[Playing: Be Your Own Pet "Fire Department"]
I'm still alive. I'm still unemployed, and Punk Rock is still a beautiful, beautiful thing.
Today I took a giant shot in the dark and sent an email to people affiliated with ... well, a company that produces television shows. I don't think that their identity is important. I pitched them an idea whose cancer had been growing in my brain for as long as I have been ignoring this blog and enjoying my Pandora radio station. I have this fantasy of hosting a Punk Rock musical variety show on a cable channel with an international audience.
Let me set the record straight; I have no illusions about myself. I dearly want something like this to happen, even if I cannot be personally involved in it. Punk Rock is long overdue for some manner of worldwide recognition, and this would be the best way to accomplish that. Also, a number of the great bastions of Punk are getting old. We need a show like this while these great people are still with us.
I did a little surfing to check some facts, in the course of writing my pitch. I had to be sure that Iggy was still alive. Marky Ramone has some 2012 dates for Marky Ramone's Blitzkrieg. I believe Joan Jett is still active. There are even 2012 tour dates for Bad Brains!!! What? I didn't even know that they were still a going concern.
Shows what I know, right?
I reprinted the letter as a blog entry below. Mostly to create a copyright for the idea, but also for you to make fun of my idea. I wonder if Siouxsie is still alive?
I'm emotionally drained right now. When I write things that are important to me, like my NaNoWriMo novel, a lot of me goes out onto the page. Whew! Well, the important thing now is not just that I did something about my idea, for better or worse. Now that I have used a keyboard to download the idea from my brain, maybe the fantasy will plague me less. Or not. This is the kind of 'cure' that has mixed results, but it does tend to work with story ideas.
Punk is not dead.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
The Pitch
Hello,
[Introduction omitted by author]
Me.
I myself am nobody special. I am 42 years old, and have a degrees in Chemistry, and Electronic Engineering and Computer Technology. I do however, care dearly for the music that is Punk Rock. I have no contacts whatsoever in any part of the music industry, and have no ties to any particular musical group. In short, I have no real experience to bring to the project. Therefore, I am not going to insist that I personally should be a part of this project, if it does come to fruition.
Pitch.
My idea is to create a Punk-exclusive musical variety show.
Punk Rock is a musical subculture that has consistently been mishandled by the premier record labels, under-promoted by the cottage industry of small independent labels, and generally ignored by broadcast radio stations. I will freely grant that there are some exceptions, but most of these are limited or localized phenomena. There are local radio stations that may play broader selection. Larger cities have locally known bands, and occasionally the brighter stars may make an appearance on television - such as on The Late Show with David Letterman. Yet these exceptions do little to invigorate the larger subculture. There continue to be new venues for Punk Rock, and Satellite Radio is one of these, but Satellite Radio hasn't quite set the world on fire, owing to its barrier to entry for the average international listener. The rise in breadth and popularity of the Internet has done much to facilitate the availability of all music, but even the internet is not enough.
Using a television analogy; if you do not know what is on television - and you do not change the channel, then you can never know what other shows are on. I want to be the ombudsman who loudly proclaims "Punk Rock is out there! Punk Is Not Dead."
Format.
I envision a "Late Show"-esque general format, but without ordinary guests. A band would play an opening song or two (depending on the performers) followed by an interview (length would also depend on the performer) followed by more music. No 'host' band - such as Paul Schaffer and the World's Most Dangerous Band - would be required (this would help to make it a low-overhead production), although 'support' musicians might not be a terrible idea. [A characteristic of early Punk Rock is a stripped-down sound, so I have mixed feelings about that.] All of the musical guests should be local talent; this *absolutely* has to be a travelling show. Not just around the United States, but internationally. While there is a wealth of material in the United States, a mandatory destination is the United Kingdom, and from there Australia, Scandinavia, Japan, Poland, the Ukraine, perhaps even Russia (unless the government demands additional fees be paid). My favorite group is Monkeystrikes, a struggling band in Scandinavia whose members live in Denmark and Sweden, and whose latest CD (You Hate My Beautiful Love, 2007) appears to be out of print.
Audience.
The first thing on your minds is that without an audience, there simply is no show. You are absolutely right. This show would at first play to a niche core audience; most of whom are 40-somethings who grew up with Punk Rock and rock 'n' roll. This would further be narrowed by the specialization in Punk Rock.
[Punk has been much maligned and misrepresented over the years (consider the episode of House M.D. where the patient was a serial drug abusing Punk Rocker) such that many people do not know what Punk Rock is.]
