10 Greatest Pop Punk Bands Of All Time
7. Buzzcocks
A lot of the typical pop punk sounds of today could be traced back to the genre of power pop. While in much more of a punk outfit, a lot of the classics from the late '90s and early '00s had a lot more in common with acts like Cheap Trick and the Jam than many would be willing to admit. However, power pop always had a bit of a nasty cousin in the Buzzcocks.
Despite being firmly on the punk end of the spectrum, the music of the Buzzcocks was pivotal in shaping the way that pop punk would look a few years down the road. Across singles like What Do I Get?, the guitar driven hooks are a lot more tuneful than something you would get out of the Sex Pistols, while also dealing with more snide subject matters. For as catchy as something like Orgasm Addict is, there's no disputing what the tune is actually about.
Just the compilation album Singles Going Steady is enough to base a pop punk career on, as each song features a bulletproof melody alongside some of the most aggressive (and sometimes out of tune) guitar breaks you will ever hear. It might seem a bit too sugary sweet by punk standards, but when it comes to pop punk, the Buzzcocks are the holy grail.