What are your favorite hardcore/oi/skater punk bands?

[horrorgirl]

I know that there are a few other people on here that like hardcore,etc..., punk. What are your favorite bands of that genre? I am not talking about Green Day or any of those cookie cutter 'pop-punk' bands so please do not mention them in this thread.

My all time favorites:

Misfits - I am talking about the Glenn Danzig era only. I have a purple fiend skull and the skeleton from Legacy Of Brutality tattooed on me so you can say that I am a big fan.

GBH - Colin has one of the best voices in punk and they are never afraid to be silly. Plus they were the first punk band I ever saw.

Exploited - A lot of people find them obnoxious but I like the fact that they have always sung about politics and have never backed down from that. 'Maggie' has got to be one of the best anti-politician songs ever written. HA! I have their skull tattoed on my shoulder. OI! OI! :-)

TSOL - They weren't afraid to change their sound even though their fans gave them a lot of crap for doing so. Those 'metal' albums put out under the TSOL name did not have anything to do with Jack Grisham so I ignore them. Jack,next to Jello, is one of the most intelligent people in punk. Jack let me sing all of Code Blue when I saw them live so he gets a huge thumbs up from me.

Dead Kennedys - They were one of the first punk bands I ever got into(88) and I missed seeing them by a year. *sobs* Brilliant band whose lyrics are STILL relevant today. Ignore all of that Dead Kennedys reunion crap going on. They are nothing without Jello. It's just like the Misfits without Glenn.

7 Seconds - Another band that I got into in high school. Walk Together,Rock Together was listened to every single skater back in the day and is a classic punk album. Their cover of 99 Red Balloons is da bomb. Their new album is very old school and just as good as their old stuff.

Subhumans - I love political punk and this band put out some of the best. The bass playing is phenominal and the lyrics intense.

Black Flag - I love every era of this band. Some purists deride the Rollins era but I think those albums are great. Loose Nut is the ultimate album to listen to if you have been dumped or fucked over by life. Some really awesome bass playing throughout.

I will probably come up with some more later.

[rockandrose]

I listen to a bit of punk once in a while.

How about the Sex Pistols and Rancid?

I would of loved to have experienced the punk era, which I think was short lived.

[horrorgirl]

I have never liked Rancid. They seem too contrived for my tastes. Armstrong has pretty much admitted that he is in it now for the money, so I have no respect for the man. It's a shame really, because I like Operation Ivy. I actually used to have a first printing of that album from Lookout but an ex took it.

I think too many kids these days put down the Pistols. Johnny, and the rest of the guys, actually risked their lives playing music. If they didn't care about the music at all then I think they would have quit after getting stabbed,etc...,for walking down the street. Plus, Johnny wrote all of the lyrics, which were pretty brilliant. I hate it when kids call them a 'fashion' band because they usually don't have a clue as to why punk music started in the first place. They are usually the same ones who worship Green Day...so go figure.

[Beowulf]

Horrorgirl,

I was wondering if crossover counts, as I like bands such as D.R.I, Suicidal Tendencies (up to 1990), Gang Green.

Do you listen to Discharge, I love this band.

[marianne faithfull]

Originally Posted by horrorgirl

I have never liked Rancid. They seem too contrived for my tastes. Armstrong has pretty much admitted that he is in it now for the money, so I have no respect for the man. It's a shame really, because I like Operation Ivy. I actually used to have a first printing of that album from Lookout but an ex took it.

I think too many kids these days put down the Pistols. Johnny, and the rest of the guys, actually risked their lives playing music. If they didn't care about the music at all then I think they would have quit after getting stabbed,etc...,for walking down the street. Plus, Johnny wrote all of the lyrics, which were pretty brilliant. I hate it when kids call them a 'fashion' band because they usually don't have a clue as to why punk music started in the first place. They are usually the same ones who worship Green Day...so go figure.

Without The Sex Postols there would be no punk.

