Four suburban New Jersey students from the Leo R. Gittleman Jewish Day School form a rock band that becomes inexplicably popular, creating exhiliration, friction, confrontation, and soul-searching among its members.
It's now over twenty years since punk pogo-ed its way into our consciousness. Punk Rock So What?brings together a new generation of academics, writers and journalists to provide the first comprehensive assessment of punk and its place in popular music history, culture and myth. The contributors, who include Suzanne Moore, Lucy OBrien, Andy Medhurst, Mark Sinker and Paul Cobley, challenge standard views of punk prevalent since the 1970s. They: * re-situate punk in its historical context, analysing the possible origins of punk in the New York art scene and Manchester clubs as well as in Malcolm McClarens brain * question whether punk deserves its reputation as an anti-fascist, anti-sexist movement which opened up opportunities for women musicians and fans alike. * trace punks long-lasting influence on comics, literature, art and cinema as well as music and fashion, from films such as Sid and Nancy and The Great Rock n Roll Swindle to work by contemporary artists such as Gavin Turk and Sarah Lucas. * discuss the role played by such key figures as Johnny Rotten, Richard Hell, Malcolm McClaren, Mark E. Smith and Viv Albertine. Punk Rock Revisited kicks over the statues of many established beliefs about the meaning of punk, concluding that, if anything, punk was more culturally significant than anybody has yet suggested, but perhaps for different reasons.
This book is an ethnographic investigation of punk subculture as well as a treatise on the importance of place: a location with both physical form and cultural meaning. Rather than examining punk as a "sound" or a "style" as many previous works have done, it investigates the places that the subculture occupies and the cultural practices tied to those spaces. Since social groups need spaces of their own to practice their way of life, this work relates punk values and practices to the forms of their built environments. As not all social groups have an equal ability to secure their own spaces, the book also explores the strategies punks use to maintain space and what happens when they fail to do so.
With its own fashion, culture, and chaotic energy, punk rock boasted a do-it-yourself ethos that allowed anyone to take part. Vibrant and volatile, the punk scene left an extraordinary legacy of music and cultural change. John Robb talks to many of those who cultivated the movement, such as John Lydon, Lemmy, Siouxsie Sioux, Mick Jones, Chrissie Hynde, Malcolm McLaren, Henry Rollins, and Glen Matlock, weaving together their accounts to create a raw and unprecedented oral history of UK punk. All the main players are here: from The Clash to Crass, from The Sex Pistols to the Stranglers, from the UK Subs to Buzzcocks—over 150 interviews capture the excitement of the most thrilling wave of rock ’n’ roll pop culture ever. Ranging from its widely debated roots in the late 1960s to its enduring influence on the bands, fashion, and culture of today, this history brings to life the energy and the anarchy as no other book has done.
Listen to Punk Rock! Exploring a Musical Genre discusses the evolution of punk from its inception in 1975 to the present, delving into the lasting impact of the genre throughout society today. Listen to Punk Rock! provides readers with a fuller picture of punk rock as an inclusive genre with continuing relevance. Organized in a roughly chronological manner, it starts with an introduction that explains the musical and cultural forces that shaped the punk genre. Next, 50 entries cover important punk bands and subgenres, noting female punk bands as well as bands of color. The final part of the book discusses how punk has influenced other musical genres and popular culture. The book will give those new to the genre an overview of important bands and products related to the movement in music, including publications, fashion, and films about punk rock. Notably, it pays special attention to diversity within the genre, discussing bands often overlooked or mentioned only in passing in most histories of the movement, which focus mainly on The Sex Pistols, The Clash, and The Ramones as the pioneers of punk.
Punk Rock Warlord explores the relevance of Joe Strummer within the continuing legacies of both punk rock and progressive politics. It is aimed at scholars and general readers interested in The Clash, punk culture, and the intersections between pop music and politics, on both sides of the Atlantic. Contributors to the collection represent a wide range of disciplines, including history, sociology, musicology, and literature; their work examines all phases of Strummer’s career, from his early days as ’Woody’ the busker to the whirlwind years as front man for The Clash, to the ’wilderness years’ and Strummer’s final days with the Mescaleros. Punk Rock Warlord offers an engaging survey of its subject, while at the same time challenging some of the historical narratives that have been constructed around Strummer the Punk Icon. The essays in Punk Rock Warlord address issues including John Graham Mellor’s self-fashioning as ’Joe Strummer, rock revolutionary’; critical and media constructions of punk; and the singer’s complicated and changing relationship to feminism and anti-racist politics. These diverse essays nevertheless cohere around the claim that Strummer’s look, style, and musical repertoire are so rooted in both English and American cultures that he cannot finally be extricated from either.
Author Jeremy Dale believes that too many businesses create an environment that encourages mediocrity and corporate norms that deliver lukewarm results at best. In The Punk Rock of Business, Dale offers a road map away from average and towards innovation through a mindset rooted in punk rock principles. In this fast-paced, actionable guidebook, readers will find: -Eight punk rock principles to help you redefine your place in the corporate world–for the better -A set of characteristics to strive for that will liberate you and accelerate your success -Countless examples—drawing on both the classic stories from the music genre's industry-changing legacy and Dale's years of business success—to illustrate these principles and characteristics in action -Straightforward lessons and actions to start taking today—right now—to break through corporate norms and build something greater Punk rockers had a cause. They aimed for authenticity and refused to conform. In doing so, they created a dramatic change that shook society to its core. It was a much needed wake-up call for the conservative part of the music industry. Jeremy Dale wants you to do the same in the business world, and in The Punk Rock of Business, he gives you the tools you need to accomplish that goal.
Discusses how young women use the punk subculture for empowerment and self-identification, constructing their own version of femininity from the ingredients of the style. The book is based in part on the author's own reminiscence of a punk girlhood, as well as interviews with 40 punk girls and women between the ages of 14 and 37 in a handful of cities throughout North America. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
This is the most wide-ranging and provocative look at punk rock as a social change movement over the past forty-five years, told through first-hand accounts of roughly 250 musicians and activists. John Malkin brings together punk’s most famous figures as well as underground voices, creating a new and insightful history of punk throughout the ages.
As religion has retreated from its position and role of being the glue that holds society together, something must take its place. Utilising a focused and detailed study of Straight Edge punk (a subset of punk in which adherents abstain from drugs, alcohol and casual sex) Punk Rock is My Religion argues that traditional modes of religious behaviours and affiliations are being rejected in favour of key ideals located within a variety of spaces and experiences, including popular culture. Engaging with questions of identity construction through concepts such as authenticity, community, symbolism and music, this book furthers the debate on what we mean by the concepts of ‘religion’ and ‘secular’. Provocatively exploring the notion of salvation, redemption, forgiveness and faith through a Straight Edge lens, it suggests that while the study of religion as an abstraction is doomed to a simplistic repetition of dominant paradigms, being willing to examine religion as a lived experience reveals the utility of a broader and more nuanced approach.