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Policy of 3

@policyof3_official

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A punk band from southern New Jersey & Philly. Active from 1989-1995. Then, the stars re-aligned in 2025.

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The US pressing of the Policy of 3 double LP is now available from @protaginc @ebullitionrecords @deathwishinc @revelationrecords , @skyvalley_records , etc
Featuring all of the band’s
studio recordings.
Remastered by @phdamage
Pressed on gray recycled vinyl.

Policy of 3 are an American emocore quartet from New Jersey and Philadelphia who helped define the sound of early 90s political post-hardcore and whose 2025 reformation has been met with the kind of joy that only comes when a band truly mattered the first time around.
Their name alone was a statement of intent; inspired by a term referencing the philosophy of a group of 1930s Chinese farmers who nonviolently advocated for peasant power and independence from the wealthy landowning class. Policy of 3 arrived with their politics already embedded in their identity before a single note was played. This was not a band that attached a message onto their music as an afterthought. The message and the music were the same thing from the beginning.
In a moment when post-hardcore was evolving rapidly and in multiple directions at once, Policy of 3 carved out something specific and their own. They blended the raw energy of punk rock with left-wing politics, more varied tempos, and an emo introspection that was authentic and natural. Their sound drew comparisons to fellow Ebullition Records bands Moss Icon and Still Life, and to Hoover — arpeggiated guitars, sung and spoken vocals, the quiet-to-explosive dynamic that defined the best emocore of that era — but with a political directness and intellectual weight that set them apart. Their lyrics confronted social and political injustice head on, but with a contemplative nuance that trusted the listener could meet them halfway. This was not music that shouted slogans – it was music that asked questions and wanted conversations.
- @viquesimba

Live Photos by @shawnscallen
@90s_hardcore__
@phillyhardcorehistory by @policyof3_official

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5 months ago

Two photos - 32 years apart.
Arriving home from our first tour. Summer 1993.
Preparing to leave for our Brooklyn show. Fall 2025.
We’re still the same heights.
That was our first band van- The Finch.
The loft we built collapsed driving to the first show. I can’t believe that van made it through a 7 week tour. I almost can’t believe we made it as well. That tour was a mess, but we still had a great time. Nearly half the shows fell through. I think a shitty first tour builds character though. You’ve got to work for it. What little money we were paid from the shows that actually happened went to gas and Taco Bell, because it was the cheapest vegan food we could come up with, at the time. Luckily on subsequent tours we got more creative.

@punkbandvans
@phillyhardcorehistory
#90semo
#njhc
#phillypunk #phillyhardcore by @policyof3_official

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10 days ago

4/4/1993 One of many shows we played in New Brunswick, NJ between 1993-1995.
Adam went to school at Rutgers & Jeff lived there for a while along with many of our friends. Between the Melody Bar, the campus spaces and the various punk houses there were near constant shows.
Now is a great time to donate some money to a pro-choice organization.
Glad the punks are still keeping it up with shows at Cinco.

We always enjoyed playing with @gardenvarietypunk
@90s_hardcore__

#90semo #policyof3 #njhc #njpunk by @policyof3_official

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17 days ago

9/29/25 at the Church by @policyof3_official

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18 days ago

In the summer of 1999 I went to Japan for the first time with @four.hundred.years
Upon arriving we were met by Naoki Ando @threepennie . He was wearing a Policy of 3 shirt, which really blew me away, since it was very early Internet days and we were a diy punk band that had split up about 4 years earlier. He also set up a truly great tour that we will never forget! Played with so many great bands including @envybandofficial !
Seen here with me holding a gas pump that looked like something from Star Wars.

#policyof3 #njhc #japanpunk #japanhardcore #japaneseemo by @policyof3_official

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23 days ago

All The President’s Men 12” LP Compilation (Old Glory Records – NGR-12 © 1994)

we celebrate that cultures that we kill

I was going through all of my compilation albums the other day and revisited one of my absolute favorites I haven’t listened to in a while.

