Punk is Black

Punk music, as a genre, has a long and illustrious history, and most music historians list the frst ‘punk’ records as The Stooges’ 1969 album, or the MC5’s ‘Kick Out the Jams’ (also released in 1969). Some go further back to the US garage scene of the mid-1960s. Either way, the frequently told history of punk music is seemingly dominated by white artists, particularly white males. A section of that history which is often omitted is the vital contribution of some incredible Black artists.

Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, for instance, released the single ‘I Put A Spell On You’ all the way back in 1956 (a full 11 years before the Stooges even formed), and whilst the song itself isn’t outright punk music in terms of lyrical content, it incorporates many of the devices later characterised as ‘punk’, such as Hawkins strained, desperate shouting vocals and outlandish, shocking live performances.

A Detroit three-piece called Death recorded what is, in my eyes, one of the defnitive punk anthems. ‘Politicians In My Eyes’ was put out in 1975 thus pre-dating the Ramones’ frst album which was widely regarded as the frst out-and-out punk record. The single only sold 500 copies at the time and the band was largely ignored until 2009 when Drag City Records released the demos Death had recorded back in 1975 to critical acclaim. A detail that is often not recognised in the story of Death is that ‘Politicians In My Eyes’ was self-released on their own record label, thereby making Death one of the frst independent bands to exist, years before Buzzcocks selfreleased their EP ‘Spiral Scratch’, which led many to credit

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While acid rock bands like Led Zeppelin dominated the mainstream in the early 70s, there was a different kind of sub-culture growing within Washington D.C.’s underground, characterized by a fast-paced, unrelenting sound that would soon be identifed as hardcore. This new sound was beginning to emerge in the late 1970s but had not yet solidifed an identity, so when Bad Brains came onto the scene with an experimental fusion of funk and punk, this was a cornerstone in the development of the genre. Bad Brains formed in 1977 and soon earned a reputation for their explosive live shows, eventually prompting their ban from many venues across the state capital, after which the band fed to New York to freely resume their project.

Performances would transition seamlessly from fast-paced them as pioneers of independent or ‘indie’ music.

The UK punk scene, the start of which is signifed by the release of ‘New Rose’ by the Damned in October 1976, was seemingly dominated by three white male bands: Sex Pistols, The Clash, and The Damned. A closer look, however, suggests that some of the greatest records of that era were created by X-Ray Spex, led by Marianne Joan Elliot-Said (better known as Poly Styrene), whose overt feminism and politicallycharged anthems marked her out from the more mainstream punk artists of the time. With critiques of capitalism and consumerism, Poly Styrene was someone with something signifcant to say, as opposed to The Damned whose lyrical content was often closer to love than rebellion, or the Sex Pistols who were simply manufactured by Malcolm McLaren to cause outrage and proft.

So why were these artists so largely ignored during their time? Why are they not widely credited for the invaluable impact they had upon the genre? Is it simply due to their race? In short, yes. The music industry, and particularly white musicians, have always, for want of a better phrase, ripped off a plethora of black artists for personal gain. The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Elvis Presley and a countless array of other early rock and roll musicians highjacked songs penned by Black blues and soul musicians in order to further their own success, often not giving these artists credit or royalties. So, following the same logic, it makes sense that the artists mentioned here were ignored in favour of their white counterparts. The facts remain, however, that without Jay Hawkins there would be no vocals, typifed by a quick-fre delivery of verse and ranging from guttural tremolos to falsetto shrieks – they could do it all.

But Bad Brains weren’t the frst instance of a punk and reggae unifcation. Visually and artistically, both subcultures were mutual outcasts whose paths were bound to cross, and soon enough bands like Steel Pulse performed at Rock Against Racism shows alongside Generation X in 1976. But this was more of a side-by-side co-existence of punk and reggae rather than a true fusion of the latter and the newly emerging hardcore sound which had not yet been fully realised - until Bad Brains.

Although the band was infuenced by anti-establishment groups like Sex Pistols, they did not seek to emulate the same nihilistic tone in their music which had previously defned the punk sound of the early ‘70s. In other words, they weren’t simply another punk band intent on protesting their frustrations with the system or helicopter parenting.

Instead, Bad Brains promoted the power of PMA (positive mental attitude), a term borrowed from self-improvement book ‘Think and Grow Rich’. “We started kicking PMA in our music, and the message was different than the regular punk rock. You know, a punk rocker can write a song about hate, I hate my mom or some shit, you know? We wasn’t on no shit like that.” tells bassist, Daryl Jenifer, to Jon Kirby in Wax Poetics 2008. The group rejected the pessimistic worldview many punk bands had, and instead embraced a Iggy Pop, without Death there would be no Dead Kennedys, and without Poly Styrene there would be no Riot Grrrl. Every great musical movement was pioneered by Black artists, from jazz in the 1920s, to rock ‘n’ roll in the 50s, ska and reggae in the 60s – up to the Acid House dance music of the late 80s and 90s. Punk music is no exception this rule, and it goes without saying that these artists deserve much more support and recognition than they currently hold.

Countless Black-led punk bands continue to dominate the music scene and infuence other genres, from Bad Brains, Negro Terror, Bob Vylan, Big Joanie, Crystal Axis and The OBGMS, to name just a few. We must support these artists and stop whitewashing music.

punk to slower, bass-heavy reggae lead by H.R.’s versatile 8

Ben Forrest traditional, yet progressive approach to their music and the kind of message they wanted to promote to their listeners, embodied by Positive Mental Attitude.

recalls vocalist H.R. in 2006 documentary ‘American Hardcore’. The group certainly demonstrated their creative grit in their acclaimed frst album ‘Banned in D.C.’ in 1982, which achieved a kind of unsynchronized harmony in the placement of reggae in-between hardcore tracks, taking affect as the calm before (and after) the storm.

Punk bands had previously sought to deliver only the storm as they protested their contempt and distrust of authority. But Bad Brains offered a different angle, a new meaning for punk other than the frustrated nihilism of bands before them, whilst at the same time maintaining the musical essentials of the genre. Bad Brains reminded people that punk didn’t have to have a single identity; punk didn’t have to mean sticking it to the man or playing strictly fast tempo heavy music, because it didn’t have to conform to one meaning at all. roxanna zoughi