D.O.A. - May 23, 1985

Punks then and today are largely left wing in their attitudes sans the statist parochialism. Toleration, anti racist attitudes permeated the culture up and down, so there would not have been any peace for a band called "Beat Nigs" under the obvious interpretation of the name.  That said, the Beat Nigs were a San Fransisco experimental hardcore band of African Americans, riffing on the name Beatniks. Aware of the problematic nature, they made their name one word sometime after all this.

D.R.I. - April 26, 1987

Easy in my top 5 acts of all time - Texas's Dirty Rotten Imbeciles. Their first album was notoriously fast and almost unmusical but they went on to powerfully influence, if not create, crossover and metalcore. The "skank man" icon was among my most frequent doodles in the margins and notebooks of everything I possessed. Not sure who backed them on this leg through S.F.

D.O.A - April 22, 1987

This must have been a great one. D.O.A. are legends and it is from them whom we get the term "hardcore" as it applied to the musical diversion from "punk". Great band - Verbal Abuse and MDC too.

The Swans - April 12, 1986

The mice got to this one as well it appears. I know the Swans are big deal in experimental rock circles, but they are another that isn't my thing at all. First appearance of Mabuhay Gardens - we'll see that place again a lot. I was there only once where I saw Possessed at maybe their last show before a long breakup in the summer of 1987.