dirtylenny Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 I've been listening to this fuckin band for the longest and it never ceases to amaze me how fuckin fresh they sound everytime i come back and how they...just have a galvanising effect on me.First of all, it makes me fucking laugh deep down in the recesses of my guts when i hear about "oooh, the perfect guitar sound, the perfect guitar sound" and then i throw on a song like Nervous Breakdown by these bad motherfuckers and hear that muddy grimy distorted fucking motorcycle rev of a guitar that cuts right through me like a bolt of lightening and its like "AAHHHH!!! YES!!". For all the fuckin theory and books on music and music history and talking heads documentrys, end of the day its the shit on the record, the proof in the pudding that really lays it down and NOTHING ON THIS EARTH makes me fucking blood pump like Black Flag, they're just fucking lethal, hardcore before hardcore became this monster that even hardcore couldn't recognise, the fucking rule book flys out of the window with these boys, they're just fucking raw.That Nervous Breakdown EP, with fucking Keith Morris and his snotty nasal vocals and the guitars sounding like someone revving a fucking scrambler, short, clipped, concise, purposeful lyrics, saying what they mean and meaning what they say, Black Flag are flat out fury. The music, the message, the attitude, the approach is one of urgency like hey, we're alive, we're here and now, this is what we got to give ya.When you listen to them live its like, what Henry Rollins described about the Clash like they were fucking burning through their setlist, eviserating it, like a use once and destroy thing, they weren't playing songs they were fucking pounding them mercilessly...its just so real and fucking primal and disturbed and just...so fucking right on target, its so on purpose, like throwing a brick at someones head, like they were out for blood, like this was the last fucking day of their life and everything had led up to just spitting these fuckin songs in their audiences face.Theres something so desperately human about a two chord or three chord rhythm, that basic rocking (in the literal sense of the word) quality that stripped down rock n roll has that is just SOOO beautiful and powerful, the fuckin blues had it, rock n roll had it and fucking punk rock had it, when you strip down all the conditioning and leave the real meat and potatoes of what makes a bunch of fucking people move, that rhythmic quality turned up to a Spinal Tap 11 and sounding like its been fed through a tape recorder that can't handle the fuckin volume, it just sounds delicious, like you could feed off of it.And fucking Ron Reyes on that Jealous Again EP, with that bratty fuckin voice of his, a touch less nasal than Keith Morris and a little more on the button, the merciless unforgiving quality of the subject matter, dealing with real life and real problems and real shit and shit thats going somewhere...this aint no fucking Stairway to Heaven or...y'know...this aint fuckin Rock Opera...this is what was desperately DESPERATELY needed at the time and Black Flag seriously brought it like no other.And the brains, the fucking brains behind this shit, the humor in shit like TV Party, Six Pack, White Minority, this aint no dumbass outfit, people like Henry Rollins (Jesus, i nearly forgot Rollins!!) with a serious mind and proper focused vicious intent that fucking mean every single word they utter and you can see it in their eyes and hear it in the way he growled and spat and yelled himself hoarse like...oh, its just beyond words, its a feeling, its one of the best realisations of all that rock n roll at its most dangerous dared to promise, subversion, style, relief, release and a word to all those that accept and embrace mediocrity like "nuh uh, sorry, we aint havin' it".I love Black Flag deeply. Shit, i completely ignored Cadenza...i'm tired Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stacks on deck Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 didn't read that, but yeah. mad love. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powerage5 Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Not my favorite hardcore band (That title belongs to Minor Threat), but damn they're good. Unlike a lot of people, I like all their stuff, especially the sludge rock type stuff on later albums, especially on Slip It In. The fact that they evolved so much over a course of 6 years amazes me, and it kept the band fresh. If all the albums had sounded exactly like Damaged, it would have gotten old after 2 or 3 albums. That being said, Damaged is still my favorite Black Flag album, and Rise Above is my anthem.As far as singers I love Keith Morris and Henry, not so much Dez though. I always thought Dez just sounded like a really shitty Henry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtylenny Posted February 23, 2009 Author Share Posted February 23, 2009 Not my favorite hardcore band (That title belongs to Minor Threat), but damn they're good. Unlike a lot of people, I like all their stuff, especially the sludge rock type stuff on later albums, especially on Slip It In. The fact that they evolved so much over a course of 6 years amazes me, and it kept the band fresh. If all the albums had sounded exactly like Damaged, it would have gotten old after 2 or 3 albums. That being said, Damaged is still my favorite Black Flag album, and Rise Above is my anthem.As far as singers I love Keith Morris and Henry, not so much Dez though. I always thought Dez just sounded like a really shitty Henry.Yeah, they really pushed on and really fucked with the audience further down the trough, something i failed to touch upon. I kinda ran outta steam there huh? I dont think Black Flag typically come under hardcore though.