What is Punk Anyway?
30-Nov-04
Now that the election is over, I can go back to bitching about everything else besides politics and the current administration. I’m sure my reader will appreciate it, whatever his/her name is. So, here it goes.
My lovely wife, Kelly, bestowed upon me the other day (actually like three weeks ago) a copy of the new Green Day album American Idiot. Now Green Day has always been presented to me as a band whose music falls more into the genre of modern punk. Having listened to a good bit of Green Day’s music in my time, I can say that I would agree. But then, as I greedily opened the CD case, I discovered an advertisement; an insert that read “Greenday.com Now Featuring Ring Tones.” What? Ring tones? Then the ad went on: “PICK UP RING TONES OF ‘AMERICAN IDIOT’ AND ALL YOUR FAVORITES!” Have I gone completely insane, I thought to myself. How can it be that a band whose album’s title song decries the stupidity of media-influenced Americans can sell fucking ring tones on their web site? Oh, and did I metion the five-pack of CDR’s with the Green Day logo emblazened on them?! How long until we hear “American Idiot” as the sound track for a fucking Starbuck’s commercial?! I must say I was disappointed.
Now I know that punk rock is an ever changing and evolving thing, but I would hope that a band who espouses a certain point of view within their music would stick to it in their marketing. Perhaps their shameless marketing ploy is an attempt to show how stupid shameless media-influenced marketing ploys can be. I don’t know. Where’s Sid when you need him?