Last summer I was taking a piss at a friend's house in Venice Beach California when I saw a crumpled up piece of what looked like a white t-shirt with black lettering in the bathroom trash can. I don't know what I wasn't thinking, the shirt could have been covered in shit or something, but no mind, I took the shirt out of the trash can to discover a perfectly used sex pistols shirt. It wasn't "clean" but it certainly wasn't crusty or stained. The cotton was soft and had the oddly comforting smell of dirty hair. Fucking sweet! I thought. I am so taking this. And I can wear this, cause I found it in a trash can. That makes a Sex Pistols shirt legit. For what ever that means.
I spent my high school years in the "punk crowd" I would have been the first to admit that I was a "poser". I wasn't as "hard core" as my friends. But, looking back on it now I just didn't know what it was really all about. "Fuck the establishment!" the anger. the confusion. the fire. I see now that it all runs so much deeper. I had no clue as to the levels that my "wasted youth" friends were taking their conversations and rants. The type of topics that these kids talked about in these flip, sarcastic, jaded ways included; esoterics, occult knowledge, conspiracy theories, and alternative history. And yes, zombie movies, elves, hobbits, and Tolkien. Gelflings and "The Dark Chrystal", lizards demons and "They Live", video games and aliens. Of coarse, now, it all makes sense to me and I recognize that these friends of mine, at startling young ages, were tapped in to the dark and fantastic truths about our world. They were past the fear of it, they had found the dark humor in our world and Punk and Rock was the voice of the friend that had already paved the way, helping calm the rage. Then, I am not really quite sure what I thought, I guess that they were intriguing. I thought they were cool and funny. I was impressed with their imaginations, but I could never really figure them out. I was unaware then about certain levels of our reality. Completely. But what I was aware of, was an intense confusion, a spiraling that churned itself into a fire inside of me. Maybe it was teen angst or maybe it was my intuition revving up, beating the drums that something was profoundly wrong with our world. Either way, I found a match for that fire, a way to mirror and multiply it. And an outlet, a vehicle to move it.
That was Punk
But what really is "Punk" ? I know there are books about people's philosophies about what "Punk" is. I am not the first person to ask this, maybe I should go read a fucking book, do some research before writing this... but really, the punk route is to say," fuck that". What's punk about punk is that everyone can have their own opinion about what it is, and they are fucking right! Cause it's punk. Punk to me now is something that doesn't have to look or sound one way or the other. I think it was originally about the spirit and not the music and Doc Martins are made in China now anyways. And we are long past the days of the Vivian Westwood Bondage Pants, and the bands never wore those types of clothes anyways, it was the style picked up and perpetuated by the tabloids of the day and then created a "mold" a "style" for punk. And well, I don't think that is Punk, at all. We have seen the debauchery, the yelling and the cursing. The overt display of sexuality and violence. We are inundated with it these days, those types of actions have become quiet possibly the social norm in our sick society. They are dull. They are no longer shocking, at least not to me. It is time to go against that. I would like to see the Punk grow up and take responsibility for the knowledge he has and loud voice that he has been given. I want to elevate the status of Punk. I want to be legit and make it my own. The stereotypes, style, and music are no longer relevant. Punk is a daringness to step out side of the "norm" To question what we are told and to do it boldly. However in a world where everyone is saying something, and it's mostly nothing, where youth have been encouraged to by our media to be nasty, the punk spirit may need to take a pause and re-evaluate his tactics in order to be heard and really push the boundaries. For that is what he is really all about, the rebellion of the system and the evolution of the spirit.
It is an ironic twist of character that it may actually be more punk these days to be quiet and polite. To listen to people. We are all very used to people's frantic energies and dramas. We become unnerved when met with someone with a present awareness. The evolving Punk, I think sees violence and crude displays as something that will not get the job done now. No matter how hot we are, we cannot fight fire with fire and plus it's "in" so I am "out" - done with that. The modern Punk I think then is righteous and convicted in his integrity and morals. And that is what makes him shocking. There will always be an element of shock I think with the Punk Spirit, that is one of the driving forces. But when people are being shocked left and right, we must find a new positive way to engage attention and awareness.
I few years ago I let myself go back to the way I was dressing when I was 16. A little Retro Punk. Tight straight legged jeans, boots, studded belt, a raccoon tail and jingly keys, a leopard print sweater or black hoodie, and a Sex Pistols shirt found in the trash. It is a costume to me. I like costumes, always have. I found dressing that way again gave me great joy. To me, I look stereotypical and it makes me laugh. People here in Hawaii take one look at me and guess that I am from the San Fransisco Bay area and probably own a Rancid album. But what they don't expect is how I communicate with myself and the world around me. That is the shock. That I strive to be present and compassionate.
A couple of days ago I was at the beach with some friends, wearing my Sex Pistols shirt. One girlfriend of mine had a Ramones shirt on. It made me laugh. We look so silly!! Lets take a picture to document! And well, we share on Facebook these days. I saw the picture yesterday, at first, it made me laugh. We looked so text book "wannabe" in my book. And then, after scrolling through the facebook feed and seeing several posts about Miley Cyrus, my thoughts changed to "put some pants on girls!!" Yes, we were at the beach and she is a sad product of modern pop. But that is what made me start to think about all of this I am writing now. What is "cool?" what is "sexy"? what is "Punk" It's not what it used to be, that is for sure. If we want to see real change, we can't, we wont allow it to be the same.
