Krishnacore
If you get a platform to speak and if you have something good to say, you can really affect people in a deep way – why would you waste that opportunity? - Ray Cappo
In ‘‘Every Single Sound Speaks In The Plural: West Coast Hardcore Punk and Grunge’’ I talked about Hardcore punk of the 80`s and how the scene embraced straightedge culture. Dead Kennedys ‘’Too Drunk To Fuck’’(1981) and Black Flag’s ‘’6 pack’’ (1981) protest the ideology of The Official Preppy Handbook (1980) which was popular within Ronald Reagan supporters. The book argued that the ‘’failure to master the skill of consuming large amounts of alcohol will result in a lifetime of denied invitations. The cocktail`s ubiquitous presence proves that pleasure is life`s main concern’’ (Mattson, 2020, p.35). In 1983, Ian Mackaye from Minor Threat claimed that: ‘’straightedgers are a 'new breed of punks…I've got my head straight, my shit together, and I've got an advantage on you’’ (Wood, 2006, p.33).
I also briefly mentioned the intensification of lyrical condemnations of animal exploitation in 90s punk. And it is the issue of animal rights which became a fundamental element of straightedge identity during the late 1980s and persisted in the 90s. However, it was Krishnacore - a subgenre of hardcore punk which condemned animal exploitation and embraced Hare Krishna tradition. It was ‘‘the first time that hardcore and straight edge punks had to deal specifically with religion on an intellectual and personal level’’(Stewart, 2017,p.52). Furthermore krishnacore:
‘‘is consciously and appreciably a form of Hindu devotional practice, even if listeners unacquainted with bhakti-yoga might not recognize its departing from the aggressive norms of hardcore punk, nor comprehend the lyrics without knowledge of Hindu doctrine’’(Partridge and Moberg, 2019,p.328).
Krisnacore solidified in the late 1980s in North America’s secular hardcore scenes. It was not the Hinduism of North America’s immigrant communities that mixed with punk ‘‘but the youth-oriented missionary Hinduism of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, the movement better known for their public chanting as the ‘Hare Krishnas’’(Partridge and Moberg, 2023,p.327). The New York bands Shelter and 108 are considered to have established the subgenre.
Christopher Partridge and Marcus Moberg argue that it was actually the New York hardcore punk band Cro-Mags with their album The Age of Quarrel (1986) who was the earliest prominent punk band to embrace Krishna Consciousness. Whilst the music does not differ from other hardcore punk bands, the lyrics of krishnacore are ‘‘usually indecipherable without reference to the lyric sheets. The same is true of much Christian punk, which in both cases allows audiences to share the experiences of listening to the music without necessitating shared religious beliefs’’(Partridge and Moberg, 2023,p.328). However, this is definitely not the case with Denver`s Gothic Country scene of the 90s which incorporates punk elements and religious references. In case you missed it, check out these three post dedicated to gothic country music:
With all that said, this time I want to talk about krisnacore bands Cro-Mags and Shelter. Specifically their approach to music and politics, as well as highlight their strong identities and music. Punk can be a protest against the mainstream, however for these musicians and fans- it is a lifestyle.
Cro-Mags and Bloodclot
Cro-Mags is one of the most influential New York hardcore punk bands and was the first to combine hardcore punk with heavy metal. Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters, Nirvana) credited the band with having had a primal influence on their development. Before joining Nirvana, Grohl was in the punk band Scream and opened for Cro-Mags at CBGB. The band`s music video for "We Gotta Know"(1986) was one of the first to feature slam dancing and crowd surfing on MTV.SPIN in 1986 remarked about the band that they are:
‘‘well-behaved and soft-spoken. Nobody squirms or tells ‘'in’' jokes. They bring their own Perrier, answer all the questions, and don`t all talk at once. They don`t make comments about the interviewer`s legs just because she happens to be a girl, and they`re in a rock band. They are, in one word, mellow. But onstage they play such angry music’’(Stark, 1986)
Frontman John Joseph who is also in Bloodclot, states that when he met the legendary hardcore punk band Bad Brains, the first thing they told him: ‘‘was to get off the poisonous food and then the drugs’’. About spiritual progress and his vegan lifestyle he explains that:
‘‘You have to understand something, when you inject the flesh of animal that has been tortured, you are getting the bad karma of the animal. You cannot say that you want spirituality and peace and then you are killing six billion animals in this country per year. First, stop putting dead animals in your body. It makes you a more peaceful person. [This is] the first step in spiritual progress, not religious progress’’(Verducci, 2010).
He even has released his own book Meat Is for Pussies: A How-To Guide for Dudes Who Want to Get Fit, Kick Ass, and Take Names (2010). He is one of the first songwriters that introduced spirituality in punk rock and Krishna Consciousness. However, he ‘‘couldn't stand the whole Krishnacore genre of music’’(Verducci, 2010). In an interview for Punk News in 2010 he explained that ‘‘the Cro-Mags delivered their message with a base ball bat. We got down in the sewers with everyone else. We didn`t come from the suburbs of upper middle class families in Connecticut. We were living what we wrote about’’(Verducci, 2010). In ‘‘World Peace’’(1986) they deliver their message clear- world peace can`t be done or exist :
‘‘All you hippies better start to face reality
All your far fetched dreams of anarchy
Better start to see things the way they are
'cause the way things
Are going they won't be goin' farWorld peace can't be done
It just can't exist
World peace can't be done
Anarchy's a mess;Open your eyes, perhaps you'll realize
If aids don't get you then the warheads will’’
‘‘We Gotta Know’’(1986) deals with the struggle of the streets:
‘‘Strugglin' in the streets just trying to survive
Searchin' for the truth is just keepin' us alive
Gotta break these shackles gotta break these chains
Said the only way we'll do it is if we use our brains’’But the question is who'll go with the flow
You know there's gonna, be a fight!
