I just registered to post on this thread.
I tell you what, about half the shit people have suggested are just guitar pop of varying degrees of speed. I mean, come the hell on, he asked for punk, not pseudo-goth crap.
That being said, there are a few excellent bands on here so far. The Lunachicks, if you aren’t already a huge fan, are a must-have. Nasty women playing nasty punk - saw them open up for the Buzzcocks a few years ago and they blew the old bastards out of the water. Op Ivy, if you’re into ska at all. Dropkick Murphys, but only the albums Sing Loud, Sing Proud, Do or Die, and The Gang’s All Here - they do excellent celtic punk. While you’re in a bagpipe mood, check out The Real McKenzies - Scottish punk by way of Canada.
Thug Murder is basically the Clash, if they were all girls and from Japan. easily the strangest oi I’ve ever heard, but get their album The Thirteenth Round and you won’t be dissapointed.
U.S. Bombs - you may have been into them before, they’re still around and still putting out albums.
Speaking of, ignore those that tell you, “there is no punk, it’s all radio punk now” - that just means someone’s out of the scene and has no idea what’s still going on. I went to three spiky-headed punk shows in the past two weeks, I’m going to two this week (okay, one’s an oi show), and all of them are a hell of a lot of drunken fun.
If Fuckface Jones ever plays near you, make a point to go see them.
The Transfusions are somewhere between The Ramones and faster pogo punk, with sunglasses. They just put out a demo/bootleg that’s well worth getting a hold of.
Roger Miret and the Disasters - Roger from Agnostic Front’s oi band. What more to say?
I could go on, but I’m going to just add some labels instead.
PunkCore: Mohawks, safety pins, and bondage pants. Just ignore The Casualties, they’re pure shit.
TKO Records: mostly streetpunk/oi - their Punch Drunk compilations are a good place to check out plenty of different bands for super fuckin cheap.
Epitaph: just sold to a major label, but if you don’t care about that, check it out. A good place to find a lot of current punk with a more classic sound (but they also carry some real stinkers).
And it’s not a label, but if you’re truly interested in the state of the scene today, go to World Wide Punks and check out their forums. It’s got a good mix of older and younger punks, a few skins and rudeboys. A lot of boob and beer talk, but ain’t that part of punk, too?
Oi!