SSD (Society-System Decontrol) were a Straight Edge Hardcore band from Bost… Read Full Bio ↴SSD (Society-System Decontrol) were a Straight Edge Hardcore band from Boston. They released two records as SS Decontrol and then formally changed their name to SSD. As SSD they released two more records, these with a very hard rock influenced sound. However the group is often simply referred to, including all its periods, as SSD.

Formed by songwriter/guitarist Al Barile (then a machinist at the General Electric plant in Lynn, Massachusetts and a student at Northeastern University), SSD started performing at smaller venues throughout the greater Boston metropolitan area in the summer of 1981. The band quickly gained notoriety within the local music scene for intense performances charged and for the provocative antics of its core group of followers, the Boston Crew.

The original lineup was Al Barile on guitar, Springa (David Spring) on vocals, Jaime Sciarappa on bass and Chris Foley on drums. They released their debut EP The Kids Will Have Their Say on their own X-Claim label in 1982. Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat was a friend and supporter and his Dischord label's logo appeared on the back cover.

In 1983 they added second guitarist Francois Levesque and released Get it Away. This EP is widely regarded to be their best record. The X-Claim pressings of it and The Kids Will Have Their Say are both highly collectable.

Like many hardcore bands - particularly those in the Boston area - SSD, as they were now officially called, were heading in a heavy metal direction. In 1984 they signed to the Boston label Modern Method and released the How We Rock EP which was rooted in the hardcore sound but exhibited overt heavy metal characteristics, such as a relatively high number of lengthy guitar solos. After signing to Homestead they released the Break it Up LP in 1985. Their first (and only) full length LP, it had both feet planted in the metal genre, leaving behind all trappings of punk and hardcore.

SSD broke up in 1985.

Jaime Sciarappa went on to play bass with the Boston hardcore band Slapshot for a short time.

After the breakup Springa went on to front the short lived band Razorcaine and the comedy rock projects Die Blitzkinder (with The Slaves) and Springa as Tom Jones. His flamboyant persona and lounge lizard lifestyle during this time stood in marked contrast to the straight edge rhetoric of SS Decontrol. In the early 1990s he would move to Chicago to pursue comedy further with The Second City.

In 1991 Al Barile compiled Power for Taang! records. It spans SSD's entire career and is the only official release in print today. In the early 1990s he took up the bass guitar and he and Levesque formed the hardcore band Gage.

Wasted Youth
SSD Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You take their shit
Stand up and fight
Fuck those rules
And show your might
But you have no gutsYou'd rather get highTake the day offAnd smoke all you buyShow them allThe kids have rightsUnited as oneDecontrol in sightBut you have no gutsYou'd rather get highTake the day offAnd snort all you buyWhen you gonna wake upAnd get off your assWe better change thisAnd fuckin fast

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to SSD's song "Wasted Youth" criticize the apathetic attitude of young people who would rather indulge in drug use than stand up and fight against societal oppression. The song urges listeners to take a stand and rebel against the rules that restrict them, encouraging them to show their strength and fight for their rights. However, the lyrics emphasize that many individuals lack the courage and fortitude necessary to stand up for themselves, as they choose to numb themselves with drugs and ignore the issues at hand.

The song implores the youth to band together as a united force, with the goal of taking control of their lives and their futures. The lyrics urge listeners to recognize that they have the power to effect change, but it cannot be achieved through complacency and inaction. Instead, it is necessary to take a stand, to fight against oppression, and to demand the rights that are rightfully theirs.

Line by Line Meaning

You take their shit
You tolerate their nonsense

Stand up and fight
Fight for your beliefs and opinions

Fuck those rules
Ignore the ineffective laws and regulations

And show your might
Show what you are capable of

But you have no guts
But unfortunately, you lack the courage

You'd rather get high
You prefer taking drugs instead of taking action

Take the day off
Skip responsibilities and work for a day

And smoke all you buy
Smoke all the drugs that you have bought

Show them all
Show the world what you are capable of

The kids have rights
The upcoming generation has rights too

United as one
Together and cohesive