Hardcore punk

Hardcore punk (or hardcore) is an intensified version of punk rock usually characterized by short, loud, and often angry songs with exceptionally fast tempos and chord changes.

Influence

Hardcore had a huge influence on other forms of rock music, especially in America. The San-Francisco-based heavy metal band Metallica were among the first crossover artists (circa 1982-83), incorporating the compositional structure and technical proficiency of metal with the speed and aggression of hardcore (Metallica would eventually cover three Misfits songs). Venom were another very early crossover band, as were Hellhammer and Slayer. The new style became known as Thrash metal -- or, alternatively, Speed metal, although this term came later (another transitional term was 'Speedcore'), and soon became a trend, including other bands such as Megadeth and Anthrax.

Related Topics:
Rock music - Heavy metal - Metallica - Misfits - Venom - Hellhammer - Slayer - Thrash metal - Speed metal - Megadeth - Anthrax

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The rising influence of heavy-metal in the hardcore scene was much to the dismay of some (especially veteran) hardcore punks, who felt that the hardcore bands who were crossing over to metal styles (the Boston scene had gone over en masse, circa 1984, while other bands such as Corrosion of Conformity, from Raleigh, North Carolina, gained prominence through popularity among metal fans) were selling out to some of the very sensibilities that hardcore had organized against -- as well as taking umbrage at headbangers who, they believed, were making a travesty of something that others had built. Veterans remembered that only a couple of years earlier, they were being attacked on the streets by hostile metalheads. Suddenly, those very people were, veterans thought, attempting to co-opt hardcore. Moreoever, it was believed by these die-hard hardcore punks that these new long-haired intepreters of hardcore were merely engaging in contrivance and attempting to mimic emotions, such as raw anger, that they truly did not feel.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1985, New York's Stormtroopers of Death, an Anthrax side project, released the extremely popular album, Speak English or Die. Though it bore similarities to Thrash metal, such as a characteristic bass-heavy guitar sound, and fast tempos and chord changes, the album was distinguished from Thrash metal in its lack of guitar solos and heavy use of crunchy chord breakdowns (a New York hardcore technique) known as "mosh parts". Other bands, most notably Suicidal Tendencies (from Los Angeles), and DRI (from Austin, Texas), played music similar to that of Stormtroopers of Death, eventually resulting in it being dubbed Crossover.

Related Topics:
1985 - New York's - Stormtroopers of Death - Speak English or Die - Mosh - Suicidal Tendencies - DRI - Crossover

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Grunge was also heavily influenced by Hardcore. In this case, the sense of liberation that many of the grunge bands felt, that you didn't have to be the world's greatest musician to form a band, was at least as important as the music. Even though the early grunge sound was more influenced by Black Sabbath and Black Flag's My War album than hardcore punkrock, bands like Mudhoney and Nirvana would go on to take the sound into punk territory. In fact, Kurt Cobain once described Nirvana's sound as "The Knack and The Bay City Rollers being molested by Black Flag and Black Sabbath". This ultimately resulted in renewed interest in American Hardcore in the '90s.

Related Topics:
Grunge - Black Sabbath - My War - Mudhoney - Nirvana - Kurt Cobain - The Knack - The Bay City Rollers

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the early '90s, bands like NOFX and Bad Religion achieved varying levels of mainstream success, though both NOFX and Bad Religion had been around since the early '80s. They added catchy melodies and anthemic choruses to the Hardcore template whilst removing much of the aggression and anger that had been the genre's trademark. Though NOFX and Bad Religion are generally accepted as authentic by fans of Hardcore punk, other bands that towed a poppier line, such as Green Day and blink 182, are often regarded as sellout. Bands that retained the aggression of '80s Hardcore into the '90s include The Distillers (although musically far closer to acts like The Pretenders or Patti Smith than to Minor Threat or even Black Flag), The Dwarves and Zero Bullshit. Many early hardcore bands have regrouped.

Related Topics:
NOFX - Bad Religion - Poppier line - Green Day - Blink 182 - Sellout - The Distillers - The Pretenders - Patti Smith - The Dwarves - Zero Bullshit

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Hardcore punk scene had an influence that spread far beyond music. The straight edge philosophy was rooted in Hardcore and still exists today, though by no means were all Hardcore punks straight edgers.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

(The popularity of straight edge in the hardcore scene was greater in the eastern U.S. than in the west.)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Hardcore also put a great emphasis on the DIY punk ethic, with many bands making their own records, flyers, and other items, and booking their own tours through an informal network of like-minded people. Radical environmentalism and veganism found their first popular expressions in the Hardcore scene.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~