Where did this stupid idea of naming all genres by putting the word "core" at the end start?

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It doesn't make any sense at all to me. I mean, I understood when people used to call hardcore punk mixed with metal "metalcore". But where is the hardcore in "sadcore" or "loungecore" or "horrorcore" (which is apparently a kind of rap music with scary lyrics)? The "core" doesn't serve any purpose at all in those, as far as I can tell. (Or maybe I'm needlessly nitpicking, since maybe the "core" in "hardcore" never meant anything in the first place. You tell me.)

― chuck, Monday, 28 June 2004 14:15 (twenty-one years ago)

"horrorcore" = "hardcore rap with horror movie trappings" ie Gravediggaz, most of Psychopathic records, etc.

― VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:18 (twenty-one years ago)

(ie second parenthetical aside OTM)

― VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:19 (twenty-one years ago)

i thought this trend died 10 years ago.

― gygax! (gygax!), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:19 (twenty-one years ago)

perpetuacore to thread

― cutty (mcutt), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:19 (twenty-one years ago)

Corecore = bands influenced by the first Stone Temple Pilots album

― Al (sitcom), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:19 (twenty-one years ago)

I think Thurtson Moore started it w/ "Foxcore" but I can't remember who the foxes in question were, probably some humorless feminist punk band.

― lovebug starski, Monday, 28 June 2004 14:20 (twenty-one years ago)

EXPERIMENTAL HORSECORE TO THREAD

― VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:20 (twenty-one years ago)

It's totally a stupidcore thing to do. It's an obviouscore case of missingthepointcore. I mean the importantcore thing about hardcore is the hard part. but maybe the hard is impliedcore.

― Huk-El (Horace Mann), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:20 (twenty-one years ago)

Applecore = laptop IDM made exclusively on Macs

― Al (sitcom), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:20 (twenty-one years ago)

It's like putting 'gate' on the end of every scandel. So, er, I guess core is the new gate.

― Charlie Rose (Charlie Rose), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:20 (twenty-one years ago)

YELLOWCAKECORE

― VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:21 (twenty-one years ago)

Borecore = either boring bands or bands that sound like the Boredoms, I'm not sure

― Al (sitcom), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:21 (twenty-one years ago)

"either"

― Huk-El (Horace Mann), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:22 (twenty-one years ago)

xxxxpost:
Naw "foxcore" wuz pre-riot-grrrl rawk bands like STP, L7, Babes in Toyland, Hole, Dickless, ETC. Good timez.

― sexyDancer, Monday, 28 June 2004 14:22 (twenty-one years ago)

this term "joycore" cracks me up in the same way "power pop" does (lets just say I'll bet a million bucks a really defensive guy started both).

― CeCe Peniston (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:24 (twenty-one years ago)

whell, it's mainly that hardcore is a term that's used in a lot of different generic contexts (punk, rap, 'ardkore rave music etc) and this admittedly over-the-top phenom of (adjective) + "core" = NEW THING!!! only really applies to these types of music. for instance, you don't often hear people talk about anything + "core" in country/folk/A.N. Other circles coz the original term of "hardcore" had nbo curren have it's irritating but considering the amount of currency in them. yeah, i find it vagualy irritating but bearing in mind the amount of shit the majority of people talk/write about music, it'll only ever be a minor bugbear.

― Dave Stelfox (Dave Stelfox), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:28 (twenty-one years ago)

>>xxxxpost:
Naw "foxcore" wuz pre-riot-grrrl rawk bands like STP, L7, Babes in Toyland, Hole, Dickless<<

Wait, I thought STP were proto-corecore. Not to mention guys. (Were Frightwig and Raszebrae, the latter of whom I remember Thurston Moore liking by the way, proto-foxcore?)

I think Frank Kogan said once that he rarely likes hardcore anything -- hardcore punk, hardcore rap, hardcore porn. And I usually might agree with him, now that I think of it. Though I do like the Prodigy, I guess (the techno one -- I forget what the rap one sounds like.)

― chuck, Monday, 28 June 2004 14:29 (twenty-one years ago)

well, it's mainly that hardcore is a term that's used in a lot of different generic contexts (punk, rap, 'ardkore rave music etc) and this admittedly over-the-top phenom of (adjective) + "core" = NEW THING!!! only really applies to these types of music. for instance, you don't often hear people talk about anything + "core" in country/folk/A.N. Other circles coz the original term of "hardcore" had nbo currency in these scenes in the first place. yeah, i find it vaguely irritating but bearing in mind the amount of shit the majority of people talk/write about music, it'll only ever be a minor bugbear.

