Five Easy Masterpieces: an introduction to egg-punk
Punk rock has always fostered a nearly endless number of offshoots, subgenres, and distinctive scenes. The inspiration provided by early heroes like Iggy Pop, Patti Smith, or the Ramones quickly spread into a vast, all-encompassing landscape, hosting everything from the upbeat aggression of skate punk to ablutophobic crust punk. A relative newcomer under the umbrella of punk is egg-punk, a scene born from internet memes, synthesisers, and an uncompromising DIY attitude.
It was during the 2010s that egg-punk was brought into the world, ushered in by groups like The Coneheads, Uranium Club, and Lumpy and the Dumpers, along with the enduring influence of groups like Devo. These early bands combined the devolution theory and satirical approach of the new wave heroes with fast-paced, synth-driven punk rock. In direct opposition to other offshoots of punk, the egg-punk scene routinely refuses to take itself too seriously, revelling in the fun and spontaneity of lo-fi recordings and satirical songwriting.
Given the fact that egg-punk was born from online communities and a deep love of memes, it didn’t take long for the style to spread all across the globe. Australia, for instance, boasts a rich and ever-expanding punk scene, particularly in cities like Naarm/Melbourne, which often borrows heavily from egg-punk, while some of the genre’s frontrunners hail from Spain or the United Kingdom. Other punk scenes thrive in local communities, but egg-punk is a global scene.
In 2025, egg-punk continues to thrive both online and in DIY music venues across the world. Thanks to the tireless efforts of the musicians at the heart of the scene, egg-punk continues to offer some of the most inventive and infectious anthems from under the punk umbrella. Still, its DIY nature means many folks still haven’t been exposed to its charms. So, in an effort to combat this lack of egg-punk education, join us as we look at five key masterpieces from across the scene.
Five essential egg-punk albums:
The Coneheads – L.P. 1. (2015)
A landmark release in the lineage of egg-punk, Indiana outfit The Coneheads unleashed L.P.1. back in 2015, collating their two previously released tapes, Total Conetrol and Canadian Cone. Perfectly encapsulating the manic lo-fi sound of egg-punk, the band take huge inspiration from the earlier and slightly weirder side of Devo, yet they manage to bring those late 1970s new wave sounds firmly into the modern digital age.
The extended title of this album, 14 Year Old High School PC-Fascist Hype Lords Rip Off Devo for the Sake of Extorting $$$ from Helpless Impressionable Midwestern Internet Peoplepunks L.P., might as well be the manifesto for the entirety of the egg-punk movement. Satirical, self-depricating, rooted in online culture, and with a healthy appreciation for the history of weird and wonderful groups like Devo, the title expertly conveys the appeal of the album, which manages to pack 15 tracks into a runtime of a little over 17 minutes. Sadly, The Coneheads called it quits in 2016, but this record continues to inspire enterprising egg-punks everywhere.
Snõõper – Super Snõõper (2023)
Another key group in the popularisation of the egg-punk sound, Nashville outfit Snõõper achieved so much with their 2023 debut album, Super Snõõper. Opting for a much rawer, garage rock-infused sound comparative to some of their contemporaries, the band maintain the attitude and manifesto of the egg-punk movement while expanding upon its inherent sound. What’s more, this album helped to bring those sounds to much wider audiences, thanks to its release on Jack White’s Third Man Records.
Despite the big budgets and promotional power of Third Man, Super Snõõper retains that lo-fi, DIY recording style which sets egg-punk apart from a lot of modern punk rock. Stripping away all that is superfluous about modern rock and punk, Snõõper revert to the garage rock sensibilities of punk’s predecessors, while retaining that modern and distinctly egg-punk mix of energy, spontaneity and, above all else, joy.
Powerplant – People In The Sun (2019)
Egg-punk is a global affair, and the first international inclusion in this list arrives with Powerplant. Born out of London’s enduring hardcore scene, Powerplant is the brainchild of Theo Zhykharyev, who serves as the group’s vocalist, and they burst onto the scene back in 2017 with self-released tracks like ‘Dog Sees Ghosts’ and ‘True Love’. However, it was their 2019 album People In The Sun that really cemented their position as titans of egg-punk expression.
A synth-heavy release, existing somewhere between early Gary Numan and golden-age Dischord hardcore, People In The Sun offered a fresh take on egg-punk, expanding upon its typically satirical sound. While the record bears the unmistakable hallmarks of a DIY release, complete with fuzzy recordings and a constant sense of unpredictability, there is also no shortage of incredible songwriting, ambitious arrangements, and a certain sense of professionalism, which suggests this album wasn’t merely thrown together during a drunken recording session.
Billiam – Animation Cel (2024)
Flying the flag for Naarm/Melbourne’s incredible DIY punk scene, Billiam has been performing with various groups under varying band names since his teenage years. The hardcore stylings of early group Disco Junk, along with his extracurricular activities recording cassette compilations, seemingly gave Billiam an invaluable education in the art of DIY, which makes him a natural fit for egg-punk excellency. 2024’s Animation Cel marked the songwriter’s first major album release under his own name, and it certainly cemented his position as the egg-punk tsar of Down Under.
Taking aim at everything from public transport fares (‘Bash My Head Against A Myki Pole’) to now-defunct theme parks (‘Segaworld (NSW 1997)’), the album is packed with ideas, each more energetic and, in many cases, stranger than the last. Billiam certainly draws from a broad musical spectrum, but his endless dedication to DIY makes this particular album an essential listen for any respectable egg-punk devotee.
Prison Affair – Demos (2019-2024)
It is here that we deviate from the usual format of this list, as Barcelona egg-punk heroes Prison Affair have yet to release a full-length album. However, between 2019 and 2024, the group released four ‘demo’ EPs, each comprising three or four tracks. No mention of egg-punk is complete without mentioning Prison Affair, so we ask that, for the purposes of this list, you class those four singles as a collective album. After all, each of those individual releases is as captivating, floor-shaking, and fun as the last.
Out of those four releases, only two tracks (‘El Motin’ and ‘Isolation’) eclipse a two-minute runtime, but Prison Affair are adept at packing a lot into a small space of time. Heavy basslines, distorted vocals, and lots of synth goodness, these demos form everything you could hope for from a lo-fi egg-punk release. Speaking to the band’s endless dedication to DIY, they recently unveiled their own independent record label, Prison Records, whose inaugural release came from Leeds’s rapidly rising egg-punk outfit The Oidz.
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