1986, the ramp at Cedar Crest Country Club opened, a steel halfpipe oasis just an hour outside the city.

In October 1983, Ian MacKaye, founder of Dischord Records and frontman of Minor Threat, Fugazi, Embrace, and Teen Idles, penned a “scene report” for skateboarding magazine, Thrasher. The article, set to describe the skate vibe of the nation’s capital, characterizes Ian not as a hardcore punk legend, but rather as a DC kid who lives to skateboard. The young MacKaye was a member of ragtag boarding crew Team Sahara, along with another punk forefather, Henry Garfield (now known as “Henry Rollins”). Ian’s piece is a nice little snapshot of the spirit of skate culture during the era; his feature goes on to describe the team’s favorite ramps, a legendary wipeout by Rollins, their first empty pool, and an infamous team session at the Annandale halfpipe. Also in the issue is a photo spread of vertical sequences, a story on a Swedish skate camp, competitions in Del Mar and Oceanside, and a music piece on a punk band called The Faction.

Read Ian MacKaye’s article in Thrasher magazine, along with a complete transcript below:
 

 
Much more after the jump…

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Posted by Bennett Kogon
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04.04.2018
09:04 am
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A whole bunch of Dischord albums are now available on Bandcamp
07.26.2016
03:13 pm
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The Washington, D.C., record label Dischord, co-owned by Jeff Nelson and Fugazi’s Ian MacKaye, is routinely held up as the shining example of an independent record company that maintains its integrity in the face of unrelenting corporate pressures.

It seems that Dischord is still seeking to forge its own path—rather than sign contracts with Spotify, it has recently made a relationship with Bandcamp, a website popular among D.I.Y. musicians that makes self-distribution of music much easier. A healthy chunk of the Dischord catalog has just surfaced on Bandcamp.com, which means the fans of Government Issue, Void, Rites of Spring, Dag Nasty, and Nation of Ulysses can now stream their albums without paying Spotify for the privilege.
 

 
Furthermore, it’s easy to purchase digital copies of many Dischord albums at a pretty reasonable price (usually $8). I’ve seen it said that “every” Dischord album is now on Bandcamp, but I couldn’t find any albums by Jawbox or Lungfish or Shudder to Think or the Make-Up. In any case it’s a lot of albums, more than 100 albums for sure.

More after the jump…

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Posted by Martin Schneider
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07.26.2016
03:13 pm
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Listen to Fugazi’s 11 original demo tracks, four days ahead of time
11.14.2014
04:08 pm
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This is the handbill for Fugazi’s first-ever show, at the Wilson Center, on 15th Street and Irving. “5 Dollars to Benefit Positive Force Compilation Records”—do you think they knew then how sick they’d get of hearing the phrase “five dollar show”?
 
The demos that the legendary DC punks Fugazi cut at Inner Ear Studio in January 1988 have led a fan-friendly, DIY existence as a tape distributed for free at shows, but with the exception of a single song, “In Defense of Humans,” which appeared on the State of the Union comp in 1989, they’ve never seen an official release. Inner Ear Studios got a bit of extra exposure last month when the D.C. episode of Sonic Highways came on HBO. Dave Grohl visited Don Zientara, owner of Inner Ear Studio, as well as Ian Mackaye of Fugazi and Dr. Know and Darryl Jenifer of Bad Brains.
 

 
That all changes on November 18, when Discord releases First Demo, but you can listen to them right this minute on Dischord’s Grooveshark account. (Actually, “Turn Off Your Guns” wasn’t included on the original cassette, but the rest of them all were.)
 

Posted by Martin Schneider
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11.14.2014
04:08 pm
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