Questions about the 1980s

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Thanks to all who helped me with my New Order enquiries a few weeks back, i picked up 4 of their lps and a best of second hand and have been enjoying tremendously ever since..and it got me to thinking about the 80s and how they`re portrayed. It seems that being tagged an "80s band" by the music press has pretty negative connotations and is used as a way of berating..witness colin murray`s recent remarks on depeche mode on the crap 4 music. For years I was foolishly put off investigating music from that decade as a result of the negative media portrayal and opinions held by my peers and those just a bit older than me, even though I was fond of the cheesy synth pop I`d known as a child. I suspect people felt very much the same way about the 70s during the 80s. Oh dear this is very long-winded....but all I wanted to ask for those who were following music during the 80s is were they really as bad as people of my generation (i`m in my early 20s)are led to believe? Were they really extraordinarily bad? If not, what is it about the music produced then that encourages such wrath? Curiously in some genres (hip-hop) the 80s seem to be viewed as a golden age... please excuse my naivety...

― young girl, Thursday, 28 February 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

The 80's were also the golden age of poodle haired Metal, if it can be described as such. Most of it was appalling

If you think about it, New Model Army, Jesus and Mary Chain The Pixies, Mega City Four, The Wonderstuff, REM, My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth, all released records in the 80's but you don't necessarily think of them as being 80's music. Well probably New Model Army... Mind you some acts, like the Cure, sound very 80's now.

I don't normally think of the 80's in terms of the synth acts in the early parts of the decade, but more of the Brat Pack film type of music in the mid 80's like Let's Here it for the Boys etc.. I think a lot of early 90's music sounds pretty "old" now too.

― Alex G, Thursday, 28 February 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

The 80's were pretty bad in commercial terms, all those people who really should have been employed as either a: Swimming baths attendants. B:Accountants. C:Style magazine writers, discovered the synthesizer and found that suddenly, for the first time in their lives people were giving them attention. very few of them have stood the test of time and discounting them you are left with a selection of true innovators who would have created great music in any decade.

"Rock and roll is about abusing instruments in order to get across a point" Mark E Smith.

Synths alone don't create great music, genuinely creative people will always exist and there were plenty of them in the 80's

― Kris England, Thursday, 28 February 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

very few of them have stood the test of time and discounting them you are left with a selection of true innovators who would have created great music in any decade.

Quite so! Like the Human League, Gary Numan, Depeche Mode, New Order, Soft Cell...

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 28 February 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

New Model Army are fab! C'mon now!

― Sean Carruthers, Thursday, 28 February 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

The 80s sucked, and Jarvis Cocker was spot on when he reckoned he deserved a refund for living though them. After the Bunnymen and Gang of Four the only good rock bands were Husker Du, Sonic Youth and the Smiths plus Psychocandy and Isnt Anything. Numan was washed out by 1980 and the Cure made two decent singles a year, none of which were as good as S Club manage these days. If it wasn't for cheap strong (pre-clubbers) acid, squatting and Public Enemy there would have been no reason to stay alive. Britain was ruled by an evil junta, racism was even more commonplace and there were regular fights at the football, nightclubs, pubs, probably fucking cinemas. On the bright side I did get quite a lot of sex. You missed nothing, I assure you.

― Snotty Moore, Thursday, 28 February 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

If it wasn't for cheap strong (pre-clubbers) acid, squatting and Public Enemy there would have been no reason to stay alive.

What, not even snakebite?

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 28 February 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I got no sex during the 80s whatsoever. But then, I was 14 in 1990.

― electric sound of jim, Thursday, 28 February 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Not even with blackcurrant, Ned. 14? What's wrong with you?

― Snotty Moore, Friday, 1 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Well I reckon I deserve a medal for living through the mid-90s.

― Robin Carmody, Friday, 1 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

three months pass...

Good things about the 80s:

- Aciiiid!
- Metal going underground and developing into something *really* interesting: Slayer, Death, Morbid Angel, Bathory, Hellhammer, Paradise Lost, Sarcofago
- The development of hip hop
- Synthpop

Bad things about the 80s:

- hair bands (Scorpions, Bon Jovi, Poison, Guns 'n' Roses, Def Leppard)
- punk degenerating into a cliched farce
- godawful saxophone solos
- Modern Talking, Wham and Glenn Madeiros
- Gloria Estefan, Tina Turner's comeback, Bryan Adams, Phil Collins
- rapballads by MC Hammer, LL Cool J and Vanilla Ice
- Neneh Cherry and Soul II Soul
- Limahls haircut
- mullets
- Toto, Foreigner, Survivor etc
- rock bands playing disco (Rod Steward, Queen, Kiss)

― Siegbran Hetteson, Tuesday, 4 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

The 80's were very great.

― Sean, Tuesday, 4 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Limahl's haircut was very great

― mark s, Tuesday, 4 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Neneh Cherry and Soul II Soul

exsqueeze me? what's bad about these guys?

― electric sound of jim, Tuesday, 4 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

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