Chapter 16 – Punk Rock and New Wave

“The reason punk felt so good was: not only was music really powerful and exciting then… but it

was a great weapon to attack everyone else with” Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys

McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2011 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

Early Influences on the Development of Punk

Garage bands of the mid-sixtiesAnger at America as expressed by Beat poets and writers,

Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, William Burroughs, and others

The Velvet Underground’s songs about drug addiction, sadomasochism, and other problems in street life in New YorkLou Reed, singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboard playerJohn Cale, piano, viola, and bassSterling Morrison, guitaristMaureen Tucker, drummer

16-2

Listening Guide“Heroin” by the Velvet Underground (1966)Tempo: Beginning and ending, 72 beats per minute, 4 beats per bar

Gradual speeding up to 96 beats per minute, then A sections that speed up again to 144 beats per minute

The introduction opens with a pulse on the half-beats (eighth notes)Form: Three 30-bar A sections, then a final A extended to over double that length and

includes chaotic sound effects created by electric guitars and electric violaFeatures: Even beat subdivisions

No backbeatThe bass drum is hit on beat four of each bar in the introduction, then at irregular

intervals and on half-beats to support the intensity of the faster sectionsThe rhythm guitar enters on the first beat of the second bar of the introduction,

then plays on the first beat of every bar, alternating between two chordsLyrics: The song portrays the effect heroin has on the addict, sung from the addict’s

point of view. Increases in tempo express exhilaration as the drug enters his body. The addict knows the drug has caused his alienation from society, and knows it will kill him, but he cannot do without it.

16-3

Garage Bands from DetroitMC5 (the Motor City Five) formed in 1965

Fast throbbing pulse of the guitar and/or bass and much distortionShouted vocals expressing angerPlayed to those who rioted at the 1968 Democratic Convention in ChicagoFirst album, Kick Out the Jams (1969), criticized and refused airplay for obscene lyrics

Iggy and the Stooges, formed in 1967Iggy Pop acted out disgust with society by hitting and cutting himself, sometimes called the Godfather of Punk

16-4

New York PunkThe New York Dolls, formed in 1971

Combined loud, raw, rebellious, pounding sound of MC5 and Stooges with Rolling Stones-like rhythm and blues and added makeup and dress of glitter movementSongs about “bad” girls, drugs, and New York street life, but with less serious attitude than the MC5 or Iggy Pop

CBGB’s night clubTelevisionRichard HellPatti SmithThe Ramones

16-5

Listening Guide“Personality Crisis” by the New York Dolls (1973)Tempo: 155 beats per minute, 4 beats per barForm: 16-bar instrumental introduction

Honky-tonk style piano at bar 4AABA, with 8-bar periods, the B sections repeat lyrics about the frustrations of having a “personality crisis.”A short break (silence) occurs between the second and third of the AABA sections

Features: Evenly subdivided beats throb a pulse at double the speed of the basic beatThe fast pulse is created by the guitar, chords on the piano, and the drummer on cymbalsBackbeat on the bass drumVocals are shouted almost in a monotone

Lyrics: A person who plays a role dictated by society during the day, goes wild at night in an effort to shake off the day’s frustrations

16-6

British PunkMid-seventies economic problems in BritainWithout jobs or money to spend, young people could not relate to

grandiose rock acts by progressive or glitter bandsAttitude of anger, frustration, violence, against government,

monarchy, society, and fashionRaw, pounding music of the New York Dolls and the Ramones

represented the music young people wanted1976 - Malcolm McLaren formed the Sex Pistols to meet the needSex Pistols

Johnny Rotten (John Lydon), vocalsSteve Jones, guitarGlen Matlock, bass – replaced by Sid Vicious (John Ritchie), bassPaul Cook, drums

Highly emotional anger in music and lyrics

16-7

Listening Guide“God Save the Queen” by the Sex Pistols (1977)Tempo: 145 beats per minute, 4 beats per bar, with each beat subdivided

into two equal parts creating a constant, throbbing pulseForm: Begins with a 4-bar vamp followed by an 8-bar instrumental

introduction8-bar periods in AABA song form with added C sectionsA sections begin with the song’s titleC periods based on repetitions of words from earlier B periods

Features: The fast pulse is kept by guitar, drums, and loud, repeated bass notesBackbeat in drumsGuitar heavily distorted creating a mood of anarchy and disorderMost vocals shouted in monotone by Johnny Rotten, with groups joining in at C sections

