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Minor Threat Early Logo

Minor Threat

Following the breakup of their previous band, the Teen Idles, vocalist Ian MacKaye and drummer Jeff Nelson joined with bassist Brian Baker and guitarist Lyle Preslar to form a band whose confrontational delivery and intensely personal perspective would make them a defining hardcore punk band. Beyond the impact of the band's music, performance, and embrace of DIY business practices, Minor Threat itself became a point of genesis for bands to follow, as members went on to Fugazi, Dag Nasty, Government Issue, Bad Religion, Three, Embrace, the Evens, and many others.

Materials below drawn from the Sharon Cheslow punk flyers collection, the Kevin Salk collection of D.C. punk photography, the Robbie White collection on the Slickee Boys, and the D.C. punk and indie fanzine collection at the University of Maryland's Special Collections in Performing Arts.

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Fliers

Black and white poster with stylized text, such as cut out letters, and images.
(Show 1) Minor Threat, Untouchables, S.O.A., Bad Brains, Best - 1929 Calvert St. - Washington, D.C.; (Shows 2 and 3) Unheard Music Festival: Nurses, Untouchables, Type-O, S.O.A., Half Japanese, G.I., Wiggly Mittens, Fluffy Pig - D.C. Space - Washington, D.C., 12/13/1980, 12/17/1980, and 12/18/1980
Handwritten flier for benefit concert featuring bands S.O.A., Minor Threat, Untouchables, etcetera.
S.O.A., Minor Threat, Bad Brains, Untouchables, Best, A Reggae Band - 1929 18th St. NW - Washington, D.C. (circa 1980s photocopy of original), 12/13/1980
Three show flier, containing event details and imagery of skulls and a skull army.
(Show 1) Untouchables, Minor Threat, S.O.A., Bad Brains - 1929 Calvert St. - Washington, D.C.; (Shows 2 and 3) Unheard Music Festival: Minor Threat, S.O.A., Zones, Nurses, Type-O - D.C. Space - Washington, D.C. (Three separate concerts are listed on flier. Circa 1980s photocopy of original), 12/13/1980, 12/17/1980, and 12/18/1980
Unheard Music Festival flier. The bottom half of the flier has a large illustration of two people in an urban setting with cars going by and a construction building in the back.
Unheard Music Festival: S.O.A., Untouchables, Minor Threat, Type-O, Nurses, Fluffy Pig, Wiggly Mittens - d.c. Space - Washington, D.C., 12/17/1980 and 12/18/1980
State of Alert flier with a background image of people partying, and large title text 'S.O.A' with featured bands Minor Threat and Black Market.
State of Alert, Black Market Baby, and Minor Threat - 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., January 10, 1981
Bad Brains flier for a Punk Festival. There is one small illustration of a woman at the top right with her eyes covered by a black rectangle.
Bad Brains, Government Issue, and Minor Threat - Wilson Center, Washington, D.C., April 4, 1981
Government Issue (G.I.) flier, black and white collage style. Featuring cowboy-themed images, live performance details, and featured bands.
Government Issue, Minor Threat, and Bad Brains - Washington, D.C., April 4, 1981
Black and white State of Alert flier, with the band name (S.O.A) in large stylized text at the top, and and the featured bands underneath with event details.
State of Alert, Bad Brains, and Minor Threat - Washington, D.C., April 4, 1981
Black and white State of Alert flier, featuring Assault/Battery and Minor Threat, along with others. The text and images highlight themes of rebellion and youth culture.
Assault and Battery and Minor Threat - YMCA Pow Wow House, Bethesda, Maryland, May 8, 1981
Minor Threat flier with an abstract face sketch on the right side, and a list of featured bands and event details on the left side.
Minor Threat, Government Issue, and Law and Order - YMCA Pow Wow House, Bethesda, Maryland, May 8, 1981
Youth Brigade flier with large white text on a dark background. At the top, 'YOUTH BRIGADE' is displayed in bold letters, with a diamond shape containing a cross placed in between the two words.
Youth Brigade, Minor Threat, Red C and State of Alert - Bethesda, Maryland, May 8, 1981
Simple hand-written flier with text in pencil. The title text is 'Dance with the SCREAM' which covers the top half of the page, and the bottom half is filled with event details.
Scream, Minor Threat, Government Issue, State of Alert - HB Woodlawn High School, Arlington, Virginia, May 9, 1981
State of Alert flier. The background is black, with white 'X' symbols, and all of the text is black on a white background or black with white stroke, all different fonts.
State of Alert, Bad Brains, Minor Threat, and The Subhumans - Rumba Club, Washington, D.C., May 22, 1981
Black and white flier with a minimal drawing of a map at the bottom left showing the location.
The Subhumans, Bad Brains, and Minor Threat - Washington, D.C., May 22, 1981
Minor Threat flier with an image on the left side of a bottle-headed figure and to the right is some song lyrics.
Minor Threat and Circle Jerks - Washington, D.C., June 11, 1981
Black and white flier. There is a prominent image at the center of a bald man (whose shirt says 'USMC' on the back) urinating on another man who is sitting on a wheelchair.
Red C, Youth Brigade, Minor Threat - Arlington, Virginia, June 26, 1981
Vintage collage-styled flier. The top half has a collection of images, including a prominent one that shows a woman holding a sign that has a cross over images of drugs and drinking.
Government Issue, Minor Threat, and Youth Brigade - Washington, D.C., 9:30 Club, July 16, 1981
Flier with golden yellow background and large, bold, black text.
Minor Threat and Youth Brigade - Embassy, Washington, D.C., August 30, 1981
Flier with a prominent image of a skeleton version of Uncle Sam, wearing the same suit, top hat with a star, and a bow tie, pointing his finger at the viewer.
Youth Brigade and Minor Threat - Columbia Station, Washington, D.C., August 30, 1981
Flier with an illustration of a woman standing over a horizontal American flag, except the section with the stars has been replaced.
Red C, Minor Threat, Youth Brigade - Janelle's house, Rockville, Maryland, September 18, 1981
Green Bad Brains flier. There is a drawing of an angry lion with a Star of David symbol on top of its head.
Bad Brains and Minor Threat - 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., April 29, 1982
Artificial Peace Flier with band names, event details, and a collage design featuring a girl sitting on the floor surrounded by trophies.
Artificial Peace, Void, and Double-O - Wilson Center, Washington, D.C., April 30, 1982
Iron Cross Flier with a drawing of a rat and band names including Void, Minor Threat, Faith, and Artificial Peace.
Iron Cross, Void, Minor Threat, Artificial Peace, Faith and Double-O - Wilson Center, Washington, D.C., April 30, 1982
Minor Threat Flier with a list of featured bands and event details on the left side, and on the right is the shape of a sword or cross made by the vertical repetition of the words 'DC' and 'HARDCORE'.
Minor Threat, The Faith, Artificial Peace, Iron Cross, Void, and Double O - Wilson Center, Washington, D.C., April 30, 1982
Flier for a concert at Wilson Center featuring multiple bands, with a street scene sketch as the background.
Minor Threat, Faith, Void, Iron Cross - Wilson Center, Washington, D.C., April 30, 1982
Flier for a concert at Wilson Center in varying stylized text.
Minor Threat, Void, and The Faith - Wilson Center, Washington, D.C., April 30, 1982
Void Flier with a drawing of five figures with decorated jackets sitting and standing in a line, all with their backs to the viewer, and the event details are written above them.
Void, Faith, Double-O, Iron Cross, Minor Threat and Artificial Peace - Wilson Center, Washington, D.C., April 30, 1982
Black and white flier with various text and images, including a man in formal attire with a speech bubble that says 'New Hope'.
Minor Threat and The Faith - 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., August 1, 1982
Dark red flier with black text and illustrations. There are little drawings supporting the text at the bottom, which includes directions to the school.
D.O.A., Minor Threat, The Faith, and Iron Cross - H.B. Woodlawn High School, Arlington, VA, October 30, 1982
A yellow punk rock event flier with black illustrations and text for event details and a list of bands.
Minor Threat, D.O.A., Iron Cross, and The Faith - H.B. Woodlawn High School, Arlington, VA, October 30, 1982
Faith flier with a background image of the band performing on stage and various stylized text.
Faith, Minor Threat and Marginal Man - 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., January 2, 1983
Flier with a purple tint, bold stylized text, and image of the four band members, and decorative lines placed throughout the page.
Damned, Minor Threat, Bow Wow Wow, Slickee Boys and New Order - Ontario Theater, Washington, D.C., June 16, July 1, and July 8, 1983
Flier with a background image of a singer on stage and the crowd in front of him.
Minor Threat, J.F.A. and Tar Babies - 9:30 Club, Washington, D.C., June 23, 1983
Flier with a large illustration of a man kneeling down next to a dog that is laying down, with an expression of distress.
Trouble Funk, Big Boys and Minor Threat concert flier, Lansburgh Cultural Center, Washington, D.C., September 23, 1983
Flier with black and red text. The top half consists of all playing bands and some logos, and the bottom are event details.
Trouble Funk, Minor Threat, Big Boys concert flier, Lansburgh Cultural Center, Washington, D.C., September 23, 1983

