Dance of Days: Two Decades of Punk in the Nation's Capital

by Mark Jenkins and Mark Andersen

"A truly compelling narrative . . . a powerful piece of cultural reporting." --Washington Post

Washington, DC's creative, politically insurgent punk scene is studied for the first time by local activist Mark Andersen and arts writer Mark Jenkins. The nation's capital gave birth to the most influential punk underground of the '80s and '90s. Dance of Days recounts the rise of trailblazing artists such as Bad Brains, Henry Rollins, Minor Threat,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1933354992
• ISBN13: 9781933354996
• Release Date: December 2009
• Publisher: Akashic Books, Ltd.
• Length: 440 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 7.9" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

Must Read

I moved to DC because of the music, plain and simple. And this is a wonderful reminder of how great it was to be in a community of incredible creative people who were also passionate about politics and social change.

HARDcore

I loved reading this book. I even saw some of my good friends past and present in here. A must have for the DC Hardcore fan, what a great birthday present I give it 6 stars!

Very good

This book is not very well written, but it gives a very intresting view into the Washington D.C. punk scene. Mark Anderson, a former suicidal for whom the Sex Pistols and punk in general saved his life, knows what hes talking about. From the first punk show at a heavy metal club, a band called Overkill, to the Slickee Boys and Urban Verbs, to the Cramps Hall of Nations show, which inspired many punk there to get into it (including Ian McKaye and Henry Garfield who you know as Henry Rollins), to the Bad Brains and PMA, to the foundations of harDCore, beginning with Teen Idles and the Untouchables and expanding into one of the best bands ever, Minor Threat, and going into the 90s, with Nirvana, which actually has DC connections, to the punk civil war between sellouts and true underground punks. If you like punk, buy this. It will transform you from simply listening to punk music and into being a true punk, who lives out the true punk lifestyle. A must read. Has been compared with Jon Savage's England Dreaming.

Brings Back Memories of My Own Experiences

This book really brought back fond memories for me as well as providing insight into the inception of the music scene that inspired me to take up the drums and play with a hardcore band through my high-school years. Although I'm not from the DC area, The scene that I grew up in outside Philadelphia was heavily influenced by bands such as Bad Brains, Minor Threat, Ignition, Fugazi, Embrace, Jawbox, Shudder to Think etc... It warms my heart to see my favorite bands of all time and the political and social ideas that went hand in hand with the music being given the same kind of reverence as the bands that changed the world for my parents in the 60's. Thanks to Mark Andersen and Mark Jenkins for such a fantastic book!

Andersen and Jenkins deliver.

I was part of punk in the early days in DC and got away from it when the skinheads started rampaging. I am very happy to see an honest, accurate, thorough, and well-written documentary of the scene. The book goes well beyond band bios and delves deeply into the art and philosophy that emerged from the scene--both good (Ian)and bad (skinheads). To honor the authors, I'm donating my copy of the book to the local library to help spread the word after I reread a couple of things . Someone out there needs it. I think the Marks would like that.Nice job guys.