I
had the opportunity to interview Boy Sets Fire this past summer,
and I now have been given another opportunity to write about them.
I want to share with others why they are more than an essential
part of the hardcore genre of music, but also, why they will go
down in music history. Much of my respect comes from this one
fact: besides Rob Halford, of Judas Priest, Boy Sets Fire's frontman
(Nathan Gray) is one of the only openly gay musicians in the hardcore
scene, and is active as one of the most political members of this
pro-communist band. Makes for an interesting stage presence, eh?
The fact that Gray owns these two aspects of himself and is comfortable
within this hardcore scene empowers not only myself, but many
others. BSF have impressed me in so many ways, it almost puts
other bands in this genre to shame. And to think, all this generated
from a small town in Delaware...
I remember the first time I heard BSF. I was working for a charity
snowboarding camp at the time, and
I needed to raise money for the next session. So, myself and all
the other counselors and volunteers were trying to coordinate
fund raisers. I decided to book a benefit show, where all proceeds
went to this camp. My headlining band bailed on me at the last
minute for very understandable reasons, which I won't go into.
That left me in the predicament of coming up with a good filler
in a matter of a week or so. A friend mentioned to me that I should
contact Boy Sets Fire, from Delaware. I found out, as luck would
have it, that they were recording in Connecticut (with Morgan
Walker of 800 pound Gorilla) the very weekend of my show. Morgan
hooked me up with the band, and they agreed - thank you Morgan!-
to play, since it fit right into there schedule. I had never heard
them play before my show, so it was an intense decision to make.
But then, Boy Sets Fire started to play. It wasn't the guitar
riffs, or the drum beats that caught my attention. It's when I
was able to pause for a moment--in between getting the freight
elevator for bands to unload, and collecting money--that I heard
Nathan singing 'Resection' (off there 1997 album,MagicBullet Records):
This crying / this screaming / my voice is being born. I encourage
any person who has never appreciated, or wanted to give hardcore
a break to listen to BSF. Nathan's lyrics are valient to say the
least. God that's only to say the least! If asked, I could write
pages just on how much his lyrics have meant to me since that
day.
It's crucial to speak about BSF's political views and opinions
because they are not what you find so often within the hardcore
scene or even generally within the music world. They are also
views that have been misconstrued and interpreted by their audience
and fans. BSF are pro-communist, and when given the chance very
outspoken about it. Each of them had their own beliefs before
they met, and pooled them together once forming the band. Although
it appears that the singer, Nathan, is the communist - he is backed
by the other members full-heartedly. Because so many fans misunderstand
their intentions, I wanted to ask them about the symbols they
use to represent them.
NOTE: Boy Sets Fire is comprised of Matthew Krupanski, Nathan
Gray, Chad Istyan, Joshua Iatshaw
& Rob Avery ( I also want to mention Darrell Hyde, ex-bass
player, who was a member for the first 5
years, and had much to contribute.)
PRESSGURL:In the past a lot of your stickers resembled symbols
from the Stalin era. Why would you
choose something that looks like that?
C: It has nothing to do with Stalin, it's Constructivist. It's
an art form that came out right after the Russian Revolution that
was Constructivist. Basically it was simple, and it said exactly
what it meant. Does that make sense? It said what it was supposed
to say. You didn't have to read into it. You looked at it, and
it was bold it was strong, and it was working class. And that
is what drew us into using a lot of that art- work. None of it
is Stalinism. There is a difference between Communism and Soviet-ism.
We try to draw that line, we certainly would never ever EVER condone
the actions of the soviet nation. When we were in Hungary people,
would come up to us and ask us what the fuck is that all about?
Why the hell would you use that sort of Symbolism, and it was
like - this is the symbolism that the working class chose, and
that the working class used, and then it was picked up and exploited,
but we didn't necessarily choose the exploited materials. We chose
other styles that was as, you put it, Stalin-esque, but it was
not used by Stalin, and it did not come from that group of art
work.
PRESSGURL: But why use something that represents or reminds…
C: To us it didn't mean that. To us it was blunt, it meant truth;
this is how we feel, this is where we are
coming from. And like I said before, people did say to us, why
would you guys have used this symbol,
these people bombed my village, these people killed my parents
- and we try explaining that that's not
our intention. Our intention was, we are working class people.
