My love for punk rock started when I was in grade 4 and heard my first Blink 182 song. It was so new and exciting, it made me want to dance and scream that bloodcurdling scream of excitement that only little girls can do. Even as a nine-year-old girl I knew that this music was special. The love and excitement I have for this genre has grown over the years, and nothing pisses me off as much as when people say punk is dead. I went on a quest to prove to all the “haters”(as retards of today say), that punk’s not dead, it’s merely underground.
Punk rock is music that started between 1974 and 1976, and is a genre that rejects mainstream culture and the establishment. It is rebellious, fast, and wild, with short catchy lyrics.The music of the 60s were so disco-like that people got sick of it and started a whole new genre, known as punk rock. Rock and roll music had become too tame, it was supposed to be wild and crazy. The punk movement came along to get rock music out of the funk it had fallen into, making it edgier and restoring it to its former glory. Along with this music in the 70s came the punk lifestyle, think Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols, who was the poster boy for punk, embodying not just the music known as punk, but also the “sex, drugs and rock n roll” lifestyle that goes with it. The punk movement started after the hippie movement, to shock society by rejecting the peace and love ideal of the 60s. Since then “music” such as dubstep, (which sounds like R2-D2 pleasuring himself), and trance have taken over. But is it true that punk is “dead”, since this culture of annoying noise, known as modern music, has taken over?
The first punk rock songs had anti-political lyrics and were generally short and energetic. Bands such as The Sex Pistols, The Ramones and The Damned are seen as the leaders of the movement, rejecting and rebelling against mainstream rock.The movement didn’t just start a new genre, but created an entirely new lifestyle. It was a way to dress, a way to think and a way to live. It was exciting to the youth, different than what they were used to, and many of them welcomed the change.
People that live this type of life are known as “punks”. They dress in edgy clothes and express their attitude through the way they dress. They wear what they want because they don’t care about what society thinks, and are known to look unique. They are big on DIY and are known to make their own clothes. Punks resist the system and tyranny and they do what they want, because they hate authority. They don’t want to be part of the system. Almost like hipsters, but way, WAY cooler.
Nowadays, people want to look punk without living the lifestyle, or listening to punk rock. “Punk” is now a look you can buy, and instead of being a statement against the establishment, looking punk is now a fashion statement. Real punks are difficult to spot, there are so many phonies out there. Even though the punk look is becoming popular, the music is becoming less so. Lately all people seem to be listening to is hip hop, dubstep and trance, among other grating sounds called “music”. There is the belief that the pop star killed punk rock, but on the other hand there are those that believe punk music is still alive and well. Punk music is more relevant today than it was back then. People rebel against things more than they used to, and it is them that keep punk alive, by rejecting the system. Punk music is rarely heard on the radio, you have to download it or visit dingy pubs in order to experience it. It has taken on different sounds and forms, making it difficult to spot, which is the reason people think punk is dead. Mariska Morris (19), says that, although punk may be dying in some ways, it is not dead and it never will be. She says that music doesn’t simply “die out”, it transforms into something else. Speaking along the same lines is Ricardo Teixeira (26), bassist for the Slim Jims. Ricardo, a punk rock fan, believes that “punk is alive in our hearts”. Yes, even though fans of punk rock music are few and far between, they are a strong group and will never let society take them down.
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