--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: By the time I was 18, I had absorbed punk…" description: "\"By the time I was 18, I had absorbed punk rock from America, Britain, and the West Coast. All of it was so dark and weird and different and cool and ho..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/michael-stipe-6714_air_by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk_863104.jpg" --- # By the time I was 18, I had absorbed punk rock from… ![“By the time I was 18, I had absorbed punk rock from America, Britain, and the West Coast. All of it was so dark and weird and different and cool and hot and sexy and rebellious. It was a fist-in-the-air kind of rebellion that I wasn't getting from the '70s mainstream.” quote by Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/michael-stipe-6714_air_by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk_863104.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/michael-stipe-6714_air_by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk_863104.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/michael-stipe-6714_air_by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk_863104.jpg) > “By the time I was 18, I had absorbed punk rock from America, Britain, and the West Coast. All of it was so dark and weird and different and cool and hot and sexy and rebellious. It was a fist-in-the-air kind of rebellion that I wasn't getting from the '70s mainstream.” [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Punk rock offered a raw, rebellious energy that contrasted sharply with mainstream 70s culture. **In simple terms:** Punk was rebellious and distinct. Key Takeaway Embrace authentic, unconventional influences. Themes music rebellion culture identity Mood energetic nostalgic Type cultural musical When to use this quote - personal style - creative projects - social movements Key Concepts subcultural theory aesthetic rebellion Questions to Reflect On - How does rebellion shape personal identity? - What risks come with rejecting mainstream norms? A Different Perspective Punk may alienate mainstream audiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Britain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/britain/) [Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) [Hot and sexy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hot-and-sexy/) [Mainstream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mainstream/) [Punk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/punk/) [Punk rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/punk-rock/) [Rebellion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rebellion/) [Rocks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rocks/) [Sexy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sexy/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [West coast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/west-coast/) ## Related quotes > [Experimental film by the '70s had become much more mainstream after 'Bonnie and Clyde' and stuff in the late '60s, when you were seeing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-hawley/experimental-film-by-the-70s-had-become-much-more-mainstream-after/) [Noah Hawley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-hawley/) > [Punk rock is very rebellious, of course, but it also means thinking for yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dexter-holland/punk-rock-is-very-rebellious-of-course-but-it-also-means-thinking-for/) [Dexter Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dexter-holland/) > [The music industry went through such a strange stretch in 1977, especially in this country, with the whole punk rock thing coming about. Punk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-winwood/the-music-industry-went-through-such-a-strange-stretch-in-1977/) [Steve Winwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-winwood/) > [My personal style is eclectic, I would say. I always like to mix and match things. Uh, but the thing is that it changes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crystal-reed/my-personal-style-is-eclectic-i-would-say-i-always-like-to-mix-and/) [Crystal Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crystal-reed/) > [“The American's literature is all about being hot and sexy, inspiring a girl and going to bed with her. It focuses on being a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/the-american-s-literature-is-all-about-being-hot-and-sexy-inspiring-a/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [“I didn’t hear you,” I spoke directly into his ear, hoping my voice was husky and alluring, but most likely wind-whipped and warbled. “I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade-hart/i-didn-t-hear-you-i-spoke-directly-into-his-ear-hoping-my-voice-was/) Jade Hart > [People think updos are so hard, but theyre not. Your hair should look tousled and undone. If Im in a mood to go out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-simpson/people-think-updos-are-so-hard-but-theyre-not-your-hair-should-look/) [Jessica Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-simpson/) > [I wanted to look cute, hot and sexy all at the same time in 'Bigg Boss!' How else will the Bollywood producers cast me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sana-khan/i-wanted-to-look-cute-hot-and-sexy-all-at-the-same-time-in-bigg-boss/) [Sana Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sana-khan/) > [It's not that I don't see myself as hot and sexy. Don't get me wrong. No, it's not that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyra-sedgwick/it-s-not-that-i-don-t-see-myself-as-hot-and-sexy-don-t-get-me-wrong/) [Kyra Sedgwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyra-sedgwick/) > [It's that I'm 39. I feel hot and sexy, actually... I feel it inside myself. I don't feel dried up and tired and no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyra-sedgwick/it-s-that-i-m-39-i-feel-hot-and-sexy-actually-i-feel-it-inside-myself/) [Kyra Sedgwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyra-sedgwick/) > [I don't want people thinking of me sexually. I don't want people to be like, 'She's hot-looking,' you know? I want them to listen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-rodriguez/i-don-t-want-people-thinking-of-me-sexually-i-don-t-want-people-to-be/) [Michelle Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-rodriguez/) > [I think I'm a very pretty girl. I'm never going to pretend to think otherwise. There are even days I feel I'm fabulously hot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milla-jovovich/i-think-i-m-a-very-pretty-girl-i-m-never-going-to-pretend-to-think/) [Milla Jovovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milla-jovovich/) > [People think updos are so hard, but they're not. Your hair should look tousled and undone. If I'm in a mood to go out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-simpson/people-think-updos-are-so-hard-but-they-re-not-your-hair-should-look/) [Jessica Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-simpson/) > [There is always some madness in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/there-is-always-some-madness-in-love/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“I summon the courage to go for what I want. Having cancer has left me less afraid than I used to be. I’m painfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-s-force/i-summon-the-courage-to-go-for-what-i-want-having-cancer-has-left-me/) [M.S. Force](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-s-force/) ## More by Michael Stipe > [We don't get groupies.We get teenagers who want to read us their poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/we-don-t-get-groupies-we-get-teenagers-who-want-to-read-us-their/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [ At the \[teenage\] time, I did have an inkling of my sexuality. And I had an inkling that I was different from other people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/at-the-teenage-time-i-did-have-an-inkling-of-my-sexuality-and-i-had/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [I don't find R.E.M. to be nihilistic. There is a constant undertone of joyous optimism. I'm not going to kill myself to Patti Smith…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-don-t-find-r-e-m-to-be-nihilistic-there-is-a-constant-undertone-of/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [ I simply constructed a project