Garage punk (fusion genre)

Etymology#

The earliest known use of the term “garage punk” appeared in Lenny Kaye’s track-by-track liner notes for the 1972 psychedelic music compilation Nuggets to describe a song by the 1960s garage rock band the Shadows of Knight as “classic garage punk”. The term “punk rock” was originally used to describe the music of mid-1960s American garage bands. When referring to 1960s groups, the term “garage punk” is usually deployed interchangeably with “garage rock”. MTVs Beverly Bryan says that “garage punk” may be used “more likely” to refer to “garage rock” or “garage revival”. While garage bands varied in style, the label of garage punk has been attributed by critic Michael Hann to the “toughest, angriest garage rockers” such as the 13th Floor Elevators and the Sonics.

1960s: Original garage bands#

Simon Reynolds traces garage punk to American garage rock bands in the 1960s. He explains that mid 1960s garage punk was largely the domain of untrained teenagers who used sonic effects, such as fuzz tones, and relied heavily on riffs. Hann locates the “golden years” of garage punk to 1965–67. Critic Tim Sommer wrote: “The Sonics created the template for American garage punk, not to mention crafting the prototype for every punk rock band that thought that three chords and a horny shriek was enough to move a nation.”

1980s–2000s: Fusion with 1970s punk#

In the 1980s, there began a revived interest in the music of the 1960s, starting with garage punk. Labels like Crypt and Norton began reissuing the work of “lost mid-century weirdos”, which led a new generation of punk musicians to rediscover older rock artists like Little Richard and the Sonics. Bands are generally apolitical and tend to distance themselves from hardcore punk and generally avoid strict adherence to the types of social codes and ideologies associated with the punk subculture. AllMusic adds: “Some of the first garage punk bands who appeared in the late ’80s and early ’90s (Mudhoney, the Supersuckers) signed with the Sub Pop label, whose early grunge bands shared some of the same influences and aesthetics (in fact, Mudhoney became one of the founders of grunge).” the Mummies, the Dirtbombs, and the Humpers helped maintain a cult audience for the style through the 1990s and 2000s. Associated bands from that period contributed to the development of stoner rock, a more psychedelic variation of the genre.

See also#

• Garage rock
• Proto-punk
• Microgenre
• Garage rock revival