There is something unnerving about the way people treat one another in NYC. The only way to experience it is to live here for awhile. I remember when I was 17 or 18 and I was at a show at 404 Willis, a hole-in-the-wall anarcho punk den in Detroit’s Cass Corridor. Somehow my friend and I got in a conversation with this guy, Rat, in an alley close to the show. Rat was the real deal, and we were angry youth from the suburbs. Anyway, we were talking with Rat, and after throwing a brick through the window of an abandoned Escort, he  mentioned that he lived in New York for awhile. He went on to say that it was the worst experience of his life. He said living on that “scumshit infested island” left him feeling dirty as a toothless bum. That wasn’t saying much. Rat didn’t smell much better than the lingering aura of urine billowing through the corridor.

At the time, I was a huge fan of the New York hardcore scene. Shit, who wasn’t? I had a dubbed copy of the “Where The Wild Things Are” comp on constant repeat in my car. I couldn’t get enough of bands like Underdog, Bold, Killing Time, and of course — The Cro-Mags, who are responsible for the greatest hardcore album of all time “Age of Quarrel”.

Digression: I’m hoping at this very moment some kid chewing on a vegan Popsicle is reading this and thinking something like, “Actually, my man, — SSD’s ‘Get It Away’ EP is a far superior release.” That’s the problem with making affirmations like, “Melon is throwing the greatest party ever ..” because there is always going to be some schmuck out there ready to knock you off your block and show you up.

Even though Rat wasn’t a big fan of NYC he spoke adamantly of his love for the NYHC scene. He talked about how the singer from Sick of It All, Lou, was a real nice guy.  “I crashed on Lou’s floor for 2-nights. That dude is a real bro.” He talked about how tight knit the hardcore community was, and how even though the Lower East Side was a wasteland of drug addicts and poverty — “The hardcore kids always had my back,” Rat explained.

That night after the show, I went home and cued up “Age of Quarrel” on my turntable and was instantly transported to the streets of NYC. My boots were laced up, and I was walking down Avenue D ready for whatever came my way. And when the second tune “World Peace” kicked in I listened intently as vocalist John Joseph barreled through the lines “world peace can not exist”. I thought about how living on the streets of ’80s NYC might have even led a sociopath like Rat to carry a pessimistic outlook about NYC. For some twisted reason I was intrigued and wanted to see what it was like for myself. Kids imagine all kinds of stuff when they’re laying in their beds staring up at a ceiling filled with flyers for the upcoming Feisty Cadaver’s show at Blondies.

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