A tribute to punk rock, from a latecomer

[mhendo]

I've always prided myself on having fairly diverse interests when it comes to music. I try not to reject anything out of hand, and over the past few years especially i've made a concerted effort to track down new stuff, and have "discovered" a lot of new stuff (well, new to me) in the process.

One thing i had never really managed to get into, however, was punk rock. I had a short period in my early teens when i thought the Sex Pistols were pretty cool, and i also liked the Ramones, or at least the idea of the Ramones. I'm also a big fan of the 1970s Australian band Radio Birdman, who are often characterised as proto-punk, and whose music contains some strong punk characteristics. But i only really got into Radio Birdman because i'm from Australia. I also appreciate the rebellious attitude that has characterised much of punk rock.

In general, however, punk had passed me by. But not my girlfriend. She's a few years older than me, and spent much of her late teens and early twenties in the early 1980s California punk scene. Over the past couple of years she's introduced me to some of this music, and i've really taken to it. But i only really appreciated what it had to offer over the past month or so, when a couple of her favourite bands came to Baltimore and i got a chance to see them live.

First, last month we went and saw the legendary LA punk band X. And then, this weekend, we went to see the British band The Buzzcocks. These guys (and girl, in the case of X's Exene) are almost old enough to be my parents, but they still put on amazing shows after so many years. Having played together for so long, they are really musically tight, and they are still excellent performers on stage. My only regret is that i never saw them earlier.

This is not much of a basis for a discussion, i know, but i felt like sharing, and i thought Cafe Society was the appropriate place for the thread. And thanks to my lovely GF.

[Harli]

Have you checked out Social Distortion? The Circle Jerks? Bad Religion? Just to name a few of the oldies but goodies.

My SO opened up my scope of music too. Although I was into that kind of music, I just had never listened to a lot of it. Don't know what I'd do without it now.

[Mr. Blue Sky]

Don't forget the Dead Kennedys!

[Banger]

Wow, this could turn into a "name some of your favorite 80s punk bands" thread.

That being so, I would recommend Bad Brains (from the early 80s Washington DC scene) and Hüsker Dü (from the early 80s Minneapolis scene). They were two great 80s punk bands that expanded beyond their genre while still drawing from it.

Bad Brains' I Against I and Hüsker Dü's New Day Rising are excellent albums showing a couple of punk bands moving away from fast punk rock and toward other sounds while at the same time keeping the same punk energy. These are two great introductory albums for a newbie punk fan

Of course, I second the other bands already mentioned, and will refrain from naming any more so other punk fans can offer their two cents

[Foolonthehill]

Fear
Blasters
Early Clash
X, (as you said)
Bad Religion
Pansy Division
Dwight Yokum, (yeah, I know he's country, listen to the 1st album; "Guitars & Cadillacs")

[mhendo]

Thanks for the suggestions, folks. I'll try to find some stuff by the bands that i haven't heard of, like Social Distortion, Bad Brains, Husker Du, and Fear.

I'll also ask my SO which ones she knows.

[Cardinal]

Really, you hadn't heard of Social Distortion? Wow. They're actually played on the radio, hence my surprise. At least they are here, on a couple different stations. They're punk enough to get on the alternative station, and blues-rock enough to get on the classic rock station.

[mhendo]

I'd be willing to bet that my girlfriend has heard of them. She's out of town right now, but i'll ask her when she gets back.

I very rarely listen to the radio, because most of the stations here in Baltimore seem to suck. I also get sick of having to put up with 15-20 minutes of commercials every hour. I prefer to find music i like, buy it, and listen to it as much as i want.

I did listen to radio quite a bit back in Australia, but punk was never a really big part of the playlist on the stations that i listened to. I know there's a decent local punk scene in the big cities, but it's never reached the level that it did in certain parts of the US.

[Brad Pittiful]

heres some more to checkout

The Minutemen

Black Flag

Jim Carroll Band

Generation X

Suicidal Tendencies

Agnostic Front

Sonic Youth

[Derleth]

Not `punk', but still cool:

Joy Division

New Order

Velvet Underground

The White Stripes ('cause they alternate between Modern Pop and R&B)

NOFX ('cause they don't try to ram a bullshit cause down your throat)

[mascaroni]

Some UK late seventies bands worth hearing:
The Damned
The Flys
The Members
999
Swell Maps
Alternative TV
The Adverts
Penetration
The Drones
Suburban Studs
The Ruts
UK Subs
Stiff Little Fingers
The Undertones
Cockney Rejects
X-Ray Spex
The Mekons
The Fall
The Vibrators
Menace

Not forgetting The Ramones from the US...

