For those who are coming across this documentary, this was in a 2nd/top floor event space that was above a now-shuttered restaurant at the corner of Irving Park Rd and Broadway in Chicago. It was a truly DIY, alcohol-free happening (the cops were VERY suspicious of them punkers) and this was a fair representation of what the local punk scene was like at the time. A lot of the audience were also in bands. The scene didn't always have a legit club, like Cabaret Metro, to stage shows, and this place was a haven for independent bookings. Minor Threat, MDC, and many others played here over its short run. Seems like maybe 2-3 years? Die Kreuzen was the opening band of choice, and never failed to get the crowd amped up for the headlining act. This day was Articles of Faith, who were in a rivalry with The Effigies for Chicago punk's top spot. The Articles of Faith were a hard-left bunch, with the lead singer/songwriter going on to become a professor of political science at American University. The Effigies were soft-right boot boys whose lead singer/songwriter went on to work for the DuPage County (rich western suburbs) prosecutors office. The contrast between the two factions shows that we weren't always a united community, with some competition, and certainly not a monolith. We were a bunch of kids having a visceral, good fuckin' time with our friends and acquaintances, catching each other when we launched off the stage, picking each other up when we fell on the sweat-slicked tile floor. A moment in time, never to return...
Lucky you for being part of that scene in those furious time, fella. It's interesting how the Chicago scene was split in two factions: the earlier, older scene spearheaded by Effigies, Strike Under, Naked Raygun, DV8, Subverts, DA, Big Black and a later, younger scene led by A.O.F., Negative Element, Rights Of The Accused, Savage Beliefs, End Result, Out Of Order...
