The “D” in D-beat stands for Discharge. The UK band formed in 1977, and the minimalist, bludgeoning style of punk they pioneered during their glory years of 1980-84 has been inspiring bands around the globe ever since. The style seems simple on its surface: fast, ultra-distorted guitar and bass riffs and slogan-like lyrics shouted over a jackhammer drumbeat. But when it’s done right, it feels like the Platonic ideal of punk rock — inhumanly fast, unquenchably furious, and as exciting as a jolt of adrenaline pumped straight into your spinal cord.
Discharge’s primary catalog — six EPs and one full-length album — contains all the D-beat some people will ever need. But there’s much, much more to hear, as it’s gone from being one incredible band’s style to a genre all its own, played by groups from the US, Sweden, Japan, France, Italy, Brazil, and of course the UK for 40 years with no end in sight. Once your drummer masters that pounding rhythm and your guitarist and bassist dial in the distortion so it makes your teeth grind and your eyes bulge from their sockets, you’re ready to scrawl some simple, shout-along lyrics about war, capitalist exploitation, and the lack of a future and bark them into the nearest microphone at top volume.
Every D-beat band puts their own spin on the style. Some, like Doom, combine it with sludge metal, speeding up and slowing down for dramatic effect but never showing the listener mercy at any tempo. Sweden’s Disfear add fist-pumping hooks in an attempt to spin life-affirming anthems from the sound, while Japan’s G.I.S.M. and Gauze push in the direction of raw, shrieking noise. American acts like Disrupt, Appalachian Terror Unit and Resistant Culture focus their lyrical anger on issues of animal rights and environmental despoliation, while Dropdead are creatures of pure rage, as evidenced by their immortal, hilarious song title, “Fucking Assholes Part 2.” D-beat is open to all sorts of voices, too; Resistant Culture are Native Americans, while great bands like Portland’s Detestation (named after G.I.S.M.’s debut album) and France’s Bombardement feature some of the most furious female vocals ever laid to tape.
D-beat records are the cheeseburgers of punk rock; almost impossible to do wrong, but when done right, will give you a dose of raw animal pleasure that very little else can match. Crank these records up good and loud, and let your inner righteously outraged teenager roar.