In the mid-1970s, a thitherto ignored genre of rock bands with a primitive, rowdy, rebellious bent struck a chord with their target audiences and gained worldwide exposure. By and large the musical perpetrators of “punk” rock were just youths, very few if any of whom realistically saw themselves as part of a bigger picture of musical reform/rejuvenation, who simply wanted to play the sort of music they wanted to hear flavored with their own uncensored intensity and emotion. The rise of Punk I believe had less to do with the product, which had been around in some form since at least The Kinks in 1964 or even Elvis ten years prior, than with the market. Although popular bands were putting out some magnificent work in the mid-70s, much of it lacked any real bite reflective of the harsh realities of life facing kids who just saw their older siblings drafted and killed in Vietnam (for example), or who were poised to enter the work force as toilet cleaners in a world beset by economic hardships. The music, while great, wasn’t speaking to their souls. (Not to minimize the concurrent rise of hip hop—I just think its impact, while incredibly important on modern efforts, was differently oriented.)
To appreciate punk rock sometimes requires a temporal and aesthetic adjustment. Never Mind The Bollocks is not exactly a timeless work but it has its allure, especially if the only thing being served over the radio is Captain & Tennille’s “Love Will Keep Us Together” and Wings’ “Silly Love Songs” (Billboard #1 in 1975 & 1976, respectively). At some point, the audience has had enough with the increasingly corporate and deliberately inoffensive product and staggers out into the storm in search of vitamins. The impact of punk on rock music is as undeniable as the impact of a certain family of monkeys abandoning the jungle for life on the savannah. There was much gnashing of hair and rending of teeth as it was officially born, but it was an important step in making it ok for an average kid to buck the mainstream.
So then: Donald Trump. Untalented as a diplomat, obnoxious as a human being, widely despised within his own political party, and held in even lower esteem by others. Everything he does can be seen as an attempt to deliberately deconstruct and burn off the authority of the federal government. Calculating? Probably no more so than the impact a handful of smackheads in 1975 London were calculating in reviving the rebellious spirit of rock n roll (which is to say: not).
So. What are your thoughts on #45 as the Johnny Rotten or Dee Dee Ramone of American politics?
And, assuming we can make the best of the weaknesses candidate/president Trump has shown us to be present in our current political system, what major changes do you believe to be realistic that, maybe 10 years ago, would have been preposterous? And no need to limit this to political mechanics. As this “growth opportunity” unfolds before us, it is becoming clear we all need to reevaluate our consumption of social media and even mainstream media news. How do we grow socially?
Was unaware, thanks for the link. So we should look for nothing positive or insightful to come from this uncomfortable presidency. We simply will not learn and grow from it. Seems a little dark to me.
We won’t have to. After he is re-elected, Trump will change the rules and make himself lifetime king. He’s got “all the best people” working on how to extend his lifetime.
Many punks had an ethos: that the system needed to be torn down as a path to freedom and social justice. Like the Sex Pistols raised against the monarchy because of its oppression of the working classes, and the Clash wrote intensely political songs criticizing capitalist power.
Trump does have the “tear it down” message, but he fundamentally lacks any purpose for it except to maximize his own self-interest.
To put it another way, the fucked up terrible musician and junkie Sid Vicious had more empathy for the plight of everyday people than Donald Trump ever did. Yes, I’m saying that Sid Vicious is Mother Theresa compared to the President.
The punk era surrounded me for a while. I was in downtown Denver in the late 70’s early 80’s. I was in my early 20’s. I still like The Flying Lizards, though they might not quite be ‘punk rock’. Had one friend that was really into the music. Oddly, he was white collar worker in law.
trump is just a simple minded bully. Take away his narcissism, racism and misogyny, and that’s what you have. Punk rock is way, way to deep for trump to understand.
And security guards trailed us into the White House
So we asked for Mojo Nixon
They said “He don’t work here”
We said “If you don’t got Mojo Nixon then your Administration could use some fixin’!”
