GI

Not much to say about this album other than it’s a succinct hardcore punk album that’s solid but doesn’t really stand out. Pretty cool that it was produced by Joan Jett though.

I really enjoyed this. A fast and loud.

I don’t know it’s angry and fine punk

This album sounds like what you would expect from a stereotype of punk. Like if someone was making a movie and one scene needed some late 70s punk music for some kind of montage but the production didn't have money to buy rights to anything commercially released so they just decided to find someone on the crew to 'record something that sounds like punk music'. This album would be that recording. It's great if you like it. But I guess that can be said about anything. 2.5/5 rounding up to 3 because I had no idea that Pat Smear was in this band or even old enough to be in this band.

Punk vocalists don’t need to be good singers, but I prefer when they don’t go out of their way to sound as repulsive as possible. It brings down what is otherwise good rockin’ stuff. The last track was the one that sounded different and interesting but why did it need to be 10 minutes long?

I only rated this because the site made me, otherwise I won't conform to your authority. 2.6775437 / 5

At least it’s proper punk - 3/5 for authenticity, including a bonus point for having a song with my kids name in it.

high school classic

A rough album, but can definitely see why it’s on the list. Can’t see myself listening again but not bad, and I really liked the last song.

Loud and grating but also pretty fun. Great example of what punk was meant to be.

Late 70s grime punk

Ok za to vrime

Blistering energy from beginning to end. I should have been destroying stuff. Was like the vocalist was running to catch up with his band. The final song was a little too long. Favorite songs were Richie Dagger’s Crime, Lexicon Devil, We Must Bleed, Media Blitz, and The Other Newest One.

solid, should probably like this more than I do. leans a little more toward hard rock/heavy metal songwriting than I enjoy in hardcore punk. there's moments where it sounds like the Minutemen, moments where it sounds like the Stooges, doesn't seem to have whatever vital quality makes those others great. music: acknowledged. (⌐☣_☣)

Highlights: What We Do Is Secret, Lexicon Devil. In a nutshell: *this* is hardcore. Punk is reliable. High energy. Solid rhythm. Many songs are under 3 minutes. Thrashy. Depending on the artist, these elements are overused. The music becomes predictable and boring. Germs *just* manages to avoid this. It’s good, but not perfect. Overall: 6/10

I liked this more than I expected to. I can’t see myself returning to this album but had I been a teenager when this was popular, I bet I would have been really into it. Felt a little like Blink 182 to me. 2.5 rounding up to 3.

It must have been very exciting to be there. I know Flea says one of the major influences on him musically was seeing The Germs. Also, I had no idea Pat Smear was in the Germs before Nirvana or the Foo Fighters! I feel I understand his presence in that scene a bit better now. Anyway, I'm not sure it makes much of a listening experience all these years later. It's okay but the punkishness is very samey and it just makes the album sound like a bit of a mush, I feel like there are other punk bands with more melody / riffs / tunes. Though I don't think these are the worst I've ever heard. I dunno. I could maybe pick out some songs with interesting bits that I might like if I gave it repeated listening. By the end of the long guitar strangling song at the end of the album I feel like I sort of liked it!

I love punk and can appreciate this as real punk, but every song is the same. I’d go with Bad Brains over Germs every time.

Better than I expected

Not feeling this one, instrumentals are good for the most part but the vocals are annoying and repetitive as f***...

Right up my alley! Good stuff. New to me, but i like it. 3.5

3.7 pleasant suprise. Punk

This was very similar to yesterday’s, which I did not like. However, for some reason I liked this one a bit more. 5.5/10

Yes listenable classic punk. Not a lot else to say, didn't outstay its welcome but not one I'm likely to revisit.

I'm pretty torn, really. Absolutely influential, but this seems to be a case of the history being more memorable than the music itself.

3 stars.

Fine but did not really grab me. Not fun to listen to as album when everything sounds the same. Sorry. well

I’m sure this is a revolutionary album for punk. It’s definitely a firecracker of an album. But it got old for me fast, especially the lead vocalist. Not bad though

Typical punk album.

When a movie wants to play generic punk music, this is what it sounds like.

Fast and furious

Fast and frantic punk, with song lengths in the 1-2 minute range except for the closer. Strange Notes has a great bassline, and it's prominent in the mix. Lexicon Devil has the same driving bass. The last track is nearly 10 minutes of mid-paced groove with dissonant, distorted guitars. This really isn't my thing, but I'm glad it exists.

When I first started listening I thought it was fairly straightforward hardcore punk, decent enough but didn't really grab me. After reading the wiki blurb it's the first hardcore punk album which is pretty impressive, it's very typical of the genre even today. To still sound pretty relevant after 45 years is a good sign. The album does fall into the 'influential but not necessarily the best' category, there's better punk out there, but still a worthy inclusion on the list.

Well, this is certainly punk. Ahead of its time.

I like punk, but this got pretty weak towards the end. Maybe I Just wasn't in the mood. Still pretty good though.

Not a huge fan of short songs, which most of these are, but I could see a lot of these songs growing on me with repeat listens.

Don't really love punk.

I know this is a very important punk album, but I feel there are plenty more that are way better than this. Still a big what could have been for this band. Lexicon Devil and some other songs on here are amazing. Some songs I don't really care for though

A decent hardcore punk album. Hard to get on with parts of it but overall it's a decent racket. Special mention has to go to the incredible album cover, that's beautiful.

Absolute shit. I liked it.

This is really not my style but I listened to the whole thing and didn't hate it. I actually enjoyed parts of it

Media blitz and minimal stood out for me, good classic punk sound

Meh, I like the energy and verocity and all. But it gets repetitive and old quickly, even with a shorter run time for an album. Neat lyricism here and there, but it doesn’t carry the album on its shoulders. This one was ok.

