The Dead Milkmen is an American punk rock band formed in 1983 in Philadelphia. Their original lineup consisted of vocalist and keyboardist Rodney Linderman, guitarist and vocalist Joe Genaro, bassist Dave Schulthise and drummer Dean Sabatino.
members: Joseph Genaro
formed in: Philadelphia
labels: Restless Records
genres: comedy rock, cowpunk
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The band played frequently in Philadelphia's punk rock circuit and eventually began touring nationally. After several self-released cassettes, their debut LP, Big Lizard in My Backyard, was issued in 1985 on Restless Records, a subsidiary of Enigma Records. The album received college radio play, with the track "Bitchin' Camaro" becoming especially popular. Because of its improvised dialogue intro, the song remained a favorite at live shows.
Are you them, or do you know them? The mail slot is open.
"Punk Rock Girl" is a song by American rock band the Dead Milkmen. It was the first single released from the band's fourth album Beelzebubba (1988).
Released in December 1988, the track was primarily composed by guitarist and vocalist Joe Genaro and bassist Dave Schulthise, though it is credited to all four band members. The idea behind the song was to create a punk rock nursery rhyme; as such, it is a simple love song, written from the perspective of a sheltered boy dreaming of a rowdy, delinquent girlfriend.
"Punk Rock Girl" was written several years prior to its recording, primarily by Genaro and Schulthise. Genaro had just graduated from Temple University and was working in its library when a musician friend spoke about wanting to write a punk rock-inflected nursery rhyme. Using this as his basis melodically, Genaro wrote much of the song but stalled when running out of words that rhymed with "girl". He enlisted the assistance of Schulthise, who contributed a reference to comedian Minnie Pearl, as well as the word "beau". The two were uncertain it would fit within the Dead Milkmen's catalogue, and took to performing it within a side project they called Ornamental Wigwam. They received positive responses from audiences, who suggested they...
"Punk Rock Girl" has alternately been described as a pop punk and comedy rock song. The story of the song is penned from the perspective of a character who is not interested in punk rock music, only a punk rock girlfriend. Genaro describes the protagonist as a "middle of the road" kid who just wants to "walk on the wild side". In the song, the narrator meets the titular girl one Saturday evening, and launches "into a series of boredom-avoiding, punk-themed adventures with her". The song references several locations from the band's hometown of Philadelphia: the couple meet at Zipperhead, a legendary counterculture clothing store in the city. From there, they venture to the Philadelphia Pizza Company, a real-life pizza shop open at the time...
Eventually, the song was recorded for the band's fourth album, Beelzebubba (1988). It was produced by friend Brian Beattie, and recorded at Arlyn Studios in Austin, Texas. The group had forged a friendship with the producer over the years, having hosted each other when performing in the band's hometown of Philadelphia, and in Texas, where Beattie resided. They had previously worked with the producer on their last album, Bucky Fellini (1987). The album was recorded over the period of a month, during which the group rented a home with a pool, which made them "[feel] like rock stars." The album was largely recorded live in the studio's main tracking room, with vocals overdubbed in one week later. Mike Stewart engineered the sessions, and was...
The "gritty" and "low-budget" music video was partially filmed at the abandoned Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia. Parts of the video were filmed at Zipperhead, "a popular counterculture store on Philly's South Street" which is mentioned in the song. The video features several shots of a Nagra IV-S reel-to-reel tape deck, including the opening sequence of a closeup of the deck being switched to play, a wide shot of the band waiting for the music to begin, and a closeup of the deck's level meter jumping as the song starts. It was directed by Adam Bernstein.