Profane Existence
Encyclopedia
The Profane Existence Collective (referred to occasionally as 'P.E.') is a Minneapolis-based anarcho-punk collective. Established in 1989, the collective publishes a nationally-known zine
(also called "Profane Existence"), as well as releasing and distributing anarcho-punk
, crust
, and grindcore
music, and printing and publishing pamphlets and literature. Stacy Thompson describes the collective as “the largest, longest-lasting, and most influential collective in Anarcho-Punk so far.” The collective folded in 1998, although its distribution arm, then called Blackened Distribution, continued operating. It restarted in 2000. "Making punk a threat again" is the group's slogan.
In 1992 the group copublished (with Maximum Rock n Roll) the first edition of Book Your Own Fuckin' Life, a directory (organized by region) of bands, distributors, venues, houses where "touring bands or traveling punks could sleep and sometimes eat for free," etc.--what Thompson describes as a "Yellow Pages of sorts" for "touring punk bands and punks in general."
Profane Existence Records, the collective’s record label, was also founded in 1989. One of the label's first releases was "Extinction," the seminal New York City crust punk
band Nausea
's only full-length album, which John Griffin describes as "as important to the punks of the '90s as The Sex Pistols' Never Mind the Bollocks was to the punks of the late '70s." Another notable early release was Asbestosdeath
's second 7", "Dejection"; Asbestosdeath's members went on to form the metal bands Sleep
, High on Fire
, and Om
. Throughout the early and mid-1990s, Profane Existence released or distributed records by many other crust bands, including Doom
, Misery, Fleas and Lice
, Anarcrust, Counterblast, Dirt
, and Hellbastard
. Thompson writes that the label “became ground zero for [the crust] movement” and that the aesthetic of second-wave (i.e., beginning in the late 1980s) anarcho-punk “is currently exemplified by the bands released” on the label. More recently, the label has released music by bands like Behind Enemy Lines
, MURDER DISCO X, Iskra
, and The Cooters
.
The collective is referenced by former Minnesotans The Hold Steady
on their album "Separation Sunday
" in the song "Stevie Nix", which contains the lyrics, "When we hit the Twin Cities, I didn't know that much about it / I knew Mary Tyler Moore
and I knew Profane Existence."
Punk zine
A punk zine is a zine devoted to punk culture, most often punk rock music, bands, or the DIY punk ethic. Punk zines are the most likely place to find punk literature....
(also called "Profane Existence"), as well as releasing and distributing anarcho-punk
Anarcho-punk
Anarcho-punk is punk rock that promotes anarchism. The term anarcho-punk is sometimes applied exclusively to bands that were part of the original anarcho-punk movement in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s and early 1980s...
, crust
Crust punk
Crust punk is a form of music influenced by anarcho-punk, hardcore punk and extreme metal. The style, which evolved in the mid-1980s in England, often has songs with dark and pessimistic lyrics that linger on political and social ills...
, and grindcore
Grindcore
Grindcore is an extreme genre of music that started in the early- to mid-1980s. It draws inspiration from some of the most abrasive music genres – including death metal, industrial music, noise and the more extreme varieties of hardcore punk....
music, and printing and publishing pamphlets and literature. Stacy Thompson describes the collective as “the largest, longest-lasting, and most influential collective in Anarcho-Punk so far.” The collective folded in 1998, although its distribution arm, then called Blackened Distribution, continued operating. It restarted in 2000. "Making punk a threat again" is the group's slogan.
History
Launched in 1989, the Profane Existence magazine has been described as "the largest of the anarchist Punk fanzines in North America." The magazine deals with a very broad range of topics, including veganism, animal, women's and minority rights, anti-fascist action and the punk lifestyle. It publishes feature articles, interviews, reports on local scenes around the world, editorials, letters, "how-to" articles, and so on. Thompson writes that the zine “functions as [a newspaper] for many Anarcho-Punks, especially those in the Twin Cities area." Until it ceased publication in 1998 Profane Existence was free in the Twin Cities and cost $1–3 elsewhere; then as now customers who order the zine through the mail are only charged for shipping. The zine was initially published in a black and white tabloid format. It switched to an 8½ x 11” magazine format with issue #23 (Autumn 1994) but returned to a tabloid format (now with color front and back covers) with issue #38 (Spring 2000).In 1992 the group copublished (with Maximum Rock n Roll) the first edition of Book Your Own Fuckin' Life, a directory (organized by region) of bands, distributors, venues, houses where "touring bands or traveling punks could sleep and sometimes eat for free," etc.--what Thompson describes as a "Yellow Pages of sorts" for "touring punk bands and punks in general."
Profane Existence Records, the collective’s record label, was also founded in 1989. One of the label's first releases was "Extinction," the seminal New York City crust punk
Crust punk
Crust punk is a form of music influenced by anarcho-punk, hardcore punk and extreme metal. The style, which evolved in the mid-1980s in England, often has songs with dark and pessimistic lyrics that linger on political and social ills...
band Nausea
Nausea (band)
Nausea was an American crust punk band from New York City in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, active from 1985-1992. Nausea is usually cited as being integral in the rise of American crust punk, a fusion of anarcho-punk and thrash metal styles....
