Biography of Buzzcocks

With their crisp melodies, driving guitars, and guitarist Pete Shelley's biting lyrics, the Buzzcocks were one of the best, most influential punk bands. The Buzzcocks were inspired by the Sex Pistols' energy, yet they didn't copy the Pistols' angry political stance. Instead, the Buzzcocks brought that intense, brilliant energy to the three-minute pop song. Shelley's alternately funny and anguished lyrics about adolescence and love were some of the best and smartest of his era; similarly, the Buzzcocks' melodies and hooks were always concise and memorable. Over the years, their powerful punk-pop has proven enormously influential, with echoes of their music being apparent in everyone from Hüsker Dü to Nirvana.The Buzzcocks reunited in 1989, releasing their first new studio album since 1979 in 1993; although they were no longer as breathtakingly energetic, they were one of the few reunited bands that didn't embarrass themselves. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine