1st Edition

Punk Rock and the Politics of Place Building a Better Tomorrow

By Jeffrey S. Debies-Carl Copyright 2014
    326 Pages 15 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    326 Pages 15 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    This book is an ethnographic investigation of punk subculture as well as a treatise on the importance of place: a location with both physical form and cultural meaning. Rather than examining punk as a "sound" or a "style" as many previous works have done, it investigates the places that the subculture occupies and the cultural practices tied to those spaces. Since social groups need spaces of their own to practice their way of life, this work relates punk values and practices to the forms of their built environments. As not all social groups have an equal ability to secure their own spaces, the book also explores the strategies punks use to maintain space and what happens when they fail to do so.

    Part I: Introduction  1. A Place for Punk  Part II: Punk Subculture  2. Are the Kids Alright?: The Trouble with Youth Culture Studies  3. What’s the Point of Punk?  Part III: Punk and Place  4. The Significance of Place  5. Locating Punk Space: From Bars and Clubs to Cellars and Squats  6. Organizing Punk Music Venues  Part IV: Conclusion  7. Building a Better Tomorrow: Lessons Learned from the Venue.  Afterword.  Appendices  Appendix A: Researching Punk and Place.  Appendix B: Interview Schedule.  Appendix C: Internet Forums Used in Recruiting Participants.  Appendix D: Overview of Observed Music Spaces.  Appendix E: Texts Analyzed.

    Biography

    Jeffrey S. Debies-Carl is Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of New Haven.

    "Sociologist Debies-Carl has crafted a well-written, thoughtful study of what punk rock and punk culture mean to its participants. His revised dissertation offers a thorough investigation of the punk subculture as it relates to both space and place. Summing Up: Recommended. Undergraduate and graduate music/ethnomusicology students." - J. Jocson-Singh, Columbia University, CHOICE Reviews