PUNK ROCK
IMAGINE, YOUR BOSS YELLING AT YOU AS YOU ARE WALKING OUT OF WORK ON A MONDAY AFTERNOON. ON TUESDAY, YOUR GIRLFRIEND FED UP WITH YOUR BULLSHIT WALKS OUT OF YOUR APARTMENT LEAVING YOU FOR GOOD TO YOUR OWN DEVICES OF WATCHING LATE NIGHT ADULT MOVIES AND EATING HOT POCKETS. YOUR BROKE WITH BILLS PILING BY THE DOOR BY WEDNESDAY. YOUR LONELINESS FLOODS YOUR ENTIRE BODY AND THE STRESS ON YOUR SPINE CRUSHES AND CRUNCHES EACH TIME YOU PICK YOURSELF OFF THE FLOOR AND TRY TO KEEP YOUR HEAD UP HIGH. THE BAD TIMES OUT WAY THE GOOD EACH PASSING DAY AND YOU JUST DON’T KNOW HOW YOU WILL GO ON. THURSDAY ARRIVES AND YOU GO THRU YOUR DAY AS A ZOMBIE TRYING TO KEEP A SORT OF TUNNEL VISION SO THAT YOU ARE ONLY PARTLY LIVING YOUR LIFE. AND THEN FRIDAY COMES ALONG AND YOUR BUDDY FROM WORK TELLS YOU ABOUT THIS BAND HE HEARD ABOUT COMING UP IN THE WORLD OF MUSIC. HE TELLS YOU THE NAME AND YOU HAVE NEVER HEARD THEM BEFORE. NOT THEIR MUSIC. NEVER SAW THEM IN THE PAPERS OR TABLOIDS OR EVEN ROLLING STONE. ALREADY IT PEAKS YOUR INTERESTS. EVERYONE LIKES THE FEELING OF FINDING SOMETHING NEW THAT THEY THINK NO ONE ELSE IN THE WORLD HAS EVER HEARD BEFORE. NOW 9 TIMES OUT OF 10 YOU AREN’T THE FIRST BUT WHO THE FUCK CARES. THE POINT IS YOU HAVE COME ACROSS IT IN YOUR LIFE. YOU RUN HOME FRIDAY NIGHT AND SIT AT YOUR COMPUTER READING UP ON THE BAND AND THE MORE READING YOU DO THE MORE YOU FEEL CONNECTED TO THAT BAND. YOU FIND SOME OF THEIR SINGLES ON ITUNES. YOU PLUG YOU HEADPHONES IN AND BEGIN YOUR JOURNEY.EVERYONE HAS THEIR TROUBLES IN THIS LIFE. THEY ALL VARY. SOME MORE EXTREME THEN OTHERS. BUT I CAN GUARANTEE THIS. WE ALL GET BY ON THE SAME THING. MUSIC. TOUGH TIMES COME AND GO BUT YOU CAN ALWAYS COUNT ON THE VERSES AND CHORUSES OF MUSIC TO GET US THRU THE VERSES AND CHORUSES OF OUR LIVES. THAT YOU CAN QUOTE ME ON. EVERYONE HAS THEIR CHOICES OF MUSIC JUST LIKE THEY CHOOSE THEIR OWN PATHS IN THE WORLD. THE SONGS WRITTEN BY OTHERS HELPS YOU WITH WRITING YOUR OWN LIFE. DEEP, I KNOW BUT IT IS THE TRUTH. THE 1ST SONG HITS YOU HARD. YOU LISTEN CAREFULLY TO EVERY VERSE TRYING TO FIND YOUR CONNECTION TO THE SINGER. AND THEN YOU HEAR IT. “WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE” SUCH A SIMPLE PHASE SAID IN EVERYDAY LIFE. BUT IT GETS YOU. ALL OF THE SUDDEN THE PRESSURE ON YOUR SPINE RELEASES. YOU NO LONGER FEEL THE GUILT OF YOUR GIRL/BOY LEAVING YOU AND YOUR BOSSES VOICE VANISHES FROM YOU MIND. YOU LOOK OVER AND…”FUCK THE BILLS ARE STILL BY THE DOOR.” WELL THREE OUT OF FOUR ISN’T BAD. TRACK 2 AND YOU ARE ALREADY HOOKED ON THE BAND LIKE A DRUG. EACH SONG HITS YOUR BODY, WARMING YOU FROM HEAD TO TOE. ANY GOOD FEELING YOU HAVE EVER FELT COMES BACK IN WAVES. ADRENALINE RUSHES WHEN THE GROOVE BECOMES *FAST AND LOUD* AND DOPAMINE SURGES THRU YOUR BRAIN RELAXING YOU WITH THE SLOW SONG. THEN THE LOVE SONG HITS AND YOUR REMINDED THAT IT MIGHT BE A WHILE BEFORE YOU SEE ANY ACTION FROM A GIRL. AFTER SOME TEARS AND A QUICK “SORRY TEXT” TO THE MRS. YOUR BACK AT IT TRACK 3, TRACK 4, TRACKS 5,6,7. OH MAN ARE YOU