Black Flag
"Damaged"
1981, SST
Was this hallowed recording perpetrated by a band of rational, sane human beings or did L.A.'s nuthouse let five randomly selected lunatics cut an album in the basement?! The truth may never be known =). Well, this 35-minute blast of vitrol has got to be one of the most honestly brutal motherfucking records on the planet. It can easily fight and conquer Slayer's "Reign In Blood", Pantera's entire aresenal, and Judge Judy with PMS and a scorching case of herpes. For those of you that have heard rumors about Henry Rollins recording music that actually rocked (for the record, this was also his vocal debut), here is your chance to hear it!-- The deranged squalor of "Depression", "Padded Cell", "Room 13", and the avant-mayhem title track will make your mother storm into your room with a Holy Bible and demand to know what drugs you are on! Though somewhat amelodic overall, the band manages to squeak out a few pop hooks on "Rise Above", "T.V. Party" (cool cheapo video!), and "Gimme Gimme Gimme" (orginally cut as a demo in '78), proving that Greg Ginn and his slimey cohorts could easily write a number 1 hit song if they wanted to (i mean, they'd probably disagree with me...but i believe they could do anything if they put their mind to it). Although Black Flag was recording brutal, moshable songs ever since their inception in '77, "Damaged" collects their pissed-off attitude and spreads it out over 15 songs, giving the listener more for their money. Only weak points on the album: Short pointless second track ("Spray Paint The Walls"), mediocre songs like "What I See" and "Damaged II", and the bad sound quality...which you get used to after a while.
RATING: 9.5
"Everything Went Black"
1982, SST
Going as far back as early '78, "Everything Went Black" contains over 60 minutes of Black Flag demos, as well as some hilarious radio promos for the band. While that all sounds good on paper, be forewarned: A lot of the demos are crappy, either because the performance was uninspired (particularly on short-time vocalist Dez Cadena's crackheaded renditions of Black Flag classics) or the sound quality sucked. Although Keith Morris (later of Circle Jerks fame) does a good job with "No Values" and "White Minority" and it IS rathing amusing to hear "Jealous Again" with a piano intro, "Everything Went Black", as a whole, is wildly inconsistent and is of use only to Black Flag fanatics.
RATING: 5
"The First Four Years"
1983, SST
Collecting every official Black Flag release of the pre-Henry Rollins era, this collection still only amounts to 26 minutes of music. No matter though, because this record kicks major ass with it's carpe diem attitude and profound sense of recklessness and despair. Early psychotic gems like "Nervous Breakdown", "Wasted", "Jealous Again", "No Values", and "Six Pack" are all included here! Only Dez Cadena's tracks seem to fall short of greatness (some flat-out suck!), but it's still cool to hear his politically incorrect rendition of "Louie, Louie".
RATING: 8
"My War"
1984, SST
After fighting a lengthy lawsuit (which had to do with "Damaged" being dropped by a major label), Black Flag emerged in '84 without most of the "Damaged" line-up (only Ginn and Rollins remained in the fold, and this record was recorded with Ginn laying down the bass tracks under a pseudonym). This record marked a major turning point in Black Flag's career, because they were now experimenting with other forms of music (ranging from jazz/fusion to heavy metal). "My War" is an utterly boring record, drenched in feedback and sludge. Only the title track and "Beat My Head Against The Wall" seem to have a pulse, and the three 6-minute dirges at the end of the record are pretty damn awful to say the least.
RATING: 4
"Loose Nut"
1985, SST
"Loose Nut" is a solid set of indie hard rock and it was the band's best album since "Damaged". By now, Black Flag's heavy-metal crossover had begun to work. "Loose Nut" and "Annihilate This Week" riff aggressively, while dark tracks like "I'm The One" and "She's Black" contain a menacing air that Black Flag seemed to have lost up until this point. However, the highlight of the album has got to be "Bastard In Love"; one of the best songs of the early Alternative era.
RATING: 8.5
"In My Head"
1985, SST
Hot on the heels of "Loose Nut" came this bizarre, but sometimes entertaining record. The first thing I noticed about this album was that the mix sucked. Henry's voice is mixed way in the back and Greg Ginn's guitar always sounds out of tune. Side 2 is where you'll find most of the good songs, including "Retired At 21", "Drinking And Driving", and "It's All Up To You", but the experimentation of Side 1 is not particularly annoying. However, after the consistency of "Loose Nut", one has to wonder what Greg Ginn & Co. were smoking when they recorded this album.
RATING: 6.5
"The Process Of Weeding Out"
1985, SST
4-song EP of extended instrumental jams, all of which are about as fun as being nibbled to death by ducks. Don't even bother...
RATING: 1.5
"Who's Got The 10 1/2?"
1986, SST
This is an awesome live document of Black Flag in their final days of existence. It contains nearly all of "Loose Nut" as well as earlier stuff like "Gimme Gimme Gimme" (performed as part of a medley during which Henry Rollins goes on an amusing sexual tirade), "My War", and "Louie Louie". However, there IS an instrumental jam...don't say I didn't warn ya. =)
RATING: 8
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