This is an interview I did with Greg
for a project did in high school. It was sort of a zine but explained all the aspects of the straight edge lifestyle for those who have never heard of it but are interested in educating themselves.... anyway, it is a good interview so I thought I should put it up here as well!
Read it. Greg always has a good way of putting things... it is an interesting
interview to read... (no questions like "so what's your favorite band? color? song you wrote?...") This was november or so of 1997.
1.Why did you guys (Trial) decide to start a hardcore band? 7. Do you think that straight edge ever really could become a trend?
The idea to form Trial stemmed from the early stages of my friendship with
Derek in 1994. We used to spend a lot of time discussing different CIA covert
actions and government conspiracy theories and decided that we wanted to form
a hardcore band which would address poltical topics while being fun at the
same time. Our early concept of the band was that it was going to be a
committed effort to help bring out the truth from instances of total
government deception. As we started getting together to practice, and as
other members joined (Timm, then Mike, then Brian) the focus of the band
changed somewhat, moving away from addressing abstract conspiracy theories and
towards more practical topics.
2. Is there a specific story behind the name Trial?
We used to be called Headline, but decided to change the name due to confusion
with the name of a political magazine I was working on at the time "Headline
Communications". A new issue will actually be coming out this winter!
Anyway, we looked for a new name and decided on "Trial" because the dictionary
definition is "an effort" or "an attempt" and that perfectly describes what
Trial meant to us.
3. What is your definition of straight edge? Hardcore?
Straight edge and hardcore are ideas which individuals need to define for
themselves. I can identify for you what both ideas mean to me as an
individual, but I can't tell you what they should mean to everyone as that is
where problems start in straight edge: when people allow the definitions of
others to become their own without thinking about their own reasons for
themselves. Straight edge, to me, is the name applied to a way of life which
supports the idea that the most effective way to approach life is without
intoxication. That means that I avoid ...(something screwed up in the mailing here I think)
not restricted to those elements alone. I feel that the
drug/alcohol issues involved with straight edge are a starting point for a
more wholistic philosophy which includes many additional facets of self
improvement and self empowerment. Straight edge as a whole is not a finite
point in terms of my rejection of the mainstream numbing culture: it is a
means to that end however, in that it allows me to look at the world from a
perspective which is as unobstructed as possible. For me, to look critically
at the world, thinking about my surroundings and my place in those
surroundings, is an extension of the straight edge philosophy: it is the next
stage, after the ability to think clearly is established. Straight edge is a
means rather than an end.
4. Why do you think the kids get so frantic at hardcore shows? Is it
because of the music style or is there an underlying source?
The music style activates an underlying source. Think about the energy we
hold inside throughout each day of our civilized existance: any outward
expression of raw emotion throughout the course of our regular business day
would be construed as either assault or harassment depending on how it
manifested itself in the workplace. Hardcore provides an outlet for emotion
through intense music. This isn't to say that hardcore shows exhibit an
uninhibited quality to them along the lines of a Roman orgy, but rather that
the rules which inhibit our expression of how we feel in day to day life no
longer apply. Try screaming your innermost feeling at the top of your lungs
and then jumping off your desk onto the person next to you while in class
sometime and see how long it takes you to go from that moment of free
expression to being suspended from school for a week!
5. Could you define a "scene"? (what it is and how it works)
A "scene" is the convergence of a group of people with common interests. A
scene works by allowing the free exchange of ideas within a structure which is
malleable. When a scene becomes stagnant, a vital part of what makes it
interesting completely dies. The potential for the collective to foster and
encourage new ideas is what makes our "scene" potentially amazing. I apply
the word "potentially" to the hardcore music scene because of our tendency to
be far less original in terms of our thought patterns than we could be. Many
fall completely into the trap of accepting the socializing element of the
scene without acknowledging the philosophical implication of involvement. For
others within the scene, hardcore represents a breaking free of sorts from the
restrictions, social structuring, and financial manipulation inherent in the
"mainstream". The scene becomes a means of active resistance. Such a
collective of intelligent people could work wonders if they just put their
minds to it. It seems to me that we in the scene often simply mirror the
mainstream rather than working actively to create a definitive alternative to
it. The scene needs to acknowledge the oppressive effect of social constructs
like capitalism and patriarchy and constantly move in a direction opposite of
the alluring pull of those two forces, using creative energy to create
continually new forms of expression and trade between people.
6. Do you consider a person straight edge if they don't participate in
the scene at all? (no listening to hardcore, reading zines, etc.)
There are lots of people who consider themselves straight edge but who do not
actively show up at shows or read zines. Oftentimes, I am one of those just
because of how busy I get with work at home! As for people who have nothing
whatsoever to do with hardcore and just adhere to the title "straight edge"
because they heard that it means "drug and alcohol free", they are misleading
themselves and those who they encounter under the guise that they are straight
edge. It means much more than just being drug free. People without an
understanding of the hardcore scene would have a difficult time realizing what
that "more" is. The history and the energy of straight edge have develop
How do you feel about Hot Topic in the mall selling sXe stickers and shirts?
