Hardcore Relics In Radio Silence

NOT ROCK
The easiest way to feel music is through sound and vibrations, but it’s hell of a lot cooler when we can see it, the art it births: chicken-scratched lyrics, patch-worked jackets, graffiti on who cares whose wall, or fans’ Sharpie tattoos of band’s logo. I introduce you to Radio Silence, a vigil to hardcore through image.

Hardcore has been around since the 1960s, but didn’t get much acknowledgement until the 70’s in New York City, at CBGB (Mecca). Hardcore was more than this raw- and to some offensive- sound, more than punk on speed, it was a culture of music that spoke its mind visually. The book, Radio Silence, brainchild of Nathan Nedorostek and Anthony Pappalardo, anthologizes and pays homage to the artistry.

Pappalardo believes books produced in the past told the tale of hardcore by focusing on sound, only skimming the artistic aspects. “The whole idea of Radio Silence is to show hardcore is not just a style of music, but an entire 360 culture.” Hardcore became a raging entity during a time when high-quality marketing schemes with fancy multilayered photos printed on t-shirts were only for the elite (yuppies included). Hardcore was low budget and homegrown, “A do it yourself mentality,” says Pappalardo.

The idea behind Radio Silence was to ground bands, primarily NYC based of the 70s- mid90s, without ego, without sensationalism. Radio Silence does an intricate job of creating a cohesive story through pictures, recreating the fibers that thread the scene: scribbled notes on loose-leaf paper, ragged clothes with safety-pined patches of Black Flag and Teen Idles, hand painted denim, mosh pits and crowd surfers, adrenaline rushed musicians, stickers, fliers, and the list goes on.

Radio Silence thoroughly unearths what it meant to be hardcore, recognizing the signs of the times had just as much significance as Beatlemania. The book has had such a powerful impact on those who where there in the thick of it, that it has inspired bands to reunite, one in particular, Amenity.

Like many pioneers of hardcore, Amenity was socially conscious and politically aware. Lead singer, Mike Down, says, “We were originators of this sound and we had no idea where it came from. We weren’t European punk, we were American hardcore.” Amenity wasn’t spiked bracelets and mohawks, they were whinos and Dickies.

Pappalardo says, “Their sound was overlooked because it was pretty progressive and not widely distributed. They weren’t represented for what they were.” There was a real unique look to their records, in the mid 80s they ushered in a new aesthetic, doing it by hand.

After a five-year run, Amenity parted ways. Down now spends half his time on the east coast and the rest in San Diego. There have been talks for years about reuniting Amenity, but Radio Silence was the proactive catalyst. Pappalardo never thought Radio Silence would actually reunite a band, especially Amenity because they had splintered off into different directions. When Down found out Radio Silence was hosting a release party in California he thought, “There’s going to be a party, lets do a show.” It was their first show in 18 years and the perfect opportunity to produce hardcore relevant to today.

Pappalardo said the show wasn’t about nostalgia, but about picking up from where they had left off. “No one knew how the show would gel because Down went hip-hop,” still Pappalardo flew across the country not knowing what would happen. In a giant warehouse with a stage made of tables on wheels, tools lay around and various weapons scattered, gave way for anything to go wrong. “It could have turned into Mad Max style,” Pappalardo referred to crowd control, but it was a very positive experience and well received, respected. It was more like, “Hot For Teacher style.”

Amenity is back in the studio working on a full-length album and recently released a video trailer for their latest song, “Shine.”

Radio Silence continues to do well all over the country. Fans keep seeping from the woodworks with more stories of passion and perception. Musicians have found a light of appreciation they didn’t realize was ever there. For more of these stories and upcoming Radio Silence panels and parties, go to RadioSilenceBook.com. For more on Amenity visit MySpace.com/Amenitysd.

by Genette Nowak