Putting the ‘punk’ back into pop-punk: Analysing presentations of deviance in pop-punk music

Abstract

Writing on pop-punk, the melodic branch of punk that rose to fame in the mid-to-late-1990s, usually centres on the pop aspect of the genre: its popularity, polished sound and commercialization. Defining punk as a culture of deviance, this article in contrast examines the punk aspect of pop-punk by analysing the ways deviance is presented in the music videos ‘All the Small Things’ by blink-182, ‘In Too Deep’ by Sum 41, and ‘Original Prankster’ by the Offspring, all released at the turn of the millennium. Understanding music videos as media advertising a song, an album and an artist and analysing the interplay of visuals, music and lyrics therein, we argue that blink-182 and Sum 41 present themselves as deviant by staging a notion of authenticity, ridiculing mainstream pop and appropriating the ‘prankster’ stereotype, while the Offspring take a more nuanced stance on the matter of pranking. Concluding, we attribute this difference to the generational gap between the bands and briefly identify the different waves of pop-punk.