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Old 09-17-2012, 09:48 AM   #1
CardiganNoise
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Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 3
Punk as an ideology or genre?

Hey, seems like this forum is kinda dead so I thought I'd try and start a discussion on how you all view punk. When you think of punk, do you think of it more as a genre of music, or a way of living your life? For example (and I'm about to generalize), punk seemed at its core a vehicle for bands to get a political or social message out in a way that people might listen to. These bands lived a "punk" lifestyle, which included such cliches as touring in rented vans, playing with cheap equipment, and playing small basement and house shows. And while these aspects were more out of necessity than choice, it was still an important part of early punk identity. This is what many people consider punk. On the other hand, many people simply consider punk to be a genre, spreading the punk umbrella from bands as hardcore as Refused to bands as poppy as Green Day.

Personally, I lean toward punk as a lifestyle more than genre. If it makes sense, when I consider how a person is, I think about how punk they are, as an adjective for how they live and what morals they stick by, not whether or not they're "a" punk, as a stereotype. But what about you guys? Share your ideas and opinions. With this being the internet in mind, I hope I've provided a decent jumping-off point for semi-civil discussion.
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