1980s Techno

I will forever be jealous of my parents for being in college during the 1980s. I love 1980s music as much as I love 1960s and 1970s. It would be amazing to grow up in a time when all this music was coming out. With evolving music genres and subgenres and emerging artists that are still popular today.

Imagine experiencing it all firsthand at the ages we are now. How amazing it would be to save up for tickets to see artists like Prince, Michael Jackson, and Queen as they were all gaining popularity.

The 1980s are a tough decade of music to condense to just one blog. It is similar to the 1970s through the styles of music, except it has further expanded and listening has become more accessible. This means there are many more popular artists and songs to account for.

I will begin by sharing some of the many new genres and some familiar artists that fit into each.

With that, arguably the most famous genre that the 1980s are known for is the style of synthpop. This style of music applied techno sounds to their music as synthesizers became widely available. This genre is still present but not anything like how it was back in the 1980s. Some popular artists in this category include Tears For Fears, New Order, A-ha, Duran Duran, INXS, and many more.

Most musical styles of the 1980s emerged in the 1970s but gained popularity in this decade and became more mainstream. An example of this is the genre punk. It originally consisted of more undiscovered artists whose music did not into popular music. However, this style became a mainstream genre in the 1980s thanks to artists like The Clash, Ramones, Slime, and surprisingly, Green Day. Green Day was actually formed in 1987, which I was previously unaware of.

A genre that was inspired by punk is alternative rock. Similarly, Alt. rock was not as mainstream in the 1970s as it was in the 80s. I often listen to this style of music because it is one of my Dad’s favorites so he would play lots of songs from artists like The Cure, The Clash, The Pixies, and R.E.M. I recently became more interested in a band The Smiths (which I discovered from tik tok of course).

Furthermore, another genre that transformed from the 70s is the idea of Glam Punk, which stemmed from Glam Rock. This was the same theatrical style of performing with crazy outfits. However, instead of rock and roll it is more focused on the mainstream aspects of alt. rock. I am not familiar with this genre enough to recognize any of the artists responsible for its popularity.

Though, there is a genre that was less mainstream in the 80s but is insanely popular today. That genre is Indie Rock. The artists in this genre were not as well known, but some of them did eventually grow in popularity. An example would be the band Nirvana, who were also formed in 1987 (same as Green Day).

Now, of course I have to mention the man who essentially carried 80s music in the genre of hip hop. Hip hop and rap came from African American communities in the 1970s. However, the genre was not picked up until the mid to late 80s as MTV was reluctant to feature Black Artists. However, eventually Michael Jackson left his family band and made a name for himself. He became very well known and brought hip hop to more white communities.

Another famous 1980s genre was the new wave style of music. This style uses a mix of punk rock, dance music, synthesizers, and electronic sounds. With that, it is clear this genre is broader across what songs fit into it.

In the 1980s the music was almost as big as the hair of the time and here are the top 10 artists and songs of the decade, followed by 10 of my personal favorites.

Top Songs:

1. Don’t Stop Believin’ – Journey
2. You Shook Me All Night Long – ACDC
3. Love Shack – B-52’s
4.  Livin’ On A Prayer – Bon Jovi
5. Pour Some Sugar On Me – Def Leppard
6. Billie Jean – Michael Jackson
7. Celebration – Cool & The Gang
8. Footloose – Kenny Loggins
9. Thriller – Michael Jackson
10. I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me) – Whitney Houston

My Top 10 Songs:

1. Head Over Heels – Tears For Fears
2. Just Like Heaven – The Cure
3. Open Arms – Journey
4. The Promise – When In Rome
5. Uptown Girl – Billy Joel
6. There Is a Light That Never Goes Out – The Smiths
7. Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic – The Police
8. Where The Streets Have No Name – U2
9. I’m Free (Heaven Helps the Man) – Kenny Loggins
10. Where Is My Mind? – The Pixies

Citations:

Pop music genres that were born in the 1980s (2022) ON MUSICIAN. Available at: https://www.onmusician.com/pop-music-genres-that-were-born-in-the-1980s/ (Accessed: October 20, 2022).

Best synthpop bands of the 1980s (no date) TheTopTens. Available at: https://www.thetoptens.com/music/synthpop-bands-eighties/#:~:text=Best%20Synthpop%20Bands%20of%20the%201980s%201%201,songwriter%20and%20keyboardist%20Vince%20Clarke.%20…%20More%20items (Accessed: October 20, 2022).