Punk subculture
The punk subculture includes a diverse and widely known array of music, ideologies, fashion, and other forms of expression, visual art, dance, literature, and film. Largely characterised by anti-establishment views, the promotion of individual freedom, and the DIY ethics, the culture originated from punk rock.
The punk ethos is primarily made up of beliefs such as non-conformity, anti-authoritarianism, anti-corporatocracy, a do-it-yourself ethic, anti-consumerist, anti-corporate greed, direct action, and not "selling out".
There is a wide range of punk fashion, including T-shirts, leather jackets, Dr. Martens boots, hairstyles such as brightly coloured hair and spiked mohawks, cosmetics, tattoos, jewellery, and body modification. Women in the hardcore scene typically wore clothing categorised as masculine. This included black, ripped jeans and tops.
Punk aesthetics determine the type of art punks enjoy, which typically has underground, minimalist, iconoclastic, and satirical sensibilities. Punk has generated a considerable amount of poetry and prose, and has its own underground press in the form of zines. Many punk-themed films have been made.
History
The punk subculture emerged in the mid-1970s; in New York in 1974 and in the United Kingdom in 1976. Some suggest the name "punk" was borrowed from prison slang. Early punk had an abundance of antecedents and influences, and Jon Savage describes the subculture as a "bricolage" of almost every previous youth culture in the Western world since World War II, "stuck together with safety pins".In the late 1970s, the subculture began to diversify, which led to the proliferation of factions such as new wave, post-punk, 2 Tone, hardcore punk, no wave, street punk, and Oi!. Hardcore punk, street punk, and Oi! sought to do away with the frivolities introduced in the later years of the original punk movement. The punk subculture influenced other underground music scenes such as alternative rock, indie music, crossover thrash, and the extreme subgenres of heavy metal.
Music
The punk subculture is centered on a loud, aggressive genre of rock music called punk rock, usually played by bands consisting of a vocalist, one or two electric guitarists, an electric bassist, and a drummer. In some bands, the musicians contribute backup vocals, which typically consist of shouted slogans, choruses, or football-style chants.While most punk rock uses distorted guitars and noisy drumming sounds derived from 1960s garage rock and 1970s pub rock, some punk bands incorporate elements from other subgenres, such as surf rock, rockabilly, or reggae. Most punk rock songs are short, have simple and somewhat basic arrangements using relatively few chords, and typically have lyrics that express punk ideologies and values, although some punk lyrics are about lighter topics such as partying or romantic relationships.
Different punk subcultures often distinguish themselves by having a unique style of punk rock, although not every style of punk rock has its own associated subculture.
The earliest form of music to be called "punk rock" was 1960s garage rock, and the term was applied to the genre retroactively by influential rock critics in the early 1970s. In the late 1960s, music now referred to as protopunk originated as a garage rock revival in the northeastern United States. The first distinct music scene to claim the punk label appeared in New York City between 1974 and 1976. Around the same time or soon afterward, a punk scene developed in London. Los Angeles subsequently became home to the third major punk scene. These three cities formed the backbone of the burgeoning movement, but there were also other punk scenes in cities such as Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney in Australia, Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal in Canada, and Boston, Detroit, Cleveland, and San Francisco in the United States.
In the 1980s, punk went through an internal conflict over which the direction the music would go, the authenticity of the genre, and the commercial compromise from the bands. Some scholars described this period as an "identity crisis" where bands debated over what issues were truly essential to punk and how the music was meant to be played. Bands such as Hüsker Dü, 7 Seconds, Government Issue, and Dag Nasty played with a slower tempo and melody, drawing inspiration from jazz, classic rock, and more. Some fans viewed this change as necessary for the development of the genre while others said it was punk band changing for major record labels. This experimentation is what produced the sub-genres of punk such as pop-punk, alternative rock, and Grunge.
The New York City punk rock scene arose from a subcultural underground promoted by artists, reporters, musicians, and a wide variety of non-mainstream enthusiasts. The Velvet Underground's harsh and experimental yet often melodic sound in the mid to late-1960s, much of it relating to transgressive media work by visual artist Andy Warhol, is credited for influencing 1970s bands such as the New York Dolls, the Stooges, and the Ramones.
Ideologies
The punk subculture is often associated with a do-it-yourself ethic; however, some critics suggest that the DIY image often placed on punk is partly a delayed interpretation rather than an accurate reflection of early punk. During the subculture's infancy, many members were from a working-class background and expressed dissatisfaction with the affluence that was associated with popular rock music at the time. In response, some punks published their own music or sign with small independent labels, in hopes to combat what they saw as a dominant commercial music industry. Although punk is now closely linked to DIY, British punk scenes rarely used the term "DIY" explicitly. Punk bands are often described as promoting anti-establishment stances. However, some scholars argue this was inconsistent in practice. In some cases, punk bands signed with major record labels after achieving success. Critics have also noted that punk bands advertised their music through mainstream outlets, such as BBC radio 1, and relied on factories to press their records. In spite of the criticism, the DIY ethic is still popular with punks.Punk political ideologies are mostly concerned with individual freedom and anti-establishment views. Common punk viewpoints include anti-capitalism, individual liberty, anti-authoritarianism, a DIY ethic, non-conformity, anti-corporatism, anti-government, direct action, and not "selling out".
