John R. Davis

Fugazi, THE ARGUMENT

My good friend Chris Richards is starting a music newsletter that will be worth your time. One way to push back against what's happening in the media -- among other places -- right now is to subscribe directly to writers and local, independent outlets, so let's do that. Draw strength from community.

Very sad to see one of the richest men in the world continue to demolish my hometown paper, solidarity with all the hard-working Washington Post journalists who have continued to report and write irreplaceable journalism in the face of such willful neglect

right half: zines on a shelf in a bookstore left half: Cover of "Make a Zine" -- inside of the book shows how to layout and cut a mini zine

Zines delivered to my house monthly? Sign me up!

We are teaming up with the fabulous @microcosm.bsky.social to offer a FREE BOOK (How to Make a Zine!) for new subscribers in 2026!

peoplesbooktakoma.com/zine-scene-s...

Get zines. Read zines. Makes zines. Give zines. Repeat.

Fugazi Now: Guy Picciotto #2 On Fugazi's creative peak, Rickenbacker guitars, the many sides of Steve Albini and Tom Verlaine, the transient nature of life, and the quest for musical freedom

Part 2 of Kurt Sayenga's recent interview with Guy Picciotto. He's now interviewed all 4 band members for the 'Fugazi Now' series.

open.substack.com/pub/greedmag...

YouTube video by Ed Raco Sharp Pins  @Comet Ping Pong   tu. January 27, 2026

Concerts I Attended: Sharp Pins at Comet on an icy night in Washington, D.C., January 27, 2026.

Nice evening with John Davis zine book panel and then Mark Robinson doing his medley thing

Screenshot of "Where do you copy your zine?" survey results. "Printing agency" is at the top of the list with 41.8#%.

Really fascinating feature in Zine Guide #5 (2001) about the survey results from zine makers on zine production & circulation. Lots of interesting info here, especially the results of "Where do you copy your zine?" archive.org/details/zine...

YouTube video by LW Paul Collins Beat - SXSW 2008 - Let Me Into Your Life

Concerts I Attended: The Paul Collins Beat at Soho Lounge/SXSW in Austin, TX. - March 15, 2008. This was a great, much-deserved revival period for Paul, whose 1979 album, "The Beat," is one of the best records ever made. #concertsiattended #powerpop #musicsky #paulcollins

youtu.be/3XQoxitioEU?...

The 1989 episode of my radio show on WOWD, This Year's Model, is up for listening now! With guest co-host Sarah Grady, we'll hear Beastie Boys, Fugazi, Pixies, De La Soul, Janet Jackson, Replacements, Throwing Muses, REM, The The, XTC, Public Enemy, Nirvana & more.

www.mixcloud.com/thisyearsmod...

Thank you, @imleor.bsky.social! A nice preview of my upcoming event/conversation with @caboosezine.bsky.social for "Keep Your Ear to the Ground: A History of Punk Fanzines in Washington, D.C." at @quimbysbookstore.bsky.social in Chicago this Friday, January 16 at 6:30pm. #DCpunk #Zines #Fanzines

Keep Your Ear To The Ground Celebrate the rich history of zines and counterculture in the greater Washington, DC area. Check out John R. Davis' book, published via the Georgetown University Press.

Znz, one of my favorite places to track down old punk fanzines for sale, put together a batch of old D.C.-area zines that they're selling, most of which are written about in my new book, "Keep Your Ear to the Ground: A History of Punk Fanzines in D.C." You can definitely find some classics there--->

Protest songs, Afrobeats, and Fela Kuti's legacy of political resistance (Rebroadcast) Musicians have had a lot to say about the state of the world.

Our Dean, Stephanie Shonekan, is featured on today’s 1A rebroadcast discussing protest music, Afrobeats, and Fela Kuti’s legacy of political resistance. The segment highlights her research on his mother and her influence on his life and music. the1a.org/segments/pro...

In 1985, D.C. punks declared a "Revolution Summer." Its legacy resonates today In 1985, D.C. punks sought to reset the politics and music of the D.C. punk scene. 40 years later, punks carry Revolution Summer into middle age.

Revolution Summer reshaped D.C. punk in 1985. Forty years later, its cultural and political impact lives on through the UMD Libraries D.C. Punk Archive, a leading collection documenting punk’s DIY media, political expression and community.
Read more via WAMU: wamu.org/story/25/12/...

Cut and paste-style graphics of zine covers with the cover of the book that reads "Keep Your Ear to the Ground: A History of Punk Fanzines in Washington, DC -- John R. Davis in Conversation with Liz Mason at Quimby's on Friday 1/16 6:30"

I'll be talking with John R. Davis about his excellent new book Keep Your Ear to the Ground: A History of Punk Fanzines in Washington, D.C. at @quimbysbookstore.bsky.social on 1/16. What a great way to kick off the new year! Come join us! www.quimbys.com/blog/store-e...

