In the last few decades, punk rock has been splintering off into different music scenes, subgenres, and sounds, and the 2020s have only continued that evolution.
Hardcore rock bands have experimented with everything from electronic production and hip-hop to alternative rock, while ska-punk and UK punk revival have continued to evolve decades after their mainstream peak.
Some of the decade's best punk records have succeeded by finding completely different ways to push the genre's attitude and energy forward, not necessarily by recreating its past and living on nostalgic sounds.
3 punk rock albums that have defined the 2020s so far
From the abrasive chaos of Soul Glo to the genre-blending and genre-blurring accessibility of Turnstile, punk in the 2020s remains as difficult to define as ever.
Diaspora Problems by Soul Glo
Philadelphia-based hardcore punk outfit Soul Glo released their highly anticipated sophomore studio album, Diaspora Problems, in 2022 to a warm critical reception and a lot of praise from their core fans.
Coming after a successful debut studio album released in 2019, Soul Glo continued to push the boundaries of punk rock by combining punk, metal, noise rock, screamo, trap, and hip-hop influences into one abrasive and still cohesive sound on their follow-up album in 2022.
You really can't pin down the influences and sounds of Diaspora Problems to just one subgenre. Instead, this record is extremely dynamic in its instrumental palette and storytelling across the album's 12-song tracklist.
Like many of the great punk bands that came before them in the scene, Soul Glo just brings unbridled and uncontainable energy that makes for a wild live-show experience that the listener can envision through every minute of listening to this album, even if they've never experienced the band live.
Why Would I Watch by Hot Mulligan
Why Would I Watch by Hot Mulligan is not only an album that has continued to push a pop-punk sound that began to stagnate into a new and exciting direction, but it also crossed over into audiences drawn to emo, math rock, and hardcore.
What really separates this project from a lot of the punk projects that rely too much on nostalgia and past production and chorus-writing formulas from the 2000s is that they really pushed the envelope on blending more modern and experimental sounds with instrumentation that touches other genres in rock.
Hot Mulligan combines tuneful and memorable riffs with clever and intricate subject matter ranging from family struggles to addiction and mental health issues.
The powerful and piercing vocals from frontman Nathan Sanville really drive home the themes of struggle and addiction on the record, over vibrant instrumentation that makes Why Would I Watch stand above the competition among other modern punk rock albums in this decade.
In a decade where pop-punk has struggled to stay relevant in mainstream rock music in the 2020s, Hot Mulligan has breathed life into the subgenre in a way that has fans glued to every album they release.
GLOW ON by Turnstile
Even though this was their fourth studio album, Turnstile really turned a corner and expanded their reach and core fan base with the release of 2021's GLOW ON.
The Baltimore-based rock band put together their most versatile and ambitious project to date in their discography, with this record drawing influences ranging from dream pop, bedroom pop, and shoegaze, all the way to alternative hip-hop, rap-rock, and hardcore punk.
A truly special experience that is unrivaled by most other mainstream punk albums in this decade, GLOW ON is the record that really put Turnstile on the map for a much broader audience of rock fans.
The insane guitar riffs, powerful vocal passages, and rangy influences make GLOW ON Turnstile's defining album in their discography and a must-listen for any fans of punk rock in the 2020s.
Add us as a preferred source on Google