MUSC 1800: Popular MusicPunk and New Wave

Dr. Matthew C. SaundersLakeland Community College

C-1078

Punk and New Wave

• International movements• “Back to basics” rock• Nihilistic approach • What is New Wave?• What is punk?

Big Idea

• When a dominant style enters its “decadent” phase, a possible reaction is to strip it to its bones in search of meaning.

Protopunk• Musical, philosophical

and fashion models for later groups

• The Velvet Underground– “I’m Waiting for the Man

,” 1966• Iggy Pop & The Stooges– “Search and Destroy,”

1973• The New York Dolls– “Jet Boy,” 1973

Punk• CBGB: Center of early

punk scene in New York• Television– “Double Exposure,”

(live, 1974)• The Ramones– “I Wanna Be Sedated,”

(1978)• The Sex Pistols– “Anarchy in the UK,”

1976

New Wave

• More polished version of punk, developed ca. 1976 in both US and UK

New Wave Musicians

• Elvis Costello (b. 1954)– “Radio, Radio,” BBC,

1978• Other bands tended

toward a pop sound– The Cars: “

Just What I Needed,” 1978 (live 1979)

– Blondie: “Call Me,” 1980

The Music Video• Song-length film with

images tied to the music

• “soundies,” 1940s• “promotional clips,”

late-1960s and 1970s• New Wave bands were

early adopters in the mid-1970s

• MTV (Music Television)

Watching a Music Video: The Talking Heads• Things to consider:– Diegetic vs. non-diegetic– Representational vs. non-representational– Visual techniques and composition– Symbolism– Performance, narrative, or conceptual?– Postmodernism

• “Once in a Lifetime” (1981)– Music and Lyrics by David Byrne and Brian Eno– Played on MTV during its first day of programming