Bad Copy

At this point in time, Punk Rock and Hardcore can be found all over the world. The ideology has spread so fast and so quickly that seemingly everybody went off to start a band and to create their own version of a Punk or Hardcore scene. Mexico is no exception; in the last 30 years, the genres have grown deep roots among the young people.

This has lead some adventurous producers to bring to the country the bands who helped cultivate this kind of music and became flagships of the genre. Bands such as The Ramones (at least the one who is still alive), PiL, Pennywise, Millencolin, GBH, The Addicts, Dwarves, Guttermouth, Madball, Terror, Bane, H20, Misfits (same case as The Ramones), Rancid, and Bad Religion have all set foot in our land. They’re bands that have a special place in the hearts of the Mexicans Punk and Hardcore fans.

Those of us who grew up listening to Punk Rock and Hardcore in the 90s and throughout the 2000s honestly never thought that we’d would only get a chance to see those bands perform live by flying to the US. But again, thanks to theses brave producers, that was a dream come true.

That being said, another dream come true was seeing Agnostic Front – the godfathers of the NY Hardcore, right there in flesh and blood for the fourth time in the city Guadalajara – playing at Foro Independencia.

In my hometown of Guadalajara, the venue Foro Independecia has been one of the keystones that has help grown the scene by bringing these amazing bands in and giving them a space to play. They also help out local media fanzines and concerts photographers begin their carriers as they spread the word about what is going on in the city. Thanks to them, Guadalajara has become one of the main cultural pillars of the country.

Agnostic Front played Foro Independecia back in 2015 and it was a complete riot. And now, four years later (damn, time does fly!), they came back for more good tacos and tortas ahogadas (a tradicional dish from my hometown). This time Agnostic had the support of the local hardcore bands – Omega, Real, and Beneath the Horror. Those bands are some of the best that the city has to offer; they’re always promoting the union and family values of the hardcore ideology. They are also constantly improving their sound and show, especially the kids of Omega and the good old Real. Both bands have a special place in the heart of the tapatios (as they call to the people of Guadalajara). They did a great job setting up the mood for the godfathers of NY Hardcore.

Having the legends Vinnie Stigma, Roger Miret, and the rest of the band with us again was both fun and amazing. During the 2015 show, Vinne wore a Steelers poncho and a mariachi hat at the end of their set showing the love they have for their Mexican fans. This show was a part of their 35^th anniversary tour of their album Victim in Pain, so everyone in the crowd was excited and wondered what the show was going to be like. Expectation were high to say the least. And spoiler alert: they were more than fulfilled.

This time around, Vinne decided to wear a Mexican wrestling mask when the band took to the stage, saying hi with their powerful brand of hardcore. Everyone in the venue instantly went bananas.

Since the band has been around for 35 years, it was not surprise to see the crowd packed with people ranging between 25 years old and up. However, what was curious (and cool) is that almost half of the audience seemed to be filled with kids below 25. This only goes to show that they are the future for our scene. The younger kids took to the pit with karate kicks. But when the old wolves came in and started up a real mosh pit, they young bloods seemed scared and a bit clueless about what was going on. They stood to the side and learned their lesson about how to enjoy a good hardcore show… without fighting against the air.

Man! As I said before, always is amazing to see Agnostic Front live; they are such a fun and energetic band and they might have more energy than all of us. There’s Vinnie doing funny faces, posing, dancing and running around the stage, and really connecting with the audience. And then there’s Roger and the rest of the band throwing out all they have right beside Vinnie’s antics. Everyone onstage performed as if no time had ever passed. You could tell by their faces how happy they were by playing together after all this years and that reflected in the enthusiasm of the Mexican crew, singing and moshing as one familia. Roger was asking about his familia and there was the Mexican familia chanting as one, throughout the whole show, boys and girls alike.

Agnostic Front has the power to turn those not into Punk and Hardcore into instant fans. Two of my friends who went to the show loved them and said they’d be going to more punk gigs.

The band was really grateful and moved by with the Mexican audience’s reactions. So Vinnie and Roger took a few moments to express their love before closing the night playing a cover of The Ramones’ famous “Blitzkrieg Bop.” As you may expect, everybody went nuts. It was such a fantastic way to seal the deal.

Check out photo coverage of the night: