pete shelley

15 essential post-punk bands who represent the evolution of the genre

Post-punk had to happen. Punk rock opened all this space for people to make exactly the kind of art or culture that the disenfranchised had been imagining in their heads, and maybe had limited means or skills by which to make it. But what if you didn’t want to crank out recharged three-chord rock ’n’ […]

15 punk albums from 1993 that embraced contrarianism over prefab rebellion

Alternative rock still dominated popular music in 1993. This obviously begged the question of just how “alternative” something was if it was now on a major label and on the radio. Not necessarily a bad thing. After all, we’d never have to hear Whitesnake again. Bottom end and distortion returned to rock record-making in a […]

10 Manchester bands who cranked up the punk in the late '70s

In the ’70s, England had two great punk cities. Most across the planet thought London was the world’s only punk capital, completely ignoring the music and culture’s beginnings in New York City, mostly due to the Sex Pistols’ outsized reputation and influence. But if London was English Punk City No. 1, Manchester definitely came in […]

These 17 punk guitarists from the '70s truly forged the cutting edge

Part of the initial hype around punk rock was it had “no guitar heroes.” That was an exaggeration. To clarify, punk (in part) was meant to destroy the cult of technique. The obsession with 15-minute guitar solos, cramming in every note and lick you know at lightning speed. After all, what’s the point of playing […]

QUIZ: How much ’70s punk trivia do you really know?

For many, first-wave punk was the sound of liberation. Chainsaw guitars, locomotive drums and screaming singers delivered brutal street poetry about the times. It saved us from a lifetime of dull progressive rock, snooze-worthy singer-songwriters and six-string heavy metal. For certain die-hards, ’70s punk is the only punk. For them, both the music and the […]

The sleeves of these 25 old-school punk singles are as cool as the music

As recently established here, the 45 RPM record was the greatest medium for punk rock. It’s compact, it’s affordable and brevity’s of essence—distill all of your best moments in three minutes or less. You can also master these seven-inch beauties hot, perfect for loud music. Then you have the picture sleeves. With punk being so […]

These 5 records by Buzzcocks practically invented pop punk

June 21, 2019, Royal Albert Hall, London: What was intended as a celebration of perhaps English punk’s most universally beloved band, Buzzcocks, is now a wake. On Dec. 6, 2018, frontman Pete Shelley died of a heart attack in Estonia, where he’d been enjoying a less hectic existence than London had afforded him for 30 […]

Top 8 videos capturing Britpunk beginnings in all its snarling glory

Britpunk was born out of a movement. However, England no more invented punk rock in 1976 than McDonald’s invented the hamburger. Punk was an idea airborne worldwide across 1975. Local freaks who’d bought Stooges and New York Dolls records formed bands in their image, unaware anyone else shared their disgust with the day’s dominant culture.  […]

Buzzcocks frontman/pop-punk architect Pete Shelley dies at 63

Peter Shelley, co-founder of the Buzzcocks, the British punk band who were practically the architects for the entire genre of pop punk, passed away at his home in Estonia. He was 63. Earlier this afternoon, Shelley’s brother, Gary John McNeish, posted to Facebook, “This is the hardest thing I have ever had to do, is […]