by David Vila Diéguez
PM Press
12/9/2025, paperback
SKU: 9798887441047
What does democracy sound like when it's shouted through a distortion pedal?
In 1975, Spain emerged from the long shadow of Franco's dictatorship, stumbling toward democracy amid uncertainty, unrest, and unhealed wounds. In the same moment, a raw, raucous, and radically irreverent cultural force exploded onto the scene: punk.
Spanish Punk: Screaming for Democracy in a Postdictatorial State is the first in-depth study to trace the uniquely political trajectory of punk in post-Franco Spain. Far from just a musical genre, Spanish punk became a rebellious cultural matrix--a defiant, DIY response to the contradictions of a state trying to reinvent itself. Through fanzines, lyrics, testimonies, and subcultural style, punks posed urgent questions: What kind of democracy was being built? Who was being left out? And how do you scream dissent in a newly "free" society?
Blending historical, philosophical, musicological, and textual analysis, this book shows how punk served as both a glue for oppositional movements and a generator of alternative political identities. It's a long-overdue exploration of how cultural resistance helped shape a generation's answer to dictatorship--and its uneasy aftermath.
With a Foreword by Isabela Raygoza.
Reviews:
"Spanish punk, grown from anti-fascist roots, quickly outgrew its initial music into its own politically relevant culture. Spanish Punk: Screaming for Democracy in a Post-Dictatorial State examines the political significance of punk in Spain, challenging those who tried to reduce the repressed youth and marginalized as apolitical nihilists. This book is a study that looks broadly at the messages, artifacts, and personal testimonies through theoretical and analytical lenses. Especially relevant to punks worldwide witnessing the rise of rightwing populism, Spanish Punk is a timely, historic, thrilling read. Up the reading punks!"--Jessica Mills, author of My Mother Wears Combat Boots: A Parenting Guide for the Rest of Us
"Spanish Punk should prove a fascinating read for anyone interested in punk beyond the well-documented US and UK contributions to the subculture. Focusing on post-Franco Spain, David Vila Diéguez weaves musicology, philosophy, and historical contexts into a compelling tapestry of a punk movement that emerged in the wake of literal fascism. He describes the sociopolitical and economic climate, breaks down lyrics, and even goes so far as to analyze album art as one might a painting. Vila Diéguez's approach is academic, intellectual, and, most importantly, captivating." --Kyle Decker, author of This Rancid Mill
"Too few books about music consider the relationship between music and the state. This relationship is nonetheless of great significance. It is expressed in patriotic anthems and martial hymns, of course. But the relationship between music and state is also one of intense rivalry because music challenges the state's claims to legitimacy, mocking its pomposity, ridiculing its hypocrisy and, in some cases, calling for its overthrow. David Vila Diéguez has written a book that takes this relationship very seriously indeed, providing abundant evidence and fascinating documentation to support his claim that music can, and will, be a crucial component of revolutionary struggle. I recommend it highly." --Mat Callahan, author of The Explosion of Deferred Dreams
About the Contributors:
David Vila Diéguez is a musician, filmmaker, and scholar specializing in around Hispanic popular music and cultural studies. He grew up between the Basque Country and Galicia. He currently holds a professorship at California State University, Monterey Bay. He is one of the founding members of the cultural magazine Furman217 and the singer of the Latinx alternative band the Rumba Madre. Their album Prisiones y Fugaswas chosen as one of the best albums of 2020 by AllMusic, and he is always actively playing all over the world. He wrote an award-winning script for a long-form musical film based on the Rumba Madre's second album, Apropiaciones Culturales V.2.
Isabela Raygoza is the associate editor for Billboard Español and a leading voice in Latin music, with nearly fifteen years of industry experience. Raised in the San Diego/Tijuana border region, she is based in New York City and joined Billboard full-time in 2022. She earned a bachelor's degree in interdisciplinary studies from UC Berkeley and a master's degree in media, culture, and communication from NYU.