Punknews.org
Encyclopedia
Punknews.org is a website founded by Aubin Paul which launched in 1999. The website publishes music news and album reviews relating to punk rock
, hardcore punk
, ska
, indie rock
and heavy metal
. It features user-submitted and editor-evaluated articles, through a publishing format much like popular technology-related news website Slashdot
.
While Punknews.org does often spotlight relatively obscure bands, the editors cite fan interest as deciding how much coverage an artist warrants, rather than deferring to genre politics (major label / indie label preference or how close a band reflects the traditional punk subculture
).
According to Epitaph Records
, label head Brett Gurewitz
, has been known to scan Punknews.org to find new punk artists. Specifically, Gurewitz signed The Getaway after researching the band's music and growing popularity.
The site has also won the Alternative Press Reader's Poll and has been mentioned in the New York Times , The Washington Post
, Billboard Magazine , East Bay Express
, and many other publications. Other online music news resources and blogs make frequent reference to coverage on Punknews.org. For example Canadian online radio station CBC Radio 3
regularly links the site in its "Music Notes" news summaries. Record labels have also picked up on the Punknews.org RSS
news feed to augment their own websites, such as the Union Label Group
in Montreal.
CBC Radio 3 featured Punknews.org in its 2011 Searchlight poll to determine the "Best Music Website In Canada." Public voting saw the site make it into the top 20 (from a field of 60).
.
The label is currently inactive (Somerset broke up in early 2008 and Ryan's Hope is no longer a part of the label). On Punknews.org's formspring.me
site, Adam White responded to the question of what happened to the label with the following:
During their years of activity, they released two albums: Somerset's Pandora and Ryan's Hope
's Apocalypse in Increments.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
, hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
, ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
, indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
and heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
. It features user-submitted and editor-evaluated articles, through a publishing format much like popular technology-related news website Slashdot
Slashdot
Slashdot is a technology-related news website owned by Geeknet, Inc. The site, which bills itself as "News for Nerds. Stuff that Matters", features user-submitted and ‑evaluated current affairs news stories about science- and technology-related topics. Each story has a comments section...
.
News coverage
Punknews.org generally posts between 15 and 20 news articles a day, covering such topics as tour dates, label signings, album releases, new media, band break-ups and member changes.While Punknews.org does often spotlight relatively obscure bands, the editors cite fan interest as deciding how much coverage an artist warrants, rather than deferring to genre politics (major label / indie label preference or how close a band reflects the traditional punk subculture
Punk subculture
The punk subculture includes a diverse array of ideologies, and forms of expression, including fashion, visual art, dance, literature, and film, which grew out of punk rock.-History:...
).
According to Epitaph Records
Epitaph Records
Epitaph Records is a Hollywood, California based independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. The label was originally "just a logo and a P.O. box" created in the 1980s for the purpose of selling Bad Religion records, but has evolved into a large independent record...
, label head Brett Gurewitz
Brett Gurewitz
Brett W. Gurewitz , nicknamed Mr. Brett, is the guitarist and a songwriter of Bad Religion. He is also the owner of the music label Epitaph Records and sister-labels ANTI-, Burning Heart Records, Fat Possum Records, and Hellcat Records...
, has been known to scan Punknews.org to find new punk artists. Specifically, Gurewitz signed The Getaway after researching the band's music and growing popularity.
The site has also won the Alternative Press Reader's Poll and has been mentioned in the New York Times , The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, Billboard Magazine , East Bay Express
East Bay Express
The East Bay Express is an Oakland-based weekly newspaper serving the Berkeley, Oakland, and East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area...
, and many other publications. Other online music news resources and blogs make frequent reference to coverage on Punknews.org. For example Canadian online radio station CBC Radio 3
CBC Radio 3
CBC Radio 3 is a radio station that consists of two parts devoted to Canadian arts and music: a radio service which is available on Sirius Satellite Radio and streaming audio, and several daily and weekly podcasts from the CBC Radio 3 website...
regularly links the site in its "Music Notes" news summaries. Record labels have also picked up on the Punknews.org RSS
RSS
-Mathematics:* Root-sum-square, the square root of the sum of the squares of the elements of a data set* Residual sum of squares in statistics-Technology:* RSS , "Really Simple Syndication" or "Rich Site Summary", a family of web feed formats...
news feed to augment their own websites, such as the Union Label Group
Union Label Group
Union Label Group is a record label based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was formed through the merger of the smaller labels Stomp Records, 2112 Records, and Tyrant Records. Mayday! Records was later created as a genre imprint....
in Montreal.
CBC Radio 3 featured Punknews.org in its 2011 Searchlight poll to determine the "Best Music Website In Canada." Public voting saw the site make it into the top 20 (from a field of 60).
Punknews Records
On January 1, 2006, Aubin Paul, Adam White and Scott Heisel, who comprised the website's primary editorial staff in the early part of the 2000's, launched Punknews Records, an imprint under Epitaph Records. When it was active the label released albums from Somerset and Ryan's HopeRyan's Hope (band)
Ryan's Hope is an American punk rock band from Joliet, Illinois, formed in 2000. They are known for blending heavy metal style instrumentals with punk rock...
.
The label is currently inactive (Somerset broke up in early 2008 and Ryan's Hope is no longer a part of the label). On Punknews.org's formspring.me
Formspring.me
Formspring is a social Q&A website, launched in November 2009. The site allows its users to set up a profile page, follow other users and ask questions from other users. The questions and their given responses are then published on the user's profile page...
site, Adam White responded to the question of what happened to the label with the following:
During their years of activity, they released two albums: Somerset's Pandora and Ryan's Hope
Ryan's Hope (band)
Ryan's Hope is an American punk rock band from Joliet, Illinois, formed in 2000. They are known for blending heavy metal style instrumentals with punk rock...
's Apocalypse in Increments.