Punk Rock Essay, Research Paper

The 1980?s are mostly known for its cheesy new wave music, with keyboards and big hair. One of the turning points in music, punk rock, was also recognized in the early 80?s. Though it was less popular then, punk rock has stuck around and managed to become a very well-known and popular music genre.

Some of the very early bands of the 1970?s helped to pave the way for punk rock bands. The Slits, The 101ers, Malcom McLauren, and the Raincoats were a few of the trend-setting bands. A UK feminist punk group called the ?The Slits? were formed in the late 70?s to early 80?s. Their unorthodox tribal-influenced rhythms single them out as the more underrated units of the time. The 101ers were formed in London in the 70?s and established itself on a fading pub-rock circuit about to be undermined by the advent of punk. They?re songs showed the singers abrasive delivery already in place. .(Ancient Punk Rock History, online dialogue, WWW.nstop.com/paloma/history.html)

By 1980 the lessons of punk were defined; keep it simple, skip the solos, pump the attitude, and each band eventually developed their own style. Mtv gave punk rock a head start, debuting in 1981, around the time punk rock had developed. .(DeCurtis, Anthony The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock and Roll, (c)1992 page #673) ?Music videos miniaturize our attention spans, lionizes beauty over talent, robs artists of their mystery, objectifies women, pacifies viewers, ruins the individual experience of a song, and destroys the boundaries between creativity and commercialism.?(DeCurtis, Anthony The Rolling Stone illustrated History of Rock and Roll (c)1992 page #640)

Kurt Kobain, a formerly well-known punk rocker, describes himself as the stereotypical punk rocker; a rebellious child with anger toward his parents for a bad marriage.(Azerrad, Michael Come As You Are (c)1994 page #13) But not all punk rockers are depressed or had an unhappy childhood, ?I only write music when I?m depressed. When I?m in a good mood, that?s when I want to be out living a life(Seventeen Magazine, (c)1999).? says Daniel of the band Silver Chair. Some other well-known punk rock bands are; Green Day, Sex Pistols, The Clash, Blink 182, NOFX, Dead Kennedy?s, Exploited, Offspring, Pink Floyd, Ramones, Bad Religion, etc. In recent poll, The Sex Pistols, Green Day, and Blink 182 were voted the most liked. The Offspring recently became fairly famous off their most recent album ?Americana?, but most of their fans are accusing them of ?selling out? because they ditched their trademark sound and went trendy for fame and fortune. Green Day is one of the most well-known bands in the United States. Thanks to Woodstock ?94, and their hit album ?Dookie?, which sold over 11 million copies world wide. Green Day also won an award for ?Best alternative music performance?. When the Dead Kennedy?s started out, they were the typical British punk rock band, but their depth to their lyrics raised the group above the average punk outfit.(Punk Rock, online dialogue, WWW.Geocities.com/Baja/outback/4526/muzikamuzikamuzika.html)

Punk rock has come a long way, from being a small controversial music genre to an ever-growing sensation of North America. Punk Rock has also influenced many types of music including; alternative, metal, and ska. ?By all rights, punk rock should have killed off heavy metal. . . what it really did was give metal a new point of entry.?(Anthony DeCurtis, The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock and Roll 1992)

Bibliography

Its all in the citations.

p.s. I got an (A)