| Punk blues | |
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| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | Early 1980s, United States |
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Punk blues (orblues punk) is a music genre that mixes elements ofpunk rock andblues.[1]Punk blues musicians and bands usually incorporate elements of related styles,[2] such asprotopunk andblues rock. Its origins lie strongly within thegarage rock sound of the 1960s and 1970s.
Punk blues can be said to favor the common rawness, simplicity and emotion shared between the punk and blues genres.[3] Chet Weise, singer/guitarist ofthe Immortal Lee County Killers stated, "Punk and blues are both honest reactions to life. It's blues, it's our blues. It's just a bit turned up and a bit faster".[3]
Before the beginning of thepunk movement of the late 1970s, several important forerunners such asthe MC5,the Stooges,the Rolling Stones,the Who,the Sonics,Captain Beefheart, and theNew York Dolls displayed a fascination with American blues.
AllMusic states that punk blues draws on the influence of the "garage rock sound of the mid-'60s, the primal howl of early Captain Beefheart, and especially in the raw and desperate sound ofthe Gun Club's landmarkFire of Love LP from 1981".[1] Also according to AllMusic, "punk blues really came to life in the early '90s with bands like the seminalJon Spencer Blues Explosion,the Oblivians,the Gories and the Gibson Brothers", and "continued into the 2000s with even more visibility thanks to the popularity ofthe White Stripes."[1]John Doe of L.A. punk bandX claims that the Gun Club and their frontmanJeffrey Lee Pierce invented a completely new style of music by mixing punk and blues.[4]
With their 1988 albumPrison Bound, the punk bandSocial Distortion began incorporating rockabilly, country, and blues influences into their music. In the same time period,Rollins Band performed punk-inflected blues jams.[5] In the early 1990s, British musicianPJ Harvey also explored anavant-garde variant of the style.[6]
The Detroit garage rock scene that bore bands such asthe White Stripes, inspired byFlat Duo Jets, continues to thrive with punk blues musicians and bands that can be tied to the style, such asthe Detroit Cobras, Geraldine, Mystery Girls,Soledad Brothers,the Von Bondies, and many others. The Memphis–Asheville bandthe Reigning Sound and the Boston bandMr. Airplane Man[7] also plays in this style.
Theindie rock bandsthe Kills[8] andDeadboy & the Elephantmen[9] have been associated by the media with a punk/blues sound.
By her usual avant-punk-blues standards, it was polished and tuneful.
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