The Stranglers (GB)

About

Also known as: Stranglers, The Strangler, ストラングラーズ

Few bands that emerged from the British punk scene have had a run quite like The Stranglers. Formed in Guildford in 1974, they were never really a pure punk band, drawing just as much from pub rock, psychedelic rock and classical influences, which gave their sound a strange, distinctive weight. Jean Jacques Burnel's heavy, melodic bass and Dave Greenfield's prominent keyboards were the engine room, while Hugh Cornwell and Burnel traded growling, sometimes darkly ironic vocals up front. Early singles like "Peaches", "No More Heroes" and "Something Better Change" became instant punk classics, but the 1982 hit "Golden Brown", a waltz built around harpsichord, showed how far beyond genre they were willing to roam. Over more than five decades they racked up 23 UK top 40 singles and 20 UK top 40 albums, surviving line up changes, controversy and the loss of key members. Greenfield died in 2020 and Jet Black passed away in 2022, leaving Burnel as the sole original member still driving the band forward. Their 2021 album Dark Matters reached number four in the UK charts, their best placing since 1983, proof that the Stranglers still have real pulling power.