Punk Rock

When punk rock was brought up in class I was a little skeptical. I'm not a fan of punk or "screamo" rock. I've always thought there was an evil side to it based on the tone. But when you dive into it and examine it's content you see a deeper meaning. A lot of the people we discussed had difficult upbringings or deep feelings linked to social issues that effect them deeply. I think a common feeling  that a lot of artists and even people have is difficulty getting their message across. People have difficulty translating their message in fear of rejection. People also fear not being heard or ignored. An example is Kurt Cobain. He had a difficult upbringing due to his parents divorced and bullying in school. He didn't have many friends in school. When a person doesn't have an outlet or audience (friends) to communicate with, they find other ways. Kurt did just that through his music. In doing so he inspired and provided hope for others in the same boat as him. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is his most popular song. It put him and Nirvana into major stardom. Another artist we discussed was Marilyn Manson. He was controversial and extremely unique. Although I can't agree or like his work fully, I do respect him as I do any artist. They all put themselves in the spotlight and in a situation where criticism is likely. Marilyn Manson was aware of this and fully immersed himself in it. We watched the video of him performing at the MTV Awards 1997. That was too crazy for me but he still went out and performed something that nobody else could do.