Punks not dad
Encyclopedia
Punks Not Dad are a British comedy punk
band who formed in Cardiff
, Wales in late 2008. The four band members were all in their mid to late 40s when they formed and their songs are written from a middle-aged father's perspective referencing sheds, flat-pack furniture and Man Flu
. The music they play is described as "Dad Punk".They are one of the leading bands of the mature musicians "Rock-Til-You-Drop" movement and were heavily featured in an article on the subject in The Times Newspaper during the Summer of 2010. Several of their videos have featured the Welsh TV presenter and actress Lisa Rogers
.
band Railroad Bill and the latter had been one half the comedy duo the Tracy Brothers alongside the novelist and actor Mark Billingham
. The Tracy Brothers presented the Children's BBC TV series What's That Noise! and appeared in several of the original BBC Radio 1 series of The Mary Whitehouse Experience
. Cardigan and Life Crisis were brothers in law and discovered a shared love of 1977-style British punk rock. They started writing together via email as Cardigan lived in Brighton
and Life Crisis in Cardiff. The other members, Joe Strimmer and Adrian Viles joined after the band was offered its first gig. Strimmer is also a member of Railroad Bill.
Punks Not Dad quickly recorded their first album We Are The Dads and were immediately signed by the independent label Boss Tuneage. The songs all deal with aspects of the middle-aged male condition, borrowing riffs from classic punk bands such as The Clash
and Sham 69
in an attempt to speak for the same generation thirty years on. The album's title track expands the idea that the original punk generation now feels just as marginalised by young people as they once did by their own parents.
Several songs from the album received radio play including Gaye Adverts Eyes - played by Tom Robinson
for BBC 6 Music
- and dealing with Life Crisis' teenage crush on the bass player of 70s punk band The Adverts
. The album was described as "Genius" by TV Smith the Adverts former lead singer.
In the summer of 2009 the band released their first single In Me Shed which was accompanied by a promotional video featuring TV presenter Lisa Rogers who they met whilst being interviewed on Radio Wales in December 2009. The song won the award for Song of the Year at The Rock-Til-You-Drop Awards. The song was also made the Official Anthem of the Shed of the Year 2009 by the Readers' Sheds website and was cited as the campaign song for novelist Chris Cleave's Down with Kids column in The Guardian in January 2010
During 2010 they performed at Glastonbury Festival
and played regular gigs with bluegrass act Hayseed Dixie
. In their live shows Punks Not Dad are noted for encouraging their audience to assemble an Ikea
bedside table during their performance. The audience is also encouraged to write graffiti on the assembled table.
In July 2010 they were heavily featured in an article in the Times Newspaper which dealt with the emergence of new middle-aged rock and punk bands (for link see References below).
Three of their song lyrics (The Boy Looked at Johnny, Gaye Advert's Eyes and Where is my Love Song?) were also included in the publication Punk Rock Saved My Ass - an anthology edited by Terena Scott and Jane Mackay.
In February 2011 a new video for the song I Can't Get It Up (an intentional double-entendre title, the song dealing with the erection of flatpack furniture) was released - again featuring Lisa Rogers. This video was intended to promote the band's four-track "Retail Therapy EP" released in March 2011.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band who formed in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, Wales in late 2008. The four band members were all in their mid to late 40s when they formed and their songs are written from a middle-aged father's perspective referencing sheds, flat-pack furniture and Man Flu
Man flu
Man flu is a pejorative term that refers to the idea many men, when they have a cold, exaggerate and claim they have the flu — the implication being that women do not do so...
. The music they play is described as "Dad Punk".They are one of the leading bands of the mature musicians "Rock-Til-You-Drop" movement and were heavily featured in an article on the subject in The Times Newspaper during the Summer of 2010. Several of their videos have featured the Welsh TV presenter and actress Lisa Rogers
Lisa Rogers
Lisa Rogers is a Welsh television presenter and occasional actress. She has appeared in films, television programmes, theatre and radio.-Early life:...
.
Career
The band was formed in 2008 by Sid Life Crisis and Johnny Cardigan. The former is also a member of the skiffleSkiffle
Skiffle is a type of popular music with jazz, blues, folk, roots and country influences, usually using homemade or improvised instruments. Originating as a term in the United States in the first half of the twentieth century, it became popular again in the UK in the 1950s, where it was mainly...
band Railroad Bill and the latter had been one half the comedy duo the Tracy Brothers alongside the novelist and actor Mark Billingham
Mark Billingham
Mark Philip David Billingham is an English novelist whose series of "Tom Thorne" crime novels are best-sellers in that particular genre. He is also a television screenwriter and has become a familiar face as an actor and comic....
