Punk Turns 30

Richard Lloyd Last night I fell asleep listening to Marquee Moon. It made me dream about Television. And as dreams are...this was quizzical, involving real life elements and things that have nothing to do with Television or any of the band members, or music.... In my dream, Tom Verlaine had red hair (he does not) and was not singing (which he does do). "The New Guy" was singing. New guy, you ask? Before Television played a free show at New York City's Central Park Summerstage, Richard Lloyd had already announced that he would be leaving the band after that show. Then Richard was hospitalized with pneumonia and could not play the show at all. Jimmy Rip, who has been playing with Verlaine for years on other projects substituted. Thankfully, Richard has recovered and has announced his future plans. His website offers the following: After the possible Summer stage show in New York City on June 16, which is to be announced by the city of New York on May 15, Richard...

Even though he is a huge international pop superstar, and has been for over 20 years, Billy Idol began his public life as a punk rocker. And not just any ordinary British punk rocker, Billy was one of the Bromley Contingent, together with future punk icons Siouxsie Sioux and Steve Severin, of Siouxsie and the Banshees, and fellow Generation X band mate, Tony James. London punk rock "It Girl," Soo Catwoman is often associated with the Bromley Contingent, although she has publicly proclaimed not to have been a member. Membership aside, it will stand in history that the Bromley Contingent had much more influence over the look and feel and early development of punk style during the nascent years of punk rock than even Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood's, Kings Road boutiques. Consider: Billy Idol's perfect punk hair, Siouxsie Sioux's fetish clothing (and in the early days, she selected gear that bared her breasts) and distinctive make-up and style t...

Scott "Top Ten" Kempner and Ross the Boss in 2004 Yes, on this date in 1977, New York's Dictators were holding court at the Whisky A Go Go on a 4-day run that featured opening bands The Nuns from San Francisco, and LA's own punk rock It Girl, my constant partner in crime, Pleasant. Jennifer Miro and the Nuns Pleasant I didn't really get it back then. The Dictators seemed to be such dudes and on a completely different page than me, but I'm glad now that I did bother to see them back then. I've seen them a few dozen times in recent years, and its like time stood still for Handsome Dick Manitoba. The Most Handsome Man in Rock n Roll was complemented on the 1977 Whisky stage by the blonde and brunette beauties of California punk. There was indeed something to "Go Girl Crazy." Handsome Dick Manitoba, 2005 The Dictators "Go Girl Crazy" was released in 1975, just as punk was about to make itself known. The Dics, as they are affectio...

Frank Secich during the recording sessions for Stiv Bators' Disconnected album... Today, I read a great interview from a Swedish zine (go here: www.torpedopop.com and click on "Articles") with my pal Frank. For those of you who aren't from Ohio, or who don't follow the back stories of some of the players whose records you do love, this is a must-read piece! Frank played with Stiv in what call the Latter Day Dead Boys, a version of the Dead Boys that included Stiv, Jimmy Zero, Johnny Blitz as well as Frank on bass (replacing Jeff Magnum ) and George Cabaniss on guitar (taking over where Cheetah Chrome left off). Stiv, Blitz and Zero - last original Dead Boys in 1979 When Blitz left, David Quinton stepped in and the Disconnected band was born... but prior to that - and what made the latter day Dead Boys and Disconnected projects so solid and well-rounded in terms of the pop influence was frankly... Frank Secich. Besides being one of Stiv's childhood fri...

The Alley Cats from LA's South Bay put out this fantastic single on Dangerhouse, "Nothing Means Nothing Anymore" b/w "Give Me A Little Pain." Live, those songs killed. Everything this band did was just top notch, and I think they were loved by all - the Hollywood punk rockers, the South Bay kids, the Orange County kids... what was there not to like about band founders Randy Stodola and Dianne Chai ? They were the nicest people, played the greatest music, fit in on any bill, and always gave 110% When I was first taking Punk Turns 30 photos on tour in the Fall of 2005, there was a guy in Tallahassee, FLA who asked me about the Alley Cats, and he showed me this fantastic scrap book he made of all the clippings he could find. Its just one sign of the staying power of this short-lived band. Another great nod is that one of my favorite contemporary rock n roll bands, River City Tanlines from Memphis, TN (the birthplace of rock n roll) perform "Nothing ...

