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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When someone writes a really nasty piece about me. I think they're generally untrue because I think I'm a nice person.
Ian MacKaye
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The thing is, people can't complain about profit-oriented moves if they're only interested in profit themselves. You can't have it both ways. If they're willing to polish up a gift and sell it to make money, they can't really complain about the fact that somebody above them has sold them down the river. That's the way it goes.
Ian MacKaye
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I don't watch TV but occasionally I'll read the Washington Post. I will say that sports are the only real thing on television.
Ian MacKaye
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I feel quite connected to the past, and my memory. Everything that I've ever done I can still relate to, and feel connected to it in a way. There's no part of my life that I look at and go, 'I don't recognize that person at all.
Ian MacKaye
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I think what we took away from first hearing about the punk stuff in England and then the early American punk stuff was a sense of self-definition and also sort of playing music for music's sake and being part of a family for family's sake.
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 actually looked up in my journal trying to figure out some dates and, in January 1991, America is about to go back into its first sort of actual war since Vietnam, with the Gulf War. It just seemed unbelievable at the time that this country would do that - which is funny to think about now.
Ian MacKaye
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Let's say for instance people say, He's a really totalitarian, strict guy, he's hard to work with or whatever. I don't think it's true, but people's perception of me leads that direction, like I'm a fundamentalist person. I end up having to spend extra time saying, I'm not a fundamentalist. I have other stuff to do.
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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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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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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It makes me sad, the way human beings talk smack. It's why I don't like irony. People are too gleeful to put some teeth into something.
Ian MacKaye
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Part of the way the work world works is not so much creating a separation between your work and your free time, but creating the illusion of a separation between your work and your free time. Every day is the weekend for me, which means I'm always busy.
Ian MacKaye
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I jump from one thing to the next but try and strike a balance. But it's not nostalgic in the sense of 'those were the good old days and now we're not there'. I don't think like that. Not my way.
Ian MacKaye
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The Corcoran show was actually almost a reportage. The exhibit was, in many ways, pretty unique. It was one of the first pieces about DC culture that doesn't include some marble building or the Kennedy Center.
Ian MacKaye
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The archiving industry, much like the funeral industry and the wedding industry, these industries can be very exploitative.
Ian MacKaye
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Now anyone can move anywhere. I've made deep connections with people around the world since I tour everywhere that I will simply never see again.
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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In the late 90s, there was a reverse. Everyone would stand stock still and be so attentive and quiet. But then, it was almost like, C'mon people! Engage - make a show with us! You can hear these different eras pass through in the recordings.
Ian MacKaye