. The Tracy Brothers presented the Children's BBC TV series What's That Noise! and appeared in several of the original BBC Radio 1 series of The Mary Whitehouse Experience
The Mary Whitehouse Experience
The Mary Whitehouse Experience was a British topical sketch comedy show produced by the BBC in association with Spitting Image Productions. It starred two comedy double acts - David Baddiel and Rob Newman, and also Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis, all of whom had graduated from Cambridge University...
. Cardigan and Life Crisis were brothers in law and discovered a shared love of 1977-style British punk rock. They started writing together via email as Cardigan lived in Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
and Life Crisis in Cardiff. The other members, Joe Strimmer and Adrian Viles joined after the band was offered its first gig. Strimmer is also a member of Railroad Bill.
Punks Not Dad quickly recorded their first album We Are The Dads and were immediately signed by the independent label Boss Tuneage. The songs all deal with aspects of the middle-aged male condition, borrowing riffs from classic punk bands such as The Clash
The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
and Sham 69
Sham 69
Sham 69 is an English punk band that formed in Hersham in 1976.Although not as commercially successful as many of their contemporaries, albeit with a greater number of chart entries, Sham 69 has been a huge musical and lyrical influence on the Oi! and streetpunk genres. The band allegedly derived...
in an attempt to speak for the same generation thirty years on. The album's title track expands the idea that the original punk generation now feels just as marginalised by young people as they once did by their own parents.
- "The kids don't understand us,
- They think we're full of sh*te,
- But we are the Dads,
- And the Dads are alright!"
Several songs from the album received radio play including Gaye Adverts Eyes - played by Tom Robinson
Tom Robinson
Tom Robinson is an English singer-songwriter, bassist and radio presenter, better known for the hits "Glad to Be Gay", "2-4-6-8 Motorway", and "Don't Take No for an Answer", with his Tom Robinson Band...
for BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music is one of the BBC's digital radio stations, was launched on 11 March 2002 and originally codenamed Network Y. It was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years....
- and dealing with Life Crisis' teenage crush on the bass player of 70s punk band The Adverts
The Adverts
The Adverts were an English punk band who formed in 1976 and broke up in late 1979. They were one of the first punk bands to enjoy chart success in the UK, and their line-up included Gaye Advert, whom The Virgin Encyclopedia of 70s Music called the "first female punk star".-Career:The band was...
. The album was described as "Genius" by TV Smith the Adverts former lead singer.
In the summer of 2009 the band released their first single In Me Shed which was accompanied by a promotional video featuring TV presenter Lisa Rogers who they met whilst being interviewed on Radio Wales in December 2009. The song won the award for Song of the Year at The Rock-Til-You-Drop Awards. The song was also made the Official Anthem of the Shed of the Year 2009 by the Readers' Sheds website and was cited as the campaign song for novelist Chris Cleave's Down with Kids column in The Guardian in January 2010
During 2010 they performed at Glastonbury Festival
Glastonbury Festival
The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...
and played regular gigs with bluegrass act Hayseed Dixie
Hayseed Dixie
Hayseed Dixie is an American band which began in the autumn of 2000 with the release of their first album, A Hillbilly Tribute to AC/DC. The band performs a mixture of cover versions of hard rock songs and original compositions in a style that is a unique fusion of bluegrass and rock music and are...
. In their live shows Punks Not Dad are noted for encouraging their audience to assemble an Ikea
IKEA
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...
bedside table during their performance. The audience is also encouraged to write graffiti on the assembled table.
In July 2010 they were heavily featured in an article in the Times Newspaper which dealt with the emergence of new middle-aged rock and punk bands (for link see References below).
Three of their song lyrics (The Boy Looked at Johnny, Gaye Advert's Eyes and Where is my Love Song?) were also included in the publication Punk Rock Saved My Ass - an anthology edited by Terena Scott and Jane Mackay.
In February 2011 a new video for the song I Can't Get It Up (an intentional double-entendre title, the song dealing with the erection of flatpack furniture) was released - again featuring Lisa Rogers. This video was intended to promote the band's four-track "Retail Therapy EP" released in March 2011.
See also
Wales OnLine broadcast, June 20th 2009Discography
- Allen Key in the UK (2008) - band-produced, four-track EP
- We Are The Dads! (2009) - album released by Boss Tuneage
- In Me Shed b/w Father's Day (2009) - single released by Boss Tuneage
- Retail Therapy EP (2011) - four-track EP released by Boss Tuneage