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Why Be Something That You're Not: Detroit Hardcore 1979-1985
In the early 70s, Detroit was the musical hub of America, but by the early eighties, it was a wasteland. It took a group of skateboarders, a teacher and a census clerk to wake the city up and start one of the first hardcore punk scenes in America.
"Why Be Something That You're Not" chronicles the first wave of Detroit hardcore from its origins in the late 70s to its demise in the mid-80s. Through oral histories and extensive imagery, the book proves that even though the California beach towns might have created the look and style of hardcore punk, it was the Detroit scene - along with a handful of other cities - that cultivated the music's grassroots aesthetic before most cultural hot spots around the globe even knew what the music was about.
The book includes interviews with members of The Fix, Violent Apathy, Negative Approach, Necros, Pagans, Bored Youth, and L-Seven along with other people who had a hand in the early hardcore scene like Ian MacKaye, Tesco Vee and Dave Stimson.
"Why Be Something That You're Not" chronicles the first wave of Detroit hardcore from its origins in the late 70s to its demise in the mid-80s. Through oral histories and extensive imagery, the book proves that even though the California beach towns might have created the look and style of hardcore punk, it was the Detroit scene - along with a handful of other cities - that cultivated the music's grassroots aesthetic before most cultural hot spots around the globe even knew what the music was about.
The book includes interviews with members of The Fix, Violent Apathy, Negative Approach, Necros, Pagans, Bored Youth, and L-Seven along with other people who had a hand in the early hardcore scene like Ian MacKaye, Tesco Vee and Dave Stimson.
239 pages, Paperback
First published July 6, 2010
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About the author
Tony Rettman
3 books23 followersTony Rettman is a freelance music journalist whose work has appeared in The Village Voice, Vice, The Wire, Philadelphia Weekly, Cleveland Scene, Arthur, Swindle, Signal to Noise, Mean, and Thrasher. At age 14 in the 1980s, he was the editor of Common Sense zine. He has provided liner notes for such artists as Hackamore Brick, Bored Youth, Beyond and many more. He is a contributing editor to DoubleCrossXX.com.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
March 14, 2013
Why Be Something That You're Not? is an intriguing look at the local Hardcore Punk scene in Detroit, Michigan, during the late 1970s to the mid 1980s.
Tony Rettman, with the help of notorious Detroit scene gadflies like John Brannon, Corey Rusk and Tesco Vee tell the short but very interesting story of Detroit Hardcore, from its strange roots as a bunch of suburban kids driving to the dregs of Downtown Detroit at the time, Cass Corridor, where the legendary "Detroit Freezer" venue was located to the modest beginnings of Touch-and-Go Records, Rusk's independent label venture that began as a local Michigan 'zine on the then-nascent scene.
You'll read crazy stories about John Brannon's intense life living above the Detroit Freezer, as well as tales of walking to the run-down Burger King restaurant nearby to get the local special, a "Burger Thang", Corey Rusk videotaping the Freezer shows and airing them on White Lake Public Access TV, and stories of some of the more notable final hardcore shows that played in Detroit.
For example, did you know the Danzig-era Misfits and Black Flag both had their final shows in Detroit? Both did not go well, of course, but it roots the importance of the Detroit scene to the Midwest area of the Hardcore Punk scene, one that isn't touched upon as much in the essential American Hardcore.
But not only limited to the national bands, there's plenty of juicy material about the local Hardcore groups, such as The Necros, The Meatmen, Negative Approach, and others. For fans of American Hardcore, Why Be Something That You're Not makes for an excellent addendum covering a scene that is merely glossed over in that oral history.
At the end of the book, there's a great piece of history as well, in a list of every single Hardcore Punk show in Detroit from 1979-1985, with full bills of every band that played, and the venue they played at. For someone like myself who is always interested in Detroit music history, the end portion was a very neat look at how popular the scene was for a brief period of time.
The book is a relatively short read, as the text is large and if you're dedicated enough, you'll blow through it in a few days if you have the time. My only complaint is that it's not as long of a read as it could be, but that's not to knock it at all, it's still a highly recommended read, especially for those who are fans of Hardcore Punk from the 80s, or especially of local Detroit Hardcore.