― Dave Stelfox (Dave Stelfox), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:29 (twenty-one years ago)

Coregate.

― mark grout (mark grout), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:30 (twenty-one years ago)

jeezis i dunno what happened on that 1st post - my browser just started deleting chuck of text and then hung.

― Dave Stelfox (Dave Stelfox), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:31 (twenty-one years ago)

chunks

― Dave Stelfox (Dave Stelfox), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:31 (twenty-one years ago)

I think "-core" is a far more descriptive term addition than "nu-" or "alt-".

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:33 (twenty-one years ago)

freudian!

xpost

― Huk-El (Horace Mann), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:33 (twenty-one years ago)

the prodigy weren't really hardcore, except for the very early days, then they went into "toytown techno" with charlie says. i only say this coz, on paper, toytown techno looks like the best style of music ever.

― Dave Stelfox (Dave Stelfox), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:34 (twenty-one years ago)

For me, borecore is just a cute rhymey way to say "boring." Some of you are just way to uptight about the core suffix! -core has been used so much that it's not terribly meaningful anymore, which is a pretty good thing. It's not very serious or academic, which is refreshing.

― Matthew Perpetua (Matthew Perpetua), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:35 (twenty-one years ago)

sludgecore is also a classic genre name

― Dave Stelfox (Dave Stelfox), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:36 (twenty-one years ago)

dude I am so using borecore now.

― CeCe Peniston (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:37 (twenty-one years ago)

nu-alt-core

― Dave Stelfox (Dave Stelfox), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:38 (twenty-one years ago)

I heard about this new hardcore rock band called Geode, but apparently they suck.

― marianna, Monday, 28 June 2004 14:40 (twenty-one years ago)

>I think "-core" is a far more descriptive term addition than "nu-" or "alt-". <

Well, I've been saying for years that "nu-metal" (popularized by certain idiots at Spin, I think) is the stupidest genre name in human history. (With the umlaut, it only makes sense MAYBE for Rammstein. Without it, it might as well include, um, all new metal.) ("Alt-country" apparently just means "country with everything interesting and any sense of life and energy and rhythm taken out," which seems to be that prefix's definition in some other genres, as well.)

― chuck, Monday, 28 June 2004 14:41 (twenty-one years ago)

Pull an old issue of MRR from the mid-80s and you'll see pages of bands jumping for your attention with the self-proscribed labels laughcore, redcore, jokecore, earthcore, moshcore, japcore, britcore -- everything but feldmancore.

"hardcore" makes sense, all well and good -- too bad for clarity's sake that it applies to everything from punk rock to house music to organic pumpkin farmers to former baathist party leaders.

better to just add -nik to the end of everything. Refusenik. Metalnik.

― Ian Christe (Ian Christe), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:41 (twenty-one years ago)

i like cored pineapple.

― otto midnight (otto midnight), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:41 (twenty-one years ago)

NERD "She Wants To Move" is nu-salsa more than salsa-metal.

― CeCe Peniston (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:43 (twenty-one years ago)

"nu-" means sluggish in a way that wasn't conceivable pre-Korn.

― CeCe Peniston (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:44 (twenty-one years ago)

favorite SPIN-sponsored genre names: "crunge" and "nwemo".

― CeCe Peniston (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:45 (twenty-one years ago)

nwemo = Northwest Emo???

My "bubblegrunge" was MUCH more descriptive than Spin's "scrunge" (NOT "crunge," I don't think.) (My "nerf-metal" and "nuke-metal" and "bigfoot rock" were pretty good too, but never mind.)

― chuck, Monday, 28 June 2004 14:50 (twenty-one years ago)

oh yeah. scrunge (haha I don't think Charles Aaron would be name-checkin' Houses Of The Holy when talking about Sponge). Nwemo was an Andrew Beaujon (I think) term for "the New Wave of EMO." Nwemo.

― CeCe Peniston (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:51 (twenty-one years ago)

"She Wants To Move" is kinde of nu-shitcore.

― VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:54 (twenty-one years ago)

Sorry to sound like a teacher's pet, but my all-time favorite fake neologism was invented by Chuck: acid samba

Anyway, we've forgetten about another over-used suffix -- -mania! As in:

Coregatemania!

Nu-coregatemania!

or maybe

Nu-coremaniagate!

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Monday, 28 June 2004 14:59 (twenty-one years ago)

chuck:
by STP, I meant the all female trio with Julie Cafritz(?), not the more popular bubblegrunge act. They only put out a 7" (as did Dickless).

