I can only stretch my arms – stretch, reach, for you…”

-108 “Arctic”

Communication – the need to express oneself, be heard and, hopefully, understood – is probably the greatest gift and curse that we as sentient beings have been given.

Communication enables us to convey our opinions, show affection, and mature in our understanding of the world.  We often feel like we’re alone in our thoughts, desires, and needs, but think of the times you’ve met someone and discovered something you’ve had in common.  There is a genuine sense of excitement as you share ideas or memories about these shared notions or experiences – so much so that it can often lead to life-long relationships.

The inverse, however, occurs when we aren’t able to effectively communicate.  In fact, the breakdown of communication (and, therefore, true understanding) is often the exact reason for shattered relationships, acts of physical aggression and, on a larger scale, even war.

Maybe the problem is that language itself doesn’t suffice.  Words, after all, are mere representations of thoughts, feelings, ideas, or experiences.  They are symbols we use in order to express these things to others.  But how can another person truly understand what we are feeling with only our words at our disposal?

Many have taken solace in art, which is another form of expression.  In particular, music has been a way to transcend and feel connections and emotions as deep as the widest oceanic trenches.  The combination of musical sounds and lyrics coming together to strike a mood, send a message, or simply express an emotion resonates on multiple levels.

For me, 108 has been one of the most inspiring hardcore bands.  Musically, they have always played hardcore with a sense of freedom and independence that is inspiring.  They draw from the spirit and energy of classic hardcore bands like Bad Brains, Black Flag, and Burn, but also utilize elements of metal, punk, heavy rock, and even reggae to form a sound that is layered and rich, full of atmosphere, and free of artistic restraint.

Lyrically, their songs are written from such a thoughtful and personal place that one feels enriched simply reading the lyrics in the liner notes.  Going back to the blowing of the conch shell on “Holyname,” it’s apparent that they intended to express something more than just diatribes.  Rather, they wrote (and still write) about isolation, sadness, love, reasons to live or die, and methods to cope in an existence that is often brutal and seems hopeless.  It’s the combination of such concerns with their blistering music that has always gripped me.  Their personal struggles and frailties, as well as their hopes and aspirations, have always been apparent in their lyrics, which are very understandable on a logical level.  But their music makes you feel these emotions authentically.

Being so strongly connected to their records over the years – Holyname (1994), Songs of Separation (1995), Threefold Misery (1996), Curse of Instinct (1996), A New Beat From a Dead Heart (2007), and 18.61 (2010) – I’ve paid attention to their growth both sonically and lyrically.  In conversations with Vic, Rob, and Triv I’ve found that their lyrics and music often seem to map the things they are struggling with or inspired by at the time.  Essentially, looking back on their recorded output is like a map of their own personal successes and failures.  They are all dedicated to living life in a way that feels “right” for them and have come together as friends to express what they are feeling in a collective way.  In turn, the sounds they create articulate a multitude of emotions and perspectives that speak to their experiences and, in turn, allow people to better understand them as human beings.

Obviously 108 is not the only group of artists to achieve such results.  However, it’s not everyday a group of people can express themselves accurately while also propelling each other to grow intrinsically.  It’s a rare thing, especially in this era of cynicism and pessimism.

In fact, it’s a lesson to all of us.  No matter how frustrated we get with our significant other, our estranged friend, our “enemies,” communication is something that is downright sacred.  We all go through ruts where everything seems pointless – where we don’t know which direction we’re headed.  It’s these very times that we need someone or something to relate to.  The members of 108 understand this as well as anyone and people who appreciate their music are all the better for it.

108’s new album, 18.61, is available from Deathwish, Inc.

Past this point, we are assuming that the Cokie character is nothing more than window dressing for Fat Mike to express things that are too heavy for him to put forward at a NOFX show. Understand that last sentence isn’t a swipe at NOFX. NOFX is a very specific kind of vehicle for a very specific kind of expression. Stuff like this would kill the mood at a NOFX show. For example, hearing about how Thomas has a very specific fondness for S&M lesbians and obscure South Asian hallucinogens would be incredibly uncomfortable and mood-killing at a Strike Anywhere gig.

Also, I have no idea what to make of the urine in the tequila thing except that while the potential for a lawsuit is there it’s not dangerous so much as disgusting and that’s not how I’d want to treat my fans.

But the rape is the most interesting. Here, we have Fat Mike, a guy known for not taking terribly much seriously except for drugs and drugs, talking about something that happened when he was a teenager that haunts him to this day.

