h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Why do you think punk music influenced the youth in the late 1970's and is now influencing the current youth. Any answers from anyne welcome because it is for my exam in media studies.

i know it's too late t post in relation to your studies, but I can still post in relation to the questions.

I think that we, the punk youth, find comfort in the fact that there were and still are, youths that feel the same as they do; depressed, outcast and misunderstood. When really we're just unique and unable to find people who do not conform with the popular culture and images which stereotype todays young people.

Louise, 15

Ye that is very true but puck music and the people who lisen to it also wanted to show there opion about something and how they want to change the view of the massise in the 70's it was sex pistols singing about anarcy in the UK. To the present day with bands like Green day and Blink 182, the new Green day album is mesage trying to tell people not to just follow the crowed and be an idiot.

I agree that Green Day are just punk wanabees. The Sex Pistols and similar bands made the way for the punks today. Alot of people are punks for the wrong reasons as a result of Green Day's come back. Their old material has lost meaning now their new stuff has been released and young people has begun to find comfort in hating the government (like them) rather than finding a politcal party which runs with their ideas of a good and fair government.

We do realise that following the crowd is a bit narrow minded, especially if the crowd are drug using, alcohol abusing people, hence being an idiot. But young people have very independant minds and have the ability to lead their own path which others will follow. This, I beileve, is all the punk culture is striving to do and is suceeding, slowly but surely.

But Greenday are exactly what punk is. Have you listened to thier new album? I have and it's clever. Billieloe is standing up for what he believes in. He's rebeling against George Bush, and that is a big part of punk, rebeling against what you disagree with. The lyrics actually MEAN something. Them having commercial success does not stop them being punk like so many people believe because thats not what they set out to be. That just happened because punk is trendy at the moment and its greenday that are around. It's a coincidence that is not Greenday's fault and if they were around before punk rock became cool then people wouldn't call them posers.

I have listened to their new album! I've been to their 2005 tour for crying out load and I dont deny their meaningful lyrics and great music, but they are not pure punk in my opinion. The Ramones, The Sex Pistols...all those bands had what it took, and Green Day just don't fit that bill for me. Call me picky but it's just my opinion.

well I think they are. they may not be pure punk but there is still punk in their music, as well as rock and even some blues.

Punk music has taken a turn for the worst if you ask me! All thats around now is punk wannabes who think they´re ´totally punk´because they like greenday! Greendays lyrics may mean something but no ones listening! The people who like greenday only listen to them because they´re kind of pop and they can like them and then be called a punk or something different to everyone else! The sheer decrease in proper punk music nowadays has lead me to listening to indie music!

Not at all, punk is non pop like at all and if you look beyond the mainstream stuff you find that punk has not taken a turn for the worst at all. True Green Day fans are not punk wannabes just cos Green Day is mainstream isn’t a bad thing what about indie bands there is a lot more mainstream indie bands than punk bands. I listen to quite a lot of punk music, which is very good and people do listen to what they have to stay

i agree with that. i don't like Greenday because its cool, i like them because there talented. you can't stereotype all greenday fans like that. and saying 'proper punk' is possibly the most un-punk thing you can ever say.

i think that we feel the same kind of dissilusionment now, as the first punk rockers did in the seventies. like the clash, who knew stuff wasn't right in the world, but didnt just give and with a nihilistic screw it like the sex pistols. they have a sort of optimism

Hello,
Some comments on the previous discussion;
I was 16 in 1977, The Clash, Sex Pistols, Patti Smith (and a few swedish punk bands like Ebba Grön and KSMB) belongs to the soundtrack of my life.

In those days the "new wave -punk era" had very little to do with being miserable and depressed. It is true it was a reaction against a political situation where young people were marginalised in many ways - and the fact that we grew up during the cold war, being certain that the world would come to an end either by a nuclear meltdown of superscale or that someone in Washington or Moscow would acctually going to press the button. And blow the world to pieces. It was protest and rebellion. Yes. But not for the sake of being different or getting attention. The beauty of that time, and the reason why it still is an important period of my life -so many years later, is because of all the power and all the positive effect it had on my life and alot of my friends life.
That power was Do It Yourself!! You think cinemas are only showing commercialized crap -Ok lets start a cinema club! There are no papers writing about stuff that concerns me and my friends -We´ll start a fanzine. No record company wants to distribute our music, lets start a label! Our bands haven´t got anywhere to play -We`ll have to start a club! People did all these things, by themselves, often against all odds, a lot of times not very successfully, But they did it themselves, it meant that a lot of creativity was realesed, many people got an attitude to life that if you really want to, it might be possible to do something about your situation. And you learn something in the process. Maybe that if you want things to change, on a personal level or in the town you live... (maybe global...) you have to do something to make it happen. You can´t sit around and wait.

Go out and make it happen!


Izzybelle, 45

That is an excellent posting with some exellent advice.

Izzybelle