Trapped in a Scene

The underground hardcore scene of the mid-late Eighties was UK punk rock's last significant creative gasp. Emerging from the wreckage of the anarcho punk scene spawned by the likes of Crass and Conflict, it took its influences from the studs 'n' leather punk bands of the early Eighties such as Discharge and GBH, and also the nascent American hardcore movement and the emerging metal/punk crossover scene. Filter all of this through some through fiercely DIY aesthetics and you had a potent movement that spawned such seminal acts as Napalm Death, ENT, The Stupids and Heresy. With the backing of John Peel and an unwavering work ethic, these bands, and the labels that launched them (including Earache and Peaceville-both now widely regarded as having some of the finest metal rosters in the world), pushed musical boundaries into new and previously unexplored avenues of extremity, helping to shape the alternative music scene we know and love today.