ngw

It is indeed always very surprising this relentless criticism of the Pistols’ music, only to overlook stuff (and even reference!) like Gorilla Biscuits or Circle Jerks, even those idiots from Exploited! I don’t think I’ll ever understand this point of view. What a pity, I wasn’t able to generate the flame fest I was hoping for :p I should have argued less.

Have you tried to buy Zen Arcade by Husker Du? It’s the Quadrophenia of punk, probably the most important album ever, and it’s from '84.

He, mister righteousness.

I agree on The Filth and the Fury.
Both documentaries by Temple are a must-watch.

Yes, you're right. Broadly speaking, hardcore is a very defined phenomenon, and associating it with punk isn’t quite correct. The self-titled album by KJ, which I keep on my bedside table to listen to as soon as I wake up, has strong punk influences, but for me, it’s wave: too much attention to the sound and the lyrics to be punk, and too slow. It's a bit like saying that 154 by Wire is punk for me. Anyway, there's no review of Operation Ivy; maybe if someone writes it, I’ll bug them about it.

Oh no, take it easy, the Sex Pistols have been a joy and a delight for me to listen to for 20 years, even though I wouldn't call myself a fan (otherwise, I fear I'd be a fan of about 800 bands :). It's dirty garage and DIY; the only album produced is, as I've mentioned elsewhere, still fresh and enjoyable, without the musty aura that most records from that era have *today*, first and foremost the Clash's debut. In fact, I've explicitly stated that the charisma and stage presence of the Pistols are something most groups can only dream of, just as I've pointed out that Nevermind was the reason for the birth of tons of bands back in the day. I only acknowledge that they were primarily an icon and a cultural phenomenon, just like the Beatles (another group that absolutely couldn't play).

Dead Can Dance are as punk as the Pooh can be. But have you ever listened to them, excuse me? It's a mix of wave and ethnic... I don’t know.

If there might be some doubt about the debut of Killing Joke, Night Time is instead pure wave; have we gone mad? KJ, along with Wire, is my favorite wave band; they are icons of the wave, merging metal influences with dark ones, and their lyrics were extremely lucid. Night Time even features some electronics. In any case, you'll find very few English punk groups from '80 onwards. Siouxsie has punk influences, obviously, but her records are dark in themes and music. She was a groupie for the Pistols... The Stranglers are an atypical band; they can't be easily categorized. Rattus Norvegicus is a punk album, but where do you place the piano in the first track? The lyrics are very dark, resembling the '77 version of Bauhaus. As proof, if you search online, back then no one paid them any attention; the "subversive" or "critical" aspect typical of punk was completely absent; it was all about creating atmospheres.
If you want a list, I can make one for you. The major ones you left at home include Husker Du, Minutemen, Operation Ivy, Minor Threat, Butthole Surfers, Bad Brains, TSOL, Social Distortion, DOA, Adolescents, Gorilla Biscuits, Sick of it All, Circle Jerks, and others, but I've had enough now :) Just the '80s; I won't even touch the '90s. I'll only mention Teengenerate, which no one knows, but they're like the Japanese Bad Brains. Whoever finds the record wins a headbutt.

Siouxsie is dark, Killing Joke (whom I affectionately call "God") are wave. Damned's last album '79, Stiff Little Fingers' last album early 80s, but they're punk '77. The Stranglers in the 80s weren't doing punk; Rattus Norvegicus could be punk in a very broad sense of punk... Yes, I'm in the mood to stir the pot.

Not for me, and I have all the GD albums, from Kerplunk onward (back then I was a Lookout latrine, I think I have about 150 Lookout records). In any case, I don't doubt the freshness of the early works; they were 16 years old, if they're not fresh then, they never will be. I question the creativity of Dookie, by the way, which entered the charts with a single like "When I Come Around," kind of like the beautiful "Fallen in Love" by the Buzzcocks slowed down, which is really nothing creative, just a simple pop song. In Dookie, almost all the songs follow the exact same formula, a mix between Buzzcocks and Pixies, a preparatory verse and a punkish chorus, but it's not punk at all; rather, it's "corporate punk," as someone calls it. I say it's power pop. There’s humor in Dookie, but it’s one stereotype after another: stupid punk, crazy punk, stoned punk - what a drag. The mood of Green Day, especially during the Dookie era, was certainly punkish, but I repeat, they are posers, punk aware of the group they were in, following the good old stereotypes of pogo, spitting, dumping, fanculing and blah blah blah, always perfect in being punk, god forbid they don't show their tattoos or that I look disheveled, bring on the hairspray.
Blink made fun of the Backstreet Boys, and I swear I laughed for 20 minutes (fan with a sign saying "I'm pregnant," genius). Bad taste in heaps, but if you want to do punk in a grown-up way with bad taste, you live it ... And I repeat, they show a bit of good will, after the MTV binge they're getting better, especially the lyrics, they're even adopting the less commercial sounds of the Buzzcocks. Blink are and have always been losers, they don’t have the cool aura that GD has always had; they’re just idiots, like with the Butthole Surfers, you don’t laugh with them, you laugh at them. GD, on the other hand, are over there talking bad about Bush, as original as talking bad about Berlusconi in Italy; other bands have thrown themselves into politics, but with what verve and with what sarcasm, or with what heart: just consider Dead Kennedys and Stiff Little Fingers? GD, however, are all "it's raining, the government's a thief," sad. Clearly, it's just my opinion.
BTW, it’s a war among the poor; with bands like Bluetip and New Bomb Turks around, I see no reason to throw away money :)