THREE DECADES OF ANARCHY & CHAOS: PUNK ROCK PURITY*
By Liesse Gomez
In the early 1970s, disco music began to seep onto the airwaves, infecting the youth. Also at the same time, a musical protest sprang forth. Joseph Hyman, whom, along with three others would eventually adopt the surname of Ramone and form a rock group of the same name, is said to be the father of the musical movement so perfectly called punk rock; a movement that would span over two decades, and shape the music industry of today.
But the Ramones are not the most famous and well-known punk group in history. British groups, like the Clash and the Sex Pistols are. And reasonably so. It's been said that while the Ramones and several other New York groups, along with a British band called the Buzzcocks gave birth to punk, British groups like the Sex Pistols and the Bollocks, along with the New Jersey group known as the Misfits refined the image, and as an added bonus, the British band known as the Clash made punk popular, got it out of the clubs and smaller venues, and onto mainstream radio. These British groups turned punk into a second British Invasion.
So what is the so-called punk image? The Ramones all had long, unkempt hair, ripped jeans, and leather motorcycle jackets. These were popular staples of the punk rock groups; particularly ripped, torn, or otherwise well-worn clothes. Inspired after seeing a concert at the CBGB concert music hall in New York, John Ritchie (more commonly known as Sid Vicious) of the Sex Pistols would later perform in a filthy, torn up t- shirt and tight leather pants. Plaid clothing, although occasionally seen in the United States groups, wouldn't truly appear in punk apparel until the early 1990s grunge movement. Spikes, studs, and chains often accentuated the image. Hair dyed various, often loud, vibrant colours, and the hairstyle called simply the Mohawk ran rampant within the US. Boots, although more common within the blossoming heavy metal & hard rock scene, were occasionally thrown into this mixture, especially in the New York and Eastern US punk scene.
The music described as punk or rebellious was, in itself, always interesting. Groups often developed their very own unique sound. Joey Ramone (formerly Joseph Hyman) often wrote songs that depicted using various inhalants and other drugs (see: I Just Wanna Sniff Some Glue, or Carbona, Not Glue) and even how politics and those associated with it was a distressing thing (key example: My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down/Bonzo Goes To Bitburg). The Sex Pistols, fronted by a man with the alias of Johnny Rotten (real name: John Lydon), often lived up to their bad reputation and hard-core image; often going out of their way to insult the establishment. One of their most popular songs, God Save the Queen, was pulled from UK airwaves within its first two weeks of release, a record that has never truly been broken, as it verbally bashed and insulted the Queen Mother. Sometimes, a punk group was able to survive on only three chords; as long as they sounded good, and had a tough, seemingly unbreakable attitude? who cared if they could play? Joan Jett once sang that basically told the establishment that she didn't give a **** what they thought (see: Bad Reputation), and many punks held true with this statement.
By the 1980s, when disco finally lost the momentum it once had and finally died, punk also started to disappear. Heavy metal & the glamour rock hair bands dominated until the early 1990s, about late 1991, emerging full-swing in early 1992, to be exact. Punk would once again be reborn, with a slightly different look, but the same angry, rebellious tone in the rain-drenched concrete jungles of Seattle, Washington. Grunge music had been born. Groups like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Mother Love Bone, Temple of the Dog, Jane's Addiction, The Pixies, and perhaps the most famous of all grunge bands, the ever-popular, forever-famous, and ever-tragic Nirvana, along with several others, took hold of the radio and dominated the airwaves for about two or three years. Alice In Chains managed to survive until the late 1990s, and Pearl Jam and Jane's Addiction, if somewhat obscure, are still alive. The Pixies have regrouped, started touring once more, and, if I'm not mistaken, are planning a new album. The dirty image of 1970s punk was maintained, and added to it was the flannel plaid shirt worn mostly by lumberjacks in British Columbia and hunters in Maine... oddly enough, it's been said that because Seattle is so bloody cold, the groups wore flannel because that was the least they could do in order to play with warm bodies. Long hair, and even more gallons of angst completed the look, and added to the sometimes hyper and occasionally depressing lyrics, this made the groups all the more popular.
As wonderful as it was, grunge was not meant to last long. On April 4th, 1994, Kurt Cobain, front man of Nirvana and perhaps the voice of a new generation was found dead in his home in Aberdeen, Washington, the result of an apparent suicide. Cobain had often said that he had never wanted his music to become extremely popular. That he hated sell-outs, and that he didn't care if Nirvana remained underground for as long as it existed. The overwhelming success of Nirvana, and his burgeoning popularity are said to be contributing factors to his death. Although a few of the remaining grunge bands lived on, Cobain's premature death was a hard hit, effecting even those not associated with grunge. The former drummer for Nirvana, Dave Grohl, would go on to form the Foo Fighters; and his grunge and Nirvana roots can still be heard in his lyrics.
