Who is the best band of the '80s?

[Podgy the Bear]

Police>U2>Hall and Oates.  Happy to have seen all three acts in their prime.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

Sad at the lack of Rush. They had an incredible streak with Permanent Waves, Moving Pictures, Signals & Grace Under Pressure.

But I voted for Iron Maiden, who had an even better streak of albums throughout the decade.

Talking Heads is up there too, but they weren't on top for long and didn't "encapsulate" the decade, having had their biggest successes in the late 70s & early 80s. Not like Maiden who released 7 flawless albums in the 80s.

If we extend it to solo artists, it'd be Peter Gabriel in a heartbeat.

Good choice!

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

I spent the 1980's as a grad student in Boston, and listening to a lot of new music coming out.

My mom could have written this sentence. BU Law, class of 1983.

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

Tears for Fears

[DINGO Joe]

I spent the 1980's as a grad student in Boston, and listening to a lot of new music coming out.

My mom could have written this sentence. BU Law, class of 1983.

If they were in Boston in the 80s they should have been rocking out to J. Geils and Barrence Whitfield every night.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Not voting out of protest for The Cure's exclusion.

It would be hard to pick one that is the best for me, but I do agree with you, Clash and Velasco about the The Cure.

Just Like Heaven should have been a number 1 hit.

[muon2]

I spent the 1980's as a grad student in Boston, and listening to a lot of new music coming out.

My mom could have written this sentence. BU Law, class of 1983.

Excellent! I was Brandeis from 1979-1987.

[Wikipedia delenda est]

Tears for Fears

Aren't you a synthwave fan? None of your opinions on the 80s are valid.

I spent the 1980's as a grad student in Boston, and listening to a lot of new music coming out.

Do you happen to recognize this mysterious song?

[muon2]

Tears for Fears

Aren't you a synthwave fan? None of your opinions on the 80s are valid.

I spent the 1980's as a grad student in Boston, and listening to a lot of new music coming out.

Do you happen to recognize this mysterious song?

I'm afraid it doesn't ring any bells, but a lot of music had that style at the time. The dance clubs were full of it. One interesting thing about the dance clubs at the beginning of the 80s is that they would remix disco so it had the New Wave beat.

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

Tears for Fears

Aren't you a synthwave fan? None of your opinions on the 80s are valid.

literally who care and/or ur opinion soy wojack

[Wikipedia delenda est]

Tears for Fears

Aren't you a synthwave fan? None of your opinions on the 80s are valid.

literally who care and/or ur opinion soy wojack

"There was nothing more repellent than the synthesizer" - Morrissey

Synthwave sounds nothing like 80s music. It's basically just modern EDM trash marketed with "retro" aesthetics. r/80s even banned synthwave posts.

[Benjamin Frank]

REM

[politicallefty]

Of the choices, I think the best are Def Leppard and Journey. I don't know how anyone could leave out Van Halen.

[Meclazine for Israel]

Hall and Oates
Madonna
Eurythmics

[muon2]

Tears for Fears

Aren't you a synthwave fan? None of your opinions on the 80s are valid.

literally who care and/or ur opinion soy wojack

"There was nothing more repellent than the synthesizer" - Morrissey

Synthwave sounds nothing like 80s music. It's basically just modern EDM trash marketed with "retro" aesthetics. r/80s even banned synthwave posts.

I'm not sure why you think anyone visits this thread to read personal attacks, nor do I know why you think I know who "Morissey" is (or care about r/Eighties, a subreddit I have never visited). But I am aware of no law in Heaven or on Earth that prohibits one from liking both eighties synthpop and modern synthwave. In fact, back when I was blessed with a free trial of Sirius XM, station 33, First Wave, was 95% of my listening.

It's a joke dude, nothing personal. Morrissey is the former vocalist of the Smiths, the band now leading in this poll.

I'm fascinated that The Smiths are leading. During the 80s I barely heard their music, and they were seen more as a band with a cult following. I know that a lot of later bands were influenced by The Smiths, but they seemed to me to hearken back to 60s style playing, but with depressing punkish lyrics.

[DINGO Joe]

I'm fascinated that The Smiths are leading. During the 80s I barely heard their music, and they were seen more as a band with a cult following. I know that a lot of later bands were influenced by The Smiths, but they seemed to me to hearken back to 60s style playing, but with depressing punkish lyrics.

And if a double-decker bus
Crashes in to us
To die by your side
Is such a heavenly way to die
And if a ten ton truck
Kills the both of us
To die by your side
Well the pleasure, the privilege is mine

--------------

I mean the Smiths sounded lovely and all, but it was hard to not burst out laughing at the lyrics

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

Tears for Fears

Aren't you a synthwave fan? None of your opinions on the 80s are valid.

literally who care and/or ur opinion soy wojack

"There was nothing more repellent than the synthesizer" - Morrissey

Synthwave sounds nothing like 80s music. It's basically just modern EDM trash marketed with "retro" aesthetics. r/80s even banned synthwave posts.

