UPTOWN RUMBLE: Hard rock–Heavy Metal–Punk
Although today we usually think of hard rock, heavy metal, and punk as distinct genres of rock music, their separation did not take place until the late ’70s and early ’80s. In their formative years, the bands we now call pioneers of these genres played rock and roll, plain and simple.
In the ’70s, rock and roll lived on, though usually with a more hard-edged attitude than the “peace and love” psychedelia of the late ’60s. Many of the most important bands of this era had significant ties to The Bronx. Aerosmith and KISS, now known as foundational for hard rock and heavy metal, paired catchy guitar riffs and memorable lyrics with loudness, heightened theatricality, and in-your-face grittiness. The New York Dolls and The Dictators, both pivotal to the emergence of punk, played tongue-in-cheek, trashy rock and roll with a “take it or leave it” demeanor. Twister Sister, though not releasing an album until the ’80s, were staples of the New York City club circuit in the ’70s. The hardness, shock value, and athleticism of their live performances were crucial building blocks for heavy metal in the U.S.
Above: Bronxite Eddie Ojeda, guitarist for Twisted Sister, at See-Rock Festival, 2014. Courtesy of Alfred Nitsch, Creative Commons.
All these trailblazing ’70s bands included at least one member from The Bronx. However, Bronx musicians played important roles as hard rock, heavy metal, and punk rock developed lives of their own in the following decades. Although the most common strand of punk in New York soon became hardcore, The Bronx has contributed a string of more straight-forward punk bands like Chain Gang, the Sic F*cks, and The Truents. With heavy metal of the less extreme variety, our borough has had its share of truly innovative artists like Ross “The Boss” Friedman of Manowar (originally from The Dictators), Blacklace, one of the first heavy metal bands fronted by a woman, and T.M. Stevens, who released some of the funkiest metal albums of the ’90s. Living Colour, with Bronx drummer Will Calhoun, became one of the most acclaimed hard rock bands of the ’80s with “Cult of Personality” and other smash hits.
Steven Tyler and Joey Kramer of the highly influential hard rock and heavy metal band Aerosmith performing at a concert on July 16, 2014 at Xfinity Center in Mansfield, Massachusetts. Joey Kramer spent the entirety of his childhood in The Bronx, and Steven Tyler lived briefly in the borough as a child before moving right across the border to Yonkers. Creative Commons 2.0 license
Cover of the New York Dolls, Self-Titled (Mercury, 1973), one of the most important albums for laying the groundwork for the emergence of punk rock later in the ’70s. Bassist Arthur “Killer” Kane was from The Bronx.
Front page of feature piece on The Dictators in Punk Rock Stars magazine, 1978. Ross “The Boss” Friedman, “Handsome” Dick Manitoba, and Scott “Top Ten” Kempner were all from The Bronx and, with the New York Dolls, were one of the earliest bands to formulate what would become the early New York City punk sound. Uptown Rumble collection, The Bronx County Archives.
Bronx sisters Tish and Snooky Bellomo, founders of Manic Panic, one of the first punk rock stores in the world in 1977, located on St. Mark’s Place. Tish and Snooky were also backup singers for Blondie and the Sic F*cks, that latter of which also included fellow Bronxite Russell Wolinsky. Photo by Guy Furrow and courtesy of Tish and Snooky Bellomo.
Bronx heavy metal–punk band Cold Sweat performing in section 5 of Co-op City in the early 1980s. Cold Sweat was one of the first bands in the U.S. to explore the sonic ground between these two genres as they were coming into their own, releasing the hit single “Chain Your Mind” in 1984, a sample of which can be heard at https://coldsweat.rocks or in person at the Museum of Bronx History while the exhibit is up. Courtesy of Cold Sweat.