American Decades
The Punk Rock and New Wave Movements
Rebellion.
Punk rock combusted in the mid 1970s from the smoldering energies of several different music styles and in reaction to the bland corporate rock then popular. The punk and new wave movements had a violent, nihilistic image that did not always reflect the wide diversity of musical styles (and fashions) they encompassed. Their influences ranged from avant-garde art rock to 1950s rock 'n' roll to Jamaican reggae, but the collective force of their impact made them easy to categorize. The representative effect was a primitive, stripped-down assault of guitars, bass, and drums played fast and loud. To rock fans weary of mainstream excess, punk rock was a revelation. To those who liked the status quo, it was alienating noise. Either way, punk could not have cared less; the only thing that mattered was that the musical rebellion had finally arrived. It was user-friendly, too, and more Utopian than it cared to admit: the simplicity...[The entire page is 2227 words long]
1970's The Arts