[nitroglycerine]

Welcome to the dark side.

Check out The Cynics and Turbonegro who both have new records out. Also check out Electric Frankenstein.

Check out Exene's (From X) side band, The Original Sinners. Really good stuff.
Another classic band that is essential listening is The Avengers. You can sometimes find represses of their great self titled album online at Bomp records and Get Hip records. Its one of the best early american punk bands ever and the album features the Sex Pistols' Cook and Jones on a few tracks. They did sort of a reunion thing a few years ago with most of the members recording old songs that never made it to vinyl. Thats easily available from Lookout records, but the first one is the best, well worth 15 bucks or so at ebay.

Another great punk to seek out is the many incarnations of Billy Childish, including his bands The Mighty Caesers, and Thee Headcoats. If you like the White Stripes, you'll love his stuff. If you HATE the White Stripes, like I do, you'll like his stuff even more!

Jon

[nitroglycerine]

Oh shit...I gotta mention the Lazy Cowgirls too. The Ramones, Johnny Thunders and Hank Williams (the first) all rolled into one package. They've been America's best kept secret for over 20 years. You GOTTA check out the Lazy Cowgirls.

Ok...one more....The Dictators have a great new album out called DFFD. Almost 30 years on, and these guys are better than ever. I saw them live at the 31st Street Pub in Pittsburgh a year or so ago, and it was one of the best shows I EVER saw. You're in Baltimore, I'm sure they'll be playing somewhere near you sooner or later. Don't miss 'em!

Jon

[Tanaqui]

Ahh, the classics!

Take your time
Try not to forget
We never will
We're just a Minor Threat

They started a movement (even if that wasn't the plan.)

For something more modern, Operation Ivy is classic.

[punkkid]

Punk rock, eh? Take a look at my screen name.

To do a grand-nopsys (heh, coined a word) I'm going to head through all the pre-punk, punk, post-punk, hardcore, and punk revival bands I listen to

Pre-Punk:
Velvet Underground
The Stooges - (It's 1969 ok/war across the USA- that's a freakin' classic)
New York Dolls

Punk:
Sh*t, where do I start!
Ramones, - I guess, but they were more pop-punk

Sex Pistols - (I first heard these guys when I was 8- never gave up!)

The Clash, oh, The Clash, listening to that self-titled album parallels sexual pleasure. Give 'Em was awesome too!

Generation X. - Billy Idol was once cool too.

Sham 69. - So stupid. So good.

Stiff Little Fingers. - Ireland's first band.

The Angelic Upstarts! - Oi! Oi! Oi!

Fear - Sensitive people, however, will not enjoy this. It's like a musical version of Animal House

Bad Religion - Start with 80-85, work your way up through No Control, to their recent release, Process Of Belief

Circle Jerks - Hardcore up the butt

Tip: Listen to Adam Ant's "Beat My Guest". Example of a Punk hero gone horribly wrong

Minor Threat - This will take some getting used to. Trust me.

The Misfits - Good, campy, 50's B-movie fun punk. Just shut off your brain and listen

Subhumans - This will also take some getting used to.

Crass - See Subhumans

Conflict- See Crass

Bad Brains - Sailin' On.

Sick Of It All - Got the new-hardcore ball rolling

The Exploited - Sex! And Violence! And Sex! And Violence! Sex! and so on...

Post Punk:

OK, most of this is not punk. It's still good though.

The Specials - Best band of the 2nd Wave Punk-Ska revolution. And if you say ska is not punk, well, don't argue with me. I'm a punk.

Madness - Tad more pop ska-punk. DON'T judge them by "Our House" That song sucks!

The Beat- Probably "English Beat" to you Yankees.

The Cure- I know, I know, don't bother me about this. They're actually good.


Punk Revival:

Operation Ivy- Like Tanaqui said. AWE to the SOME

Rancid - Rose from the ashes of Operation Ivy to become the single great punk band of the 90's and 00's. New Album, August!

