Blood, Sweat, and a Little Dancing

Blood, sweat and beer is typically what you smell when you go to a show in Boston. It doesn't gross me out though, I actually think that it's pretty enticing. When you go to a punk, oi!, hardcore or ska show, the bodily fluids of yourself and others are just a part of the unity you feel when you're at an event like this. 

Let me give you a breakdown of all the genres.

Punk: Punk has a very fast paced tempo and is typically very simple in terms of 

the instrumental difficulty and the intricacy of the music. It usually consists of a few ch

ords is loud and sometimes anarchical lyrics. Some popular punk bands are: Dead Kennedys, Toxic Narcotic, The Casualties and Black Flag.

California Uber Allies by Dead Kennedys

Oi!: Oi! is a sub-genre of punk that was made popular by skinheads in England in the late 1970s and early 80s. NO, skinheads are NOT nazis. They are a working class group of people who listened to Oi! and were frustrated by the rule of Margaret Thatcher in England. Anyway, Oi! is more agressive and more passionate form of punk, that has two types. There were the earlier artists like Cock Sparrer, and Sham 69, and then came artists like the 4 Skins and Condemned 84.

I Got Your Number by Cock Sparrer

Hardcore: Hardcore is another sub-genre of punk that has a heavier sound and is a lot louder, and typically has breakdowns. A breakdown is when the tempo slows down toward the middle of the song and the bass and guitar sound really heavy and slow, this really gets people in the mood to mosh. Some hardcore bands are Blood for Blood, Bad Brains, and

 the Misfits.

Banned in DC by Bad Brains

Ska: Originated in Jamaica in the 1950s, and became popular amongst rudeboys, and later skinheads. Actually coming before reggae and rocksteady, it was the basis of both of those genres. It is a very upbeat type of music consisting of horns, drums, guitars, bass, and vocals. It's fun and happy, and enjoyed by many. There's the original and older stuff called 2-Tone, and from 2-Tone came Third Wave. Artists that would  be considered 2- Tone are Toots and the Maytals and The Specials. Third Wave artists are the Toasters and the Mighty Mighty Bosstones. 

A Message To You Rudy by The Specials

At a show people don't just stand there, they DANCE! Now, when I say dance, I'm not saying we grind on each other, or slow dance, its just a whole bunch of bodies moving at the same time. There's moshing, skanking, the hardcore walk, and crowd s

urfing. At all punk and punk sub-genre shows the audience is expected to mosh till they can't anymore, moshing is just a punch of pushing in the "pit" the pit is the part of the venue that the audience dedicates to dancing specifically. Moshing can either be done in a circle or just pushing each other around. Skanking is very different from moshing, other than the fact that its done in a circle. Its almost like skipping with the rhythm of the song, and striking out your arm. Hardcore walking is basically an angry mixture of skanking and moshing. Crowd surfing is exactly what it sounds like. It's when a member of the audience is held up by the audience on top of them. 

In Boston the shows are very awesome, and go on all of the time. Also, the local bands that we have are actually good, even though other bands come to venues here, its still cool to see a local band.  I love Boston punk!