Revisiting the past can be tricky.  Depending on the mood you are in or how your view of the world has developed, it’s just as easy to hone in on only the high notes as it is to look back and dwell on the what-could-have-beens.

But does either extreme really tell the “truth”?

Truth is subjective. Everyone will have their own take on both individual and collective experiences.  Whether it’s political history or personal romantic travails, the story is often told through the lens of one’s own current state of mind.

So, why search the past for answers to the present, given that the memories will likely be influenced by one’s current outlook?  I say we should do it to get a clearer look at where we are in the present, regardless of our state of mind.  After all, this moment – right here, right now – is more precious, more important, more pertinent than anything that’s been said and done or anything that has yet to come.  Only right now do we have the opportunity to impart change.  Only right now can we inspire one another to live our lives more fully.  Only right now are we able to stop, look, think, reflect, and act.

I spent six years assembling a book about 1990s hardcore called Burning Fight:  The Nineties Hardcore Revolution in Ethics, Politics, Spirit, and Sound.  This project was important to me because that era of hardcore changed my life – primarily because of what I learned from my experiences in the scene.  Yes, I encountered bands that affected me with their music on a deeply emotional level, but the ideas presented in the lyrics and the engaging discussions I had with friends and even strangers at shows were far more important, because we challenged each other to examine our individual worldviews and to think critically.

Many of us who took part in the nineties hardcore scene headed off on our own paths.  But did that spirit that motivated us to challenge ourselves, get involved, and create disappear?

When I started working on the book around 2002/2003, I asked myself, “I wonder what all these people are up to right now?”  As I began interviewing people I received an answer that was quite inspiring.

Though the people I talked to may or may not have anything to do with hardcore anymore, I found almost everyone was doing really interesting and positive things in the present. Some were teachers, social workers, activists, or academics.  Others were creating other kinds of music, running their own businesses, and/or raising their families on the principles that changed their lives.

I’d often ask these folks, “How has hardcore changed your life?”  Nearly everyone, regardless of how many message boards (if any) they’ve frequented in the past decade, gave resoundingly positive answers.  Sure, most have issues with the way some ideas were implemented in the scene, the ill-informed actions of others, or even their own personal roadblocks that prevented them from contributing as much as they would have liked at that time.  But the experience itself – that critical discourse with a community of people, most of whom were looking to better themselves and the world around them – exhilarated them and, most importantly, opened up a giant window to the present.

Talking to these people reminded me that we all have the opportunity to make an impact on the world around us. One person cannot necessarily change the entire world; however, we can all inspire one another to take control of our lives, become active, and become better people.

Some feel that hardcore has lost some of its passion, but when I see or listen to bands like Soul Control, Sick Fix, Poison Planet, 108, Failures, The Hope Conspiracy, Paint it Black, Harm’s Way, Cipher, Coalesce, Coke Bust, Boiling Over, and many others, I am just as energized by the scene as ever.  But now that I’ve had a chance to reflect on the past, I am more aware of how to engage with others and contribute in my own manner.

But this one era of this one underground community doesn’t have a patent on these notions.  Whatever culture or community we come from, we should look to the past as a reminder of how we got to where we are now.  But we shouldn’t stop there.  We should take these memories as signs on a roadmap for the present and as blueprints for how to build ourselves a better future.

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Brian Peterson is the author of Burning Fight – The Nineties Hardcore Revolution in Ethics, Politics, Spirit and Sound. You can learn more about the book at BurningFightBook.com.