Tony Rettman, with the help of notorious Detroit scene gadflies like John Brannon, Corey Rusk and Tesco Vee tell the short but very interesting story of Detroit Hardcore, from its strange roots as a bunch of suburban kids driving to the dregs of Downtown Detroit at the time, Cass Corridor, where the legendary "Detroit Freezer" venue was located to the modest beginnings of Touch-and-Go Records, Rusk's independent label venture that began as a local Michigan 'zine on the then-nascent scene.
You'll read crazy stories about John Brannon's intense life living above the Detroit Freezer, as well as tales of walking to the run-down Burger King restaurant nearby to get the local special, a "Burger Thang", Corey Rusk videotaping the Freezer shows and airing them on White Lake Public Access TV, and stories of some of the more notable final hardcore shows that played in Detroit.
For example, did you know the Danzig-era Misfits and Black Flag both had their final shows in Detroit? Both did not go well, of course, but it roots the importance of the Detroit scene to the Midwest area of the Hardcore Punk scene, one that isn't touched upon as much in the essential American Hardcore.
But not only limited to the national bands, there's plenty of juicy material about the local Hardcore groups, such as The Necros, The Meatmen, Negative Approach, and others. For fans of American Hardcore, Why Be Something That You're Not makes for an excellent addendum covering a scene that is merely glossed over in that oral history.
At the end of the book, there's a great piece of history as well, in a list of every single Hardcore Punk show in Detroit from 1979-1985, with full bills of every band that played, and the venue they played at. For someone like myself who is always interested in Detroit music history, the end portion was a very neat look at how popular the scene was for a brief period of time.
The book is a relatively short read, as the text is large and if you're dedicated enough, you'll blow through it in a few days if you have the time. My only complaint is that it's not as long of a read as it could be, but that's not to knock it at all, it's still a highly recommended read, especially for those who are fans of Hardcore Punk from the 80s, or especially of local Detroit Hardcore.
February 28, 2011
A nice document of a scene neglected by legend. I could've done with more oral history and less poorly-written narrative. This book helps backup the banality of punk, especially when read after Please Kill Me. Most of these dudes come off as vacuous characters who work really hard at standing for nothing. There are some positive takeaways, though. Seeing the importance of the Touch and Go zine was cool. The young-versus-old dynamic was interesting, too. Punks project nonconformist values, but the young kids write off the older punks as soon as they start to deviate from the dominant sound.
January 3, 2020
A fun and easy read mostly made of of quoted recolletions from scenesters, flyer reprints, etc. It seems to end up in about the very month I began my own humble sojourn into the Detroit punk and hardcore scene, so it sets context to my own memories.
December 8, 2014
useful, if a bit brief, of early detroit US hardcore. negative approach and the fix content should be more than enough reason to check this one out
February 21, 2022
Definitiv das schwächste Buch von den drei Büchern von Rettman über die Szene aber dennoch lesenswert für Menschen, die sich für Hardcore abseits der großen Namen interessieren.
September 2, 2010
This book is the story of the rise and demise (or evolution) of a music scene in Michigan (and surrounding areas), focusing primarily on acts such as The Fix, The Necros, Negative Approach, and the Meatmen.
The book is poorly edited and given to hyperbole. Each short chapter contains numerous pull-quotes from the era's musicians and scenesters, which does give it a certain appeal as a local history of narrow scope, but in many ways it feels self-congratulatory and unnecessary. The book tries to make a big deal out of how big and important the Midwest/Detroit hardcore scene was, but Black Flag (L.A.), Minor Threat (D.C.) and the Misfits (N.Y.) get mentioned frequently.
The only person who comes off not sounding like a complete idiot is Corey Rusk, who ended up running (and still runs, so far as I know) the Touch and Go record label.
One item I wish had been touched on in more depth was the influence of the neo-Nazi skinhead scene. The book mentions Nadsat Rage as one of the bands that attracted the skinheads, and I recall there was a local band more in my era called Nadsat Nation that had the same reputation. I always thought that the Detroit area was an unlikely place for white supremacist activity, but there they were. The only explanation offered in the book is that U.K. Oi! music influenced the non-thinking members of the hardcore scene, and that some of the venues were deep in Cass Corridor--they felt alienated in their suburban homes, but were then harassed by the locals when they visited the space that was their refuge.
