Ian MacKaye

“If you want to be a professional, you'll have to do something you don't want to do. If you're an amateur, you can do whatever you want.”

“Punk rock is a free space. It's a place where you can be yourself and not be judged.”

“I don't think punk ever really dies, because punk rock is a state of mind. It's not a genre of music.”

“The idea of a scene is that you have a community of people who are interested in the same thing.”

“I'm a person just like you. But I've got better things to do than sit around and fuck my head, hang out with the living dead, snort white shit up my nose, pass out at the shows.”

“We are not a political band. We are a band that has political songs.”

“Guilt is a wasted emotion.”

“You are not what you own.”

“D.I.Y. is not a genre. It is a way of life.”

“The first rule of Fight Club is you don't talk about Fight Club. The first rule of punk is you don't talk about punk.”

“I always have a problem with the word 'art'. I've never been able to define it.”

“I've always felt that the best lyrics are the ones that are so simple that they don't have to be explained.”

“Music is the vehicle that I use to do the things I do.”

“I think the most important thing is to be honest with yourself.”