Past this point, I am assuming that this story is true, though because memory lies, who knows how accurate it is.

These are the important facts: Mike, (16) and Melvin (17) were in a stairwell at a Vandals show in 1984, when two known gang members (two of 40 at the gig) were carrying a girl across their shoulder to be raped. The girl grabs Melvin and says “help me”. The gang members tell the kids that they didn’t see a fucking thing. Mike and Melvin go upstairs, knowing there is a rape happening directly below them.

It is theoretically possible that Mike and Melvin could have stopped the rape by force, but it’s highly unlikely. However, let’s say, for the sake of argument, that somehow, Mike and Melvin beat up the two gang members, and they’re knocked out. The girl, Mike and Melvin, need to escape from the venue, where there are 38 gang members, presumably who know what’s going on. Therein lies another problem. Let’s say a quarter of those people know what’s going on. Again, being optimistic. If any of them get spotted by any of those nine gang members, the gang members get their buddies together and suddenly, it’s a mad dash for the door.

In something that reflects reality, two teenagers were intimidated by gang members, with a plausible threat of violence from saying anything about the rape. It is also theoretically possible, that between the two teenagers, they could have convinced the two gang members not to rape this girl using words. This possibility is so remote, it almost doesn’t seem worth mentioning, but it’s a possibility.

Given anything resembling reasonable odds, this girl’s rape was sealed. Put more directly: It was not within Mike’s or Melvin’s power to (again, ages 16 and 17 respectively) stop the two men from raping that girl when they passed the two teenagers in the stairwell using force. Should Mike and Melvin spoken up and invited violence against themselves even if there is no demonstrable reason to believe that life would improve for the person they’re trying to help?

Yes. Of course. Doing good deeds isn’t always easy.

That said, I can’t personally fault the two teenagers for not standing up to the two gang members. I’d have shit my pants, placed in that position. I’m not sure I would have enough backbone to interpose myself even briefly, between the gang members and the rape. According to a survivor, they don’t teach women to yell HELP in self defense classes, but instead to yell FIRE, because it gets people’s attention. It means that Mike and Melvin are with the majority of people when they went back upstairs to watch the Vandals.

“They were powerless to stop it, but perhaps they should have tried.” It’s an excellent thing to say and certainly something that ought to be felt, but hardly ever is it acted upon. In short, it’s easier to say on the internet (or otherwise removed from the event) that one would do the right thing than it is to do it. Put differently, I don’t think even a quarter of the people railing on Mike would stand up if they were placed in his shoes at the time. I believe they would value not getting their body beaten and broken more than they value their ethical stance. I think they’d be too intimidated to move.

What comes after that, I’m not so sure. We don’t know to what extent Fat Mike and Melvin followed up on the issue. A call (from a pay phone) or tip to the police would be in order, even if the famously antagonistic police would laugh it off. This is California in the 80’s and punk rock before THE DROPKICK MURPHYS. If police and punks saw eye to eye at the time, it was with a riot stick or tear gas between them. Going to the owner of the venue might be another recourse for the guys, but again, that’s only post facto.

There’s other thing that Mike admitted to, being hard-hearted around his dying father that tried to reconnect before his death, stealing a friend’s vinyl record after that friend hung himself but I find that less powerful than the staircase episode, because of the rubber meets road nature of the incident.

I find the hostility aimed at Mike for admitting that something he did 26 years ago still haunts him is…not terribly powerful because of their distance from the experience. Aside from not believing anyone who said they’d try to stop it, my belief is that for the words to have any meaning, the speaker has to be placed in that moment, with their back against the wall. The terror is integral! There has to be the vivid, clear and distinct probability of crippling, permanent injury (and possibility of death) in the decision making process for anyone to plausibly make the claim they’d stop that rape.

In short: It’s one thing to say you would stop the rape on the internet. It’s another thing to say you would stop the rape with no cell phone, outnumbered, surrounded and with no one coming to help you.

This is what happens when I put D.I.Y. on the backburner.

D.I.Y. is a mindset/attitude/idea that has impacted my life in countless ways. I picked up on it for the first time through my experiences in hardcore, but it is something that goes back much deeper than that.

Ever since I was young I’ve admired people who do the things they say they are going to do with their lives. Much of my life I’ve been searching for meaning, for answers, for a path. This search, in fact, has consumed so many of my thoughts that it has blinded me to the truth that is right in front of my eyes. Life – right here, right now – is filled to the brim with possibilities for creation, for action, for reflection, for progression.  It’s so close in front of me that it makes the end of my nerves twitch. But my problem is that I forget to pay attention to those very feelings.

