With the consistent and steady amount of headlines and arrests that Russian punk band Pussy Riot continue to accumulate, the world is reminded that punk rock can still be provocative. For far too long, what was once the angriest and arguably the most expressive subgenre of rock and roll had become tame and sanitised. There was a time when punk rock was dangerous. Before Green Day, before the commercialised Warped Tour, your parents would live in fear that their child might very well be attending one of those crazy punk concerts theyd read about the papers. This was back in the day when punk was not something you could easily buy in most malls around the world. Thankfully, punk rock appears to be making a comeback. Whether its railing against current political climates all over the world, flipping the finger to more local injustices, or just being defiantly outrageous, punk is beginning to rebel and shock all over the world again. As a tribute to this resurgence as well as a trip down memory lane, heres a list of genuinely shocking acts committed in the name of punk by some of the experts.
10. The Stooges Go To War With Biker Gang At Their Last Show
By 1974, the Stooges had developed quite the reputation for their live shows. Most if not all of this could be attributed to the unpredictability of front man Iggy Pop. Oftentimes shows were cut short due to Iggys frequent self abuse onstage or just generally being in a drugged up stupor. Neither of these would necessarily factor into the last Stooges show. When Iggy discovered that an egg-slinging incident from a show the night before was due to a biker gang initiation, he called out that gang on the radio. Always the showman, he invited them all to attend the Stooges last show to see if they were: man enough to deal with the f****ng Stooges. Turns out the gang, the Scorpions, thought they were. All of them. What ensued at the last Stooges show was an all-out war between The Stooges, the biker gang they had hired for backup, and the entire Scorpions gang. Everything from eggs and vegetables to beer and wine bottles were thrown back and forth. Part of this performance was captured on the Metallic K.O. live recording, an album that famed rock journalist Lester Bangs claimed is: the only rock album I know where you can actually hear hurled beer bottles breaking against guitar strings.
