Tell us about yourself
I’m the vocalist of the metalcore and screamo band agreatersenseofself. I’ve been claiming since I was 21, after the passing of a family member to pills laced with fentanyl and seeing what drugs have done to friends.
My hobbies include Magic: The Gathering, iPod modding, PC building, and analog video production. I am currently the vocalist and synth player of the multigenre screamo, Nintendocore, and metalcore project agreatersenseofself, which is on Instagram as agreatersenseofself and on Twitter as agreatersosmd. I also make hyperpop and general content on YouTube under rosiegothicc. I also run the metal club on Towson’s university campus.
What’s currently on your playlist?
How do you personally define straight edge?
Community, uplifting others, going to music, involvement in culture (I mean not just hardcore, like everything that means true to you), making smart choices, and staying armed with a mind.
How important is music to your relationship with straight edge?
Earth Crisis and edge metal are why I’m sober. Yes, one can be sober, but there’s a difference between being sober and uplifting others in a community, like straight edge.
What’s your straight edge story?
I never really claimed edge until 21. My cousin died, and I relapsed. To move on, I had to get sober.
How has straight edge influenced your relationships?
It’s definitely been tolerable to be around people who want me to be healthy. My family has always been super supportive too.
Looking back, is there anything about path into and through straight edge that you would do differently?
Claimed edge and got sober earlier.
True or False: “If you’re not now, you never were”?
I think you can relapse and come back to being edge. Personally, I think it’s bad to treat people like addicts for stuff they are actively working on. Not everyone changes in a day. I’ve always been edge, but I definitely understand that it’s hard.
Have you encountered any challenges or misconceptions about being straight edge?
That was a gang. We need to not shit on harm reduction, too.
Do you feel that your gender or age has influenced your experience within the straight edge and hardcore scenes?
Edge currently (while it’s changing with bands like World of Pleasure, Year of the Knife, and TraumaXQueen) is male-dominant. I’ve only really experienced microaggressions so far, rather than blatant transphobia, but it’s there, and we need to change it.
In your view, how inclusive is the straight edge scene?
It’s pretty inclusive, but please, for the love of God, add queer-, femme-, POC-, and enby-fronted bands to bills.
Have you observed any evolution in the straight edge scene regarding acceptance and diversity?
Again, a lot of the shit I was listening to back then had men’s club all over it, but through the pandemic, I saw a lot more people accepting of queer young kids. I don’t know if that’s just because of the democracy of the internet or what, but it needs to happen more.
This interview has been lightly edited for grammar and punctuation. All responses reflect the interviewee’s original words and meaning.