[Binkie]

Agreed with Misfits, TSOL, and Dead Kennedys. Additional: Agent Orange, Zero Down, Ascension, Short of Breath, I Decline, Latex Generation, F.I.S.T. ( \m/ ), The Revolver Method, God Forbid, Neurosis (older stuff is still considered Hardcore), The Dickies, The Damned, amongst others.

[Blushing Heliophobe]

You did mention Oi and I'm not sure how 'corporate' you consider them - but I love Flogging Molly, Dropkick Murphys, and Black 47. There's a CD a friend lent me of Scottish punk that I adore but I don't even know who it is. I've heard of a band called Ducky Boys but haven't gotten around to getting my hands on any of their CDs. Heard of them?

[Loy]

I'd go back further and say "without the Velvet Underground there'd be no punk".

Rancid? Ewww....sorry, but they're the epitome of everything that made the little punk kids I knew drop out of the scene-giving something that was fun, free, and easy a bunch of rules to follow. "If you're really punk, you'd do this and this and blah blah blah.....", and thus why I maintain that the only musical movement that even comes close to what punk rock did is hip-hop.

As for best hardcore groups, here's my 2 cents-

Black Flag-OK, so once Rollins joined the band, they slid into a downward spiral of vapidity. Still, "Damaged" is one of the greatest albums ever....and come to think of it, there are a few moments on the Rollins albums that still justify buying them. However, if you wanna know why they were the shit and don't have a wayback machine that'll take you to see them live, get "Damaged" and "The First Four Years".

Circle Jerks-my favorite band to see live, these guys just kicked out the jams, and even when they got older, STILL fucking rocked the house. To Get-"Group Sex", "Golden Shower Of Hits", "Wild In The Streets", "VI"

Agnostic Front-Wanna talk angry? Yep, these guys had pissed-offness down to a T, and it bled through their music in a way that made it understandable, even if their best stuff came out whilst they were still nazis. "Victim In Pain", "Cause For Alarm", "And Justice For....", "Live At CBGBs"

The Adolescents-formed by the guitarist of Christian Death after getting sick of Rozz Williams whiny pretensions, the Adolescents were one of the few punk bands that you could play in any club and it still matched up. Get-"The Adolescents", "Bratz In Battallions", "Balboa Fun Zone"

Minor Threat-You knwo who they are-the band Ian MacKaye was in before he started this little group called Fugazi. Doesn't matter, though, "Out Of Step" is the "White Album" of the hardcore scene. Get-"Complete Discography"

Bad Brains-So even though the great majority of their album output wavers from excreable to horrid, they were fucking awesome live. The fact that they had no qualms tossing out the reggae with the speed makes their music that much more powerful (unlike when the Clash did it and ended up sounding worse than they normally did). And Even though most of their albums suck, there ARE two that are neccesary for every music collection. Get-"Rock For Light", "I Against I"

Blood Brothers-Seattle Screeching Sonic Test, the Blood Brothers combine passion, intelligence, and power in a way that'll either bowl you over or scare the living shit out of you. Even though hardcore is dead, these guys are happily pounding the nails in the coffin in a rythm that'll make you dance into the future gleefully. Get-"This Adultery Is Ripe", "March On Electric Children", "Burn, Piano Island Burn!", "Crimes"

[|BlackOps| Mindless One]

Black Flag
Suicidal Tendencies.
Punk has turned to shit now.

[horrorgirl]

Originally Posted by Beowulf

Horrorgirl,

I was wondering if crossover counts, as I like bands such as D.R.I, Suicidal Tendencies (up to 1990), Gang Green.

Do you listen to Discharge, I love this band.

I like early Suicidal Tendencies a lot and I like some D.R.I..

[horrorgirl]

Originally Posted by Loy

I'd go back further and say "without the Velvet Underground there'd be no punk".

