Re: punk rock
Posted: Fri Jan 27, 2012 12:45 am
I've always thought US did rock n roll better. UK the arty, progressive stuff.Today wrote:UK kicked our asses at rock and roll... we get hip hop.
but who done punk best... UK or USA?...remember, we started the music, y'all did the whole wardrobe thing
Not many of the older Brits who understand punk are left on here to argue.
imo what you yanks called punk originally...
MC5, The Stooges, Radio Birdman etc were hardcore musos amping rock and roll,
their legacy in the Ramones, NY Dolls, Television & Dinosaur Jr relied on musicianship & controlled image.
Pommie punk was less anal, more a piss-take, a marketing ploy,
excusing its lack of musicianship, tom-foolery & confronting sleaze
on the pretext of dinosaur-slaying da-daist, DIY catharsis.
I'm thinking XRaySpecs, Captain Sensible, Anti-Nowhere League, Crass...
It was initially spontaneous & liberating
but quickly formularized & ultimately more influential....
i.e. of the later American "punk" that you seem to identify with,
that commercializes the ethos & sound with pseudo-naivety.
Meanwhile UK punk is dead & any attempt to revive it would be embarassing,
altho the Dammed can still do their shambolic thing.
The inheritors of both strands were postpunk bands like:
The Stranglers, The Birthday Party, Sonic Youth, UB40, Black Flag & Magazine
and later the organized chaos of Primal Scream & Happy Mondays,
incorporating serious musicianship & conscious unselfconsciousness.
I much prefer to listen & dance to this music
although, before they became predictable & aggy,
moshpits were fantastic fun
if you didn't mind black eyes, being clobbered with instruments
and avoided getting HepA from shared blood & spittle.
answer: UK
