The History Of Post Hardcore Music

Music is often considered “the universal language.” Throughout, history it has symbolized love, brought people together, and has been the cornerstone of many lives. In the 1950s, a new form of music entered American mass culture that drastically changed the culture of the United States (U.S.): rock music. In the U.S., it began as Rock ‘n’ Roll, a originally “black” music genre that was then taken and promulgated by white Americans. Post WWII, many Americans—especially teenagers—struggled with the newfound societal conformity and normalcy, and rock provided them a form of retaliation. From its beginning, Rock united the younger generation of Americans, stirring up a sense of community amongst teenagers and troubling many adults by their actions—heightening

Music as a whole blends together. One style leads to another, the music becomes more progressive. It evolves to fit the new generation, leaving the old generation behind. From the spritual songs of the late 1800s to the gospel of the early 1900s. Then it changed into rhythm and blues, and when the 1950s rolled around it became Rock’ n’ Roll. With the invention of new iconic instruments like the Fender Precision Bass and then the Fender Stratocaster, the sound of the music changed. The sound that was soft and low was now crunchy and loud. While it did not sit well with the adults, it was a hit among the new generation. Even the African American roots of the music didn’t deter the youth listening

Rock ‘n’ roll and 20th Century Culture      According to Philip Ennis, rock ‘n’ roll emerged from the convergence of social transformations which resulted from World War II (Ryan 927). Despite its pop culture origins, rock music is arguably one of the strongest cultural factors to develop in this century. Artists such as Lennon, McCartney and Dylan defined the emotions of a generation and, in the last decade, it as even been acknowledged by members of the establishment which it hoped to change as a major influence in the country. In order to understand how rock went from a sign of rebellion to a cultural icon, it is necessary to understand where it came from.      According to Albert

In the 1950s, when rock was developed, one of the first groups to drift to it was teenagers, being attracted to its themes of rebellion and non conformity. Certain groups of individuals have sprung up around certain musical styles. For instance, punk, techno, and ethnic music all include some type of subculture that embrace an entire lifestyle.

In order to understand why punk came about the preceding periods will be considered. The baby boom after the war had resulted in a large amount of people being born at the same time. A knock on effect later down the line resulted in mass unemployment for young people. The punk era showed angry,

“Rock music is important to people, because it allows them to escape this crazy world. It allows them not to run away from the problems that are there, but to face up to them, but at the same time sort of DANCE ALL OVER THEM. That 's what rock and roll is about” (Pete Townshend). The concept of rock and roll music had eased into the music industry in a time after a crippling war and a great depression. The mid to late 20th century was home to innovation, rebellious teens, and a devastating war..The introduction of rock music has influenced our country and molded it in many ways as the genre progressed and has found a place in our culture.

What is punk rock? How many people know the real definition? Punk rocks values, attitude, and ideologies? Punk rock isn’t just a style or a scene but a way of life. It all started in the late 1970s, originating from the working class angst and frustrations many youth were feeling about the economic inequality. One of punks’ main oppositions was rejection of mainstream, corporate mass culture and its values. It continued to evolve its ideology of anti-racist and anti-sexist belief systems as the movement spread from its origins in England and New York to Northern America.

Rock and roll has developed a long way throughout the years from a dance craze in the 1950’s to a political and cultural landscape that is recognized worldwide. Rock and roll has come to define the roots of teenage rebellion, people who don’t follow the norms, and have disrespect for authority. The style of rock and roll itself is a melting pot of music, a combination of sounds that include jazz, country, blues, ragtime, gospel, swing, classical, and ethnic music. It can be a simple variation of three chords to a complex chromatic scale combination. It can convey emotions such as love, hate, fear, lust, sadness, joy, disillusion, or a strong sense of reality. Many things can be said about rock but the fact is that it is the most widely

The mid to late 1970s brought about a slow but steady change in punk rock. With the advent of heavy metal and punk rock bands an explosion of new rock genres emerged. The change was started by three bands from New York. The New York Dolls, the Dictators and the Ramones started a new trend that quickly spread throughout Europe and the rest of the world. It slowly caught on in the US and when it finally did the hardcore form of punk rock became a national expression for millions of teens and young adults for the next two decades.

Grunge music was one of the most popular genres in the 1990’s, bringing a new style of rock with gritty distortion and new styles of hair and clothing.

With the economic decline and availability of jobs with upward movement, a culture of youths formed in Britain that challenged the ideals and cultural norms of the generations that came before them. A consistent movement from traditional society through youth subcultures brings light through the eyes of the musicians that describe their generation’s feelings of homelessness in an era filled with unemployment, low wages, and violence. The insurgence of the counterculture movement, poor economic conditions, and the commercialization of previous Rock and Roll music in Britain directly led to the punk subculture because it allowed youths to speak up about their conditions and frustrations through an easily understood and accessible medium while maintaining a different stance than their predecessors.

Screamo evolved from emo hardcore punk, post-hardcore music. It is characterized by a strong influence from hardcore punk with the use of screamed vocals. Screamo evolved in the early 1990s. I chose this genre of music because the book did not cover it and the concept of screamo is interesting to me. Screamo bands tend to scream their lyrics instead of singing them. Screamo music is looked down on a lot because "How is screaming talent?" Screaming music has much more talent to it than people think. Screaming musically takes much talent.

early 1980s. Punks and Goths have coexisted for decades and continue to be, distinct social movements built upon different music, films and fashion characteristics. It is difficult to say which of these post punk and early goth bands were the most influential in forming and developing the Goth subculture but certainly among the most influential were Fields Of The Nephilim, The Sisters of Mercy, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Alien Sex Fiend,Killing Joke, Fields of Bauhaus, The Cure, Rosetta Stone, UK Decay and The Shroud. All of these bands, although showing quite a wide variation

The Goth subculture first emerged in England in the early 1980s and 1990s and has now become an international culture, which includes America, Japan, Europe and Canada. There seem to have been three main strands of people who formed the Goth culture which were the Punks from the 70s, New Romantics from the same era as the Goths in the 80s and post punk teenagers. However not only these three groups influenced the Goth subculture as post punk bands such as Siouxsie and the Banshees, Rosetta Stone, Sisters of Mercy, Joy Dividson and Bauhaus have had an enormous influence and impact in forming and developing the movement.

Various people trace the beginning of ‘emo’ music to Rites of Spring, a post-hardcore band from Washington D.C. Though the band only lasted for two years - 1984-1986 - they are often referred to as the founders of emo. Formed in March 1984, Rites of Spring was “an emotionally charged brand of hardcore punk marked by introspective, personal lyrics and intense catharsis (Huey).” The lyrics were “by turns nostalgic, heartbroken, confused, and desperately searching, expanding hardcore's range of subject matter into territory rarely covered (Huey).”