While I appreciate your optimism about the potential for straight edge to
become a trend, I have to say that I think it already has become a trend for a
large number of people. The strength of the ideas inherent in straight edge
is attractive to people who have never encountered determined convictions
before. This is the bait which corporate America has been latching onto in
hopes of packaging the revolution for the masses to purchase as Christmas
presents in the shopping malls. We have seen this process happen time and
time again and it frustrates me: a revolutionary idea or movement is generated
and then spreads in popularity. In time, it is identified by the mainstream
and accepted and encouraged. This process seems almost inevitable, and it is
very unfortunate, because once the idea is accepted and packaged, it begins to
serve and support the systems of oppression which it started out opposing. We
have seen this happen with "alternative music" in the eighties (a real
alternative to the mainstream M-TV and Top 40 garbage of the time), the
"hippies" in the sixties (any valid anti-war faction was absorbed into being
seen as an extension of the flower power drug culture), and "straight edge" in
current times. There are a number of other examples: the commoditization of
Che Guevara by the Sony Records marketing department as seen nationwide on
Rage Against the Machine t-shirts; punk rock imagery (Jenny Jones gave prizes
to the most "extreme" looking person out of a group of people on her show last
week); even questioning the government is in vogue these days - at least
that's what I hope to see in the major studio X-Files motion picture (sarcasm
intended). What do I think of Hot Topic selling straight edge items for
profit to people who have no idea what the shirts really mean? If I were a
ruthless capitalist like I am supposed to be in order to qualify as a good
American, I would praise Hot Topic for their ability to
marketing techniques. Since I have
a conscience and a brain however, I will answer differently: I hope that Hot
Topic burns to the ground with all of their shirts and pop culture bullshit
inventory. I hold on every day to the idea that the hardcore scene will
understand the need to move beyond what we have created in the past,
developing and embracing new ideas for morality and ethics in the future. The
cycle continues.
8. What do you think the general attitude is toward people who are new
to the scene and/or are newly straight edge?
I don't think there is any set general attitude. I love when new faces show
up at shows. It means that the scene is growing. I just hope that behind all
of those faces there are individual brains who recognize that they are each
autonomous entities within a collective spirit. Newly straight edge? I feel
the same. Understand who you are and what you stand for and make sure you
know why you are involved. Stay true.
9. Do you feel that women in the scene are treated differently than
men? If so, how?
I tend to see a lot less of the "hold my coat while I dance" mentality which
was common in the eighties at hardcore shows. Of course (prepare for more
sarcasm) this can be attributed to the Spice Girls and their espousing of
feminism and girl power at all of their shows. Ok...I think that hardcore is
as succeptible to sexism as any other group of people, but that at the same
time, we are more inclined to respect one another than many other groups.
Notice the demographics at hardcore shows: the bands in the scene are about
99.999% male (with the exception of the Doughnuts) and the dance floors are
made up of about 95% male dancers, with women often watching from the sides of
the stage. This is frustrating. I would love to see more mixed up dance
floors more often, with people respecting each other. I love it when women
are up front singing along. It happens from time to time that during the song
"Scars", a woman will sing along for most or all of it. That involvement
bands. We need diversity and balance like that. Oppression/repression
needs to end in our scene first before we expect to bring about its end in wider circles.
10. I've noticed that often when you guys play a show, you mention that
you are not rock stars and are enjoying just going to a show as much as
everyone else is. How do you feel about hardcore bands that are just in
it for the money and fame? As an example, why is there such animosity
toward Victory Records?
I asked Tony Brummel (Tony Victory) that exact question myself about three
weeks ago. He told me that people will always talk behind the back of someone
who is working hard and that that is what he does for his bands: he works hard
for them to do the best he can as a representative of their music. On the
flipside of that, I talked earlier today to a member of a Victory band who
told me that regardless of what Tony says, that the bottom line of his game
plan is to make money with the label as a business venture. Ok...here's how I
feel about the issue of money, regardless of Victory Records, Tony Brummel's
words about himself or the words of his bands or anyone else for that matter
about him. The picture is of much wider scope than just Victory Records.
Capitalism is a sickenly oppressive force on countless differnet levels. The
quest for profits knows no limits. The most successful business ventures are
the ones which are most ruthless in terms of successfully manipulating their
production and marketing to cut costs and raise profits. With that in mind,
any business which exists in the hardcore scene with the intention of making
money off of the people in the scene is perpetuating the cycle of oppression
for which capitalism lays the groundwork. Kids within the scene who want to
buy records have to give up the valuable waking hours of their lives to work
at mundane jobs which provide them with the resources (money) they use to
trade for records. They take these records home and then listen to their
anti-oppressive punk rock messages. it is so self defeating. I have just
begun to think seriously about this recently...about how we are changing
nothing of oppression's foundation as long as we continue to support the
masthead of that oppression: capitalism. What do I think of bands who
are just in it for the money and the fame? They are sleeping with the enemy.
What do I think of bands who scream about oppression without looking at their
own involvement in a larger sense? They need to do more. A great deal more.
Trial is one of those bands. Hardcore and punk rock provide an excellent
chance for a collective sense of work to develop. We have the people, we have
the ideas, we could even have necessary resources available if we just put our
heads together. It is an issue which I am thinking about and working on and
would love for other people to be doing the same, rather than just nursing
contentedly off of the current system.
11.Why do you think that so many straight edgers are vegetarian/vegan
and active in animal rights? What's the coalition?
Do you mean what's the connection? I don't know of any definitive coalition
between animal rights and hardcore. The connections throughout time has
largely shown the effect of word of mouth discussion. Animal rights has
achieved such popularity because people began talking about it years ago as an
extension of a belief system which addressed compassionate living. Many
listeners saw animal rights as a means of manifesting into action their own
desire to live with more compassion in an increasingly compassionless world.
you can mail greg here
and me here
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