After the hardcore punk boom of the late 1970s, the genre started evolving into various little offshoots. Influenced by everything from pop to funk to early industrial heavy metal, post-punk became a new kind of punk. Softer, more introspective, but still capable of making hard-hitting statements about life, death, and politics. Post-punk of the 1980s was varied and multifaceted, and here’s just a small taster of some essential albums.‘English Settlement’ — XTC XTC’s 1982 album English Settlement marked a more “pastoral” and “acoustic” direction for the band, who had gained breakout success with 1979’s Drums and Wires. But English Settlement is also an album that resists genre classification. As much as it falls under a post-punk umbrella, each track varies in style, creating a smorgasbord of pop-synthpunk-ska-wave. The album was recorded using almost all new instruments—including a new acoustic guitar, fretless bass, drums, and a new synthesizer—which set a clearly inspirational and creative tone. When the album was released, it earned plenty of critical acclaim. A Rolling Stone review from 1982 called the album “accessible even while moving into evermore abstruse and adventuresome territory.” Still, while some praised its “lyrical intelligence,” others felt that English Settlement could have been even more adventurous musically.‘The Psychedelic Furs’ — The Psychedelic FursThe Psychedelic Furs’ 1980 debut self-titled album introduced frontman Richard Butler’s dry, sarcastic lyrical style alongside an artistic take on rock and roll. Like much of post-punk, The Psychedelic Furs doesn’t adhere to a single genre, refusing to be pigeonholed. Instead, there are moments of avant garde strangeness coupled up with stylistic humor and wit. There’s introspection and seriousness without that grimy layer of self-consciousness that cheapens the effect. On the flip-side, The Psychedelic Furs offers self-aware pretentiousness in its delivery. This debut, which gave the band success in Europe, opened the door for their next record, Talk Talk Talk, which brought them over to the U.S. While critics often consider Talk Talk Talk their more successful album overall, their self-titled debut deserves recognition for putting The Psychedelic Furs on the map.‘Killing Joke’ — Killing JokeKilling Joke’s debut 1980 self-titled album came together after Jaz Coleman and Paul Ferguson put out an ad declaring “Bass, lead, to tell the killing joke, we mean it man ! Total exploitation, no information, anonymity.” The Almost Red EP followed once all band members were recruited, and then the interesting work began on the post-punk debut. Killing Joke was purposeful and strategic in the way they wanted the album to go. Self-produced, recorded live in studio, and featuring no overdubs. However, when the album released, critics essentially snubbed it. It gained underground success, but the post-punk mainstream wasn’t quite ready yet. Retrospectively, critics have lauded the album as an “underground classic” and a “post-punk masterpiece.” With blends of chilling funk-rock and heavy metal influences, paired with apocalyptic lyrics about politics, death, and humanity, Killing Joke eventually became an essential, defining album of the time. Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty ImagesThe post 3 Essential Post-Punk Albums From the Early 1980s You Must Hear Today appeared first on VICE.