Straightedge & Hardcore Punk Music 80s-90s

JFA (Jodie Foster's Army) is an American hardcore punk band formed in 1981, with roots in Arizona and in Southern California skateboard culture. The original members include Brian Brannon (vocals), Don "Redondo" Pendleton (guitar), Michael Cornelius (bass), and Mike "Bam-Bam" Sversvold (drums). Alan Bishop of Sun City Girls also played bass for a while. The band was pivotal in the development of the skate punk and Skate Rock scenes. Over the years, the lineup has included many bass players and drummers but the core of Brannon and Redondo has remained constant.

JFA was formed in April 1981, 19 days after the failed attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan by John Hinckley, Jr. Hinckley, an obsessed fan of Jodie Foster and her portrayal of a teen prostitute in the 1976 Martin Scorsese film Taxi Driver, reportedly attempted to kill the President as a means of impressing the actress. The band's name was thus a dark play on Hinckley's attempt at murdering Reagan — a hated figure in the early 1980s punk rock scene.

State of Alert (often abbreviated to S.O.A.) was an American hardcore punk group formed in Washington, D.C. in October 1980, and disbanded in July 1981. S.O.A. was fronted by Henry Rollins, then using his original surname Garfield.

S.O.A. was formed in October 1980, after the members of a previous group, the Extorts, lost their vocalist Lyle Preslar and hired Rollins, then known by his birth name Henry Garfield. The original lineup consisted of Rollins (vocals), Michael Hampton (guitar), Wendel Blow (bass) and Simon Jacobsen (drums).

During December 1980 and January 1981, the group recorded the 10-song 7" EP No Policy at Inner Ear Studios in Arlington, Virginia, produced by Skip Groff and engineered by Inner Ear owner Don Zientara. It was released on Dischord Records in March 1981, as the label's second release. No Policy was financed by Rollins, as Dischord was tied up in releasing Minor Threat's debut EP.

The Teen Idles were an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C. in September 1979. Consisting of teenagers Nathan Strejcek, Geordie Grindle, Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, they recorded two demo sessions and the 1980 Minor Disturbance EP before breaking up in November 1980. The influential independent record label Dischord Records was originally created with the sole purpose of releasing The Teen Idles Minor Disturbance 7" record. They were an early landmark in the D.C. hardcore movement, and MacKaye and Nelson would later form the seminal punk rock outfit Minor Threat.

The Teen Idles were among the first punk groups from the early 1980s hardcore movement to break out of their regional scene to tour and sell nationally. Inspired by other American punk bands like the Cramps and Bad Brains, the Teen Idles' music was an early version of hardcore punk, and an attempt, in the words of MacKaye, "to get away from a really corrupted music". Their appearance, lyrics and musical style sought to revive a punk movement that they believed had lost its original zeal.

The Germs were an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, originally active from 1976 to 1980. The band's "classic" lineup consisted of singer Darby Crash, guitarist Pat Smear, bassist Lorna Doom and drummer Don Bolles. They released only one album, 1979's (GI), produced by Joan Jett, and were featured in Penelope Spheeris' seminal documentary film The Decline of Western Civilization, which chronicled the Los Angeles punk movement. The Germs disbanded following Crash's suicide in 1980. Their music was influential to many later rock acts, and Smear went on to achieve greater fame performing with Nirvana and Foo Fighters.

Fear, stylized as FEAR, is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1977. The band is credited for helping to shape the sound and style of Californian hardcore punk. The group gained national prominence after an infamous 1981 performance on Saturday Night Live.

Frontman Lee Ving has been the band's only constant member. Since its formation, the band has gone through various lineup changes, and at one point featured Flea, later a member of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, on bass. The classic FEAR lineup existed from 1978 to 1982, and was composed of Ving, guitarist Philo Cramer, bassist Derf Scratch and drummer Spit Stix.

Fear was formed in 1977 by singer/guitarist Lee Ving and bassist Derf Scratch, who recruited guitarist Burt Good and drummer Johnny Backbeat. In 1978, Fear released the single "I Love Livin' in the City". Shortly after this, Good and Backbeat left the band and were replaced by Philo Cramer and Spit Stix.

Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band that formed in San Francisco, California, in 1978. The band was one of the defining punk bands during its initial eight-year run.

D.O.A. is a Canadian punk rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, Angry Samoans, The Bags, Germs, Negative Trend, and Middle Class. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore.

Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, with original bassist Randy Rampage returning to the band twice after his original departure. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records, and they have released an album with Biafra on vocals titled Last Scream of the Missing Neighbors.

The Descendents are an American punk rock band formed in 1977 in Manhattan Beach, California, by guitarist Frank Navetta, bassist Tony Lombardo and drummer Bill Stevenson as a power-pop/surf punk band. In 1979, they enlisted Stevenson's school friend Milo Aukerman as a singer, and reappeared as a melodic hardcore punk band, becoming a major player in the hardcore scene developing in Los Angeles at the time. They have released eight studio albums, three live albums, three compilation albums, and four EPs. Since 1986, the band's lineup has consisted of singer Milo Aukerman, guitarist Stephen Egerton, bassist Karl Alvarez, and drummer Bill Stevenson.

Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Washington, D.C., by vocalist Ian MacKaye and drummer Jeff Nelson. MacKaye and Nelson had played in several other bands together, and recruited bassist Brian Baker and guitarist Lyle Preslar to form Minor Threat. They added a fifth member, Steve Hansgen, in 1982, playing bass, while Baker switched to second guitar.