L'impression de me faire cracher a la gueule par un punk à chien à la sortie du prisunic. Pour un album de 1979, ça sonne moderne. Je vois la rage, l'énergie, le nihilisme… Il faut avouer qu'il se passe quelque chose. Mais j'espère ne jamais me retrouver dans un état d'esprit où j'apprécierai d'écouter ça. Et tout semble plus harmonieux une fois qu'on s'est tapé les 9 minutes de Shut down (annihilation man)”. Donc trois pour l'effort et encourager la jeunesse. Mais laissez moi tranquille.

this is one of those albums that seems like it would be revolutionary for the time but time hasn't been too kind to it. I think looking at the date of release and knowing that this was at the forefront of this type of punk elevates it, but probably not something i would return to.

Alright, so if I had sat down and listened to this album a few years ago, it would have been an instant one star. However, over the past year or so, I've come to appreciate genuine punk rock more. While it definitely isn't my favorite genre of music, I can see why people enjoy it and I indulge in the headbanging myself from time to time. I think as a punk rock album, GI checks all the boxes to be really good. Would I add it to my regular listening rotation though? Probably not.

I get the importance of this album, sounds way ahead of its time but don't like it all that much! reminds of me of a band I used to like called Mihai Edrisch, who I like more :)

Adequate punk album, I'm not too fond of the vocals.

Much punk

3,5. hrátt og á köflum einhæft. þó eru sprettir þar sem ryttmi og melódía ná að mætast. prófa aftur.

Full of punky spirit but ultimately a bit drab

Un excelente album de hardcore punk. La influencia que tuvo en el sonido estadounidense es evidente, y un gran registro histórico de los inicios de Pat Smith.

I appreciated the tracks that felt more proto-hardcore and was more indifferent towards the rest. Music that was once groundbreaking but no longer feels so is always hard to rate. Hmm. 2.5 rounded up to 3?

I wish I could understand a single lyric that was said at any point in any song, but yeah otherwise I liked it. The guitar and bass had some good stuff goin on.

this was alright. not so much my cup of tea, but not unlistenable either. you can definitely hear the influence of this album on many punk/hardcore artists that would follow it.

Only a few songs on Spotify

Well, c'est du punk et ça fait pas semblant de pas l'être.

Not sure that as a very early example of the hardcore punk genre, *G.I* exactly has the sheer power that recordings by Minor Threat, Bad Brains, Black Flag or Dead Kennedys had. Then again, Germ's only LP can still boast of few tracks that are mean, snarling, iconic and musically worthwhile--tracks such as "Land Of Treason", "Lexicon Devil", "We Must Bleed", "Media Blitz", "Dragon Lady", " The Slave" or "The Other Newest One"... Yet I'm afraid there's nothing in this album that has the level of *Out Of Step*, *Banned In D.C.*, *Damaged* or *Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables*. Performance-wise, I guess the weak spot is the basslines, often out of pace. And production-wise, the sound of the record is pretty "thin", as other listeners have noted before--not that those "technical' flaws are so important in punk albums anyway... More importantly, you can sense the phenomenal, dangerous, formidable presence Darby Crash had onstage throughout the album--a feat which is not so easy to pull off in a studio recording. That's where *G.I.* hits the mark for many fans of the genre, I guess. Wish I could have attended a gig by this act, probably the chaotic experience of a lifetime. Alas, I was only 2-years old in 1979, and living one ocean away. All I can do now is to put this "historical" recording of the punk genre in my waiting list and see if it grows on me... 3/5 for the purposes of this list of "essential album". Which translates to a 8/10 grade for more general purposes (5+3). Number of albums left to review: 363 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 287 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 152 (including this one) Albums from the list I won't include in mine (many others are more essential to me): 205

Angry

Punk baby! This is true punk to me, no distortion just manic guitar playing and snarled vocals about how society sucks.

Couldn’t find the album on Apple Music. Giving it 3/5 based I listening to some live stuff.

Thoughts before listening: I know the Germs but have never listened to them. They are always listed as an early LA punk band with huge influence on the scene as well as Pat Smear's first band before Nirvana and the Foo Fighters which means they should be right up my alley. However, I had always read that they were super sloppy, especially Darby Crash, and for whatever reason I just never sought it out. Seems like one of those albums that makes the 1,001 list for its historical significance more than its quality. Review: The music on this recording is a lot less sloppy than I had assumed...from a little research it seems this is thanks to production by Joan Jett. I am especially liking the bass in these songs and there are some great punk rock guitar riffs as well. It is very easy to hear their influence on the 80s punk bands that I love like Bad Religion and especially the Descendents. Only problem for me is that I don't love Darby Crash's vocals. Its too growled and slurring....even more so than the bands that came soon after them. Lexicon Devil is the one song I recognize on this album and its really good. Definitely has a similar vibe to the Ramones, especially with the gimme gimme lines, that I feel a lot of the LA bands avoided. I also really like the bass in Richie Dagger's Crime and Strange Notes. Overall this is a nice early snapshot of the LA punk scene that would have a huge influence on much of the music I listened to in high school. Unfortunately this album isn't on Spotify, and the songs that do exist are all from live recordings that are virtually unlistenable and show the side of Darby Crash I had always avoided.

3.5/5. Nothing special but the lead guitarist would go on to become the guitarist for Nirvana and Foo Fighters.

It's loud. Much what you'd expect from a punk rock album. Extra credit for the Germs being one of the first punk rock bands.

Not available on Apple Music

A good example of a genre, and a pioneering album that is important in the development of that genre. Didn’t really do much for me beyond that.

I appreciate that this punk album is not available on iTunes, and I have to listen to it as one big track on YouTube. I can't imagine just sitting down and listening to this on its own. I'd be happy to listen to it as background music at a dive bar or maybe lift weights to it. An above-average punk album.

