Paper for 3rd INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE, INTERDISCIPLINARY CULTURAL GROUP RESEARCH: Youth Subcultures, Worldviews and Lifestyles, Kaunas, Lithuania Previous research on beginnings of Latvian punk, which was mostly done in fields of journalism and punk activism, indicates that first Latvian punks appeared in early 80-ies, but the first punk bands - in the first half of the same decade. This rises the first question: why punk came so late? Comparing with Estonia and Russia or with some Central European socialist countries, it was late (Troitsky 1988, Trubetsky 2009, Haas 2001). Comparing with some other Soviet Republics or some 3rd World Countries the first wave of Latvian punks cannot be labeled as late. There are some explanations why Latvian youth were behind the Estonians in adoption of punk style. Most popular is Estonia’s closeness to the capitalistic Finland. They were better informed about newest trends in the ‘free world’ because they get better access to the Finland’s broadcasting, including TV, and mass media, and to understand the communication was easier because of similar languages. Other explanation of lagging Latvian punk scene, and not only the punk, the same can be said about whole Latvian rock, is more conservative and strict local cultural policy. Second question asks about the social origins of first soviet Latvia’s punks. There are two prevailing lines in explanation of the birth of subcultures, including punk. The first is original Birmingham subcultural theory, which talks about relations of youth class and resistance through the style and rituals (Hebdige 1979). More modern approach to the analysis of subcultures brings so called post-subcultural theory, stating that youth involvement in different taste cultures or subcultural groups are matter of individual choice, not determined by the factual class affiliation (Bennett 1999; Muggleton 2000). If we are investigating early Latvian punk, we can detect both aspects and motivations, but also new factors emerges. Significant part of the first Latvian punks were strongly connected with the art school circuits. It might be said that these middle class kids were better informed about current cultural trends in the West and just appropriated punk style as a sign of distinction. At the same time actual resistance in soviet-time Latvian punk was always apparent. Arguing with the political regime the main battlefield was so called national question. Ethnic Latvian punks expressed their national oppression turning to the right, in direction of nationalism. This was one of the main reasons why they adopted swastika and nazi imagery. This also initially lead to the separation of newly forming punk scene into two: Latvian singing and Russian singing. This again contest the notion of style as purely aesthetic value.

1. Soviet time born Latvian punk:
social origins and object of protest
Dr.Sc.Soc. Jānis Daugavietis
Researcher, Department of Theatre, Music and Cinema Art,
Institute of Literature, Folklore and Art - University of Latvia
3rd INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 29-30 September, 2017, Kaunas, Lithuania
INTERDISCIPLINARY CULTURAL GROUP RESEARCH:
Youth Subcultures, Worldviews and Lifestyles
Podnieks,J.(1986).IsItEasyToBeYoung[shotfromthedocumentary]

2. STRUCTURE
Birth of punk in Latvian SSR
(overview of first punks / bands, based on chapter in "Warsaw Punk Pact (Punk
in Osteuropa 1977-1989)”
Question of style
Were they really PUNKbands?
Protest against what?
Social origins

3. FLAT PUNKS
~1982-1985
[Igors Žuravskis photo: ~1984]
"[...] the punks, who displayed a desire to show
that Soviet punks were as ‘bad’ as Western ones
and articulated a concern that they had not been
shocking enough [...]" (Pilkington 1994:154)

4. FLAT PUNKS
~1980-1985

5. FIRST PUNKBANDS
DZELZS CEĻŠ 1982-86
"The group Railroad offered some hope —17-year-olds, very loud,
aggressive, dressed in metal regalia and dog collars. The singer, a
natural Nordic blonde, shouted continuously at the audience to
clear the centre aisle, as the railroad had to pass through there.
They were original, but couldn’t ever get it together to compose
more than five songs." (Troitsky 1987:87)

6. FIRST PUNKBANDS
ZIG ZAG 1985
[Māris Bogustovs photo: 1988]
‘Esmu apnicis’ [I’m bored] 1987
‘Signe melo’ [Signe is laying] 1988

7. FIRST PUNKBANDS
INOKENTIJS MĀRPLS 1985-
[Aleksandrs Aržanovskis photo: before concert at Ogre’s cultural house, which was actually stopped in the middle, before IM even get on the stage, 1989]
‘Mēs esam suņi’ [We are the dogs] (1988)
‘Meklē mani peklē’ [Search for me in hell] (1988)

