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Total Revolution?: An Outsider History of Hardline
A history of the Hardline movement - the vegan straight edge offshoot born from the late-1980s Hardcore music scene. Starting in the early 1990s, the Hardline scene drew from British predecessors to pioneer Earth and animal liberation in the US hardcore scene. With bands such as Vegan Reich and Raid that inspired Earth Crisis and helped spark the vegan straight edge scene, Hardline has remained under-analyzed and under-discussed. They pre-dated Extinction Rebellion by far but few listened. Hardliners and people inspired by Hardline engaged in numerous animal and Earth liberation direct actions in the 1990s. They founded CAFT (Campaign to Abolish the Fur Trade). They also caused enormous controversy within punk, hardcore, and straight edge scenes. This book draws from a wide range of sources to present and discuss a history of Hardline. People have accused Hardliners of fascism, sexism, racism, and misogyny without pointing toward evidence. In turn, Hardliners have, after the fact, downplayed the extent to which the movement agitated against abortion, threatened abortion doctors, and made anti-homosexuality a key pillar of their scene. Some have labeled Hardline a "sect," a "religion," or a "cult" -and, considering that the two follow-up groups to Hardline, Ahl-i Allah (People of God) and Taliyah al-Mahdi (Vanguard of the Messiah) openly identified as Shi'a while drawing from Rasta, Jewish, Taoist, and other traditions, one can understand perhaps why. Yet, until now, no one has really tried to collect the relevant sources, documents, and texts that begin a coherent and comprehensive conversation about Hardline. To what degree did they actually support a vegan dictatorship? How did they relate to The MOVE Organization (supposedly a major inspiration for the scene and a group with whom they shared a nearly identical philosophy)? How many people organized under the Hardline mantle? What did they accomplish? Why did they die out (....or did they die out)? And, perhaps most importantly, what can people working for Earth and animal liberation learn from Hardline's successes and failures? This book explores those questions and more, ultimately asking, where do you stand... and what will you do?
- GenresMusic
299 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 19, 2022
A well researched book that ultimately suffers from said research. Such a long overdue deep-dive into the divisive Hardline movement/scene could have offered a fascinating retrospective on those who started it. Instead what is offered is merely little more than reproductions of articles/interviews/manifestos from physical zines and internet message boards with a propensity to focus on what Sean Muttaqi did or said from about 1989 onwards.
It all makes for a very stale read that puts all concerned/connected under a harsh microscope that seems to thrive on the minutiae of what people did or said in their heady exuberant youth, as if weirdly holding them accountable as adults in some form to this day.
Add in a swathe of ‘incorrect’ definitions/citations nit-picked by the author concerning previous individuals who dared write/document what Hardline/Vegan Straight Edge was/is, and the level of such tedium begins to seriously detract from what could have been a revelatory insight.
A time of burgeoning youth consciousness/awareness/folly/naïveté et cetera, that was forming/growing/challenging/experimenting within the hyper-microcosm of disparate punk/hardcore/environmental/anarcho scenes; all breeding, dividing and morphing within the underbelly of the immense consumerist monster, that is America.
Summaries and conclusions of a short nature are brought forth by the author at the end of what is largely a body of work comprised of other peoples interviews/work/transcribing and ultimately ‘lived’ lives, which amounts to what feels like a quasi-critique of the past couched in en vogue terminology that reeks of New-Speak.
The silver lining to be found in this book (although a quick search via the web could save you the bother of purchasing it), is that in light of this specific era, a great deal of Sean Muttaqi’s responses/reasonings/intentions (flawed as some of them were), in the interviews show a well-read young man of immense intellect, vision and conviction having the guts to to not only back himself up in what he believed but to also openly challenge and rankle the oft-times precious, self-serving scene that punk/hardcore was and still is.
To look beyond the pettiness of what was cool or the in-thing/trend.
Driven to usher in a holistic environmental world view of what was actually happening to the planet with a plan of action to heal it, which was way outside of the relative bourgeoisie confines of an all-ages show; a plan to make good on what Hardcore could actually become if it so chose to.
Did his Hardline vision come to fruition aided by his friends and allies? What battles/trials and tribulations both intellectual and physical did they engage in/face? Can they be judged/appraised by the calibre of their enemies/detractors both within hardcore and the authoritarian outside world? What are the emotional/physical costs of living such an iconoclastic life, driven to the precipice by a home-spun moralistic code of your own ethics? Just how concerned were the powers that be who became aware of such sober individuals on their seemingly David vs. Goliath quest?
What were the victories/failures/prices paid for living up to your convictions in a modern world that offers nothing but anaesthetizing distractions and spiritually draining submission?
Those questions and many others could possibly be far more worth reading about, a real rip-roaring warts n’ all story that dispenses with dry/asinine academia and let’s those who were really there, those who dared to live it, for better or worse speak for themselves.
Sure, it’s just like the title states, ‘an outsider history of hardline’, and once you start reading it that is what you’re getting…but one cannot help but wish the author who is obviously very knowledgeable and seemingly passionate enough to go to the effort of shedding some light on the subject could have told the definitive story with the help of those concerned about a subject that is clearly dear to them.
