Punk rock may have started in the United Kingdom and United States but it certainly didn't stay in either country. The genre flew around the globe like a contagion, touching off simultaneous movements in nearly every market imaginable: Japan, Yugoslavia, the Philippines, South Africa, New Zealand, Chile, Mexico, Poland, Burma, Singapore, and Turkey, among countless others. Performing punk rock in many of these places wasn't just rebellious, it was legitimately dangerous, thanks to regimes far more oppressive and brutal than what existed in the West.

Brave Punk World immerses readers in these foreign scenes, describing the lifestyles and art of passionate, hard-charging groups who remain secret to the punk majority but who are just as crucial as the Ramones or the Sex Pistols. James Greene, Jr. explores Brazilian bands like Ulster who angrily protested and openly mocked their region's cruel dictatorship, Germans such as Slime who see many of their songs still banned to this day, the Algerian-by-way-of-France performers Carte de Séjour who had an alleged hand in inspiring the landmark Clash hit "Rock The Casbah," and a galaxy of other punk groups from more exotic locales.

Punk diehards and travel enthusiasts with a taste for chaos will enjoy the country-by-country cultural explorations and wild stories offered within these pages.

JAMES GREENE, JR. has previously written three books: Brave Punk World: The International Rock Underground from Alerta Roja to Z-Off, This Music Leaves Stains: The Complete Story of The Misfits, and A Convenient Parallel Dimension: How Ghostbusters Slimed Us Forever. As a freelance writer, he has contributed to such publications as New York Press, Orlando Weekly, Crawdaddy!, and No Recess!. He lives near Ding Dong, Texas.

Part I: Asia
Heaven's Penis: JapanBe the Change: IndiaThe Tank Girl(s): NepalHowlin' Pinoy Chaos: PhilippinesWhat They Eat Is Conscience: ChinaGeeks, Nuts, & Burgled Meat: South Korea
Part II: The U.S.S.R. & The Eastern Bloc
We Expect Uncle Death: EstoniaNever Mind the Bolsheviks: RussiaCareful Thought Won't Harm Even a Chicken: CzechoslovakiaI Would Love to Rip Your Ears Off: HungaryGrey Reality: PolandNo Borders, No Time Limits: YugoslaviaBullenschweine: East Germany
Part III: Western Europe
With My Finger in Your Ass: West GermanyGet Out of My Pocket: AustriaWho Do You Think You Are?: BelgiumPulse of Life: FinlandTranscending Decay & Corruption: FranceRock Right Context: IcelandNot to be Dying: ItalyNothing Can Go Wrong: NetherlandMilkmaids & Murder: NorwayMany Police, Little Fun: SpainWe're Only in It for the Drugs: Sweden
Part IV: Africa
Smoke That Thunders: ZambiaRock n' Raï: AlgeriaInternational News: South Africa
Part V: Central & South America
Who Lives?: PeruRandom Punk Rock Chupaderos: El SalvadorIf There Is Something to Be Saved It's the Youth: ArgentinaNo Split between God and the Devil: BrazilWe Do Not Need Flags: ChileVultures, Invaders, Stomachs: Uruguay
Part VI: North America
Poets of Noise: MexicoHeads, Shitheads, and Dishrags: CanadaDeath Is a Door: Cuba
vii. Oceania
New Centre of the Universe: AustraliaYour Name Maketh It: New Zealand
Selected Discography