Skate punk (also known as skatepunk, skate-punk, skate-thrash, surf punk, or skate-core) is a sub-genre of punk rock which was named because of its popularity among skateboarders, and the fact that many members of skate punk bands were themselves skaters. Lyrics themselves will occasionally focus on, or at least reference, skateboarding.
Skate punk can also describe the fashion created by earlier skateboarders. The clothes worn by skate punks includes tight pants, trucker hats and Vans shoes. A skate punk's attire is often strewn with holes and rips due to the hazards of skating. A baseball cap with the bill flipped up, as popularized by Mike Muir and Suicidal Tendencies, is a common skate punk fashion.
Music[]
Skate punk typically uses four note basslines, surf-like drums, and fast, Ramones-style guitar. Mostly played on the upbeat instead of the downbeat, skatecore is known for emulating the "feel" of skating —much in the same way surf sought to emulate the feel of surfing. Skate punk utilizes quick uptempo "jumps" of silence at the end of the measure to emphasize the start of the riff. As many band members as well as much of the audience were skaters, a scene developed distinct from the larger punk scene. Bands used a similar aggression as hardcore, but with different musical topics. At the time of the emergence of this genre, skateboarding was still seen as an outcast activity (similar to that of surfing, from which skateboarding has its origins). Many bands used that 'outcast' feeling, of being a skater, and thus the stereotypes that came with that, as fuel for their music. Often, bands like JFA would talk about their problems with police, or "preps," and the harsh treatment they received from them, in their songs and albums.
Suicidal Tendencies is Venice Hardcore along with Excel, No Mercy, Beowülf and others. Los Olvidados, Free Beer, Drunk Injuns, JFA and many others could be classified as skaterock because of their appearance on Thrasher's skate rock tapes in the 1980s. Razor Tail of Brooklyn Ny manages to keep the spirit alive preaching the true gospel of the seven ply. Trueley deciples sent to open the eyes of the world to the way of the board.
1990s skate rock[]
By 1987, skateboarding started to lean towards hip hop as a more up-to-date soundtrack to its own counterculture. Despite this turn, skateboarding and punk rock were still associated, due to a rich history. The popularity of Nirvana brought media attention, and money, to this underground community. A new era of skate rock (and skateboarding) emerged during this explosion. Bands like Razor Tail, The Offspring, Less Than Jake, NOFX, Lagwagon, Face to Face, The Dipshits,Blink-182 and others, saw larger audiences and large scale venues. Much of this music was popularized by the Warped Tour, Lollapalooza, the X-Games, and the advent of the internet.