I’m curious if anyone else in here got in to synths/drum machines via the 90s/00s post punk/hardcore/skramz bands that incorporated synths?
Some bands that got me thinking synths were cool:
The VSS
Milemarker
The Shortwave Channel
Camera Obscura (not the indie one)
The Crimson Curse
Le Shok
Pleasure Forever
Subpoena The Past
Black Cat #13
not 90s/00s and a little too heavy to still be punk in my opinion, but i really like code orange. they use synths and samples more for sound effects than leads though:
Cool thread idea! I gotta check out some of these bands, as I most of them are new to me.
This album may sound like pure cacophonous noise for first time listeners, but it’s absolutely genius. The playing is as tight as it is otherworldly, and sometimes it’s hard to discern what’s a synth and what’s a guitar, but the locust cram more creativity into these 20 mins than other bands in their whole careers. This album showed me what’s possible with synthesizers even though I never went THAT far with my own music.
If you’re in to The Locust you might appreciate that quite a few of the bands I listen are directly linked to them. Haha! San Diego had a big synth punk scene.
Not necessarily hardcore punk, but there were a few bands in Columbus, Ohio that were hugely influential to me that used synths / keyboards in a big way when I was growing up.
Times New Viking made prominent use of a really dirty sounding organ with some pedals and it was often synth-like in tone. There was another band whose name I wish I could remember but their frontperson played a Korg MS2000 and I remember it sounding awesome. (Anyone here from Columbus??)
I’ve always loved the fact that synths could add any texture imaginable to music, punk or not.
so many great San Diego area bands. basically anything on Gravity. Heroin. Second Story Window. Unwound. Swing Kids. Angel Hair. Born Against. Man Is The Bastard, etc… love all that shit.
I didn’t get into synths via punk though. and most of those bands (that @BlankFlag mentioned) kinda happened once I’d moved onto other music interests.
you might like New Terror Class. they only had one record. it was basically a later incarnation of Harriet The Spy (who were very similar to the Gravity sound) from Kent, Ohio. this was released around 99/2000. the synth work isn’t super heavy, but it’s there.
also have to mention stuff like The Get Up Kids (and their keyboard player also did Reggie And The Full Effect). they used synths in a very Weezer/Rentals like way. even though that’s considered indie rock now, I saw those dudes at punk shows and fests throughout the 90’s (because all that stuff went together more on culture than sound back then). and don’t forget Atom And His Package. though I think he just used a Yamaha QY700 instead of synths.
not Columbus, but near Akron. played and went to shows in Columbus many times in the 90’s though. loved playing The Legion Of Doom house (did a solo show using a monome in 2006!). never got to attend or play the neilhouse though. it basically shut down and caused LOD to start.
Oh I forgot Song of Zarathustra!
I’m oldschool, so when I think of true punk ethos combined with synths I immediately go to Babyland. They were incredible live as well.
Live clip:
They also did one of my favorite covers ever, of The Chill’s “Pink Frost”:
I played a show with Babyland in like 98 or 99. I’m still trying to find the music for the band they were touring with, Magnum.
They were also absolutely amazing live, and fun to watch wearing the masks and everything too.
Thanks for the thread! I’ve been wanting some inspiration in this area.
Special interest if there’s any electro punk in the Pacific Northwest as well!
No prob! Let me know if you find more. It seemed like a small and short lived scene. It did seem to branch out in to other genres. Like, The Rapture came from that scene. I’m always curious if all the synths in doom bands came from a mixture of this and black metal. I guess Neurosis prolly had more influence.
VSS were great live and played with Milemarker on one of there UK tours a long time ago.
My first thought was GvsB
The VSS are still one of my all time favorite bands. Have yet to find anyone that sounds remotely similar. The energy was so high. And the synths were crucial.
I was very much into Jay Reatards bands in the 2000s. Went to Lost sounds 3 times I think in Stockholm. Its some tracks on the terrorvision Lp thats just electronics end screams. Fave voice in rock. Sad that he died.
edit: Don’t be fooled by the colorful album cover, this band churned out fantastic gnarly blown-out synth-punk
Ok. This is pretty rad. Reminds of Youth Code but lofi.
He did some incredible work for sure.