Cause somebody's always tryin' to keep ya
From doing the right’’
John Joseph definitely won`t go with the flow and is not afraid to speak up. For Scars and Guitars podcast in 2022 (which was banned on Youtube and I highly encourage you to check it out), he expressed his views on left-wing politics whilst also stating that Trump is a ‘‘piece of shit too’’:
‘‘My mother said, this is not the Democratic party of back in the day. This is some different shit. Even Johnny Lydon said, who would`ve thought that the conservative Republicans would leave you the fuck alone and the liberal Democrats would be coming after your life the way they are…Like I said in ‘‘Unhinged’’(2022) - ‘‘All my heroes abandoned me’’, all the motherfuckers that I though would`ve stood up to this shit, got on their knees. Not only that, they simped for the government.’’ (Scars and Guitar, 2022).
He also called out the hypocrisy of Dave Grohl who was in Scream and Nirvana :
‘‘he gets up on stage with the Foo Fighters and sings Bad Brains lyrics about ‘‘The Regulator’’(1982) and ‘‘F.V.K’’ [Fearless Vampire Killers] (1982). And I said dude, how are you taking millions of dollars to play a VAX LIVE concert and vaccinated only shows and then get up and sing Bad Brains lyrics? The hypocrisy is mind boggling.’’(Scars and Guitar, 2022)
Furthermore he noted the hypocrisy in punk and metal music :
‘‘Punk Rock has gone off the fucking rails, hardcore has gone off the rails, metal has gone off the fucking rails. One minute they`re wearing shirts with demons and sacrificing animals and blood on stage…And then they are telling everybody you have to be vaccinated to come into our show’’ explains Joseph. (Scars and Guitar, 2022)
The band had a long feud and is split now. Long story short: Harley Flanegan gets the name Cro-Mags, while John Joseph and Maxwell Mackie Jayson now perform under the name, Cro-Mags “JM”.
Shelter, Youth Of Today & Better Than A Thousand
Ray Cappo came to prominence in the 1980s with his straight-edge group Youth of Today. Shelter was formed in 1991 and Better Than A Thousand in 1997. He became a celibate monk at a Krishna Bhakti Ashram for 6 years. *BTW he currently hosts the daily yoga podcast ‘‘WISDOM of the SAGES’’ which has been rated #1 Spiritual Podcast on iTunes. ‘‘In a decadent music scene infested with hard drugs, negativity and intoxication he was an anomaly, propounding clean living, a positive attitude and a vegetarian lifestyle, inspiring tens of thousands of fans internationally.’’ He explains that before he got into punk he already was straightedge and a vegetarian :
‘‘I didn’t take any drugs or alcohol – so in one sense it was a little bit weird. I was like a punk of the punks in one sense, because the punks were all totally into drugs and stuff like that, and if you weren’t, it was considered completely weird. Why would you not be into it? We’re an alternative. But to me, it was no alternative – because everybody’s getting wasted. I wanted the complete opposite of that, so I sort of became a complete outcast of the punk scene.’’(Pearlman, 2019)
The subculture was rejecting mainstream music, mainstream food, mainstream lifestyle and mainstream clothing. For Kerrang in 2019, when asked how important was for him to spread the message of Shelter (ISKCON), he replied:
‘‘I feel if you have a stage to say something that’s going to benefit people, why not use that stage? It’s almost like you get a platform to speak and if you have something good to say you can really affect people in a deep way – why would you waste that opportunity? For me, times were so problematic that I always felt myself like a mouthpiece of social change – which stems from your own personal change – and I still feel like it’s important to say those things.’’(Pearlman, 2019)
Cappo also stated that about his music that: ‘‘truthfully, a lot of the songs are more relevant today. One of our most popular records was Break Down The Walls [By Youth Of Today] – it doesn’t get any more relevant than that in America right now.”(Pearlman, 2019)
‘‘Break Down the Walls’’(1986) encourages to look beyond the fashions or the crowd, their riches, the colour of skin or appearance, and the truth, you will find:
‘‘I used to think that labels were just a symbol of pride
Over time, I've seen they only serve to divide
It's so easy to judge people by the way they seem to be
We must overcome this problem to live life peacefully’’
Shelter`s ‘‘Message Of The Bhagavat’’ (1995) also is relevant in the modern day. Similarly, like Cro-Mags ‘‘World Peace’’(1986), the song questions the order of the world:
‘‘The world's greatest brains create more problems not solutions,
Expand our bold stand there can be hope for modern man;Truth has been spoken for all mankind
And it's sad mad world when you can find
Man confined to the grind and they don't even mind
To be working for some jerk and leave their life behind
In illusion in confusion
And don't think there won't be any retributions
Expand our bold stand there can be hope for modern man’’
‘‘Demand Independence’’(1998) by Better Than A Thousand encourages the straightedge lifestyle and does not accept any excuses:
‘‘Slave to habit, a bottle, a pill-what will you do?
DEMAND INDEPENDENCE
You're losing your mind and you're losing your will
Is that really you?
"Hey I'm just growing up, I'm just having fun"
You're just on the run
You reach for excuses, but there are none
Should've never begun
Demand independence’’
Hola , Fascinante Ensayo. Cro - Mags , Eran Unos De Mis Grupos Favoritos De Los 90 , Aunque No Tenía Ni Idea , Del Mensaje Tan Poderoso , Que Practicaban. Un Saludo.