Rockpedia

Compare

Two genres, side by side. The ratings are editorial judgements on a ten-point scale, not measurements. Where they come out level, the difference is in the prose underneath them.

First genre

Melodic hardcore1985

Second genre

Hardcore punk1980

Head to headMelodic hardcore vs Hardcore punk
Melodic hardcore: heaviness 5, melody 7, speed 8. Hardcore punk: heaviness 6, melody 4, speed 9.Heaviness5 / 6Melody7 / 4Speed8 / 9
Each corner is a ten-point rating. The further out, the higher.

The difference, by ear

Melodic hardcore keeps hardcore's speed and ethics and adds melody the parent genre had removed on principle.

Both are shouted, but hardcore punk is a little faster: 190 to 250 bpm against 180 to 220. Songs run longer in melodic hardcore: usually 2 to 3 minutes, against under a minute to 2 minutes in hardcore punk. To hear the difference, play Dag Nasty next to Black Flag. Melodic hardcore grew out of hardcore punk, five years later.

Put together from each genre's vocals, tempo, song length, key acts and place in the tree.

In figures

Heaviness
Melodic hardcore5
Hardcore punk6
+1
Speed
Melodic hardcore8
Hardcore punk9
+1
Melody
Melodic hardcore7
Hardcore punk4
−3

Melodic hardcore

1985 · USA

Where it sits

Rock › Punk rock › Hardcore punk › Melodic hardcore

In short

Same speed and urgency, but with sung choruses and guitar harmonies.

How it sounds

  • Hardcore speed with major-key harmonic progressions.
  • Two-part guitar harmonies and sung choruses.
  • More personal or reflective political lyrics rather than pure slogans.

Key acts

  • Dag Nasty
  • Strike Anywhere
  • Comeback Kid

Start here

The pickKid Dynamite - Kid Dynamite. Seventeen songs, twenty-four minutes, zero fat.

Full page →

Hardcore punk

1980 · California / Washington DC · 13 subgenres

Where it sits

Rock › Punk rock › Hardcore punk

In short

Punk accelerated to 200 bpm, songs of one minute and shouted vocals. Without it there is no thrash, no grindcore, no metalcore.

How it sounds

  • Tempos of 180 to 250 bpm with galloping or skank drum patterns.
  • Songs under a minute, with whole albums running twenty minutes.
  • Shouted rather than sung vocals, and direct political or personal lyrics.

Key acts

  • Black Flag
  • Minor Threat
  • Bad Brains
  • Discharge

Start here

The pickBad Brains - Bad Brains (the ROIR cassette). The fastest band of the decade.

Full page →