― sexxyDancer, Monday, 28 June 2004 15:00 (twenty-one years ago)

Nwemo doesn't quite scan for me.

I like using "tweemo" to refer to all of those post-Belle & Sebastian indie bands like Pas/Cal.

― Matthew Perpetua (Matthew Perpetua), Monday, 28 June 2004 15:02 (twenty-one years ago)

Speaking of genre-naming, Metal Mike Saunders over the weekend sent me the link to the 1971 CREEM Sir Lord Baltimore review in which he named the genre "heavy metal." Here it is (though what I really want to know is what "electric assroot" music sounds like):

http://www.creemmagazine.com/BeatGoesOn/SirLordBaltimore/KingdomCome.html

― chuck, Monday, 28 June 2004 15:03 (twenty-one years ago)

Technicolour yawn, THAT'S a genre. It transcends sound.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 28 June 2004 15:04 (twenty-one years ago)

(x-post to Dan)

I couldn't hate on "She Wants To Move" after I realized how fun it would be to sing at karoake. BEAT IT!

― CeCe Peniston (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 28 June 2004 15:04 (twenty-one years ago)

Most "Crunge"-like scrunge band ever: Sponge, oddly enough.

― chuck, Monday, 28 June 2004 15:06 (twenty-one years ago)

Useless trivia: the Dave Marsh article about ? and the Mysterians is cited in the Oxford English Dictionary entry on "punk."

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Monday, 28 June 2004 15:11 (twenty-one years ago)

"She Wants To Move" is kinde of nu-shitcore.

this post has just made me bust out laughing. i predict it's the best thing that'll happen on this thread.

― Dave Stelfox (Dave Stelfox), Monday, 28 June 2004 15:12 (twenty-one years ago)

full circle mania:

punkcore

― Ian Christe (Ian Christe), Monday, 28 June 2004 15:13 (twenty-one years ago)

corecore

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Monday, 28 June 2004 15:27 (twenty-one years ago)

I think "breakcore" is an apt description for stuff like DJ Scud and some of I-Sound's productions. Hardcore breakbeat/jungle shit.

― Jeff Sumner (Jeff Sumner), Monday, 28 June 2004 15:54 (twenty-one years ago)

What constitutes bigfoot rock? Intrigued...

― Kate Silver (Kate Silver), Monday, 28 June 2004 16:01 (twenty-one years ago)

Actually if you use the “core” suffix right it implies a certain single-mindedness of purpose or aesthetics: if it’s the superpurified “core,” it should have a certain intensity and consistency to it. As opposed to a “post”-something, which is all vague and thinky and groping in various connections. “Nu” is for old things that bands are now doing in some new way that people find too embarrassing to deserve the old word; “alt” is for old things that people would like you to think bands are doing in some new and suddenly more relevant way. Ryan Adams is alt-core.

― nabiscothingy, Monday, 28 June 2004 16:01 (twenty-one years ago)

That sounds about right, Nabisco
(OTM)

― sexyDancer, Monday, 28 June 2004 16:06 (twenty-one years ago)

>>What constitutes bigfoot rock? Intrigued... <

Well, I also called it Sasquatch Rock, I think. I used it in a *Creem Metal* review in 1987 of the C/Z records compilation Deep Six (with Melvins, Soundgarden, Green River, Malfunkshun, Skin Yard, U-Men, etc.) I made a joke in that review that, in a couple years, people would turn on MTV and hear that Seattle was the future of rock music; I was such a kidder then, ha ha! The name never caught on, somehow...

― chuck, Monday, 28 June 2004 16:06 (twenty-one years ago)

If Novoselic had gotten the face time instead of Cobain, maybe it'd have worked...

― nabiscothingy, Monday, 28 June 2004 16:08 (twenty-one years ago)

What constitutes bigfoot rock? Intrigued...

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drc600/c671/c67159w46sq.jpg

― gygax! (gygax!), Monday, 28 June 2004 16:08 (twenty-one years ago)

The metal band Origin call their sound Corecore. As in the earth's core.

― scott seward (scott seward), Monday, 28 June 2004 16:09 (twenty-one years ago)

chuck, did lawndale's record come out before your deep six review?

i think i have the OP with deep six review (MES on the cover).

― gygax! (gygax!), Monday, 28 June 2004 16:11 (twenty-one years ago)

On a related note, there was that 90's trend of using the suffix -palooza . You may have forgotten about that short lived trend, and if so, lucky you.
It never made any sense either.

― Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Monday, 28 June 2004 16:11 (twenty-one years ago)

actually, I had my years wrong; the deep six comp apparently came out in '85; i reviewed it in '86, along with a skin yard album. that lawndale album came out a year later; as i recall, those guys were even duller than painted willie and das damen put together.

