Sex Pistols
Alive

THE REVIEW

After a good number of reviews on the greats of hard rock, I choose to change genre by commenting on a punk band. Or rather, the band considered punk par excellence, the Sex Pistols, who together with New Yorkers the Ramones (the inventors of the genre) and the Clash, compatriots of the Pistols, represented true punk. The Ramones were the first to use the very simple three-chord melody formula and the band in question did something similar (it should be clear that the Pistols never had contact with Joey's band), but with an even greater inability to play.

At that time, music was a true art form, showcasing the talent of many people in singing and playing. But when punk burst onto the London scene thanks to the Sex Pistols, in my opinion, it remains the same an indelible mark on all music and beyond, because the true purpose of this movement was to express the social unrest that existed in England at that time, namely the well-off thinkers and poor workers, and not to showcase talent in using instruments.

The band's first album was "Nevermind the Bollocks Here's the Sex Pistols", which had its sales boycotted and was defined by many as "unlistenable" since the people who played, namely Johnny Rotten (vocals), Steve Johns (guitar), Glenn Matlock (bass), and finally Paul Cook (drums) had barely a vague idea of how to hold their instruments. The lyrics were focused on one topic only, the rebellion of poorly paid workers against those close to the queen, who would lead England in a direction without a future, as explained in the Pistols’ parody of the English anthem "God Save the Queen". The other significant single is "Anarchy in the UK", where Johnny writes some very heavy things, like: "I don't know what I want, but I know how to get it."

But now let's talk about this live performance, which is played very poorly and documents how the Pistols were live, scandalous and also shows us how the audience wasn't very interested but went to concerts just to mind their own business, and these were like gatherings of people; in fact, instead of applause, you only hear grumbles. But this was the true punk, not what is presented today, once the sales of punk bands were very low, and the so-called "artists" could barely make a living. Unfortunately, an idiot named Sid Vicious arrived, who replaced Matlock on bass, for many he is an idol, for me he remains just a drug addict and thug with no ideals, he took away everything the Pistols had of real and took it away with him. Yes, because even if they were formed by a businessman like Malcolm McLaren, they still left (as stated earlier) an unforgettable mark. Instead, Sid was just any little thug and not a true punk like Rotten, who eventually realized McLaren’s scam and will rebel by leaving the Pistols.

I realize I haven't written a true review, but in my humble opinion, this is a band of symbolic significance more than purely musical.