Hardcore Punk

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Hardcore punk is a punk rock subgenre - or rather a set of punk rock subgenres - which is closely related to heavy metal music, because many hardcore artists include several elements from metal in their music, and many metal artists, likewise, include several hardcore elements in their music (several metal subgenres have their roots in hardcore punk music such as thrash metal, grindcore, metalcore, Stockholm death metal, sludge metal, and nu metal). In fact, hardcore can be said to form a continuum from pure punk to primarily metal-oriented music, and many metalheads consider hardcore to be, if not a metal genre, then at least part of the universe of heavy metal music.

Hardcore arose in the late 1970s and gained considerable popularity in the 1980s. It was originally a reaction against the adoption of mainstream society of the aesthetics and lifestyle associated with punk rock as well as the intellectualization of punk rock in Europe. Inheriting the rock instrumentation of punk rock (vocals, guitars, bass, and drums), hardcore musicians would infuse more aggression into their music, speeding up the tempos considerably and inserting heavy and groovy breakdowns into their compositions. Although a global phenomenon, there are two important geographical centers in the development of the genre - namely, the USA and the UK. American hardcore was inspired by the likes of The Dead Kennedys and The Ramones, fusing it with influences from overseas. There were, and still are, several local hardcore scenes in the USA, with the NYC hardcore scene (which often includes the New Jersey scene) probably being the most influential one, spawning bands like Agnostic Front, Misfits, Warzone, Kraut, Mucky Pup, and The Undead, many of which are of crucial importance to metal music as well. Other important early American hardcore bands were Dirty Rotten Imbeciles (D.R.I.) from Texas, The Accüsed from Washington state, Gang Green from Boston, Minor Threat from Washington D.C., and Black Flag and Suicidal Tendencies from Los Angeles. The UK hardcore scene very much sprung from the harsh style of Discharge and The Exploited as well as Amebix which combined elements from early punk rock with elements of NWoBHM, with Motörhead being a particularly important influence; UK hardcore evolved into crust, which would prove to be influential on both death metal and black metal.

Borrowing from heavy metal music, hardcore would itself have an influence on the development of a new subgenre of heavy metal in the early-to-mid 80s - namely, thrash metal, as American metal musicians started to combine the harsh and aggressive style of UK bands like Discharge and The Exploited and US bands like The Misfits and Black Flag on the one hand with the more intricate and technically advanced style of NWoBHM. Despite the similarities in music, the hardcore and thrash metal scenes were separate, and when the members of the two scenes met, violence would often ensue. However, the animosity between the two scenes would eventually disappear, resulting in a hybrid hardcore-thrash style called crossover-thrash, as hardcore artists started incorporating thrash metal elements into their style (perhaps most notably Agnostic Front, D.R.I., and Suicidal Tendencies among others) and thrash metal artists would start to incorporate hardcore into their style (Nuclear Assault being an important example of this). New bands that featured members of both scenes were even established, most notably Stormtroopers of Death (S.O.D.).

Because of the influence of metal upon many early hardcore bands, the term metallic hardcore is sometimes used with reference to hardcore nd crust bands that either make use of elements from various heavy metal subgenres or hardcore bands that are, for other reasons, associated with heavy metal music. In other words, the 'metallic hardcore' label applies to bands at the more metal-oriented end of the hardcore-metal continuum. Typical features of metallic hardcore are the grooves, riffage, and drum patterns associated with hardcore punk and elements associated with heavy metal music, such as guitar leads, double bass drums, palm-muted riffing and, often, productions which, while DIY, are not deliberately underproduced. It should be noted that, here at the MMA, the hardcore subgenre only includes metallic hardcore bands.

In addition to 'standard' metallic hardcore, inclusive hardcore genres on the MMA are:

  • Crust: crust, or crust punk, with its own sub-genre here on MMA, Crust is typically used with reference to the hardcore punk tradition established in the UK by the likes of Discharge, Amebix and Hellbastard. It combines the energy and aggression of punk music with the power and darkness of heavy metal music, early crust punk drew inspiration from the music of the likes of Black Sabbath, Venom, Bathory and Motörhead, while rejecting the lyrical matter often associated with metal at the time. Characteristic of crust punk are heavily distorted guitars and dominant bass frequencies, given the impression of a very dirty sound, and many crust bands also embrace the d-beat drumming style popularized by Discharge, which was in turn inspired by Motörhead. Another typical feature is the use of both very fast tempos and extremely heavy tempos, and harsh guttural vocals are not uncommon. And offspring of crust punk is grindcore which was invented by Napalm Death and Carcass under the influence of Extreme Noise Terror (who would later embrace grindcore aesthetics themselves). Many bands on the Stockholm death metal scene of the early 1990s would incorporate numerous elements from crust punk into their sound as would early American sludge metal bands like The Melvins and Neurosis, while Hellhammer/Celtic Frost would draw inspiration from Discharge, resulting in derivatives of d-beating figuring in black metal. More recently, crust bands have infused elements from death metal, black metal, thrash metal and sludge metal, into their music. Examples of crust bands included in the MMA are Extreme Noise Terror, Amebix, Discharge, Acephalix, Wolfbrigade, Nuclear Death Terror, and Hellbastard. Many modern crust bands have infused so many death metal elements into their music that it makes more sense to consider them death metal bands, in which case the bands, or releases, in question are included under death metal, as is the case of a number of Acephalix and Bastard Priest releases. Other crust bands crossed over into thrash metal territory as is the case of Hellbastard's late releases and Amebix' "Monolith"; in this case the relevant releases are included under thrash metal. Crust Punk
  • UK82: UK82 is a hardcore punk style that includes those early second-wave punk bands who retained a strong punk sound but added the heavy drum beats and distorted guitar sound of NWoBHM bands to produce a punk and metal hybrid. Examples of bands playing in the UK82 style would be G.B.H and The Exploited.
  • New York Hardcore: New York Hardcore, or NYHC, was more than just a scene. NYHC bands had a distinctive metallic sound incorporating thrash metal riffs and also took influence from the British Oi! movement. NYHC had a strong influence over the development of metalcore and beatdown hardcore.
  • Crossover thrash: Crossover thrash, often abbreviated to crossover, is a form of thrash metal that contains more hardcore punk elements than standard thrash. It is sometimes referred to as punk metal, though this is generally incorrect due to the existence of other music genres that combine forms of punk rock and heavy metal, such as grunge, crust punk, and more recently metalcore and its subgenres. While thrash metal is heavily influenced by hardcore punk, the overall sound of crossover thrash is more punk-influenced yet more metal-sounding and aggressive than traditional hardcore punk and thrashcore. The term was coined by the band D.R.I. with their album "Crossover", released in 1987. The term 'crossover' is based on the metaphor of crossing over from one genre into the other, thus capturing artists the operate within the transition zone between thrash metal and hardcore punk. With the metaphor comes the conception of directionality, such that the genre is applied to hardcore and crust punk artists who have crossed over into thrash metal territory, such as D.R.I., Discharge, The Exploited, The Accüsed, Agnostic Front and Suicidal Tendencies (who eventually ventured into alternative metal), and thrash metal artists who crossed over into hardcore punk territory, such as Nuclear Assault and S.O.D. In the MMA database, crossover bands and releases that lean more towards thrash metal are included under thrash metal, while those that lean more towards metallic hardcore are included under hardcore.
  • Thrashcore: thrashcore and the closely related subgenre skatepunk are often placed in the crossover continuum. Thrashcore is basically metallic hardcore played at very high speed (often featuring simple guitar figures performed with palm-muting), sometimes using blastbeats, and makes use of microsongs. Skatepunk is a more melodic, but just as aggressive and fast, variant of thrashcore, used as soundtracks in skateboarding videos (with many of the artists being skateboarders themselves). D.R.I. and Voetsek as well as Cryptic Slaughter, Septic Death and A.N.S. all started out thrashcore bands and eventually took their music in a more thrash metal-oriented direction. In the MMA database, thrashcore bands and releases that are more hardcore than thrash are included under hardcore while those that are more thrash metal oriented are included under thrash metal; some thrashcore bands have taken their music in a more grindcore-oriented direction, in which case they are included under grindcore.
  • Powerviolence: Powerviolence or Power Violence is a style of hardcore punk that grew out of thrashcore. Songs tend to be short and aggressive and are often accompanied by frequent tempo changes and socio-political lyrics. While powerviolence bands remain musically grounded in hardcore punk, the scene has strongly influenced the development of grindcore and some crossover between the genres exist.
  • Post-hardcore: post-hardcore combines hardcore elements with elements from alternative rock, alternative metal, noise rock and sludge metal, and is often also often characterized by an avant-garde approach. Some post-hardcore acts have inherited the metallic elements from metallic hardcore, while others infuse post-metal into their sound. Such metallic post-hardcore bands are included in the MMA - if the hardcore elements are prevalent, then they are filed under hardcore; otherwise they are categorized under the most appropriate metal subgenre as is the case of, for instance, Wolves Like Us. Post-hardcore bands with no metal elements or not relevance to metal are not included in the MMA.
  • Sludgecore: sludge metal was born as a hybrid of hardcore punk and crust punk on the one hand and doom metal, southern metal and stoner metal on the other hand. Some sludge bands emphasize the tempos and aggression of metallic hardcore and crust, prioritizing these over the slow tempos of doom metal and stoner metal. Such artists and releases - if the hardcore and crust elements are dominant - are included under hardcore rather than sludge metal. Examples of such bands are I Exist and Hard Charger.
  • Beatdown: Beatdown hardcore is a style of hardcore punk that tends to be very metallic, often drawing inspiration from brutal and slam death metal, while remaining closer to hardcore than a typical metalcore or deathcore band would. The style sits on the cusp between hardcore punk and metalcore and deathcore, and beatdown bands often cross over into decidedly metal territory. Where they do, bands and releases are filed under metalcore or deathcore on MMA. An example of one such band might be Hatebreed.
  • D-beat: D-Beat is a metal-influenced style of hardcore punk named after and popularised by the band Discharge. D-Beat features a recognizable d-beat drum pattern, usually has shouted vocals and is stylistically and thematically similar to Anarcho-Punk.


The following hardcore-related subgenres are included in the MMA, but not under the hardcore genre:

  • Metalcore: metalcore has its own subgenre, as it has evolved into a popular metal genre of its own.
  • Deathcore: deathcore - a hybrid genre that combines metalcore and death metal - is considered a metalcore subgenre, and deathcore bands and releases are included in the deathcore child-sub under metalcore.
  • Mathcore: as with deathcore, mathcore - highly technical and progressive metalcore - is considered a subgenre of metalcore, and mathcore bands and releases will be included under metalcore (or deathcore). Those math metal bands that have more in common with progressive metal will be included under progressive metal.
  • Grindcore: although derived from crust punk, grindcore has developed into an extreme metal genre in itself and is given a subgenre of its own. Some grindcore acts started out as crust, powerviolence or thrashcore bands and then developed into grindcore bands, as is the case of Extreme Noise Terror. In this case, crust, powerviolence or thrashcore releases are included under hardcore while grindcore releases are included under grindcore.
  • Other punk-metal hybrids: punk-metal hybrids that do not draw on hardcore or crust or related genres, but rather on other punk rock genres are included under the most appropriate metal genre. Thus Kvelertak who combines punk rock, hard rock and black metal is included under hard rock, and Motörhead and Brats who combine early punk rock and traditional heavy metal are included under traditional heavy metal, while Oktan and The Spittin' Cobras who combine dirty hard rock 'n' roll and punk rock are also included under hard rock.


Note that hardcore punk, crust punk, thrashcore, skate punk and other purely punk-oriented artists with little or no relevance to metal music are not included in the MMA database. If a metal band in the MMA has released a non-metal punk-oriented release, that release will be included under Non-Metal, as is the case of Lawnmower Deth's album "Billy" which is a pop punk album along the lines of Green Day.

Sub-genre collaborators (+ child sub-genres & shared with Metalcore):
  • Bosh66 (leader)

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hardcore punk Music Reviews

THE LOOKOUTS One Planet One People

Album · 1987 · Hardcore Punk
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THE LOOKOUTS were one of the Bay Area’s premiere punk rock bands that emerged in the mid-80s in the most unlikely area, that being the Mendocino county town of Laytonville more associated with its escapist hippie population than anything associated with the hardcore grit of angsty youthful punk however the band which was formed by guitarist and vocalist Larry Livermore (born Lawrence Hayes) managed to come to fruition after Livermore recruited a 14-year old Kain Kong (born Kain Hanschke) and 12-year old Frank Wright Edwin better known as Tré Cool who went on to be the drummer in Green Day. At this point he couldn’t play at all but learned as he went along. Now isn’t that what punk rock is about?!!

The band released three albums and two EPs on Livermore’s newly formed indie label Lookout. The band was instrumental in developing the local pop punk scene which adopted the hardcore punk sound ethos of the British rage against the machiners with more palatable irresistible hooks, the kind of punk that would totally piss off purists but propel punk into the mainstream in the 90s with bands like Green Day and The Offspring selling gazillions of albums however at this stage the band fit squarely into the high energy world of the hardcore punk scene. The band was famous for collaborating with Operation Ivy’s Time Armstrong and although only existed for five years has become a Bay Area legend as one of those underground acts that was highly influential in launching a more commercial acceptance of the punk rock sound without actually experiencing success themselves.

THE LOOKOUTS released its debut album ONE PLANET ONE PEOPLE in 1987 which featured short snappy punk rockers with no tracks much over two minutes playing time. A rambunctious youthful rebellion type of delivery system sounding something like The Dead Kennedy’s earliest hardcore offerings only without the finesse and songwriting skills, THE LOOKOUTS narrated the alienation of living in an area of doped up hippies that were at the heart of California’s marijuana growing operations. The tie-dye dominated locality of Laytonville, CA was more synomous with crazy pot farmers pulling guns on hikers who wandered to close to growing operations than anything in the hardcore punk world but yet these guys found their true calling and made it happen even in the most remote chilled out region of the USA.

Stylistically this album is fairly uniform with heavy angsty quickened speed tracks with many lasting under a minute. With 22 tracks that only add up to about 27 minutes it’s a rather dizzying array of hardcore punk rockers that almost seems like the album is being played on a higher speed. Some have even called THE LOOKOUTS’ style of playing “speed folk!” In a way that’s an accurate statement as the band does have a folky poetic prose to its lyrics however as far as the music is concerned this is hardcore punk all the way with fast sometimes almost rapped lyrics. Some of the guitar’s chord progressions sound like songs Nirvana would craft in the 1990s with their more polished grungy version of pop punk. ONE PLANET ONE PEOPLE was only ever released a single time on vinyl and unfortunately didn’t appear on the compilation “Spy Rock Road (And Other Stories)” which featured all of the band’s other material making this one somewhat harder to find. While not the peak of punk majesty, Bay Area punk rock enthusiasts will really dig this one!

FRAIL BODY Artificial Bouquet

Album · 2024 · Hardcore Punk
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As the 21st century churns along, once independent musical genres and subgenres are constantly being redesigned and placed together like a never-ending jigsaw puzzle so what is one to make of the combo pack punch of screamo, post-metal, blackgaze and emoviolence? Well the Rockford, Illinois based band FRAIL BODY decided to find out on its latest release ARTIFICIAL BOUQUET after expanding beyond the strictly screamo / emoviolence debut “A Brief Memoriam” which appeared in 2019.

This power trio of Lowell Shaffer (guitars, vocals, piano), Nic Kuczynski (bass) and Nicholas Clemenson (drums) has been cranking out the noise rock since 2017 but in 2024 has crossed over into the realms of metal madness with a much more ferocious attack courtesy of black metal textures and incessant rampaging tempos although the delivery system is still rooted in the screamo world which is now a newer offspring of the hardcore punk realms.

While superficially sounding something akin to Deafhaven, Life or Sadness who also utilize the screamo / blackgaze combo effect, FRAIL BODY is much more of a loose wire. After a short EP length debut (but still “officially” an album), ARTIFICIAL BOUQUET delivers 11 high-octane tracks launched by the totally explosive opener “Scaffolding” which sounds like the most unhinged second wave black metal band of the early 1990s had suddenly adopted the aesthetics of Orchid, Gospel or Portraits of Past with a rather post-rock type of song construction.

Screamo is an acquired taste and not one that i have totally grown fond of as the vocal style doesn’t really resonate with me even though extreme vocals are definitely up my alley. It just ends up sounding a bit goofy to my ears and likewise blackgaze can be a bit too tinny and sort of emulates a hi-fi interpretation of lo-fi black metal from the likes of Darkthrone. Interesting experiments for sure but these bands tend to use post-rock and post-metal to implement their song structures and often result in a sameness that just doesn’t offer an album’s worth of varying stylistic approaches. A one trick pony if you will.

FRAIL BODY embodies these exact same qualities although in the case of ARTIFICIAL BOUQUET the redeeming factor is that the tempos and dynamics are a bit more diverse than the average screamo or blackgaze band. The downside for me though is that the vocals are stuck on the same screamo / emo mode with only a few moments of non-screamed softer vocal contributions. Musically some of the tracks feature some interesting riffing and the murky distortion is rather interesting especially with the math rock type of nerdy changes in rhythm and tempo.

The emoviolence nature of the discordant guitar grunge and blastbeats do offer some nice energetic performances though even though the erratic high pitched vocals are set to scream your bloody lungs out! Although i don’t outright hate screamo, blackgaze or emoviolence styles, i can say that i’m usually underwhelmed by the monotony of how these genres are presented and the fact that FRAIL BODY has melded these styles together in a new manner hasn’t really alleviated these complaints. In the end ARTIFICIAL BOUQUET is a decent listening experience and this style certainly has its loyal following but i keep expecting more advanced compositions that offer more variations in themes, styles and / or timbres and it never really occurs. High energy performances here make it worth a spin though. Not my fave but decent.

NAILS Every Bridge Burning

Album · 2024 · Hardcore Punk
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UMUR
"Every Bridge Burning" is the fourth full-length studio album by US, California based hardcore/powerviolence act Nails. The album was released through Nuclear Blast Entertainment in August 2024. It´s the successor to "You Will Never Be One of Us" from 2016 and there´s been an almost complete lineup change since the predecessor as only guitarist/lead vocalist Todd Jones remains from the lineup who recorded "You Will Never Be One of Us". New in the lineup are Andrew Solis (bass), Carlos Cruz (drums), and Shelby Lermo (guitars).

Stylistically Nails play a hardcore style with both influences from grindcore, crust punk, and sludge. It´s punchy and in our face music, loaded with caustic aggression and raw power. Jones has a shouting/screaming angry vocal style, which suits the music well. Featuring only 10 tracks and a 17:44 minutes long playing time, Nails haven´t made a long album, but it´s fully in line with album lengths of their previous releases, so this is what the seasoned listener expects. What is most noteworthy when keeping in mind that "Every Bridge Burning" is a very short album release, is how many different influences and varition Nails are able to pack into their otherwise one-dimensionally raw and aggressive music style. It´s always been one of their greatest assets, that you´re never bored when listening to their albums, as they always include something new or some little detail, that you didn´t expect (I was for example plesantly surprised by the few times guitar solos appeared). It´s not exactly progressive music, but the point is that Nails arguably put a lot of thought into their pretty extreme take on hardcore.

"Every Bridge Burning" features a raw, distorted, and considering their status on the scene, a relatively unpolished sound production, which suits the materal well. Nails understand that this type of music can´t be presented in a clear and polished sound production without losing integrity and authenticity. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

DEVIATED INSTINCT Rock 'n' Roll Conformity

Album · 1988 · Crust Punk
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Considered one of the early pioneers of crust punk and death metal, England’s DEVIATED INSTINCT formed in Norwich in 1984 and forged that early strain of noisy crust punk that infused heavier doses of thrash metal, death metal and heavy metal which now has retroactively earned the tagging of stenchcore. This band’s initial existence lasted from 1984 to 1991 but has reformed in 2007 and still active with only guitarist / vocalist Rob Middleton and bassist Steve Harvey as the only original members still rockin’ the house.

The band released a series of demos, splits and EPs before arriving at what’s considered its debut album ROCK ’N’ROLL CONFORMITY which at a running time of only about 29 minutes makes you wonder if it really an album after all but this is punk, baby so brevity is the name of the game. Despite the short running time the album features 12 tracks with each side of the vinyl sporting its own subtitle. Side A is known as the Windy Side whereas Side B is called Winston Side. The album was only once released on vinyl and remains one of those underground collectibles but can be found on CD as a part of the “Definitive Instinct” compilation released in 1990.

Following in the footsteps of early pioneers Amoebix and Discharge, DEVIATED INSTINCT delivered a more brutal and heavier form of crust punk which is now known as stenchcore. This is one of those truly underground filthy raw releases with a lo-fi production suitable for an early black metal release and all the irreverent grime and passion to match. This album delivers a thundering cacophonous roar of guitar din on full distortion mode while the bantering bass practically blurs into the mix. The riffing is somewhat rooted in thrash metal and although there is a crossover thrash effect going on, the overall presentation is much more rooted in the early crust punk sounds with the last track “Miniature Railways” even being a Discharge cover.

The song structures are very much derived from the anarcho-punk playbook however the delivery system is firing on full pistons with angsty riffing at death metal speed and a raging vocal style courtesy of Leggo that is very similar to some of the early thrash metal vocalists of the 1980s when the genre was less popular and more brutal in its approach. Some of the lightning fast guitar riffs are also right out of the early thrash metal world courtesy of speed addicted bands like Possessed or Sadus. The drumming however remains faithful to the world of punk rock and never demonstrates the same virtuosity as the guitar and bass which overall gives DEVIATED INSTINCT a very bizarre hybridizing sound that wasn’t so common in the 1980s quite yet as this ugly stepchild of crust punk was very much an underground sensation.

This is the kind of murky lo-fi metal that suits the underground so well. With no ambitions for crossover appeal, DEVIATED INSTINCT really delivered the goods with a no nonsense balls to the wall infusion of its metal / punk Frankenstein. This is an adrenaline ride all the way through with no breaks, no ballads and no time for anything cute and relaxing to emerge. This is an angry aggressive display of chaotic distortion and raw energetic angst delivered in top form. While those averse to lo-fi production of any kind will find this abysmal, it’s important to be reminded this this is indeed music for the abyss and in that regard it delivers quite well. I love the murky muddied tones and Leggo’s vocals are well above average in comparison to anything remotely considered crust punk of the day. A very strong effort from one of the UK’s most legendary underground noise acts of the 1980s.

ENTRAPPED Pohřebiště Popela

Album · 2022 · Crust Punk
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A modern band with an old school fetishism, ENTRAPPED hails from České Budějovice in the Czech Republic and is one of those newer bands that is fascinated by the sounds of yore so much so that it has taken upon itself to fuse a couple two disparate old school styles of extreme metal into its power packed tirade of ten tracks that will banter you for about 32 minutes.

A four piece featuring Lukáš (drums), Mirža (guitar), Dušek (guitar and Růžena (vocals), ENTRAPPED delivers a dynamic deathened crust punk sound in the vein of other 21st century acts that have ventured into the same territory which includes Black Breath, Stormcrow, AHNA and Mammoth Grinder. Although virtually unknown outside of its native land, ENTRAPPED is finding a loyal cult following in its few years together.

The album starts off with a short instrumental that builds the momentum for the speedy tempo based crust punk infused noisefest that follows. Blurring the distinctions between the more technically infused world of death metal with the more streamlined compositional simplicity of crust punk, ENTRAPPED’s debut delivers a powerful display of extreme decibelage turned up to the max with kick ass murky guitar tones and declarative shouts from underneath the delirious din. Although no bassist is credited, there are clear moments when the bass guitar is present so i would imagine one of the guitarists is really a bassist.

While a deathened crust punk ethos is the name of the game here, ENTRAPPED also fortifies some of its snappy most short deliveries of punk infused death metal other elements such as moments of dirging doom metal on the title track. The band is extremely energetic and there are no moments of slow down as this is pretty much a full throttle attack from beginning to end which is exactly the way a hardcore punk-infused band should act. All the tracks are infused with a vim and vigor that displays a youthful passion that unleashes all the rage and pent up angst that many of us build up.

The musicianship on this is off the chart. While crust punk is usually a less demanding style of metal, the death metal elements are fully implemented with crazy fast guitar riffing and bombastic percussion that alternates from a more standard crusty affair to full-on technical rolls. In other words it’s a near perfect hybridization of the two styles where it’s somewhat hard to tell where one ends and the other begins. A short and energizing set of tracks here that are quite satisfying! The production is also decent as it finds that perfect balance between the raw and ugly nature of the music and the ability to hear all the instruments do their own thing. The final burst of drumming action that ends the album is icing on the cake. Nice!

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