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Life & Arts

Good Clean Fun to bring ... you know

Punk band will show youngsters what the scene is all about

by JASON GAGNON
The Daily Cougar

There was a time that now seems so long ago, when the punk and hardcore scenes were self-policing. If there were a band that was exploiting and degrading some of the finer points of the subculture bands, kids and zines would go on the warpath to do whatever they could to rid their scene of the disease. Now that punk is no longer a four-letter word, having become the new corporate rock with hardcore dangerously following in its footsteps, there is a need now more than ever for a band to rage against the stupidity. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Good Clean Fun back onto the battlefield.

The excellent Washington, D.C.- based band is proudly straight edge, with a positive mindset that openly ridicules and mocks the punk and hardcore scenes today. But whereas some straight edge groups alienated fans with endless preaching, Good Clean Fun doesn't relentlessly assert that a drug and alcohol free lifestyle is the only way, which has allowed it to unify all the disillusioned kids who feel that their scene is being raped by soulless, money-hungry bands and labels. The band is the voice of reason in a subculture that is often more stupid than smart.

On its latest album, Between Christian Rock and a Hard Place, the band returns in full force as they continue to brilliantly "put the ‘HA' back in hardcore." Good Clean Fun's style hasn't changed one bit -- intentionally gratuitous gang vocals, short, sweet and blisteringly good hardcore music, plenty of smack talk, and a graceful balance of equal parts youthful idealism and juvenile mockery.

"A Little Bit Emo, A Little Bit Hardcore" joyfully makes fun of the clichés of both musical genres and cultures, and "It's Fun to be a Vampire" rips on goth kids far better than the Saturday Night Live skit "Goth Talk" ever did. And on the other side of the coin they have songs to get you re-energized about punk and hardcore. The finest line of the disc is, "punk will scream what corporate rock can't say," and on the political tip there's "Drug War," which has the band openly condemning our nation's drug policy. 

But the crown jewel here is the hilarious "The MySpace Song." The music is the worst kind of acoustic-emo imaginable and it's a story about love being lost via an Internet romance on MySpace.com ("But Tom it's your fault/ You created a monster!"). Ironically, the song seems to be the next evolution in the morose, whiny emo genre, which makes it a stroke of genius considering the band's foresight.

It's probably fair to estimate that 90 percent of kids who consider themselves to be in the punk scene have never actually experienced a real punk rock show in their lives. So, if you're looking to learn what it's really about or just need to be reminded about, how powerful this music can be, head on over to Walter's tonight and witness the excellence of Good Clean Fun.
 

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