Blog
By Michael Croland
Book Launch for Punk Rock Hora
Last night was the book launch for Punk Rock Hora and the closing reception for a monthlong “Jews and Rock” art show at the Brooklyn Jewish Art Gallery. I gave a presentation, featuring a guest appearance from Damn Dirty Commies, and Moshiach Oi! rocked the house. With Joey Ramone apparently looking on in the background, dozens of […]
Punk Is Center Stage at Opening for “Jews and Rock” Art Exhibit
Yesterday the Brooklyn Jewish Art Gallery had an opening for their monthlong “Jews and Rock” art exhibit, also billed as “The Rebellious and Creative Energy of Jews with Guitars.” Inside a synagogue’s sanctuary, an impressively varied art show featured photographs and paintings of Jewish musicians, including Joey Ramone, Amy Winehouse, and members of Anthrax and […]
My Interview Part of a Radio Special about Ethnic Punk
Last night on KRNN Juneau (Alaska), Johnny Negotiable hosted a “Saturday Nite Special” about ethnic punk, including a half-hour interview with me about Punk Rock Hora. You may recall Johnny Negotiable (Jim Hale) from last year’s “Mosh Hashanah: A Punk Tribute to the Jewish New Year” radio program or his guest post about KLUNK. The two-hour […]
3 Readings! 3 Boroughs! 3 Band T-Shirts!
Punk Rock Hora: Adventures in Jew-Punk Land officially came out this past week, and in the past month, I’ve done three readings in three NYC boroughs—while wearing three different band T-shirts! January 6: Word Up Community Bookshop (Washington Heights, Manhattan) I focused on punk rock hora stories from Punk Rock Hora. I read between-chapter interludes about Yidcore, Schmekel, […]
2016–2018 Articles That Aren’t in Punk Rock Hora
The second half of Punk Rock Hora includes many articles I’ve published since Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk came out in 2016. But I couldn’t include everything in Punk Rock Hora. Some articles would have been redundant, others weren’t the right fit, and one just came out yesterday! Here are all my 2016–2018 articles about Jewish punk that were published […]
Coast-to-Coast Hanukkah Concerts and Airplay for Jewish Punk Bands
Hanukkah is a time when many Jewish artists and organizations have events, presumably because people will attend. That includes Jewish punk bands and klezmer groups with a punk edge. This year’s Hanukkah shows included veteran acts in New York City and Oakland, a debuting band in Chicago, and a somewhere-in-between band in Seattle. For those who […]
Yiddish New York Punk Showcase
When it comes to music, the weeklong Yiddish New York festival doesn’t only have top-notch klezmer. On Saturday night, there was a late-night Yiddish New York Punk Showcase on the Lower East Side. “Yiddish music and punk rock go together in this neighborhood,” explained Rozele, the lead singer of Koyt Far Dayn Fardakht, from the stage. […]
Hilarious Jewish Punk Stories from The Hard Times
The Hard Times is a punk version of The Onion. The fake news stories are often hilarious and relatable. On Thursday, for the third time in the last year, The Hard Times featured a Jewish punk story. Considering that the timing aligned with Hanukkah this year, Rosh Hashanah this year, and Hanukkah last year, The Hard Times apparently […]
New Book about the Mid-’90s Punk Explosion
In the Introduction of Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk, I traced the rise of commercial punk rock in the mid-1990s because it is an important prelude to most Jewish punk bands using punk rock as a vehicle to explore their Jewish identity. If punk rock hadn’t gotten so big and reached so many people, fewer musicians would […]
Guest Speaker at Book Fair Shabbat
On Friday, I was the guest speaker for Book Fair Shabbat at Woodlands Community Temple in White Plains, New York. Rabbi Mara Young and the other speakers on the bimah did a commendable job of tying in counterculture and resistance with Jewish values. Cantor Jonathan Gordon used the Ramones‘ cover of “Surfin’ Bird” for the “Adon […]
