Power violence
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Hardcore punk | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins: | Punk rock |
| Cultural origins: | Early 1980s North America |
| Typical instruments: | Vocals - Guitar - Bass - Drums |
| Mainstream popularity: | Little to none during the careers of the bands, but has been gaining popularity in recent years. |
| Derivative forms: | Alternative rock - Grunge - Emo - Post-hardcore |
| Subgenres | |
| Christian hardcore - Crust punk - D-beat - Grindcore - Melodic hardcore - Powerviolence - Skate punk - Thrashcore - Youth crew | |
| Fusion genres | |
| Crossover thrash - Funkcore - Metalcore | |
| Regional scenes | |
| Australia - Brazil - Canada - Europe: Italy - South Wales - Scandinavia: Umeå - Japan - USA: Boston - California - Chicago - Detroit - Minneapolis - New Jersey - New York - North Carolina - Phoenix - Seattle - Texas - DC | |
| Other topics | |
| Hardcore dancing - Straight edge - DIY punk ethic - List of bands | |
Power violence is a cross breeding of musical genres hardcore punk and grindcore that was first mentioned by name in the song "Hispanic Small Man Power (H.S.M.P.)" by genre pioneer Man is the Bastard. Power violence is generally played at a frantic speed, often employing blast beats with contrasting slow, sludgy parts. Its nascent form was pioneered in the late 1980s in the music of hardcore punk bands Infest and No Comment, themselves heavily influenced by earlier bands like Siege, Lärm and the Neos. The microgenre solidified into its most commonly recognized form in the early 1990s with the sounds of bands such as Man is the Bastard, Crossed Out, and No Comment.
Musically, the majority of bands focus on speed, brevity, and constant tempo changes, without the metallic influence that grindcore is generally known for in its songwriting and production techniques. This is meant to contrast with modern grindcore variants that have become increasingly associated with death metal and other forms of extreme music as well as many more modern hardcore and metalcore bands slowly moving away from certain roots of the traditional hardcore. Power violence songs are often very short; it is not uncommon for them to last less than 30 seconds.
The aforementioned song H.S.M.P. mentions Crossed Out, No Comment, Capitalist Casualties, Manpig, and Man Is The Bastard by name. Other bands commonly associated with power violence include, Neanderthal (a pre-cursor to Man Is The Bastard), Infest, Despise You, Dropdead, Lack Of Interest, and Spazz.
Spazz vocalist/bassist Chris Dodge's record label Slap a Ham was a fixture during the rapid rise and decline of power violence, releasing influential records by the likes of Neanderthal, No Comment, Crossed Out, Infest, Spazz, etc. The label's Fiesta Grande was an annual power violence festival held at 924 Gilman [1] from 1992 to 2000. Spazz drummer Max Ward's label 625 Thrashcore [2] has started their own festival, 'Super Sabado Gigante', in a similar vein.
[edit] Bands
- Capitalist Casualties
- Charles Bronson
- Crossed Out
- Despise You
- Fuck on the Beach
- Infest
- MK-ULTRA
- Man Is the Bastard
- Neanderthal
- No Comment
- Pissed Happy Children
- Spazz
[edit] See also
| Hardcore punk |
|---|
| Christian hardcore - Crust punk - D-beat - Melodic hardcore - Powerviolence - Queercore - Skate punk - Thrashcore - Youth crew Emo - Funkcore - Grindcore - Metalcore - Post-hardcore |
| Regional Scenes |
| Australia - Brazil - Canada - Italy - South Wales - Greece - Scandinavia: Umeå - Japan - Yugoslavia Boston - California - Chicago - Detroit - Minneapolis - New Jersey - New York - North Carolina - Phoenix - DC |
| Other topics |
| DIY punk ethic - Hardcore bands - Hardcore dancing - Straight edge |
