You Can Only Save 4 of These 8 Legendary Rock Bands From the 1980s. Who’s Getting Cut?

The eight rock bands below represent the cream of the crop in 1980s rock. Spanning the gamut of rock subgenres, these groups helped define their era. They all have plenty of merit, but what if you had to save only four, while the rest were wiped from memory? It’s a seemingly impossible task. Thankfully, it’s not a reality, but it’s fun to wager who’d win.

Metallica

You couldn’t cut the architects of trash metal. Metallica helped redefine the heavier side of rock in the 1980s and is completely indispensable. From Master Of Puppets to Ride The Lightning, Metallica’s work in this era was transformative.

Guns N’ Roses

Raw, chaotic, and unmatched in energy, Guns N’ Roses came onto an unsuspecting rock world and took it by force. Though their reign extended into the 1990s, the prior decade was when they found their footing. Audiences loved Axl Rose’s screeching vocals and Slash’s singular playing. You couldn’t cut them from history. Rock would never be the same.

Van Halen

Van Halen hit the big time in the 1980s, wowing audiences with mind-boggling guitar work. Surely, you couldn’t write off these guitar heroes. They did wonders with rock’s titular instrument. It’d be a crime to drop a band so integral to guitar history.

Journey

Moving on to another arena rock staple, we have Journey. Who could forget Steve Perry’s high-flying vocals? He’s one of the most pristine frontmen of the 1980s, giving the band plenty of crossover appeal. Striking this band from history would mean never hearing the heart-stirring “Faithfully” or the energizing “Any Way You Want It” again.

Def Leppard

When we think of 1980s rock, “Pour Some Sugar On Me” is one of the first that comes to mind. This song is so 80s it’s become a bit of a cliché. But that cliché still takes us back to this era with no trouble at all. For that, we have to save this band, for the sheer nostalgia.

Mötley Crüe

Mötley Crüe represents a time in rock when artists were living up to the stereotype. These kings of chaos were on an unstoppable wild streak in the 1980s. Who else has lived up to the rockstar mentality better? Because of that, this band has to stay, if only for the culture.

The Cure

Moving into another side of rock that the aforementioned bands can’t encompass, we have The Cure’s singular alt-rock sound. When we think of 1980s rock, we think big hair and loud noises. But that notion obscures bands like The Cure, who brought a counterculture tinge to the genre, wowing fans in the backdrop of the mainstream. All of us who prefer the genre’s fringes might have a hard time knocking The Cure off the list.

Aerosmith

Aerosmith experienced a resurgence in the 1980s, making them the final choice for this list. Though they hit their stride in the 1970s, the following decade produced hits like “Love In An Elevator”, “Walk This Way” with Run-D.M.C., and “Dude (Looks Like A Lady)”. How could you possibly want to forget these seminal tracks?

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