Description
Background: On December 10, 2018, it was announced that the production of a series consisting of four episodes set to premiere on March 11, 2019. The series was expected to be directed by Jesse James Miller and executive produced by John Varvatos, Iggy Pop, and Derik Murray. Production companies involved with the series were slated to consist of Network Entertainment.
Series Description: The four-part series covers some familiar ground and some not while charting the places and personalities that shaped the punk ethos and music over the years. It’s still a matter of debate between fans of punk rock of when it all really began. One of the reasons for them not being able to pinpoint a date and location is because punk rock has different meanings for different people and also because it’s one of those genres of music… no… cultures of music, that began in several places at the same time. This four-part docu-series ‘Punk’ covers some familiar ground and some not while charting the places and personalities that shaped the punk ethos and music over the years.
The term “punk rock” was initially used by critics to decribe music rooted in the 60s garage rock, and which was practiced by small-time musicians in out-of-the-way venues. These included the early pioneers of the subculture like the Sonics who were playing songs without any training and, more often than not, without any real musical skill.
Episode Description:
1. “Part 1” Air Date: March 11, 2019: The proto-punks of the Detroit scene, including the Stooges and MC5, put the 60s to bed in 1968 and reinvigorate the New York art music scene of the early 70s giving outsiders a milieu to express themselves and start a revolution. (56:24).
2. “Part 2” Air Date: March 18, 2019: The Ramones visit London in 1976 to discover a vibrant UK punk scene who reciprocate with a second British invasion of America, culminating in the Sex Pistols’ disastrous US tour and flameout in 1978. (51:24)
3. “Part 3” Air Date: March 25, 2019: The Germs, Bad Brains, Black Flag, DOA and others dump gas on smouldering rage and alienation in America’s suburbs, igniting a blazing form of punk so extreme they call it hardcore. (56:41)
4. “Part 4” Air Date: April 1, 2019: Despite itself, punk breaks big, highlighting the talents of Nirvana, Bad Religion and Green Day while women roar onto the scene in defining bands such as Bikini Kill and L7, establishing punk as an enduring force, its spirit living on in the broader culture as we know it today. (52:06)
Those interviewed in the series include Iggy Pop, Johnny Rotten, Marky Ramone, Debbie Harry, Joan Jett, Chris Stein, Duff McKagan, Wayne Kramer, Jello Biafra, Flea, Dave Grohl, Billy Joe Armstrong, Danny Fields, Legs McNeil, and Penelope Spheeris, among others
Total running time is just under 4 HOURS LONG
J. Mac (verified owner) –
Very difficult to do a documentary on music genres as people never seem to agree on who was first, when a genre truly started, and who the most important artists were. That said, this documentary is about as comprehensive a look at the punk rock genre as I’ve seen to date. It would have been easy to focus on the Sex Pistols, Clash, and later even Nirvana but the filmmakers decided to take a deeper dive and talk about bands that most have never heard of or have been forgotten about altogether. Excellent documentary expertly produced on DVD exclusively by the terrific staff at MVR. Highly recommended!