We're Having Much More Fun
Punk Archives for the Present from CBGB to Gilman and Beyond
Will be published approx. on 15. March 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
408 pages
978-1-5017-8032-5 (ISBN)
Description
We're Having Much More Fun celebrates the ways punks have built and documented their own misfit collectives since the mid-1970s, assembling alternative worlds of riotous music, art, fashion, and writing.
Judith Peraino and Tom McEnaney dive into these alternative depictions, ranging across the United States and over multiple generations, highlighting the diverse people who make punk happen. More than 400 color images of rare flyers, photos, zines, letters, and more showcase the creative and political energy that has fueled punk from the start. New interviews and essays featuring Aaron Cometbus, Anna Joy Springer (Blatz, Gr'ups, and Cypher in the Snow), Fayette Hauser (on Tomata du Plenty), Ian MacKaye (Dischord Records and Fugazi), Jayne County, KK Barrett and Tommy Gear (the Screamers), Martin Sorrondeguy (Los Crudos and Limp Wrist), Orlando Xavier (Special Forces and United Blood), Sylvia Reed (on Anya Phillips), and Victoria Ruiz (Downtown Boys) - as well as captions by additional artists, photographers, and fans - tell the stories behind the images, music, and scenes. Every page is an invitation from punk's past and present to build your own future.
Judith Peraino and Tom McEnaney dive into these alternative depictions, ranging across the United States and over multiple generations, highlighting the diverse people who make punk happen. More than 400 color images of rare flyers, photos, zines, letters, and more showcase the creative and political energy that has fueled punk from the start. New interviews and essays featuring Aaron Cometbus, Anna Joy Springer (Blatz, Gr'ups, and Cypher in the Snow), Fayette Hauser (on Tomata du Plenty), Ian MacKaye (Dischord Records and Fugazi), Jayne County, KK Barrett and Tommy Gear (the Screamers), Martin Sorrondeguy (Los Crudos and Limp Wrist), Orlando Xavier (Special Forces and United Blood), Sylvia Reed (on Anya Phillips), and Victoria Ruiz (Downtown Boys) - as well as captions by additional artists, photographers, and fans - tell the stories behind the images, music, and scenes. Every page is an invitation from punk's past and present to build your own future.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Ithaca
United States
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
420 color halftones
Dimensions
Height: 259 mm
Width: 212 mm
Thickness: 31 mm
Weight
1276 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-5017-8032-5 (9781501780325)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Judith A. Peraino | Tom McEnaney
We're Having Much More Fun
Punk Archives for the Present from CBGB to Gilman and Beyond
E-Book
03/2026
Cornell University Press
€162.99
Available for download
Persons
Judith A. Peraino is the author of Listening to the Sirens and has published articles on Blondie, PJ Harvey, Pussy Riot, and Lou Reed.
Tom McEnaney is the author of Acoustic Properties and has published articles on Spotify, This American Life, and David Lynch's use of sound.
Tom McEnaney is the author of Acoustic Properties and has published articles on Spotify, This American Life, and David Lynch's use of sound.
Content
Introduction: The Futures of Punk's Past, or Putting the Archive to Use
1. Being Different in New York: Punk Begins Underground
2. Image Gallery
3. "Punk was me on stage wrecking":: An interview with Jayne County
4. Two Chinese girls" in the NYC Punk Scene: An interview with Sylvia Reed on Anya Phillips
5. Doing the Future Yourself: The Screamers and Early Los Angeles Punk
6. From Seattle to "a sunnier destination": The Underground Origins of the Screamers
7. "Punk is the last incarnation of the counterculture":: An Interview with Fayette Hauser on Tomata du Plenty and Cultural Transformation
8. "We wanted to de-codify it": An Interview with KK Barrett on the Screamers
9. Image Gallery
10. Magazine Love: Ian MacKaye and Martin Sorrondeguy on Discovering the Screamers
11. Peace or Annihilation: The Politics of Punk in the Bay Area
12. Image Gallery
13. Ticker Tape from the Punk Parade
14. Maps for the Groundless
15. "I was a very timid child":: An Interview with Orlando Xavier
16. Be a Crossroads! Punk Beyond Borders
17. Image Gallery
18. "You got to make it happen or it ain't going to happen." An Interview with Martin Sorrondeguy
19. Punk and the Means of Production: No Dream or Nightmare Deferred
1. Being Different in New York: Punk Begins Underground
2. Image Gallery
3. "Punk was me on stage wrecking":: An interview with Jayne County
4. Two Chinese girls" in the NYC Punk Scene: An interview with Sylvia Reed on Anya Phillips
5. Doing the Future Yourself: The Screamers and Early Los Angeles Punk
6. From Seattle to "a sunnier destination": The Underground Origins of the Screamers
7. "Punk is the last incarnation of the counterculture":: An Interview with Fayette Hauser on Tomata du Plenty and Cultural Transformation
8. "We wanted to de-codify it": An Interview with KK Barrett on the Screamers
9. Image Gallery
10. Magazine Love: Ian MacKaye and Martin Sorrondeguy on Discovering the Screamers
11. Peace or Annihilation: The Politics of Punk in the Bay Area
12. Image Gallery
13. Ticker Tape from the Punk Parade
14. Maps for the Groundless
15. "I was a very timid child":: An Interview with Orlando Xavier
16. Be a Crossroads! Punk Beyond Borders
17. Image Gallery
18. "You got to make it happen or it ain't going to happen." An Interview with Martin Sorrondeguy
19. Punk and the Means of Production: No Dream or Nightmare Deferred