Cause that is Punk.
I spent my high school years in the "punk crowd" I would have been the first to admit that I was a "poser". I wasn't as "hard core" as my friends. But, looking back on it now I just didn't know what it was really all about. "Fuck the establishment!" the anger. the confusion. the fire. I see now that it all runs so much deeper. I had no clue as to the levels that my "wasted youth" friends were taking their conversations and rants. The type of topics that these kids talked about in these flip, sarcastic, jaded ways included; esoterics, occult knowledge, conspiracy theories, and alternative history. And yes, zombie movies, elves, hobbits, and Tolkien. Gelflings and "The Dark Chrystal", lizards demons and "They Live", video games and aliens. Of coarse, now, it all makes sense to me and I recognize that these friends of mine, at startling young ages, were tapped in to the dark and fantastic truths about our world. They were past the fear of it, they had found the dark humor in our world and Punk and Rock was the voice of the friend that had already paved the way, helping calm the rage. Then, I am not really quite sure what I thought, I guess that they were intriguing. I thought they were cool and funny. I was impressed with their imaginations, but I could never really figure them out. I was unaware then about certain levels of our reality. Completely. But what I was aware of, was an intense confusion, a spiraling that churned itself into a fire inside of me. Maybe it was teen angst or maybe it was my intuition revving up, beating the drums that something was profoundly wrong with our world. Either way, I found a match for that fire, a way to mirror and multiply it. And an outlet, a vehicle to move it.
That was Punk
But what really is "Punk" ? I know there are books about people's philosophies about what "Punk" is. I am not the first person to ask this, maybe I should go read a fucking book, do some research before writing this... but really, the punk route is to say," fuck that". What's punk about punk is that everyone can have their own opinion about what it is, and they are fucking right! Cause it's punk. Punk to me now is something that doesn't have to look or sound one way or the other. I think it was originally about the spirit and not the music and Doc Martins are made in China now anyways. And we are long past the days of the Vivian Westwood Bondage Pants, and the bands never wore those types of clothes anyways, it was the style picked up and perpetuated by the tabloids of the day and then created a "mold" a "style" for punk. And well, I don't think that is Punk, at all. We have seen the debauchery, the yelling and the cursing. The overt display of sexuality and violence. We are inundated with it these days, those types of actions have become quiet possibly the social norm in our sick society. They are dull. They are no longer shocking, at least not to me. It is time to go against that. I would like to see the Punk grow up and take responsibility for the knowledge he has and loud voice that he has been given. I want to elevate the status of Punk. I want to be legit and make it my own. The stereotypes, style, and music are no longer relevant. Punk is a daringness to step out side of the "norm" To question what we are told and to do it boldly. However in a world where everyone is saying something, and it's mostly nothing, where youth have been encouraged to by our media to be nasty, the punk spirit may need to take a pause and re-evaluate his tactics in order to be heard and really push the boundaries. For that is what he is really all about, the rebellion of the system and the evolution of the spirit.
It is an ironic twist of character that it may actually be more punk these days to be quiet and polite. To listen to people. We are all very used to people's frantic energies and dramas. We become unnerved when met with someone with a present awareness. The evolving Punk, I think sees violence and crude displays as something that will not get the job done now. No matter how hot we are, we cannot fight fire with fire and plus it's "in" so I am "out" - done with that. The modern Punk I think then is righteous and convicted in his integrity and morals. And that is what makes him shocking. There will always be an element of shock I think with the Punk Spirit, that is one of the driving forces. But when people are being shocked left and right, we must find a new positive way to engage attention and awareness.
I few years ago I let myself go back to the way I was dressing when I was 16. A little Retro Punk. Tight straight legged jeans, boots, studded belt, a raccoon tail and jingly keys, a leopard print sweater or black hoodie, and a Sex Pistols shirt found in the trash. It is a costume to me. I like costumes, always have. I found dressing that way again gave me great joy. To me, I look stereotypical and it makes me laugh. People here in Hawaii take one look at me and guess that I am from the San Fransisco Bay area and probably own a Rancid album. But what they don't expect is how I communicate with myself and the world around me. That is the shock. That I strive to be present and compassionate.
A couple of days ago I was at the beach with some friends, wearing my Sex Pistols shirt. One girlfriend of mine had a Ramones shirt on. It made me laugh. We look so silly!! Lets take a picture to document! And well, we share on Facebook these days. I saw the picture yesterday, at first, it made me laugh. We looked so text book "wannabe" in my book. And then, after scrolling through the facebook feed and seeing several posts about Miley Cyrus, my thoughts changed to "put some pants on girls!!" Yes, we were at the beach and she is a sad product of modern pop. But that is what made me start to think about all of this I am writing now. What is "cool?" what is "sexy"? what is "Punk" It's not what it used to be, that is for sure. If we want to see real change, we can't, we wont allow it to be the same.
Cause that is Punk.
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