Long before mohawks, middle fingers on TV, and three-chord anthems, punk was already alive — in basement jams, fuzzed-out riffs, and the refusal to behave.
In this debut episode of History is a Riot, we trace punk’s roots through 1950s rock’n’roll rebellion, 1960s garage grit, psychedelic chaos, proto-punk noise, glam defiance, and German experimentalism — right up to the sweaty floorboards of CBGB’s.
It’s not a list. It’s a fuse.
And we’re lighting it.
🔧 Featuring: Little Richard, The Sonics, The Monks, Velvet Underground, MC5, The Stooges, Can, Bowie, and more.
📲 Follow the show on Instagram for daily punk facts, band profiles, and scene snapshots: @history_is_a_riot
📚 Sources & References – Episode 1: Before the Riot – The Long Fuse of Punk
This episode is based on a mix of oral histories, music journalism, academic research, and original interviews. For further reading, check out:
Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk – Legs McNeil & Gillian McCain
From the Velvets to the Voidoids: The Birth of American Punk Rock – Clinton Heylin
England’s Dreaming – Jon Savage
Lipstick Traces: A Secret History of the 20th Century – Greil Marcus
Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984 – Simon Reynolds
Suicide: No Compromise – David Nobakht
Revenge of the She-Punks – Vivien Goldman
Punk: Attitude (dir. Don Letts, 2005)
The Filth and the Fury (dir. Julien Temple, 2000)