I went to my first punk show a little while back and was immediately hit with an overwhelming sense of déjà vu.
I had seen a gathering of this type before. I had seen individuals put hours of prep into their hair and agonize over the right clothes before heading out, and that’s when it hit me: high school prom.
Yes, punk shows and high school proms are basically the same thing.
Sure, punk shows have miles and miles and miles of tattooed skin, more spikes than a prickly pear cactus, and, of course, body odor that would stun a yeti, but otherwise they are one in the same.
Both are gathering grounds for people to “express” themselves in some manner or another. Both are places for people to meet each other. Both are wholly unbearable after an hour, too, but, reader, I know what you’re saying. “Chris! You fool, how can you think something so ridiculous?!” So let me explain.
First, the hair.
See, when I walked in, the first thing I noticed was the foot-long spiked hair. Before the night was over, 10 more guys walked in with fins atop their heads, Mohawks, liberty spikes, colored tips and the whole spectrum of gelled hair was in vicinity of the Launchpad. It wasn’t just on the guys’ heads, either. Plenty of girls had spiked hair. I was going to write it off, but I thought about my own hair.
Mussed with a light paste, it took me about 10 minutes to get it right. I thought about the strength of hair gel required to keep those spikes up, and how hard it would be to get them to stand straight, and just how much would a product like that would cost.
Then, bam! I thought of the girls’ hair I used to see at prom. I remember my own date said she said had around 50 bobby pins in her hair and that it had taken, like, two hours to get it to sit right.
I have a friend who used to sport a foot-tall mohawk. She said it took her an hour, on a good day, to get it to stand straight up. My point is that they really commit to their hair, just like a girl commits to her hair on prom night. The only difference is that it only comes around once a year for prom girls but on a nearly week basis for these punk rockers.
Also, I thought of peacocks.
They fan their feathers to gather attention from female suitors. I noticed the guys with the tallest hair got the girls with the most tattered clothing. The post-Darwin scientists were right about sexual selection.
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Next, the clothes.
There is a uniform for these counter-culture warriors, tattered shirts with carefully sewn on patches, soft-soled shoes for moshing (more on that later), and of course dirty pants or shorts. The braver ones will wear tank tops, bandanas, etc. Anyone else stands out. It’s not like those dressed differently are treated any differently, but there’s a clearly an “in” group just like any other social gathering, especially high school dances. Zing!
Speaking of dancing, both venues have it. At the punk show, it’s the mosh pits. Everyone “dances” while shoving each other around. In high school, it’s a slow dance. I know, in theory, they seem too different to reconcile, but there’s more to that. High school dancing generally has a partner, and moshing is generally a singular activity in the sense that you don’t go in with a particular pattern. However, both are expressions through movement, and while the message might be different, the purpose is the same — to expel and infuse a new energy to the music played in the venue. So even though you’re more likely to lose an eye in the mosh pit than you are to get lucky at a high school dance, the two are essentially the same.
I know you’re saying, “What’s the point to all this rambling?” And it’s quite simple. Punk shows aren’t counter culture so much as they are a derivation of mainstream culture. They follow the same patterns as a high school dance. The only difference with punk followers is merely a different manifestation of interests. I am not trying to say they aren’t completely the same, but that punk is an outdated mode of counter culture. Sure, the tattoos and spiked hair make it a bit difficult to function in normal society, but Mohawks can be disguised and tattoos hidden. So they are basically functioning members of society.
I have nothing against punk shows. I mean, I was at one, wasn’t I? Otherwise I wouldn’t be writing about it. I just think the push for individuality is stunted when everyone dresses the same in a different way.
