Many of my favourite bands (Wire, Joy Division) are considered post-punk, but I don't believe that punk was as important as many rock historians say it was. It’s received wisdom that punk represented a profound musical revolution, but most noisy guitar bands could learn everything they need to know from The Velvet Underground and the Kinks. The Smiths, Red House Painters, The Handsome Family, Broadcast… it’s not immediately obvious that punk has any relevance to these bands at all.
(ducks and runs for cover)
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3 comments:
you're my little punk
Punk is used nowadays as a shorthand for a kind of musical reset button. Post punk is treated as the first music after punk that you might want to listen to even after you've grown up and out of your skinny black jeans.I would argue that pub rock was probably as important as punk in setting up the live venues for post punk, but it lacked punk's youthful vitality and era-defining nihilism.
The current generation of broadsheet/glossy journos have moved the focus of the golden age from the late 60s/early 70s of the previous generation to theirs of the mid/late 70s post punk.
It is their emphasis that we experience and those bands that reflect their proclavities that are nurtured and exposed to a greater degree than others.
Me, I'm happy if there's a guitar on stage.
Simon Reynold's book on post punk is very good, arguing that whilst the attention tends to focus on punk, all the good stuff is what came after, in the creative space that punk cleared.
http://www.simonreynolds.net/aboutthebook.php
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