Black Flag are the definitive hardcore band, but, ask me again in 24 hours and I'll probably say Minor Threat, I can just never pick between the two of them.

Honourable mentions to Bad Brains, Government Issue, Dag Nasty, Negative Approach, Gorilla Biscuits and Youth of Today too.

are a hardcore band or not.

Predictably it's the source of a long and convoluted debate on the discussion page of their wiki entry:

Dead Kennedys being "Hardcore Punk"
I feel calling the Dead Kennedys as Hardcore Punk is false. In the wikipedia article it defines hardcore apunk as "a faster, heavier version of punk rock, characterized by short, loud, and often passionate songs." Hardcore punk is characterized by bands like Minor Threat and the Bad Brains, and the Dead Kennedys do not sound like them. There are hardcore bands that play at mid tempos, like the Reagan Youth, but the Dead Kennnedys do not sound like them either. The chord progressions in the dead kennedy's songs are not thrashy enough for it to be considered hardcore, and the refrains are not like any other hardcore band i've heard of. I like the dead kennedys as much as the next guy, but they are punk rock, not hardcore... i'm sure most people would agree with me on this. Dasilva 05:25, 27 May 2006 (UTC)

Check the AMG link in the References section. Sorry, but unless you can cite a source saying they are not hardcore, then you can't argue for this to change in the article. -- LGagnon 15:44, 27 May 2006 (UTC)
http://www.discogs.com/artist/Dead+Kennedys refers to them as a "legendary punk band"
http://www.freedb.org/freedb_search_fmt.php?cat=rock&id=d207bf0e classified as punk, not hardcore
Dasilva 01:18, 28 May 2006 (UTC)
Two no-name sources versus one reliable source. That's not a good way to prove your point. And might I add that punk is used interchangably with hardcore by many people, so even if your sources were reliable you still wouldn't have an argument. -- LGagnon 01:46, 28 May 2006 (UTC)
Sorry Dasilva, but your sources are not really trustworthy, or accurate. Try here instead: http://www.trouserpress.com/entry.php?a=dead_kennedys Rsm99833 01:51, 28 May 2006 (UTC)
Also, Reagan Youth was classicfied as "punk" in freedb.org, the other two you mentioned were called various things, including "hardcore" and "punk", but not "hardcore punk", from the few albums I randomly clicked. I couldn't see any genre info in discogs.com. Some groups may been more "hardcore" than the DK, and the punk trend may be heading (or has) in that direction, but that still doesn't mean that DK isn't classifed as "hardcore punk" anymore. — Soupisgoodfood 02:46, 28 May 2006 (UTC)
Hardcore is a subgenre of punk, which means all hardcore bands are punk. Just because in one instance one term was used over the another does not automatically mean one is right and the other is wrong. WesleyDodds 06:47, 28 May 2006 (UTC)
Another thing to consider is that the dead kennedy's haven't to my knowledge ever idenified themselves as being hardcore, while they have repeatedly idenified as punk. Hardcore is generally indenified as being a particluar offshoot of punk (with east coast not west coast origins).

