ANARCHO-PUNK

'Anarcho-punk' is a faction of the punk subculture that consists of bands, groups and individuals promoting anarchist politics.
Although not all punks support anarchism, the ideology has played a significant role in the punk subculture, and punk has had a significant influence on the expression of contemporary anarchism. The term ''anarcho-punk'' is sometimes applied exclusively to bands that were part of the original anarcho-punk movement in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s and 1980s, such as Crass, Conflict, Flux of Pink Indians, Subhumans, Poison Girls and Oi Polloi. Some use the term more broadly to refer to any punk music with anarchist lyrical content. This broader definition includes crust punk bands such as Nausea and d-beat bands such as Discharge, and may include American hardcore punk bands such as MDC, folk punk artists such as This Bike is a Pipe Bomb or artists in other sub-genres.
Anarcho-punk has been highlighted as one of the social phenomena which took anarchism in the direction of identity politics (or "lifestylism"). Some argue that style became an essential ingredient of the movement, sometimes obscuring other factors, although others would reply that the performers who aligned themselves with anarcho-punk in fact embraced a wide diversity of approaches in both format and ideas. This would appear to be borne out by the range of anarcho-punk artists and performers. As well, it is often argued that the fashion was simply representative of the ethics associated with anarchism, such as anti-corporate, do-it-yourself beliefs.

Contents

History

Beliefs

Direct action

The DIY punk ethic

Fashion

Bibliography

References

See also

External links

History

A surge of popular interest in anarchism occurred during the 1970s in the United Kingdom following the birth of punk rock, in particular the Situationist-influenced graphics of Sex Pistols artist Jamie Reid, as well as that band's first single, "Anarchy in the UK." However, while the early punk scene appropriated anarchist imagery mainly for its shock value, Crass may have been the first punk band to expound serious anarchist and pacifist ideas. The concept of anarcho-punk was quickly picked up on by bands like Flux of Pink Indians and Conflict.
As the 1980s progressed, two new punk styles evolved out of anarcho-punk: crust punk and d-beat. Crust punk mixed anarcho-punk with an extreme metal sound, and was pioneered by bands such as Antisect, Sacrilege and Amebix. D-beat was a faster, more brutal form of punk music, and was created by bands like Discharge and The Varukers. Somewhat latter on in the 1980s, grindcore developed out of anarcho-punk. Similar to crust punk but perhaps even more musically extreme (grindcore employed blast beats and incomprehensible vocals), it was pioneered by bands such as Napalm Death and Extreme Noise Terror. Parallel to the development of these subgenres, many bands in the American hardcore punk scene were adopting anarcho-punk ideology, including MDC and Reagan Youth.
Though the earliest precendents were Rudimentary Peni, who became a death rock act later in their existence. Anarcho-punk in the 2000s has been more musically diverse than in the 1970s and 1980s . In adition to previously established subgenres, anarcho-punk encompasses punk blues artists like Darren Deicide, pop punk artists such as Girlband and Propagandhi, New Wave artists such as Honey Bane, and folk punk bands such as The Weakerthans and Against Me!. Some anarcho-punk bands even incorporate indie rock or indie pop, such as the Nation of Ulysses. Fairly recently, bands such as Axiom, Destroy and Disrupt have fused the grindcore and crust punk sounds. Digital Hardcore often takes an anarchist stance in their lyrics, as typified by genre pioneers Atari Teenage Riot. Digital Hardcore mixes punk (and sometimes rap) vocals with elements of many different genres, mainly Hardcore Techno, Thrash Metal, Noisecore and distorted soundscape backings.

Beliefs

Anarcho-punk bears very close resemblance to anarchism without adjectives, in that it involves the cooperation of various different forms of anarchism. Some anarcho-punks are anarcha-feminists (e.g. Polemic Attack), while others were anarcho-syndicists (e.g. Exit-Stance). The Psalters are an anarcho-punk band who also have affilliation to Christian anarchism. Post-left anarchy is common within modern anarcho-punk. CrimethInc., one of the major proponents of post-leftism, is strongly connected to the anarcho-punk movement. Class War is a British post-left federation with close ties to the anarcho-punk movement. Many anarcho-punks are supporters of issues such as animal rights, racial equality, anti-heterosexism, feminism, environmentalism, straight edge, worker's autonomy, the anti-war movement, and the anti-globalisation movement. Anarcho-punk has also been very critical of the flaws of both the punk movement itself and wider youth culture in general. Bands like Crass and the Dead Kennedys have written songs that attack corporate co-option of the punk subculture, people who are deemed to have sold out and the violence between punks, skinheads, b-boys and other youth subcultures.
Some anarcho-punks are straight edge, citing both animal rights reasons and that alcohol, tobacco, drugs, promiscuity and the like are instruments of opression because they cloud the mind and are self-destructive because they stifle the ability to challenge whom they consider the oppressors.
Although Crass initially espoused pacifism, this is not necessarily the case for all anarcho-punks. Despite the broader punk subculture's reactionary antagonism towards hippies, the ideals of the hippie counterculture were an influence on anarcho-punk. Crass were explicit regarding their associations with the hippie counterculture and this influence has also carried over to crust punk.

