Flatmates

As charter members of England's seminal C-86 scene, Flatmates pioneered a rambunctious Punk-Pop sound that was hugely influential on later generations of Indie-obsessed pop kids. Combining the trashy guitar overload and Brill Building pop sense of Ramones with the Byrdsian jangle of Scotland's Postcard and Creation labels, they devised an energetic and tuneful hybrid that was more ramshackle than the Buzzcocks but less boy-rock than Descendents. Eschewing the tough-guy posturing of a lot of Punk bands, Flatmates emphasized their girlishness and playfulness, echoes of which can be heard in just about every K label and Teenbeat band since. Early singles like "You're Gonna Cry" and "Happy All The Time" are breathless rushes of pure pop, letting the rough edges show and the cuteness shine. And those rough edges were all-important -- as their later records became more polished, they also became more ordinary and disposable.