They and fellow Washington DC residents Bad Brains set the standard for many hardcore punk bands in the 1980s and 1990s. They produced short, often astonishingly fast songs, eventually with excellent production quality, which at the time was lacking in most punk/alternative rock. All of Minor Threat's records were released on the band's own Dischord Records.
History
While at Wilson High School, Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson were in the influental DC punk band The Teen Idles. After that band broke up, MacKaye decided to switch from bass to vocals, and organized Minor Threat with Nelson and two prep-school kids (from Georgetown Day School), bassist Brian Baker and guitarist Lyle Preslar. Minor Threat's first performance was in December 1980, opening for Bad Brains.
Their first 7" EPs, "Minor Threat" and "In My Eyes", were released in 1981. The group became popular regionally, and toured the United States' east coast.
"Straight Edge," a song on the first EP, inadvertently inspired the straight edge movement. The song seemed to be a call for abstention from drugs and alcohol-- a new concept in punk music, which initially found a dedicated following.
Another Minor Threat song from the first EP, "Out of Step", further demonstrates the aesthetic: " Don't smoke/Don't drink/Don't fuck/At least I can fucking think/I can't keep up/Out of step with the world." The "I" in the lyrics was implied, and some in Minor Threat -- Jeff Nelson in particular -- took exception to what they saw as MacKaye's imperious attitude on the song.
In the time between the release of the band's second seven inch E.P. and the "Out Of Step" record, the band briefly split when guitarist Lyle Preslar moved to Illinois for college. During this period MacKaye and Nelson put together a studio only project called Skewbald/Grand Union (in a reflection of the slowly increasing disagreements between the two musicians, they were unable to decide on one name). The group recorded three untitled songs which would be released posthumously as Dischord's 50th release. During this period Brian Baker also briefly played guitar for Government Issue and appeared on the "Make An Effort" EP. Preslar dropped out of college and, at the urging of Bad Brains vocalist H.R. Hudson, Minor Threat reformed to play a series of shows and record the "Out Of Step" mini-album.
When "Out of Step" was re-recorded for the band's LP "Out Of Step," MacKaye inserted a spoken section explaining, "This is not a set of rules..." An ideological door was already opened, however, and by 1982, some straight-edge punks, such as followers of the band SS Decontrol, were swatting beers out of people's hands at clubs. (Ironically, SS Decontrol's singer, Springa, was at the time a heavy drinker and cocaine user.)
Minor Threat's song "Guilty of Being White" led to some accusations of white pride. But MacKaye has strongly denied such intentions and said that some listeners misinterpreted his words which call for a separation of association between non-racist white people of future generations and the horrible past of slavery often blamed on the white race as a whole rather than on those individuals principally responsible for the atrocities. The metal band Slayer later covered the song, though perhaps not entirely in the spirit in which MacKaye wrote it: they calculatedly changed the lyric "guilty of being white" to "guilty of being right" at the song's climax to shock people. MacKaye has stated that he was offended by the change because of the racist implications of the new lyrics.
Minor Threat broke up in 1983. One contributing factor was disagreement over musical direction. For example, guitarist Preslar was increasingly enamored of pop/rock band U2. MacKaye was allegedly skipping practices towards the end of the band's career, and he wrote the lyrics to the songs on the "Salad Days" E.P. in the studio. This was quite the contrast between the earlier recordings as he had written the music for some of the band's early material and also collabarated in writing the music on others. Minor Threat played its last show on September 23, 1983 with Trouble Funk and the Big Boys.
MacKaye went on to found Embrace (which was among the first bands to be labeled emocore) with former members of The Faith, the obscure Egg Hunt with Jeff Nelson, and later the groundbreaking DIY punk/alternative band Fugazi with ex-Rites of Spring vocalist Guy Picciotto and The Evens, as well as collaborating on Pailhead. Brian Baker went on to play in Junkyard and the seminal Dag Nasty and currently plays in Bad Religion. Lyle Preslar briefly played in Glenn Danzig's Samhain and his playing appears on a few songs on the band's first record; he later became an A&R director for Atlantic Records. Jeff Nelson played less frantic alternative rock with Three and The High-Back Chairs before retiring from live performance; he also runs his own label, Adult Swim Records (distributed by Dischord), does graphic art, and became a somewhat prominent political activist in the D.C. area.
