What Was the Main Message of Punk Rock?

For well over forty years, punk has been a defining force in the world of music. It has affected everything from the shape of Top 40 hits in 2021 to the ethos of the independent music world.

Artists as diverse as indie songwriter Elliott Smith, experimental stalwarts Radiohead, goth heroes The Cure, singer-songwriter Nick Cave, and country musician Sturgill Simpson have all had their views on music directly shaped by punk sensibilities. This is to say nothing of chart-topping acts still unapologetically tied to punk music like Green Day.

But what was the main message of punk rock as it was originally thought of? How has that message fared over the last four-and-a-half decades? Does punk rock have anything to tell us about life today?

The Origins of Punk

To better understand and to answer these questions, it is important to consider that what we know of as "punk" almost immediately fractured into several different scenes within several different cities.

Heavily influenced by The Sex Pistols, for example, Manchester band Joy Division almost immediately subverted punk into a slower and more "gothic" form of music reflective of their hometown's industrial landscapes. At the same time, London-by-way-of-Ireland punk diehard Shane MacGowan formed The Pogues as a throwback to the Irish traditional music that he knew as a child from his long stays in County Tipperary.

Punk and Politics

And despite the fact that early punk acts were massively influenced by American bands such as The Ramones, The MC5, The Stooges, The Modern Lovers, and The Velvet Underground, punk emerged in large part as a uniquely British art form with a uniquely political message geared against British political establishmentarian thought.

While American acts like The Ramones were almost apolitical in their leanings, in fact, it is almost impossible to understand punk music without understanding what British political culture was like during the 1970s.

At this time, Britain was still economically recovering from the fallout of World War II. The social dynamics of the country had been changing for decades; two world wars had effectively decimated a landed aristocracy within the country that had served as the nation's leadership class since the Norman Invasion of 1066.

The British economy at this time was in a shambles. To fill the leadership vacuum, a bevy of industrialists and bankers stepped into the halls of power. They would take center stage in the late-1970s under the banner of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

A Time of Austerity and Rebellion

For the working classes of Britain, economic austerity measures undertaken over the course of the 1970s were devastating. A lack of social mobility in a country governed by and seemingly for the wealthy gave the 1970s an air of disquiet and hopelessness that would be amplified under Thatcher's leadership. The rebellious music of acts like The Sex Pistols and The Clash responded to the idea that there was no hope for the country's working classes without a sense of solidarity and independence.

These acts also expressed a sense of anger that has rarely been seen since within the music world. It is here that we find one of the main messages of the punk musical form: Namely, that it is time to make a break with the past. Moreover, it is time to make a break with the establishment. Many punks argued that huge business interests such as those operating major record labels like EMI were not to be trusted. They felt that the political class had also failed them. Punk bands across the globe decided that it was time to go it alone.

Going Out on a Limb

In many ways, these early punk pioneers had more in common with Henry David Thoreau than with their local Members of Parliament. To a large degree, they saw the mainstream music industry as corrupt; The Sex Pistols openly derided the major labels that they worked with.

And despite the fact that Sex Pistols frontman Johnny Rotten was photographed wearing a Pink Floyd t-shirt, many punks cut their hair short to counter what they saw as the excesses of 1960s and 1970s major label music in the vein of prog icons like Pink Floyd, Genesis, and Yes.

Punk Values Today

This newfound independence of spirit was revolutionary at the time; it still influences how many music fans think of the record industry. When Radiohead opted not to renew their contract with EMI fifteen years ago, many people saw it as a move inspired by punk values. Despite the fact that they were on a major label, moreover, the band Nirvana also squarely aligned themselves with the values of early punk rock.

Indeed, Kurt Cobain ceaselessly promoted bands from independent labels and had a "K Records" tattoo imprinted on his forearm. Moreover, Cobain appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone sporting a "Corporate Rock Still Sucks" shirt. Despite being one of MTV's biggest stars, it was clear where Cobain's sympathies were anchored.

Several decades on from the heyday of The Sex Pistols, even so-called "mainstream" artists like Nirvana would attempt to change the system from the inside. Heavily influenced by The Clash, songwriter Elliott Smith also incorporated a minimalist punk ethos into his own unique acoustic sound during the late-1990s and early-2000s.

Many artists took the punk system of values even further than artists like Radiohead by refusing to sign with major labels in the first place. For most of his career, Washington, D.C.-based musician Ian MacKaye self-released albums by his bands Minor Threat and Fugazi on his Dischord record label. MacKaye likely turned down millions of dollars in major label publishing contracts to remain independent.

It may not always seem like it, but the punk belief system espoused by artists like Ian MacKaye and John Lydon is still alive and kicking in today's music world. A healthy distrust in the machinations of the powers-that-be still marks the independent music landscape; fifty years from now, there can be little doubt that tomorrow's best artists will be singing the praises of the punk philosophy. Truly, punk is a movement that has permanently changed the cultural landscape.