I purchased the “You Weren’t There” film’s tee shirt and received it yesterday. What a disappointment! I was very surprised by the poor quality of the product, especially at the very steep price of $22.00– it’s a total burn! Compare the difference between the graphics shown on the website and what the graphics actually look like:

Shown on website

Actual appearance of product

As you can see, the graphics are very muddy and indistinct looking compared to what’s shown on the website. It’s a HUGE DISAPPOINTMENT. The only reason I purchased it was because one of my photographs was used in it and I wanted to get a look at it, but… the image is so muddied up that it is unrecognizable. I suppose that’s a good thing since I wouldn’t want to be associated with a product of such poor quality. Honestly…  I think this shirt is just outright ugly… it’s truly a huge disappointment…

I also find the assertion on the website that one can “Support The Scene” by purchasing this teeshirt to be very disingenuous. How exactly is the scene being supported with the purchase of this shirt? And which scene? The scene depicted on the shirt no longer exists, and correct me if I’m wrong, but I have not heard of the proceeds coming in to benefit any aspect of the current scene. I think that’s a very misleading statement…

Save your money folks, unless of course, you want to spent $22 on a poor quality product.

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Kris was one of the scenesters at La Mere, which was the first Chicago punk club. She used to go by the name of TigerLady.

Q.) How did you get into punk rock? What were you into before?

A.) I was never big into music, but I went from listening to Carol King and Joni Mitchell to buying a Patti Smith album because of a review in Rolling Stone. The first listen, I didn’t get it, but by the third I was hooked!

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The Sun Rises

I’ll never fully recover
I’ll never really completely get her
out of my system
We spent years together
raging against the reality
of the world.
We created our own world,
a false and sometimes
magnificent world
that was all our
own.

But it all came crashing down
when we came to the realization
that our peace
was really just an imitation
of the real
thing.
Our love
was just an imitation
of the real
thing.

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(The following is written by my friend’s 12 year old daughter for a school project on Black History Month)

written by RebeccaB

We ignore
What we do see
The violence, the hate
The atrocities
Ku Klux Klan
They must have the right plan
Look at their cross
The way they act the boss
Showing no fear
Causing their tears

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Written by RobV.

I had this crazy dream that I was in a neighborhood bar in the Southeast Side where I grew up. The Sox game was on. I stood on a stool and started yelling to all the townies that Hegewisch sucks. I had been drinking pitchers of Miller Lite (TASTES GREAT, LESS FILLING!) I scolded them that it was their fault for complacency. That there’s a life beyond the borders of the block you live on and to stop flying your American flags thinking that you are free. Freedom is an abstract idea that can be easily made into a myth and that they were slaves, clutching to this myth.

I noticed that the Catholic grade school that I had attended in my youth was across the street. There was a nun in the bar passing out prayer cards to all the drunks. I stood behind her back, damning her and an institution such as the Roman Catholic church, for keeping these poor hardworking people in the belief that God was there for them.

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Interview by Marie Kanger-Born

I Attack is one of my favorite bands in the Chicago scene. They were playing the night I saw my first show in this current scene and their music made me get back in the scene– blame them! When playing, they demonstrate a similar kind of passion and intensity that Articles of Faith used to have. As I continually mention, AoF was my favorite band in the old days. Of course, I’m not saying that they sound anything like AoF, I’m comparing levels of passion and intensity. I Attack has a mid-to-fast-tempo skate punk sound, they are very good.

Although not overtly political like AoF, I Attack does take a stand in their music against the dehumanization process of American culture. Have a look at the lyrics to their title song, and compare the sentiments to those expressed in “Buried Alive” or “Everyday.” And how about that part about “trying?” That’s the part that reeled me in– I like to hear about trying…

I have witnessed this band reach levels of intensity that I haven’t seen since AoF. I saw I Attack play the People’s Project show on Dec 29 and although I didn’t have my camera– I will never forget that picture. They were on fire! Their performance that night was almost transcendent! It’s great to see bands that have that capacity, it was a stand out moment in time…

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Interview by Marie Kanger-Born

This is part one of an interview series that addresses women involved in the Chicago punk scene of both the past and the present.

This first interview features Mary Alice Ramel, who played an influential role in the first generation Chi punk scene. Mary Alice published the first Chicago fanzine, which sometimes featured a soap opera story that mirrored her own adventures in the scene, of course, using psuedo-names. Mary Alice was also the inspiration for the character of Riff Randall in the movie, “Rock n Roll High School” and featured a clip of Riff reading the GGG.

I would like to note that Mary Alice is my own personal hero because I have so much regard and admiration for the many creative ideas that she came up with in the early scene. Mary Alice currently is kept very busy with work and an active family life, but remembers her time in the scene with great fondness.

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Written by Rik Villanueva

I write to keep my sanity. . .what do you do?

“Remote”

We are the illiterate
A populace sans Illuminati
The feeling blind
Forgoing emotion for the bumps and ridges
that line the streets as we wander together alone

Blocked
That second monkey hiding his eyes
from the horrors between the spots
In a muted state that exists in this world
the cries of the downtrodden echo

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Interview by Marie Kanger-Born

It’s no secret that Articles of Faith was my favorite band back in the 1980’s. I have more photos of them than any of the other old bands. In particular Vic was my favorite photographic subject because no other vocalist I knew could match his passion and intensity. Over the years Vic has been involved in other bands such as Jones Very, Alloy and his most recent effort– Report Suspicious Activity.

I started thinking about AoF again recently because a discussion about them came up on the CPP messageboard. A few issues were articulated that I became curious about so I decided to write to Vic and seek clarification, which he graciously agreed to do via an email interview:

Dave, Bill, Vic and Joe- Articles of Faith, circa 1981

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