Anti-Flag - Took punk back too it's roots. Far left-wing, loud, obnoxious.

The Distillers - Pure Punk Rock. Nothing more, nothing less.

Flogging Molly - OK, in the 90's punk's full scope (beyond that of ska and reggae was seen) Hence, Celtic Mosh Music!

Dropkick Murhpys - See Flogging Molly

Suicide Machines - Awesome ska-punk. Not too derivative like other ska-punk band. One of their songs even had a violin!

AFI - They started as a hardcore band, moved to goth-punk. Still good.

Tiger Army - Punk Psychobilly. Sort of like Elvis meets the Sex Pistols meets the Misfits

The Code - Crusty Ska-Punk

Rancid - This band bears mentioning again.

NOFX - Check out War on Errorism.

Transplants - Rap-Punk!

The Hives

To close, two good non-punk bands to check out for anyone who has varied musical taste:

Asian Dub Foundation - Reggae, Techno, and London Hip-Hop mixed with traditional Indian Ragas

Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros - Former Clash frontman (RIP)'s recent band. GREAT!

Hope that was comprehenisve enough for ya!

[jackelope]

I am seriously disappointed that this thread got as far as it has without ONE person mentioning The Cramps. They covered a Hasil Adkins song, which is distinction enough in itself, plus they seriously rock on their own. I must have worn out three or four copies of Bad Music for Bad People in my late teens/early 20s.

[Dissonance]

Punk/Hardcore I haven't seen mentioned yet:

Government Issue
T.S.O.L.
Void (Okay, this might take some effort to listen to)
Descendants
Gang Green
MDC
The Meatmen

Not strictly punk/hardcore:
Fugazi (more post hardcore) - still around, still tour, shows are still $6, CDs are still $10 post paid from their label
Suicide (electronic punk)
Lard (If you like the Dead Kennedys and you like Ministry, you'll like this)

[Banger]

[aside]

Originally posted by Derleth
NOFX ('cause they don't try to ram a bullshit cause down your throat)

I won't discuss the "bullshit" part, as I generally don't get into partisan political discussions (hence my noninvolvement in many GD threads), but NOFX has recently been somewhat political.

From what I can tell, their current position is: "Yeah, we haven't been a political band over the years, but we don't like what is going on with the Bush administration, and we're going to say something about it." It's up to the listener to determine whether the cause is bullshit or not.

Their most recent album, War on Errorism, has a clownish President Bush on the cover, and when I saw them live last year, Fat Mike spent much of the concert bad-mouthing Bush. A friend of mine, a politically conservative punk fan, was seething throughout the show [/aside]

As expected, the thread turned into a "recommend a punk band" thread, which I have no objection to if mhendo feels the same way

Keep the recommendations coming, especially ones with explanations as to why mhendo should look into them. I may be a longtime punk fan, but I don't know every band, and this thread could help me find new bands too!

[nitroglycerine]

Originally posted by jackelope
I am seriously disappointed that this thread got as far as it has without ONE person mentioning The Cramps. They covered a Hasil Adkins song, which is distinction enough in itself, plus they seriously rock on their own. I must have worn out three or four copies of Bad Music for Bad People in my late teens/early 20s.

I can't believe I didn't mention them. Their new album is incredible.

Jon

[mhendo]

Originally posted by Banger
As expected, the thread turned into a "recommend a punk band" thread, which I have no objection to if mhendo feels the same way

You'll get no complaints from me; i'm finding this very enlightening. Punkkid's response was particularly illuminating. Of course, my financial situation means it might be a while before i can afford to sample all of these bands.

Two other bands that my SO really likes, and that i also think are pretty cool, are Girlschool and The Dils. Anyone else heard these bands?

[WordMan]

If you haven't read them, these books are fascinating and essential reading on the punk/indie scene in the U.S.:

1) Please Kill Me: An Uncensored Oral History of Punk by Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain - Legs is the guy who siggested the word "punk" for the name of a magazine, which evolved into the overall name for the genre. He was there, and this book is totally inside.

2) Our Band Could be Your Life by Michael Azzerad - an super well-written, easy to read, fascinating look at key indie bands who shaped the scene leading up to Nirvana breaking through. Includes chapters on Black Flag, Minor Threat, Husker Du, Minutemen, Mission From Burma, etc....

