Track of the Moment: Thief of Fire by The Pop Group

           Punk is a very fleeting thing.  A lot of bands say they’re punk, but if someone’s doing it more radically then you to the point where it’s a totally different genre then what do you call it?  In 1976 (arguably) punk broke. In 1977 post-punk as a term was first used.  That’s how fast music is.  Being progressive is really something you can only hear at a concert, and look back on 10 years later to confirm.  Ya sure punk shook things up in mainstream music until about 1980, but bands like DNA, Teenage Jesus and the Jerks, and (probably most important to music holistically) Sonic Youth, were ripping the fabric of music apart, and no body noticed.

            The Pop Group’s 1978 LP debut “Y” is a fantastic example of the power, and malleability of post-punk.  It got elements of noise rock, jazz, funk thing going.  IMAGINE LISTENING TO THAT IN 1978!  Funk bands didn’t rock this much and punk-funk fusions wouldn’t come about until at least the 1980’s.  The whole point of being post-punk, truly post-punk, is to sound like no one else.  Bands like DNA, The Raincoats, and The Pop Group are all very obviously post-punk and sound nothing alike. 

            Going back to my previous point, a lot of bands are “punk” but very few were punk.  In the same way we have a HUGE amount of bands that are considered “post-punk” i.e. influenced by punk music, but there are only a select few that are truly “post-punk.”

(Before I sound like an elitist I’m a huge fan of “punk,” punk, “post-punk,” and post-punk.   No one genre Is wrong or better, but for the sake of nomenclature, and historical context I brought up this point (like us on the Facebook))