Salad Days: A Decade of Punk in Washington, DC (1980-90) is a documentary film that examines the early DIY punk scene in the Nation's Capital. It was a decade when seminal bands like Bad Brains, Minor Threat, Government Issue, Scream, Void, Faith, Rites of Spring, Marginal Man, Fugazi, and others released their own records and booked their own shows—without major record label constraints or mainstream media scrutiny. Contextually, it was a cultural watershed that predated the alternative music explosion of the 1990s (and the industry's subsequent implosion). Thirty years later, DC's original DIY punk spirit serves as a reminder of the hopefulness of youth, the power of community and the strength of conviction.

THE FILMMAKERS:

Salad Days Director/writer Scott Crawford is a music journalist, musician and graphic designer. As a teenager in the DC suburbs, he started a fanzine called Metrozine that documented much of what was happening in the DC hardcore punk scene in the 1980s. In 1985, Metrozine (and WGNS) released a 7″ compilation called "Alive & Kicking" that featured unreleased tracks by DC area bands Gray Matter, United Mutation, Marginal Man, Beefeater, Cereal Killer and Mission Impossible (featuring a 16 year old Dave Grohl). He was quoted in both Dance of Days and Banned in DC—the two most definitive books on the early DC punk scene. In 2001, he launched Harp magazine and served as its Editor-in-Chief for over 7 years. Crawford also launched the online music portal Blurt in 2009.

Serving as Director of Photography for Salad Days, Jim Saah is a native of Washington, DC who has worked professionally in photography and video for over 25 years. He has shot for a variety of publications and websites ranging from the Washington Post to Rolling Stone. He's also an experienced videographer whose credits range from union organizing films to music documentaries. Recent films he has worked on include movies about the bands Wilco, Death Cab for Cutie, and Eddie Vedder.

Trailer: vimeo.com/107053757

PRESS:

“Looks to be making a late bid to be the year’s best music doc.” –The Guardian UK

Time Out Magazine’s list of “10 Nonfiction Knockouts” to see at this year’s DOC NYC Film Festival.

“Fascinating insight into the influential Washington DC hardcore punk scene.” –TeamRock

Washingtonian Magazine declared the film “a must-see.”

“Salad Days is a sweat-drenched, scream-sung ode to D.I.Y empowerment…” –Mass Appeal

NME named it one of “12 Music Documentaries To Get Excited About In 2015.”

Additional Press:
PITCHFORK
SPIN
THE WASHINGTON POST Express
POP MATTERS
THE WASHINGTON POST Style