While it was entertaining to read about about the shows that took place in my own hometown when I was in elementary school at places like Hobies (a sandwich shop) or at the Halfway Inn in East Quad, or selling 7" records packed with 30-second songs at FBC and Schoolkids, this book can be safely skipped by all but the most ardent fans of punk & hardcore.
The book is poorly edited and given to hyperbole. Each short chapter contains numerous pull-quotes from the era's musicians and scenesters, which does give it a certain appeal as a local history of narrow scope, but in many ways it feels self-congratulatory and unnecessary. The book tries to make a big deal out of how big and important the Midwest/Detroit hardcore scene was, but Black Flag (L.A.), Minor Threat (D.C.) and the Misfits (N.Y.) get mentioned frequently.
The only person who comes off not sounding like a complete idiot is Corey Rusk, who ended up running (and still runs, so far as I know) the Touch and Go record label.
One item I wish had been touched on in more depth was the influence of the neo-Nazi skinhead scene. The book mentions Nadsat Rage as one of the bands that attracted the skinheads, and I recall there was a local band more in my era called Nadsat Nation that had the same reputation. I always thought that the Detroit area was an unlikely place for white supremacist activity, but there they were. The only explanation offered in the book is that U.K. Oi! music influenced the non-thinking members of the hardcore scene, and that some of the venues were deep in Cass Corridor--they felt alienated in their suburban homes, but were then harassed by the locals when they visited the space that was their refuge.
While it was entertaining to read about about the shows that took place in my own hometown when I was in elementary school at places like Hobies (a sandwich shop) or at the Halfway Inn in East Quad, or selling 7" records packed with 30-second songs at FBC and Schoolkids, this book can be safely skipped by all but the most ardent fans of punk & hardcore.
January 27, 2016
A great oral history of an under-reported part of hardcore punk history. Most books focus on the west coast, especially socal, and the influence Black Flag and the Circle Jerks played, or race across flyover country to DC and the Minor Threat/Bad Brains axis. But as Clinton Heylin pointed out in "From the Velvets to the Voidoids" many years ago, many of the best ideas in music start in the Midwest and filter outward, not the other way around. Detroit's hardcore bands, much like Chicago's and Cleveland's, grew out of boredom and desperation, and were at their best when they didn't yet have access to the orthodoxy created in other parts of the country. If you see the documentary "You Weren't There," about Chicago's early punk movement, we find that many of the best early groups traveled in more of a prankster stooge-rock terrain, adding a goofiness to the provocation. Other times, artiness prevailed amidst the squalor. Like the divide between Tutu & The Pirates and Silver Abuse in Chicago, there was the gulf of intent between ferocious noisemakers The Fix and the wild shenanigans of Detroiters-by-adoption the Necros. There was not just one way to punk, and once orthodoxy set in, things inevitably fall apart.
In 160 pages of history, Rettman takes us through the legendary venues, inevitably down-on-their luck dives willing to let the punks invade for a night or two per week -- and the people that knocked down drywall and made their own places. The text is heavy on first-hand reminiscence, with Rettman commenting just enough to keep topics on point. The real star is the copious live photos, record scans, show fliers, and other southeast Michigan ephemera. Regardless of whether you're reading the story again and again, hardcore devotees will pages through the second half of the book dozens of times, running their fingers over all the preciouses, all the artifacts of a short, explosive period in punk history.
In 160 pages of history, Rettman takes us through the legendary venues, inevitably down-on-their luck dives willing to let the punks invade for a night or two per week -- and the people that knocked down drywall and made their own places. The text is heavy on first-hand reminiscence, with Rettman commenting just enough to keep topics on point. The real star is the copious live photos, record scans, show fliers, and other southeast Michigan ephemera. Regardless of whether you're reading the story again and again, hardcore devotees will pages through the second half of the book dozens of times, running their fingers over all the preciouses, all the artifacts of a short, explosive period in punk history.
