Punk jazz is a genre of music that combines elements of

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

, especially improvisation, with the instrumentation and performance style of punk rock. The term was first used to describe James Chance and the Contortions' 1979 album '' Buy''. Punk jazz is closely related to

free jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians duri ...

, no wave, and

loft jazz Loft jazz (or the loft scene or loft era) was a cultural phenomenon that occurred in New York City during the mid-1970s. Gary Giddins described it as follows: " new coterie of avant-garde musicians took much of the jazz world by surprise... ey inte ...

, and has since significantly inspired post-hardcore and alternative hip hop. Notable proponents of the genre include John Zorn,

Arto Lindsay Arthur Morgan "Arto" Lindsay (born May 28, 1953) is an American guitarist, singer, record producer and experimental composer. He was a member of the pioneering 1970s no wave group DNA, which featured on the 1978 compilation '' No New York''. I ...

Elliott Sharp Elliott Sharp (born March 1, 1951) is an American contemporary classical composer, multi-instrumentalist, and performer. A central figure in the avant-garde and experimental music scene in New York City since the late 1970s, Sharp has released ...

, and

James Chance James Chance, also known as James White (born James Siegfried, April 20, 1953), is an American saxophonist, keyboard player, and singer. A key figure in no wave, Chance has been playing a combination of improvisational jazz-like music and pu ...

, among others.

History

1980s

The first to use this fusion of genres were

The Stooges The Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, also known as Iggy and the Stooges, was an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Da ...

, on the Fun House album, more specifically in 2 songs, the title "Fun House" and "1970" as always, they were people ahead of their time since they did this in the year 1970, several years before the genre expanded. Late 1970s New York no wave bands broke with blues rock-influenced punk in a style that instead combined elements such as

noise, experimental drone rock, and other

avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...

influences. Examples of this style include

Lydia Lunch Lydia Lunch (born Lydia Anne Koch; June 2, 1959)Martin Charles Strong. ''The Great Indie Discography''. 2003, page 85 is an American singer, poet, writer, actress and self-empowerment speaker. Her career began during the 1970s New York City no ...

's album '' Queen of Siam'', the work of James Chance and the Contortions, who mixed funk with free jazz and punk rock. These bands, in turn, influenced the styles of

the Pop Group The Pop Group are an English rock band formed in Bristol in 1977 by vocalist Mark Stewart, guitarist John Waddington, bassist Simon Underwood, guitarist/saxophonist Gareth Sager, and drummer Bruce Smith. Their work in the late 1970s crosse ...

and the Birthday Party. In London, the Pop Group began to mix free jazz, along with dub reggae, into their brand of punk rock. The Birthday Party's sound on '' Junkyard'' (1982) was described by one journalist as a mix of "no-wave guitar, free-jazz craziness, and punk-processed Captain Beefheart angularity". The Lounge LizardsBangs, Lester. "Free Jazz / Punk Rock". ''Musician Magazine'', 1979

Access date: July 20, 2008. was the first group to call themselves punk jazz.

Bill Laswell William Otis Laswell (born February 12, 1955) is an American bass guitarist, record producer, and record label owner. He has been involved in thousands of recordings with many collaborators from all over the world. His music draws from funk, ...

and his band

Material Material is a substance or mixture of substances that constitutes an object. Materials can be pure or impure, living or non-living matter. Materials can be classified on the basis of their physical and chemical properties, or on their geolo ...

mixed funk, jazz, and punk while his band

Massacre A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...

added improvisation to rock.

James Blood Ulmer James "Blood" Ulmer (born February 8, 1940) is an American jazz, free funk and blues guitarist and singer. Ulmer plays a Gibson Byrdland guitar. His guitar sound has been described as "jagged" and "stinging". His singing has been called "ragg ...

applied Coleman's harmolodic style to guitar and sought out links to no wave.

Bad Brains Bad Brains are an American rock band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1976. Originally a jazz fusion band under the name Mind Power, they are widely regarded as pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members have objected to the use of this t ...

, widely acknowledged to have established the rudiments of the hardcore style, began by attempting jazz fusion. Guitarist Joe Baiza executed his blend of punk and free jazz with

Saccharine Trust Saccharine Trust is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1980 by singer Jack Brewer and guitarist Joe Baiza. The band would frequently perform with SST labelmates Minutemen and Black Flag. However, Baiza descri ...

and in

Universal Congress Of Universal Congress Of are an American jazz ensemble from Los Angeles, formed in 1986. History The project was started by Joe Baiza and continued to develop his own fusion of free jazz and punk rock after his previous band, Saccharine Trust, ...

, a group influenced by the work of

Albert Ayler Albert Ayler (; July 13, 1936 – November 25, 1970) was an American avant-garde jazz saxophonist, singer and composer. After early experience playing R&B and bebop, Ayler began recording music during the free jazz era of the 1960s. Howev ...

