When one thinks of punk rock music from the 1980s, usually British bands come to mind. While punk and proto-punk bands across the pond definitely pioneered their own legendary period in rock music, there were plenty of American bands that also deserve some credit. Let’s stagedive into four of the best American punk rock bands from the 1980s! This list could be much longer, considering how many memorable American punk bands there were back in the day. We’ll just have to make another list at some point.
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1. The Ramones
This really wouldn’t be a list of the best American punk bands from the 1980s without including The Ramones. They were pioneers of the genre starting all the way back in 1974. The four-piece outfit showed the world an extremely raw and speedy form of rock music like no one really had before. There was clearly some influence from the likes of The Beatles and their contemporaries, but nobody was doing it quite like The Ramones were back then.
2. Minor Threat
Minor Threat came together in 1980 in Washington, D.C. It wasn’t long before they became a major figure in American punk music. A lot of what made Minor Threat so special had to do with their simplicity; they made fast and hard music with very direct lyrics. Many other punk bands at the time focused on “poetic” lyricism and politics. Minor Threat wasn’t apolitical by any means, but their sound was notably different; the focus was on emotion, rather than words.
3. Dead Kennedys
Speaking of politics, we thought Dead Kennedys deserved a spot on this list. They formed in California in 1978 and became well-known figures in the West Coast punk scene throughout the 1980s. They were extremely political; their polarizing lyrics were considered “crass” and “violent” by pearl-clutchers at the time. Frontman Jello Biafra even ran for mayor of San Fransisco. “California Über Alles” and “Holiday In Cambodia” are essential listening.
4. Bad Religion
Bad Religion was one of the most influential American punk bands of the 1980s. They had all the necessary elements of a punk rock band at the time: extremely fast melodies, poetic lyrics, and raw energy. However, they were also great at harmony, which lent them a sort of sophistication that similar punk bands at the time didn’t have. Their last album was Age Of Unreason in 2019, but they lasted a lot longer through the years than many other punk bands from the 1980s did.
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives
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