(Credit: Far Out / Gallery 98)
When punk rock burst onto the scene in 1976, it wanted to dismantle the musical establishment and start anew. Rejecting the profit-driven complacency of pop music, punk was built on inescapably anti-capitalist and anti-pop principles. Inevitably, however, this revolt proved short-lived, and the music industry fell in love with punk as soon as it realized its potential for profit. As a result, the only way to remain a true punk was to operate entirely in his DIY spirit.
Punk has always been rooted in independence, going back to the punk archetypes of garage rock. Mainstream record labels and radio stations were reluctant to play rough-and-ready music made by stoned teenagers, especially at a time when pop factories like Motown and RCA were releasing records out of stock. I wasn't interested in that. That's where his DIY element of punk comes into play. If you don't put out our music, we'll do it ourselves. As a result, countless low-budget independent labels sprang up in the mid-1960s, releasing songs by unknown artists that were never heard from again.
Considering how much these early garage rock tracks influenced punk forebears like The Stooges, Patti Smith, and MC5, it was inevitable that their production techniques would be adopted within the broader punk movement. It seemed like it was. As the first 'official' punk releases arrived in the UK in 1976 with The Damned's 'New Rose', independent record labels seemed to be the way to go. After all, there was no way EMI or Warner's stuffed shirts would release the music of bands like Johnny Moped and Slaughter and the Dogs.
Of the many independent labels that sprang up in the wake of punk, two of the most comprehensive were Stiff and Rough Trade. Both labels will reject the capital-centric ethos of major record labels and find an audience with their own unique way of operating. For punk bands, being on an independent label was not only expected, but celebrated. In fact, when The Clash signed with CBS in 1977, many sensationalists hailed the decision as the “death of punk,” and the anarcho-punk class called it the seminal song “Punk Is.” It was used as inspiration for “The Dead.”
While many of punk's biggest names, such as The Clash and the Sex Pistols, moved to major labels, more principled punks remained dedicated to independence. In early 1977, the Manchenian band Buzzcocks self-released their debut EP, changing the world of music forever. spiral scratch. This decision took all power away from record label executives and placed creative control completely in the hands of artists.Production of spiral scratch The album inspired countless independent artists and labels, and is hailed as the record that birthed “indie rock.”
As it turns out, punk's aspirations for independence ran much deeper than record labels. Being a punk meant completely rejecting the norm and doing things completely your way. Using this as a blueprint, punks would adopt his DIY approach to nearly every aspect of their lives, from living off-the-grid in dingy squats to handcrafting their own clothes. Punk music was much more than just a music genre. It was a complete cultural revolution.
Even the music press of the punk era was largely DIY, with a variety of independent fanzines being launched across the country, perhaps the most notable example being Mark Perry's Sniffin' Glue. These zines of his would promote and celebrate independent artists and record labels, creating a self-fulfilling, cyclical music scene free from the shackles of corporate greed.
While the first wave of punk was fairly short-lived, and while it seems like there's only so much you can do with a manifesto of “I have three chords, let's start a band,” its DIY legacy is incredibly wide-ranging. It extends to Subgenres that branched off from punk, such as hardcore, queercore, and riot grrrl, were all very much about DIY ways of operating. Riot Grrrl particularly embraced fanzines and independent labels as a means of escaping the male domination of the mainstream music industry, demonstrating the continued need for independence in music.
Outside of the gritty world of punk, movements such as indie, grunge, Britpop, and even acid house and similar underground dance scenes all operate primarily through independent record labels and are part of the punk scenario. occupies . Most of these early independent works are now under the ownership of major record labels such as Sony and Universal. But there are still countless grassroots labels around the world that continue to showcase weird and wonderful music from music's greatest outcasts. Punk is certainly not dead, as long as you know where to look.