On the note of the ‘tidal wave’ of images that we are bombarded with on with mass media the punk rock community’s genral feelings on it are quite thoughtful and sensitive. Hear are some words from songs that talk about that very issue.
I guess that the two main themes I hear in songs are a ( hearing gaze?) are songs about mass consumerism and also mass marketing and the abundance of images with the negative effect they have on everyone.
I kind of find it offensive that everything's for sale, coupled with the realisation that there's nothing here I need - Chris Chucas
Bangers
Church Street in Ruins
Hearing the Beach Boys playing on this rainy high-street makes me chuckle at the amount of surf shops here. I've tried, there's just no waves in this town. Just more coffee shops that we could ever hope to drink in and I don't care how cheap their drinks are, I'm better off at home. I kind of find it offensive that everything's for sale, coupled with the realisation that there's nothing here I need. It's strange, I don't hate my job and I'm not living on the breadline, but spending money still seems strange to me. On the plus side when I'm outside I repeat mantra-like "The last thing I need is any more things”.
I don't care how cheap their drinks are, I'm better off at home - Chris Chucas
My computer broke down again and I'm sure there's too much money to be made for it to be something simple, and it's such a fucking waste of my time. And how convenient, the warranty went out of date a month ago. The professionals say "What do you expect mate? You should have paid for our protection." And I hate that we can tell an Apple owner by their dress code, cause products have always bred fashion and the fashionable. The kind of people who'd say "Advertising's the only real art form these days" when an actual human being would say "That shit just gets in my way." So thanks a lot Bill. You really got me this time.
I have a personal connection to Church st in ruins. I remember being in Daegu South Korea feeling pretty low with depression and I remember taking this image and looking at it on the computer feeling pretty isolated. When Roo talks about church st I remembered I sued to run down it every day whilst on my Ba final major project. I used to run past the same shops and think the same thing, ‘ the last thing we need is anymore things. As my project was looking at consumerism linked with the punk rock scene. I looked at the image that I just taken and realised that there were lots of signs in Korea I couldn’t understand but I could kind of guess what they were by the colour and shape and if not from the shop would be a good indication of what it sold.
It got me thinking I need food or a drink I’ll go around and find a shop but all of the text being used was lost on me. It just amplified how much it were told what to think with marketers intentions.