Politics as Sound: The Washington, DC, Hardcore Scene, 1978-1983

Hardcore punk in Washington, DC, emerged as an uncompromising and innovative sound, nurturing a vibrant subculture among the city's youth. Led by bands like Bad Brains and Minor Threat, the music was angry, loud, and fast, reflecting the sociopolitical realities of DC. The genre's aesthetics merged with how bands performed, creating distinctive representations of race, class, and gender that were both explicit and complicated.

\n Format: Paperback / softback
\n Length: 280 pages
\n Publication date: 19 October 2021
\n Publisher: University of Illinois Press
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Uncompromising and innovative, hardcore punk emerged in Washington, DC, creating a new sound and nurturing a vibrant subculture that targeted a specific segment of the city's youth. In her exploration of the DC hardcore scene during its brief but storied peak, Shayna L. Maskell delves into the music's aesthetics and the unique impact of the city's sociopolitical realities on the sound and the scene that emerged.

Led by bands like Bad Brains and Minor Threat, hardcore in the nation's capital unleashed music that was as angry and loud as it was fast and minimalistic. Maskell examines the music's aesthetics, exploring how aspects of its structure merged with how bands performed it to convey distinctive representations of race, class, and gender. However, these representations were complex and contradictory, often explicit.

Politics as Sound is a captivating analysis of a punk rock hotbed that tells the story of how a generation created music that produced and resisted politics and power. It explores the ways in which music became a tool for political expression, resistance, and empowerment, as well as the challenges and complexities that emerged from this dynamic. Through interviews with musicians, activists, and cultural historians, Maskell provides a rich and nuanced account of the DC hardcore scene and its impact on the broader punk rock community.

The book also sheds light on the sociopolitical context of the 1980s, a time of economic inequality, social unrest, and the rise of Reaganomics. The hardcore punk scene in DC was a response to these conditions, with bands using their music to express their anger, frustration, and hopelessness. At the same time, the scene was also a space for community building and empowerment, with bands organizing shows and events that brought together people from different backgrounds and perspectives.

Politics as Sound is a valuable contribution to the study of music, politics, and culture, offering a fresh perspective on a period of cultural history that is often overlooked. It is a must-read for anyone interested in punk rock, social justice, and the power of music to shape society.

\n Weight: 460g\n
Dimension: 153 x 228 x 28 (mm)\n
ISBN-13: 9780252086229\n \n