Few genres of rock are more loosely defined than new wave. The term was first used around 1976 to describe pop-music acts that, like the period's emerging punk bands, represented something fresh and forceful, but avoided punk's anger and aggression. During this time, new wave generally meant (often ironically) bright and bouncy groups such as New York's Blondie .
However, even at this early stage, the label began to be applied to other sorts of outfits, at least until...