You would be hard pressed to find another comp from the mid 90s that had more influential bands on it than this one - and that is coming from a time period of pretty exceptional options.

Out of all the bangers on this lineup I chose the Policy Of 3 song - not only because it’s my favorite, but they are from New Jersey 😎✌️

If an alien landed outside your house and demanded to listen to a selection of some of the most iconic bands of the era you would give it this.

@policyof3_official

#policyofthree #hoover #shotmaker #emo #rememberingemo by @policyof3_official

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24 days ago

Saturday, November 27, 1993 we played another great show at the short lived Reconstruction Records in NYC.
I feel very lucky to have played this special place run by several people that were influential to me as a young punk. It was created by the same punks that were putting on shows at @abcnorio , which was one of the inspirations for us to start the Cabbage Collective here in Philly. Check out the piece @freddyalva_nyc wrote discussing it with some of the other folks that were involved. I screen shot a clip with a photo of the great @sticksandstones_nj
I bought their demo tape at one of the first shows I went to at City Gardens in the late 80s. The singer/guitarist, Pete V, later went on to sing for @worldinfernofs
I always enjoyed seeing him perform.
RIP Pete.
Played so many good shows with Iconoclast & Hell No.
#iconoclast #90semo
@90s_hardcore__
#nyhc by @policyof3_official

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a month ago

A good weekend of shows at @abcnorio
in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, NYC. Saturday & Sunday December 3 & 4, 1994! $3.00 with a bag of beans or rice.
Saw and played so many great shows over the years at abc. I look forward to what the new incarnation of it holds.
@frail_burnsandburns
@lifetimenjhc
@90s_hardcore__
@cabletheband
#90semo
#njhc
#nyhc
#phillypunk by @policyof3_official

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a month ago

Sunday, October 23, 1994 we played in Princeton, NJ with this fine lineup!
The show was organized by earthwell, a cool group of kids from that area that organized a bunch of benefit shows for a year or two (?). They got some really great bands together & the ones I attended or played had a great friendly atmosphere.
We were setting up shows in Philly during this time as the Cabbage Collective. It was cool to see not only bands, labels & zines popping up as diy punk expanded but also all these collectives of kids putting on shows in whatever spaces they could find. Earthwell in Princeton, Countrytime Collective in Lancaster, Beehive in DC, Sitcom, Enoch, etc.
@spoonersnofun @90s_hardcore__
@deadguyrocks @frail_burnsandburns
#90semo #njhc @autumnemohardcore by @policyof3_official

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a month ago

On this day, August 18th in 1993 we played in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with First 5 Thru from Richmond, Hellbender from North Carolina & Stalefish. Another Star Wars themed flier thanks to Grant.
#milwaukeepunk #90semo #policyof3 by @policyof3_official

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2 months ago

Hey South Jersey- we just restocked the double LP at @skyvalley_records in Somerdale, NJ. Our old friend Chuck runs it. He’s got a great selection online, but you should swing by the store and check it out if you haven’t. It’s just a few blocks away from the Carvel Ice Cream parking lot that we spent countless hours at skating, biking and hanging out.
Also available from @protaginc @ebullitionrecords @deathwishinc @revelationrecords
#90semo #policyof3 #njhc #phillypunk #independentrecordstore by @policyof3_official

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2 months ago

8/3/93 we hopped on this great show in LA. We played a handful of shows that summer with Sparkmarker, Undertow & Hellbender. We had just played there 2 days earlier, but this was our first tour and it was kind of a mess. I intended to have a show each of the 38 days we were out. In reality almost half fell through and we only played 21 shows. I learned a lot about how to book a tour that summer! None the less we still played with so many great bands and met so many people that summer that we’re still friends with to this day. I was 19 at the time & loved (almost) every minute of it! Check out the second photo for a calendar of all the amazing shows they had for that month.
#lahc #90semo #policyof3 #njhc #phillypunk
@90s_hardcore__ by @policyof3_official

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2 months ago