to try to snap Kurt \[Cobain\] out of a frame of mind. I sent him a plane ticket and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-simply-constructed-a-project-to-try-to-snap-kurt-cobain-out-of-a/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [I was vulnerable every day. Every night that I stepped on stage I was laying myself open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-was-vulnerable-every-day-every-night-that-i-stepped-on-stage-i-was/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [We're absolutely American and distinctly so, I think. That's part of what people respond to outside of this country, part of the reason that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/we-re-absolutely-american-and-distinctly-so-i-think-that-s-part-of/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [ \[Columbia House\] magazines were how I found out about the punk world going on in New York. Because of what I read, at the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/columbia-house-magazines-were-how-i-found-out-about-the-punk-world/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [I'm tired of being this solemn poet of the masses, the enigma shrouded in a mystery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-m-tired-of-being-this-solemn-poet-of-the-masses-the-enigma-shrouded/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [Frankly I'm not great with heroin addicts. I tried heroin, but it was by accident. I'm not great with that level of substance abuse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/frankly-i-m-not-great-with-heroin-addicts-i-tried-heroin-but-it-was/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [The whole punk ethic was do-it-yourself, and I've always been very literal, especially as a kid. When they said that anybody can do this,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/the-whole-punk-ethic-was-do-it-yourself-and-i-ve-always-been-very/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [They spoke truth and a lot of people listened… that voice, Kurt we miss you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/they-spoke-truth-and-a-lot-of-people-listened-that-voice-kurt-we-miss/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [A wise man once said-'the skill in attending a party is knowing when it's time to leave,'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/a-wise-man-once-said-the-skill-in-attending-a-party-is-knowing-when/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [They always want me to play myself and that's a big snooze.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/they-always-want-me-to-play-myself-and-that-s-a-big-snooze/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [Anything you do as a group is fraught with compromise... But everyone 's got to do that, right? It's part of being a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/anything-you-do-as-a-group-is-fraught-with-compromise-but-everyone-s/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [To be called an elder statesman is so unbelievably insulting. Brad Pitt is exactly three years younger than me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/to-be-called-an-elder-statesman-is-so-unbelievably-insulting-brad/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) [Explore all 98 Michael Stipe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) ## More Air quotes > [I will be a tireless advocate for our District's defense priorities including Sheppard Air Force Base, Pantex, Bell Helicopter, universities conducting important research, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronny-jackson/i-will-be-a-tireless-advocate-for-our-district-s-defense-priorities/) [Ronny Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronny-jackson/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [If U.S. air, naval, missile, and ground forces were not in and around Korea, and if we were not treaty-bound to fight alongside South…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/if-u-s-air-naval-missile-and-ground-forces-were-not-in-and-around/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) > [The cooler days have brought a wistful mood upon him. The smell of coalsmoke in the air at night. Old times, dead years. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-cooler-days-have-brought-a-wistful-mood-upon-him-the-smell-of/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/) [Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/) > [I'm a candle flame that sways in currents of air you can't see. You need to be the one who steadies me to burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/i-m-a-candle-flame-that-sways-in-currents-of-air-you-can-t-see-you/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/) [Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/) > [After a few mouthfuls of moon-flavored air, even the stubbornly drowsy can find themselves wide-eyed.. All the normal noises of life were gone, leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/after-a-few-mouthfuls-of-moon-flavored-air-even-the-stubbornly-drowsy/) [N.D. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-d-wilson/) > [There was a little nook on Air Force Two that contained the vice presidential seal, and I would sort of wedge myself in there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-biden/there-was-a-little-nook-on-air-force-two-that-contained-the-vice/) [Jill Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-biden/) > [Words are substance strange. Speak one and the air ripples into another's ears. Write one and the eye laps it up. But the sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-beachy-quick/words-are-substance-strange-speak-one-and-the-air-ripples-into/) [Dan Beachy-Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-beachy-quick/) > [ \[A\]s you partake of the world's bill of fare, that's darned good advice to follow. Do a lot of spitting out the hot air.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-seuss/a-s-you-partake-of-the-world-s-bill-of-fare-that-s-darned-good-advice/) [Dr. Seuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-seuss/) > [...As the disparity between the rich and the poor grows, the fight to corner resources is intensifying. To push through their "sweetheart deals," to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/as-the-disparity-between-the-rich-and-the-poor-grows-the-fight-to/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Washington bureaucrats have classified the very air we exhale as a pollutant and have gone unchallenged in this incredible assertion. The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [“It is unnatural to fear something natural.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/it-is-unnatural-to-fear-something-natural/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) Browse all 6,278 Air quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "By the time I was 18, I had absorbed punk rock from America, Britain, and the West Coast. All of it was so dark and weird and different and cool and hot and sexy and rebellious. It was a fist-in-the-air kind of rebellion that I wasn't getting from the '70s mainstream.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Stipe" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk-rock-from-america-britain/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Air" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk-rock-from-america-britain/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/michael-stipe-6714_air_by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk_863104.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/michael-stipe-6714_air_by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk_863104.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/michael-stipe-6714_air_by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk_863104.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“By the time I was 18, I had absorbed punk rock from America, Britain, and the West Coast. All of it was so…” — Michael Stipe", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Michael Stipe", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "By the time I was 18,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk-rock-from-america-britain/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/by-the-time-i-was-18-i-had-absorbed-punk-rock-from-america-britain/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```