jim morrison

A history of horror punk, from the Damned and Misfits to Alkaline Trio

I Put A Spell On You: Horror-punk roots Horror punk? Well, the cheapest, tackiest horror films have always been part of the cultural detritus that’s informed the punk aesthetic. Think of Ramones’ ode to The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, “Chain Saw.” Remember the bloody, dripping creature feature font adorning Iggy And The Stooges’ Raw Power […]

11 bands and genres that prove Black Flag are a continued influence

“When Damaged came out, it perfectly represented the depths and darkness of my particular teen angst,” Adam Grossman, guitarist for Angkor Wat, Skrew and Ministry, tells Alternative Press. “It was the soundtrack of my life at that point in time.” Any musician involved in the most extreme forms of musical expression owes their existence and […]

These 11 singers steered the course of punk and hardcore in the ’80s

The idea of compiling a list of the greatest punk singers of the ‘80s might seem a bit odd. After all, this was when hardcore rose and quickly dominated all things punk. And let’s face it: Hardcore vocalists are more noted for bellowing than actual singing, per se. Not that late ‘70s punk harbored many […]

10 punk vocalists from the ’70s who upended mainstream rock standards

Nashville songwriting great Harlan Howard once defined country music as “three chords and the truth.” Many have said that definition could also be applied to punk rock. Therefore, it stands to reason that the figure writhing behind the mic stand might be the most essential member of any punk band. After all, it isn’t the […]

10 legendary bands who built the foundation of the grunge genre

Despite the grousings of certain members of punk’s first generation, grunge most certainly earned its place on rock’s historical timeline, the perfect antidote to the cliche-ridden joke hardcore became fairly quickly: Everyone attempting to run the 100-yard dash in two seconds? Why not take a nice, leisurely stroll, instead? Most know that meat turns out […]

Aly & AJ's first album in 14 years will be the soundtrack of your summer

It has been 14 years since Aly & AJ released an album, but they are back and ready to soundtrack your summer. Thanks to their music as well as various acting gigs, Aly & AJ secured their place as pop culture staples in the 2000s. Their last album Insomniatic included the iconic “Potential Breakup Song,” […]

10 essential ‘70s punk bands from Los Angeles you should already know

Punk was, by design, meant to be small and regional. True, bands might break out and become national or even international. But the overarching idea was keeping things small and accessible. You wanted to be able to reach out and touch your favorite band in a small sweaty club, maybe have a beer with the […]

Adore Delano is the happiest “making trashy, awful music”

Adore Delano sounds tired. She just flew from her native Los Angeles to Denver to shoot a music video, and in less than two days she’ll board a plane to Australia to perform a string of tour dates.  “It was chill. I slept through the whole thing,” she says with a sleepy voice, when asked […]

14 totally bonkers music conspiracy theories

If we’re to believe the Twitter conspiracy theorists (and come on, when are Twitter conspiracy theorists ever wrong?), Avril Lavigne apparently died in 2003 and was replaced by a lookalike. But this complicated (get it?) theory isn’t the only music-related conspiracy to have made the rounds on the internet. From Andrew W.K. being an industry […]