― chuck, Monday, 28 June 2004 16:14 (twenty-one years ago)

What about softcore punk bands?

― Jordan (Jordan), Monday, 28 June 2004 16:18 (twenty-one years ago)

ceddy, i command that you listen to their "whole lotta love"/"take five!" medley at least one more time in your life. there's a whole book right there for you.

― gygax! (gygax!), Monday, 28 June 2004 16:19 (twenty-one years ago)

*Creem Metal*

Wasn't it called Creem Thrash Metal? My first $50 writing check, for winning a reader contest with a review of L.O.D.'s *metalcore* classic "Legion of Death." Boy howdy.

― Ian Christe (Ian Christe), Monday, 28 June 2004 16:36 (twenty-one years ago)

I think it was actually called Creem: Metal Special or something like. Considering all the nerf-metal bands whose haircuts we used to make fun of (or the triumvirate of metal wisdom deciding Cinderella were cinderellas and Queensryche circa Rage For Order were queeny guys raging to order new clothes), Creem Thrash Metal wouldn't have quite fit. (Though maybe *later* they did an issue or two like that; I forget. Either way, when they went bankrupt, they still owed me $4000.00.)

― chuck, Monday, 28 June 2004 16:40 (twenty-one years ago)

poorcore

― Ian Christe (Ian Christe), Monday, 28 June 2004 16:41 (twenty-one years ago)

Really hard hardcore = Corecore.

Sorry. I'm briefly checking into ILM from truly dubious computer here in a small Long Island library. Back to NYC tomorrow, so you can expect the usual stream of vitriol, but `til then, you'll all have to make do. Also, I'm seeing a worrying amount of XTC-disrespect on some other threads, and let me just say....THIS WILL NOT DO!

Anyway, over and out until later. Honor the fire and all that. Killing Joke rules and your favorite band sucks a big greasy one. Blah blah blah....

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Monday, 28 June 2004 17:23 (twenty-one years ago)

Pretty certain I first saw the term 'hardcore' applied to punk in the adverts for the BOY clothes shop in London that appeared in the SOUNDS UK music weekly around 1980: FOR HARDCORE PUNKS ONLY!! or something like.

Any earlier sightings?

― Soukesian, Monday, 28 June 2004 18:04 (twenty-one years ago)

Pedantcore is still distressingly popular.

― noodle vague (noodle vague), Monday, 28 June 2004 18:16 (twenty-one years ago)

Is that Dave Marsh ? and the Mysterians article online anywhere? I want to read it.

― Mr. Snrub, Monday, 28 June 2004 18:18 (twenty-one years ago)

I'd bet money (well, $1.00 or so) that "emocore" was the first "-core" description after "hardcore." I definitely remember Rites of Spring described as such. "Metalcore" and "speedcore" came not long afterward. "Foxcore" wasn't 'til 1989 at the earliest.

― mike a, Monday, 28 June 2004 18:18 (twenty-one years ago)

It's kinda similar to using "-aholic" to describe anybody addicted to anything or "-gate" to any political scandal.

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Monday, 28 June 2004 18:19 (twenty-one years ago)

Hey, I'm like a chocaholic! Except for booze!

― noodle vague (noodle vague), Monday, 28 June 2004 18:20 (twenty-one years ago)

Hey, I'm like a chocaholic! Except for booze!

Yeah, I read that issue of The Onion too! :)

I stand by my belief that the stupidest genre name is "drum 'n bass".

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Monday, 28 June 2004 18:25 (twenty-one years ago)

I remember a review of Dookie that described Green Day as "popcore". A little piece of me died that day.

― Nick Mirov (nick), Monday, 28 June 2004 23:07 (twenty-one years ago)

Christcore, for bands like Zao.

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Monday, 28 June 2004 23:11 (twenty-one years ago)

MEDIOCORE

― aa, Monday, 28 June 2004 23:16 (twenty-one years ago)

hahaha

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Monday, 28 June 2004 23:20 (twenty-one years ago)

applecore.

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Monday, 28 June 2004 23:21 (twenty-one years ago)

Don't forget Sentridoh's "Losercore". Lou Barlow was so prescient.

― Erik Tripper (Erik Tripper), Monday, 28 June 2004 23:25 (twenty-one years ago)

"bubblegrunge" as found on this thread has to be a more insufferable descriptive term than any of these cores, imo

― Vicore (Vic), Monday, 28 June 2004 23:30 (twenty-one years ago)

What suffix then is the EXACT opposite of "-core"? is it "-peel" or "-rind"? like where it's all surface exploitation instead of fist-in-the-air "we built this!" sentiment.

