Post Punk for Dummies

Hello all, I hadn't posted in a while, so I figured I'd put up this rough guide to classic Post Punk I wrote back in high school for the school newspaper. It was really more of a backup than anything else, and never got published, though I figured the MOG public would enjoy reading it:Many associate late 1970s punk rock with power chords, profuse swearing, authentic or assumed cockney accents, and spiked, colorful hair. However, a significant number of bands who were inspired by punk rock took its energy and do-it-yourself approach into wild new artistic directions. The bands mentioned here, united only by their punk roots and resistance of conventions, trail blazed the directions which countless left-of-center bands have taken over the course of the last twenty five years. These albums, while not particularly commercially successful, are essential to learning about this fascinating and often overlooked period in the history of rock music. Joy Division-Unknown Pleasures (1979)Though from the same hometown and local music scene as cheeky, romantic pop punk pioneers the Buzzcocks, Manchester, England’s Joy Division couldn’t be more the polar opposite. Joy Division fused elements of punk, early heavy metal, and art rock into a series of dark, bass-driven grooves on this 1979 masterpiece. Bassist Peter Hook, along with Stephen Morris’ methodical, mechanistic drumming, provides the impetus for these songs, while the distant, minimalist guitar work of Bernard Sumner, and the introspective lyrics and deep, morose voice of emotionally troubled lead singer Ian Curtis, give the songs shape. Occasional subtle touches of synthesizers, electronic percussion and sound effects, along with Martin Hannet’s cold, reverb-heavy production help create the album’s dark and tense mood. However, the tension will periodically burst: Either Curtis’ voice intones anger, Sumner’s guitar becomes loud, confrontational and direct, or Morris plays a booming drum fill. Hook’s bass, in spite of all of this, always drones on, and the rest of the band reverts to their typical shadowy state within seconds. All of these elements contribute to one classic album. Sadly, Joy Division would only last for a few more singles and one more album, 1980’s more keyboard-heavy and even darker Closer, due to Ian Curtis’ suicide that same year. The remaining members later found popular success with a lighter, more danceable, and more electronics-dominated sound as New Order.Key Tracks-“Disorder,” “New Dawn Fades,” “She’s Lost Control” Mission of Burma-Signals, Calls and Marches (EP) (1981)(NOTE: The 1997 CD reissue also includes the “Academy Fight Song”/“Max Ernst” single) While Boston’s Mission of Burma favored the same fast tempos, high volume, catchy melodies and raw production as many, more traditional punk bands, their methods are vastly different. The band’s attack is based on Clint Conley’s melodic, punchy bass lines played on the higher frets of his bass guitar. Meanwhile, Roger Miller slashes through unusual open chords on his dry-sounding Fender Stratocaster to create walls of musical noise, occasionally punctuated by his nervy, discordant guitar solos. Completing the trio is drummer Pete Prescott, whose thunderous and flamboyant style is much more akin to that of Keith Moon and John Bonham than the more subdued, arty tendencies of his post-punk brethren. Contrast is a key theme when discussing the vocals and lyrics of these Boston natives. Individually, both Conley and Miller sing in an agitated yelp typical of many bands of the time, though together they are capable of creating tuneful harmonies. Similarly, the lyrics range from the dense and surreal to the nakedly emotional. However, one of the most distinctive factors of Mission of Burma is the tape and sound manipulation of one Martin Swope, who, in both live and studio settings would record various snippets of the band playing and play them back in an altered fashion at appropriate times. Mission of Burma broke up in 1983 after releasing only this, several singles, and one full album due to Miller’s development of a hearing condition, though they have recently reunited and begun recording once again. Key Tracks-“Red,” “All World Cowboy Romance,” “Academy Fight Song”Siouxsie and the Banshees-The Scream (1978)London’s Siouxsie (pronounced like “Susie”) and the Banshees developed around classic punk bands like the Sex Pistols and the Clash. However, they eschewed both the Pistols’ ragged blues rock and the Clash’s reggae-informed, politically-charged anthems in favor of a sound all their own, captured on this aptly-titled 1978 LP. Steve Severin’s droning, skeletal bass provides the minimal and haunting melodies, while Kenny Morris pounds away almost exclusively on his drums, rarely utilizing cymbals, giving the album a very primal feel. Guitarist John McKay is the most melodic of the players, but even he occasionally descends into the depths of sweet atonal oblivion. Leading the charge is lead singer Siouxsie Sioux’s unique caterwaul, at once both girlish and tormented. The lyrics depict a world of nicotine addiction, bizarre medical experimentation, and psychological breakdown just as harrowing as the band’s sound. Bleak and thrilling, this album was the first of a nearly twenty year career, by the end of which the band’s sound had become much brighter, more textured, and commercially viable. Key Tracks-“Jigsaw Feeling,” “Nicotine Stain,” “Switch”