Why this album?
With how cold it has been the last few weeks in Evanston, I wanted something fresh, something new—I decided to try out a new album, something I had never heard before. I found Rolling Stone’s ‘500 Greatest Albums of All Time’ (link) and generated a random number between 1 and 500 in Excel. I got 273 which happened to be this album!
According to Wikipedia, this album was ‘Gang of Four’s’ debut album and is considered post-punk with elements of funk, dance, reggae, and dub. Groovy!
Ether
The punk really comes through here; I really like the layered vocals. They give a very dissonant sense to song. The guitar sounds ‘clangy’ (can’t think of a better term for it right now…) There’s an interesting call-and-response with the guitar and what sounds like a harmonica near the end. A punchy way to kick things off!
5 out of 10
Natural’s Not In It
I think ‘Gang of Four’ use the classic punk trope of leveraging the rhythmic qualities of guitar over the melodic abilities to great use here. The bass line also is lovely and pushes things along. Classic punk lyrics here (e.g. “we’re not so gullible” and “no escape from society”.) Mastering is mostly limited to vocal pans but what else do you expect from punk? I like this one.
7 out of 10
Not Great Men
Oooh I like the beginning of this one. Like ‘Natural’s Not In It’, the guitar and bass are used to drive a dance rhythm which is carried through in the chorus. There’s more melody here than I would have expected (I think this shows I had a low bar for this album…) The breakdown in the middle is a good way to break up the structure but the guitar does get boring after a while.
6 out of 10
Damaged Goods
Spotify indicates that this is the most popular song on the album; I can see why! The intro is in a similar vein to the previous song but I think the more full soundstage makes it more appealing. The lyrics are also interesting; something about an obviously flawed carnal relationship. I would listen to this one again!
8 out of 10
Return The Gift
The intro on this one sucks but then goes into a nice verse with a rollicking beat from the drums that makes you want to groove along. The bass also is putting in work here. Yet again though, the guitar irks me—I think it’s just too shrill and trebly here in the mix. I get that’s the ‘punk way’ but I wish it was more on the dance side than the punk side.
6 out of 10
Guns Before Butter
I’m running out of vocabulary here, this song sounds very similar to the others on the album. I guess it’s good that they have a cohesive theme but I’m getting bored. The title is intriguing, I give you that, but I’m craving some variety at this point. More pseudo-sung vocals, more ‘clangy’ guitar, more bass, blah blah blah
5 out of 10
I Found That Essence Rare
Just when I thought I was out, ‘Gang of Four’ pull me back in; the intro guitar evokes classic rock, that kind of twangy Tele on a Tweed sound that The Rolling Stones earned their keep with. I think it’s clear that ‘Gang of Four’ are at their best when they have a full soundstage—their individual instruments sound better as part of a mix than as part of a minimalistic construct.
7 out of 10
Glass
I think every line in this song is repeated at least three times (“Look through the window and what do you see” x 3) and it gets boring here as well. I mean, if these lyrics were a bit more profound I’d dig it but it’s not that interesting. The sound is the same as elsewhere on this album.
6 out of 10
Contract
The drums are the best part of this song and the best part of the album so far. Again, we see the same theme: an interesting and melodic intro that devolves into guitar-centric cacophony. Perhaps I just don’t *get* punk.
6 out of 10
At Home He’s A Tourist
This is the first time a guitar effect has shown up; ‘Gang of Four’ uses a delay pedal which helps fill out more of the soundstage and gives the intro a bit more of a psychedelic feel (think ‘Run Like Hell’ by Pink Floyd.) More anti-establishment lyrics here; I’m sure for the time this was cutting-edge and provocative but yikes, it’s 2020; this hasn’t aged that well.
6 out of 10
5.45
Oh no, what is that?? A weird synth, organ, kind of sound provides the melody in this one. Thankfully, it gets mixed down in favor of the bass and the drum but what were ‘Gang of Four’ thinking? We go back to a more traditional melodic structure but this is definitely too avant-garde for my tastes.
6 out of 10
Love Like Anthrax
This is the most unique song on the album. We start out here with a minute and a half of artistically crafted guitar feedback that even Hendrix would be impressed by. Bass and drum are in tight lockstep throughout. This song uses the same layered vocal concept of the opener, ‘Ether’, to great effect. Definitely a stronger note to end on!
7 out of 10
Summary
Honestly, after this is all said and done, I think it’s clear that this is not one of my favorite albums. I appreciate the provenance from which this song and the genre emerged but like most 90’s sitcoms, I don’t think this aged too well. I will be sure to listen to more punk albums although most of my historic punk listening has been the behemoths in the space (e.g. Ramones, Clash, Sex Pistols, etc.) to understand whether this is limited to ‘Gang of Four’ or the whole genre.