Ian MacKaye

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Ian Mackaye
Background information
Born April 16, 1962, Washington D.C.
Occupation(s) Vocalist, Songwriter, Musician
Instrument(s) Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Baritone guitar, Piano
Years active 1979-
Label(s) Dischord
Associated
acts		 Fugazi, Minor Threat, Teen Idles, The Evens, Embrace, Egg Hunt, Skewbald/Grand Union

Ian Thomas Garner MacKaye (pronounced [məˈkaɪ]), born April 16, 1962, is an American musician, probably best known as the singer for the highly influential bands Minor Threat, Embrace and Fugazi, and as one of the founders and owners (with drummer and artist Jeff Nelson) of Dischord Records, a Washington, D.C.-based hardcore label. MacKaye also worked as a recording engineer, and produced releases by Nation of Ulysses, Bikini Kill, Rites of Spring, and Rollins Band. MacKaye is highly respected in the independent music community for his work with Minor Threat and Fugazi. He is known for his down-to-earth, open, and friendly attitude.


Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early Years

MacKaye grew up in the Glover Park neighborhood of Washington and listened to mainstream hard rock before discovering punk music in 1979[1] when he saw The Cramps perform at nearby Georgetown University. He was particularly influenced by the Californian hardcore scene. MacKaye looked up to hardcore bands like Bad Brains and Black Flag and was childhood friends with Henry Garfield (who later changed his name to Henry Rollins).

[edit] Career

MacKaye played bass guitar/back up vocals in The Teen Idles (1979-1980), was lead singer for Minor Threat (1980-1983) and Embrace (1985-1986), and played guitar and sung with Fugazi (1987-2002) and The Evens (2001-2007). MacKaye also worked with a few smaller bands on the side over the years, including Egg Hunt (1986), Skewbald/Grand Union (1981-1982), and Pailhead (1988), a collaboration between MacKaye and Al Jourgensen of the industrial band Ministry in which MacKaye again assumed lead vocals. Additionally, MacKaye sang lead vocals on a Government Issue demo, one track of which is featured on the 20 Years of Dischord collection. Backing vocals and collaborations -- as, for example, with brother Alec MacKaye's former band Ignition -- are numerous.

In 1980, MacKaye co-founded Dischord Records. The label was originally meant only as a means for distributing the Teen Idles 7 inch EP, but over the years it became a very well-established independent record label, as well as a source for a variety of different Washington, D.C. area artists. Today more than 150 titles have been released by Dischord.

MacKaye played baritone guitar in the band The Evens with the drummer and vocalist Amy Farina of the Warmers. The Evens released their self-titled album in early 2005, breaking a four-year silence by MacKaye. Their second album, "Get Evens," was released in November 2006. MacKaye, along with guitarist Sonic Boom (formerly of Spacemen 3), co-wrote the music to the 2003 documentary The Weather Underground.

[edit] Politics

MacKaye refused to advertise in mainstream or corporate media, never performed at events where admission was more than $7, and consistently promoted anti-war and civil rights causes alongside his music. He regularly attended left-wing organized protests and events in Washington D.C.[2]

[edit] Filmography

Mackaye was in the documentary films, Instrument, Dogtown and Z-Boys, D.I.Y. or Die: How to Survive as an Independent Artist and American Hardcore (film) Mackaye is also featured in professional skateboarder Mike Vallely's film Drive.

[edit] Books

The Idealist, Glen E. Friedman (with Ian MacKaye contribution), Burning Flags Press, 1998, updated 2004, ISBN 0-9641916-5-2

[edit] Straight Edge

The song "Straight Edge" was written by MacKaye for his band, Minor Threat, and was released in 1981 on Minor Threat's self-titled EP. It was a song that described his personal life free of the "drugs" and the self-destructive idea of "sex as a conquest" which served as a part of the "sex, drugs and rock'n roll" banner originating as a rebellion in the 1960s - smoking, drinking, and drug use - to what wasn't socially tolerated previously. It began to influence youth culture as Minor Threat gained popularity through numerous live shows and through sales of the song on their EP. Although to MacKaye the song did not represent a philosophy or a movement, over time people adopted the philosophy of the song and many bands began to label themselves straight edge, founding the straight edge movement.

[edit] References and footnotes

  1. ^ Ian MacKaye speaking at Loyola University; Nov 14, 2006 http://www.loyno.la/ianmackayetalk.mp3
  2. ^ Scott Simon A Quieter Course for Punk Pioneer Ian MacKaye;NPR Weekend Edition Saturday, April 30, 2005 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4625784

[edit] External links

Minor Threat
Ian MacKaye
Lyle Preslar | Brian Baker | Steve Hansgen | Jeff Nelson
Discography
Full-lengths: Out of Step (1983)
EPs: Minor Threat/In My Eyes (1981) | Salad Days (1985)
Compilation appearances: Flex Your Head (1982) | 20 Years of Dischord (2002)
Other releases: Complete Discography (1989) | First Demo Tape (2003)
Related articles
Fugazi | Dag Nasty | Dischord Records | Hardcore punk | Straight edge | Washington, D.C.
This box: view • talk • edit
Fugazi
Ian MacKaye
Guy Picciotto | Joe Lally | Brendan Canty
Discography
Full-lengths: Repeater (1990) | Steady Diet of Nothing (1991) | In on the Kill Taker (1993) | Red Medicine (1995) | End Hits (1998) | The Argument (2001)
EPs: Fugazi (1988) | Margin Walker (1989) | 3 Songs (1990) | Furniture + 2 (2001)
Other albums: 13 Songs (1989) | Instrument Soundtrack (1999) | Fugazi Live Series (2004)
Related articles
Minor Threat | Dischord Records | Hardcore punk | Post-hardcore | Washington, D.C.
This box: view • talk • edit
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