June 14, 2012
I thought this book was pretty interesting and informative. It appeals to me on a couple different levels. One being that I am from Michigan and it is sweet hearing about all these locations that I know and what they were like back in the early 80's and another being that I love hardcore music and music history in general. The book is pretty much all interviews with members of the local hardcore scene in the early 80s with the author narrating the direction of the book here and there. The book mainly focuses on The Necros, Negative Approach, The Fix and a few others. There were many other bands involved, but these were the main focus. The book should have been titled "Michigan Hardcore" instead of Detroit, because it talks of Lansing just as much as Detroit and even goes into Ohio a bit. Overall it is a good read that tells you what the scene was about and how it kind of came undone. Good stuff.
August 30, 2015
This book starts out in a confusing whirlwind, where names and quotes are thrown at you without any kind of cohesion. A little bit better of an intro would be great.
Having said that, the book does come together and make more sense once you are used to the band members and their names as their quotes are used throughout the book. The pictures, flyers, and zine cutouts are super interesting and add to the narrative in a big way. You find out how impassioned and split the scene was - from the skinheads to the earlier punk crowd, to the recognition of LA and DC hardcore at the same time.
This is a short book, and shouldn't take long to blast through. It is such a narrow part of music history, but I'm glad it was collected - especially have grown up in the area, and seeing the spots where the clubhouse and the freezer used to be. I'd recommend this book to any fan of the Necros, the Fix, or Negative Approach, or anyone interested in Detroit's role in the national hardcore scene.
Having said that, the book does come together and make more sense once you are used to the band members and their names as their quotes are used throughout the book. The pictures, flyers, and zine cutouts are super interesting and add to the narrative in a big way. You find out how impassioned and split the scene was - from the skinheads to the earlier punk crowd, to the recognition of LA and DC hardcore at the same time.
This is a short book, and shouldn't take long to blast through. It is such a narrow part of music history, but I'm glad it was collected - especially have grown up in the area, and seeing the spots where the clubhouse and the freezer used to be. I'd recommend this book to any fan of the Necros, the Fix, or Negative Approach, or anyone interested in Detroit's role in the national hardcore scene.
January 31, 2012
This is an oral history of an overlooked scene that's particularly interesting to me, because I live in Michigan and also because of what Touch and Go Records grew into from such DIY beginnings.
It's not as engaging as, say, "Our Band Could be Your Life" or "Please Kill Me," but it does the job. Amazing extras include press clippings about gangs of wild slam dancers from the Detroit Free Press, an extensive gallery of gig posters, and an attempt at an exhaustive show/gig/disc/venue-ography.
It's not as engaging as, say, "Our Band Could be Your Life" or "Please Kill Me," but it does the job. Amazing extras include press clippings about gangs of wild slam dancers from the Detroit Free Press, an extensive gallery of gig posters, and an attempt at an exhaustive show/gig/disc/venue-ography.
September 12, 2016
A surprisingly quick read, this book connects the dots between the Michigan bands and DC and LA, which is a lot of fun, but loses sight of some bands (where was The State?), and maintains a somewhat narrow focus. Still, the number of flyers and photographs in the book, make it a real artifact, which made it all the more fun to read because it really gave a sense of the DIY ethic of the time.
April 24, 2013
Amazing. An easy reading that go in-depth to what really happening to the obscure scene such as Detroit. People keep talking about california or DC scene, but hell yeah, bands like Negative Approach, and Necros or zine like Touch And Go really need a big credit of their great hardcore scene.
August 12, 2016
It's a sausage fest! Wish I wasn't a baby when all this went down.
January 25, 2017
Appreciated the Bill Danforth anecdotes. I never knew the extent of his involvement with the early Detroit HC scene.
December 29, 2017
Easy read, breezy oral history. And a history not so sprawling that it's impossible to lose the thread.
April 15, 2018
Fun collection of oral histories of Detroit's hardcore punk scene. Not super useful, but there are some great interviews and photos.
August 2, 2019
yes, the midwest had a hardcore scene too
March 9, 2020
An interesting and fast read of a small but tough scene, that eventually turned out to be really influential in the following strands within Hardcore Punk.
October 1, 2020
Well researched and written history of that time and place. Excellent!
December 27, 2020
Great oral history of a vastly underrated scene
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews