Zines, memories, sonic assault: Mabuhay Gardens' 50-year SF punk detonation - 48 hills

"It started as the only punk rock club in town, and for two to three years, it was the only place you could go, which was good because you'd see everyone you knew. The arrangement was practical and symbiotic: the restaurant profited from the punk crowds while the venue provided a crucial gathering space for the emerging underground music scene."

"Born in Texas and educated at UC Berkeley, Vale launched the influential punk zine Search & Destroy in 1977 before founding RE/Search Publications, whose books chronicled industrial music, performance art, body modification, and countercultural movements largely ignored by mainstream media. His work helped frame punk not merely as music—it was also a living anthropology of resistance."

Mabuhay Gardens, originally opened as a back room in Ness Aquino's Filipino supper club in 1976, became San Francisco's first and only punk rock venue for several years. The club operated for 11 years until closing in 1987, leaving behind a legacy documented through faded flyers, Super 8 footage, and cultural artifacts. Nearly four decades later, the historic space reopened as a concert venue hosting diverse performances. V. Vale, founder of RE/Search Publications and publisher of the influential punk zine Search & Destroy, has documented underground culture for nearly five decades. On May 28, Mabuhay and neighboring On Broadway will host a day-long celebration marking 50 years of punk in San Francisco, bringing together history, performance, and community.

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