Minor Threat's self-owned Dischord Records released material by many punk bands from the Washington, D.C. area, such as Rites of Spring, Gray Matter, and Dag Nasty, and has become a highly respected independent record label.
In 2005, the cover of Minor Threat's first EP (also used on the First two 7"'s on a 12" LP and Complete Discography CD) was copied by athletic footwear manufacturer Nike for use on a promotional poster for a skateboarding tour called "Major Threat". Nike also corrupted Minor Threat's distinctive logo (designed by Jeff Nelson) for the same campaign. MacKaye issued a press statement condemning Nike's (who are known to endorse sweatshop labor) actions and said that he would discuss legal options with the other members of the band. Meanwhile, fans, at the encouragement of Dischord, organized a letter-writing campaign protesting Nike's infringement. On June 27, 2005, Nike issued a statement apologizing to Minor Threat, Dischord Records, and their fans for the "Major Threat" campaign and said that all promotional artwork (print and digital) that they could get ahold of were destroyed.
On October 29, 2005, TV channel Fox played the first few seconds of Minor Threat's "Salad Days" during an NFL broadcast. Use of the song was not cleared by Dischord Records or any of the members of Minor Threat. Fox claimed that the clip was too short to have violated any copyrights.
Filler
Minor Threat Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You're not the same
Something in your head
Made a violent change
It's in your head
It's in your head
It's in your head
You call it religion
You're full of shit
Was she really worth it?
She cost you your life
You'll never leave her side
She's gonna be your wife
You call it romance
You're full of shit
Your brain is clay
What's going on? You picked up a bible
And now you're gone
You call it religion
You're full of shit
Filler
Minor Threat's song "Filler" is a commentary on the state of youth culture, specifically the pressure to conform to societal norms and expectations. The lyrics describe a person who has undergone a sudden and radical change, which is attributed to something that has occurred in their mind. This change has caused them to adopt a new worldview or ideology, symbolized in the song by references to religion and romance.
The first stanza asks the person what has happened to them, as they are no longer recognizable as the person they once were. The repetition of the phrase "It's in your head" emphasizes that the change is internal and has affected the person's thoughts and beliefs. The word "filler" is used to suggest that the change is superficial and lacks substance.
The second stanza directly criticizes the person's new beliefs, labeling them as "full of shit." The reference to a romantic relationship further highlights the theme of conformity, as the person has abandoned their previous priorities and commitments to pursue a socially acceptable lifestyle. The final stanza suggests that the person's mind is malleable and influenced by external factors, as they have seemingly been brainwashed by reading a bible.
Overall, "Filler" is a song that critiques conformity and the pressure to fit in with societal norms. The use of religion and romance as symbols of conformity is particularly effective, as they are two of the most common ways that people attempt to conform to societal expectations.
Line by Line Meaning
What happened to you?
Asking someone what caused their change in behavior
You're not the same
Observing that someone has changed
Something in your head
Implying that the reason for the change is mental
Made a violent change
Suggesting that the change was drastic or dramatic
It's in your head
Repeating the message that the change is mental in nature
Filler
Emphasizing that there is no real content in these statements
You call it religion
Implying that the person claims their change is due to religious reasons
You're full of shit
Accusing the person of lying or being insincere
Was she really worth it?
Questioning whether a woman was worth the drastic change in the person's behavior
She cost you your life
Revealing that the woman had a negative impact on the person's life
You'll never leave her side
Suggesting an unhealthy attachment to the woman
She's gonna be your wife
Implying that the person is committed to this woman despite the negative consequences
Your brain is clay
Suggesting that the person is easily influenced and molded by external factors
What's going on? You picked up a bible
Asking why the person suddenly became religious
And now you're gone
Implying that the person has lost their former self
Lyrics © ROUGH TRADE PUBLISHING
Written by: BAKER, MACKAYE, NELSON, PRESLAR
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind