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Subj: another state of mind
Date: 8/14/2001 8:32:44 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From: shawn@byorecords.com (shawn)
To: dfiledamerica1@hotmail.com

Dear Chris,
Just read a review (see below) you wrote of our movie Another State Of Mind," on the Retro-Rocket website. Actually, I don't think this is really a review, more of a quick synopsis of the storyline and you seem to have picked up a lot of "facts" that are not correct. After reading your review, I wonder if you didn't just fast forward through the video or perhaps you watched it a long time ago!?

In the first paragraph, you state that I am the leader of an L.A. straight edge hardcore band!? Did you miss the fact that we were drinking and getting fucked up practically every night? You must have missed the alcohol, but it's in a lot of scenes and we're definitely not, nor have we ever been "straight edge." In fact when we go to DC to stay at the Dischord house, I discussed my feelings regarding this whole "straight edge" phenomena created by my friend Ian MacKaye.

The first gig was in San Francisco at the On Broadway and the guy who gave us rolls of pennies was Dirk Dirksen, the infamous booker/manager of the Mabuhay and On Broadway and a notorius tightwad, hence the pennies. I guess this isn't of too much interest to you as your disdain for punk rock is pretty well made with statements like, ". . . the punks are kicked out of a cafe-just for being scumbags!"

I guess the fact that a handful of "scumbag" punks were able to organize a tour across the U.S. and Canada on "a wing and a prayer" and not only manage to pay for it but make a pretty good historical document of it is not much of an accomplishment for someone like you. And I was all of 22 when I did it and besides Monk the mechanic, I was the oldest one there. Well, you might like to know that my brothers and I have continued to do pretty well playing music, traveling the world and running our record label and we do it all ourselves. We've inspired thousands of people to give a shit about what goes on in this world and we're proud of what we've been able to accomplish. Perhaps we were a bit idealistic and maybe we still are, but we don't have to answer to anyone.

I'm sure you've done some pretty amazing things in your life and if this "review" is any indication, you should be very proud.

Take care,
Shawn Stern
Youth Brigade

"Another State of Mind" Credits:
Starring: Mike Ness, Dennis Danell, Shawn Stern, Ian Mackaye, Monk, Brent Lyle Written by Adam Small and Peter Stuart Directed by Adam Small and Peter Stuart

ANOTHER STATE OF MIND * * * 1/2
1983, Un-rated, 79min, Stuart/Small Productions
"We're trying to prove to people that punks aren't just a bunch of mindless morons," says Shawn Stern at the beginning of punk documentary "Another State of Mind." Stern is the leader of an L.A. straight-edge hardcore band called Youth Brigade (Stern, along with his brothers Adam and Mark), as well as his community service group the Better Youth Organization.

Stern has organized a U.S./Canadian tour for Youth Brigade and Social Distortion (featuring a very young Mike Ness and the late Dennis Danell). We see Youth Brigade in their rehearsal space playing the hardcore anthem "Fight To Unite."

The tour is launched on a wing-and-a-prayer with an old school bus packing 90,000 miles of roadwork. Shawn Stern makes a weak assertion that aging roadie Monk is "pretty good" at fixing cars, if they run into any problems. And boy do they run into problems. The Mike Ness of '82 is a lot different from the hard-ass punk image he presents today in his solo work, as well as under the umbrella of Social Distortion. He wears eyeliner and complains about people thinking he's gay.

Right from the first gig in Seattle things looks grim. After the show they are paid $40 - in rolls of pennies. And, essentially, that's about as good as it gets for our heroes. The shot-on-video punkumentary has technical glitches where people are talking and the soundtrack music is drowning them out. But, overall, co-directors Adam Small and Peter Stuart do a credible job of guerrilla video-shooting at punk gigs, on the street and in the homes of the band members and their young fans. The aforementioned punk audience members are clearly stating (in interview segments) that they're into punk largely for the rebellion factor. It really bums out Mom and Dad.

As the tour progresses things grow ever more grim. "Seems like things are just starting to fall apart," sulks Shawn Stern after the Montreal gig. The bandmembers are whining about money. Then, to add insult to injury, the punks are kicked out of a café - just for being scumbags!

In Detroit, when the bus breaks down again, two of the roadies hop a Greyhound back to Los Angeles. Then in Washington, D.C., the bus croaks for a final time. "When the times get hard," says Monk, the sage, "people get movin'..."

And, indeed, more people bail from the tour and the hapless remainders crash at Discord House - the home of Ian Mackaye of Minor Threat (later of Fugazi) and the tour comes to a close shortly thereafter.

For all of its production shortcomings, "Another State of Mind" is a fine slice of early-'80s punk life.

Chris Parcellin