The "punk" appreciation thread

BaldJean wrote: ... I have explained it many times. The Stranglers often use real polyphony in their music, a highly advanced compositional technique that is rare among prog artists even. any rock music that is so sophisticated is definitely progressive rock to me

Although very little of the first wave of Punk music will endure, it changed the music industry irrevocably

richardh wrote: The first wave of punk does endure for me. I enjoyed the edginess of it but it's fun to hear these bands being played on BBC Radio 2 occasionally , the home of middle of the road pop music. (actually they were interviewing Nick Mason not long ago but that's another thing!)

richardh wrote: ExittheLemming wrote: richardh wrote: The first wave of punk does endure for me. I enjoyed the edginess of it but it's fun to hear these bands being played on BBC Radio 2 occasionally , the home of middle of the road pop music. (actually they were interviewing Nick Mason not long ago but that's another thing!) That's interesting as I didn't anticipate you would hold that view. I guess it depends on who you consider is included in the 'first wave' of Punk e.g. in the UK, apart from the Pistols, The Damned, the Ramones, the Adverts and say, the Vibrators,  I can't recall many more who actually grabbed my attention musically. Which begs the question: am I the only Clash fan in history that doesn't rate the debut album? (Probably and I still don't to this day :the Clash became a brilliant rock band but were an incredibly over-hyped Punk one) Yes, the proffered timelines become blurrier with every passing year but just for a semblance of clarity, the usual suspects: Television, Blondie, NY Dolls, Patti Smith, Talking Heads, Stranglers, Boomtown Rats, Heartbreakers, Voidoids, Stooges, Undertones, Eddie & the Hot Rods, Buzzcocks, Jam, Saints et al were all bands whose output I have enjoyed but they have precious little to do with Punk apart from a feisty attitude and a disdain for what might have been perceived as naive hippy values.   You left out the most important two for me The Stanglers and Siouxsie and The Banshees Adding from your list The Damned ,The Adverts and The Sex Pistols you probably have my top five punk bands. I think also that The Motors may have been in that first wave but not sure. They seemed to move away from the punk sound pretty quick though! Never a big fan of The Clash but I do like the song London Calling. Has that post apocalyptic vibe , almost a bit proggy!

ExittheLemming wrote: richardh wrote: ExittheLemming wrote: richardh wrote: The first wave of punk does endure for me. I enjoyed the edginess of it but it's fun to hear these bands being played on BBC Radio 2 occasionally , the home of middle of the road pop music. (actually they were interviewing Nick Mason not long ago but that's another thing!) That's interesting as I didn't anticipate you would hold that view. I guess it depends on who you consider is included in the 'first wave' of Punk e.g. in the UK, apart from the Pistols, The Damned, the Ramones, the Adverts and say, the Vibrators,  I can't recall many more who actually grabbed my attention musically. Which begs the question: am I the only Clash fan in history that doesn't rate the debut album? (Probably and I still don't to this day :the Clash became a brilliant rock band but were an incredibly over-hyped Punk one) Yes, the proffered timelines become blurrier with every passing year but just for a semblance of clarity, the usual suspects: Television, Blondie, NY Dolls, Patti Smith, Talking Heads, Stranglers, Boomtown Rats, Heartbreakers, Voidoids, Stooges, Undertones, Eddie & the Hot Rods, Buzzcocks, Jam, Saints et al were all bands whose output I have enjoyed but they have precious little to do with Punk apart from a feisty attitude and a disdain for what might have been perceived as naive hippy values.   You left out the most important two for me The Stanglers and Siouxsie and The Banshees Adding from your list The Damned ,The Adverts and The Sex Pistols you probably have my top five punk bands. I think also that The Motors may have been in that first wave but not sure. They seemed to move away from the punk sound pretty quick though! Never a big fan of The Clash but I do like the song London Calling. Has that post apocalyptic vibe , almost a bit proggy! Yes, Siouxsie & Co were around in '76 (perhaps even earlier but it took them a long time to get signed) and the Stranglers also answered the roll call. I was only ever drawn to the Banshees around Kaleidoscope (1980) when they had matured into, for all intents and purposes, a 'Post-Punk' benchmark. The Stranglers have always struck me as indelibly shaped by psychedelia and a 60's trash aesthetic. That said, I agree they were both pivotal in the development of nascent Punk without necessarily endorsing the movement's values or signature style.

I am also big Siouxsie, the Stranglers & Damned-fan! And I really like the only Pistols-album! The Clash first is ok, London Calling also, but it has never been as big to me as I think it is to many. Ramones first album is of course really good (and Rocket to Russia & It´s Alive are not bad too). Also, I am not sure has somebody mentioned Bauhaus, it´s has been really big to me. I put there already so many videos that I just have to leave many my faves.

London Calling is one of my all time favourite albums. It retains the punk energy, but it is first and foremost a great rock album with some very well written songs. I also love the reggae influence in many of the songs.

I was a toddler during the classic prog years. I was attracted to the Zappa stuff my dad had because of the funny noises. Later got into the Yes, ELP and Jethro Tull albums he brought home. My teenage years were all punk and those metal bands that infused punk into their stuff, so thrash and early black metal. And it had to be hardcore, so a lot of the ultra-fast west coast stuff, though I was also a fan of the politically charged stuff. Basically from 82-87 was all punk and the like. Tuesday nights on KPFA San Francisco Public Radio (simulcast to KFCF in my hometown of Fresno) was "Maximum Rock n Roll" night. (The Zine, like all that it rails against, has become a stale breeding ground of conformity). The show was a great window into punk around the world. Many of the bands I enjoyed are already mentioned. Eventually through thrash metal I discovered progressive metal that brought me full circle to classic prog. I still enjoy the energy of hardcore and go back and listen to the classics. But the scene itself became a caricature of the excesses it was supposed to be standing against. Greg's OP has the 1978 DOA clip where they talk about how ...'rock n roll isn't supposed to be about putting on your best clothes...'. Well, it really comes down to the expectations of wearing a uniform. And if punk didn't become all about the uniform, I don't know what did. There was a Genesis P-Orridge quote about that paradox...heck if I can find it.

Edited by siLLy puPPy - May 12 2020 at 13:24