It all makes for a very stale read that puts all concerned/connected under a harsh microscope that seems to thrive on the minutiae of what people did or said in their heady exuberant youth, as if weirdly holding them accountable as adults in some form to this day.
Add in a swathe of ‘incorrect’ definitions/citations nit-picked by the author concerning previous individuals who dared write/document what Hardline/Vegan Straight Edge was/is, and the level of such tedium begins to seriously detract from what could have been a revelatory insight.
A time of burgeoning youth consciousness/awareness/folly/naïveté et cetera, that was forming/growing/challenging/experimenting within the hyper-microcosm of disparate punk/hardcore/environmental/anarcho scenes; all breeding, dividing and morphing within the underbelly of the immense consumerist monster, that is America.
Summaries and conclusions of a short nature are brought forth by the author at the end of what is largely a body of work comprised of other peoples interviews/work/transcribing and ultimately ‘lived’ lives, which amounts to what feels like a quasi-critique of the past couched in en vogue terminology that reeks of New-Speak.
The silver lining to be found in this book (although a quick search via the web could save you the bother of purchasing it), is that in light of this specific era, a great deal of Sean Muttaqi’s responses/reasonings/intentions (flawed as some of them were), in the interviews show a well-read young man of immense intellect, vision and conviction having the guts to to not only back himself up in what he believed but to also openly challenge and rankle the oft-times precious, self-serving scene that punk/hardcore was and still is.
To look beyond the pettiness of what was cool or the in-thing/trend.
Driven to usher in a holistic environmental world view of what was actually happening to the planet with a plan of action to heal it, which was way outside of the relative bourgeoisie confines of an all-ages show; a plan to make good on what Hardcore could actually become if it so chose to.
Did his Hardline vision come to fruition aided by his friends and allies? What battles/trials and tribulations both intellectual and physical did they engage in/face? Can they be judged/appraised by the calibre of their enemies/detractors both within hardcore and the authoritarian outside world? What are the emotional/physical costs of living such an iconoclastic life, driven to the precipice by a home-spun moralistic code of your own ethics? Just how concerned were the powers that be who became aware of such sober individuals on their seemingly David vs. Goliath quest?
What were the victories/failures/prices paid for living up to your convictions in a modern world that offers nothing but anaesthetizing distractions and spiritually draining submission?
Those questions and many others could possibly be far more worth reading about, a real rip-roaring warts n’ all story that dispenses with dry/asinine academia and let’s those who were really there, those who dared to live it, for better or worse speak for themselves.
Sure, it’s just like the title states, ‘an outsider history of hardline’, and once you start reading it that is what you’re getting…but one cannot help but wish the author who is obviously very knowledgeable and seemingly passionate enough to go to the effort of shedding some light on the subject could have told the definitive story with the help of those concerned about a subject that is clearly dear to them.
March 24, 2023
An excellent book ostensibly culminating years of research into the fascinating sub-genre of a sub-genre, Hardline, and by necessity, straightedge hardcore (punk)! Dude knows what he is talking about. Maximum respect to Peter! Though we differ on some beliefs, the guy walks the walk, he doesn't just talk the talk!
Until every cage is empty.
Until every cage is empty.
February 27, 2023
Interesting subject matter but not the most exciting read of my life because of the format
April 10, 2025
As someone who is both passionate about underground culture and always hungry to learn more about the movements that shaped our world, this book absolutely delivered. It's not just a history lesson it's a mirror held up to a movement that many have heard whispers about, but few truly understand.
The author does something incredibly important here: she doesn’t just document the Hardline movement she breathes life into it with thoughtful research, nuance, and an unwavering commitment to the truth. Whether you're coming from a place of admiration, criticism, or curiosity, this book invites you into a conversation that’s been too long overdue.
What struck me most was the balance. The author doesn't shy away from the difficult aspects of the movement the contradictions, the controversies, the ideologies that sparked both activism and backlash. Instead, she explores them with honesty and integrity, which makes the work even more powerful. This is not a glamorization of Hardline it's a bold, necessary exploration of a subculture that tried to reshape the world through radical means.
To the author: please keep writing. We need voices like yours willing to confront, to analyze, and to inspire. Your work has already made a difference, and I have no doubt it will continue to ripple through the minds of readers, activists, and thinkers who want to understand not just history, but the systems and subcultures that continue to influence today’s liberation movements.
This book isn't just about the past it's a call to action. And I'm listening.
The author does something incredibly important here: she doesn’t just document the Hardline movement she breathes life into it with thoughtful research, nuance, and an unwavering commitment to the truth. Whether you're coming from a place of admiration, criticism, or curiosity, this book invites you into a conversation that’s been too long overdue.
What struck me most was the balance. The author doesn't shy away from the difficult aspects of the movement the contradictions, the controversies, the ideologies that sparked both activism and backlash. Instead, she explores them with honesty and integrity, which makes the work even more powerful. This is not a glamorization of Hardline it's a bold, necessary exploration of a subculture that tried to reshape the world through radical means.
To the author: please keep writing. We need voices like yours willing to confront, to analyze, and to inspire. Your work has already made a difference, and I have no doubt it will continue to ripple through the minds of readers, activists, and thinkers who want to understand not just history, but the systems and subcultures that continue to influence today’s liberation movements.
This book isn't just about the past it's a call to action. And I'm listening.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews