164 Quotes by Ian Mackaye

I’ve had people call me from bands that are very popular, and they’re like, ‘What do we do? We want to do what you do.’ It’s almost impossible to do what I do, because you would have to start in 1980. You can’t just do it.

Getting your letters or pictures digitized. I don’t think it’s that important. The more you spend on your materials, you’re given the sense that those things are more important due to the total amount spent. You’d probably be better off giving that money to a soup kitchen.

Major labels didn’t start showing up really until they smelled money, and that’s all they’re ever going to be attracted to is money-that’s the business they’re in- making money.

It makes me sad, the way human beings talk smack. It’s why I don’t like irony. People are too gleeful to put some teeth into something.

I have thousands of tapes, and photos and fliers, letters, posters, artwork – basically everything that ever happened, I kept. I’m not a hoarder, though. I’m sort of a librarian.

I never imagine myself as anything. I’ve never had a goal or any future vision at all. I just do what’s in front of me.

I have a lot of stuff. Slowly I’m getting all my materials organized.

Every song I ever wrote, I wrote to be heard. So, if I was given a choice that 50 years from now I could either have a dollar or knowing that some kid was listening to my song, I’d go with the kid listening to my song.

There’s also a lot of skateboard stuff, because I was a skateboarder. Somewhere around here I have one of my original boards.