Hot Topic is NOT Punk Rock lyrics

Dan and I were out geocaching on Sunday and heard this song on the radio. You can download it on their Myspace page and I encourage you to do so. Since Hot Topic is celebrating “30 Years of Punk” on their website, this seems all the more appropriate. So here you have it. I couldn’t find these lyrics anywhere via Google, so I’ve transcribed the song for the pleasure of the web. The one line that is marked in red is the line I wasn’t 100% sure about. Anyone with suggestions?

UPDATE! – knomat chimes in with the actual line… corrected below.

MC Lars – Hot Topic is NOT Punk Rock

(MC Lars is more punk than you)

Go! Books about Evanescence (Are not punk rock!)
Guns ‘n Roses watches (Are not punk rock!)
Hello Kitty iPod cases (Are not punk rock!)
Rob Zombie lunch boxes (Are not punk rock!)
Slipknot binder paper (Is not punk rock!)
Tinkerbell pillow cases (Are not punk rock!)
Led Zeppelin air fresheners (Are not punk rock!)
Tupac incense burners (Are not punk rock!)

Hot Topic is not punk rock! (Hot Topic!)
Hot Topic is not punk rock! (Hot Topic!)
Hot Topic is not punk rock! (Hot Topic!)
Hot Topic is not punk rock! (Hot Topic!)

Misfits candle tins (Are not punk rock!)
ICP throw blankets (Are not punk rock!)
Beaded Elvis curtains (Are not punk rock!)
Talking Lambchop plush dolls (Are not punk rock!)
AC/DC hair clips (Are not punk rock!)
Spongebob wristbands (Are not punk rock!)
Sex Pistols boxer shorts (Are not punk rock!)
Disco back catalog (Okay. Maybe that’s punk rock.)
Dischord back catalog (Okay. Maybe that’s punk rock.)

Hot Topic is not punk rock! (Hot Topic!)
Hot Topic is not punk rock! (Hot Topic!)
Hot Topic is not punk rock! (Hot Topic!)
Hot Topic is not punk rock! (Hot Topic!)

Hot Topic is a contrived identification with youth subcultures to manufacture an anti-authoritarian identity and make millions. The $8 you paid for the Mudvayne poster would be better spent used to see your brother’s friend’s band.

DIY ethics are punk rock
Starting your own label is punk rock
G.G. Allin was punk rock.

But when a crass corporate vulture feeds on mass-consumer culture, this spending mommy’s money is not punk rock!

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118 Responses to Hot Topic is NOT Punk Rock lyrics

  1. Haley says:

    after listening to this song my opinion on hot topic has totally changed cuz… HOT TOPIC IS NOT PUNK ROCK!!! THIS SONG ROXXX!!!

  2. AxsDeny says:

    The youth of today aren’t impressionable at all, are they?

  3. Sam says:

    Being British I don’t have first hand experience of Hot Topic, however I had the opportunity to hear the MC Lars album with this song on recently and was pleasantly surprised to discover that every song on the album makes an intelligent and eloquent observation.

    The the choice to buy into this kind of farcical pseudo-anti-authoritarian sub-culture that these shops service stands with the people and not with the shops that service them

    It seems a pitty that the observation made by this song, which is entirely correct – “Hot Topic is a contrived identification with youth subcultures to manufacture an anti-authoritarian identity and make millions.” – has been interpreted as a dig at the shops rather than peoples inability to make that judgment.

    but then of course I’m not punk rock. 😉

  4. AxsDeny says:

    Sam, that’s the smartest thing anyone has said on this thread. The sheep that want to be “different” (by being the same as all their other friends) have a need for these goods. They just seem to overlook the irony in what they are doing and how they are living their life. Capitalism is not punk rock. These kids just don’t see that.

    I have to agree with the sentiment on MC Lars. I have a bunch of his stuff and he is quite talented in making intelligent rock/rap that has a good beat, but also has interesting lyrical content.

  5. AxyDeny, shutup says:

    I love this song. I hate that song, and the stupid emos that shop there. Hot Topic, burn to the ground.

