History Music / TheStranglers

* GutturalGrowler: JJ Burnel.

* ''Aural Sculpture'' (1984)

* MohsScaleOfRockAndMetalHardness: Unlike [[Music/SexPistols certain]] [[Music/TheClash other]] [[Music/TheDamned British]] [[Music/TheJam Punk]] [[Music/{{Buzzcocks}} bands]] of the time, The Stranglers' keyboard-heavy sound rarely got above (and only occasionally reached) a 5 on this scale. In fact, many of their tunes are in the 3-4 range, especially on their later albums.

* ShoutOut: The video game ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes'' is named after their song.

[[caption-width-right:350:The classic lineup. Foreground: Jean-Jacques Burnel (bass). Background, left to right: Jet Black (drums), Dave Greenfield (keyboards), Hugh Cornwell (guitar).]]

Their sound has changed over the years, becoming more experimental, then more pop accessible, and right back to a classic-era revival that they are currently going through now. Their classic lineup included Hugh Cornwell on guitar, Jean-Jacques Burnel on bass, Dave Greenfield on keyboards, and Jet Black on drums. Cornwell was the main singer, though Burnel takes the lead vocals on many of their songs. Cornwell left the band in 1990, being briefly replaced by John Ellis from Music/TheVibrators before current guitarist Baz Warne settled in during 2000.

In 2020, Dave Greenfield sadly died of COVID-19, and in response to this the band announced they would be releasing the final album they had been working on with Greenfield and go on a final tour in late 2020 before splitting up.

[[quoteright:349:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/thestranglers_9190.png]]
[[caption-width-right:349:Album art for ''Black and White'', showing the classic lineup[[note]](L-R) Jean-Jacques Burnel (bass), Hugh Cornwell (guitar), Jet Black (drums), Dave Greenfield (keyboards)[[/note]]]]

The band began several years before the Punk explosion in Britain, originating from prepunk Blues, Jazz and Psychedelic backgrounds; their sound was much more technically skilled and literate than their contemporaries, and they were one of the few Punk bands to make liberal use of keyboards. They also had what one music critic described as a Monty Python-esque sense of absurdity, which appeared to everyone else as abject sexism and racism. Regardless, they managed a loyal following and plenty of chart-success, while having a shaky relationship with the music press.

* DeathSong: "Dagenham Dave", about a late friend of the band

* GutturalGrowler: JJ Burnel

->"''Whatever happened to all the heroes''
->''No more heroes anymore''"

-->"''Whatever happened to all the heroes''
-->''No more heroes anymore''"

* UncommonTime: "Peasant in the Big Shitty" is in 9/4.

Their sound has changed over the years, becoming more experimental, then more pop accessible, and right back to a classic-era revival that they are currently going through now. Their classic lineup included Hugh Cornwell on guitar, Jean-Jacques Burnel on bass, Dave Greenfield on keyboards, and Jet Black on drums. Corwnell was the main singer, though Burnel takes the lead vocals on many of their songs. Cornwell left the band in 1990, being briefly replaced by John Ellis from Music/TheVibrators before current guitarist Baz Warne settled in during 2000.

Their sound has changed over the years, becoming more experimental, then more pop accessible, and right back to a classic-era revival that they are currently going through now. Their classic lineup included Hugh Cornwell on guitar, Jean-Jacques Burnel on bass, Dave Greenfield on keyboards, and Jet Black on drums. Cornwell left the band in 1990, being briefly replaced by John Ellis from Music/TheVibrators before current guitarist Baz Warne settled in during 2000.

* MohsScaleOfRockAndMetalHardness: Unlike [[Music/SexPistols certain]] [[Music/TheClash other]] [[Music/TheDamned British]] [[Music/TheJam Punk]] [[Music{{Buzzcocks}} bands]] of the time, The Stranglers' keyboard-heavy sound rarely got above (and only occasionally reached) a 5 on this scale. In fact, many of their tunes are in the 3-4 range, especially on their later albums.

* Music/PunkRock: Part of the first wave of British Punk Rock.

* BlackSheepHit: If all you know of the band is "Peaches" or "No More Heroes", "Golden Brown" might come as a shock. It was one of EMI's best-selling singles for years.

-->"I'd like to see a passionate film between the two ugliest people in the world. And when I say 'ugly', I don't mean rough looking; I mean ''hideous''!"
* BlackSheepHit: If all you know of the band is "No More Heroes" or "Something Better Change", "Golden Brown" might come as a shock. It was one of EMI's best-selling singles for years.

-->I guess I shouldn't have strangled her to death but\\

And if you got acne, well, I apologize for disliking you intensely

* LeadBassist: Burnel takes lead about as often as Cornwell. Even more so since Cornwell left.
* NewWaveMusic: One of the pioneers, with their more melodic, keyboard-heavy take on Punk Rock.

* Music/PunkRock

* NewWave

* PunkRock

* ConceptAlbum: ''The Gospel According to the Meninblack'', about alien visitation, the titular [[TheMenInBlack Men in Black, and their connection to Biblical narratives.