Rock music underwent a revolution in the late 1970s. A new generation of acts arrived, often stripping their sound back with basic songs and simple arrangements. Some of these bands failed to make a huge dent commercially, despite critical acclaim. Others like U2 and Blondie rode their stripped-down sound to international success.
Punk and new wave allowed a new generation of musicians to gain record deals. But ambitious composers like Elvis Costello, Joe Jackson and Andy Partridge didn’t stay punk for long, instead veering off into different genres.
Major acts that I’m planning to cover include Blondie, X, The Pretenders, and Joe Jackson. Some bands that are new-wave influenced, but who started their careers during the 1980s, like New Order and R.E.M., are covered on the 1980s Review page.
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Boston quintet The Cars were arguably the quintessential New Wave band. They combined the back-to-basics approach of new wave, forward-thinking…
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Perhaps the most celebrated band to emerge from the 1970s punk movement, The Clash started as a straight-out punk band.…
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Of all the musicians who emerged in the wake of punk in the late 1970s, Elvis Costello perhaps has the…
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The members of The dB’s are all from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, also the birthplace of Mitch Easter (Let’s Active) and…
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Echo & the Bunnymen vocalist Ian McCulloch started his career in the humbly named Crucial Three, alongside Julian Cope and…
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It’s difficult to explain the appeal of Australian indie band The Go-Betweens; Robert Forster and Grant McLennan are neither strikingly…
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The Go-Go’s emerged from the late 1970s L.A. punk scene. They were originally named the Misfits, and featured core members…
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Hüsker Dü started as a hardcore punk act in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1979. The three-piece featured Bob Mould on…
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The Jam was formed by young teens in Woking, a town on the edge of London. Guitarist and songwriter Paul…
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Joy Division were one of several prominent bands who were inspired by the Sex Pistols’ famous 1976 gig in Manchester…
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Rob Hirst and Jim Moginie formed Farm in Sydney in 1972. They added vocalist Peter Garrett and guitarist Martin Rotsey,…
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English trio The Police released their first album in 1978. Despite the timing, they weren’t especially punk, something that’s immediately…
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The punk and new wave movements lowered the barriers to entry to a musical career, promising a more egalitarian future.…
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Yet another great musical act to come out of the state of Minnesota (see also Bob Dylan, Prince, Hüsker Dü,…
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Robyn Hitchcock started his recording career with the psychedelic new wave band The Soft Boys. They formed in Cambridge, England,…
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The Talking Heads started out playing in legendary New York club CBGB, effectively the focal point for American New Wave; The Ramones,…
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A plethora of musical acts originated from the CBGBs club in New York in the mid-1970s. The Ramones, Talking Heads, Patti…
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U2 started as a post-punk band, emerging from Ireland with their 1980 debut Boy. Like many bands originating from the…
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Formed in Swindon around songwriters Andy Partridge and Colin Moulding, XTC started their career as a glam band. Their recording…
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These punk and new wave artists are covered briefly below: The B-52’s Time Capsule: Songs for a Future Generation 1998,…
Read about the discographies of musical acts from the 1960s to the present day. Browse this site's review archives or enjoy these random selections:
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