  6. AxyDeny, shutup says:

    Sorry, I meant the store* not song…

  7. i am not punk rok says:

    just a fun little tid bit while i was doing an economics project in high school i discoverd that Hot Topic is… OWNED BY GAP!!!!!!!!
    unpon this revelation i imeadiately stopped shopping ther (having sworn never to set foot in The Gap this was just too close) X(

  8. i am not punk rok says:

    oh yeah emo rocks biatches

    LOL AxsDeny, shutup, your gonna get kicked or removed 😛

  9. i am not punk rok says:

    one more thing doing or thinking or beliving what u want to regardless of wether people think it’s punk rock or not, IS PUNK ROCK!!!

  10. AxsDeny says:

    Wow.

  11. ElieROcks says:

    led zeppelin is definitely not punk rock doi!!! its heavymetal dude!!

  12. Broken little bunny says:

    Narota, slander is spoken while libel is published. Hot Topic would sue for libel. And while it would be fun to watch, they would lose. They would have to prove a lot. 1: That it isn’t true. Suing over it would definitely make it true. 2: That it wasn’t opinion or puffery. This would require some scale of points that would determine what is and is not punk rock. Creation of this scale would once again put them on the “not punk rock” side. 3: They’d have to prove being “not punk rock” hurt their business, which no analysis would touch. 4: They’d have to prove it wasn’t covered by free speech, which wouldn’t go well either.

    And even playing the song in their stores wouldn’t be punk; it’d just be another way of slapping the mallcore kids in the face with their own ignorance. Much like you did to yourself by posting.

    And emo bashing is stupid. Whether it’s coming from someone who thinks of a movie when they hear Jawbreaker or directed at a whiny kid who has never heard of Sunny Day Real Estate, at least these kids are trying. That’s better for music than all those years of American Idol, Limp Bizkit, Nickleback, and all that other crap that ends up processed, sealed, and mass marketed.

  13. !.Ryo.! says:

    I fecking love this song. I saw it performed by MC Lars and The Matches the other night. i couldnt stop laughing.

  14. !.Ryo.! says:

    oh and just so everyone knows, they sell a shirt that says MC Lars on the front and “hot topic is not punk rock” on the back AT Hot Topic, i find the irony quite funny myself.

  15. Whatawaste says:

    They played this song in a Hot Topic I was walking through. The staff in there love this song. I find this halarious.

  16. MCR says:

    MCR rocks i heard them playing helena and everybody waqs dancing to it

  17. ilovelemurs says:

    my mom(who is about as punk rock as hot topic)and i love this song. ps-I personally think that vivaldi violin concertos are kinda punk rock, but I’m an abstract thinker.

  18. z0mg@!! says:

    lolz so I hAt3 em0 kidzz t0o!@ i wAnt t0 kiLl AlL th3 em0 pe3pZZ!>? 0mgzorz

    anyway. everyone just shut up about emo. just avoid the topic at all times. never talk about it. it is fake and you are fake for hating it. and here I am talking about it. sorry.
    anyway, hot topic is there to make money- you said it lars! (who is mc lars). this song really is fun though.

  19. z0mg@!! says:

    oh, and broken little bunny: i’m not quite sure what you’re talking about..though i’m sure it makes sense to you. i think i agree with you sort of? halfway?

  20. z0mg@!! says:

    haha, axsdeny: capitalism is not punk rock. well..i mean. i guess. except it sounded like you were promoting communism or something. except wait. capitalism is just capitalism, capitalism is not being ignorant and buying ridiculous items to seem incredibly skilled and awesome. but hey, you gotta give it to the people who buy these ridiculous items in shops everywhere around the world and keep our economy running. (a little far-reaching, yes i know..but not too much).

  21. AxsDeny says:

    I did no such thing. I am saying that buying things that are mass produced and marketed in an anti-establishment fashion can never be punk rock. Communism is not punk rock. Actually being anti-establishment is punk rock.