Rancid? Ewww....sorry, but they're the epitome of everything that made the little punk kids I knew drop out of the scene-giving something that was fun, free, and easy a bunch of rules to follow. "If you're really punk, you'd do this and this and blah blah blah.....", and thus why I maintain that the only musical movement that even comes close to what punk rock did is hip-hop.

As for best hardcore groups, here's my 2 cents-

Black Flag-OK, so once Rollins joined the band, they slid into a downward spiral of vapidity. Still, "Damaged" is one of the greatest albums ever....and come to think of it, there are a few moments on the Rollins albums that still justify buying them. However, if you wanna know why they were the shit and don't have a wayback machine that'll take you to see them live, get "Damaged" and "The First Four Years".

Circle Jerks-my favorite band to see live, these guys just kicked out the jams, and even when they got older, STILL fucking rocked the house. To Get-"Group Sex", "Golden Shower Of Hits", "Wild In The Streets", "VI"

Agnostic Front-Wanna talk angry? Yep, these guys had pissed-offness down to a T, and it bled through their music in a way that made it understandable, even if their best stuff came out whilst they were still nazis. "Victim In Pain", "Cause For Alarm", "And Justice For....", "Live At CBGBs"

The Adolescents-formed by the guitarist of Christian Death after getting sick of Rozz Williams whiny pretensions, the Adolescents were one of the few punk bands that you could play in any club and it still matched up. Get-"The Adolescents", "Bratz In Battallions", "Balboa Fun Zone"

Minor Threat-You knwo who they are-the band Ian MacKaye was in before he started this little group called Fugazi. Doesn't matter, though, "Out Of Step" is the "White Album" of the hardcore scene. Get-"Complete Discography"

Bad Brains-So even though the great majority of their album output wavers from excreable to horrid, they were fucking awesome live. The fact that they had no qualms tossing out the reggae with the speed makes their music that much more powerful (unlike when the Clash did it and ended up sounding worse than they normally did). And Even though most of their albums suck, there ARE two that are neccesary for every music collection. Get-"Rock For Light", "I Against I"

Blood Brothers-Seattle Screeching Sonic Test, the Blood Brothers combine passion, intelligence, and power in a way that'll either bowl you over or scare the living shit out of you. Even though hardcore is dead, these guys are happily pounding the nails in the coffin in a rythm that'll make you dance into the future gleefully. Get-"This Adultery Is Ripe", "March On Electric Children", "Burn, Piano Island Burn!", "Crimes"

I agree with you about Rancid. I saw the Circle Jerks back in 1990 (I think that was the year) and they were fantastic live. I remember Keith flinging his dreadlocks everywhere. The Adolescents were a really good band. I met Casey Royer and Rikk Agnew about four years ago when I went on tour with my ex-boyfriend's band. They were both really nice guys. However, I didn't realize that I had been talking to Rikk until after he left because he looked so different. HA!!

[horrorgirl]

Originally Posted by Binkie

Agreed with Misfits, TSOL, and Dead Kennedys. Additional: Agent Orange, Zero Down, Ascension, Short of Breath, I Decline, Latex Generation, F.I.S.T. ( \m/ ), The Revolver Method, God Forbid, Neurosis (older stuff is still considered Hardcore), The Dickies, The Damned, amongst others.

I saw Neurosis several times at Gilman in Berkeley when they were hardcore and they put on some of the best shows I have ever seen. Their live version of Joy Division's Day Of The Lords sent goosebumps down my spine.

[disorder]

I dunno if System of a Down count, but they are the sex!

[crimsonjoy]

My favorite punk/hardcore bands are: Misfits, Ramones, Sex Pistols, X, Lords of the New Church, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Bauhaus (I know most people here consider some of these bands as "goth" but I remember them being considered part of the punk/hardcore scenes), and TSOL. I also like Social Distortion, Black Flag, Big Boys, Reagan Youth, Germs, Bad Brains, Fear, Anti-Nowhere League, GBH, Damned, Dead Kennedys. I liked this band called Naked a lot, and another one called Kaos (not to be confused with Chaos or Chaos UK) from Germany.