This would admittedly be a small core audience. However, I strongly believe that the audience would grow exponentially within the first year, once it becomes self-evident that Punk Rock is not that much different from everyone's beloved Rock 'n' Roll. If and when that happens, the show will become a parade of talent to an audience of fresh ears. I must mention here that the initial core audience would be international, and not just domestic, so this project would greatly benefit for a network that seeks international audiences.
Guests.
The first few shows are absolutely critical. Not just for the interest of the core audience, and to gain traction with new audiences, but because the surviving bastions of Punk Rock may not be long for this world.
The first show should exclusively feature Iggy Pop. He should be provided with a large red leather chair to sit in, and the host should kiss his hand and call him "Godfather".
[This vein of theatrics should be endemic to the show!]
Subsequent shows should similarly feature the old guard of Punk and 'Garage Rock': Marky Ramone's Blitzkrieg, MC5, Joan Jett, Billy Idol (if not all of Generation X), Bad Brains, Dead Kennedys, Sleater-Kinney etc. I could go on and on. And that is not to mention whatever band reunions can be orchestrated, such as the Damned.
Similarly, the British bands that need to appear in the show's first year are Siouxie and the Banshees, the Adicts, the Clash, Stiff Little Fingers, Leyton Buzzards, the Buzzcocks, etc.
Expertise, creative consultants, other resources.
This project requires at least one person with a large amount of experience and contancts within the music industry, and preferably from within the Punk subculture. Off of the top of my head, the stand-out choice would be Henry Rollins. He fronted the California Punk Band Black Flag for years before embarking on a very successful solo career during which he produced new bands, appeared in minor acting roles, and contributed to various MTV productions.
If I were to try to move forward in a project of this scope, I would definitely seek Henry's advice. I would further try to contact influential Punk performers who have formed independent labels such as Joan Jett (Blackheart Records), Jello Biafra (Dead Kennedys and Alternative Tentacles Records), Brett Gurewitz (Bad Religion, Epitaph Records), Tim Armstrong (Rancid, Hellcat Records) etc.
Unfortunately, there is a minor detail that needs to be mentioned here. Such a show will need its own independent security detail for safety and management of the studio audience. Every subculture has its own troublemakers, and Punk Rock may be overrepresented in this regard (White Supremacists, Neo-Nazis, other groups). The issue can be managed with a dedicated group of professionals, and requiring that audience members sign waivers. It would be irresponsible of me do downplay the potential for violence. For example, many performances by the Exploited resulted in riots.
That is my vision. I want to thank the recipients for reading this far; I do greatly appreciate your sophisticated attention span. I would like to state in closing that I am pitching this idea to a single audience; the executives and creative talent at [omitted].
For more vague information see my struggling Punk Blog at:
http://karlmonsterpunk.blogspot.com/
and my Punk Rock Pandora Radio Station at
http://broadcaster.pandora.com/t?r=927&c=0&l=37961&ctl=17BE4C4:48C98F25DFFEAC3E1BFC382B24200693&
Thank you for your time
Karl Aune
"Hey You! Behind that door! I'm scared too, but I want more!"
- Monkeystrikes
[Introduction omitted by author]
Me.
I myself am nobody special. I am 42 years old, and have a degrees in Chemistry, and Electronic Engineering and Computer Technology. I do however, care dearly for the music that is Punk Rock. I have no contacts whatsoever in any part of the music industry, and have no ties to any particular musical group. In short, I have no real experience to bring to the project. Therefore, I am not going to insist that I personally should be a part of this project, if it does come to fruition.
Pitch.
My idea is to create a Punk-exclusive musical variety show.
Punk Rock is a musical subculture that has consistently been mishandled by the premier record labels, under-promoted by the cottage industry of small independent labels, and generally ignored by broadcast radio stations. I will freely grant that there are some exceptions, but most of these are limited or localized phenomena. There are local radio stations that may play broader selection. Larger cities have locally known bands, and occasionally the brighter stars may make an appearance on television - such as on The Late Show with David Letterman. Yet these exceptions do little to invigorate the larger subculture. There continue to be new venues for Punk Rock, and Satellite Radio is one of these, but Satellite Radio hasn't quite set the world on fire, owing to its barrier to entry for the average international listener. The rise in breadth and popularity of the Internet has done much to facilitate the availability of all music, but even the internet is not enough.
Using a television analogy; if you do not know what is on television - and you do not change the channel, then you can never know what other shows are on. I want to be the ombudsman who loudly proclaims "Punk Rock is out there! Punk Is Not Dead."
