DIY wasn't an aesthetic choice but a survival necessity that became a philosophy

Azerrad shows that the do-it-yourself approach chronicled across all thirteen bands began less as an ideological stance and more as a practical necessity: major labels had little interest in music this abrasive or uncommercial, so bands built their own infrastructure simply because no one else would. Over time, however, what started as a workaround hardened into an explicit philosophy, one where handling your own booking, distribution, and recording wasn't merely tolerated but actively preferred, since it kept creative and financial control inside the band and its immediate community rather than ceding it to outside interests with different incentives. This shift from necessity to principle is central to understanding why so many of these bands, even after achieving underground success that could have translated into major-label deals, remained deliberately suspicious of that path. Azerrad frames this as a genuinely new model, distinct from earlier bohemian movements that depended more heavily on outside patrons or institutions. Takeaway: constraints forced upon you can, over time, become values you'd choose to keep even once the constraint lifts.