's only full-length album, which John Griffin describes as "as important to the punks of the '90s as The Sex Pistols' Never Mind the Bollocks was to the punks of the late '70s." Another notable early release was Asbestosdeath
Asbestosdeath
Asbestosdeath was an American sludge/doom metal band from San Jose, California, and the precursor to the highly influential Sleep.-History:Asbestosdeath started life as trio consisting of Al Cisneros on bass, Chris Hakius on drums, and Tom Choi on guitar. Matt Pike later joined as a second guitarist...
's second 7", "Dejection"; Asbestosdeath's members went on to form the metal bands Sleep
Sleep (band)
Sleep is a stoner doom metal band from San Jose, California. Active during the 1990s, Sleep earned critical and record label attention early in their career. Critic Eduardo Rivadavia describes them as "perhaps the ultimate stoner rock band" and notes they exerted a strong influence on heavy metal...
, High on Fire
High on Fire
High on Fire is a stoner metal band from Oakland, California, that was formed in 1998. Matt Pike, the band's frontman and founder, previously played guitar for the influential stoner doom band Sleep.-History:...
, and Om
Om (band)
Om is a duo formed in 2003 by the rhythm section of the disbanded Stoner doom metal band Sleep. The band's first three albums feature Al Cisneros on vocals and bass and Chris Hakius on drums. Their music is similar in structure to Tibetan chanting....
. Throughout the early and mid-1990s, Profane Existence released or distributed records by many other crust bands, including Doom
Doom (UK band)
Doom are an English crust punk band from Birmingham, England, whose first, influential lineup were together from 1987 to 1990. Despite its short existence, the band is considered pivotal in the rise of crust punk, a style within the punk rock subgenre that fuses extreme metal with anarcho-punk...
, Misery, Fleas and Lice
Fleas and Lice
Fleas and Lice are a crust punk band from Groningen, Netherlands. Three of the members were originally part of Mushroom Attack, also from Holland. Their records have been released by Skuld Releases in Europe, and Profane Existence Records and Rodent Popsicle Records in the United States...
, Anarcrust, Counterblast, Dirt
DIRT (band)
DIRT were an anarcho-punk band from the UK. Initially formed in 1980 , the band frequently played with fellow anarchists Crass, before releasing their first EP, Object, Refuse, Reject, Abuse on the Crass Records label...
, and Hellbastard
Hellbastard
Hellbastard are a thrash metal/crust punk band, formed in 1984/5 in the United Kingdom. Members "Scruff Lewty" and "Scotty" met at a Subhumans gig and soon after formed Hellbastard, which was to be a combination of Crass-like politics and the music of Slayer...
. Thompson writes that the label “became ground zero for [the crust] movement” and that the aesthetic of second-wave (i.e., beginning in the late 1980s) anarcho-punk “is currently exemplified by the bands released” on the label. More recently, the label has released music by bands like Behind Enemy Lines
Behind Enemy Lines (band)
Behind Enemy Lines is an American crust punk band, based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in a crossover style of anarchist crust punk and thrash metal. The band features vocalist Dave Trenga and drummer Matt Garabedian, both of Aus-Rotten, and formerly guitarist Bill Chamberlain of The Pist...
, MURDER DISCO X, Iskra
Iskra (band)
Iskra is a Canadian anarchist, thrash, and black metal project founded in Victoria, British Columbia in 2002. Their name means "spark" in Russian ....
, and The Cooters
The Cooters (band)
The Cooters are a punk rock band from Mississippi. Based out of the northern hill country town of Oxford , the band has been touring and recording since 1993. The Cooters are well known in the state and have dealt with controversy, trademark lawsuits, and even prison sentences...
.
The collective is referenced by former Minnesotans The Hold Steady
The Hold Steady
The Hold Steady is an American indie rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2004. The band consists of Craig Finn , Tad Kubler , Galen Polivka , Bobby Drake , and Steve Selvidge...
on their album "Separation Sunday
Separation Sunday
Separation Sunday is the second studio album by The Hold Steady, released on May 3, 2005 through Frenchkiss Records. A concept album, Separation Sunday follows the stories of Craig , Holly , a sometimes addict, sometimes prostitute, sometimes born again Christian/Catholic ; Charlemagne, a pimp; and...
" in the song "Stevie Nix", which contains the lyrics, "When we hit the Twin Cities, I didn't know that much about it / I knew Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore is an American actress, primarily known for her roles in television sitcoms. Moore is best known for The Mary Tyler Moore Show , in which she starred as Mary Richards, a 30-something single woman who worked as a local news producer in Minneapolis, and for her earlier role as...
and I knew Profane Existence."
