Nazi punk

File:Nazi Swastika.svg

The Swastika, a symbol of Nazism.

Nazi punk is the term given to believers of extreme nationalism, fascism, racialism, and/or national socialism, and also claim to be a part of the punk subculture.

Although the numbers of Nazi punks have always been small within the punk subculture, they have always existed. The history of this faction within the punk subculture dates back as early as 1978, with an organization from England known as the Punk Front. This group was a youth division of the racialist organization, The British National Front. Although the group only lasted one year, it was successful in recruiting numerous English punks, as well as forming a number of racist punk bands.

The Nazi Skinhead subculture took over as the leaders of the White Power music movement following the demise of the Punk Front in 1979. However, the Nazi-punk subculture sparked up worldwide soon after, and appeared in the United States by the early 1980s, during the rise of the American hardcore punk scene.

Musically, Nazi Punk is similar to most other forms of punk music. Lyrically, their songs reflect hatred for the present governments world-wide as well as for minority groups such as: Jews, Blacks, Amerindians, Mestizos and Homosexuals. Nazi punk bands have been found in several genres of Punk, including Oi! Punk, Streetpunk, and Hardcore Punk. White Power Skinheads have also been known to play music that is similar to punk in style. However, they don't claim to be part of the punk subculture and therefore are not considered Nazi punks. Their music is part of a separate genre called Rock Against Communism.

Nazi punks sometimes have liberty spikes or mohawk hairstyles and wear clothing typically associated with the majority of the punk subculture (leather jackets, boots, spikes, chains, etc.). Nazi punks tend to incorporate Nazi regalia into their appearance, however some forgo these symbols in order to avoid persecution from anti-racist individuals who make up the majority of the modern day punk scene.

Sidenotes

• The Ramones first album, Ramones, has two explicit Nazi references. "Blitzkrieg Bop" compares the band's loud and fast music to the Nazi war technique Blitzkrieg, which in German means flash war or lightning war. The song "Today Your Love, Tomorrow the World," includes the line "I'm a shock trooper in a stupor, yes I am, I'm a Nazi schatze, you know I fight for the fatherland." Some members of the Ramones had Jewish heritage, and their use of Nazi imagery might be similar to the feminist approach of reclamation or reappropriation. However some people in the New York City art scene took the band's approach seriously, and did not think of the lyrics as inverted-camp or anti-kitsch.
• In the early days of the British punk subculture (1976-77), it was not uncommon to see punks wearing Swastikas and other Nazi regalia as a shock statement, having no belief in Nazism or racialism. Some of the most famous people to do this were Sid Vicious and Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols, Siouxsie Sioux of Siouxsie and The Banshees, and Captain Sensible of The Damned. These individuals are not to be confused with Nazi punks.
• The Dead Kennedys song "Nazi Punks Fuck Off" is featured on the band's record, In God We Trust, Inc. The lyrics criticize not only actual Nazis, but also those who engage in senseless violence within the punk subculture.
• The neo-Nazi band Skrewdriver started off as an apolitical punk rock band, although some accounts show that vocalist Ian Stuart Donaldson held racist views at the time.
• In the early 1980s, the white power skinhead band Brutal Attack transformed into a Nazi punk band. The reason they cite is because they were hoping to get public concerts easier. This didn't work and shortly after they returned to being a racist skinhead band.
• The punk band The Exploited have been accused several times of being Nazi Punks, due to racist remarks and behavior of the singer Wattie Buchan, and because of alleged personal connections to members of the far right. However, none of the band's lyrics support Nazism or fascism.
• Other names for Nazi Punks include: White Power Punks, WP Punks, National Socialist Punks, NS Punks, and Hate Punks.
• "Punk's Not Red!" is a slogan used by some Nazi Punks. It is a play on the expression "Punk's Not Dead!", which was popularized by the band The Exploited. This slogan is also used by some anti-political punks who want the punk subculture to be apolitical.

Nazi punk bands

• A.B.H. (UK) (Formerly White Nationalists)
• Arma Blanca (Spain)*
• Awantura (Poland)*
• ChaoSS Hellas (Greece)
• The Dentists (UK)*
• The Dirty White Punks (USA)
• Ethnic Cleansing (USA)
• Fight For Freedom (USA)*
• Final Blow 88 (USA)
• Forward Area (USA)
• The Fuck-Ups (USA)* (Often used provocative lyrics, but there is no definitive proof they were a Nazi band)
• Homicide (UK)*
• Midgårds Söner (Sweden)
• Nauravat Natsit (Finland)
• Ódio Mortal (Brazil)
• Phase One (UK)*
• Skrewdriver (UK) (Skrewdriver was originally non-racist)
• Terve Päänahka (Finland)
• The Raw Boys (UK)
• Warfare 88 (USA)
• White Pride (USA) (Perhaps the first American Nazi punk band. Racist record label Sunwheel Records released their early 1980s recordings on the "Your Loss Is Our Gain" CD. Other racist labels have re-released it since then as well.)
• The Ventz (UK)

*There are other bands with the same name that have no connection with extremist politics.

References

• Punk Rock: So What?:by Roger Sabin.
• American Hardcore: A Tribal History: Steven Blush.
• The Punk Front: 1978-79. British National Front production.
• Condemned Magazine issue #2.

See also

• Punk subculture
• Punk ideology
• Punk-skinheads
• Nazi-Skinheads
• Rock Against Communism
• National Socialist black metal

External links

• Forward Area Homepage of an American Nazi punk band
• Forward Area article Interview with member of Nazi punk band
• Nazis and Punks History of Nazi punk culture from a Spanish website