This is something that symbolizes that. It is a very strong art
form.
PRESSGURL: Now did they understand that, were they understanding?
C: No, actually they were screaming "We love Floorpunch,
[another hardcore band] fuck Boy Sets
Fire" (CHAD)
J: I mean what symbol can you have that's not going to offend
people? Ok here is situation: I have this
argument with a friend at home and we were talking about the Confederate
flag, and my personal
opinion is that the Confederate Flag just stands for the south.
Yes the South did have slaves, but so did the north, and just
because to some people it's the symbol of slavery and of asshole
racism, yet to southern people that's ok, because they love being
southern, and it just stands for Southern pride. It's a separation
of opinion…(JOSH)
It's important to hear how someone means to deliver one message
or choose a symbol that is so pure to them, but to watch it be
warped and misconstrued. I have heard many times, that BoySetsFire
are
pro-communistic, and support Stalin type rulings. Obviously, and
hopefully this rumor is layed to rest.
My best friend and I live together, and have been friends for
over 7 years now. When we met, we both
knew that the other was gay. There was a strong security in that.
We had a lot of the same interests,like music. However, over the
years we have formed our own ideas of what "good music"
is and have really gone in separate directions. Around the age
of 16 I found hardcore and metal music, which really helped me
release my anger and animosity for whatever reasons that I had.
My best friend has leaned more in the direction of grrrl bands--at
the beginning mainly gay grrrrl bands--and that was where she
connected and found security. I wanted to, but honestly I just
like heavy music, and aggression. However this is where I found
problems. I have always felt comfortable within the hardcore scene,
but just on the borders of it. I don't think of the scene as being
very liberal, and never freely tell people within the scene that
I'm gay...maybe from fear that I will be rejected. When I saw
Nathan (Gray) up on stage at my show, I knew right away he was
gay. Well, actually to be perfectly honest, at first I was skeptical
and thought maybe he was making fun, but it turned out my intuition
was right. I couldn't believe that there was a gay man up on stage,
in a hardcore band no less. Blowing away all stereo types, and
basically not afraid to be who he is.
I think in a lot of ways (as cheezy as this comes off) BSF have
become quite the hero to many kids, gay
or not, not just in the hardcore scene, but across the board in
all different music genres. BSF recorded a split 7" record
with the Syracuse, NY band, Snapcase, in 1999. On that record
is the song, 'Unspoken Request'. When I first heard it, I became
very emotional. For an all guy-hardcore-band to sing about rape
in such a way...I was floored. At the end of the song, the lyrics
speak volumes about how society justifies this unspeakable crime:
He will never think he's wrong
she will never feel quite right
you will never think you're wrong
she will never feel quite right
When I first heard this, I showed it to so many of my girlfriends,
I couldn't believe that they would sing
about this in such a true way, with such understanding.
J:
You know, actually the thing that I think is cool about our band,
is that you watch a lot of hardcore
bands live and the front row is all guys. But for us, it's a really
healthy mix." (JOSH)
C: "It's not as though it's girls going 'oh my god - it's
them' it's that they really feel comfortable to come upfront,
and I believe that they can relate to what we are saying."
(CHAD)
During my interview with BSF I was able to ask Nathan if anyone
had ever thanked him personally, or
out'd themselves to him. To be honest he didn't have much to say,
and wasn't very interested in the topic. I don't think Nathan
thinks of it as a big deal… He would much rather talk about
the band's political views. He did have to say that yes, some
people have come up to him and talked about it, "but mostly
those kids just want to come up and say hi, not really want to
broach the topic" He "understands they might be scared
or feel weird about it." But whatever, he's happy just being
who he is. Chad sums it up with a funny story:
"The funny thing is that Nathan officially came "out"
on stage in one town and then the night after that he said the
same thing in another, and people were saying later 'well when
he came out in Philly it was a lot better'!" Like it's something
he does every night!
From a female perspective, I never thought I would come across
a band in this male dominant, genre of
music to touch on topics like this that are so needed to be sung
about. I can't say enough how much I
admire Nathan, and BoySetsFire for their boldness. I don't know
if they are aware, but they are generating a movement … and
I am going to be part of it.
BOY
SETS FIRE by 
