Interview conducted by Jeff McLeod with Ian MacKaye - 07/99.

Q: Do you feel that Instrument would be a good introduction to the band if the film was to be taken in that context?

Ian: I suppose it would be, I haven't really thought about it in those terms. I think, and hope, that 'Instrument' stands on it's own on an artistic level, but i would imagine that it's as good a study of the band that someone is going to find for the time being.

Q: How would you describe Instrument to someone who had never heard Fugazi?

Ian: I'd tell them that it was a visual record made by and about the band Fugazi.

Q: When you first watched the final cut of the film, what made you the most uncomfortable? How about the other guys? Are there any parts that you're particularly proud of?

Ian: There was a tremendous amount of discussion about what was relevant, what was important, what was embarrassing, and so forth. I would have a hard time pinpointing the 'uncomfortable' moments in the movie, particularly since a lot of them aren't that uncomfortable anymore. I like my guitar playing on the little snippet of 'Promises' in Knoxville.

Q: How would you compare the completion of the film with the completion of a recording project? I know that the film's completion probably means different things to Jem Cohen, the director — but how does finishing such a lengthy and wide-ranging document of your career feel?

Ian: I consider finishing the movie about the same as finishing an album. I'm not thinking about it as a summation, rather I think of it as a project... And one I'm glad to have completed. That means that we can get to work on the next one. The next project, that is.

Q: On Red Medicine and End Hits, it's seemed that some more experimental musical elements have been coming to the forefront. How have you gone about incorporating sound experimentation into your songwriting?

Ian: We just play with sound and sounds. I don't think of it as experimenting, I think of it as creating.

Q: What are your thoughts about the guitar's place in music today — as compared to when you first picked up the instrument to learn about it?

Ian: I just don't have any thoughts about this sort of thing. I consider the guitar an effective tool to create music, one that I'm comfortable with and interested in. I'm not that aware of or concerned about musical trends.

Q: What music makes you happy?

Ian: I like music that strikes me as honest. I am unable to articulate what exactly that means. It's just something that I feel. It's important to me that I believe the artist(s). Sometimes that means that the lyrics have a particular content, sometimes it means that the singing has a certain timbre or that the instruments convince me with their voices. I can't explain this.

Q: What are the most drastically differing musical tastes and influences in the band?

Ian: Probably the fact that I grew up listening to Nugent and still love those early records. I think the others in the band think I'm insane for that.

Q: What are you touring plans for the rest of the year? Are you playing any new songs beyond the End Hits material? If so, what are they like?

Ian: Our next trip will be a month of dates in Europe. We've been working away on new songs, so hopefully we'll start working on some recording in late fall. I have no idea how to describe our old songs, much less these new ones.

Q: When you think about Fugazi's future, what do you hope for or foresee?

Ian: That we go as long as is appropriate, and have the good sense to recognize when it's not.