Daniela's Song Analysis

“One Armed Scissor” by At The Drive In

                At the turn of the century, punk was not a new movement.  It was well-established as a musical style for the younger generation; however, more popular was punk’s offshoots. By 2000, punk developed into subgenres such as post-punk, new wave, pop-punk, ska-punk, and more. At the Drive In are rendered as post-hardcore, which is more musically dynamic and complex than what came before it, hardcore punk. Hardcore punk is an offshoot of primal punk, with darker lyrics and heavier guitar sound. It appeared in the late ‘70s with bands such as Black Flag and The Germs. ATDI appeared in the underground scene in the 1993, not “hitting it big” until they got signed in 1996. Their sound (in Relationship in Command) is more musically dynamic than typical fast-riff punk, but it is heavy and fast-tempo and raw. In the chorus the singer yells the lyrics, which are surreal, vague, poetic, and very violent (“Cut Away, cut Away/Send transmission from the one-armed scissor /Cut away, cut away/ Banked on memory/Mummified circuitry, skin graft, machinery, sputnik sickles found in the seats”). The cover art is bright and high-contrast, which alludes to the original punk movement (examples are the Sex Pistols’ Never Mind the Bollocks and The Clash’s London Calling); however the single’s cover art is dark, gloomy, and monochromatic, which alludes to the hardcore movement. In both covers, a rocking horse is featured. That may allude to Vanham’s punk as “childish” theory (however he perhaps means more in a teenage rebel sense than a child sense.)The title of the song “One Armed Scissor” is violent, which is also a hardcore/punk characteristic.

“I and I Survive” by Bad Brains

Bad Brains’s “I and I Survive” is a powerful song—but not in the punk in-your-face way. It’s heavily reggae influenced with its slow beat, heavy bass, and skank rhythm.  That’s almost the opposite of typical punk rock, but reggae and punk joined together because of their mutual tendency to be outcast from society. “I and I Survive”’s lyrics are very peaceful and powerful, addressing topics such as the poor being empowered despite the “rich man hoarding all the money.” The cover art for this single is African-influenced with natives playing congo drums on the cover, and a white policeman seemingly after them. The writing is graffiti-style, which is a symbolism of a defy-everything attitude—something that both punks and gang-members of the ‘80s undertook.

               

“Thirsty and Miserable” by Black Flag

In 1981, Black Flag released their first full-length album called Damaged. It eventually made its way up to Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Albums of All Time” list. “Thirsty and Miserable” is one song on there that highly encompasses the punk spirit. With its shouted vocals, heavy riffs, and simple and fast guitar, this song, along with others on the album, escalated Black Flag’s status to a true hardcore punk band. The cover art is very dark and violent, again representing the hardcore scene. The lyrics are straight-forward and brash—and very negative in spirit (“Thirsty and miserable/you drop to the floor/you drink until you can’t see anymore”). This crude violence is what punk rock (and especially