To give a more mature response than I did previously:

I think there's literally nothing wrong with listening to music that has a "retro" aesthetic not actually based in fact. In fact, I gain some perverse enjoyment from it--the running joke of "eighties space music" (as a friend of mine called it) made in 2013!

That said, I do regularly listen/have regularly listened to music from the actual eighties and I bear no ill will toward The Smiths (I enjoy the theme of Charmed), though overall I prefer a different style of music when drawing from the Eighties bag.

[diptheriadan]

Tears for Fears

Aren't you a synthwave fan? None of your opinions on the 80s are valid.

literally who care and/or ur opinion soy wojack

"There was nothing more repellent than the synthesizer" - Morrissey

Synthwave sounds nothing like 80s music. It's basically just modern EDM trash marketed with "retro" aesthetics. r/80s even banned synthwave posts.

Dude, you just quoted Morrissey to back up an opinion. Don't ever do that!

[Santander]

I'm fascinated that The Smiths are leading. During the 80s I barely heard their music, and they were seen more as a band with a cult following. I know that a lot of later bands were influenced by The Smiths, but they seemed to me to hearken back to 60s style playing, but with depressing punkish lyrics.

I put them in a category of bands that have cult followings and are loved by some critics, but are overrated by their followers. I'd put a bunch of other 80s bands like Dinosaur Jr, Spacemen 3, REM (who were a cult band in the 80s), The Cure, and XTC in the same category. Certainly, none of them were bad (unlike the hair metal sh**t in the poll here), and I like some of them, but still overrated for me.

[Alcibiades]

I'm fascinated that The Smiths are leading. During the 80s I barely heard their music, and they were seen more as a band with a cult following. I know that a lot of later bands were influenced by The Smiths, but they seemed to me to hearken back to 60s style playing, but with depressing punkish lyrics.

I put them in a category of bands that have cult followings and are loved by some critics, but are overrated by their followers. I'd put a bunch of other 80s bands like Dinosaur Jr, Spacemen 3, REM (who were a cult band in the 80s), The Cure, and XTC in the same category. Certainly, none of them were bad (unlike the hair metal sh**t in the poll here), and I like some of them, but still overrated for me.

I suppose the genius of The Smiths for me was that they were one of the first to combine jangly 60s-inspired guitar pop with post-punk angst, setting the template for so many great indie bands to follow.* At the same time, I totally get why they’re not everyone’s cup of tea.

*The Byrds style was their own unique thing, but the general notion of outwardly sunny 60s-style indie pop has persisted.

[Velasco]

I'm fascinated that The Smiths are leading. During the 80s I barely heard their music, and they were seen more as a band with a cult following. I know that a lot of later bands were influenced by The Smiths, but they seemed to me to hearken back to 60s style playing, but with depressing punkish lyrics.

I put them in a category of bands that have cult followings and are loved by some critics, but are overrated by their followers. I'd put a bunch of other 80s bands like Dinosaur Jr, Spacemen 3, REM (who were a cult band in the 80s), The Cure, and XTC in the same category. Certainly, none of them were bad (unlike the hair metal sh**t in the poll here), and I like some of them, but still overrated for me.

I suppose the genius of The Smiths for me was that they were one of the first to combine jangly 60s-inspired guitar pop with post-punk angst, setting the template for so many great indie bands to follow.* At the same time, I totally get why they’re not everyone’s cup of tea.

*The Byrds style was their own unique thing, but the general notion of outwardly sunny 60s-style indie pop has persisted.

Johnny Marr is a genius, one the most talented and imaginative guitar players in the history of popular music. In my opinion he's a bit underrated with regards Morrissey, who is undeniably a fine lyricist and has that singular charisma*. The beautiful and evocative chords, as well as the brilliance of Marr's arrangements, are missing in the Morrissey's solo career (the exception, maybe, is Morryssey's debut 'Viva Hate', with the presence of the Manchester virtuoso Vini Reilly).


The Smiths were overlooked in the US back in the day, but nowadays they are quite popular worldwide tus they are no longer a cult band. That's a feat for a band that was so idiosyncratic and British, but the top quality of their work overcomes cultural barriers.

R.E.M., The Cure and The Smiths have reached a level of popularity that transcends the underground. They have became mainstream, even though they began as indie bands.

The Byrds have influenced many guitar players in the following decades. Aside The Smiths (Johnny Marr) and R E.M (Peter Buck), there are many other bands of the 1980s with jangly guitars like The Church (one of the best Australian bands, quite underrated)

_{*Morrissey is also a bit of a prick, but that's another question}