Pretty and Punk

Punk, in it's truest form, is a movement that is anti-establishment. In the early stages of punk, starting in the late 1970's and dominant throughout the youth culture and pop world of the 1980's, Punk was a statement. It said "Fuck you" in music. Fuck you in fashion. Fuck you society. It's pretty much a "fuck you" and "fuck off" aim, poking fingers up at the rigid centuries old regime / civilization. The Sex Pistols were very much anti- this and that. When you think of Punk, you think of Mohican hairdos and ripped jeans with chains. This is because the young of the 70's and 80's were the first of a kind: Barbarians of the Nuclear Age. So with that, a different style happened within this sub culture: within punk. Even today, this subculture has been through a transformation, and awoken from slumber. Today punk has metamorphised into Emo and Scene.

Women in punk. Unlike the men, who were into politics and being anti-social, certain women in punk had a different take on it. Female punk has it's own form. Female punk has established it's own genre, perfumed with mysticism, magic and beauty. Punk males are the social misfits and the rebels. Female punks, who haven't been properly looked at deep enough, have a fairy tale streak. Let's take a look at female punk.

Siouxsie Sioux of the band Siouxsie and the Banshees made punk music about prettier subjects. Magical titled tracks such as "Playground Twist", "Spellbound", "Arabian Knights" and "Swimming Horses" remind me of stories by Angela Carter.

Poly Styrene of X-Ray Specs was considered quite an exotic punk frontgirl but she had made much more spiritualist music as a solo artiste. She did "Generation Indigo", "Gods and Goddesses" and "Flower Aeroplane" of an esoteric nature.

Other early punkettes like Cyndi Lauper, who looked like a cross between a punk and a ballerina, made hit records and albums. Of one "Sisters of Avalon" she said: "This one has a little bit of a story in it too because it's kind of the rites of passage of women. It has women symbols. I wanted to show the force of nature and the energy of the song. It's really wonderful... It's like you're making paintings and when you're the artist, as opposed to when I direct someone else, it's like performance art." Source.

Toyah Willcox, who used to looke like a fire demoness punk, made tracks "It's A Mystery" and "Thunder in the Mountains". Okay there's loads of female punk bands and superstars. I won't bore you by mentioning all of them. I'll get straight to the point. Female punk was very raw, angry and DIY. Today there are Punk Princesses such as Avril Lavigne and Audrey Kitching.

Most of all, what drew me to doing this post was because of a very significant event. Madonna (who was a punkess earlier on in her career, before she became the The Regina of pop), has been in the news again. She stuck up for a female punk band, called Pussy Riot, who were arrested by the Russian authorities for hooliganism but many feel they're political prisoners.

This is the changing face of punk. Female punk has evolved from being rough to beautiful. Punk is the new era. The punk movement is an evolutionary stage of human development, to destabilise the old system and establish a new civilisation, culture and spiritual awareness. This is how things all begin. Most people, certainly older generations, really hate punk. Why else? Punk is anti-establishment, that's why. What is anti-establishment? A movement to create a new world. When new civilisations begin, there's a period of Dark Ages first.The Romans feared the barbarians, who were inevitably the cause of their downfall.

The general look of punk girls in the 70's and 80's:

Today's punk girls of the 21st Century:

So what are Punk Girls about? What separates them from the hardcore "Fuck you" attitude of male punks? Well, female punks have always had their own style, and their own way of looking at the world. They see the world as a place to exploit and cherish, anarchy loves life. In a way girl punks are like the untamed. And also the leaderless, unstructured priestesses of the rebellious movement. Amid the chaos and aggression of punk men, is the calm, mysterious and spiritual punk girls. Females gather to form a sisterhood and there is a strong ferocious sisterhood within Punk.

This is girl punk: Girl punks are the Caryatids of the movement. Women in any movement serve to upholster the entire thing like stone and marble. Those beautiful female statues encircling the ruins at the Acropolis remind me of the women in subcultures, whether it be punk, metal, goth, whatever. Not sidekicks or groupies, punk women are just as much the movement. Punk women are the soul carriers of fire and water. 

Useful links of characters and names mentioned here:

Siouxsie Sioux
Avril Lavigne
Audrey Kitching
Toyah Willcox
Cyndi Lauper
Pussy Riot (a site dedicated to their freedom)
Madonna
Caryatids
Women in Punk 
Punk subculture