My first time listening to the full album. As with most hardcore music, it's the spirit that counts for me. This album made me want to drink beer, sweat profusely, and get shoved around a bit. 2.75

Cool

Not on Spotify

fast paced and unable to understand the lyrics. love it. feel like 2 stars is too low and 3 is slightly too high. im gonna go with 3 because of the 20 albums ive reviewed so far this one is more memorable.

I don't think the rating system is going to capture my feelings with this album at all. It's probably the best hardcore punk album we've had on the list, and I actually thought the sound was awesome. It's got this dry, flat, really cool sound to it. Like you're in a dead basement and getting your ears assaulted. Still, my YouTube rip of this album had about 30 seconds of silence in the middle, between side A and side B. And I welcomed that silence. A few of the snippets of lyrics I heard sounded asinine, and some of the leads are so raw it'd be hilarious to get a solo'd version of them. But that's what you get! It definitely awakened a need to seek out some of this stuff more. I will probably never listen to this again, but it did its job. 3/5

A surprisingly lengthy early punk effort, had one of these tracks on rotation in undergrad but hadn’t revisited the whole album in a while. Not every track hits a good melodic groove, but that’s the great thing about punk - just wait a minute or two and you’re off to the races on another track.

rocks

Vigtig™ plade uden tvivl, lyder lidt lidt imellem 70er pångk og 80er hardcore, jeg tror jeg foretrækker de plader der lyder mere som det ene eller det andet. FEDT move at lukke på et 10 minutters nummer!

Decent punk rock music. Nothing special

Good old fashion punk

3/5. Weird that this isn’t on Apple Music. I figured this was some sort of straight edge thing to stick it to the man. I actually ended up enjoying the album after I found it on YouTube. Quick, fast, fun.

Man, come on, what is the deal with all these albums that aren't available on Apple Music? I found a playlist someone made cobbling together most of the tracks, including live cuts, so I listened to that instead. Very DIY, proto-punk stuff, no surprise there considering its 1979. Wikipedia says this is considered one of the first full-length hardcore punk albums, that's really cool. Realized that I know the song "Lexicon Devil" from both a Tony Hawk game and GTAV. Decent album, wish I were able to listen to the real thing. Favorite tracks: Lexicon Devil, Richie Dagger's Crime. Album art: Black with a blue circle? Very nice. I feel like that sounds sarcastic, but I do really like this one, it's simple, striking, and memorable. 3/5

It is hard to believe something like this was released back in 1979. I know these is so much great punk in the 70's but this hits harder than some of the others. Granted this was a little messy but then again, that is what you expect in punk. The music is great, I'm not a big fan of the vocals Standouts: Communist Eyes, Land of Treason, Lexicon Devil

This was ok. I’m not much for noise punk

Bass is great on the album. Songs aren't particularly memorable, but overall I enjoyed the energy. 3/5 Might listen again

Another one of those albums where it would have been a different story had I been an angsty teenager upon its release. It’s mastered all for the noise level, and the thrash can be fun at times. Every so often it clicks and gets the head bangin, but mostly it’s just noisy. I would have to dissect this one further to grasp its impact to the scene.

Hardcore is just a little too much for me most of the time, and this was no exception - although I am impressed at the inclusion of a 9+ minute track on a 16 track album with a running time of less than 40 minutes. This was OK. I guess it was interesting enough to listen to. For a bit.

Hardcore punk is one of those weird genres that I don't particularly enjoy, but can still appreciate because it seems to have spawned so many great artists. This is an early hardcore album, which hasn't yet reached the fever pitch that most hardcore albums live in, and I appreciate that fact. This album has an important legacy, but it's also hard to give it a super high rating, since I don't really enjoy listening to it very much 3/5

It was loud. It was crazy. It was angry. I can see how this could be influential at the time and how many were inspired by it. I just wasn't one of them. But, I do respect the work.

This was surprisingly well produced for a hard punk album. Not my usual cup but I don't mind some bitterness in my tea from time to time.

Decent. Good energy. Darby Crash's voice is a bit annoying. I also prefer Dead Kennedys and Husker Du to this. Did not know Pat Smear played guitar on this until now. Interesting.

The kind of punk I like, what I think of as "real" punk because of how my teenage years progressed. Love the the historical nature of it. Don't *quite* love the album but it's enjoyable enough with some real high points like Lexicon Devil. Extra star for helping the whole thing happen.

I am not a lover of punk music…weknowdis…so I was not at all hopeful and kinda grumpy to see this album pop up. Surprisingly, I didn’t hate it. I came away from my first listen thankful for short punk songs and somewhat entertained. I was afraid to give it a second listen thinking it would then sour, but it didn’t. It must be some good punk music.

I was digging this paradigm of punk at first and do appreciate its place in the popular music canon but I was so ready for it to end and I don't ever need to hear it again.

I can appreciate this from a historical point of view, although I had to listen on YouTube to hear the original album and didn’t catch a lot of the lyrical content. I also checked out some the songs I could find on Apple Music, but much of that was live and even harder to follow. A lot of the playing was quite impressive! I do appreciate having been exposed to Germs’ music even though I can’t say I’m a fan.

3.75

Pretty great

Ok

we've had too much of this generic punk this week so i'm a bit numb to it. this is probably better than the others but my critique is the guitar is pretty much redundant as its shitty high gain tone masks any change of chord making it an indecipherable blaring hiss at the top end. i know its punk but a bit of nuance wouldn't go amiss.

A still born baby of a record. Never really gets going in a way that I'd like, but I am partial to a good dead baby anyway, as something to gnaw on. As long as you're not putting paprika on their head, they taste delicious.

Germs

Noteworthy that a band's only album could become so influential and legendary - though, for what it's worth I've never heard of it. Certainly has a good punk sound to it, and is consistently good all the way through.

Loud and fast and borderline grating -- yep, this is unmistakenly punk music! Surprised by how clean the guitar production is, though the music still maintains an overall grim feel. Totally forgot this was the band Pat Smear was in before Nirvana and Foos.

I do not have the ear or experience to tell good punk from bad. This seems fine.

Zeker een album met historische waarde. Maar echt supergoed is het nu ook weer niet

2.5 stars. Rowdy fast-paced early punk with a lot of repetitive choruses. Shorter tracks save for the long outro. Not my cup of tea but I can appreciate it for being one of the earliest punk albums.

6/10

not horrible but not amazing

Helt bra energi men idk de tala int ti mig. Fattar vaffö de e med thou..

This is hardcore? okay. This is a punk album much like other punk albums on the list. This album gets dull in the back half.

2-3. (Bach Black Flag kommt halt lange nix)

Very solid punk rock album. Not all songs are great but enjoyable. 3.5

Full of energy and short enough to not get tiresome

Eh

Pretty rad that this came out in the 70s, it’s so different to Sex Pistols/Clash/Ramones and all the other punk from that era, and a real gateway into the hardcore of Black Flag and so on. That being said, I didn’t love it

This singer has a hell of a lot of charisma. I hate screaming vocals but this is just short of that and I liked it despite my prejudices. The guitarist is hella good and the bass/drums are incredibly tight. If not for them I think the music would be a hot mess. (Prior listen)

This comes off as one 38 minute song, but I'm hoping that it's just the implementation within youtube music. Otherwise, it might be difficult to pull off live. As far as it goes, it's a pretty good punk record.

I think if i was of this scene, this is music i would better identify with and embrace. Spending a little time with the lyrics as well certainly shows a deeper than average punk content, but man is Darby incomprehensible. Without lyrics, I'd have no idea what he is saying. I don't think there is an album that better conveys the sneer & attitude (i think it even steps it up one from the Sex Pistols... though their album is much more melodic and approachable). A very interesting ride.

The birth of hardcore. Not my favorite, but important.

Proof that groundbreaking doesn't always mean best in the genre. Sure, it's the first full length hardcore punk release, but otherwise I just don't find it too remarkable compared to others like Black Flag and Dead Kennedys

Not a ton super interesting here, although I think overall as a record it was perfectly acceptable

I kinda like their stuff but only a couple songs were available on Spotify so I listened to some other.

survived this nonsence

Groundbreaking punk.

This reminds me of all the songs that Jay and Silent Bob dance to outside the Qwik Stop. I never got much into this scene, but wikipedia says the Germs basically invented hard core punk - so I’ll give them that. Pat Smears is cool.

Hellofa Punk album. With heavy hitters like Pat Smear and Joan Jett involved in this album, it makes me wonder what we could have had if Darby Crash lived longer. 3.5 / 5.

Pretty grating but not entirely bad. 5/10

I've heard the first handful of songs before, but never the whole album. I expected chaotic noise and while I got that, I got a lot more musicality than I remember. There is a good foundational structure under the under the unbridled energy. Darby Crash's vocals are a tough adjustment at first, but tried to listen to the music apart from the vocals and see what was there. I helped to do that and the music is really pretty great. And listening again to both the music and vocals together, honestly they mesh pretty well. I can’t decide on an overall rating here and have to move on. If I had more time, I wonder if I’d get used to the rawness and it would grow on me. Could see it go either way!

Enjoyed the energy of this, a lot. Nearly a 4*

I enjoyed this at the open, but it ended up mostly merging from track to track, which isn't good when it's only half an hour long. I think I'll take a few tracks from this, but I'm not sure I'll ever bump the album again.

great if you like punk

Punk

Not bad. Hadn't heard of them before, but they have a crazy history, and of course an early Pat Smear band which is nuts.

6/10

first listen like the energy, but it's all the same

Okay, some pretty big thoughts here. I want to like this more than I do. I recognize the value of this sound of Punk, and the instrumentation side I absolutely vibe with, and occasionally when I forget the lyrics are actually words and think of them as instruments i can groove to it, but I know I'd enjoy the songs better, and connect with the message more, if it was like 20% more understandable to me. And I listen to a lot of music people tell me they can't understand, amd a lot of foreign music in languages I'm not perfectly fluent in, so i know it isn't REQUIRED that lyrics be easy to grasp... but something about this style o punk v9cal just doesn't land the way i wish it did for me.

Surprisingly liked this one, despite it being an absolute chaotic mess. I can imagine an audience going absolutely mental to this and that’s something I tend to look for in music. Loud and messy but a lot of fun, I do love a bit of punk rock every now and then

This is what people think of when they think of Punk. It has the attitude people expect and want from it.

This was a bracing dose of punky goodness, but I don't really get why it's important.

This is actually quite good, as far as these "hardcore punk" albums go. I like the riffs and the angsty energy delivered in the vocals. But there is a reason their peers didn't go beyond 16 minutes, with individual tracks seldom reaching 3 minutes. Hardcore punk songs are basically straightforward bursts of energy. make it a little too long and it turns into noise. PS. That's a pretty odd cover. I though it was an ambient-electronica album at first. I like it, it's not corny or pretentious like other punk album covers.

ничего в этом не понимаю

Good punk album, but not iconic

This rocked

No gimmicks, no games, just straight hard core banging. In the middle of budgeting time at work and somehow this relieved some frustrations. Also kept my co-workers out of my office while it was being played, so I listened like 3 times straight. Haha. Definitely a different punk sound from Sex Pistols or Ramones. Straight in your face. I liked it and felt like kicking my bosses ass after I listened. +1 for Pat Smear I'll give a 3

Flui bem o hardcore com jeito de clássico.

(3.4) I feel like I’m back playing Tony Hawk Pro Skater. Really like the sound. I bet Ben hates this.