Some groups and individuals that try to self-identify as being a part of the punk subculture hold pro-Nazi or Fascist views, however, these Nazi/Fascist groups are rejected by almost all of the punk subculture. The belief that such views are opposed to the original ethos of the punk subculture, and its history, has led to internal conflicts and an active push against such views being considered part of punk subculture at all. Two examples of this are an incident during the 2016 American Music Awards, where the band Green Day chanted anti-racist and anti-fascist messages, and an incident at a show by the Dropkick Murphys, when bassist and singer Ken Casey tackled an individual for giving a Nazi-style salute and later stated that Nazis are not welcome at a Dropkick Murphys show. Band member Tim Brennan later reaffirmed this sentiment. The song "Nazi Punks Fuck Off" by hardcore punk band Dead Kennedys is a standout example.
Early British punks expressed nihilistic and anarchist views with the slogan No Future, which came from the Sex Pistols song "God Save the Queen". In the United States, punks had a different approach to nihilism which was less anarchistic than the British punks. Punk nihilism was expressed in the use of "harder, more self-destructive, consciousness-obliterating substances like heroin, or methamphetamine".
Fashion
Early punk fashion adapted everyday objects for aesthetic effect: ripped clothing was held together by safety pins or wrapped with tape; ordinary clothing was customised by embellishing it with marker or adorning it with paint; a black bin liner became a dress, shirt or skirt; safety pins and razor blades were used as jewellery. Also popular have been leather, rubber, and PVC clothing that is often associated with transgressive sexuality, like BDSM and S&M. A designer associated with early UK punk fashion was Vivienne Westwood, who made clothes for Malcolm McLaren's boutique in the King's Road, which became famous as "SEX".Many punks wear tight "drainpipe" jeans, plaid/tartan trousers, kilts or skirts, T-shirts, leather jackets, and footwear such as high-cut Chuck Taylors, trainers, skate shoes, brothel creepers, Dr. Martens boots, and army boots. Early punks occasionally wore clothes displaying a swastika for shock value; Vivienne Westwood's DESTROY shirt featured an upside-down crucified Jesus and a swastika, notably worn by members of the Sex Pistols. Most contemporary punks are staunchly anti-racist and are more likely to wear a crossed-out swastika symbol than a pro-Nazi symbol. Some punks cut their hair into mohawks or other dramatic shapes, style it to stand in spikes, and colour it with vibrant, unnatural hues.
Some punks are anti-fashion, arguing that punk should be defined by music or ideology. Punk clothing choices challenge the way in which individuals in a nation dress, and the ideals of a traditionalist nation. This is most common in the post-1980s US hardcore punk scene, where members of the subculture often dressed in plain T-shirts and jeans, rather than the more elaborate outfits and spiked, dyed hair of their British counterparts. Many groups adopt a look based on street clothes and working-class outfits. Hardcore punk fans adopted a dressed-down style of T-shirts, jeans, combat boots or trainers, and crewcuts. Women in the hardcore scene typically wore army trousers, band T-shirts, and hooded jumpers.
The style of the 1980s hardcore scene contrasted with the more provocative fashion styles of late 1970s punk rockers. Circle Jerks frontman Keith Morris described early hardcore fashion as "the...punk scene was basically based on English fashion. But we had nothing to do with that. Black Flag and the Circle Jerks were so far from that. We looked like the kid who worked at the gas station or submarine shop." Henry Rollins echoes Morris' point, stating that for him getting dressed up meant putting on a black shirt and some dark pants; Rollins viewed an interest in fashion as being a distraction. Jimmy Gestapo from Murphy's Law describes his own transition from dressing in a punk style to adopting a hardcore style as being based on a need for more functional clothing. A punk scholar states that "hardcore kids do not look like punks", since hardcore scene members wore basic clothing and short haircuts, in contrast to the "embellished leather jackets and pants" worn in the punk scene.
In contrast to Morris' and Rollins' views, another punk scholar claims that the standard hardcore punk clothing and styles included torn jeans, leather jackets, spiked armbands and dog collars, mohawk hairstyles, and DIY ornamentation of clothes with studs, painted band names, political statements, and patches. Yet another punk scholar describes the look that was common in the San Francisco hardcore scene as consisting of biker-style leather jackets, chains, studded wristbands, pierced noses and multiple piercings, painted or tattooed statements, and hairstyles ranging from military-style haircuts dyed black or blonde to mohawks and shaved heads.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2013 hosted a comprehensive exhibit, PUNK: Chaos to Couture, that examined the techniques of hardware, distress, and re-purposing in punk fashion.