And yet they never denied it. Music experts have stated over and over again that they were hardcore. That's reason enough to call them that. -- LGagnon 01:28, 23 June 2006 (UTC)
The fact that Dead Kennedys were playing punk before the hardcore genre ever came to exist is more than enough reason to avoid applying the label. Only the smallest modicum of knowledge on the subject is required to understand that Dead Kennedys were never, not in any sense, a hardcore band. -- Caped Crusader 19:00, 5 July 2006 (UTC)
They started playing before hardcore came into existence? That is blatantly false. Black Flag and Bad Brains (amongst others) were playing years before the DKs formed. I don't think you know enough about the history of hardcore to make such an argument. -- LGagnon 20:35, 5 July 2006 (UTC)
If you knew half as much as you think you do about the subject, you'd know that Black Flag's early stuff had a distinctly different sound than what they were playing around the time you were born. If you think Bad Brains were around "years" before Dead Kennedys, you seriously need to reconsider your qualifications for contributing to these articles. Once again, they didn't develop a hardcore sound until after the Dead Kennedys had already formed. Hardcore, as a genre in and of itself, was developed in the 1980s. You're out of your weight class here. -- Caped Crusader 20:45, 5 July 2006 (UTC)
And for the record, if you want a "source", familiarize yourself with the lyrics of "Chickenshit Conformist", in which Jello unequivocally distinguishes himself from the hardcore scene that had been forming. -- Caped Crusader 21:08, 5 July 2006 (UTC)
First of all, personal attacks about my age are not appropriate, and personal attacks in general are a violation of Wikipedia's policy against them. Familiarize yourself with that if you plan on staying on good standing here.
Second of all, the "Nervous Breakdown" single by Black Flag was released the same year that the DKs formed. That song is hardcore beyond a shadow of a doubt. Different sound? Yes. Different genre? No.
I've given proof to my argument; now you give some yourself. -- LGagnon 02:39, 6 July 2006 (UTC)
You don't have an argument. You say Black Flag and Bad Brains were playing hardcore years before the Dead Kennedys had formed. When called on that obvious fallacy, you revert to saying Black Flag released a single (it was actually an EP, not a single) the same year Dead Kennedys came to be. You haven't proven very much, and certainly not what you intended to prove. Dead Kennedys were Bay Area punk rock, and heavily influenced (musically, at least) by surf music. They were definitely pioneers who helped pave the way to hardcore punk, especially early NYHC bands like Reagan Youth and Born Against, but that's not what they played. It doesn't take much to distinguish Dead Kennedys' sound from that of hardcore punk bands, even those releasing material prior to the days of metal crossover.
Furthermore, there was no "personal attack" in my post, but rather a statement of fact. I suggest you heed your own advice, and adhere to the contents of the page you linked: "however, you should be very careful not to define "personally attack" too broadly, or to do this too frequently". I am in no way concerned about my "standing" here.
In the end, it's just one more glaring inaccuracy on Wikipedia. Nothing new about that. -- Caped Crusader 18:21, 6 July 2006 (UTC)
I don't even see the arguement here. Who can honestly listen to Plastic Surgery Distasters, Bedtime for Democracy and most of all In God We Trust, Inc. and not classify the band as part of the hardcore punk genre? I don't think this is even a question of influence or importance within the genre, just the fact that the music is fast and thrasy in a way not found in first wave punk bands. 24.126.230.13 06:46, 24 August 2006 (UTC) 23:46, August 23rd, 2006 (PST)

Agreed. I would say the DKs are more experimental than a lot of other hardcore bands, but a lot of their music was clearly part of that genre, and they are typically considered an exemplary hardcore band. I don't see why this is getting so much attention. Ungovernable ForceThe Wiki Kitchen! 08:11, 24 August 2006 (UTC)
I have to agree with the 2 above me, although i don't think id categorise them as a hardcore band either what with fresh fruit being pretty straighforward, kinda surfy sounding punk music. plus with all the experimental stuff you guys mentioned i think its best if they're put under a mulitude of genres. Seems like the best way to describe them and the best way to end all of this. --AnRK 15:12, 22 September 2006 (UTC)

Bad Brains were my favourite.

I never thought of Dead Kennedys as hardcore. They're a little to poppy, in a good way.

read over what i post next time!

no question.

I'm really glad someone mentioned Gorilla B's. They're not mentioned enough in my opinion.

I love "World at your feet"!

Just kidding, hooray for Ian!

as an x fan i can only look back and cringe. all those sweaty guys pulling faces singing to a bunch of other guys.why does it take itself so seriously? there is allways a new book coming out about the USA hardcore scene and when they try and inject some humour or experimental shit they end up sounding like NOFX or worse. argh. THE GERMS are allways worth a listen tho.