So, I lied… this is Power Pop at its very best. Back in the day, Power Pop and punk rock cohabited peacefully on the scene and on stages. There were no better purveyors of pure pop for LA people (thanks to Nick Lowe for that turn of phrase, by the way, which I have appropriated and customized for this entry) than the Oklahoma transplants Steve Allen and Ron Flynt . These guys were cross-town high school rivals of Dwight Twilley and Phil Seymour , who also made their way out to LA in the 70s. It is the late Phil Seymour playing the drums on "Giving It All." All the band members sang, adding to the beautiful Beatle-esque harmonies and vocal arrangements of both tracks. Phil is credited on the sleeve only with a "special thanks" – but those who know, know. I think the reason that pop and punk existed fantastically side-by-side during LA's golden age of punk is because of the DIY/indie camaraderie and shared dislike of corporate rock which was beginning to...

Its hot and humid right now just about everywhere. It reminds me of when I first moved to New York to live (as opposed to all those times I visited and never took issue with the weather). I moved to NYC during one of the hottest and most humid summers of the decade (80s). During that time, I used to see Lou Reed on the street all the time. For the huge Velvet Underground fan that I am, of course, this was a most exciting sighting. But there were some peculiarities about Mr. Lou Reed that I couldn't help but wonder about. He was frequently on a bicycle. No big deal; its a very efficient way to get around NYC in all that traffic. And how eco-conscious of him! Then there were some particularly bad hair days for Lou. There was the unfortunate period of time when he was sporting a mullet. (no pictures of that - by me, at least) But the one thing I could never wrap my head around: he always but always wore a black leather motorcycle jacket. Even in July...even in AUGUST when...

Love him or hate him... Kim Fowley celebrates another year on earth today. He's still notorious and still up to making music. Click here for his website.

NYNT ARTIST Kid Congo Powers Friday July, 20 2007 .... DJ at Motor City .. 127 Ludlow (btwn Rivington and Delancey), NEW YORK, New York Cost : free Kid sez... I will be dj-ing frm 10pm till 4am. will be playing 60'S SOUL SHOUTERS, 60'S PSYCHEDELIC & GARAGE WEIRDNESS, 50'S ROCKABILLY, 70'S GLAM, AND OLD OLD PUNK PUNK ALL NIGHT LONG. Stop by say hi . If you're in New York, don't miss my oldest friend in the world, the amazing Kid Congo Powers. Buy him a drink while you're at it! For those of you in Youngstown, OH or in driving distance, please keep scrolling... you have a GREAT show - Deadbeat Poets live rock show debut... take the Stiv Bators Ghost Tour with them. happy weekend

On Friday, July 20, you can ride along with Stiv Bators as he once terrorized the western world in "The Stiv Bators Ghost Tour". The Deadbeat Poets, a new band of veterans that features long time Stiv collaborator, Frank Secich will be playing at Cedars in downtown Youngstown on Friday with the Rainy Day Saints from Cleveland. It will be a combined record release party and "live" debut. Visit Pop Detective Records and learn more about the Deadbeat Poets, a band who I've been listening to like crazy for the past couple months. You will not only get an opportunity to take the Stiv Bators Ghost Tour, but you will learn the truth about flying saucers. Really. Frank Secich and Stiv Bators Rainy Day Saints

Toronto's B Girls may have only had a Great Lake to give them a beach, but the band's devotion to 60s Girls Groups and the songs, movies and culture that arose from songs like "Walking in the Sand," movies like the Gidget series and inspirations ranging from the Beach Boys to Phil Spector gave the ladies by the lake all the ammunition they needed to make some bonafide garage punk pop records, including the kitschy "Fun at the Beach" which Bomp released. Greg Shaw and company had their own devotion to the true garage rock and pop culture and the fine looking font on the bright yellow Bomp label together with the 60s style picture sleeve gave this record the proverbial icing on the cake. But don't be fooled by the cute girls wearing pink and brandishing guitars. The B Girls took seriously the rhetorical question "Who says girls can't rock?" and not only released an album with that title, but proved it every time they stepped on to a stag...

Not that anyone would make me choose between them, but if there were a gun to my head, I could not name either of these Mumps singles over the other as my favorite. The whole Mumps experience is such an essential part of my life - but that aside, these songs contribute so much to the punk rock oeuvre. Mumps brought camp to art rock and punk to art. While Mumps dazzled Los Angeles on their performance premier, they never lost their appeal, even though they spent several months and made several visits to the Left Coast between 1977 and 1978, making records, touring and trying to get that brass ring...the major label record deal that some punk, indie and new wave bands were beginning to get. Mumps had "Crocodile Tears" b/w "I Like To Be Clean" out pretty early in the game. Lance had his own Crocodile dance that he would bust into during the break between verses. One of the best things that punk rock gave to pop culture was its graphic sensibility and one thing tha...