The phrase 'American Hardcore Punk' often makes me wince. But this is potentially where it all started and its actually enjoyably raw and innocent.

Basic punk

Pretty good stuff. Can really hear the Bad Brains influence.

hardcore parkour

Wow, I really enjoyed that. Wasn't sure at the start, but the short punchy songs really got me going. All topped off with a cruisy come down at the end.

Old school punk isn't really my thing so this largely left me cold. I did start to warm up to it towards the end, I guess. Fave track - "Lexicon Devil", maybe? I quite liked the proggy drawn out "Shut Down" too....

I don't like punk rock but this wasn't too bad. I was able to finish it.

I need to come back to this

I'd not heard of this band nor heard any of their work. The sound is quite a nice representation of the late 70s punk style but with more clarity, which I like. Even back then, I found a lot of studio-recorded punk music to overdo the distortion to the point at which a lot of the music was just too muddy for me. I read the Wikipedia article and it's cool that the album was produced by Joan Jett and that Pat Smear is the guitarist here. I have always appreciated punk and similar styles as a cultural phenomenon even though for the most part punk, thrash, speed metal, and so on, are usually a little too harsh and grating for my own personal auditory aesthetic. I'd attribute it to my being middle-aged, but it applied in my teen years and beyond, although back then my interest in hard-driving loud music was definitely keener than it is now. Back to this album: I like it. More rhythmically tight and musically skilled than I would expect from a punk album. I read some of the lyrics, too, as I listened, and they are often intelligent and witty. Good stuff here.

Better than I thought it'd be (after only seeing Germs on Decline of Western Civilization )

Never listened to Germs and only one song on Spotify due to licensing. Found some more on YouTube and the rest of the album was fine. Reminded me of the NYC Hardcore compilations of the late 80s. Was surprised that Pat Smear was part of this band and also Belinda Carlisle.

Older punk rock but without quite the same pizazz that makes me love The Ramones and similar

An interesting punk artifact - it straddles the line where punk begins to lose me at hardcore - but this album has some wonderfully interesting riffs hidden away and it’s nice and snotty at the right amount. Love the Joan Jett and Al Pacino connection as well - had no clue

Music like this always makes me smile. Cool to know they were among the first hardcore bands out there. Lead singer Darby Crash sounds truly insane. Highlights: “Land of Treason,” “Richie Dagger’s Crime,” “Manimal," "Shut Down (Annihilation Man)"

Pretty good punk. Punk isn't always my thing, but these guys fit the bill pretty well.

Great for the time it was released, but like many albums of its ilk, it doesn't travel well. Still good, but longer than it needs to be.

I am very in the dark about this one so it will be very interesting… What we do in secret definitely gives an impression of how the album’s will be. If I couldn’t understand the lyrics in communist eyes it might be better but other than the rampaging guitars I don’t think it’s great. When land of treason came on I decided to look at all of the lyrics which are good punk lyrics it’s too hard to know. The vocals get a bit clearer in Richie daggers crime and the song has great guitar parts so well done! Strange notes is also quite entertaining I love the instrumental bits and it ends nicely. American leather is another step down in quality but it’s really short so it’s not a big deal. While having the nonsense singing lexicon devil is a good one. Manimals probably my favourite so far good lyrics the vocals are more understandable and great guitar work especially at the start. I think its the ( lack of) production but our way is so poor quality sounding, but there’s been worse. I love the intro to we must bleed and for the most part it doesn’t disappoint ( weird saying it’s the end of side one at song ten though). Media blitz is alright I like the sample work and I sorta noticed the lyrics so that was good. The other newest one starts with a great slow intro and after that it is a bit of a let down, but at least this song shows that the band can do songs in a slightly lower tempo and the chorus is good but I probably would’ve named it another day another catch. Lets pretend is a very, very typical punk song in my ears there’s better but there’s worse. I like the drumming at the start of dragon lady but after that it becomes just another alright bunk song, I also wish he screamed in the chorus. The slave is so short I don’t hate it but there’s better. Shut down ( annihilation man) has a great intro and by some reading it was apparently recorded live which works un favour for this epic beast of a track but it does drag after the first 3 mins. It reminds me of a b grade sex pistols, not that I hate the album but I’ve herd quite a few better punk albums and quite a few better albums that aren’t even in the book so they can’t be in the generator.

Good.

Another fast and straight to the point record, I like those

this is a punk album

Ciekawie mi się słuchało po metalice. Bardzo czuć punk w krzykach wokalisty i agresywnej muzyce. Ogólnie słuchało mi się całkiem ok, w momencie kiedy album się skończył to nie zdążyłem się nim jeszcze znudzić, aczkolwiek nic konkretnego mi specjalnie nie zapadło w pamięć.

Bom punk.

Good punk

Interesting to see this listed as the first hardcore punk album ever! Glad to have listened. In terms of actual music, it felt slightly better than most early punk albums. I'd say a 3.5 at the beginning...shrinking to a 3 with some of the later tracks, but back to a strong 3.5 when considering the influence and what hardcore grew into!

Listened to about 5 mins of this. I get it. I don’t think I really care for early ass punk music…

Standard Punk. The album they referenced was not fully available on spotify so I could not listen to the whole thing.

Unusually enjoyable

Rating: 6/10 Best songs: The gash

Punk rock! And the best kind, short and quick. I could imagine that this album possibly influenced many an underground punk band afterwards.

This singer has a hell of a lot of charisma. I hate screaming vocals but this is just short of that and I liked it despite my prejudices. The guitarist is hella good and the bass/drums are incredibly tight. If not for them I think the music would be a hot mess.

