7 Seconds in Heaven: Hardcore Punk at it’s Finest
7 Seconds in Heaven: Hardcore Punk at it’s Finest
7 Seconds is one of the oldest continuously active bands in hardcore, being part of the first wave of California punk in the 80′s (although from Reno, they relocated to Sacramento). They’ve consistently been touring and recording for three decades. Although they’ve dabbled in several rock genres, they are considered to be the first, or one of the first, bands to refer to themselves as hardcore. They’re also credited for helping bring positivity into hardcore punk, including helping to form the straight edge youth crew movement. However, they have rejected the Straight Edge classification, despite claiming to agree with it in principle.
7 Seconds’ first full-length LP “The Crew” was released by BYO Records along with their second release, which is considered to be classic hardcore: “Walk Together Rock Together”. On the “New Wind” LP, the band added slower, more melodic songs with a more generally accessible sound. Some critics have cited this period of 7 Seconds’ sound as being very influential later on for pop punk and indie pop-rock bands. Later LPs moved even further into the mainstream with a sound that was compared to U2. They eventually began to return to their roots in 1995 with the “The Music, The Message”. They continued to return to their old-school hardcore sound with subsequent releases in the late 90s and 00s.More info here: Straight-Edge Punks vs. Hippie Parents in’ Ten Thousand Saints’ (Review)