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake Eyes Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Legendary band, good call on that one mate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoon87 Posted February 24, 2009 Share Posted February 24, 2009 So often I read your love-making-like reviews of bands you like, lenny and I feel like "Fuck yeah, I'm going to check this shit out right fuckin now!", but then I listen to some stuff by those bands and I'm like . Just happened again . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtylenny Posted February 25, 2009 Author Share Posted February 25, 2009 So often I read your love-making-like reviews of bands you like, lenny and I feel like "Fuck yeah, I'm going to check this shit out right fuckin now!", but then I listen to some stuff by those bands and I'm like . Just happened again .Im sorry my love making has been so consistently disappointing Outta interest what song or album or EP of the boys did you catch? Suffice to say the love i have for the music i like has to do with...i dunno, maybe listening to it a lot or...i mean, theres something there of course that immediately wants me to spin it again and if that aint there for you then...horses for courses i guess but...dont immediately expect all the same things at once off the weight of an initial listen. But i guess if the initial listen dont warrant further investigation then maybe its not for you. I dunno. Btw, i hope it weren't like that for you with The Stooges if of course it was my love making that prompted you to give em a shot (which i doubt for some reason but i had to throw that out there ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spuffy78 Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 What Rollins said about The Stooges Funhouse are my exact sentiments about Flag's stuff."The one album that makes you want to fuck on the floor and break shit" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bt88 Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 is it safe to assume your Misfits fans then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtylenny Posted February 25, 2009 Author Share Posted February 25, 2009 is it safe to assume your Misfits fans then?y'know what, i never got past their first album. As silly as it may seem, i dont think anything could live up to that i dont wanna tarnish the image in my head Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bt88 Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 is it safe to assume your Misfits fans then?y'know what, i never got past their first album. As silly as it may seem, i dont think anything could live up to that i dont wanna tarnish the image in my head Walk Among Us by the Misfits is pretty good. Definitely would like it if you liked the first onebtw thanks for the black flag reccomendation. I got Damaged and it was good, what else is there?Ive been on an old punk kick lately, got some Stooges too. Good stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spuffy78 Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 is it safe to assume your Misfits fans then?y'know what, i never got past their first album. As silly as it may seem, i dont think anything could live up to that i dont wanna tarnish the image in my head Walk Among Us by the Misfits is pretty good. Definitely would like it if you liked the first onebtw thanks for the black flag reccomendation. I got Damaged and it was good, what else is there?Ive been on an old punk kick lately, got some Stooges too. Good stuffMy War is excellent aswell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AbominableHoman Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 Who'd win in a fight: Glenn Danzig vs. Henry Rollins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spuffy78 Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 vs Glen would win and that's because Henry would never want to harm one of his idols. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AbominableHoman Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 vs Glen would win and that's because Henry would never want to harm one of his idols.I'd say Danzig. I like Henry Rollins as a person more, but Danzig's solo shit is amazing.Lucifuge is like my Appetite for Destruction II. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtylenny Posted February 26, 2009 Author Share Posted February 26, 2009 is it safe to assume your Misfits fans then?y'know what, i never got past their first album. As silly as it may seem, i dont think anything could live up to that i dont wanna tarnish the image in my head Walk Among Us by the Misfits is pretty good. Definitely would like it if you liked the first onebtw thanks for the black flag reccomendation. I got Damaged and it was good, what else is there?Ive been on an old punk kick lately, got some Stooges too. Good stuffMy War is excellent aswell.Get the EPs man, defi-fucking-initely, Jealous Again, Nervous Breakdown, thats where its at :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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