TAQWACORE: The Birth of Muslim Punk Rock
In 2003, a white Muslim convert named Michael Muhammed Knight wrote a novel called THE TAQWACORES about a fictional music scene that managed to be both hardcore punk and Muslim at the same time. The book was an underground best-seller, and more importantly, struck a nerve with disenfranchised young Muslims everywhere. Soon after, actual “Taqwacore” bands began to form all over North America. This documentary film joins Michael and bands like The Secret Trial Five and The Kominas on their first tour / pilgrimage across the U.S.A., as they challenge Muslims and non-Muslims alike with audacious anthems like Sharia Law in the U.S.A. and Mohammed was a Punk Rocker. Their spiritual odyssey leads them to Pakistan, and their rocky attempt to bring punk to the streets of Lahore. Produced by EyeSteelFilm (Up the Yangtze, RIP!: A Remix Manifesto). Released By EyeSteelFilm / KinoSmith. 80 minutes.