not really established as genres during the early days. But like always in history things have to find their right place before you can sort them out. But again, this does not mean that I am trying to minimize the importance of the bands that chose different ways of enhancing the Cultural Revolution going on in 1977. This means however, that those who got stuck with the original sounds of the punk movement and has not been able to accept that it since then has developed and divided into different subgenres are most likely to feel estranged by some of the terminology used in this book. The second generation is a little easier to sort out as most of the 80s bands had a pretty clear picture of what they thought was punk or not and usually played more or less in the same direction. Keep on reading and you will find this out.
The general selection I have tried to dig up every band that released at least one record or appeared on a split release before 1987 had ended. My aim has been to make an encyclopedia of the first ten years of punk bands that did so. Consequently, bands that existed and only released cassettes during this period are not mentioned. I’m not using the word demo in this case. This term is used to describe recordings that were not released with a cover which is more suitable when it comes to punk and its D.I.Y. ethics. Some of these bands that didn’t release any vinyl are mentioned in the chapter on page 259 about various compilation records. Four bands, however, that should have been mentioned in the book considering the criteria above have been excluded since they are more or less much more a phenomenon of the nineties. These bands are; Coca Carola, Totalitär, Los Bohemos and 23 Till. These four deserve much more to be included in a follow up book.
How much are the records worth? One thing is for sure, collecting records these days isn’t what it used to be. Online auctions like EBay make it possible to buy records that, prior to this phenomenon, few had ever seen or heard. Nowadays, you can also download just about everything, no matter how rare the original pressing may be. Records that once could only be found at record fairs or on rarity lists at excessive prices are now just a few clicks away. It is so easy! All you need is a computer to get the music and a lot of money to get the vinyls. All this has made both demand and accessibility change rapidly. Semi-rare records that very few people had heard of before suddenly skyrocketed, while some stuff that had always been considered to be rare actually went down in value. And then there’s the fact that you can hardly sell certain records at online auctions anymore whereas the same titles still sell for their former value in second hand record shops. This of course also goes the other way round, some records are sold at ridiculously high prices on the internet and at the same time they are to be found a lot cheaper in record stores. In a way it has become two different markets but with the same stuff.
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These new circumstances, created by the use of the web, are of great importance to everybody interested in the rare records market. I have evaluated all the records that I mention in the book and this is done on basis of this. The 10 graded scale makes the lowest number the less valuable and the highest the most valuable. It applies to a standard stock copy. A team of consultants was used, consisting of Johnny Christiansen and Stefan Renström. They sure made this a lot easier – thank you for making this part of the book as good as it ever could become! Cheers to and thank you to all the other collectors and dealers that has kept me going and surviving in this helter skelter world of punk records; Fredrik ”Far” Ljung, Tobias Beament, Daniel Dellemyr, Martin Cannert, Joakim ”mint condition” Gävert, Lars Sjögren, Isse Samie, Fredrik ”Gamen” Åstrand, Patrik Caganis, Lennart Berglind and Anders Håkansson. Also a last minute thank you to Micke Fransson.
Working with the biographies Writing history always involves a certain amount of complex problems. Who remembers most clearly what really happened? How many views of the same story can you dig up? In most cases many years have passed and one does not always remember everything crystal clear. Therefore I cannot guarantee whether the content in the biographies is in accordance with the truth or not. All the information is the conclusion of what people have shared with me. As far as possible, when needed, I have tried to get first hand information from the bands. I have also carefully been reading fanzines and other magazines, newspapers and the (not always) so flawless internet sites founded over the years. In other words, I’ve worked very hard to get all the details right. Sometimes my search for the correct facts have been a little crazy, like making ten phone calls just to get one lousy surname or a release year. Most of the people that helped me I probably have forgotten over the many years but thank you Mats Bodenmalm, Anders Selin and Bo Magnusson. Last but not least I wish to thank Ensio Matela for his time helping me to get the language much more correct and Victoria Nilsson for understanding why I had to do this, you are one of a kind!
TERMS USED IN THIS BOOK 77 Punkrock with the typical sound from 1977 much like Sex Pistols, The Clash, Ramones and according to the author particularly pure in UK youngsters Eater.
CROSSOVER Just in the middle of Thrash metal and HC there are bands like DRI and SOD.
CRUST A kind of heavier, more modern version of Käng, often a little more progressive and not as minimalistic. Example: Amebix, Tragedy and His Hero is Gone.
DARK WAVE A darker version of New wave, kicking off with Joy Division.
GARAGE ROCK 60s influenced rock.
GOTH ROCK Similar to Dark wave but heavier and with an updated 80s sound.
HC Second generation punk; faster and rougher with screaming/shouting vocals.
HARD ROCK Traditional hardrock.
HEAVY METAL Not as blues based as traditional hard rock and not as fast and heavy as Thrash metal but something in between; like Iron Maiden and Judas Priest.
KÄNG Thank you all at Premium, especially Roger Holegård for always being there whenever I had a problem, Janne ”if you skip lunch you can work 25 hours a day” Stark for a smashing layout and great additional help with the biographies and Wille Wendt for believing in me.... I for one didn’t....
HC like Discharge played it.
MELODIC HC Punkrock with a HC beat like Bad Religion and NOFX.
NEW WAVE Peter Jandreus peterjandreus@hotmail.com
A more theatrical and experimental version of 77-punk, like for example Pere Ubo, Gang of Four.
OI! The strange phenomenon when punk, football and the movie “A Clockwork Orange” creates a subgenre to punk. 11