Punk en estado puro. Un tanto ruidoso y prácticamente todas parecidas. Me gusta el punk, pero más melódico. En ocasiones, demasiado estridente

Well this was hardcore punk wasn't it! Some of it I enjoyed more than others, but on the whole have to say was ready for it to be over. Listened twice as well as I wanted to give it my attention

Punk can't hold a candle to the hard rock and prog rock that came before it, but I found this album alright. Drums were very tight and technical, engaging to listen to. Good bass guitar. There were a lot of interesting chord progressions i enjoyed, but the guitar is mostly power chords the whole time, so not all that impressive to me. I appreciate the anger and vitriol, though I never knew what the singer was saying the entire time. I def prefer thrash metal over punk when it comes to "angry" music. Favorite song was Manimal, probably.

3/5

3.4 - I suppose one of the purposes of this listening exercise is to expand my musical horizons. In this case, here's an album I would never think to pick up on my own. I've listened to hardcore punk only in dribs and drabs, mostly struggling to find meaning through the droning guitars and indecipherable growls. I'm left more or less in the same place with Germs but I did find myself attracted by the nihilistic disgust that's grunting and spewing from Darby Crash over some jagged and screechy guitars. It's not music that I connect with personally but I can understand how an angry kid might find solace here. As a side note, it blows my mind that Pat Smear has managed to consistently play in highly influential bands.

Darby Crash is one of the most influential punk artists of all time, essentially popularizing the hardcore subgenre alongside Black Flag, which began the most popular form of punk out there. Whenever you hear someone's into punk, it's usually a hardcore variety that shaped much of pop punk, which started with this young man. It's raw and carries the spirit of punk more than any other album on this list. This is a proper successor to the nastiness of The Sex Pistols. Tracks are short, minimalistic and chaotic, with incomprehensible vocals. But there's something strange going on here. Follow along to the lyrics, and you'll find them to be a poetic reflection of Darby's psyche and the punk attitude. They're honestly the highlight of this album for me. Production is great, done by Joan Jett. I don't think the intro track was a good choice. They intentionally picked the most abrasive and off-putting with probably the least interesting lyrics, but then again it's like a message telling people this album will be a handful. I like the solos that almost feel rock n roll-like. I'm a sucker for the abrupt stops. Number one issue is the repetitive sound, which makes the whole experience unbearable if not for knowing the chorus and lyrics. The instruments often don't feel like they're working together, but sometimes they do, so maybe they could get everyone to sound better together...? It's hard to criticize what exactly they're going for. The best I can do is look at the tracks I like, and what's lacking in the tracks that feel lackluster. The last extended track "Shut Down" was a good addition. A problem people have with albums like Pink Flag is that there are just too many tracks to digest, so you lose focus in the last third or so. But here, it's replaced by a long mild but still haunting track that showcases their inexperienced band members well. I'd listen to this album again, as soon as it's on Spotify of course. Favorite tracks: Land of Treason, Richie Dagger's Crime, Lexicon Devil, Lexicon Devil, We Must Bleed, The Other Newest One, Shut Down

High energy (hardcore?) punk album. I enjoyed listening to it, but I'm not sure that it should be on this list. Quick wikisearch says arguably the first hardcore punk album.

Spotify did not have the full album, only some mixed records. Not bad, but really tough to tell from very rough live songs.

Crusty early punk with surprisingly tight musicianship and solid drumming. Spotify only had 4 tracks available, would love to hear more.

I'm not a fan of west coast but damn I liked this album. It's loud and abrasive and offensive at times but the band has a kick ass rhythm section and there are enough tempo changes and possibly even some melodies to keep me interested. Though lacking in Wire's ear for hooks and pop song melodies, GI has enough surprising turns to make me think this is the Punk Flag of west coast hardcore. I'm tempted to give it 4 stars, but 3.5 🌟 is where it belongs

I liked this more than I expected. I like punk but have never been a fan of the hardcore sub-genre. This was a little more interesting than other hardcore punk I've heard. Shame about the heroin and the premature demise of Darby Crash. 3 stars.

Good punk sound with unintelligible lyrics.

Never heard of this band or any of the songs. I'm enjoying some of this old punk.

Most of this album is pretty bad, but I did enjoy Lexicon Devil and "shut down." 5/10 album.

Good but higher energy than my background work music

Bah, it's kind of a fun story, but not particularly excited about this album

can't play a lot on Spotify or YouTube; trying someone's YouTube bootleg.... can't understand the words of what it can play this is PUUUUNK city has that thing where the singer goes too fast for the drums/base or vice versa not that tight, musically speaking; hard to understand; what I can hear on Spotify has better sound quality than the bootleg; this might grow on me, b/c the simple chords are a little catchy. 3/5.

Yes punk!

It was a fairly straight forward punk album. Not the worst but not the best by far. Probably would be 2 stars if I wasn't biased.

Band is good. Guys voice doesn't do it for me.

good germs!

Actually not that bad, even though a bit raw for me

Bra ös

Nice discovery more pop than I would have expected

Hardcore punk rock is a lot to take. But it gets the job done!

Who says you have to know how to play an instrument to make good music?

Germs are cool

Very raw fun punk album, something to be in the mood for but very interesting

Breve, efusivo, rompedor, agresivo y cortante. Nunca había escuchado un álbum del género punk, menos algo un poco más hardcore, me sorprendió la energía de la banda fuera de lo típico que escuchaba. Alguna que otra joya, nada que destacar personalmente.

I could not finish this.

Don’t care for classic punk that much sorry. At least the ramones had enjoyable catchy hits, this doesnt to me. Its fine, i just don’t care for it so i won’t be too harsh on it. No standouts.

it’s fine. lyrics are imperceptible to me

Man, I dunno, I know they're important but I've never enjoyed this record, and Darby is just a sad junkie and not a brilliant nihilistic lyricist. Somebody get me a beee-ahr.

The guy who compiled this list really liked (post) punk bands and it gets boring after a bit. Reading up on this band was more interesting than listening to this album. No doubt they were great live, but punk on an album rarely catches the energy from the stage. Being in a band with Pat Smear is a more dangerous job than being a frontline soldier.

