Music

The house where Minor Threat first played is selling for $2 million

by Mark Teo

Plenty of people, and companies, have attempted to auction off Minor Threat’s legacy. After all, they’re one of the most beloved names in independent music, and plenty of brands have noticed: Along with Ian MacKaye-inspired Urban Outfitters shirts and Nike ads, their iconography has been co-opted by everyone from Emily Strange to streetwear label The Hundreds.

But now, perhaps the biggest piece of Minor Threat lore is up for grabs: 1929 Calvert, the house where the band played their first show, has hit the market. The cost? $2 million dollars. In hardcore collector terms, that’ll buy you roughly 459 copies of the Necros’ Sex Drive 7-inch (though only 100 editions exist), 930 copies of first-pressing copies of the In My Eyes EP (or more than 90 per cent of the 1000 copies in circulation), or 666 copies of Judge’s legendary Chung King. How metal.

But along with getting a beautiful house in Washington, DC, the buyer will be purchasing a piece of history: According to the book American Hardcore, the band first played there on December 13, 1980, a month after they formed. They played a benefit show, raising funds to replace a stolen instrument for Black Market Babies.

“The first show we played was at a party,” MacKaye says in American Hardcore, referencing the show at 1929 Calvert. “Then the Unheard Music Festival, a big show for DC. From the beginning I knew this band was solid. The feeling was so much more confident than the Teen Idles [MacKaye’s previous band].”

Of course, he was correct. Minor Threat became an underground staple, helping solidify the D.I.Y. penchant of independent music, the straight edge movement, and even planted the seeds of emo in D.C. Revolution Summer era. And it all began at a 4,500 square foot Victorian that’s been converted into four two-bedroom units.

Want a piece of hardcore history? Check the photos below, then head over to the listing. Maybe MacKaye himself should consider buying the property, considering he’s reportedly worth $25 million.