Punk+Rock

Punk Rock
Punk rock originally started as a fad that gradually turned into a global addiction that would change the music industry forever. Despite its many changes and new faces, punk rock has consistently embraced its two very important characteristics: It is rock and roll with an upbeat tempo and being the constant counterculture movement. Starting as a fight against mainstream music, punk rock only attracted only a handful of listeners. The rest of the greater public were disturbed or threatened by what they heard or saw at the shows and returned back to the music played on the radio. Those however that were “enlightened” and discovered the significance of punk rock became dedicated and lifelong fans.

Table of Contents:

 * 1) Underground Rock and the Early Scene
 * 2) Welcome to New York
 * 3) London is Calling
 * 4) New Wave, Post-Punk, and HardcorePunk Goes Mainstream

1. Underground Rock and the Early Scene
Before punk rock made its mark in mid-1970s, the underground rock scene created many of the core values that the punk rockers adopted to create their own musical genre. Underground rock, or garage rock, was like punk rock; the anti-mainstream rock and roll of the late 1960s and early 1970s. The underground music was viewed by many young adults to be more realistic then mainstream music because instead of singing about hope for the future and using metaphors for drugs, punk rock sang openly about drugs and end of the world. Underground rock never became successful commercially because of its bold lyrics and “doom and gloom” approach for the future, but became a stepping stone for the punk rock movement.

2. Welcome to New York
In the early 1970s, New York City became the first place that punk rock bands began performing together in the same place. After World War II, much of the upper-class white population had left their homes in Bronx, Brooklyn, and parts of Queens for suburban New Jersey, Staten Island and Long Island. This left what many people described as a giant house party which gave the underground rock bands and punk rock bands of the late 1960s-1970s a place to centralize. The first clubs to open, such as Max’s Kansas City and CBGB, its doors to the unsigned punk bands were located in the rundown neighborhoods of Tribeca, SoHo, and the East Village. At the time, the more popular venues in New York City had only booked bands that were signed to major record labels. But, at these new clubs, fans of the underground, garage, and punk rock created the world’s first punk rock community. From this community came many artists such as the Ramones, Blondie, and Patti Smith. However, like there underground forefathers, punk rock bands of the 1970s had to deal with their own alternate egos. In the 1960s, the British Invasion, which brought popular British bands like the Rolling Stones, The Beatles, and The Who to American audiences, had overshadowed underground rock during 1960s but died out by the time the Beatles disbanded in 1970. Taking the place of the short, catchy songs of the British bands were lengthy and musically complex progressive rock songs of like Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and Yes. These bands became popular in the early 1970s throughout the entire world, while the founders of the punk rock community rarely got any popularity or recognition outside of New York City.

3. London is Calling
Between 1976 and 1979, punk rock arrived to the United Kingdom in its truest form. There are many reasons why the UK, especially London, became the center of Europe’s punk rock scene. One of these reasons why this happened was because of UK’s recession during the 70s. This economic down fall lead to the highest unemployment rate since World War II. This left many people struggling to make ends meet and many others to be on the dole, or known as the British welfare system. media type="youtube" key="g4dL0lv72oM" height="279" width="448" align="right"Theproblem in the economy seemed to be most difficult for the younger generation. Most of them were on the dole and received minimal checks from the government. Their future seemed to be unwelcoming and they grew increasingly angry with the government. Their fear of eternal poverty and their cynicism of the future served as major roles in the start of London’s punk rock scene.

4. New Wave, Post-Punk, and Hardcore
The term New Wave was originally just a new name for punk rock. Many record companies and radio stations though that punk rock had been a fad, so it was given a new name in order to revive it. Eventually, New Wave bands shied away from the punk rock sound and began featuring mainstream pop songs and more commercial styles. Many of these bands, including U2, R.E.M., and the Police, found massive radio/commercial success as mainstream rock-and-roll groups, but they had little connection to the true and early punk rock scene. If it weren’t for hardcore/post-punk scenes such as the Dead Kennedys being the driving force behind the hardcore scene in San Francisco, punk rock would have never revived.

5. Punk Rock Goes Mainstream
Punk rock genre had finally pushed past the New Wave, post-punk, and hardcore punk of the 1980s and went straight to the top in 1990s. The difference this time was that the new forms of punk rock finally broke into mainstream commercial success with stunningly unexpected results. Punk Rock was always known for its limited underground following, anti-corporate themes, quick tempos, and angst-filled content. This formula was repeated throughout the country in various scenes and let to local success. But major movements and success appeared in Southern California and Washington D.C. There was also a small scene in Seattle, but were usually made up of other punk rock bands that attended each other’s shows.

=﻿Punk Rock Analysis:=

Punk rock was not just a music genre made up with a bunch of drug addicts and self-hating people but a movement that changed the world’s music scene forever. Punk rock started out as a way for the poverty stricken people of America and Britain that felt suppressed by society and had nothing to look forward to in the future. Punk rock became their way of protesting to the government and the world; showing them that they created a nation of worthless, angry people that felt that the government failed them.

The music of Punk rock basically were shouts, screams, yells, and whiny ballads of what was wrong with the world or human nature. Their music was all about criticism and hate of everything and everyone that to prove a point they would often hurt themselves or other band members on stage or drink alcohol to the point of near death. No one in the audience, clubs or bands honestly would care though, because it was all about the creative process and the music of punk rock.

Punk rockers style was basically anything that went against society ideals and values. This would include drugs, excessive drinking or binge drinking, poverty, self-harm and being involved in same sex relationships. The people of Punk were so consume with the want to be the outcasts and the drifters that they thought that their music would only be for the “enlightened” few and never in a million years become mainstream music. However punk rock did go mainstream despite all of its attempts not to.

Punk rock has a whole became was not only very important to its own time and generation but even for today’s generation and music industry. Punk rock back in the 1970s and 1980s was even more controversial then Rock and Roll and Elvis was during the 1950s. Because not only was punk rock’s peak during the late 1970s to the early 1980s when America was very right winged and conservative but also because it was talking about end of the world destruction, end of government, and drugs very openly and boldly. Punk rock made huge steps forward in the music industry and cultural society, that it opened many doors and broke down many taboos for future generations and genres such as rap, metal, and alternative.

Punk rock also inspired many of the artists today, such as U2 and Nirvana, which went on to be leaders of their own worldly famous genres. Punk rock basically became the father of many genres including genres such as Grunge, Pop Punk, New Wave, Rap and Alternative. From these genres there were created and born many, many famous mainstream bands and singers that effected the music industry further more today. These bands include many artists and bands such as Eminem, Avril Lavigne, Pink, The Offspring, Greenday, and Good Charlotte that are still popular and influential today.

But not only did Punk Rock break down brick walls in the music industry but also in America’s literature, art, television, cinema-movie, and fashion industries. They created their own personal impression on America society and pop culture that it would be impossible to escape it. They got rid of many taboos and talked about topics, such as suicide, that were never even acknowledged before or shushed about. They made it possible for a lot of our stories, poetry, art, lyrics, pictures, speeches, and etc. to be either broadcasted on the radio, television, or published in new paper and books.Punk rock has affected our lives and cultures in such ways that it is near impossible to comprehend sometimes. But honestly, if it weren’t for them we could still be stuck in the 1950s ideals, living the same lives our grandparents had.

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