Це один із перших альбомів у жанрі гардкор панку. Звучить дуже вторинно. Просто вторинний, не надто цікавий альбом. Оцінка: висока 4/низька 5

The more punk I hear, the more I realize that I don't like it.

All tracks sound the same to me

Stooges era Iggy-like vicals. Sex Pistols on soeed as the back band. I should really like this but i dont. I dont hate it but throw a dart into a million hard core punk bands and you get the same. Maybe they were ahead of thier time but I’m hearing for the first time. Searching for a future and the world is their aim and they may well have gotten it if they survived beyond this one album and did something more i teresting than what i would have done with a couple if months playing behind me and a shitty attitude. Same same but same will throw up a few good songs every now and then but will mostly just sound the same.

2.5

Simple as this: punk has become my least favorite genre over the years. This album showed nothing to change that. (Note Dead Kennedys Forest Fire came on right after and loved that). This one though?Wholly forgettable. 2/5

Pretty ahead of their time as far as hardcore punk goes. Sometimes I "get it", but sometimes not so much. Cool though.

I would have been fine with dying before listening to this one.

4/10 - Tough one to rate. Seems to be highly influential in their genre and it’s a genre I like, but I don’t like this album. The lyrics are hard to understand and just kind of spat into the mix. Laid groundwork but not something I’m coming back to.

I’m not completely averse to hardcore but I at least want to hear some interesting melodies or clever lyrics - this had neither. Mumbled vocals and washed out fuzz didn’t lead to a great listening experience although each track rattled by at a pace.

To be honest not my cup of tea 2/5

It's so bad that it is almost good. The best part here are certainly the lyrics. Hate it/Love it..idk at this point

So much better punk music than this came out of America: Ramones, Dead Kennedys, Bad Religion, etc Only on the list because the singer died and the guitarist joined Nirvana

Pretty average and fairly polite 'punk' album, probably because of the vocals more than any other instrument. Pat Smear chord work out album way before the Foos. Not a must listen even for its time.

Nä det här var jag inte på humör för

I’m glad I’m going through the list. It’s opened my eyes to many new types of music, and crystallized my preferences in most cases. I have determined I like some famous punk songs but not the broad genre. This album is another one of these 'influential but not actually entertaining to listen to' ones. 2⭐️

I never would’ve considered myself a snob—especially when it comes to music—but one listener’s review of GI’s Germs album read: “The snobs who don’t get punk won’t like this, but this is terrific for those who do. It’s raw and hard-hitting.” So, apparently, I’m a snob. This album is definitely raw—like a skinned knee after a skateboarding accident—and it hits just as hard as the skateboard getting smashed across my face afterward. It’s completely unhinged, played at a breakneck speed, and sounds like the vocalist gargled razor blades before chasing them with bourbon right before stepping into the studio (which I assume qualifies as a normal Tuesday in punk rock). I found absolutely no joy in listening to this album, and at 38 minutes, it still somehow feels entirely too long for this kind of punk record. But to be fair, the chaos and instability are probably exactly what the band was aiming for. I can absolutely appreciate what punk rock meant for music and the doors it kicked open creatively, but appreciating its impact doesn’t automatically mean I have to enjoy listening to it.

It's definitely punk, I guess. Does being anti-establishment also mean being anti-good-sounding-music?

Very noisy. It's like a very raw The Sex Pistols. There was one song that was kind of interesting but the rest was just noise in my opinion.

That last song pushed this into unlikable territory for me.

eh

Pretty decent early punk album but maybe I just wasn't in the mood? It felt pretty samey even given the timing and genre.

not as good as Joni Mitchell’s Blue

I’m an old punk, and heard these guys a bunch in my ugly youth. Didn’t really like them then, and no use for them today. Just a handful of wasted boys banging on instruments and heroin. Somehow, it sold. No business here. Next.

I used to think I liked punk music. What this journey has taught me is that I like a certain type of punk - ala The Clash, Bad Religion, etc. There needs to be a certain musicality incorporated for me to like it. Just bashing away at the drums and guitars furiously doesn't really do it for me. So, it should come as no surprise that I find this record/band to be underwhelming. Not even sure why they are on the countdown, other than Pat Smear appeared to be rather influential on Nirvana and Curt Cobain specifically. But is that really enough? Not really. The lead singer here is pretty terrible and the band isn't much better. I didn't find it very funny that they had 15 songs which were 3 minutes or less, most of which were under 2 minutes, and then they close with an almost 10-minute track. I do wonder if they came up with this last and decided to throw it on for the hell of it, or if they came up with this first and then said "we've done enough, put anything else on the record." Regardless, the dichotomy is objectively hilarious. They get an extra star for this album structure, but nothing else than that. 2 stars.

short and early so not 1 star

eeeee ok...

Don't normally write reviews. But the singer on this album sounds exactly like Tim Robinson in the I Think You Should Leave sketch where he's singing about skeletons. 2 stars because it made me giggle, but a pretty trash album otherwise.

Prototypisch und gut produziert. Trotzdem nervig lärmig.

This just isn't very good. 2 stars or D+.

I'm sure it was influential but sounds pretty average. Album cover looks pretty cool for 1979 though.

Listens: 3 Standout Tracks: I am not sure. We Must Bleed has an interesting intro. I think I want to like the Punk genre, but this album did not do it any favors. The music and instrumentation, pretty good actually. I don't really know how to articulate what I like about but the music, but I like it. The singing however was horrendous. Why does it sound like the singer is drunk on EVERY song. Slurring his words like it's going out of style. I kind of wish there was an instrumental version of the album. It would be really cool to hear it without the singing. The lyrics are also of dubious quality. Following along each song, I am not getting any real meaning from the songs. Are they literal? Metaphor? Is there a theme? Comprehending lyrics are generally not my strong suit. ...and I just finished reading the blurb about this being their only studio album for possibly many reasons including the lead singer committing suicide :( .

