Fugazi - “Shut the Door” - Repeater - 1990 - Instrument - 1998

One of the things that I like about this clip is how, after getting used to seeing things in black and white film and home video for a large part of the film, suddenly the viewer is forced out of looking at the bashful faces of those in line waiting to see the band into a frame of richly filmed reds and yellows for the propulsive onslaught of the introduction to “Shut the Door”.

And then there’s the middle, where Guy and Ian lean hard into their amps and Joe stands stoically as Brendan explodes in spurts underneath the roar until hypnotizing the audience as well as the band with the toll of the bell. Guy and Ian attack each other figuratively as the clip purposely fades without bothering to let the band finish the song, but this is fine. You have just witnessed one of the best American bands of all time (and I am serious about the all time part). If you think this performance to be rehearsed in anyway, you don’t know Fugazi.