Videotape

Whenever people want to talk Punk Rock, I always want to talk about Crass, and their related projects with Crass Records and Dial House. A lot of the time, I get a lot of disagreeing, but it doesn't mean much to me because I still feel Crass was the best. And one of the most important. But don't get me wrong, I'm not disregarding anything that other bands did. I realize there were a lot of other great groups out there who stirred up some shit. Who put punk on the map. Who made a huge difference. But nothing as note-worthy in my book, that's for sure. Crass just has this spark to it, and once you understand it - you understand it. I feel that for a band that did so much, Crass is also a group that has been overlooked incredibly by many.

Well anyway...last night, I joined my friend Bryan in Oakland for a screening of the documentary Crass: There Is No Authority But Yourself, a film about them, over at an Anarchist infoshop, The Long Haul, in Berkeley. After the film, I left feeling more excited about a band I've been following since I was in the 7th grade. It feels like the older I get, the more I am able to really appreciate what they had created. The film - ruled. It was filled with great rare pieces of live footage, old photos, and interviews with Gee Vaucher, Steve Ignorant, and Penny Rimbaud. It even gave a tour of the Dial House! So sweeeeet.

If you're familiar with Crass, watch it. If you're not, watch it. I think what they were doing thirty-plus years ago has definitely impacted a lot of us, many without even realizing it. I still hold this band as one of the best, and most important groups of all time (in addition to being one of the greatest things I've ever come across - their influence is priceless), and definitely one of the most important things to happen to Punk Rock, let alone Rock n' Roll.

The Google video above is the same one they screened at The Long Haul.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Word.

Oh, and today is my one week anniversary of being a San Francisco resident. Holla! I mean, hella!