Format.
I envision a "Late Show"-esque general format, but without ordinary guests. A band would play an opening song or two (depending on the performers) followed by an interview (length would also depend on the performer) followed by more music. No 'host' band - such as Paul Schaffer and the World's Most Dangerous Band - would be required (this would help to make it a low-overhead production), although 'support' musicians might not be a terrible idea. [A characteristic of early Punk Rock is a stripped-down sound, so I have mixed feelings about that.] All of the musical guests should be local talent; this *absolutely* has to be a travelling show. Not just around the United States, but internationally. While there is a wealth of material in the United States, a mandatory destination is the United Kingdom, and from there Australia, Scandinavia, Japan, Poland, the Ukraine, perhaps even Russia (unless the government demands additional fees be paid). My favorite group is Monkeystrikes, a struggling band in Scandinavia whose members live in Denmark and Sweden, and whose latest CD (You Hate My Beautiful Love, 2007) appears to be out of print.
Audience.
The first thing on your minds is that without an audience, there simply is no show. You are absolutely right. This show would at first play to a niche core audience; most of whom are 40-somethings who grew up with Punk Rock and rock 'n' roll. This would further be narrowed by the specialization in Punk Rock.
[Punk has been much maligned and misrepresented over the years (consider the episode of House M.D. where the patient was a serial drug abusing Punk Rocker) such that many people do not know what Punk Rock is.]
This would admittedly be a small core audience. However, I strongly believe that the audience would grow exponentially within the first year, once it becomes self-evident that Punk Rock is not that much different from everyone's beloved Rock 'n' Roll. If and when that happens, the show will become a parade of talent to an audience of fresh ears. I must mention here that the initial core audience would be international, and not just domestic, so this project would greatly benefit for a network that seeks international audiences.
Guests.
The first few shows are absolutely critical. Not just for the interest of the core audience, and to gain traction with new audiences, but because the surviving bastions of Punk Rock may not be long for this world.
The first show should exclusively feature Iggy Pop. He should be provided with a large red leather chair to sit in, and the host should kiss his hand and call him "Godfather".
[This vein of theatrics should be endemic to the show!]
Subsequent shows should similarly feature the old guard of Punk and 'Garage Rock': Marky Ramone's Blitzkrieg, MC5, Joan Jett, Billy Idol (if not all of Generation X), Bad Brains, Dead Kennedys, Sleater-Kinney etc. I could go on and on. And that is not to mention whatever band reunions can be orchestrated, such as the Damned.
Similarly, the British bands that need to appear in the show's first year are Siouxie and the Banshees, the Adicts, the Clash, Stiff Little Fingers, Leyton Buzzards, the Buzzcocks, etc.
Expertise, creative consultants, other resources.
This project requires at least one person with a large amount of experience and contancts within the music industry, and preferably from within the Punk subculture. Off of the top of my head, the stand-out choice would be Henry Rollins. He fronted the California Punk Band Black Flag for years before embarking on a very successful solo career during which he produced new bands, appeared in minor acting roles, and contributed to various MTV productions.
If I were to try to move forward in a project of this scope, I would definitely seek Henry's advice. I would further try to contact influential Punk performers who have formed independent labels such as Joan Jett (Blackheart Records), Jello Biafra (Dead Kennedys and Alternative Tentacles Records), Brett Gurewitz (Bad Religion, Epitaph Records), Tim Armstrong (Rancid, Hellcat Records) etc.
Unfortunately, there is a minor detail that needs to be mentioned here. Such a show will need its own independent security detail for safety and management of the studio audience. Every subculture has its own troublemakers, and Punk Rock may be overrepresented in this regard (White Supremacists, Neo-Nazis, other groups). The issue can be managed with a dedicated group of professionals, and requiring that audience members sign waivers. It would be irresponsible of me do downplay the potential for violence. For example, many performances by the Exploited resulted in riots.
That is my vision. I want to thank the recipients for reading this far; I do greatly appreciate your sophisticated attention span. I would like to state in closing that I am pitching this idea to a single audience; the executives and creative talent at [omitted].
For more vague information see my struggling Punk Blog at:
http://karlmonsterpunk.blogspot.com/
and my Punk Rock Pandora Radio Station at
http://broadcaster.pandora.com/t?r=927&c=0&l=37961&ctl=17BE4C4:48C98F25DFFEAC3E1BFC382B24200693&
Thank you for your time
Karl Aune
"Hey You! Behind that door! I'm scared too, but I want more!"
- Monkeystrikes
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