Henry Rollins Henry Lawrence Garfield (born February 13, 1961), known professionally as Henry Rollins, is an American singer, writer, spoken word artist, actor, and presenter. After performing in the short-lived hardcore punk band State of Alert in 1980, Roll ...

has praised free jazz, releasing albums by

Matthew Shipp Matthew Shipp (born December 7, 1960) is an American pianist, composer, and bandleader. Early life and education Shipp was raised in Wilmington, Delaware, and began playing piano at six years old. His mother was a friend of trumpeter Clifford B ...

on his record label and collaborating with

Charles Gayle Charles Gayle (born February 28, 1939) is an American free jazz musician. Initially known as a saxophonist who came to prominence in the 1990s after decades of obscurity, Gayle also performs as pianist, bass clarinetist, bassist, and percussioni ...

. The Minutemen were influenced by jazz, folk and funk. Mike Watt of the band has spoken about being inspired by listening to John Coltrane. Dutch anarcho-punk group the Ex incorporated elements of free jazz and particularly European

free improvisation Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the logic or inclination of the musician(s) involved. The term can refer to both a technique (employed by any musician in any genre) and as a recognizable genre in its ...

, collaborating with

Han Bennink Han Bennink (born 17 April 1942) is a Dutch drummer and percussionist. On occasion his recordings have featured him playing soprano saxophone, bass clarinet, trombone, violin, banjo and piano. Though perhaps best known as one of the pivotal fig ...

and other members of the

Instant Composers Pool Instant Composers Pool (ICP) is an independent Dutch jazz and improvised music label and orchestra. Founded in 1967, the label takes its name from the notion that improvisation is "instant composition". The ICP label has published more than 50 r ...

1990s

Free jazz was an important influence in the American post-hardcore scene of the early 90s.

Drive Like Jehu Drive Like Jehu was an American post-hardcore band from San Diego active from 1990 to 1995. It was formed by rhythm guitarist and vocalist Rick Froberg and lead guitarist John Reis, ex-members of Pitchfork, along with bassist Mike Kennedy an ...

took Black Flag's atonal solos a step further with their dual guitar attack. The Nation of Ulysses had Ian Svenonious alternating between vocals and trumpet, and their complex song structures, odd time signatures, and frenetic live shows were as much hardcore punk as they were free jazz. They even did a brief cover of

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Born and raise ...

's ''

A Love Supreme ''A Love Supreme'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist John Coltrane. He recorded it in one session on December 9, 1964, at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, leading a quartet featuring pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Jimmy ...

'' on their '' Plays Pretty for Baby'' album, though they titled it "The Sound of Jazz to Come" after Ornette Coleman's classic album ''

The Shape of Jazz to Come ''The Shape of Jazz to Come'' is the third album by jazz musician Ornette Coleman. Released on Atlantic Records in 1959, it was his debut on the label and his first album featuring the working quartet including himself, trumpeter Don Cherry, bass ...

''. Chicago's Cap'n Jazz also borrowed free jazz's odd time signatures and guitar melodies, marrying them with hardcore screams and amateur tuba playing. The Swedish band

Refused Refused (also known as the Refused) is a Swedish hardcore punk band originating from Umeå and formed in 1991. Refused is composed of vocalist Dennis Lyxzén, guitarist Kristofer Steen, drummer David Sandström, and bassist Magnus Flagge. G ...

was influenced by this scene and recorded an album titled ''

The Shape of Punk to Come ''The Shape of Punk to Come: A Chimerical Bombination in 12 Bursts'', often shortened to ''The Shape of Punk to Come'', is the third album by Swedish hardcore punk band Refused, released on 27 October 1998 through Burning Heart Records. Although ...

'', where they alternate between manic hardcore punk numbers and slower, jazzy songs.

2000s–2010s

Yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the ter ...

from Chicago is comparable to

Candiria Candiria are an American progressive metal band from Brooklyn, New York. Formed in 1992, the band was part of the second wave of New York hardcore, but subsequently expanded its performance to also play jazz, hip hop and progressive rock. The ...

, combining heavy metal with free jazz and psychedelia. Although Italian band Ephel Duath (band), Ephel Duath was credited with the inadvertent recreation of jazzcore on their albums ''The Painter's Palette'' (2003) and ''Pain Necessary to Know'' (2005), the band moved away from it to pursue a more esoteric form of progressive rock similar to the music of Frank Zappa. Midori (band), Midori made waves around Japan in the mid-2000s for their unrelenting and chaotic blend of hardcore punk and dissonant jazz before disbanding at the end of 2010. Other punk jazz acts include Gutbucket (band), Gutbucket, and King Krule.

Jazzcore

Jazzcore is a subgenre that incorporates elements of hardcore punk and Heavy metal music, heavy metal music alongside typical jazz instrumentation and improvisation.

References