10 Most Important Hard Rock Bands Of The 80s

As the first wave of punk music collapsed in on itself, there was no real rulebook as to where to go next. If you were looking in places like D.C., there were still plenty of bands looking to keep the punk spirit alive, with Minor Threat being at the forefront of the hardcore movement. When you ventured a little further West though, we had Husker Du putting together sounds that no one had heard before.

Starting out as your traditional hardcore outfit, what Bob Mould created on some of these records like Zen Arcade and New Day Rising became the basis for what would become both post hardcore and alternative rock, having the same type of monstrous energy of hardcore punk along with catchy hooks that almost catch you off guard when you find yourself singing along to them.

They never really seemed to get their due though, with most of the alternative scene not really getting that much attention on the airwaves at the time outside of people like R.E.M. The right people did pay attention though, with Husker Du being cited as a main influence to everyone from Dave Grohl to Billie Joe Armstrong to Mark Hoppus. In that case, New Day Rising may be more of a meta album title than we realize. The only reason why these guys weren't as popular was because the rock scene hadn't caught up to them yet.