Analytical Blog #3

In Our Band Could Be Your Life by Michael Azerrad, there is a recurring theme of sobriety. Some bands throughout the book have not remained sober, and in some cases the abuse of alcohol, drugs, and other substances was a major factor as to why a band broke up. On the other hand, I think that many bands either succeeded or strived to remain sober and live without unnecessary distractions, as well as encourage their fans to do the same. I keep reading about the term “straight edge”. Sadly the whole concept of being straight edge at the time was considered to be “uncool” or what have you but I think one of the best parts of the indie scene is being cool was so unimportant that it was in a way, a goal to not fit in. Being a member of a band is like being a teammate on a sports team. One person could potentially bring down the entire team if there become an issue regarding lack of effort when the rest of the team is working as hard as they can reach their shared goal.

In Our Band Could Be Your Life by Michael Azerrad, there is a recurring theme of sobriety. Some bands throughout the book have not remained sober, and in some cases the abuse of alcohol, drugs, and other substances was a major factor as to why a band broke up. On the other hand, I think that many bands either succeeded or strived to remain sober and live without unnecessary distractions, as well as encourage their fans to do the same. I keep reading about the term “straight edge”. Sadly the whole concept of being straight edge at the time was considered to be “uncool” or what have you but I think one of the best parts of the indie scene is being cool was so unimportant that it was in a way, a goal to not fit in. Being a member of a band is like being a teammate on a sports team. One person could potentially bring down the entire team if there become an issue regarding lack of effort when the rest of the team is working as hard as they can reach their shared goal.

picture link

In general the bands that remained sober were a lot more influential to me personally. The stayed true to their vision and were consistent in advocating for those who didn’t have the desire to completely numb themselves to their surroundings. They stood for something real. Something unaltered and true. That is the kind of music and the kind of role models that I am happy exist. There is a lot of pressure to abuse drugs and alcohol today, probably more than there was back then. But when I, and many others, listen to “straight edge” punk music, all of that pressure feels insignificant. Listening to music from the underground indie scene in the Eighties and Nineties makes me feel like not conforming to what a majority of my social surroundings perceive as “cool”, makes me a better person and makes me proud of giving myself the opportunity to take in as many experiences as life has to offer, that others may be closed off to due to the lack of sobriety.

Screaming for a Change by Uniform Choice