So what is Post-Punk you ask?? Well, while that's a lot harder to answer than you would imagine. I guess you could say any band that appeared following the immediate influx of the 77' Punk movement could be considered Post-Punk.
But to be more specific, most Post-Punk artists have a very artistic, and creative feel to their work. It's not your typical three chord punk songs. Post-Punk also draws from many, many genres and influences. In fact quite a few genres were created from the Post-Punk movement (Dreampop, Indie-Rock, EMO, etc.). Everything from the Avant-Funk of bands like Gang of Four, 23 Skidoo, A Certain Ratio, Shriekback, etc. to the early electronic experimentations of artists like OMD, The Human League, Cabaret Voltaire, Fad Gadget, etc.
Their also tends to be some trends that appear in Post-Punk bands as well. Artists like The Chameleons, The Church, The Sound, Echo and the Bunnymen, Cocteau Twins, Sad Lovers and Giants, etc. have a very dreamy flowy guitar style that didn't really exist prior to the late 70's in modern rock bands. Sure you could hear a bit of it in some of the Progressive Rock of the early 70's, and the Psychedelic Rock of the 60's, but not to the degree that these bands took it.
Then you have your noise merchants. Bands like The Pop Group, Swell Maps, SWANS, The Birthday Party, Pixies, etc. turned harsh noises into something completely new and beautiful. Music that could make you writhe in ecstasy or have you pulling your hair out in agony. You have your traditional Punk bands like Wire, Au Pairs, Psychedelic Furs, The Slits, the Mekons, Zounds, etc. that decided to do anything but traditional Punk music. Some completely off the wall experimental music. Industrial music has it's roots in the Post-Punk era, as does New Wave, and Synthpop. If you really want to get picky Rave music was spawned from the Madchester scene that bands like The Stone Roses, Happy Mondays, Big Audio Dynamite, etc. created. I guess you could say that Post-Punk was the single most important movement of the past 30 years in modern music history. Maybe that's why I love it so much, and will wholeheartedly support it for the rest of my life.
This essay could go on for days, their's so much I didn't even touch on, in fact I hardly scratched the surface of this genre. But for now I think you get the idea of what Post-Punk is.
Now Why Post-Punk.com you ask??