Photographs

Lyle, Ian and Henry, 1982. A close-up of a band performing, surrounded by a crowd of people.
Ian MacKaye and Lyle Preslar of Minor Threat, San Pedro, California, July 11, 1982
Lyle, Ian and Henry 2, 1982. Close-up of a singer of the band singing into the microphone passionately.
Ian MacKaye and Lyle Preslar of Minor Threat, San Pedro, California, July 11, 1982
Lyle, Ian and Henry, 1982. A close-up of a band performing, surrounded by a crowd of people.
Lyle Preslar of Minor Threat, San Pedro, California, July 11, 1982
Ian MacKaye, 1983
Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat at Cathay de Grande, Los Angeles, California, April 3, 1983
Ian MacKaye and Henry Rollins, 1983
Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat and Henry Rollins at Cathay de Grande, Los Angeles, California, April 3, 1983
Jeff Nelson, 1983
Jeff Nelson of Minor Threat performs at Cathay de Grande, Los Angeles, California, April 3, 1983
Brian Baker and Ian MacKaye, 1983
Ian MacKaye and Brian Baker of Minor Threat performing at Cathay de Grande, Los Angeles, California, April 3, 1983

Zines

The title text on top says 'Capitol Crisis' and there is an image at the center of someone singing on stage holding onto a microphone. There is a banner at the bottom that says 'Black Market Baby'.
Capitol Crisis, Issue 4, March 1981
An illustration of a figure standing between two large speakers, with one arm raised in a fist.
DCene Issue 1, 1983
There is an illustration of an abstract figure whose head is centered within a dark square, with exaggerated and distorted facial features.
If This Goes On Issue 3, 1983
Handwritten text overlayed on a background image of two hands.
Punk Is No Hobby, Issue 1, 1983
Chow Chow Times, Issue 1 with a dense handwritten page and drawings of a man dancing and other cartoons.
Chow Chow Times, Issue 1, January 1985
Metrozine, Issue 8 with a hand-drawn title and a large number 1, subtitled 'Celebrating 1 year together!'
Metrozine, Issue 8, 1985

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

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

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