From that point, punk crawled under a rock, seeming to die once more. The world was ready for a happier sound; a sound which punk and its anti- establishment message could not provide. The Ramones, whom had been around since 1974, disbanded in 1997 with the release of their final album, Adios, Amigos. Social Distortion, the Misfits, and the Dead Kennedys stepped aside gracefully to make room for the lighter sound of alternative rock; however, they continued to make albums. The early 1990s punk group from southern California, dubbed the Offspring, turned themselves into a rock group with their mainstream release of Smash in 1995 . They would be the first to also be dubbed sell-outs by their seemingly loyal fans. Soon to follow their footsteps would be Green Day, Garbage, and a few others who dreamed of making it big. The sell-outs were punk groups, who, usually after being discovered by some major record label and signing with the company, would abandon the independent, often smaller company that had raised them in the underground scene. Many bands that sold out ended up changing their once-unique sound; from something once considered hard core, to something much more like the market's popular music. Music which had been proven to sell big time. By 1995, punk music as it had been in the 1970s was, more or less, non- existent, and continuing to fade with every former punk band turning to an alternative sound in order to survive. Popular music, or pop; artists and faux bands like Britney Spears, and the various five-piece Boy Bands ruled the airwaves, and, like the disco groups before them, were like musical kudzu; choking the life out of anything that dared to prosper around it. But, unlike disco, pop is still around, and apparently will be for years to come. Which brings us up mostly to the present day.
Music has stayed like this for quite awhile. Battles of almost mythic proportions between pop, rap/R&B, and hard rock/heavy metal occurred frequently. Punk was still mostly forgotten. Metallica ended their annual Summer Sanitarium tour in 1996, the same year the grandfather of Metal, John (Ozzy) Osbourne, began his seeming blitzkrieg of heavy metal bands, the Ozzfest tour, which will be eight years strong this upcoming summer. Green Day, Garbage, and the Offspring, the supposed sell-outs were mainly on hiatus, busy writing material, and touring in promotion for the albums which were already in circulation. Green Day would release a new album, Nimrod, on which the immensely popular Good Riddance (Time of your Life) would be found, in 1997. The Offspring's popularity on mainstream radio would reach an ultimate climax in 1998 with their release of Americana, and its hit single, Pretty Fly (For a White Guy), but the other sell-out groups would fade into oblivion, to resurface in the early 21st century.
The years was now 1999. Metallica and most heavy metal groups had disappeared from nearly all radio stations to be replaced with Goth/industrial metal like Marilyn Manson & Rammstein & rap-rock crossovers like Limp Bizkit; the majority of the groups in the studio recording or writing new material. Pop was still going strong, but a new, vaguely familiar sound was beginning to appear in the Eastern United States. Was it possible that punk was, like the mythical phoenix, rising from the ashes of its defeat? From Pennsylvania came a resurgence and a reminder of the good old days when Sid Vicious was still alive, and Joey Ramone sang of hitch- hiking to Rockaway Beach. Anti-Flag, fronted by a man with the alias of Justin Sane brought back the faded punk decadence. In response, old groups the Dead Kennedys, Misfits, and Social Distortion returned to the studio, reconnected with their old roots, and once more began to pump out albums. Things seemed to be going well for punk. And then 1999 came to an end.
In 2000, many punk groups had resurfaced to join the new generation. Groups like Blink-182 and Sum 41 were originally considered punk, but in 2000, some East coast groups had the gall to fuse the two genre rivals, punk and pop, into one. Good Charlotte, New Found Glory, and Dashboard Confessional spawned the musical hybrid pop-punk, also called Emo, or emotional punk. It's no coincidence that these bands mainly attract only female fans; the only thing keeping them from being considered just another pop Boy Band is that they can actually play their own instruments. They sing of love, hurt, betrayal, and broken relationships. Blink-182 and Sum 41 are now considered Emo or pop-punk. And as such, are rejected by the authentic, old-school punk fans. MTV saw how popular the Emo scene was becoming, and decided to make it into the perfect market. They twisted the old punk image, and turned it into something quite disgusting to many of the old-school fans. It is now, thanks to MTV, hard to distinguish poseurs (that is, the Emo and pop-punk fan base) from the authentics, the fans of the old punk days.
