EP 286. Temp Check: 2020s Hardcore (so far)
Sick or nah?
Killer episode this week on the pod. Listen here, here, or here.
I found this topic super easy to talk about on the pod but a lot harder to put into written word, so I’d encourage you to check out the episode where Kev and I cover a ton more than I do here.
What defines hardcore in the first half of the 2020s? No doubt the first two years were the most consequencial, but I think it’s important to step back for a minute to acknowledge that hardcore in 2018/2019 already seemed to be having an moment. Maybe the scene was on the verge of another peak in popularity completely organically, but the Covid-19 pandemic gave it the wildest boost that no one could have predicted.
When lockdowns began in March of 2020, much of the world came to a halt including the heart and soul of hardcore/punk: the live gig. Other aspects thrived though. A lot of young people had nothing but time on their hands and some spent it digging for new music or entertaining things to watch. Clips of hardcore shows came into TikTok/Twitter/Instagram feeds and some folks stopped scrolling for five seconds to watch people mosh, stage dive, or headwalk—not as cool of an entry point as getting a Minor Threat cassette from your older brother, but an entry point nonetheless.
If they wanted more, there was a plethora of longer form videos from videographers like Hate5six online waiting for them. I totally understand the appeal of watching hardcore shows online, especially in a time when people were looking for any type of social interaction or for lack of a better term, culture. These kids were ready to buy in and their opportunity came with the stimulus checks. Look how many records the more popular hardcore bands like Sunami and Gulch sold in 2020/2021 to people who probably didn’t even own a record player.
When things began to open back up, some of the first gigs were massive.
There was a huge gig in New York City on April 24th, 2021 with Madball, Murphy’s Law, Wisdom in Chains and others.
On May 8th, 2021 there was that legendary Dead City show in Los Angeles with Section H8, Alpha & Omega, and others.
Gulch, Sunami, Drain, Xibalba and others staged their own massive show in San Jose on June 19th, 2021.
The live gig was back in a major way and it was impossible to ignore.
Following all this in August of 2021 was the release of Turnstile’s breakout LP Glow On which brought in a ton of media attention to the scene at a time it was having an unprecedented moment. As Turnstile’s popularity skyrocketed into the mainstream, they became an avatar of popularity for some bands to chase. To many, the ceiling of success in hardcore was being lifted to new heights. Of course it kind of depends on what your definition of what hardcore is but nonetheless, we had entered a new era of what seemed to be possible.
A handful of bands seemed to constantly be mentioned in the Turnstile articles as well, raising their name ID to casuals. Some of these bands had been slogging for years already like Angel Du$t and Drug Church and some were relative newcomers like Militarie Gun and Scowl. Journalists talked about hardcore having a moment and fans online debated and predicted who would be the next band to break through and gain Turnstile-esque success. The new found attention on some of these bands in the greater hardcore scene brought in some corporate sponsors.
PBR sponsored hardcore festivals and a bunch of bands did PBR t-shirt collaborations.
Taco Bell got in the mix too featuring Turnstile and other more friendly-on-the-ears hardcore adjacent bands (and still continue to this day, unlike the PBR money that seemed to dry up).
The debate was back: should corporate money be in hardcore / punk? It was total déjà vu of my newjack punk years reading fanzines in the mid ‘90s. Unfortunately the modern, post-Covid debate was mostly reduced down to comments sections and short form discourse on Reddit/Twitter.
Throughout hardcore’s history, it’s often the ebb and flow that creates interesting moments. The pushback against what some perceived as “pro-core” created a new batch up bands that started putting out demos with no regard for mainstream success or broader aspirations. Leading the charge was South Florida’s Collateral who put out one of the best demos of 2023 and the best hardcore 7” of 2024. More followed, with 2024 probably being the quality peak of the 2nd “demo-core” revival. Bands like Freeze Out, Hindsight, and No Idols put out killer demos that represented some of the best roots hardcore music of the year.
Of course, this is all just a small piece of the story. Underneath it all, it was basically the same shit: hardcore bands put out records and played gigs. Some new kids discovered it, some folks aged out, and some previously-aged-out people rediscovered it. In that way, below the surface, everything was kinda just the same as it has always been.
I’ll wrap with ten excellent records from 2020-2024 that I think give a pretty good cross section of what I like. This is not ranked or in any sort of order.
1. MINDFORCE - SWINGIN SWORDS, CHOPPIN LORDS 12” (2020)
Mindforce followed up their 2018 classic Excalibur, with this four-song 12” of distilled crossover perfection. The band has turned trimming the fat into a science so it’s no surprise that this is pound-for-pound their best record.
2. PUBLIC ACID - DEADLY STRUGGLE LP (2023)
Public Acid laid down a slab of raw, surging brutality that carved out its own unique style in a world of samey d-beat. It’s the soundtrack to getting attacked by a swarm of hornets.
3. THE CHISEL - RETALIATION LP (2021)
On Retaliation, The Chisel masterfully blended UK82 style hardcore punk with No Future style anthems. No one has done it better in modern times.
4. BLOODSTAINS - ANTI-SOCIAL 7” (2023)
Dude, just listen to “Anti-Social.”
5. GEHENNA - NEGATIVE HARDCORE LP (2022)
Hopefully Mike Cheese doesn’t stab me with a frozen hot dog for saying this but Negative Hardcore is Gehenna’s most palatable recording since the demo, and to my ears by far their best. At times it’s an uncontrollable swirling mass of raw hardcore fury and other times it’s a blunt object, slowly jabbing you until you’re reduced to pulp.
6. SYNDROME 81 - PRISONS IMAGINAIRES LP (2023)
Is it hardcore punk? Is it post-punk? Is it the apex of what Camera Silens and Komintern Sect kicked off 40 years prior? My smooth brain cannot comprehend this greatness.
7. TERROR - PAIN INTO POWER LP (2022)
Terror’s 9th 12” might be their 2nd best.
‘nuff said.
8. SAVAGEHEADS - SERVICE TO YOUR COUNTRY LP (2022)
This is neck and neck with Death March by The Massacred as the best straight up UK82 style record of the decade.
9. STIGMATISM - IGNORANCE IN POWER LP (2023)
George Carlin took these dudes on one last ride in his phone booth to NYC circa 1984 and they returned with the best hardcore LP of 2023.
10. TOZCOS - INFERNAL LP (2024)
Put the three most classic GBH 12”s in a blender and replace Colin’s delivery with perfectly shouted vocals en Español ala Vaaska. You’re slamming.
My band Subversive Intent released a our debut LP May 1st on Rebirth Records. I’m super proud of it and can’t wait for you to hear it…on vinyl, when you order two copies. So do that and in the meantime jam it here, here, or wherever you stream music. Records should be shipping shortly…I got my band copies and they look sick!
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- ZN
Woof. That PBR photo....