Always happy to see Leon Berkowitz getting attention. His art is among my favorite (plus the D.C. connection). It's like the visual equivalent of Laurie Spiegel's "The Expanding Universe" -- depth, awe, gravity, warmth, mystery, beauty.

Quimby's has asked for people interested in attending to register here, if possible: www.eventbrite.com/e/john-davis...

Chicago! I'll be appearing at @quimbysbookstore.bsky.social in conversation with Liz Mason (@caboosezine.bsky.social) on Friday, January 16 at 6:30pm. We'll be talking about my book, "Keep Your Ear to the Ground: A History of Punk Fanzines in Washington, D.C." and I'd love to see you there.

For folks who were asking (especially record stores!), my book, "Keep Your Ear to the Ground: A History of Punk Fanzines in Washington, D.C." is now available to purchase from Dischord Records both for mailorder and for stores to carry!

dischord.com/release/GUP1...

Tommy Keene, "Listen to Me" and "Places That Are Gone" videos, 1986 - Avalon

A great one-two punch of videos ("Listen to Me" and "Places That Are Gone") from Tommy Keene's major label debut album, Songs From the Film. Both directed by Rocky Schenck. Transferred from a VHS tape in the Tommy Keene papers at the University of Maryland.

hdl.handle.net/1903.1/103866

YouTube video by Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library Boden Sandstrom: Cultivating Music, Community, and Feminism on Display through May 2024

This exhibit from last year at UMD's Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library is no longer up, but this video we made still has some interesting/timeless elements about the career of the D.C. area musicologist and audio engineer, Boden Sandstrom.

youtu.be/dUKrthJnw1Q?...

exhibitions.lib.umd.edu/dc-punk

Lots of of scanned flyers, zine covers, photos & some interviews from the dc punk scene

D.C. Mondays: A History of Punk Fanzines in Washington Fanzines are DIY print publications made in small runs by fans, for fans. Washington, D.C.'s influential punk rock community has generated countless fanzines…

Here's an online presentation I did on D.C. punk fanzines a few weeks ago for the D.C. Mondays series at the George Washington University Museum and Textile Museum
vimeo.com/1143127959

TYM0015: This Year's Model: 1984 - November 26, 2025 This episode of This Year's Model focuses on the music of 1984. Features songs from Husker Du, Laraaji, R.E.M., Prince, the Spongetones, Madonna, Nick Lowe, Meat Puppets, Tones on Tail, Huey Lewis and...

The 1984 episode of my radio show on #WOWD, This Year's Model, is up now! A great year for music with songs from REM, Prince, Madonna, Die Kreuzen, the Spongetones, Husker Du, Laraaji, Nick Lowe, Meat Puppets, Marginal Man, and tons more. #radiosky #communityradio

www.mixcloud.com/thisyearsmod...

Went to 5 pm interview of John Davis regarding his DC Punk Fanzines book @ People’s Book; now @ 7 pm interview of Selamino from Ibex and Roha Bands from Ethiopia at the Sitar Center. He has been living in dc area for awhile

Listening in on Lessons From ‘We Are the World’ | Maryland Today Dean Teaches ARHU Course on Arts and Humanities of a Single Song

I guest lectured at UMD's "We Are The World" class earlier this semester DC's Revolution Summer & punk percussion protests starting in 1985, highlighting a parallel/alternate form of creative activism the same weeks "WATW" was breaking. Dean Shonekan is a great, imaginative scholar & instructor.

Swiz book and Keep your Ear to the Ground spotted in the wild! Quintessential reading necessary to bolster your street cred!

www.akashicbooks.com/catalog/swiz/
#punkrock #punk #punkflyers #punkrockers #diy #rockbooks @dischord.com

41 years ago today - Gray Matter and Rites of Spring concert flier, Food For Thought, Washington, D.C. - November 29, 1984. Art by Steve Niles. From the Sharon Cheslow punk flyers collection at the University of Maryland. #DCpunk @dischord.com #Emo #Punk #PunkRock #PunkFlyers #PunkArchive

My book on the history of fanzines created by Washington, D.C.'s punk community was just published last month via @georgetownup.bsky.social. It's called "Keep Your Ear to the Ground: A History of Punk Fanzines in Washington, D.C." and more info is available here: press.georgetown.edu/Book/Keep-Yo...

➡️ washingtoncitypaper.com/article/774737/beats-me-is-back-with-new-music-from-black-fortune-phil-ade-and-kind-of-christine/

@wcp.bsky.social @krecs.bsky.social @dcsuburbanite.bsky.social