In 2001 and 2002, the world of punk lost three of its most cherished punk royalty. Joey Ramone, who had been fighting against the devastating disease Lymphoma for almost a decade, died in April of 2001. The father of punk was now only a legend. In September of 2002, DeeDee Ramone, bassist of the Ramones, was found dead in his apartment at the age of fifty, from an apparent drug overdose. His death, unlike that of Joey, was never publicized on television. Later that year, on December 22nd, Joe Strummer, front man of the Clash, died. The news of his death was on nearly every news & music radio station, as well as television channels. Before the deaths of the vocalist & bassist, it was even speculated that the Ramones had been planning to get together for a Greatest Hits album. Devastated by the deaths of his former bandmates, Johnny Ramone proceeded to go through with this plan. In early 2003, a tribute album, We're A Happy Family: An All-Star Tribute To The Ramones was released; dedicated by Johnny to the memory of his two fallen comrades, with half of the profits made by the album going towards a Lymphoma Research Center in New York. A two-CD set Greatest Hits album, respectively entitled The Essential Clash was released by the remaining Clash members not too long after, dedicated to the memory of Joe Strummer. Johnny Ramone died just recently, on September 15th.
With the deaths of several punk and grunge monarchs, the threat of the ever-present musical kudzu that is pop, and the emergence of Emo, it's hard to see how punk has managed to hold on for the 30 years it has. Many musical styles are lucky to live even five or ten years. Punks are survivors. The Misfits and the living members of the Ramones, Clash, and Sex Pistols are remnants of a by-gone era. So when you see that guy that looks like he might be slightly crazy or disturbed, perhaps even dangerous? the guy with the neon green Mohawk, the leather jacket smothered with spikes, studs, and patches?. The guy with ripped, tight jeans, complete with combat boots? perhaps even wearing a Kinks or Misfits t-shirt and a sneer plastered permanently on his face? Ask yourself: Is this guy a product of MTV, or is he a time-traveler from the Berkeley, London, or Birmingham of 1976? Ask yourself this, and think hard on it.
* The author would like to mention that her opinions, however harsh they are, are only that: opinions. To take offense is ridiculous. Please do not chastise her for her opinion. Also, some information may be incorrect, in relation to album release dates and such. It is suggested that if one should find the author has made some mistake, please leave any/all corrections along with reviews. Thankee-sai very kindly.
By Liesse Gomez
In the early 1970s, disco music began to seep onto the airwaves, infecting the youth. Also at the same time, a musical protest sprang forth. Joseph Hyman, whom, along with three others would eventually adopt the surname of Ramone and form a rock group of the same name, is said to be the father of the musical movement so perfectly called punk rock; a movement that would span over two decades, and shape the music industry of today.
But the Ramones are not the most famous and well-known punk group in history. British groups, like the Clash and the Sex Pistols are. And reasonably so. It's been said that while the Ramones and several other New York groups, along with a British band called the Buzzcocks gave birth to punk, British groups like the Sex Pistols and the Bollocks, along with the New Jersey group known as the Misfits refined the image, and as an added bonus, the British band known as the Clash made punk popular, got it out of the clubs and smaller venues, and onto mainstream radio. These British groups turned punk into a second British Invasion.
So what is the so-called punk image? The Ramones all had long, unkempt hair, ripped jeans, and leather motorcycle jackets. These were popular staples of the punk rock groups; particularly ripped, torn, or otherwise well-worn clothes. Inspired after seeing a concert at the CBGB concert music hall in New York, John Ritchie (more commonly known as Sid Vicious) of the Sex Pistols would later perform in a filthy, torn up t- shirt and tight leather pants. Plaid clothing, although occasionally seen in the United States groups, wouldn't truly appear in punk apparel until the early 1990s grunge movement. Spikes, studs, and chains often accentuated the image. Hair dyed various, often loud, vibrant colours, and the hairstyle called simply the Mohawk ran rampant within the US. Boots, although more common within the blossoming heavy metal & hard rock scene, were occasionally thrown into this mixture, especially in the New York and Eastern US punk scene.
The music described as punk or rebellious was, in itself, always interesting. Groups often developed their very own unique sound. Joey Ramone (formerly Joseph Hyman) often wrote songs that depicted using various inhalants and other drugs (see: I Just Wanna Sniff Some Glue, or Carbona, Not Glue) and even how politics and those associated with it was a distressing thing (key example: My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down/Bonzo Goes To Bitburg). The Sex Pistols, fronted by a man with the alias of Johnny Rotten (real name: John Lydon), often lived up to their bad reputation and hard-core image; often going out of their way to insult the establishment. One of their most popular songs, God Save the Queen, was pulled from UK airwaves within its first two weeks of release, a record that has never truly been broken, as it verbally bashed and insulted the Queen Mother. Sometimes, a punk group was able to survive on only three chords; as long as they sounded good, and had a tough, seemingly unbreakable attitude? who cared if they could play? Joan Jett once sang that basically told the establishment that she didn't give a **** what they thought (see: Bad Reputation), and many punks held true with this statement.
