When I think about what brought me to New York, the first thing that comes to my mind is New York Hard Core. Growing up in Colombia in the mid 90's, back when Pablo Escobar and crew controlled the country through acts of violence. I experienced lots of hardship by watching my own country, become the country of fear. I was around 15 years old when I first heard downset, I know downset are from LA but once I was hooked on the Hard Core movement, I started to listen to New York Hard Core through bands like Sick Of It All, Madball, Agnostic Front, Biohazard, Vision of Disorder and a whole bunch of other bands (mostly through mix tapes).
The Hard Core movement soon became an outlet to a lot of us in Colombia, to the point that a lot of Hard Core bands started to emerge in Colombia. One of those bands was Raiz, who are considered one of the top Hard Core bands to ever come from Colombia. Once Hard Core became part of my life I realized that it was not just a genre of music, it was a family unit! I would go to a show and I would always run into the same crew. And even though we didn't know each other personally, we would always talk about Hard Core, the violent times in Colombia, and share a drink or two or three.
In 1997 I came to visit New York City for the first time and one of the first places I visited was the New York Hard Core mecca: CBGB's. As soon as I stepped inside the bar, the old smell of beer, the darkness of the place and the punk rock vibe had me hooked on the New York Hard Core culture. From that moment on I knew I had to live in New York City one day.
In 1999 I went to the Dynamo Open Air festival in Eindhoven, Holland. The three day weekend was packed with killer acts such as Metallica, Fear Factory, Biohazard, Madball and a bunch of other bands. On the last day of the festival at the main stage, the mighty Biohazard became the first New York Hard Core band I ever saw on live. This same day was the first time that I experienced a full blown circle pit. Then is when I knew that Hard Core was going to be part of my life forever.
Fast forward to 2004, when after driving for 6 hours from upstate New York, I finally arrived in New York Hard Core City. Soon after, I started going to Hard Core shows and realized that it was a very eclectic musical style. I also realized that the same fraternity I experienced in Colombia at Hard Core shows, also existed in New York and it was even stronger. By then Hard Core had become a worldwide musical form and bands like Sick Of It All, Agnostic Front, Madball and Biohazard were playing shows all over the world.
Today, when I tell people that I like Hard Core, they look at me funny or try to convince me that Hard Core is dead. All I got to say is that if Hard Core is really dead, then why are all the top New York Hard Core bands still around? Agnostic Front are still crushing, Sick Of It All just released one of the best records of their career, Cro Mags are still going strong, Madball is working on a new record and playing shows constantly and the same goes with Biohazard and a ton of other legendary bands.
I think it often happens that once a person switches from one musical style to another, they try to undermine the previous style they liked and those who keep it real by sticking to their guns and not falling victims of musical trends. All this is fine with me and I respect it, but it clearly means that they don't understand what Hard Core really is. I personally did not start listening to Hard Core so I could become part of a crew, or to act tough. Hard Core became an outlet of aggression and suffering that has played a huge role in my life.
And yes I like Metal, Hard Rock, Punk Rock, Alternative Music and various other musical styles. I consider myself an open minded person that listens to a particular musical style because it moves me and not because it is the hot trend to follow. I am way too old for that bullshit! When I started this whole movement called Horns Up Rocks one of my goals was to teach all the narrow minded music fans, that there are plenty of other musical styles that are worth considering and respecting. I also decided to give Hard Core the respect it deserves. Tomorrow, when I am covering the Black N Blue Bowl (Super Bowl of Hard Core) it will all make sense to me. I predict a packed house, with Hard Core fans from all over the country with the same goal in mind: pay homage to all the bands that will be performing and have the time of our lives. Just remember that HARD CORE STILL LIVES!
I had the honor of interviewing both Freddy Madball and Cousin Joe, right by East Village Radio after their weekly "Black N Blue Takeover" radio show and we talked about Hard Core and the upcoming "Black N Blue" Bowl.
You can check it out right here!
RELATED LINKS:
Black N Blue Productions
New York Hard Core Tattoo
HERE IS THE NEW YORK HARD CORE DOCUMENTARY! Courtesy of Velebit Productions.
