The Punks Are Alright

Punk music may seem like a chaotic and abrasive genre comprised of rebellion and teenage angst.  However, it can also be a genre full of hope.  In some places where there is no hope, punk is what brings people together.  

The punk rock genre began in the 1970's in the United Kingdom, United States, and Australia.  It was established using DIY principles, with band making their own recordings and distributing their music through informal means.  It was created by middle and lower class teenagers who were fed up with their quality of life and decided to create an escape.  Punk rock songs are usually short and fast paced with simple instrumentation.  Punk is a very confrontational field of music.  The lyrics and song meanings are usually crass and violent.  Characteristics of punk rock fans and artists include black clothing, unusual or extravagant hairstyles, safety pins, tattoos, and body piercings.  These are all meant to confront the problems with mainstream society.  They use violent lyrics, fast paced beats, and extremely loud music to wake up the rest of society.  Punk uses confrontational methods to get it's message across.   

In Brazil and Indonesia, where quality of life is poor and oppression is real, punk has found a home.  In the rockumentary The Punks Are Alright, punk artists and fans from Canada, Brazil and Indonesia are interviewed and asked about their experiences in the punk scene. The documentary covers the punk communities that have formed in Brazil and Indonesia.  

Dolly, a young man living in Bali, works for a Nike factory.  He makes $2.65 a day and spends four hours commuting to work.  Dolly does not enjoy his job or those he works with, but claims that he is lucky to even have a job.  Many times during his interviews Dolly calls punk rock his medicine.  It is his escape amidst the despair that surrounds him.  His favorite band, The Blind Pigs, is a Brazilian punk band from Brasil.  Dolly received a free The Blind Pigs CD from the band, who upon request gave their album to Dolly for free.  In return, Dolly made patches for the band using screen printing equipment.  This is one example of how the punk community can cross borders and create a global punk community.

  

In both Indonesia and Brazil, capitalism has failed for many of the people who live there.  The governments gain financially from foreign corporations (Nike factories in Indonesia) or from illegal markets like the drug trade in Brazil.  This is an example of capitalism failing the people of these countries.  The governments in Indonesia and Brazil take advantage of their people in order for those at the apex of the hierarchy to benefit financially.  When this happens, the quality of life declines and those in the lower class look for alternative ways of rebuilding their communities.  One of these alternatives is punk music or DIY.  

Punk is born out of situations in which capitalism has failed a society.  The people then decide to take matters into their own hands (literally) and to create a sense of community with participatory models for food production, homebuilding, transportation, health care, media, and music.