Hardcore issues

Whenever I see Fugazi play I just want to give up,” is how Cormac Battle of Wilt describes the colossal shockblast of energy at a live show from unquestionably the most influential quartet from Washington DC in modern times. Sounds and projects inspired by Fugazi are all around you; The Redneck Manifesto, The Hope Promotions Cookbook, the Aspersion Music Collective in Limerick and countless hardcore bands in every city in the world.

Fugazi wrote the script for how an independently orientated individual or group should operate on both an artistic and political level. They always insist on keeping admission prices and records at a low price. “With most of the rock industry the money involved is so inflated, basically, just out of sheer greed,” opines Ian MacKaye. “Everybody wants a bigger piece of pie so you have to have make a bigger pie to accomodate that and so you raise ticket prices. We actually come in with a limited pie and say it can only be this much and from there we work on percentages. That forces everybody to go in the opposite direction and they have to lower all their costs to make it work. It’s a completely different approach and theory to booking and it’s clearly successful because we’ve been doing it for so long.”

This isn’t just another alt-rock sermon, Fugazi genuienly practice what they preach. The book Document: A Story of Hope penned by Niall McGuirk includes an account of a benefit in the SFX featuring Fugazi, Chumbawumba and In Motion all for the grand total of €4.50. In the Ticketmaster age, admission to see an international act averages at around €25-30. Tickets for the Fugazi Irish tour dates this weekend are all around €12. The book also contains contributions from 120 people who gigged for Dublin’s Hope Promotions collective, and includes details of the artists’ favourite vegan recipes. Ian MacKaye also set up Dischord Records in 1980 which still is operational today. The 1980-2000 box set retails at €29.99 in an era when most other collections would be in excess of €50. “By documenting it (the Washington scene) you perpetuate it,” says Ian. “It builds up its own momentum. Had we not released these records it could be argued that Fugazi and all these other bands could never have occured.

“It was clear to us to mark the first 20 years with one song from every band,” MacKaye explains. “The sheer amount of music that has been generated from the underground in the last 25 years has been phenomenal. The music that has come out of Washington alone has been incredible in its scope. People have this idea of a Dischord sound but I’ve no idea what the hell that is!”

Another notable fact about how Fugazi conduct themselves is their insistence on no crowd surfing at their gigs. It’s a stance that Ian is very passionate about. “If you and I went to dinner and we were in the restaurant and somebody on the next table starts punching you, I’ll want to try and stop him,” he reflects. “I’m a human being and I feel responsibility to stop other human beings from damaging themselves. If I’m playing a show and I see people punching each other in the room, I’m going to try and stop them. Over the years with this band, there have been a number of incidents that resulted in people being paralysed. Paralysed! Because they came to see us! They weren’t the ones jumping off the stage, my friend. They were the ones getting jumped on.

“I don’t know who your favourite band is but I cannot imagine you’d trade your mobility to see them,” McKaye continues. “It’s just insane and it is not acceptable. It’s not like we are trying to control the audience. We’re not. We are trying to speak out against inconsiderateness and thoughtlessness and irresponsibility. The things that are basically the same tenets of much of what is wrong with this world albeit to a far greater degree.

“I think that violence is never OK,” Ian elaborates. “It may be necessary at times, but it’s never OK. My suspicion is that the people who are extremely excited about getting the military involved at this moment in time are also the same people making the bombs and so forth, so they’re getting loaded up and making a lot of dough off this thing. Personally, I think it’s disgusting and completely wrong. I cannot belive that more people are not vocally anti-war. Particulary at a moment when its seems like such an obviously hopeless campaign. War against terrorism? Please! ”