8. FIRST PUNKBANDS
КАРТ БЛАНШ 1987-89
[photo: 1989?]
‘Поролоновый мозг’ [Foamy brain] (1989)

9. FIRST PUNKBANDS
BEDRE 1987-89
[Lauris Filics photo: 1989]
Alumīnija Olga [Aluminium Olga] (1988)

10. SUMMARISING BEGINNINGS OF LV PUNK
100% Rīga
Teenagers
Underground
A handful of punks
Mostly ethnic Latvians
Post-punk & outside-punk influences
Ethnically / language separated ‘scenes’
No ‘pure’/ ortodox punk – in music & outlook

11. STYLE
Socio-political-musical context:
a) rock and any subgenre itself was sign of protest and resistence in USSR
b) punk was already established and comodified in the West
...it’s 80ies and a lots of post-punk genres are born
mix of influences + restricted information flow = no ortodoxal punk
More copying than inventing?
importing, acquiring and localising (+ ‘iron curtain effect’)

12. PROTESTING AGAINST...
... in song lyrics and other symbols
Teenage Anxiety, Angst and Anger
.. But also some social & political protest against:
• double morale
• lack of freedoms
• ethnic oppression
(nationalism, anti-migration)
“What was left undone by German tanks, will be fixed by Latvian punks”

13. SOCIAL ORIGINS OF PUNKS
Mostly art school youth
upper middle class
Why not proletarian kids?
-Narrow info chanells
(certain amount of social, cultural and economic capitals are needed to aquire
western goods, including PUNK)
Why art school kids?
-Obsession with style and ability to perform it
(artisan/ artistic skills needed to craft punk regalia)

14. More research is needed...
"Western journalists often ask me about Soviet punk, and when I
answer that for all practical purposes we have no punk rock, they
don't believe it and look at me as if I’m maliciously concealing some
treasure or just afraid to divulge ‘secret’ information. “It can’t be,”
they say “We’ve heard that you have such groups, but they’re
banned, of course ...”
OK, let’s put it this way: we don’t have any groups that play punk
rock as it’s known in the West. There are bands with a ‘punkish’
approach to lyrics, and bands that never come out of their
basements, but they all play heavy metal, electropop, even folk
rock, but nothing like punk. Punk rock with us is something exotic,
like an avocado — everyone has heard the name, but very few
know what it actually is." (Troitsky 1987: 50)

15. Submitted abstract
Previous research on beginnings of Latvian punk, which was mostly done in fields of journalism and punk activism,
indicates that first Latvian punks appeared in early 80-ies, but the first punk bands - in the first half of the same decade.
This rises the first question: why punk came so late? Comparing with Estonia and Russia or with some Central European
socialist countries, it was late (Troitsky 1988, Trubetsky 2009, Haas 2001). Comparing with some other Soviet Republics
or some 3rd World Countries the first wave of Latvian punks cannot be labeled as late. There are some explanations
why Latvian youth were behind the Estonians in adoption of punk style. Most popular is Estonia’s closeness to the
capitalistic Finland. They were better informed about newest trends in the ‘free world’ because they get better access
to the Finland’s broadcasting, including TV, and mass media, and to understand the communication was easier because
of similar languages. Other explanation of lagging Latvian punk scene, and not only the punk, the same can be said
about whole Latvian rock, is more conservative and strict local cultural policy.
Second question asks about the social origins of first soviet Latvia’s punks. There are two prevailing lines in explanation
of the birth of subcultures, including punk. The first is original Birmingham subcultural theory, which talks about
relations of youth class and resistance through the style and rituals (Hebdige 1979). More modern approach to the
analysis of subcultures brings so called post-subcultural theory, stating that youth involvement in different taste
cultures or subcultural groups are matter of individual choice, not determined by the factual class affiliation (Bennett
1999; Muggleton 2000).
If we are investigating early Latvian punk, we can detect both aspects and motivations, but also new factors emerges.
Significant part of the first Latvian punks were strongly connected with the art school circuits. It might be said that
these middle class kids were better informed about current cultural trends in the West and just appropriated punk style
as a sign of distinction. At the same time actual resistance in soviet-time Latvian punk was always apparent. Arguing
with the political regime the main battlefield was so called national question. Ethnic Latvian punks expressed their
national oppression turning to the right, in direction of nationalism. This was one of the main reasons why they
adopted swastika and nazi imagery. This also initially lead to the separation of newly forming punk scene into two:
Latvian singing and Russian singing. This again contest the notion of style as purely aesthetic value.