― Dr. Annabel Lies (Michael Kelly), Monday, 28 June 2004 23:38 (twenty-one years ago)

I still won't rest until "Fripp-hop" becomes a genre

― Elvis Telecom (Chris Barrus), Tuesday, 29 June 2004 00:01 (twenty-one years ago)

I wish Drum'n'Bass was like Law & Order -- "First comes the drum part, then comes the bass part"

― Clarke B. (Clarke B.), Tuesday, 29 June 2004 00:08 (twenty-one years ago)

gotcher law n order right here:

http://www.skingraftrecords.com/graphics/photogalleries/ruins_pics/ruins5.jpg

― Dr. Annabel Lies (Michael Kelly), Tuesday, 29 June 2004 00:18 (twenty-one years ago)

I'm telling you, the opposite of "core" is "post." Theoretically "core" zooms in to the no-nonsense center, "post" spins out to the vague unexplored periphery.

― nabiscothingy, Tuesday, 29 June 2004 01:03 (twenty-one years ago)

pictured above: magmacore

― Brian Turner (btwfmu), Tuesday, 29 June 2004 01:09 (twenty-one years ago)

before hardcore, there was earthcore
http://www.gridclub.com/fact_gadget/images/it1c11f6.jpg

― sherm, Tuesday, 29 June 2004 03:31 (twenty-one years ago)

http://students.hamilton.edu/2005/bturner/tawk/

HAIKUCORE!!!

― Dave Stelfox (Dave Stelfox), Tuesday, 29 June 2004 09:04 (twenty-one years ago)

shit - i never read the lyrics on that before posting. these people are disgusting!

― Dave Stelfox (Dave Stelfox), Tuesday, 29 June 2004 09:06 (twenty-one years ago)

Wait for Corrscore, you know its coming soon.

― Jarlr'mai (jarlrmai), Tuesday, 29 June 2004 11:06 (twenty-one years ago)

hrm -- do the prefix "bubble-" and the suffix "-core" cancel each other out??

for example: bubblegumcore ==> gum?

― andrew l. r. (allocryptic), Tuesday, 29 June 2004 11:39 (twenty-one years ago)

"I thought Old were more microprogcore* like Void or early Die Kreuzen or early Voivoid or somebody... *- I just made "microprogcore" up just now. Who KNOWS what it means.

-- chuck (cedd...), January 23rd, 2003."

― Shakey Mo Collier, Tuesday, 29 June 2004 19:02 (twenty-one years ago)

Well, yeah, Shakey, not sure why you re-posted that, but that's an example of the "core" making sense, since Void and Die Kreuzen and Voivod and Old DID all have a hardcore punk element in their music. My question was why people use it for genres that DON'T have any hardcore in them.

― chuck, Tuesday, 29 June 2004 19:07 (twenty-one years ago)

four years pass...

I'm telling you, the opposite of "core" is "post." Theoretically "core" zooms in to the no-nonsense center, "post" spins out to the vague unexplored periphery.

― nabiscothingy, Tuesday, 29 Jun

WTF is 'post-core'??

― WoW... An Online RPG Funeral Gets Ambushed (gnarly sceptre), Wednesday, 19 November 2008 18:23 (seventeen years ago)

yachtcore

― gabbneb, Wednesday, 19 November 2008 18:25 (seventeen years ago)

I think there should be genres called:

applecore - although I hear it's rotten
lamppost - some people say that you can't dance to it, but the secret is to stand completely still

There are also offshoots:

applecorelamppost - difficult music to play, as people are always complaining about the balance and the requirement for musicians to be very tall
applecorecore - started by the people who were the original applecorers, who subsequently got fed up with the rampant commercialism of applecore
postlamppost - sounds like what you get if you remove the lamppost from lamppost, basically silence to which the dancers flail around madly
lampapple - not to be confused with lamb papal, where people dress up as the pope and chant baaaahhhh

These different genres have all been collected together under the umbrella term "rubbish". So, for example, you will here a musician claim that their band plays "applecore on a rubbish tip".

― snoball, Wednesday, 19 November 2008 18:34 (seventeen years ago)

trying to figure out if that was postcustos or custoscore

― Edward III, Wednesday, 19 November 2008 20:46 (seventeen years ago)

Doesn't "post-core" mean "Balearic"?

― Chunk o' Funk (Bimble Is Still More Goth Than You), Wednesday, 19 November 2008 21:22 (seventeen years ago)

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