As a musical motion, new wave is tough to pin down.

The phrase was first coined within the late ‘70s as a way to describe a burgeoning sonic style that strayed from punk rock’s heavy-handed sound. The style that emerged maintained a few of punk’s power, however smoothed over the tough edges with pop sensibilities, dance rhythms and a unusual disposition.

Early on, new wave acts have been portrayed as artsy, experimental and even bizarre. Early leaders included Elvis Costello and Blondie, two acts whose roots have been planets in punk earlier than evolving their very own sound. As the brand new wave phrase caught on, many used it as a catch-all for any act that didn’t have a clearly outlined style. As such, bands labeled new wave might have a broad scope of sounds, starting from aggressive to poppy, and gloomy to sunny.

READ MORE: Top 40 New Wave Albums

As the ‘80s dawned, technology became an important factor in music’s evolution. Keyboards and synthesizers grew to become outstanding, and people artists who capitalized on these new instruments – comparable to Duran Duran, Depeche Mode and the Cure – have been usually lumped in with the brand new wave crowd. The period additionally noticed an increase in female-fronted acts, because the Pretenders, the Go-Go’s, Eurythmics and the B-52’s all got here to prominence.

New wave finally grew to become the dominant type in music, earlier than hair metallic and, later, grunge, sufficiently subdued the style’s influence. Still, new wave ushered in an unimaginable array of legendary acts. We’ve spotlight our favourite beneath in our rating of the 20 Greatest New Wave Bands.