  22. z0mg@!! says:

    haha. i didn’t actually think you were promoting communism, seriously. i think that being anti-establishment is just being anti-establisment. wait. is that really what punk rock is? because that is really lame. unless the current establisment really sucks, (which, well..it does), then being anti-establishment is just another lame way to make someone feel good about themselves, you know?
    this blogging thing is killing me. i really must stop. i feel sick inside. we should probably all be discussing greenpeace and eating vegetables right now.

  23. Victoria says:

    I heard that Hot Topic is owned by the Gap. True?

  24. AxsDeny says:

    From what I can tell, they seem to be an independant company. Their stock market ticker ID is HOTT, which is actually quite amusing.

  25. sundays. says:

    scene girls are annoying w. there ugly mullets. ahaha trends ther so stupid.

  26. Matt says:

    Apparently our schools aren’t teaching English anymore.

  27. someone says:

    Haha. I totally agree, Matt. You ought to tell that to z0mg@!! in particular. Oh, and to z0mg@!! : I’m sorry, but nothing you say makes ANY sense whatsoever…

  28. GRRRMoe says:

    i love this song! i’ve been saying hot topic was bullshit since it first opened. i’m glad somebody else has caught onto the fact that all the children who want to be “different” who shop at Hot Topic all have the same “vintage” band tee’s, and have the same lame haircuts, and all of the stupid heartagrams drawn on their hands because Bam Margera says HIM is cool. Those kids nothing but a waste to society.

  29. rrrrrrrrush says:

    I, for one, completely recognize the irony present in my following statement, I just got on this subject due to the fact that I witnessed this song played live last night and have come to the conclusion that MC Lars is a pretty cool guy: People spending time on the internet debating over whether what a popular musician says disputes the “category” they fit into in the social scheme of things present in the current society just to justify the little security they have with their identity and how other people praise them for it IS NOT FUCKING PUNK ROCK. and, just so you know, punks not dead and neither is hiphop so listen to some musik that gives you that feeling inside your stomach and makes you want to go change the world. Whether its Mahler, GG Allin, Django Reinhardt, the circle jerks, greek folk musik or whatever, you decide whether its really important to be classified as punk rock. (if you are reading this, sorry about my little rant, its just a bit of a weight I’ve needed to get off of my shoulders for a couple of years now.) No fuck that, I dont need to apologize for my opinion and I don’t even see why it was an instinct to try and sensitize what I had to say by making it seem that I doubted myself. I hope you have learned something about yourself from reading this, don’t let the media consume your individual thought. After all, everything is propaganda and you just have to pick the side you’re on. Am I a lexicon devil? you ecide

  30. digdog13 says:

    Thanks for the lyrics; great song. How about a big f*** you to the man who pretty much single-handedly sold out punk counterculture to the highest corporate bidders. Tony Hawk is not punk rock!

  31. ryan says:

    awesome song, but mc lars isnt punk rock either. hes a hpocritde. he went on tour w/ simple plan. wt a loser. but, this song is totally true, cuz those emo bastards r ruining true punk rock.

  32. AxsDeny says:

    When does MC Lars ever mention emo in this song?

  33. Metallica says:

    Who says punk rock is superior? Nobody. That is an opinion, and some prefer the “Emo” or “Metal” over “punk rock”, and In the opinions of others, punk rock can die. Not my opinion, but to many out there.

  34. debase says:

    grrmoe is a piece of **** i do shop at hot topic but still… doesnt mean im a waste to society… i dont draw any heartograms on my hand…just cause i listen to that type of music doesn\’t mean I\’M a waste to society … [editor\’s not: heavily edited for content]

  35. Macabre says:

    THANK GOD SOMEONE FINALLY SAID HELLO KITTY IS NOT COOL!!!!

    TUPAC IS NOT PUNK ROCK NIETHER IS ELVIS THIS SONG I LOVE IT!!

    Typing in caps is not punk rock, uh oh I’m a hypocrite pfffffffttttttttt. Love those last lines too mmmm thanks for the lyrics

  36. GRRRMoe says:

    debase:

    I have no problem if you like the music, like whatever you please. The reason why i mentioned HIM was because, all these 14 year olds are like in love with their music now because Bam Margera said it was cool. you should like the music because you do, not because someone tells you it’s his favorite band.

