Fashion punk teen

In the mid-to-late 1970s a radical youth culture called punk emerged out of the larger rock 'n' roll scene, and developed its own music, attire, and ideology. The Sex Pistols are the best known of the punk bands; their music, like all punk rock, was aggressive, fast, and loud. Punk attire is characterized by dark clothes, outlandish costumes and ornamentation such as colored hair and earrings and bracelets made from assembled items (the quintessential punk earring was a safety pin). Punk ideology is explicitly at odds with mainstream society and rails against contemporary civilization, which is seen as sterile and banal. Punk is heavily critical of existing political, economic, and cultural institutions, yet is ambivalent about creating alternatives.

The earliest forms of punk rock developed in the United States. The Velvet Underground's minimalist music and commentaries about life outside mainstream society inspired a number of bands, but the first group to be considered a punk rock band was the Ramones. Formed in 1974, the Ramones gained a following around New York City by stripping rock down to its bare essentials and playing with near-anarchic energy. Their first album, Ramones (1976) featured a string of songs, most shorter than two minutes, including "Blitzkrieg Bop" and "Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue." The album became a minor hit in the U.S. and major hit in England, where a number of bands began to pick up on the energetic rock played by the Ramones and fellow New York-bands the Stooges and the New York Dolls that played at clubs like Max's Kansas City and CBGB's. While punk was a minor sensation in the United States, it gained real popularity in the United Kingdom. The first British punk band was the Sex Pistols, which in the three short years of its existence largely created the ideal of the punk rock band.

The Sex Pistols, led by singer Johnny Rotten (formerly John Lydon) and bassist Sid Vicious and managed by Malcolm McLaren, took the music scene by storm when they began playing in 1976, singing about anarchy, abortion, and fascism in some of the most violent live shows and recordings ever heard. The band alienated several recording labels and frightened the establishment, but they also encouraged the rapid growth of the punk scene in England and sparked the creation of such bands as the Clash, the Damned, the Buzzcocks, and others.

Punk made a very visible, shocking, public display. However, with the drug-related death of Sex Pistols' bass player Sid Vicious in 1979 and the demise of several punk bands, some proclaimed that punk was a short-lived fad that had come to an end. The rumors of punk's death were unfounded, and many bands set about to defend the true meaning of punk and extend its musical influence. The most direct development from early punk is the hardcore punk movement that developed during the 1980s, foremost in the United States, but also in England, France, Italy, and other countries, with bands like the Dead Kennedys, Social Distortion, the Misfits, and Upright Citizens. Since the 1980s there have been any number of bands that have echoed the influence of punk, including Hüsker Dü, the Replacements, Soul Asylum, Green Day, Sonic Youth, and the Minutemen, among others. Though the era of punk rock is generally considered to be the years between 1975 and 1980, the punk ethos lives on.

Musically, rock 'n' provided an important foundation for punk, as youths who came of age in the 1970s and 1980s were well acquainted with rock bands like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and Led Zeppelin. Many punk bands learned music by playing other people's songs and it was commonplace among young punks, and even well-known bands, to release cover songs. The Dickies, for example, played fast but melodic versions of Led Zeppelin's "Communication Breakdown" and the Moody Blues' "Nights in White Satin." Bands often performed cover versions of older songs that had historical significance or that made a particularly salient political point. Generation X, for example, performed a cover version of John Lennon's "Gimme Some Truth." While cover songs often signaled respect for past music, cover songs could also represent an ironic comment on or critique of rock and roll. Although cover songs were common, punk ideology derided cover bands that did not play original songs for a lack of creativity.

Despite the powerful influence of rock, punk music differs significantly from its predecessor. Punk songs are generally short, fast, and loud, and place increased emphasis on distorted guitars. Many punk bands use "power" or bar chords, and speed is often emphasized over intricacy. The musical skills of punk musicians are often rudimentary and this lack of virtuosity is connected to an ideology that anyone can write and play songs. Fairly simple songs with basic four-four drum beats are common and many punk bands form with friends picking up instruments and learning as they play. Punk's minimalist three-chord approach and shouted vocals stand in clear opposition to the melodic singing of earlier styles.

Punk music developed "scenes" centered on bands, clubs, and fans in a particular area, such as Manchester and London, England. The Damned, Stiff Little Fingers, the Jam, and Sham 69 were particularly influential, as were the Gang of Four, the Mekons, and the Delta 5 from Leeds, England. In the United States, the Los Angeles, California, scene produced such bands as Black Flag, Fear, the Germs, X, and the Circle Jerks. Two documentaries--The Decline of Western Civilization (1981) and Another State of Mind (1984)--document the lives of various L.A. punk bands both on stage and off. The Dead Kennedys (San Francisco), the Teen Idols, State of Alert (S.O.A.), and the Bad Brains (all Washington, D.C.), and Hüsker Dü (Minneapolis) were all especially important early punk bands.