In the summer of 2000, I met Legs McNeil, the oral historian and music critic, at a multiple-day event in the Mojave Desert, The Miss Exotic World Pageant. I was doing an ethnographic study of the event; he was beginning research on what was to become his book about the Adult Film Industry in the USA, The Other Hollywood (2006). We spoke mostly about his landmark oral history of Punk, Please Kill Me (1996). “Punk was always more than just music,” he said. “It’s a cultural phenomenon.” That sentiment is explored and detailed in Iain Ellis’ volume Punk Beyond the Music: Tracing Mutations and Manifestations of the Punk Virus.
There is, of course, no shortage of books and articles investigating Punk as a form of music. There are memoirs, oral histories, social investigations, and fan accolades. There are even works that seek to codify the “Punk Aesthetic”. Punk Beyond the Music goes further than those approaches, coalescing an understanding of Punk as an ever-mutating and spreading subculture.
Iain Ellis is a much-published academic who has long been investigating and writing about the subject here on PopMatters. In his book, he chronicles Punk Culture(s) as they arise in various institutional structures and expressions, far beyond the expected venues of music and fashion.
Punk Beyond the Music is a serious (though very readable) study with its academic credentials clearly in place. Citations and notes abound, the bibliography is extensive, and the index is inclusive. The scope of the volume is far-reaching. The organization is tight, the prose is approachable and flowing, and the conclusions are well-supported.
As expected, the Introduction lays out the boundaries of the discussion to follow. Here, the author explains the threads of inquiry used throughout the work. These include 1) Politics, 2) An Outsider Status, 3) The Punk Attitude, 4) DIY Expressions, and 5) The Symbols of Punk. Ellis’ core concept is that the cultural expression of Punk as a musical subgenre spread to other artistic modes and cultural phenomena. As such, it could not (and did not) remain a fixed focal point but altered as any such cultural manifestation will, in concert with the dynamic cultural elements that produce such expressions and ultimately consume them.
The author then traces four categories of development and variation embodying the previous five attributes. Pre-Punk includes art and socio-cultural movements such as Dada, Surrealism, the Futurists, Situationists, and more. Proto-Punk showcases various music and art movements of the late 1960s and early 1970s, such as Warhol’s Factory and its attendant spin-offs. Primary Punk focuses on three music groups and their wide-ranging influences in music and beyond: the Ramones, the Sex Pistols, and the Clash. Post-Punk evidences the transmogrifying and splintering of Punk into numerous musical subgenres into other cultural avenues.
The chapters include the expected topics of Politics and Fashion. Not surprising are other chapters covering the Visual Arts and the Performing Arts. All four chapters expand upon the conventional applications of Punk sensibilities and attitudes. Yet, as good as these chapters are at tracing the threads of inquiry that Ellis follows, the most intriguing elements of Punk Beyond the Music lie in the other chapters. These take the investigation and documentation to the less-considered and, in some ways, surprising realms of Comedy, Education, and Sports. These chapters may be the true strength of the book since evaluating the presence of Punk in these cultural institutions and expressions (and others) has not previously been given much consideration.
Ellis closes his ruminations with chapters that first evaluate the global impact of Punk and then sum it all up, contenting that Punk is an overarching cultural force that continues to transform itself. In such a sweeping volume with numerous specific examples on many topics, disagreement with specific parts and the organization of Ellis’ ideas will probably be encountered. Are his five threads of inquiry useful? Are his categories of the evolution of Punk justified? I’ll leave those debates to others.
However, there can be no argument for the importance of Punk Beyond the Music and its sterling contribution to musical, cultural, and historical scholarship. The book is likely to become a touchstone for future investigations and discussions. It is an example that cannot be ignored by those who wish to be taken seriously on the subject.
I’m guessing Legs McNeil will agree.