Punk rock (or "punk") is a rock music genre that developed in the mid- 1970s in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in 1960s garage rock and other forms of what is now known as "proto-punk" music, punk rock bands rejected perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock. Punk bands typically produced short or fast-paced songs, with hard -edged melodies and singing styles, stripped- down instrumentation, and often political, anti-establishment lyrics. Punk embraces a DIY ethic; many bands self - produce recordings and distribute them through independent record labels and other informal channels.
The term "punk rock" was first used by certain American rock critics in the early 1970s to describe 1960s garage bands and subsequent acts then perceived as stylistic inheritors. Between 1974 and 1976 the movement now bearing the name "punk rock" emerged. It produced a new generation of bands such as Television and the Ramones in New York City, the Sex Pistols, the Clash, and the Damned in London, and the Saints in Brisbane —by late-1976 these acts were generally recognized as forming its vanguard. As 1977 approached, punk rock became a major and highly controversial cultural phenomenon in the United Kingdom. It spawned a punk subculture expressing youthful rebellion characterized by distinctive styles of clothing and adornment (ranging from deliberately offensive T-shirts, leather jackets, studded or spiked bands and jewelry, as well as bondage and S&M clothes) and a variety of anti-authoritarian ideologies that have since been associated with the form.
In 1977 the influence of punk rock music and subculture became more pervasive, spreading throughout various countries worldwide.