    2nd: I said whiney 12 year olds who fit that description in which i described, are the kids who are a waste to society. The kids who have the same plaid bondage pants on, with the same black shirt that reads “I need medication”, and wear the heartagram wrist bands, just like the rest of their friends, are the biggest losers of them all. If you fit that mold, then i just feel sorry for you.

  37. Pingback: Affording the Rock-n-Roll Lifestyle » Blog Archive » Better Late than Never

  38. Heero2077 says:

    You guys realize this guy has had his albums and shirts sold at Hot Topic right? $20 MC Lars T-Shirts aren’t punk rock. I don’t think writing a song ABOUT punk rock is very punk rock, actually.

  39. AxsDeny says:

    They adopted selling his merch after this song was popularized. It was an attempt by Hot Topic to adopt and embrace the negativity of the song.

  40. Linda says:

    Caring about what punk rock is, isn’t very punk rock either. I just don’t care about what the fashion is, if the establishment has something I like, I buy it, if they don’t I don’t and I’ll find something I do like. I like this song, a lot. Most of the ‘scene’ kids don’t realise how very unoriginal they are. I went to a Panic! at the disco concert, and most of the kids there all looked the same. I really had the urge to shout out:”Haha, look at all of you being ‘different'” but I didn’t, because I was raised to be nice. Living in The Netherlands, I’ve never been in a Hop Topic-store, but I’d like to go there if I ever go to America, it sounds like they have a lot of cool stuff!

  41. Linda says:

    Hot Topic store, sry

  42. katchaw says:

    Products made at Hot Topic often sport the “MADE IN CHINA” tag. So it is safe to asume that these products are manufactured in third-world countries that exploit children by the use of sweatshops. Hot Topic, as this song states, is obviously going for a rebellious, often “punk” image. Punk used to be about actually thinking for yourself, and saying NO to large corporations that trample on human rights for their own benefit. So even if you claim that you only shopt at Hot Topic every once in a while, keep in mind that by doing so you are supporting child labor by giving your money to the corporations that practice it.

  43. mike says:

    it’s “hot topic USES contrived identification…” not “hot topic IS A contrived identification… there is really a big difference. but all in all fuck hot topic there a bunch of hors so, much so that they even sell the CD that has that song on it!!!!

  44. anthony says:

    I saw an MC Lars t-shirt at hot topic! WTF?

  45. Gina says:

    writing a song about how not punk rock something is \’not punk rock!\’ losers. btw when sex pistols stuff, or whatever your talking about they are lisensed by the band so if i buy a sex pistols shirt from hot topic or if i buy a shirt from some diy punk store it\’s still the same band who cares. punk doesn\’t have guidelines .. loserssss

  46. knomat. says:

    I smell a dead horse.

  47. Amryn says:

    Being yourself and giving the middle finger to The Man and anyone else who gets in the way of you being you…That, my friends, is punk rock.

  48. mercedes says:

    OMG i m f’s like realy they are not punk rock but it is punk holy s.h.i.t. like really and y don’t u tell the ppl that yourself they might like to hear wat u have to say to make it more punk rck

  49. Jen says:

    Okay, so I admit that I’ve shopped from hot topic in the past. But I agree with some of these people, about the kids who “think they’re different” by shopping there, as if that means anything. Being “scene/punk/goth/emo” is becoming a fashion, even though that is totally contradictory and hypocritical, because “that’s what they DIDN’T want…to be labeled.” Or some such crap. I happen to love the band who co-wrote this song, and I think they even sell their new record (I’m not positive, here.) at Hot Topic. YOU PEOPLE FORGET This is the media. They do whatever they want. They can say hot topic isn’t punk rock, but do you really know for sure if they mean it?

  50. chelsea says:

    THIS SONG IS F@ÂŽKIN PUNK ROCK!! IM F@ÂŽKIN PUNK ROCK…TILL THE DAY I DIE.

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