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In the mid 70s, punk music emerged in the UK as a social and cultural phenomenon. Reflecting the hopelessness of an uncompromisingly modern, young audience with a common revolutionary mentality, punk music articulated political views, opposition and controversy as a response to the over-romanticizing of flower-power rock of the early 70s. Moreover, punk rock music was the means for the colossal social attack on the British monarchy and nationalism. Being exceedingly irritated by the British system and highly-politicized, UK Punk groups influenced a whole generation with their effortlessly contagious outbreak of violence and impassiveness against commercialism and political correctness. 

Promoting nonconformist ground-breaking sounds with minimal instrumentation, anchored by explosive guitar riffs, military drum tempo and chaotic lyrics, punk groups quickly became a massive cultural fact which greatly impacted the young generations. Through punk rock music, young people found a way to express themselves. The Do It Yourself (DIY) ethic was mainly reflected in distinctive clothing, hairstyle and artwork to convey a new radical ethos generated from punk groups. By opposing to the production values of pop music, punk rock soon became something that anyone could do. People did not have to be pretty, neat and trendy in order to perform punk music. The important thing was to be able to get up on stage and play punk rock. 

Soon, the hardcore punk music produced the US punk scene in the East and the West Coast. US punk groups were less controversial than their UK peers, but they satisfied the need of a substantial audience in the States for unusually hard, not easily absorbed and utterly anti-mainstream music. The underground punk movement of the 70s in the United States produced scenes that either evolved from punk or applied its DIY ethics to an utterly dissimilar music, sheltering punk’s legacy in the alternative rock and Indie scenes. 

Indie music is the abbreviation of the term “independent music”, which was used to describe autonomy from commercial record labels and a DIY approach to recording and publishing. Opposed to the definition of commercial record labels, which own their own distribution channels, independent record labels do not rely their financing on international licensing deals and distribution agreements. 

The punk rock era produced a turning point for independent labels and the DIY ethos considering the emergence of a plethora of independent labels. Indie music evolved in the garages of the US and the UK, where young people were figuring out what they really could do with their guitars and electronic equipment. Singing with a pissed-off voice and being focused on the DIY ethic grind that punk music offered, these self-asserted Indie groups transplanted the actions of the proto punk bands into a new kind of music. Separating themselves from their cultural customs through their appearance and music, Indie groups influenced greatly the popular movements of the 70s.

15 Influential Punk Bands

by Nicole Lero

Source: HotPopRock

While this list is in no way inclusive of all influential punk bands — you would need to list hundreds — this list is a good representation of many punk bands that have helped to shape a scene over the years — as well as sibling scenes such as goth, emo, and hardcore.

01. The Ramones – This NYC band really helped to start it all in the mid-1970s and influenced countless others to follow in their shoes in their decades-spanning career.

02. The Clash – While this band is more mellow than a lot of the more influential punk bands of the 70s and 80s, their subversive messages were also able to reach a wider audience than many, which is incredibly punk.

03. The Sex Pistols – Sure, they were more style than substance, and many people believe they were manufactured to create a trend… but what is more influential than that?

04. Bad Brains – This early DC hardcore band influenced many bands over the course of their career. Although they had strong reggae influences, they were one of the definitive hardcore bands of the 1980s.

05. Rites of Spring – Also hailing from DC, this band is one of the most influential bands in the emo genre, and is often credited with starting the movement.

06. 7 Seconds – One of the first straight edge bands, the played a poppier style of music than many of their counterparts in the scene, but were instrumental in starting it off.

07. Minor Threat – This band truly brought straight edge to the punk masses, with a single album of songs about not drinking, smoking, or doing drugs.

08. The Stooges – Mixing garage rock and punk, this band put together different elements to create a unique sound that many have emulated over the years. Further, Iggy Pop’s stage presence was so intense, it changed the way people thought of punk rock performers forever.

09. The Damned – Dressed like vampires and playing spooky music that walked the line between punk and what is now known as goth, this is a band that was a true trailblazer in terms of re-defining, and creating, a genre.

10. Misfits – This New Jersey band, which focused (and still does) on primarially horror themes is essentially the first horror-punk band.

11. The New York Dolls – While their singer is best known as Buster Poindexter, back in the day, David Johansen and his crew, including the legendary Johnny Thunders, pushed boundaries and opened minds with both their appearance and music.

12. Fugazi – When Minor Threat ended, the band’s singer Ian MacKaye tried different projects, and one of them was Fugazi. This band is also instrumental in what has become known as modern-day emo.

13. The Rezillos – This Scottish band with both male and female vocals made punk rock fun, with silly songs and wacky, offbeat rhythms. They influenced many bands, including the B-52’s.

14. NOFX – Not the world’s most serious band, NOFX proved that you can play fast, snotty punk rock with a sense of humor, but more importantly, actual talent.

15. Blondie – While many women would love to claim the title of “the queen of punk rock,” there is no doubt that Blondie’s lead singer Debbie Harry holds it, and it still looks wonderful on her, even today.

Here’s hoping this list helped to explain some of the roots and influences of modern punk rock music.

Source: HotPopRock