My $.02

[pulykamell]

Wire - Straddling punk and post-punk, I think this band is one of the most important, most innovate, most original rock bands ever. For more punky flavor, get "Pink Flag," feature the punk classic "12XU." For a little more post-punk (although it'll probably still sound punky to most people) get "Chairs Missing." Both amaaazing albums. They've also just released the hyper-manic Send, which is just a sonic assault of thunderous drums, and repetitive one- or two-chord progressions with a definite industrial tinge to it. Can't believe these guys are still making albums that rock so hard and continue to sound like nothing they've ever done before.

Gang of Four - Also generally lopped into post-punk, but Entertainment is worth listening to, and if you enjoy Wire you might enjoy this as well.

Mission of Burma - "That's When I Reach for My Revolver" and "Academy Fight Song" are two more punk standards for you.

If want some punky music with a little bit of estrogen in it, try The Slits or The Au Pairs.

If you want something recent and loud and in the original spirit, you may try: Turbunegro, Refused or The Hives.

And if you want to hear the greatest rock band of the late 80s-early 90s, please do yourself a favor and pick up The Pixies, preferably Doolittle.

[mhendo]

I was speaking to a good friend of mine on the phone last night. She lives in Melbourne, Australia, and told me that next week she's going to see Henry Rollins.

I expressed a relative lack of interest, as much of his spoken word stuff strikes me as self-indulgent crapola. However, she told me that he and the Rollins Band were going to be performing Black Flag songs, and apparently this is about the first time in 15 years or so that he's doing this. Original Black Flag singer and Circle Jerks front man Keith Morris was apparently on the tour with him for the US leg, but i don't think Morris is in Australia.

Has anyone else seen him on this current tour? What were the shows like?

[An Arky]

Not really punk, but I can't believe noone's mentioned The Jam yet...

[Lisa-go-Blind]

No one's mentioned The Raincoats?

One of the few "girl" bands I love (along with Throwing Muses and the previously mentioned X-Ray Spex). Even though they don't sound similar to, say, the Sex Pistols or the Ramones, they were uberpunk in the sense that they truly stripped music down to its basics. Odd harmonies, thumping drums. Nice screechy violin as well.

Kudos, pulykamell on mentioning Wire. They're quickly becoming my favorite punk band.



No one's mentioned Talking Heads either?

[Morgainelf]

Or the Ramones reincarnated as girls, The Donnas. Fun, punky crotch rock.

[UnwrittenNocturne]

And nobody has mentioned Japanese heroes Guitar Wolf (kinda Ramonesy) or the seminal chaos of The Plasmatics? Think Wendy O Williams, think dynamite (literally) in the stage act..think power

[Dissonance]

I used to catch Rollins whenever he toured and his yearly spoken words back in the late 80's/early 90's at City Gardens (aka Shitty Garbage) in Trenton, NJ. He used to be really good, and the spoken words was packed every year. To me at least, he started to lose it in the early/mid 90's. The first time he played a cop in a movie was damn amusing, but c'mon, how many times before that shtick runs thin? What was really depressing was that I caught an hour long public access cable commercial for one of his albums in the mid-90's. Don't know what he's like live nowadays, but he used to be really good. Even when the material started to slip a bit, his stage presence made up for it.

[Dr. Sexchange]

Punkkid, huh. For some reason that seems sick and wrong.

But anyway punk music has exploded into so many different things, there's noise rock, grunge, psychedelic postpunk, stoner rock (which actually has more influence from a more Black Sabbath-ish heavy metal) ETC.

But I would say to check out

Big Black (or any other Steve Albini groups, ie. Rapeman, Shellac)
Butthole Surfers
Cows
Scratch Acid
Jesus Lizard

all of which are bizarre mutations of punk.

oh yeah and since you're evidently australian, try the Birthday Party.

As a fairly decent guide, I would say check out everything mentioned in Our Band Could be Your life. To save you the trouble this includes:

Black Flag
Minutemen
Mission of Burma
Minor Threat
Husker Du
Replacements
Sonic Youth
Butthole Surfers
Big Black
Dinosaur Jr.
Fugazi
Mudhoney
Beat Happening