>When I’m honest with myself I see that I am constantly making excuses for things instead of just dealing with these issues, putting them to the side, and moving ahead. I focus on the roadblocks instead of figuring out how to build bridges over them. Fortunately, I have people in my life who remind me of all the power that D.I.Y. instilled inside me when I first discovered it.

One of the closest people in my life amazes me with her ability to develop a skill or learn about something. Almost like a whirlwind, she uses her intelligence and focus to master whatever she puts her mind to and then creates works of wonder. As simplistic as taking a picture or assembling a craft might seem to the layperson, producing quality work takes dedication and patience. She’s a virtuoso in these regards.

I have a friend who dedicates his life to social work. We may disagree about certain things at times, but I am amazed by his dedication and willingness to work countless odd hours all in the effort of simply trying to help other human beings make their way through this sometimes crushing existence we inhabit.

I have an uncle who is a master at living in the moment. Some of the activities he is passionate about aren’t my cup of tea whatsoever, but they involve movement, spontaneity, desire, and craftsmanship – qualities that are tough to come by.

These and so many other people I’ve been fortunate enough to meet constantly inspire me with their ability to “do it themselves” – to get up every day, work through the mundane crap we all deal with, and stay motivated, passionate, and artistic.

Some people think that D.I.Y. is all about musical preference. While in my opinion it is a completely necessary component to creating music (regardless of the size of your label, or lack thereof), I disagree that D.I.Y. is limited to just our musical tastes. What is more important is the personal revolution D.I.Y. pushes you to invoke, at least for those who take the message seriously.

Essentially, it’s a kick in the pants – a hand around the scruff of your neck to “get busy livin’ or get busy dyin’.”

I forget about it from time-to-time, and in reflection this is when I’m often the least happy. But instead of worrying about this realization, it’s time to move forward. After all, I have infinite possibilities right in front of me.

When we remember this, we (truly) live.

Recently, the band posted the new video with more footage for “Re-Education Through Labor” on their website. It added a bunch of scary statistics, not sourced, but that’s secondary. The video consists of young white people coming together and committing acts of domestic terrorism aimed at downtown Chicago. It’s a nice visual, Chicago burning after dark but honestly, I feel like that’s a pretty easy way to make an “edgy” video. It’s an easy way to make an edgy video because it answers no questions.

There wasn’t a particular direction for the anger of the kids, just pictures of “resistant” people making, distributing and setting off homemade explosives near buildings in LaSalle Street, in downtown Chicago. There wasn’t a why and that’s disappointing. My guess is the statistics are supposed to match up to some kind of discontent, but they don’t. They’re liberal boilerplate, cast as wide as possible without regard to depth. There is worldwide discontent at exploitation by the military industrial complex, propped up by disaster capitalism. We agree. Lots of traditional GOP voters eat meat and believe in a male God looking down on them. Not the end of the world. Maybe I’m being too precious. A lot of the Earth’s wildlife/non-developed areas are being razed and destroyed. How one gets from that to blowing up downtown Chicago in retaliation is beyond me.

In short: The video, when it was released in 2008 (just before the election of Barack Hussein Obama, a fact which a year and a half out still fills me with pride) and now still feels intellectually weak. In 2008, the political climate was heating up, I’ll give you that, but when isn’t it? The anger, while presumably sincere, feels generic to me.

Specifically: I expect more from Rise Against than a video about romanticizing indiscriminate domestic terrorism as a way to let off steam against the crushing claustrophobia and alienation of modern urban life. The band has made more thoughtful videos before. Hell, the video for “Diaspora” (sorry, “Prayer of the Refugee”) got the band lost in a supermark…Wal-Mart, surrounded by the obscene amounts of cheap shit made by exploited persons halfway across the world. “Ready to Fall” put the band literally on top of the striking images of human neglect, sprawl and consumption. Comparatively, the image of young nubile white kids saying “let’s make suitcase bombs and put them on LaSalle Street” rings kind of hollow.

Hell, the statistics aren’t bad (but unsourced and mysterious), but why not put those over a performance video? There’s no apocalyptic imagery but at least the band would be tying itself to the real misery and overlooked suffering of modern life. Instead, suitcase bombs and LaSalle St.