I remember going to those hardcore shows and then one day the scene just died...

Oh, and how could I forget CRASS??

[CptSternn]

MiSFiTS are always the best, but Dead Kennedys (and now Lard), old Black Flag, Minor Threat (fuck Fugazi), AFI, The Descendants, The Ducky Boys, DKM, The Real Mackenzies, Avail, Hate-O-Four, Anti-Flag, and of course Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies.

I have worked with all those bands at various points in their careers. (Plus sang in 4 different MiSFiTS coverbands)

Blushing -

Ducky Boys broke up in early 2001. The last show they played was at Twisters in Richmond, I booked it and was there - and saw the fight which caused the end of the band. Their stuff is good.

You also might like The Real Mackenzies - a Scottish version of DKM.

Also, A new Irish band, whose name has yet to be decided, which I am currently working with who sound alot like Flogging Molly but with more Republican roots will be hitting that side of the pond soon.

Stay tuned.

[CptSternn]

Oh crap, how did I leave out Social D?! My mistake. We MUST include Mike Ness and all his Mike Ness goodness!

[pitseleh]

Originally Posted by Loy

Blood Brothers ... Even though hardcore is dead, these guys are happily pounding the nails in the coffin in a rythm that'll make you dance into the future gleefully

No disrespect, Loy, but I strongly disagree with the statement that "hardcore is dead". If you're gonna include The Blood Brothers in that genre, you'd also have to take into consideration the hundreds of bands that operate way more under-the-radar than them, in the post-hardcore landscape. I like the BBs, and they're pretty unique, but, like At The Drive-In was to the more emo side of the post-hardcore genre, they are merely the tip of the iceberg. Also, lyrically, the BBs have some pretty absurd lyrics which - while it makes for great reading - has little to do with the outlook originally associated with hardcore. I don't mind that at all, as little as I mind bands having more personal and emotional lyrics, but it tends to place a band more in the post-hardcore bracket, in my mind. Which is a very wide-reaching description, but nevertheless.

I won't go into punk rock here, because to be honest I don't think there are a whole lot of good bands in that genre nowadays. I can respect stuff like The Briefs, The Spits, Dropkick Myrphys and Flogging Molly (the last two: not my thing), but in general I think a lot of modern punk bands are caught up the past. I don't like it when bands get stuck in a rut of doing things more or less exactly like they have been done before. I really like Leatherface and Hot Water Music, but the former is no longer around, and the latter is now on Epitaph, so...

I also won't get into the genre of screamo/emo violence. Bands of this type are even more obscure and short-lived than the modern post-hardcore bands, but there are some really fucking exciting things happening in Europe (France especially) with this type of music. But to mention the different genre nuances and list the bands involved would simply take too long.


Now, I definitely listen to a lot of hardcore, though I'm not too much into old-skool hardcore, NYHC stuff for instance. That's a little too macho, formulaic and breakdown-focused for me, plus I don't like those gruff shouting vocals (you know the type, if you've listened to it). Not that I don't like some older hardcore bands, though, like Minor Threat (!), Bad Brains and others, but my tastes tend to be very specific.

Still, there are some newer bands who play hardcore like it was "meant to be played" - short songs, political content, maybe some gang vocals, fast, brutal and to the point. I ain't no purist, but I like some of those bands, such as Tear It Up, Kids Like Us, The Suicide File, Born Against, Discharge, Severed Head of State, Swing Kids, Alcatraz, and Battery. These are for the most part bands that were active in the late 90's, relatively short-lived, as many hardcore bands are. When they split, their members in a lot of cases went on to join other hardcore-related bands, as is also common.

But you also have a bunch of current bands playing pretty straightforward music, with a nod to earlier hardcore, as well as elements of more melodic punk rock. These usually have a more produced sound, while still retaining the intensity of sound and political outlook. Comeback Kid, No Trigger, Lifetime, Dead Hearts, Death Threat, and especially Go It Alone are perfect examples of this. Now these bands are pretty accessible, some might even say "commercial" (ooo, scary!), but you can't fault them as being "scene", or pandering to MTV.

