Mindset: You Have a Lot More Potential With a Clear Mind

Mindset were one of the most vital bands to come out of the late-2000s wave of US straight edge hardcore. Formed in Baltimore, Maryland, in 2008, they took the classic youth crew template of fast tempos, shouted conviction, clear anti-apathy lyrics, and made it feel urgent again without turning it into nostalgia.

Their main run on React! Records included the REALPOWER EP in 2009, the Time & Pressure EP in 2010, the EP Collection LP and Leave No Doubt album in 2012. If you care about modern straight edge hardcore with heart, urgency, and a real sense of purpose, Mindset are still essential.

This interview with Chris Bavaria of the Baltimore, Maryland, straight edge band Mindset was originally published in the fourth issue of Tigersuit Zine.

Let’s start with an introduction to the band. Who are you, and what is the idea behind Mindset?

Chris Bavaria: Mindset is a hardcore band from Baltimore, Maryland. Dfang (Daniel Fang) plays drums, Mike plays guitar, I (Chris) play bass, and Ev sings.

Can we talk about a revival of youth crew hardcore, and why do you play this particular style of hardcore punk? What is it that attracted you to youth crew?

Chris Bavaria: We all love Youth of Today. That’s pretty much it. Mindset started as Mike’s brainchild, and he just wanted to start a band that sounded like Youth of Today. I think the term youth crew has kind of a negative connotation these days, and people tend to think of it as some kind of gimmick. But seriously, Youth of Today were badass. It’s fast, it’s angry, and they were actually singing about tangible things. I think those are the three things we want to do with Mindset. So when people write us off as just another youth crew band singing about “their crew” or some dumb shit like that, I don’t think they have actually listened to us.

What does it mean to be DIY and hardcore today? OK, youth crew revival, but when Youth of Today started in the ’80s, there was no Facebook, YouTube, iPods, React! or the B9 message board.

Chris Bavaria: Obviously, it is a lot easier for bands these days, but I think there is a balance. You can use those things and still be a DIY hardcore band.

I’d like to think Mindset is definitely a DIY band. React! helps us out a lot, but they are just a group of our friends. There is no contract or anything like that.

We still book all our own shows, make our own T-shirts, etc. No one is making any money off Mindset.

How many pairs of Nike shoes do the members of Mindset own? How is it possible for a symbol of corporate power, and one of the first corporations to fuel this whole brand mania, to co-opt even a counterculture like the hardcore scene? There’s a long tradition of Nike targeting poor communities of color through basketball and hip-hop, telling them that their pair of shoes isn’t just a product, but a way of life. So poor kids would kill, steal, or sell drugs just to buy a pair of Nike shoes. I think it’s absolutely ridiculous to see hardcore kids branded with the Nike logo, and I can’t accept any justification for people in the scene not only wearing their shoes but actually collecting dozens of pairs worth thousands of dollars. I wish every kid in the hardcore scene would read the book No Logo by Naomi Klein. Will we ever see a youth crew band write an anti-Nike hardcore song?

Chris Bavaria: I totally agree with you.

Speaking solely for myself, I would never buy even one pair of Nikes.

Obviously, I can’t control what everyone else in my band does all the time, though. I’m the only one who is vegan! But I will say that no one in Mindset buys crazy amounts of shoes or collects them.

It’s a thin line when buying shoes these days, as most of them are made overseas and we don’t know by whom. But I guess you have to choose your battles.

What does straight edge mean to you? I read an interview with you in which you said that hardcore punk kids who drink alcohol and do drugs are the same as everyone else, just in different clothes. If you really want to “fuck the system” or do something worthwhile, you have to have a clear head to do it. Do you think hardcore or straight edge has ever had the potential to really “fuck the system” or have a positive impact on someone’s life? Aren’t we just a bunch of punk rockers, outsiders with no future?

Chris Bavaria: Yeah, I stand by what I said in that other interview.

I definitely think people have a lot more potential if they have a clear head. You could take “fucking up the system” a bunch of different ways.

Whether you are protesting in the streets or planting a community garden, you are doing something to change the world for the better, and you are going to do a hundred percent better job if you are sober. The US government is so tied in with the alcohol and tobacco companies that it’s ridiculous.

The band Dropdead played in Philly a while back, and their singer went on a huge rant about how smoking is not punk. It’s totally true, and I think by not supporting those companies, you are fucking with the system.

What does it mean to be positive or to live a positive lifestyle? What about people who are poor, abused, tortured, or deprived of their dreams and humiliated because of their beliefs and ideas? Do you think they can also be positive and live a positive lifestyle?

Chris Bavaria: No one is going to be positive all the time. It’s just not in human nature. There are people across the globe who live hard lives, and my heart goes out to them.

I think positivity and hope are sometimes the only things people can use to lift themselves up and out of bad situations. Being pissed at the world for giving you a bad hand is not going to fix anything. It’s fine to be pissed. I am a lot!

But at the end of the day, the only way you are going to get through something is if you look to the future and hope things will get better. I’ll admit that’s easier said than done.

Do you ride bikes, skateboard, or anything like that? What kind of things do you do as an outlet for your energy besides playing in a band, screaming, jumping, and stage diving at hardcore shows?

Chris Bavaria: I ride my bike almost every day. It really is a great release for me and gets me pumped for the day. I stopped skateboarding a few years ago because I got older and it hurt too much when I fell, haha. I wasn’t that good, so I fell a lot. Dan is a workout nut. He is in the best shape of anyone I know. I’ll wake up when we are on tour and see him upside down against the wall doing push-ups. He’s nuts!

There’s a song called “Mindset” by Chokehold dealing with religious hatred toward homosexuality. You have a song called “Words” that also touches on homophobia. What kinds of actions or attitudes do you think are useful in our daily lives when we want to stop the abuse and humiliation of children, women, or people of different sexual orientations?

Chris Bavaria: People just need to stand up for what’s right and not turn a blind eye to it.

I think a lot of people are just apathetic toward it, and when someone says an inappropriate comment, they just ignore it. But it’s wrong! You’ve got to get in their face and tell them they are being an asshole. Ev wrote those lyrics because he was sick of hearing people say ignorant comments, especially at hardcore shows, where it is supposed to be a safe haven from the shit in the real world.

Everyone should feel welcome, not insulted.

Thank you for the interview. I hope you’d like to share some positive message with the people reading this. Is there anything important you’d like to say that I didn’t ask you?

Chris Bavaria: I really hope we can make it to Europe at some point. We’ve been talking about it for years, but it just hasn’t worked out.

Check out Remission from Santiago, Chile. They are probably my favorite band right now. Also Rearranged, Noose, Sacred Love, and Face Reality.

Peace!