Black Flag is an American punk rock band formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California. Initially called Panic, the band was established by Greg Ginn, the guitarist, primary songwriter, and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes in the band. They are widely considered to be one of the first hardcore punk bands, as well as one of the pioneers of post-hardcore. After breaking up in 1986, Black Flag reunited in 2003 and again in 2013. The second reunion lasted well over a year, during which they released their first studio album in over two decades, What The... (2013). The band announced their third reunion in January 2019. Brandon Pertzborn was replaced by Isaias Gil on drums and Tyler Smith was replaced by Joseph Noval on bass.

Reagan Youth is an American anarcho-punk band formed by singer Dave Rubinstein and guitarist Paul Bakija in Queens, New York City in early 1980.

Dag Nasty is an American punk rock band from Washington D.C., formed in 1985 by guitarist Brian Baker of Minor Threat, drummer Colin Sears and bassist Roger Marbury, both of Bloody Mannequin Orchestra, and vocalist Shawn Brown (later of Swiz and Jesuseater). Their style of less aggressive, melodic hardcore was influential to post-hardcore; their sound was partly influenced by The Faith and their 1983 EP Subject to Change. Brian Baker said in "Filmage", the documentary about Descendents, that he started Dag Nasty as a direct inspiration from them.

Shawn Brown was the first vocalist with whom the band recorded unreleased versions of most of the material that later made up their first release Can I Say, which featured former roadie and new singer Dave Smalley of DYS. Dave left the band to attend grad school at New York University before a summer tour with The Descendents. A new singer, Peter Cortner, was found after the band placed an ad in a local paper and the tour was kept. After touring half the US opening for The Descendents, the band went home and recorded new material that wasn't released until years later. After a few more local shows, the band broke up in the fall of 1986. Brian went to L.A. to start a new band with Doug Carrion and half of Doggy Style called Doggie Rock. After releasing one album under the Doggie Style name, Doggie Rock broke up and Brian reformed Dag Nasty in early 1987 with Peter, Colin and Doug replacing Roger Marbury, who declined to rejoin. Months later, the band recorded and released Wig Out at Denko's, including rerecorded versions of the late 1986 tape and new material.

Battalion of Saints is a hardcore punk rock band from San Diego, California that was founded in 1980. The band went through numerous lineup changes before touring the United States and Canada from 1984-1985 with George Anthony, Chris Smith, James Cooper and Joey Wrecked (Maya). Half-way through the 55-city summer 1985 tour, the road manager, Captain Scarlett (David Lloyd) replaced James Cooper on bass. The band officially broke up in 1985. Singer George Anthony re-formed the band in 1995 with Terry "Tezz" Roberts (veteran of British punk bands Discharge, Broken Bones, and U.K. Subs), and signed to Taang! Records, which reissued most of their material on the Death-R-Us CD.

In late 1996, George Anthony formed a band of hard core San Diego DAGO misfits consisting of Jason Graham, Mike (wingnut) Clingerman and Richard G. White. The group recorded a 7-inch of cover of Alice Cooper's "Muscle of Love" and an original song, "I don't know (Hit the Bricks)" with Taang records. They then went on to tour of most of Europe.

MDC is an American punk rock band formed in 1979 in Austin, Texas, subsequently based in San Francisco, and currently Portland, Oregon. Among the first wave of bands to define the sound and style of American hardcore punk, MDC originally formed as The Stains; they have periodically changed the meaning of "MDC", the most frequent being Millions of Dead Cops. The band's lyrical content expresses radical left political views and has proven influential within the punk subculture.

Youth Brigade is an American punk rock band formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States, in 1980 by the brothers Mark, Adam, and Shawn Stern. The band subsequently founded BYO (Better Youth Organization). Many later punk bands cite Youth Brigade as an influence, including The Nation of Ulysses and The Briefs.

Youth Brigade has released five studio albums (counting one released as The Brigade), of which the last was released in 1996. Almost each album was recorded with the original lineup of the Stern brothers (Mark, Adam and Shawn); bassist Bob Gnarly replaced Adam in 1985 during the recording of The Dividing Line, which was released as The Brigade. Adam returned in 1991 (when the band reunited) and contributed to the band's 1992 EP Come Again and their next two albums (Happy Hour and To Sell the Truth) before leaving once again in 2007. Youth Brigade continues to tour to this day, although, other than six new tracks on the 1999 split album BYO Split Series Volume II, they have not released a full-length studio album since To Sell the Truth in 1996.

The Adolescents are an American punk rock band formed in Fullerton, California in 1980. Part of the hardcore punk movement in southern California in the early 1980s, they were one of the main punk acts to emerge from Orange County, along with their peers in Agent Orange and Social Distortion. Founding bassist Steve Soto was the sole constant member of the band since its inception until his 2018 death, with singer Tony Reflex being in the group for all but one album.

7 Seconds are an American hardcore punk band from Reno, Nevada, that was formed in 1980 by two sets of brothers. The band has gone through numerous lineup changes over the subsequent years, with only Kevin Seconds and Steve Youth remaining constant members.

Agent Orange is an American punk rock band formed in Placentia, California, in 1979. The band was one of the first to mix punk rock with surf music.