Ok, that being said, I'd like to mention some of the more "progressive" post-hardcore bands out there. Musically, these don't have a lot in common with traditional hardcore. That is to say, they generally don't go for the straightforward, chugging guitar riffs, and they frequently have shifting rhythms and odd time signatures within the songs. There's a lot more dissonance and atonality in the guitar melodies, and often the songs have calmer instrumental parts, with clean guitars. The lyrics and general attitude is still political, in most cases. Although, instead of clear indictments of political figures/directions/incidents, these bands often have a more socio-political perspective on personal matters, or lyrics that are more impressionistic, sometimes bordering on the absurd, or just straight-up emotional.

I'd say Modern Life is War is one of the best modern post-hardcore bands, closely followed by Forensics, Converge, Give Up the Ghost, Envy, True North, The Spectacle, JR Ewing, and Iscariote (from France). Planes Mistaken for Stars, Snapcase, and Unbroken are also worth mentioning, although they are no longer around.

To round off this way-longer-than-planned piece here, I'd just like to mention some crust bands. Now, the name of that genre is possibly derived from the jokey term for dirty, squatting (respect!) punks, but don't let that sully the great bands in this genre. This is probably the most uncompromisingly political scene in hardcore, and the bands usually have a pretty bleak outlook on things, which is reflected in the music. Pretty close to sludgy metal at times, often mid-paced rhytms, but also faster tempos. Grainy-as-fuck production, which is one of the things I dig about hardcore. Just to mention a few: To What End?, Remains of the Day, Skarp (thanks for that recommendation, Pathogen!), Tragedy, Wolfpack, From Ashes Rise and of course, the classic His Hero is Gone.


Shit, I hope I didn't bore you to bloody tears with this, but once I get started... I could have written more, cuz there's a lot to be said on the subject of hardcore, but I guess you'll chime in if you want to keep this discussion going. Something I'd be very interested in. Good thread, horrorgirl!

[horrorgirl]

I don't know much about modern hardcore bands because I have been living a sheltered life lately. ;-) However there is one trend that I can't stand. Hardcore music coupled with cookie monster vocals. I got a promo cd from Interpunk when I ordered stuff from them and EVERY band on it had the same exact growling vocals. The music itself was pretty good but the vocals took away from the music.

I actually saw Snapcase a few years ago and they were pretty good, and I met the band who were really cool guys. Thanks for the band recommendations. I am going to check out some of them. :-)

[horrorgirl]

Originally Posted by disorder

I dunno if System of a Down count, but they are the sex!

NO, they don't count.

[pitseleh]

Originally Posted by horrorgirl

I don't know much about modern hardcore bands because I have been living a sheltered life lately. ;-) However there is one trend that I can't stand. Hardcore music coupled with cookie monster vocals. I got a promo cd from Interpunk when I ordered stuff from them and EVERY band on it had the same exact growling vocals. The music itself was pretty good but the vocals took away from the music.

I actually saw Snapcase a few years ago and they were pretty good, and I met the band who were really cool guys. Thanks for the band recommendations. I am going to check out some of them. :-)

I couldn't find the tracklist on that Promo CD when I searched, but I'd hazard a guess that the bands on there were mostly metalcore. Now, there are a couple of good metalcore bands around, but mostly it's pretty wack stuff. I don't like those growling, almost-death metal vocals myself, they just sound contrived. Especially since very often they're multi-tracked, which just makes them sound fake and wannabe-tough. I prefer the mid- to high-range screaming vocals, or sometimes the growling present in many crusty hardcore bands. You know, that blood-clotted, throaty sound. Like Tragedy or His Hero is Gone.

[CptSternn]

There are lots of new metalcore bands that don't sound like Norgegian deathmetal. Mastadon, Kyruss, Children of Bodom, etc. All fall into that new metalcore genre.

