The book is loaded with inspiring passages. It takes its title from "History Lesson (Part II)" by Minutemen, who have long been one of my favorite bands. Bassist Mike Watt explains the intended function of the song during the chapter Azerrad dedicates to Minutemen:
'Plenty of punks thought the Minutemen were mocking them and their scene (and sometimes they were). But as "History Lesson (Part II)" made clear, they were just three guys who had grown up together and were making music they thought was good. "I wrote that song to try to humanize us," says Watt. "People thought we were spacemen, but we were just Pedro corndogs--our band could be your life! You could be us, this could be you. We're not that much different from you cats."'
Coming from one of my favorite musicians, this is an intensely moving sentiment to read. It makes me want to sell all of my worldly possessions (except my guitar, of course) and buy a van.
Not all of the book is so enkindling, though. Black Flag, my favorite punk band, are depicted as impossibly hard-working. But they also come off as huge assholes, to each other and to the bands who released music through their SST label. Azerrad speculates that Big Black/Shellac frontman Steve Albini's race-baiting is more than mere mischief. J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr turns out to be a spoiled rich kid from Greenwich, CT. Sonic Youth are artsy-fartsy douchebags (no real surprise there). And Hüsker Dü sound startlingly naïve in some interviews.
As someone whose goals fall well within the purview of Our Band Could Be Your Life, I found myself comparing my own character to those of the musicians profiled in its pages. Like many of them, I consider myself an independent thinker with a critical ear and an understanding of rock history. I also have more drive and passion than I do raw ability--thus my attraction to punk rock in the first place.
But I'm also quite different from many of the book's subjects. Virtually all the bands profiled in Our Band Could Be Your Life were/are relentless networkers. I am not. Neither are my bandmates. We're all pretty introverted people who prefer quietly drinking and relaxing at shows to foisting ourselves upon better-known musicians. I am also not a deeply ideological person, unlike Watt or Ian MacKaye (Minor Threat/Fugazi). And unlike the vast bulk of the book's personalities, my alternatives are not limited to playing music or washing other people's dishes.
But ultimately, the message I take from Our Band Could Be Your Life is just what the title says. Though music history has made gods out of these musicians, they're all humans with as many flaws as strengths. Fame may be out of reach for me (fortunately), but a respected musical legacy is not.
No comments:
Post a Comment