I know there are some fans here so I am a bit surprised there isn't a thread already. Do you listen to Post-Punk, if so which bands do you like? How about Goth Rock or "Darkwave"? What do you think about the sub-genre "No Wave"? Where did these genres begin? Do you think any of them are still alive and well?
As far as "No Wave" goes I pretty much love everything about it minus the name. Glenn Braca - "The Ascension" is a 10/10 album all the way through. Sonic Youth was a great band in the early 80's, albums like "Confusion is Sex" and "Bad Moon Rising" are classic early No Wave albums. Other bands I've been really into off and on for the past few years DNA, Massacre, Lydia Lunch/Teenage Jesus & The Jerks, Mars and The Cranium. The beginnings of No Wave are kind of hard to pin down, there was a good number of experimental Post-Punk and Industrial Rock bands sprouting up around 1979 like Tuxedomoon, Suicide and Pere Ubu and other acts hinting at it even as early as 1973 with The Residents or the dirty, deranged, avant-garde "Psychedelic Underground" by Amon Dull which was released in 1969.
Post-Punk is another genre which I have always been pretty fond of. There is a lot of different styles that commingle in the Post-Punk underground (Gothic, Minimal-Wave, Art Rock, Dance Punk, etc) making it generally harder to trace than even No Wave. I'm sure there are others here that are far more knowledgeable in that arena than I. If you're interested in the history of these genres, specifically Post-Punk, Goth and No Wave you should definitely check out the book "Rip It Up And Start Again: Post-Punk 1978-1984" which covers all the bases and gives a solid introduction. I personally like the stranger, more experimental type of Post-Punk such as Minimal Man, The Pop Group, This Heat, Der Plan, The Birthday Party and early Cabaret Voltaire circa "Red Mecca".
I really have nothing to say about Goth or "Darkwave/Coldwave" because I don't listen to any bands that could be considered as such. Some bands under the Minimal Wave banner may share some of the same traits, but they are more experimental and lo-fi. Monoton is a great example, fairly ahead of its time taking Synth-Pop and stripping it down, mixing it with the drone side of Krautrock. "10 Suicides" by the band Ilitch is another good example of very well made Minimal Wave, this time a bit darker leaning towards a minimal, psychedelic, ambient version of Suicide. And lastly the earlier material from Dark Days, a solo project from one of the men behind No Wave pioneers DNA.
I guess early Noise Rock can find a home in this thread since it shares some things with these genres, especially No Wave. I'm thinking of bands like Sonic Youth (of course), early Butthole Surfers, Boredoms and Big Black, etc, etc.
Answering my own questions; I do think that No Wave, in particular, is dead and gone, with a handful of bands like New York's Sightings doing the best they can. Post-Punk although is still spewing out some decent bands, some more "mainstream" acts like Savages or She Wants Revenge or the more underground material of Marching Church and Night Sins, but for the most part the genre is quickly becoming stale.
Enough of my bullshit opinions and name dropping, what about you?