And SOAD is brilliant and falls in there as well. In fact, the new Tool also goes quite well into that group.

Not hardcore/punk, but hardcore/metal. Many of the people who listen to hardcore metal have many crossover bands they like - such as Social Distortion or Ministry.

But they are all quite good, and not the average screaming vocals 'trying-to-sound-like-Cradle-Of-Filth' kinda bands.

[pitseleh]

Originally Posted by CptSternn

There are lots of new metalcore bands that don't sound like Norwegian deathmetal. Mastadon, Kyruss (edit: don't you mean Kyuss?), Children of Bodom, etc. All fall into that new metalcore genre.

And SOAD is brilliant and falls in there as well. In fact, the new Tool also goes quite well into that group.

Not hardcore/punk, but hardcore/metal. Many of the people who listen to hardcore metal have many crossover bands they like - such as Social Distortion or Ministry.

But they are all quite good, and not the average screaming vocals 'trying-to-sound-like-Cradle-Of-Filth' kinda bands.

I think you're mixing up the genres a bit here. Metalcore is a specific genre where (in its modern incarnation) you have hardcore riffing blended with a European (mostly Swedish) metal influence. Lots of blastbeats on the drums, technical guitar leads and solos (which is a no-no in hardcore), and growling vocals along with the occasionally sung part. None of the bands you mention are considered metalcore. Mastodon and Children of Bodom are straight-up metal, even though they are very different bands. Kyuss is stoner rock. And SOAD are... well, you can call them whatever the hell you like, but they are definitely not metalcore. Tool are progressive metal.

If you are unsure about what metalcore is, go to Geekburger, whose reviews focus mostly (but not exclusively) on this genre, or Aversionline, who review all kinds of metal-related music, and also have an MP3 blog where you can sample extremely obscure metal of all kinds.

[chelseagirl]

I’m more into Punk/Oi than anything else actually, but some hardcore too (and some metal, industrial, dark wave, reggae, etc….I guess I’m pretty eclectic) and a lot of these bands are local-ish, not so well known bands. I would say my favorites are:

Social Distortion, Bad Religion, the Partisans, Dag Nasty, Subhumans (the British band, NOT the Canadian Subhumans), Misfits, D.I.R.T., Naked Aggression, Mankind?, the Germs, Defiance (the older stuff), Violent Society, Toxic Narcotic, the Adicts, Cocksparrer, Conflict, Wretched Ones, Anti-Heroes, Broken Heroes, Oxymoron, Barfight, Antidote, Black Flag, Warzone, The Pist, the Templars, The Business, Oxblood, Blitz, Stiff Little Fingers, the Exploited, Peter and the Test Tube Babies, Threats, Main Street Saints, the Bruisers, One Way System, Bad Brains, Agnostic Front, Blood for Blood, Sheer Terror, The Trouble, Minor Threat, the Nerve Agents, Striking Distance, Fed Up!, Worn Thin, the Boils, Sweet Poison, the Midnight Creeps, the Krays, the Goons, Set to Explode, the Aftermath, Antagonizers, Pug Uglies….sheesh, I guess I had better stop before I get too out of control, haha!

I’m actually going to be up in Pennsylvania this weekend for the East Coast Oi! Fest...and keeping my fingers crossed there won't be much of a bonehead presence there...although, being in Allentown is a bad sign in and of itself.

Also, anyone hear about the new movie coming out about the Germs? I’ve definitely got to see it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0384683/

[Cambodian Breakfast]

I live and breath punk! I, as you night be able to tell and a Dead Kennedys fan. I also like Op Ivie, Ramons, Anti-Flag, Pennywise, 7 seconds, and AAA.

[WolfMoon]

I like The Misfits.

My husband used to be a D.R.I. fan back in the day.

Guess I'll have to check into some of the other bands listed.

edit: Forgot The Damned! Thanks Binkster.