Direct action

Anarcho-punks universally believe in direct action, although the way in which this manifests itself varies greatly. Despite their differences in approach, these punks often co-operate with each other. Many anarcho-punks are pacifists (e.g. Crass and Discharge) and therefore believe in using non-violent means of achieving their aims. These include peaceful protest, refusal to work, squatting, economic sabotage, dumpster diving, graffiti, culture jamming, ecotage, freeganism, boycotting, civil disobedience, hacktivism, subvertising, etc. Other anarcho-punks believe that violence is an acceptable way of achieving social change (e.g. Conflict and D.O.A.). This manifests itself as rioting, vandalism, wire cutting, assault, hunt sabotage, participation in Animal Liberation Front/Earth Liberation Front style activities and, in extreme cases, bombings. However, it should be noted that many anarchists would dispute the applicability of the term "violence" to describe destruction of property alone.
Some anarcho-punks, notably in North America, have sought to use the democratic process in order to bring their respective areas closer to anarchism, although none of these ran for office as members of an anarchist party. Notable individuals who have attempted this include Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra for mayor of San Francisco, T.S.O.L. singer Jack Grisham for governor of California and D.O.A. lead singer Joey Shithead. Jello Biafra, for instance, argues that man is not ready for anarchy. Therefore some form of government is needed in the meantime so that certain social changes are implemented.^[1]
Many anarcho-punks also engage in ''indirect'' actions such as voting. Several artists such as Propagandhi, Jello Biafra, and Thought Riot have pledged their support for Ralph Nader and the Green Party.

The DIY punk ethic

Many anarcho-punk bands subscribe to a ''do-it-yourself'' ethic. A popular anarcho-punk slogan is "DIY not EMI," a conscious rejection of a major record company. Many anarcho-punk bands were showcased on the ''Bullshit Detector'' series of LPs released by Crass Records and Resistance Productions between 1980 and 1994. Some anarcho-punk performers were part of the cassette culture. In this way, an attempt was made to bypass the traditional recording and distribution routes, with recordings often being made available in exchange for a blank tape and a self-addressed envelope. The anarcho-punk movement had its own network of fanzines or punk zines which disseminated news, ideas and artwork from the scene. These were DIY productions, tending to be produced in runs of hundreds at most, although there were exceptions such as ''Toxic Grafity''.The zines were printed on photocopiers or duplicator machines, and distributed by hand at punk concerts and through the mail.

Fashion

Some members of the anarcho-punk movement distinguish themselves from the rest of the punk subculture by adapting punk fashion to represent their political beliefs. Anarchist symbols and slogans are common elements of anarcho-punk dress. Following the example of Crass, some anarcho-punks dress entirely in black, as well as wearing military apparel (combat boots, bullet belts, military surplus clothes, Battle dress uniforms, dog tags). Some anarcho-punks avoid leather, either as an expression of vegetarianism or veganism, possible adherence to the straight edge lifestyle, or both. Crust punks in particular have placed a great emphasis on DIY fashion. Other anarcho-punks such as Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys have embraced the ''anti-fashion'' ethos that was prevalent in the early hardcore punk scene. However, other anarcho-punks and anarcho-punk bands have drawn on other fashion traditions. For example, Nation of Ulysses drew heavily on the dress of 1970's soul bands and politicised street gangs, like the Vicelords. Anarcho-punk music is popular with some anarchist skinheads, and some punk fashion influences have crossed over into the Punk-Skinhead subculture.

Bibliography

★ Ian Glasper - ''The Day the Country Died: A History of Anarcho Punk 1980 to 1984'' (Cherry Red publishing, 2006 ISBN 978-1901447705)

★ Craig O'Hara - ''Philosophy of Punk: More Than Noise'' (AK Press, 1999 ISBN 978-1873176160)

References

1. "I am an anarchist in my personal life. I try to live my life in a way that I don't need cops or baby-sitters to keep me from infringing on others. But I don't feel we have evolved far enough as a species to make anarchy work in society itself. We still need government to transfer the wealth from those who have too much to those who have too little, to make sure important projects get done, and keep territorial humans from screwing over and killing each other." — Biafra, Jello (2000), "Jello Biafra's Statement for Synthesis/Regeneration Magazine"

See also

★ Anarchism and the arts

★ Anarchist symbolism

★ Crust punk

★ Punk ideology

★ List of anarcho-punk bands

★ List of subcultures

External links

★ Photographic archive of anarcho-punk bands

★ A critical look at anarcho-punk Links to a series of articles and interviews on the subject.

★ Profane Existence Making punk a threat again.

★ Development of punk and counterculture in a college town

★ Giles Dauve's Letter on Animal Liberation from the Libertarian Communist Library Archive On Animal 'Liberation' and the connection (or lack there of) between Punk, Anarchism and Revolution.

★ ''SLC Punk!'' and the Finer Points of Anarchism