Lyrics: Depressed view of Britain’s economy, social system, and government, emphasizing that there is no hope for anything positive in the future

Charts: British hits, #2

16-8

Other British Punk BandsThe Damned, formed by McLaren in 1976The Clash

Joe Strummer, vocals and guitarMick Jones, guitarPaul Simonon, bassTory Crimes (Terry Chimes), drums

Songs zeroed in on central causes of punk rebellion:Youth unemployment Anti-immigrant racismPolice Brutality

Billy Idol with Generation XX-Ray SpexThe Buzzcocks

16-9

Hard-core Punk on the West CoastPunk in California inspired by tour of the Sex Pistols and the DamnedAttitudes of California punks different from British because the economies were

differentCalifornia bands expressed anger about:

Ex-hippie parents’ worn-out or sold out valuesU.S. government’s involvement in politics of Asian and South American countriesU.S. government’s support of oppressive regime in South Africa

The Dead Kennedys formed in San Francisco in 1978Lead singer, Eric Boucher, named himself Jello Biafra when he heard that the U.S. government had sent Jell-O to starving people of Biafra, Africa, calling it foreign aid

Punk bands from L.A.:Black FlagXThe GermsCatholic Disciplines

16-10

Listening Guide“Kill the Poor” by the Dead Kennedys (1980)Tempo: 96 beats per minute in introduction, then sudden jump to 208 beats

per minute, 4 beats per barForm: Slow introduction with vocals intoned by Biafra is one 8-bar period,

then one 7-bar periodA 4-bar instrumental vamp establishes a faster tempoSeries of A and B periods separated by instrumental vamps, the B periods feature constant repetition of “kill the poor”

Features: Even beat subdivisionsRepeated bass note pulse in fast sectionMore complex harmonies than in much other punk

Lyrics: Satirical praise for the U.S. government’s development of a bomb that can kill people while leaving property undamaged, with the suggestion that money wasted on welfare could be saved by using the bomb to kill poor people

16-11

American New WavePunk too violent and anti-establishment to appeal to a mass audience,

but punk’s energy was welcomePunk’s more commercial alternative called New Wave and often

included:Throbbing half-beat pulseMonotone vocalsEmotional alienation from problems

Devo formed in 1975 with name that represented “de-evolution” of mankind in the modern world

Other New Wave bands of late seventies:Talking HeadsBlondieThe CarsThe B-52’s

16-12

Listening Guide“Jocko Homo” by Devo (1976)Tempo: First section, 240 beats per minute, 7 beats per bar

Second section, 120 beats per minute, 4 beats per barForm and Features:

An electronic introduction has 4 bars of 7 beats accented as 4+3, then 4 bars of 7 beats accented as 3+4, establishing a feeling of instability

Even beat subdivisionsNo backbeat accentedMonotone vocals with group exchange declaring that members of Devo are not

humanParts of the introduction are repeated between the second and third vocal periodsSome repetition of instrumental introduction at different pitch levels, each one

higher than the previous onePulsating repeated notes in bass in slower 4-beat meterThe fast 7-bar pattern returns at the end

Lyrics: The coldness of the modern world has had a dehumanizing effect on mankind

16-13

British New WavePub Rock an early seventies English back-to-the-roots of rock

movementPubs are small and forced return to intimate performances when

progressive and glitter ones had become large, theatrical extravaganzas

Pub Rock performers became the basis of British New Wave style:Elvis CostelloBrinsley SchwarzDucks DeluxeRockpileRumourNick Lowe

16-14

Listening Guide“Radio Radio” by Elvis Costello and the Attractions (1978)Tempo: 144 beats per minute, 4 beats per barForm: 8-bar instrumental introduction made up of a 2-bar pattern

played four timesAABCAAB, A’s are 8 bars, B’s are 16 bars, C is 8 bars

Features: Bass uses repeated notes to establish a fast (eighth-note) pulse

Strong backbeat in drums during A sections, no back beat in B sectionsContrasting C section in a minor key, at a higher pitch, with a lighter vocal tone quality and organ in background

Lyrics: Dependence of some teens on the radio for entertainment and advice and a bitterness toward people who control radio

Charts: British hits, #29

16-15

Discussion Questions

Punk is angry music, and it is the most effective when the anger is directed at some particular issue, person, or practice. Could a positive message, a religious one, for example, be delivered in a punk style and be taken seriously?

What about new wave, which is generally fairly alienated from emotion? Could it express a positive message effectively?

16-16