Punk Is Dead

The basis of cultural change is rebellion. Rebellion stems from a mass of people ardently denying the status quo others in their country strive to maintain. Revolution is the point where two opposing forces meet. Without status quo there is nothing to rebel against, and without rebellion, the status quo cannot have a clear idea of what is being maintained. Only through this symbiosis of contrast can a culture obtain a complete understanding of itself.

But what happens when rebellion is an intrinsic facet of the status quo? An example of the fusion between rebellion and status quo can be seen in the commercialization of Punk music and mentality in contemporary American society.

In the 1970’s, musicians determined to create their own artistic environment cultivated Punk. Bands like the Ramones, the Talking Heads, the New York Dolls, and Television (to name a select few) saw an overtly homogeneous wasteland in the music of their time. These artists rejected the idea that only well-trained musicians could create inspired, pertinent music.

This mentality of rebellion-through-music also appeared in Great Britain. The Sex Pistols, with reckless performances and inflammatory, politically charged lyrics, led a youth-culture rebellion (albeit short-lived) against the dogmatic monarchy and its supporters. The Pistols’ brief life in the mainstream proved that music could harness power to be reckoned with, that music could channel the energy of dissent in a form that couldn’t be ignored.

Punk has since been synonymous with rebellion. As time progresses, though, it becomes increasingly clear that the example set by Punk is purely an example, and no more.

The appeal of rebelliousness does not go unnoticed by corporations. Starting with Green Day, and leading to pop-punk bands such as Sum 41 and Blink 182, Punk has been absorbed into the status quo. Punk has become part of what it sought to dismantle. The fact that so many Punk musicians capitalize on what Punk used to fight is proof that the usefulness of Punk as an instrument of change is long gone.

This is not intended as a criticism of contemporary Punk. Every musical genre has its place in the culture, because it reflects a distinct, significant sentiment shared by many. Personally, hearing a Britney Spears song causes me to wish I was deaf, and seeing “Punk” in the same sentence as “Blink 182” makes me cringe, but I recognize their respective importance simply in that they are important to others.

What is distressing about the commercialization of Punk music is that not only the music but also the subversive mentality is commercialized. This trivializes the very idea of the dissent intrinsic to Punk thinking.

This commercialization of nonconformist mentality appears in other aspects of American culture. Many of the locations in an episode of Jackass are middle-class suburban areas. By doing outrageous things in places that are stereotypically mundane, they are seemingly subverting these places as well as the values they represent. The idea that creativity and subversion can flourish in stagnant places appeals greatly to people who live in such places.

Many people imitate the show. The other night, I watched a dozen people guzzle gallons of milk until they puked. Years ago, this sort of thing wouldn’t have occurred to anyone, and if it did, it’s doubtful they would act upon it. It seems like a stupid, pointless thing to do, as do many of the things seen on “Jackass.”

“Jackass”, the film, grossed $39.7 million dollars in ten days. So how subversive is this mentality, when so many people pay their money to see it? Where the acts of the people on “Jackass” were once shocking and strange, they are now mechanisms of profit.

What in the past have been tools of dissent are still treated as such, even though they are in no way distinct from what they attempt to undermine. When a form of rebellion exists only as yet another enterprise, it is safe to say that its subversive implements are obsolete, and a new form of rebellion must be adopted.

Listen to Punk rock, but don’t for a moment believe that it has the capability and the power it once did. The time of Punk’s importance in this area has come and gone; a replacement is in order. If people continue to live in a past that isn’t theirs, attempts to subvert will amount only in reinforcements. Punk is good music, but today’s Punk culture is first-and-foremost another instrument of profit. This must be understood: this generation must eventually take part in a social revolution, and Punk has no place in the equation. Only by rejecting movements neutered by age and capitalism can progress be made.

(This essay was originally published in “The Prattler,” Pratt Institute’s student paper.)