page_title: Street punk
section_title: UK 82
hierarchical_section_title: Street punk / History / Origins (1980s) / UK 82
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Punks années 1980. Polski: Dwóch punków z lat 80.
context_page_description: Street punk is an urban working class-based subgenre of hardcore punk, partly as a rebellion against the perceived artistic pretensions of the first wave of British punk. Street punk emerged from the style of early Oi! bands such as Sham 69 and Cockney Rejects, and the Oi! bands that followed them such as Blitz, The Business and Angelic Upstarts. A key band in defining the aesthetic was The Exploited. However, street punk continued beyond the confines of the original Oi! form with bands such as GBH, Chaos UK, Discharge, The Anti-Nowhere League and Oxymoron. Street punks generally have a much more ostentatious and flamboyant appearance than the working class or skinhead image cultivated by many Oi! groups. Street punks commonly sported multi-coloured hair, mohawks, tattoos, heavily studded vests and leather jackets, and clothing, especially plaids, adorned with political slogans, patches, and/or the names of punk bands.
  In the 1990s and 2000s, a street punk revival began with emerging street punk bands such as The Casualties, The Virus, Cheap Sex, Lower Class Brats and The Unseen. The Casualties achieved underground success in the 2000s.
context_section_description: UK 82 (also known as UK hardcore, second wave punk or No Future punk) took the existing punk sound and added faster drumbeats and an aggressive distorted guitar sound. The term UK 82 is taken from the title of a song by The Exploited. Cross-pollination existed between this era of British street punk and American hardcore punk.
  The lyrics of UK 82 bands tended to be much darker and more violent than the lyrics of earlier punk bands. They tended to focus on the possibilities of a nuclear holocaust, and other apocalyptic themes, partially due to the military tension of the Cold War atmosphere. The other mainstay of the lyrics of the era was unemployment, and the policies of the Conservative Party government. Lyrics frequently denounced the Conservative leader Margaret Thatcher in the same way that American hardcore punk bands addressed the Ronald Reagan administration.
  The three most prominent UK82 bands, according to Ian Glasper, are The Exploited, Discharge, and Charged GBH. The Exploited were controversial due to their aggressive lyrics and rowdy concerts, and were considered by Glasper to be "cartoon punks". Glasper wrote: "For many, The Exploited were the quintessential second wave punk band with their senses-searing high-speed outbursts against the system, and wild-eyed frontman Walter 'Wattie' Buchan's archetypal orange mohican." Discharge's early work proved to be enormously influential, providing the blueprint for an entire subgenre. Their later work, however, has been described as moving into heavy metal.
caption: 1980s-era punks
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