September 20, 2006

Get the book HERE

© 2006 Team Goon / Big Wheel Media

Five years in the making, the movie American Hardcore has finally hit theatres nationwide and is the topic of music discussion among the new and old generation of punks alike.

We were invited to attend the premiere of American Hardcore last week at the Vista Theatre in Hollywood California. From the moment we walked up to the theatre we spotted many notable punk personalities. Just some of the people who were in attendance were Joe Sib of complete Control Radio and Side one Dummy Records, Tony Reflex/Cadena of The Adolescents, Fletcher of Pennywise, Jack Grisham and Greg Kuehn of TSOL, Keith Morris of Circle Jerks, Chuck Dukowski of Black Flag, and legendary photographer Edward Colver were just a few of the people who were in attendance. Watching the movie with 600 other like minded people was also a lot of fun. When certain people would appear on screen there would be large waves of applause and cheering. When the film ended the audience applauded, as if to signal their approval of a film that was supposed to depict their lives.

After a bit of chit chat out in front of the theatre everyone headed over to the wrap party for the film, which featured a live performance by the Circle Jerks. This was a pretty rad Hollywood Premiere if you ask us.

The Next day we attended a round table discussion at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills. This gave select members of the media a chance to ask Paul Rachman and Steven Blush a few questions about the making of the movie and their involvement in the early days of punk rock. Keith Morris and Jack Grisham were also there for Q&A as well.

We walked into the hotel lobby and managed to find out where were needed to be...all the way up on the 14^th floor. As we stood in the elevator, we couldn’t help but feel a little out of place standing along side men and women in finely tailored clothing, while we wore our regular attire; jeans, t-shirts, and skate shoes. We arrived on our floor and checked into the hospitality suite where we found a big spread of food that was described to us as “white trash fare”. We were really taken aback by the silver utensils, cloth napkins, not to mention the selection of hot dogs, mini hamburgers, and French fries presented in silver chafing trays. Needless to say that we were pleasantly surprised, yet puzzled with this atmosphere which contrasts punk rock so much.

The round table discussion was now about to get underway. As we waited for Rachman and Blush in the small hotel suite with about eight other members of various media outlets we realized that we would have the upper hand on background knowledge of punk rock. Rachman and Blush finally entered the room and began talking to the group; it was all very informal. Both men gave us a little background history of where they were from and how they had fallen into punk rock. Blush explained that at the time he was going to school to become a lawyer, but as one can imagine, punk rock would influence this decision. He also explained that punk has really shaped him into the person that he is today, a person who has strong DIY (Do It Yourself) ethic and generally distrusts authority.

One thing that Paul Rachman made a point of saying is how the word “Hardcore” and many other strong words such as “Anarchy” have become such soft marketable terms. He explained how his girlfriend bought a hair curling iron with a box that read “Hardcore Curling Iron”. He was shocked and amazed how such a term could be used to describe a inanimate object. The two men were signaled to tell them that time was running short and that we now had to move on to the next portion of the discussion. At this time half of the media that was there packed up and left to go to a press conference downstairs to interview a big Hollywood actor. We always thought that Jack Grisham and Keith more were more interesting to talk to…oh well…their loss.

As Jack and Keith entered the room the immediately recognized us saying “Hey, what are you guys doing here?” and “Team Goon is here!” Of course, we are really comfortable talking to these guys and had a fun time discussing the movie with them. Jack could feel the ultra rigid demeanor of the other people and cracked a joke about his mom then saying “Geez come on lighten up”...classic Jack. We talked a bit about the movie and what it has to offer and the consensus seemed to be “The film is what it is”, meaning that it has a lot of info, and even though some things were left out, this is what you have and there’s nothing you can do about it besides Do It Yourself. Keith said he really liked the movie and with a jovial smirk said “It ranks up with The Decline of Western Civilization…2”.

One thing that they did have to say about the West Coast scene that differed from much of this movie is that the scene was much more laid back in Southern California. There were no rigid rules and regulations or codes that had to be followed. To them, that would have been the antithesis of what punk was all about. Jack and Keith also explained that show lineups were not so rigid, that a bill could have Red Kross, DOA, Social Distortion and TSOL play together. All of which are great bands but all sound so different. One of the last things that Jack left us with was his belief that punk was supposed to be a party and be fun, but that a lot of the other hardcore bands from other parts of the country took it way too seriously.

The conference ended and we all said goodbye. Jack grumbled about the traffic and offered one of us $50 to ride home with him, assuming so that he could use the carpool lane. Too bad we weren’t going to Huntington Beach or else we would have pumped on the offer. One week later American Hardcore Premiered to the general public, but this time we went out to Irvine to see the film with a gang of friends who also happen to be members of Orange County bands Tippers Gore, Bad Antics and Critical Picnic. We all had a blast watching the movie and after it was done we lurked in front of the theatre and discussed the film, shows that are being put together, fanzines that we produce and a host of other things on our plates. No one went home, punk is not dead.

All materials displayed on the Team Goon website (including, but not limited to text, graphics, news articles, photographs, images, illustrations, audio clips and video clips, also known as the “content”) are protected by copyright, trademark or other applicable law. The users of this website agree to abide by all copyright and trademark notices, information, and restrictions contained in any content accessed through this website. Except as expressly permitted in writing, you may not modify, publish, transmit, participate in the transfer or sale of, reproduce, create derivative works based on, distribute, perform, display, or in any way exploit, any of the content or this website, in whole or in part.

Win some cool stuff .... Click Here