leaving the 20th century
Late
in 1975 the catalyst for the punk movement, the embryonic Sex Pistols were unleashed
on college audiences around London.The band were formed from regulars in Malcolm
McLaren and Vivienne Westwood's boutique on the King's Road
,a
popular hang out for many of the faces who were to create a movement.With the
Sex Pistols electric energy on stage, every gig galvanised audience members
into action, goaded out of their apathy by singer Johnny Rotten. By mid 1976
punk was buzzing
in the capital with bands like the Clash and the Damned formed from the off-shoots
of The London S.S. creating their own music for a disaffected teenage audience.
For the first time people were talking about the boredom and alienation of urban
living and weren't afraid to use shock tactics to get the message across. The
new energy expressed itself through fanzines such as 'Sniffin Glue' and 'Ripped
and Torn', created to fill the void not represented by the established music
papers. As 1976 progressed, this alternative press was the only place that punk
got a fair hearing as the national press and local authorities worked themselves
into a frenzy of anti-punk sentiment culminating in most of the autumn dates
on the Sex Pistol's Anarchy Tour being cancelled.Despite (or maybe because of)
this coverage, the spirit of change was spreading out across the country and
fans nationwide began adopting punk fashion, starting their own venues and forming
bands such as the Buzzcocks, Penetration and Slaughter and the Dogs. Understandably
enough, the record companies were slow to pick up on the new wave and most of
the records available were R'n'B acts or US bands like the Ramones, New York
Dolls and Iggy and the Stooges. Reggae also featured strongly at some venues
like the Roxy in London.