Profane Existence Magazine Featured Artists
Profane Existence Magazine has regularly featured some of the most prominent punk visual artists in underground punk culture. The featured artists are known for illustrating punk album covers, magazines, showing their work in galleries or for their work as activists.- 58- “Hush” a.k.a. Jeremy Clark, best known for illustrating Slug and LettuceSlug and Lettuce (fanzine)Slug and Lettuce is a free newsprint punk zine started in New York City and currently based in Richmond, Virginia. Its byline reads "A zine supporting the Do-It-Yourself ethics of the punk community". It is published quarterly and in spring 2012, it will be twenty five years old...
. - 56 - Amy Toxic (illustrated for Alternative TentaclesAlternative TentaclesAlternative Tentacles is an independent record label originally based in San Francisco, California and was established in 1979. It was originally used as the label name by the Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single "California Über Alles", and after realizing the potential for an independent...
, Toxic NarcoticToxic NarcoticToxic Narcotic is an American crust punk band from Boston, Massachusetts who formed in 1989. Though many label them crust or hardcore, they do not self-identify with any one specific subgenre of DIY punk. Their songs typically include anti war, violence, and green peace lyrics...
, Caustic ChristCaustic ChristCaustic Christ were a hardcore punk band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They were on Havoc Records.- History :In late 2000, Bill Chamberlain quit his band React and moved from Connecticut to Pittsburgh to start a band with guitarist/vocalist Eric Good and bassist Corey Lyons of Aus-Rotten...
, The Boston Phoenix,) Married to a member of Toxic NarcoticToxic NarcoticToxic Narcotic is an American crust punk band from Boston, Massachusetts who formed in 1989. Though many label them crust or hardcore, they do not self-identify with any one specific subgenre of DIY punk. Their songs typically include anti war, violence, and green peace lyrics...
. - 55 – Matt Garabedian – (drummer and illustrator for Aus-RottenAus-RottenAus-Rotten was an American crust punk band, from 1991 to 2001 formed in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Part of the DIY underground, its members practiced and promoted a philosophy of anarchism and far-left sociopolitics....
and Behind Enemy LinesBehind Enemy Lines (band)Behind Enemy Lines is an American crust punk band, based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in a crossover style of anarchist crust punk and thrash metal. The band features vocalist Dave Trenga and drummer Matt Garabedian, both of Aus-Rotten, and formerly guitarist Bill Chamberlain of The Pist...
.) - 54- FlyFlyTrue flies are insects of the order Diptera . They possess a pair of wings on the mesothorax and a pair of halteres, derived from the hind wings, on the metathorax...
a New York City artist and activist. (Book “Peops”, illustrating Slug and LettuceSlug and LettuceSlug and Lettuce can refer to one of the following:*Slug and Lettuce , a fanzine in the United States*Slug and Lettuce , a pub chain in the United Kingdom...
, mural at ABC No RioABC No RioABC No Rio is a social center located at 156 Rivington Street on New York City's Lower East Side that was founded in 1980. It features a gallery space, a zine library, a darkroom, a silkscreening studio, and public computer lab...
.) - 48- “Steve” (From Visions of War, illustrated Profane Existence merchandise)
- 47- Kieran Plunkett- (illustrated for UK SubsUK SubsThe U.K. Subs are an English punk rock band, among the earliest in the first wave of British punk. Formed in 1976, the mainstay of the band has been vocalist Charlie Harper, originally a singer in Britain's R&B scene. They were also one of the first street punk bands.-Career:The U.K...
, The RestartsThe RestartsThe Restarts are a street punk band from London, England.They formed in 1995 in London with Darragh on drums, Kieran from Armed and Hammered on bass, and Mik on the guitar. They played many shows in the UK with their three-piece until Mik left, at which point Alan joined the band...
) - 46 – “Mid” aka Rob Middleton (illustrated for Napalm DeathNapalm DeathNapalm Death are a death metal band formed in Birmingham, England in 1981. While none of its original members remain in the group, the lineup of vocalist Mark "Barney" Greenway, bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mitch Harris and drummer Danny Herrera has remained consistent for most of the band's ...
and Extreme Noise TerrorExtreme Noise TerrorExtreme Noise Terror are a British crust punk / grindcore band originally formed in Ipswich, England in 1985. The band are widely considered one of the earliest and most influential European grindcore bands, and particularly the forefathers of the crustgrind subgenre.Notable for one of the...
) - 45- “Marald” (illustrated for Wartorn, Warcollapse, Imperial Leather, Borndead, State of Fear)
See also
- Profane Existence discographyProfane Existence discographyThis is an overview of the Profane Existence discography .001 Sofa Head - 1127 Walnut Ave. LP001.5 Doom - Police Bastard 7"002 Nausea - Extinction LP003 Sofa Head - Invitation To Dinner 7"004 Va - Nightmares of Reality 2xLP...
- Minneapolis hardcoreMinneapolis hardcoreThe Minneapolis and St. Paul area, which is also known as The Twin Cities, has been a fertile ground for a hardcore punk scene since the mid-70s....
- Organize And Arise