What Is Punk?

I’m old.  Which is to say that I remember listening to music before Smells Like Teen Spirit came out.  And I remember when Chumbawamba was cool (before they got knocked down.)  There is a question I have been wrestling with for over a decade.

What is punk?

And all of the derivatives: What is punk music? What does a punk band sound like? Is this band really punk? Is that band really punk? Is my band really punk?

If you asked 100 people what punk was, you would get 100 different answers.  We can start with an easier question. What is punk not? We can all write a long list. Let me throw out a few.

  • Conformity
  • Polite
  • Buying $90 pants that come pre-ripped and patched
  • Clean VANS shoes
  • Going to Hot Topic

I got soured to the punk scene by an old musician friend. He told me that he was attracted to punk at an early age because he was an asshole. I can attest to him being an asshole. And he blindly followed NOFX.  Their music, their message, everything.  And I thought to myself, there has to be more to punk than being an asshole for no reason and blindly regurgitating what your favorite punk band says.

To me, that is conformity.  And we can all think of someone we know who got punk wrong. Someone who thought that it was punk to act/talk/dress exactly like your favorite punk band. Maybe it was you.

I got in a pissing contest with someone in the boards several weeks ago. Someone was being rude for the sake of being rude, and I told him to knock it off, or he would be banned. He said something like “oh, censorship is real punk!” Now, we all agree that punk and censorship do not go hand in hand. And I am certainly self-righteous enough to try an argument like that guy pulled. But the exchange really helped me define what punk is not. In a sentence,

Being punk is not a badge that you can wear to be an uncreative bully.

And strangely enough, this realization has helped work on what being punk is. If I were to write a list of words, I would start with the word bossy. I think the essence of being punk is being confident in what you believe, and needing to tell other people who don’t agree.  I think it is important to come at it that way. The shocking or unpleasant aspects of being a punk are a means to an end. And your focus should be on a destination.

Did you see the movie The Dark Knight. Remember when that guy said that some people just want to watch the world burn. That is not punk.

I think that I could do write a post like this every day for weeks trying to capture the subtlety of being punk. So I will not pretend that I am about to write a definitive sentence that will sum it up. But I am able to write a sentence that captures what I am thinking right now.

Being punk means being passionate, and cramming it down everyones throat.

I have comments open to the pubic. I would love to hear what everyone thinks that it means to be punk.

Nobody Stories

I was drinking and singing Karaoke with my friend Mike the other night.  In between our great demonstrations of heroic vocal bravado we drank and reminisced.  I re-told some of my old tour stories.  And he told me about going to Poway High in the early 90’s and watching some of the Titans of San Diego Punk paying their dues.

The stories are pure awesome (his, not mine).  Sure I was not entirely sober, but it was so great getting the historical perspective from someone who was there.  A nobody (no offense, Mike) who participated in greatness.  Who saw it all go down, and went along for the ride.

There are so many stories like Mikes.  Stories by nobodies in other bands, or fans, or roommates, or siblings.  People who helped make history happen.

Or people who influence history.

Or people who witnessed history.

I am going to talk with Mike about ways to capture his stories, and the countless other stories that add up to the San Diego Punk scene that we love today.  I can barely contain my excitement.  Who would be interested in hearing these stories?

If you have a story to share, please email me at nick.carter@sandiegopunk.com and let me know.

Word to your mother.

Rosco Radio

A couple of years ago I began working on a project called Rosco Radio.  The idea was to combine iTunes and Myspace music into an online music player that acted like a customizable radio station.  It would play artists who were looking for free exposure, and let listeners build their own custom play lists.

The bands who owned the music could decide if they wanted the music to only stream, or if it could be downloaded.  I figured since an artist could allow their music to be played royalty free, that an artist could let their music be played on my web site royalty free too.

But the idea never came to be.  That is, until now.  I think that sandiegopunk might be a great place to finish the work.  At least add the random song streaming functionality.  In the few short weeks that I have been working on sandiegopunk I have already been turned on to a lot of great bands that I never knew existed.  I think that everyone would freak out if they had the chance to listen to this great shit without commercial sponsorship or corporate restrictions.

So, time to dust off my old code, and start geeking out!

My First Blog (complete with life lessons)

Ok, so it isn’t my first blog post ever.  I helped build the internet, and I have made somewhere between 15 and 20 pointless blog posts.  But now the stakes are higher.  There are at least 15 people who dig on good music in the finest city on Earth, so I am going to have to step it up.

So let me start with my qualifications.

By day I am a software engineer.  Some would call me a computer programmer.  I am also a drummer.  And seriously, nobody has better communication skills than computer programming drummers!

When I was in college, my roommate was a writing major.  I don’t remember what the major was called, but all he did was read and write.  I hear that he was quite good at it.  There are two lessons that he taught me.  I thought that I would share them with you today.

Life Lesson 1: Leave them wanting more.  Don’t hang around until they want you to leave.  Leave before they have had their full.

Life Lesson 2: Life is pain.

Now I am a writer.  I write words on www.sandiegopunk.com.  And so far I think I have done a pretty good job.  At least on the blog part.  I look at an empty page, and I am excited about how much I have to share.  How much I have learned about playing music in San Diego.  I can’t wait to share it with you.  I can’t wait to hook up the forums and deputize all of you little monkeys to help me share everything that is great about this city.

10 years ago, when I moved to San Diego, Blink 182 was taking over the world.  This city was basking in the same spotlight as Seattle a decade before, and Hollywood 15 years before.  The music scene was thriving.  And everyone had dollar signs in their eyes.  Cuz if it could happen to Blink, it could happen to anyone.

There are parts of that scene that I love and miss, and parts that I am glad are gone.  I don’t miss the desperation to get signed and become a rock star.  But I do miss the enthusiasm.  The thriving scene.  When millions of people went out each night in San Diego, looking for a band that was going to rock their socks off.

That is my mission with this web site, folks.  I want to help everyone unite.  Bands and clubs, musicians and music lovers.  I want the bands to rule the night again.  Who is with me?

So, as I add features to sandiegopunk.com, and write words to fill the empty spaces, I will do my best to remember my old roommates 2 life rules.

~ Nick Carter
(not that one, but the other one)

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