Origins of Hardcore Punk

Origins of Hardcore Punk

Hardcore Punk originated in the late 70's; bands such as Bad Brains, Dead Kennedys, and Black Flag picked up the simplistic playing style and political lyrics of previous British punk bands such as the Clash and the Sex Pistols, as well as American punk bands such as the Ramones. Along with this they also took influences from British heavy metal from bands such as Motörhead, Judas Priest, and Iron Maiden. These bands would then go on to greatly increase the tempo, adding highly distorted driving guitar riffs and drumbeats, as well as typically a yelling vocal style, creating a new, frenzied style of music.

Black Flag Performing in 1984

There were four seminal cities throughout America in which Hardcore Punk existed and progressed in their own separate bubbles. These cities were Los Angles, San Francisco, Washington D.C. Los Angles was home to some of the very first Hardcore Punk recordings, two EPs were released in January of 1979; Middle Class- Out of Vogue and Black Flag- Nervous Breakdown. These releases paved the way for the Hardcore Punk style as records were extremely important for the Hardcore Punk scene at the time as it allowed the distribution of music to different cities throughout the US. Shortly after these releases, many either bands either formed or changed their style to a more Hardcore sound. Bands like Fear(1977), the Germs(1977), and the Circle Jerks(1979) all came into form around this time and went on to shape the sound of Hardcore Punk. Other bands formed in Los Angles at a later date include Bad Religion, Suicidal Tendencies, the Adolescents and Wasted Youth.

San Francisco had a comparatively smaller scene to Los Angles, though there were some majorly

The Dead Kennedys Performing in 1983

influential bands located there. The main band in the San Francisco scene was the Dead Kennedys, who had taken heavy influence from Black Flag when they formed 1978. Originally they played classic punk, but progressed to a much faster and aggressive style of playing in 1981 with their release of the In God We Trust, Inc EP. Some other notable bands that were from the San Francisco area were Crucifix and Whipping Boy. Other bands also moved to the San Francisco area to be part of the scene, such as D.R.I, Millions of Dead Cops and Verbal Abuse.

Bad Brains Performing in 1982

In Washington D.C there were two main influential bands. The first band, Bad Brains, formed in 1977  as a Jazz band but later developed the faster and rougher sound of hardcore punk, whilst still adding
elements of jazz and reggae into their music. Their music is very unique in the genre by incorporating many other genres as well as more complex rhythms and riffs. The other influential band from DC area was Minor Threat, who themselves were influences by Bad Brains. Formed in 1980, Minor Threat

Minor Threat Performing in 1983

were one of the last bands to define the hardcore punk sound, creating a standard for later hardcore punk recordings to come. Whilst similar to other hardcore punk recordings for the time, Minor Threat sped up the sound and created even faster music, as well being one of the first bands to utilise shouted vocals rather than singing. Minor Threat also started the 'straight-edge' movement in punk, promoting sobriety and critical thinking as opposed to the common drinking and substance abuse that occurred in the punk scene. Other bands to adopt the straight-edge policy were 7 Seconds and SS Decontrol.

Some of the most influential records in hardcore were Bad Brains- Bad Brains, Minor Threat- Minor Threat, Black Flag- Damaged, Dead Kennedys- Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables, Germs- (GI), and Middle Class- Out of Vogue.

The Guardian. 2018. From Bad Brains to Cerebral Ballzy: why hardcore will never die | Music | The Guardian. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/nov/20/hardcore-music-hard-fast-us-punk-rock. [Accessed 01 May 2018].

YouTube. 2018. American Hardcore | The History of American Punk Rock - Full Documentary [2006] - YouTube. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjpMD-U-q1U. [Accessed 01 May 2018].

ThoughtCo. 2018. Hardcore Punk: Defining Musical Genres. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.thoughtco.com/hardcore-punk-music-2803394. [Accessed 01 May 2018].