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The Damned are an English rock band formed in London in 1976 by lead vocalist Dave Vanian, guitarist Brian James, bassist (and later guitarist) Captain Sensible and drummer Rat Scabies. They were the first punk band from the United Kingdom to release a single, "New Rose" (1976), release a studio album, Damned Damned Damned (1977) and tour the United States. The band briefly dissolved after their second album, Music for Pleasure (1977), was critically dismissed. They re-formed without Brian James and released Machine Gun Etiquette (1979).

In the 1980s, they achieved success playing gothic and psychedelic rock, with nine of the band's singles charting in the UK singles chart top 40. That decade saw the release of four studio albums: The Black Album (1980), Strawberries (1982), Phantasmagoria (1985) and Anything (1986). The latter two albums did not feature Sensible, who had left the band in 1984. In 1988, James and Sensible rejoined to play a series of reunion gigs, one of which was released the next year as the live album Final Damnation (1989).

The Damned again re-formed for a tour in 1991. In 1995, a lineup with Vanian and Scabies released a new studio album, Not of This Earth, against Vanian's wishes, leading to Scabies' departure from the band for nearly thirty years. This was followed by the return of Captain Sensible, and the albums Grave Disorder (2001), So, Who's Paranoid? (2008) and Evil Spirits (2018), which was their first studio album in the Official Chartstop 10 list. and Darkadelic (2023), which also made the top 10. In November 2023, Scabies rejoined, and their 2026 covers album, Not Like Everybody Else, was the first Damned album to feature three members from the classic lineup in over forty years.

They have been recognised as influential in the development of numerous genres, including punk rock, gothic rock, and hardcore punk, as well as influential to popular bands that came after them.

History

Formation and Stiff years (1976–1978)

Prior to The Damned, Dave Vanian (David Lett), Captain Sensible (Raymond Burns) and Rat Scabies (Chris Millar) had been members of the band Masters of the Backside, which also included future Pretenders frontwoman Chrissie Hynde. Brian James (Brian Robertson) had been a member of London SS, a band that never played live but also included musicians who later found fame in the Clash and Generation X. Scabies knew James through a failed audition as the drummer for London SS. When they decided to start their own band, with James on guitar and Scabies on drums, they invited Sid Vicious, later of the Sex Pistols, and Dave Vanian to audition to be the singer. However, only Vanian appeared, and he was added to the band. Sensible became the band's bassist, and the four called themselves the Damned. Chrissie Hynde would later write: "Without me, they were probably the most musically accomplished punk outfit in town."

The Damned played their first show on 6 July 1976, supporting the Sex Pistols at the 100 Club. A lo-fi recording of the show was later released as Live at the 100 Club (2007). As part of London's burgeoning punk scene, the Damned again played the club on 20 September for the 100 Club Punk Festival.

On 22 October, five weeks before the release of the Sex Pistols' "Anarchy in the U.K.", Stiff Records released the Damned's first single "New Rose", thus making them the first UK punk band to release a single. The single's B-side was a fast-paced cover of the Beatles' "Help!". "New Rose" was described by critic Ned Raggett as a "deathless anthem of nuclear-strength romantic angst."

When the Sex Pistols released their single, they took the Damned, along with the Clash and Johnny Thunders' Heartbreakers, as openers for their December "Anarchy Tour of the UK". Many of the tour dates were cancelled by organizers or local authorities, with only seven of approximately 20 scheduled shows taking place. The Damned were expelled from the tour before its end by Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren.

The Damned released their debut studio album, Damned Damned Damned, on 18 February 1977. Produced by Nick Lowe, it was the first studio album released by a British punk band and included a new single, "Neat Neat Neat". The band toured to promote the album, in March opening for T. Rex on their final tour before Marc Bolan's death that September. Later that spring, they became the first British punk band to tour the United States.