IN IT NOW. THE ALBUM DONE, YOU TAKE A FEW TO REFLECT ON WHAT YOU JUST HEARD AND YOUR ONE THOUGHT IS “MAN I HAVE TO LISTEN TO THAT AGAIN.” OH AND ” I HOPE MY GIRL/GUY GOT MY TEXT SHE/HE STILL HASENT TEXTED BACK!!!!” REPEAT THE PROCESS AND AN HOUR LATER YOU ARRIVE TO THE END OF THE ALBUM AGAIN IN COMPLETE ECSTASY. MUSIC HAS SAVED ANOTHER LIFE.NOW THAT WE ARE HERE LETS GO OVER THERE. JUST RECENTLY A BUDDY OF MINE AND I WERE TALKING AND THE TOPIC OF OUR PLAYLISTS HAD COME UP. TO ME THE BEST WAY TO HEAR ABOUT A BAND IS WORD OF MOUTH. SEEING THEM ON TELEVISION OR ROLLING STONE MAG OR STUMBLING ACROSS THEM ON THE INTERNET IS GREAT AND EVERYTHING BUT WORD OF MOUTH IS SO HARD TO COME BY IN MUSIC TODAY. TO HAVE A PIECE OF INFO AS SMALL AS A BAND NAME OR SONG TITLE TRAVEL FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY TO A SMALL CONVERSATION INSIDE AN OFFICE IS SO AMAZING TO ME AND IT SAYS TO ME THAT NOT ONLY IS THE BAND AMAZING BUT THEY ARE DOING THEIR JOB AS ARTISTS IN BRANDING THEMSELVES AND MARKETING IT OUT TO OTHERS. IN THE WORLD WE LIVE IN TODAY PUT UP A FUNNY VIDEO ON YOUTUBE AND HIT 1,000,000 HITS AND YOUR A STAR. NO FACE TO FACE CONTACT AND NO WORD OF MOUTH. SO MY FRIEND CONTINUED TO TELL ME THAT THIS BAND HAD ON NETFLIX A DOCUMENTARY THAT TOLD THEIR STORY AND SONGS ON ITUNES. SO I DECIDED AFTER HE GAVE ME A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE BAND THAT I WOULD DOWNLOAD THEIR SONGS FROM ITUNES. I BOUGHT THEIR FIRST ALBUM. I GOT HOME FROM WORK PLUGGED MY HEADPHONES IN AND BEGAN TO LISTEN. 3 TIMES OVER. THIS BAND ROCKS!!! I WAS SO MOVED BY THEIR MUSIC THAT I WENT TO WATCH THE MOVIE ABOUT THEM . THE STORY OF THIS BAND WAS SO AWESOME TO ME. THE BAND WAS COMPRISED OF THREE BROTHERS AND THEY PLAYED PUNK ROCK!!! PUNK IS MY FAVORITE FOR THOSE WHO DON’T KNOW ME TO WELL . BUT WHAT IS FUNNY WAS THESE GUYS WERE PLAYING PUNK BEFORE PUNK WAS PUNK. THE YEAR WAS 1971 WHEN THEY FIRST FORMED AND TOOK THEIR INSPIRATION FROM BANDS LIKE THE WHO AND ALICE COOPER . THE BAND CAME VERY CLOSE TO SIGNING DEALS WITH RECORD COMPANIES LIKE ATLANTIC AND COLUMBIA BUT THEY ALL WANTED THE SAME THING OUT OF THE BAND….TO CHANGE THE NAME. DEATH SAID NO DICE!!! NOW THAT IS FUCKING PUNK ROCK!!!! THE RAMONES DIDN’T FORM IN QUEENS TILL 1974. THE SEX PISTOLS DIDN’T FORM IN LONDON TILL 1975. NOW ANY PUNK LOVERS OUT THERE WOULD SAY THESE BANDS WERE THE PIONEERS OF PUNK BUT NOW I WOULD SAY IT IS TIME TO GIVE DEATH ITS DUE .35 YEARS LATER AND A DEATH OF ONE OF THE BROTHERS THE BAND FINALLY BEGINS TO REACH THERE GOALS AND GETS RECOGNIZED BY THE PUNK ROCK COMMUNITY . NOW THEY ARE TO PUT OUT A NEW ALBUM SOON AND HAVE RELEASED SOME SINGLE IN WHICH I LOVE. I CAN’T WAIT FOR THE NEW STUFF. HAVEN’T FELT THIS WAY ABOUT AN ALBUM RELEASE SINCE THE DAYS OF TOWER RECORDS WHEN YOU HAD TO WAIT ON LINE TO GET IT. THEIR MUSIC HAS INSPIRED ME TO PUSH WITH MY BAND AND HAS GOTTEN ME THRU THE DAYS OF THE BAD AND NASTY . GET IT . A BAND CALLED DEATH!!!!! SUPPORT THEM . IF ANYONE DESERVES YOUR ATTENTION IT IS THEM .
- James
