A defining portion of music creation is trying to balance between commercial appeal and honest expression. How can musicians stay true to themselves while also giving an audience a reason to listen? This is a question many musicians struggled with, but in the 1970s, a subsection of rock artists in England and America discovered they didn’t have to appeal to the mainstream. As a matter of fact, they didn’t have to appeal to anyone but themselves. They musically returned to the simplistic roots of rock’n’roll from the 1950s with a strong sense of anger. However, they stylistically were outcasts, misfits, burdens to a conformist society with dyed hair, dirty clothes, unflattering jewelry, and an aggressive anti-establishment attitude defining them. This new genre was described as “punk” by the media, but bands that lacked any care for the media generally rejected the term. Groups like Sex Pistols, Ramones, and New York Dolls all fell under this new term.
After this punk genre peaked in the mid-70s, other bands took influence. These groups were definitively punk, but didn’t fit neatly with the precedent punk definition, as they mixed in other genres, like dance and electronic. Under these conditions, “post-punk” was born. Groups like Siouxsie and the Banshees, Public Image Ltd., and Gang of Four, despite all showcasing different styles and subjects, fell under this newly-named class of music.
The late 70s were riddled with uniquely off-kiltered artists that pushed the boundaries of what musicians can express within their songs. Joy Division provided an extreme melancholic dread throughout their debut record “Unknown Pleasure” in the U.K. while across the ocean in America, Talking Heads were awkwardly grooving their way into New York nightclubs with their own debut “Talking Heads:77.” Punk was defined by aggression, but these post-punk bands focused more on other human emotions, like fear, nostalgia, or even love. They stretched the definition of rebellion, morphing it into something palatable to most. Post-punk bands popped up all over the western world, and even older bands noted the genre as an influence, like Fleetwood Mac did on their 1979 album “Tusk.”
Throughout the 80s and 90s, post-punk faded in and out of popularity, but never fully disappeared. Glimpses of its influence can be seen in other more popular genres like grunge or alternative rock. Kurt Cobain, Nirvana’s frontman, revealed The Slits, Wipers, and Sonic Youth, all post-punk bands of the 70s and 80s, each created some of his favorite albums.
Leading into the 2000s however, the genre saw a brief resurgence in, of all places, mainstream rock radio. The Strokes, The Hives, Interpol, Franz Ferdinand, Arctic Monkeys, etc. all maintained the DIY aesthetic and distorted guitars that post-punk was known for. This resurgence has a name as well: post-punk revival.
Even after existing for over 40 years, exciting new groups are still taking notes from post-punk bands of the past, mainly those over the pond in England. Squid, Black Midi and Black Country, New Road all maintain cult-followings on the independent music circuit whilst also receiving critical acclaim from the music press.
Post-punk has been able to stay afloat in the ever-changing landscape that is the music business despite never fully grasping the commercial appeal the genre never wanted. At least they earned the critical reception, as bands like Talking Heads, Joy Division and Sonic Youth are all lauded by the music press today for being some of the greatest groups of the 20th century.
Alex Ross
Alex Rossis a third-year Communication student at Lock Haven with a focus in Journalism. This is his second year as an active member of the Eagle Eye and has been the Arts and Entertainment editor, News editor, and an active writer. He focuses on writing reviews for the A&E section, but has written stories for news, sports, and opinions. Outside of the newsroom, Alex enjoys record shopping, reading classic literature, and analyzing films. Alex hopes to work for a film or music news site as a writer or editor after graduation.