Additionally (and this counts for more of my focus than is fashionable), my father works in an office on that street. He spends most of his time pulling teeth from insurance companies for records that are about to be disappeared. As a punk, I know the value in using real streets and real places to anchor the discontent to something tangible. As a son? That’s my dad in that building. But even if you don’t have parents working on LaSalle St, you too can still be uneasy with the video. There’s janitors in that building. There’s secretaries in that building. There’s doormen in that building. There’s typists in that building.

Those people have as much to do with the rape and exploitation of our earth as I do with the next mission to Mars. And that’s really the problem. Usually, Rise Against has been on point in terms of videos, but the wrong one got the new lease on life.

(P.S. Yes, I know it’s disingenuous to use the phrase nubile white kids in the essay because that’s what punk rock was built on, whether we like it or not. It’s directed at central casting rather than the band.)

This year personally was full of ups and downs (more so than recent years), and as I began to wind down my touring schedule and focus on my home life, it became clear that this is what I want to do and where I want to be. A nomad’s life has a certain appeal for a certain time and place, that place for me was dying. The satisfaction of developing my relationships at home and in my professional life left me feeling more full than ever.

I digress; music is in my blood and running through my veins. It identifies me and keeps me connected to so many wonderful people, experiences and memories. This year was no exception and I love that I have something to share with everyone.

10. Touché Amore – To The Beat of a Dead Horse Watching a typical hardcore kid with no real connection to many of the bands that Touche Amore are directly influenced by (i.e., Orchid, You And I) lose their minds to this band is inspiring. A great hope for where our music can go when we listen with an open mind.

9. Propagandhi – Supporting Caste If these guys put out a record, I am listening. Never gets old and will always remain relevant.

8. POS – Never Better POS keeps the hope of independent hip-hop alive with every record he releases and exposes to kids who typically don’t listen to hip-hop (the pop punk crowd). Keeping it more real than most, I love POS.

7. Cobalt – Gin This proves that black metal doesn’t have to sound like it was recorded on a tape deck in a steel room. This two-man project keeps things fresh, dark, and most certainly evil. Most full bands wish they had this much talent.

6. Thrice – Beggars A further continuation of their musical experiments and Thrice continue down their own path to ensure their proper place in independent music history.

5. Architects – Hollow Crown Hands down, the band everyone has to watch out for in the coming years. Combining everything that is right about metal/hardcore/rock into a compelling package is a difficult task, but they manage to do it. Don’t sleep on this, I urge you to check them out.

4. It Prevails – Capture and Embrace Although I am very partial to this style of music (melodic hardcore), this part-time band showcases how fun it is to listen to a well-crafted record, This had me singing along in my car on many occasions.

3. Isis – Waving Radiant Talk about focus. While many feel that Isis lost their heads on the last release, this just goes to show what happens when you put talented musicians in a room that all have a single focus. Hauntingly hypnotic.

2. Phoenix – Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix I got into these guys through the ‘Lost In Translation’ soundtrack and watched them struggle with their identity on each subsequent release. Finally, these Frenchies show that they have had it in them all along. You would have to be living under a rock if you didn’t hear this record.

1. Mastodon – Crack The Skye The record I listened to most this year. This is what every independent band should strive to be in 2010. Musically courageous, fiercely independent and insanely talented. I wish I was in Mastodon. Honorable Mentions: Earth Crisis – To The Death Defeater – Travels Silversun Pickups – Swoon Buried Inside – Spoils Of Failure Pains Of Being Pure at Heart – s/t Polar Bear Club – Chasing Hamburg Heartsounds – Until We Surrender Ritual – Beneath Aging Flesh and Bone Empire! Empire! (I Was A Lonely Estate) – What It Takes To Move Forward Katatonia – Night Is The New Day fun – Aim and Ignite This Town Needs Guns – Animals Converge – Axe To Fall Blacklisted – No One Deserves To Be Here More Than Me The xx - x EPs Pianos Become The Teeth – Old Pride Transit – Stay Home Title Fight – The Last Thing You Forget Defeater – Lost Ground Foundation – Hang Your Head Tigers Jaw – s/t Movies Watchmen District 9 Up In The Air The Cove The Hangover Inglorious Basterds Until The Light Takes Us Best TV Show Friday Night Lights Best Book Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer Top 5 Podcasts 1. This American Life 2. Issue Oriented 3. Sound Of Young America 4. Sound Opinions 5. You Look Nice Today Life: -Being married for 4 years strong and getting better by the moment -Modern Warfare 2 -midnight events -Burning Fight -Unbroken/Undertow in Seattle and Pomona -Japan and Hawaii on tour -not having to tour the US -Sound and Fury -still being a kid -6131 Records -weddings with friends.