South Florida in the 1980s was a head-banging experience for anyone who liked alternative music. The Cameo Theater on Miami Beach was at the heart of the underground music world known as Punk, Trash, and skate music.

Best friends in the mid-80s, Mike and I bonded over Punk, trash, and skate punk music. We frequented the Cameo Theater, which had transitioned from a Movie theater house to a punk house. 

Mike and I enjoyed the local band The Drills and most of the great hardcore punk bands such as Black Flag, Ramones, Suicidal Tendencies, and Dead Kennedys, who came to play in this tiny, decrepit hot pink and lime-green art deco throwback.

Sneaking in a bottle of gin, we would each buy a large soda and add our poison. It was Mike and I, and our little secret

Mike and I vs the local biker gang; not all fun and games.

The Cameo Theater hired local biker gangs as security guards. Mike stood only 5’4 inches tall, but despite this, he decided to dance in the mosh pit, the most dangerous place you could slam dance, where people got tossed every which way. A guy approaching me told me my friend had been taken outside. The biker gang had dumped him outside because he broke his foot while dancing in the pit. Laughing and drunk as skunks, I managed to get him into my car, and I drove him to the hospital, with Mike cackling the whole way.

Karma Chameleon

I was a chameleon in the 80s, enjoying all sorts of music and dancing. Slam dancing was just one of my guilty pleasures. It felt cathartic, like punching a boxing bag, only no punching, just slamming bodies with the crowd. 

Of course, I also enjoyed the mainstream music of the fabulous 80s, like Culture Club, The Thompson Twins, Simply Red, and The Pet Shop Boys, to name a few of my favorite bands, and Mike and I bonded over these, too.

I wore my hair in all sorts of ways, from Mohawks to purple curls, but I never did anything permanent to my body, like tattoos or piercings. I believed in enjoying the moment, impermanence, and fluidity. My most harmful indulgences in the day were drinking alcohol, smoking cigars, and the occasional blunt. 

As I said, South Florida in the 1980s was a head-banging experience for Mike and me, who liked alternative music. I enjoyed my freedom, and I enjoyed most of it while remaining mainstream.