Hardcore punk of the 90s remains a special era for its continued commitment to mainstream inaccessibility and anti-establishmentarianism that developed in the 80s. D.C. hardcore was still going strong, and New York City was booming. Powerviolence was also on the up-and-up. At the same time, there was the growing Seattle grunge scene to contend with. In this way, a lot of hardcore bands of the 90s were swept under the rug, unless you were involved in the scene. Here are my picks for three bands that should have gotten more love in their time.
Dawson
The way I had to scrounge for a scrap of information about this band should win me a Pulitzer, and if you heard that I now have a suspiciously obtained copy of their album Barf Market: You’re Ontae Plums living on my hard drive, no, you didn’t. In any case, Dawson was a Scottish hardcore band who debuted in 1991 with the above-mentioned LP. They were experimental, skronky, and rough around the edges, even by hardcore standards. This lent itself to their under-the-radar existence, as they remained underrated throughout their tenure.
But isn’t that half the fun of hardcore punk anyway? Dawson definitely falls among 90s punk bands who were wildly under-appreciated in their time, as the global punk market became saturated with an overabundance of subgenres and mainstream ambitions. They remain, however, an example of what can be accomplished when doing whatever the hell comes to mind first wins out over things like general public opinion.
Junction
Junction hailed from Pennsylvania, formed in 1989, and was deeply entrenched in the PA hardcore scene of the 90s. They drew influences from the adjacent D.C. hardcore scene, which was still thriving by the time Junction emerged. Vanessa Downing served as vocalist following their first split record with Separate Peace, and from there, they released two EPs and played several East Coast and Midwest tours. Mainly, Junction was active in the regional scene until 1993.
Their music isn’t widely available through streaming, unfortunately. It’s hard to find unless you were in the PA hardcore punk scene in the 90s. Luckily, founding drummer Ben Azzara created a page on his website for the band that serves as an archive of their music. There, he’s preserved MP3s of their two EPs, the split record, and a handful of unreleased demos.
Hell No
Hell No was built on the back of the hardcore New York City band Citizens Arrest, which disbanded in 1991. They reformed in 2010, while Hell No eventually ended. Several members of Citizens Arrest came and went from Hell No before they played their final show in 1999. In that time, they carved out their space in the New York hardcore scene. This came with several LPs, like Adios Armageddon, in 1995.
This album is often brought up when discussing underrated hardcore punk. Adios Armageddon wasn’t just hardcore punk, however. Instead, it was a messy blend of jazz, blues, and noise that seemed to speak personally to the band and only the band. Still, diehard punks will sometimes mention this record when the topic of “genius unappreciated in its time” comes up.
Photo by Bob King/Redferns
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