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Ignition

A collaboration between former Faith vocalist Alec MacKaye and bassist Chris Bald (now on guitar), Gray Matter drummer Dante Ferrando, and Soulside bassist Chris Thomson, Ignition debuted in 1987, earning a reputation as a hard touring band that reliably turned out chaotic, earnest, combustible performances. The group would disband in 1989, but released several recordings on Dischord and pushed the D.C. punk scene forward with its unflinchingly introspective and powerful music.

Drawn from the Sharon Cheslow Punk Flyers collection and the Jason Farrell collection at Special Collections in Performing Arts at the University of Maryland.

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Fliers

Swiz flyer titled 'Show D.C. Space 3.19' with a photo of the bandmembers.

Ignition and 3 (Three) - d.c. Space, Washington, D.C., March 13, 1987

Ignition and 3 flyer of a man falling off a building against a dark background.

Ignition and 3 (Three) - Food For Thought, Washington, D.C., May 24, 1987

Ignition and Laughing Hyenas flyer with stylized typographic title on a black background and an illustration of an Asian mythical beast and emblem.

Ignition and Laughing Hyenas - d.c. Space, Washington, D.C., July 29, 1987

Fugazi flyer with hand-drawn titles and details and a drawing of three figures in front of a bowl of pasta.

Fugazi, Marginal Man, Ignition, and Fire Party - Wilson Center, Washington, D.C., September 3, 1987

Government Issue flyer with a dark photo of a person's hands on a brick wall.

Government Issue, Ignition, Shudder to Think - 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., October 15, 1987

Ignition flyer with large bold titles.

Ignition, Vile Cherubs, Images, Indian Summer - Merrifield Community Hall, Merrifield, Virginia, April 16, 1988

Ignition flyer on blue paper with text in varying fonts.

Ignition, Bells Of and Fidelity Jones - P Street Beach, Washington, D.C., June 18, 1988 (Version 1)

Ignition flyer on yellow paper with text in varying fonts.

Ignition, Bells Of, and Fidelity Jones - P Street Beach, Washington, D.C., June 18, 1988 (Version 2)

Fugazi flyer with a photograph of a street and text written in a mix of upper and lowercase letters. Title reads 'Benefit for Greenpeace'.

Fugazi, Ignition, Moss Icon, and Ulysses - Washington, D.C., July 28, 1988

Ignition flyer on pink paper wth a photo of a man behind bars and two images of a mythical creature bowing down.

Ignition, Fire Party and Das Damen - 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., August 4, 1988

Ignition flyer with an elaborate drawing of gears and the title in bold bubble letters.

Ignition, Ulysses and Knifedance - Safari Club, Washington, D.C., September 27, 1988

Ulysses flyer on blue paper with a photo of a boxer and a background of a schedule.

Ulysses and Ignition - Safari Club, Washington, D.C, September 27, 1988

Flier for State Of the Union benefit compilation with an image of two revolvers pointed at a globe.

Flier for State Of the Union benefit compilation, Washington, D.C., 1988

Fugazi flyer on green paper with a drawing of two people embracing, titled 'Benefit Jam 89...for outreach services, inc.'

Fugazi, Fire Party, Ignition, Why - Weinberg Center, Frederick, Maryland, January 13, 1989

Ignition and Jackhammer Orchestra - BBQ Iguana, Washington, D.C., January 22, 1989

Soulside flyer with a patterned background of a sun with curling rays.

Soulside and Ignition - 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., February 1, 1989

Soulside flyer with a patterned background of a sun with curling rays.

Soulside and Ignition - 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., February 1, 1989

Soulside flyer with a photo of a row of people in a field.

Ignition concert flier, Safari Club, Washington, D.C., February 25, 1989

Ignition flyer with images of various machinery and a woman in a ballgown.

Ignition, Shudder to Think, Fidelity Jones - 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., May 2, 1989

About

Persistent Vision presents the University of Maryland's digitized special collections materials related to punk in the Washington, D.C. area. Most of these materials reside at Special Collections in Performing Arts (SCPA) in the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library. These materials help to tell the story of a subculture and a community that has thrived since 1976.

Curators: John Davis, Ben Jackson
Design: Ben Jackson, Natalie Salive
Authors: Ben Jackson, John Davis, and Jessica Grimmer

With help from: Cindy Zhao, Jeremy Gottwig, Amanda Henderson, Gabby Cameron, Hayden Kramer

Contact Us

Special Collections in Performing Arts is located in the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library on University of Maryland’s College Park campus.

For general information about the library and our collections, contact us