Quote

When you're in a band and write a song on your own, it isn't fully realized until it goes into somebody else's ears.

Ian MacKaye

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Ian MacKaye
Age: 62
Born: 1962
Born: April 16
Composer
Guitarist
Singer
Washington
District of Columbia
Else
Fully
Writing
Realized
Ears
Band
Goes
Somebody
Song
Write

More quotes by Ian MacKaye

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An unlocked door means that, occasionally, you might get a devil come in, but a locked door means you have thousands of angels just walk by.
Ian MacKaye
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It's so interesting that humanity has to be defined by emotional strife or something. I don't buy into that.
Ian MacKaye
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I'm always happy when I hear about people selling records or selling books or selling movies. It makes me proud of them.
Ian MacKaye
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I always appreciate when people save, and more importantly, share. As we speak, there are people in this world - mostly men - who have giant collections of recordings that no one will ever hear. And the value of that collection is almost defined by the fact that nobody else can hear it.
Ian MacKaye
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We were not a band that typically would say, Hello, Whatever Town!
Ian MacKaye
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Trenchmouth, really great band. Here's a photo of them in 1979 playing the Valley Green projects. It was an incredible, unusual experience. We ran a cord through the window and plugged the PA and amps into that and played right in the courtyard. It was an incredible experience. It was just local kids.
Ian MacKaye
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Yeah, if someone's selling downloads and collecting money for our songs I would be unhappy about that but if they're trading it I don't mind, obviously if I make a thousand records or CDs or whatever, I like to sell a thousand.
Ian MacKaye
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I think it's my nature to engage in things that are more difficult.
Ian MacKaye
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The amount of money that people spend on saving stuff, they try to feed you this idea that it's more important.
Ian MacKaye
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I appreciate the past, but I want to make new things. That's the problem with the sack on the back - if you carry it around with you, it's like you get hobbled.
Ian MacKaye
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When people who are songwriters say 'That's my property and if you give it away for free then I'll lose my incentive,' then, well, good riddance.
Ian MacKaye
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Archiving is extremely expensive and time consuming. I'm sure an archivist would tell me I'm doing it wrong. It's an industry that's built upon essential ideas, and some of those practices are abusive.
Ian MacKaye
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I have other projects to do. I try not to let that documentation interfere with my present day.
Ian MacKaye
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I had a bartender friend once tell me about a $14.00 shot of vodka, this was years ago it's probably more now. I thought that was crazy. From what I understand, vodka has no taste. I think people like the taste of their money.
Ian MacKaye
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The first time I ever recorded, which was into my boom-box, I was like, 'Wow, check that out.' It sounded great. The narcotic of it was so intense - it was pleasurable. I was like, 'You sound like a band.' Then I ended up spending the rest of my life trying to chase that initial high again.
Ian MacKaye
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Structures can be manipulated for ill as well, especially when people are dealing with issues of power, or control, or violence.
Ian MacKaye
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Every song I ever wrote, I wrote to be heard. So, if I was given a choice that 50 years from now I could either have a dollar or knowing that some kid was listening to my song, I'd go with the kid listening to my song.
Ian MacKaye
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If people want new music then they are going to have to figure out a way to be patrons of the arts. And they will.
Ian MacKaye
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At every election, my vote goes to the candidate less likely to declare war. You're dropping hugely expensive pieces of exploding metal on a population. America deserves the president it gets, whether the country votes for them or allows their vote to be stolen, and the least we can do is to elect someone who won't do that to other people.
Ian MacKaye
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For most people who have or who do identify as or with [song] Straight Edge, I feel like for most people, they're just trying to do the right thing.
Ian MacKaye