It's not about glitz, glamour and success
- david1170
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
Underdog review ‘The Scene Police Story’
The story of SCENE POLICE reads not only like a record label history, but also a bit like a tour travelogue. Forget polished success stories and nostalgic punk rock myths. What's told here is the raw, chaotic, and brutally honest story of a DIY punk collective held together by conviction, friendship, sleep deprivation, and some pretty bad financial decisions. Dennis and his companions – including co-founder Emre, accountant Elke, and Rolf, or David from COUCH POTATOES and RYDELL, are united by their love of hardcore, DIY, and the idea of taking matters into their own hands.
What initially began as a reaction to scene elitism and moral self-righteousness evolved into an international underground operation: record label, tour network, mail order, political battleground, and eventually a full-time obsession. As SCENE POLICE grew and musically diversified, from punk to emo to metalcore, the surrounding landscape also changed. Punk became increasingly part of a pop culture where, as Dennis notes, "many people consume it without questioning its values." SCENE POLICE didn't try to resist this development by clinging to nostalgia, but instead remained at the heart of it – with releases, tours, contacts, and a network that extended far beyond its own scene.
Over six years, SCENE POLICE released more than 40 records, organized tours across national borders, and built an international community. Bands like HOT WATER MUSIC, PLANES MISTAKEN FOR STARS, TIGER LOU, STRIKE ANYWHERE, and MOTÖRHEAD are as much a part of the scene as countless lesser-known bands and collaborators from Europe, the UK, the US, and Japan. It's not about glitz and glamour and success. It's about trust, passion, stubbornness, and noise.
The story leads through sweaty squats and empty clubs, to important releases and endless tours. It's about ideological clashes, political infighting, broken-down vans, sleep deprivation, and ever-increasing debt. It's the story of what happens when DIY ethic collides head-on with reality. The label's demise is therefore not simply a business episode. Behind the €25,000 debt lies personal pain, disappointment, and the feeling of having lost something into which years of time, energy, and passion had been poured. SCENE POLICE ultimately failed due to burnout, political conflicts, overambitious ideas, and the financial consequences of a lifestyle that wasn't easily compatible with economic sustainability.
At the same time, this experience forged an even stronger bond within the existing collective. SCENE POLICE had long been more than just a label – it was a way of life, a "call to arms," as Dennis describes it. A shared understanding that hardcore and DIY could be not just musical styles, but also an attitude and a way of living together.
The story of SCENE POLICE isn't a how-to guide on how to "make it." It's more of a confession—from straight edge to the first joint in Amsterdam and the staggering aftermath of a self-organized gig, searching for the next party. A love letter to underground culture. A story about people who sleep on club floors, lug crates of records across borders, discuss politics at four in the morning with a shot of herbal schnapps in hand—Dennis "Mümmelmann" right in the thick of it—and yet still cling to the belief that community can be more important than profit.
What remains after the collapse is therefore far more significant than a balanced budget: music that meant something. Friendships that last a lifetime. Connected scenes. And proof that punk rock can still mean something real.
After finishing his studies and with a fresh start both personally and professionally, Dennis finally takes the label back on track. Not a grand comeback with all the fanfare, but rather a classic approach: a mixtape. A format that perfectly suits the history of SCENE POLICE – personal, unconventional, open to discovery, and always with one foot in the DIY underground.
Financial ruin? Absolutely. Cultural impact? Undeniable.
Regret? Ask again when the ringing in your ears has stopped.
Comments