State of Alert (or S.O.A.) was a hardcore punk group from Washington, D.C. fronted by Henry Garfield, who would later rise to fame as Henry Rollins. They formed in October 1980, and disbanded in July 1981 [1] and released No Policy on Dischord Records. They are sometimes regarded as one of the earliest groups playing what would be dubbed hardcore punk. They released a ten song 7" EP titled No Policy and contributed three songs to the compilation Flex Your Head, both on Dischord. The EP was financed by Henry since Dischord wanted to afford releasing the first Minor Threat 7" as well. Hardcore punk (usually referred to simply as hardcore/hXc) is a subgenre of punk rock which originated in the United States of America in the late 1970s. ... Nickname: DC, The District Motto: Justitia Omnibus (Justice for All) Location of Washington, D.C., in relation to the states Maryland and Virginia Coordinates: Country United States Federal District District of Columbia Government  - Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D)  - City Council Chairperson: Vincent C. Gray (D) Ward 1: Jim Graham (D... Henry Rollins (born February 13, 1961 as Henry Lawrence Garfield[1]) is an American Grammy Award-winning alternative rock singer and songwriter, spoken word artist, book author (prose and poetry), radio and TV personality, occasional movie actor, comedian, and voice-over artist. ... No Policy is the first and only release by State of Alert. ... Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in D.C.-area independent punk, hardcore, and post-hardcore music. ... Hardcore punk (usually referred to simply as hardcore/hXc) is a subgenre of punk rock which originated in the United States of America in the late 1970s. ... Extended play (EP) is the name typically given to vinyl records or CDs which contain more than one single, but are too short to qualify as albums. ... No Policy is the first and only release by State of Alert. ... Felx Your Head is a punk rock compilation album. ... This does not cite its references or sources. ...

S.O.A. played a total of 12 gigs in and around the eastern US, their first on December 6, 1980, in Washington, D.C., and their last on July 10, 1981, in Philadelphia. Henry Rollins later described their performances: "All of them were eleven to fourteen minutes in duration because the songs were all like forty seconds... and the rest of the time we were going, 'Are you ready? Are you ready?' Those gigs were poorly played songs in between 'Are you readys?"^[1] Nickname: City of Brotherly Love, Philly, the Cradle of Liberty, the City That Loves You Back, the Quaker City, The Birthplace of America Motto: Philadelphia maneto - Let brotherly love continue Location in Pennsylvania Coordinates: Country United States State Pennsylvania County Philadelphia Founded October 27, 1682 Incorporated October 25, 1701 Government... Henry Rollins (born February 13, 1961 as Henry Lawrence Garfield[1]) is an American Grammy Award-winning alternative rock singer and songwriter, spoken word artist, book author (prose and poetry), radio and TV personality, occasional movie actor, comedian, and voice-over artist. ...

Today, S.O.A. is remembered primarily as Rollins' first band - before he joined Black Flag and then founded Rollins Band - but also as an example of early "DC Hardcore" and an influence to other bands such as Negative Approach. Black Flag was a hardcore punk band formed in 1976 in southern California, largely as the brainchild of Greg Ginn, the guitarist, primary songwriter and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes. ... Rollins Band is a rock music group led by singer and songwriter Henry Rollins. ... Washington, D.C. had the most prolific and blatantly political hardcore punk scene in the United States during the 1980s. ... Negative Approach (commonly called “NA”) were one of the first hardcore punk bands. ...

Out of what was left of the band guitarist Michael Hampton went on to form The Faith in 1981 with Alec MacKaye (brother of Ian MacKaye, later in Ignition) who joined on vocals and Ivor Hansen, S.O.A.'s final drummer. Later Hampton went on to Embrace with Ian MacKaye in 1985, and One Last Wish with Guy Picciotto (Fugazi, Rites of Spring) and Brendan Canty (Fugazi). Michael Hampton was the guitarist for the band Funkadelic after original guitarist Eddie Hazel departed to join The Temptations in 1975. ... The Faith was an early American hardcore punk band, from Washington DC, with strong connections to the scene centered around the Dischord label. ... Alec MacKaye is a singer and musician best known as a member of the Washington, DC punk and hardcore bands Untouchables (D.C. band), The Faith and Ignition. ... Ian MacKaye (b. ... Embrace was a short-lived post-hardcore band from Washington, D.C., which lasted from the summer of 1985 to the spring of 1986. ... Ian MacKaye (b. ... Michael Hampton - guitars, backing vocals Brendan Canty - drums Guy Picciotto - guitars, lead vocals Edward Janney - bass, backing vocals, lead vocals May 1986 - Jan 1987 Amidst the breakup of Rites of Spring in 1986, three of its four members - Picciotto, Janney and Canty - went on to form a new band after... Guy Picciotto (born September 17, 1965) is an American musician from Washington, DC. He is most widely known for his role in the band Fugazi (1987 - Present). ... Fugazi may refer to: an Italian slang term for something that is fake/not authentic. ... Rites of Spring was an punk band from Washington, D.C. in the mid-1980s known for their energetic, cathartic live performances. ... Brendan Canty (born March 9, 1966 in Teaneck,_New_Jersey) is a musician, and is best known as the drummer in the band Fugazi. ...

Bass player Wendel went on to play in Iron Cross and Lethal Intent. Iron Cross was a hardcore punk band from Baltimore, Maryland and Washington D.C.. They played a rough form of street punk, perhaps among the first American bands to adopt the Oi! and skinhead styles. ...

State of Alert's recorded material has been re-released by Dischord on the 20 Years of Dischord compilation and the Dischord 1981: The Year in 7"s compilation which includes the entire 'No Policy' EP.

Members

• Henry Rollins − vocals (October 1980 — July 1981)
• Michael Hampton − guitar (October 1980 — July 1981)
• Wendel Blow − bass (October 1980 — July 1981)
• Simon Jacobsen − drums (October 1980 — March 1981)
• Ivor Hansen − drums (March 1981 — July 1981)

Henry Rollins (born February 13, 1961 as Henry Lawrence Garfield[1]) is an American Grammy Award-winning alternative rock singer and songwriter, spoken word artist, book author (prose and poetry), radio and TV personality, occasional movie actor, comedian, and voice-over artist. ... Michael Hampton is a guitarist in the Washington, DC hardcore punk scene. ...

Discography

• No Policy − March 1981
• Flex Your Head − January 1982

No Policy is the first and only release by State of Alert. ... Felx Your Head is a punk rock compilation album. ...

References

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External links

• S.O.A. Bandpage on Kill From The Heart website