10 Greatest Punk Bands Of All Time
4. Bad Brains
Punk is designed to have a much harsher bite than most other rock genres. Whether it's the sharp pop sounds of Blink-182 or the brash nastiness of the Damned, there is always a certain attack in every punk song alongside the melodies. Then again, sometimes that kind of attack just isn't enough.
As punk started to blossom, the genre started to include more screeching vocals and insane tempos which culminated in the explosion of hardcore punk. Though bands like Minor Threat helped forge this new sound, Bad Brains were punk at its most destructive. From the first time they stepped on stage, it didn't feel like you were witnessing musicians play but rather all-out war being unleashed onstage. For as much of a sonic assault as it was, there was also a ton of technical expertise as well, which frontman H.R. would often mock when conducting the band between his screaming passages.
Beyond just the music, these guys were pivotal in pioneering the everyman aesthetic, which gave the rest of the community incentive to pick up guitars of their own and thrash their basements to the ground. Punk may have been seen as a more simplistic version of hard rock, but Bad Brains are one of only a handful of bands that could make Motorhead sound like pop stars by comparison.