By the 1980s, when disco finally lost the momentum it once had and finally died, punk also started to disappear. Heavy metal & the glamour rock hair bands dominated until the early 1990s, about late 1991, emerging full-swing in early 1992, to be exact. Punk would once again be reborn, with a slightly different look, but the same angry, rebellious tone in the rain-drenched concrete jungles of Seattle, Washington. Grunge music had been born. Groups like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Mother Love Bone, Temple of the Dog, Jane's Addiction, The Pixies, and perhaps the most famous of all grunge bands, the ever-popular, forever-famous, and ever-tragic Nirvana, along with several others, took hold of the radio and dominated the airwaves for about two or three years. Alice In Chains managed to survive until the late 1990s, and Pearl Jam and Jane's Addiction, if somewhat obscure, are still alive. The Pixies have regrouped, started touring once more, and, if I'm not mistaken, are planning a new album. The dirty image of 1970s punk was maintained, and added to it was the flannel plaid shirt worn mostly by lumberjacks in British Columbia and hunters in Maine... oddly enough, it's been said that because Seattle is so bloody cold, the groups wore flannel because that was the least they could do in order to play with warm bodies. Long hair, and even more gallons of angst completed the look, and added to the sometimes hyper and occasionally depressing lyrics, this made the groups all the more popular.
As wonderful as it was, grunge was not meant to last long. On April 4th, 1994, Kurt Cobain, front man of Nirvana and perhaps the voice of a new generation was found dead in his home in Aberdeen, Washington, the result of an apparent suicide. Cobain had often said that he had never wanted his music to become extremely popular. That he hated sell-outs, and that he didn't care if Nirvana remained underground for as long as it existed. The overwhelming success of Nirvana, and his burgeoning popularity are said to be contributing factors to his death. Although a few of the remaining grunge bands lived on, Cobain's premature death was a hard hit, effecting even those not associated with grunge. The former drummer for Nirvana, Dave Grohl, would go on to form the Foo Fighters; and his grunge and Nirvana roots can still be heard in his lyrics.
From that point, punk crawled under a rock, seeming to die once more. The world was ready for a happier sound; a sound which punk and its anti- establishment message could not provide. The Ramones, whom had been around since 1974, disbanded in 1997 with the release of their final album, Adios, Amigos. Social Distortion, the Misfits, and the Dead Kennedys stepped aside gracefully to make room for the lighter sound of alternative rock; however, they continued to make albums. The early 1990s punk group from southern California, dubbed the Offspring, turned themselves into a rock group with their mainstream release of Smash in 1995 . They would be the first to also be dubbed sell-outs by their seemingly loyal fans. Soon to follow their footsteps would be Green Day, Garbage, and a few others who dreamed of making it big. The sell-outs were punk groups, who, usually after being discovered by some major record label and signing with the company, would abandon the independent, often smaller company that had raised them in the underground scene. Many bands that sold out ended up changing their once-unique sound; from something once considered hard core, to something much more like the market's popular music. Music which had been proven to sell big time. By 1995, punk music as it had been in the 1970s was, more or less, non- existent, and continuing to fade with every former punk band turning to an alternative sound in order to survive. Popular music, or pop; artists and faux bands like Britney Spears, and the various five-piece Boy Bands ruled the airwaves, and, like the disco groups before them, were like musical kudzu; choking the life out of anything that dared to prosper around it. But, unlike disco, pop is still around, and apparently will be for years to come. Which brings us up mostly to the present day.
Music has stayed like this for quite awhile. Battles of almost mythic proportions between pop, rap/R&B, and hard rock/heavy metal occurred frequently. Punk was still mostly forgotten. Metallica ended their annual Summer Sanitarium tour in 1996, the same year the grandfather of Metal, John (Ozzy) Osbourne, began his seeming blitzkrieg of heavy metal bands, the Ozzfest tour, which will be eight years strong this upcoming summer. Green Day, Garbage, and the Offspring, the supposed sell-outs were mainly on hiatus, busy writing material, and touring in promotion for the albums which were already in circulation. Green Day would release a new album, Nimrod, on which the immensely popular Good Riddance (Time of your Life) would be found, in 1997. The Offspring's popularity on mainstream radio would reach an ultimate climax in 1998 with their release of Americana, and its hit single, Pretty Fly (For a White Guy), but the other sell-out groups would fade into oblivion, to resurface in the early 21st century.
