Reagan Youth

Reagan Youth

Reagan Youth is an American hardcore punk and punk group from Forest Hills, Queens, New York City, formed in 1980 by singer Dave Rubinstein, known as Dave Insurgent, and guitarist Paul Bakija. The band takes its name as a play on Hitler Youth. It is closely associated with the New York and New Jersey hardcore scene and is often described as a significant early East Coast hardcore punk act.

Style and themes

The group combines hardcore punk with songs that sometimes use slower tempos, more melodic passages, guitar riffs and solos that were not common in punk at the time. Its lyrics and image are strongly political and anti-fascist, anti-racist and anti-Reagan. Reagan Youth uses Ku Klux Klan and Nazi Party imagery ironically to attack the policies of the Reagan era and the Religious Right. Songs associated with this approach include “Jesus Was a Communist” and “New Aryans”.

Career

Dave Rubinstein and Paul Bakija form the band while still in high school, and it quickly builds a reputation in the punk clubs of Manhattan. Reagan Youth performs regularly at CBGB and tours extensively across the United States, often alongside acts such as the Dead Kennedys, Bad Brains and Misfits. Dave Rubinstein’s science teacher even becomes a roadie for the group. The band is influential enough that artists such as the Beastie Boys and Rancid cite it as an influence.

Recordings

Reagan Youth releases one album during its initial run, originally titled Youth Anthems for the New Order and later reissued as Reagan Youth (Vol. 1) by New Red Archives. The album later sells 40,000 copies. A second album, Volume 2, is recorded in 1989 and issued in 1990 after the band has already broken up. A later collection, A Collection of Pop Classics, combines both records, and a live release, Live and Rare, appears in 1998. A version of “Degenerated” is used as the theme song for the fictional band The Lone Rangers in the film Airheads.

Breakup and later activity

The band splits up in 1989 after years of touring and financial difficulty. Dave Rubinstein later struggles with heroin addiction and dies in 1993. Reagan Youth reforms in 2006 with Paul Bakija, bassist Al Pike and drummer Javier Madriaga, joined by vocalist Pat McGowen of Distraction for the first show. The reformed group plays further local and regional dates, including the “Resurrection Tour” with Mouth Sewn Shut in 2007. Bakija also expresses interest in a third record about Dave Insurgent.

Members

Members associated with Reagan Youth include Dave Rubinstein, Paul Bakija, Al Pike, Victor Dominicis, Javier Madariaga, Jeff Penalty, Max Motherfucker, Stza and Andy Apathy.