The years was now 1999. Metallica and most heavy metal groups had disappeared from nearly all radio stations to be replaced with Goth/industrial metal like Marilyn Manson & Rammstein & rap-rock crossovers like Limp Bizkit; the majority of the groups in the studio recording or writing new material. Pop was still going strong, but a new, vaguely familiar sound was beginning to appear in the Eastern United States. Was it possible that punk was, like the mythical phoenix, rising from the ashes of its defeat? From Pennsylvania came a resurgence and a reminder of the good old days when Sid Vicious was still alive, and Joey Ramone sang of hitch- hiking to Rockaway Beach. Anti-Flag, fronted by a man with the alias of Justin Sane brought back the faded punk decadence. In response, old groups the Dead Kennedys, Misfits, and Social Distortion returned to the studio, reconnected with their old roots, and once more began to pump out albums. Things seemed to be going well for punk. And then 1999 came to an end.
In 2000, many punk groups had resurfaced to join the new generation. Groups like Blink-182 and Sum 41 were originally considered punk, but in 2000, some East coast groups had the gall to fuse the two genre rivals, punk and pop, into one. Good Charlotte, New Found Glory, and Dashboard Confessional spawned the musical hybrid pop-punk, also called Emo, or emotional punk. It's no coincidence that these bands mainly attract only female fans; the only thing keeping them from being considered just another pop Boy Band is that they can actually play their own instruments. They sing of love, hurt, betrayal, and broken relationships. Blink-182 and Sum 41 are now considered Emo or pop-punk. And as such, are rejected by the authentic, old-school punk fans. MTV saw how popular the Emo scene was becoming, and decided to make it into the perfect market. They twisted the old punk image, and turned it into something quite disgusting to many of the old-school fans. It is now, thanks to MTV, hard to distinguish poseurs (that is, the Emo and pop-punk fan base) from the authentics, the fans of the old punk days.
In 2001 and 2002, the world of punk lost three of its most cherished punk royalty. Joey Ramone, who had been fighting against the devastating disease Lymphoma for almost a decade, died in April of 2001. The father of punk was now only a legend. In September of 2002, DeeDee Ramone, bassist of the Ramones, was found dead in his apartment at the age of fifty, from an apparent drug overdose. His death, unlike that of Joey, was never publicized on television. Later that year, on December 22nd, Joe Strummer, front man of the Clash, died. The news of his death was on nearly every news & music radio station, as well as television channels. Before the deaths of the vocalist & bassist, it was even speculated that the Ramones had been planning to get together for a Greatest Hits album. Devastated by the deaths of his former bandmates, Johnny Ramone proceeded to go through with this plan. In early 2003, a tribute album, We're A Happy Family: An All-Star Tribute To The Ramones was released; dedicated by Johnny to the memory of his two fallen comrades, with half of the profits made by the album going towards a Lymphoma Research Center in New York. A two-CD set Greatest Hits album, respectively entitled The Essential Clash was released by the remaining Clash members not too long after, dedicated to the memory of Joe Strummer. Johnny Ramone died just recently, on September 15th.
With the deaths of several punk and grunge monarchs, the threat of the ever-present musical kudzu that is pop, and the emergence of Emo, it's hard to see how punk has managed to hold on for the 30 years it has. Many musical styles are lucky to live even five or ten years. Punks are survivors. The Misfits and the living members of the Ramones, Clash, and Sex Pistols are remnants of a by-gone era. So when you see that guy that looks like he might be slightly crazy or disturbed, perhaps even dangerous? the guy with the neon green Mohawk, the leather jacket smothered with spikes, studs, and patches?. The guy with ripped, tight jeans, complete with combat boots? perhaps even wearing a Kinks or Misfits t-shirt and a sneer plastered permanently on his face? Ask yourself: Is this guy a product of MTV, or is he a time-traveler from the Berkeley, London, or Birmingham of 1976? Ask yourself this, and think hard on it.
* The author would like to mention that her opinions, however harsh they are, are only that: opinions. To take offense is ridiculous. Please do not chastise her for her opinion. Also, some information may be incorrect, in relation to album release dates and such. It is suggested that if one should find the author has made some mistake, please leave any/all corrections along with reviews. Thankee-sai very kindly.