This really wasn't for me. Every song sounds the same and the vocals are... Unorthodox (read: bad)

I can absolutely recognise the importance of punk breaking through in 1976. Music at that time had polarised with hippy influenced concept albums at one extreme and sugary pop tunes at the other. Thank goodness for punk. But it was largely a British phenomenan and the US bands were less influential by and large. There are some exceptions (such as the Ramones) but Germs are not such a band. This sounds like generic punk, released at a time when it should have been ground breaking. Only some punk music endures and this album isn't worth listening to all these years on I'm afraid.

I like punk, but this project did very little for me. I thought the production left a lot to be desired, and while you could argue that it adds to the punk aesthetic, to me it just sounded muddy, unbalanced, and frankly amateurish. The songwriting and vocals were also not particularly engaging. Overall, it was a bit of a tedious listen.

Do I not “get” punk?! No, it’s the children who are wrong.

Sorry, but it says nothing to me, may because I’m Spanish and prefer Siniestro Total

No thank you

to what do I owe the pleasure?

Not for me. I had to pause the album a few times and put on YouTube videos of dreamy-sounding modulation and delay pedals for guitar.

La verdad empecé odiándolo, la primera canción me hizo sufrir al pensar que tenía por delante 40 minutos de este ruidero y estridencia. Después se puso un poco menos peor y no fue tan tortuoso como pensé, pero tampoco es un disco que haya disfrutado especialmente. Leo que es el primer disco que existió de hardcore punk y entiendo su relevancia. De eso a que disfrute escucharlo, hay mil galaxias de distancia. Fastidioso, demasiado grito.

19/04/2026 I'm all for carnage in my music, but this just didn't click for me. Spotify listeners: 186.3k

Listening session: april 15th, while going for a walk Listened to before: no Thoughts: After reading a bit about true album I understand that this is influential but I did not find it really enjoyable to listen to. I imagine that this is a genre that I could appreciate more when hearing/seeing it live Favourite tracks: Land Of Treason & Lexicon Devil

Sounds well ahead of its time. Lexicon Devil takes me back to the halcyon days of playing Tony Hawks

Whole album sounded very similar to me, and just not really to my musical taste.

Influential but not enjoyable. Just not for me, vocals are quite unpleasant.

Understand why some like it… not me. But the short song lengths are appealing.

you could argue this is a 3 on the basis of it being inoffensive but look man i gotta give out more 2s. being boring doesn't cut it, and this dudes voice is annoying to boot

2.0 - Weak

Ma che razza di album ci sono in questa lista?

Anything less than 100 seconds isn’t a song. It was ok, but there is just too much mediocre punk on this list and none of it stands out.

Meh

Lo logré. Finalmente lo terminé.

Some alright tracks here and there. But mostly felt like a mess.

A bit too much punk for one sitting

Aside from Shut Down, a bunch of mini tracks with pretty good drumming but that irritating punk vocal where he just groans into the mic

Even a quite solid drummer couldn't save this shit.

Not really my thing. Musically, I like it, vocally not so much.

Ready for a half an hour of eight notes and "nyah blah rah!" lyrics? This album requires the correct headspace before listening. Perhaps if mine had been different, my rating would have been higher.

i dont get the genre

Honestly probably SO fun live but man despite being an influential punk album, this just does not hold up. Old but mold. Can’t understand any of the lyrics, and that’s ok its thrashy and raw but it’s just hard to listen through, not entertaining.

Not for me, but kept me motivated through a morning at work.

no me gusta mucho el punk pero espero toda clase de recomendación de ese estilo, algo quizá, superador

Well, I dont like punk much but this wasn’t intolerable, some songs were sort of listenable and interesting

Influential or not this is pretty basic stuff

Seeing as this came out in ‘79, I’m assuming it’s here because it was influential. It’s not great though, like borderline hard to listen to.

Love the sound, I can't wait until these guys learn about keys.

Wow I wish I could understand what the lyrics were. The songs all blend together for me.

I normally would enjoy some rough punk but the recording on this is weird. The vocals are turned up but still incomorehensible. The best part are the instrumentals but as it went on, even those started to grate from sheer abrasiveness.

I love punk, but this is pretty fucking horrible.

This was a painful listen. I was counting down the minutes until this one was over. It's mainly due to the lead singer's voice sounding like someone was putting him through a meat grinder. But none of the songs stood out; there are no hooks, mediocre playing and production (from Joan Jett), and nothing original to say. Unlike the best punk, there are no anti-facist or anarchic sentiments, the singer just rails against himself. It's boring nihilism. I'm giving it a star for going against corporate rock bloat and for them having no interest in conforming to expectations of the time. But, holy crap, that voice....

Boring stuff. Songs blend together into a sludge of three chords max on out of tune guitars, terrible growling, and dull, meaningless lyrics. The best punk is political - to me at least, cutting lyrics justify and enhance the chaotic energy of the music. Or at the very least, a good punk band has a competent and entertaining frontman like Jello Biafra. A lot of this is just noise to me, not good punk

Not as abrasive as I thought it would be.

I prefer more melodic music. Good energy though.

Начало очень резкое, прям как с ноги влители. Че за бред? Они очень дерганые и все в разнобой, музыка одно, песня другое. Не люблю такое. Я не могу это слушать. Голоса нету, поют ужасно, музыка тоже так себе, нет никакого мотива, одинаковые аккорды, не понимаешь когда началась служебная песня. Ощущение будто какие то бомжы на улице кревляються. Фу. Ну, со временем уже получше стало, слушать возможно. Однако 2 из 5

Album 64 Top 3 "favorites" off the album: Richie Dagger's Crime, We Must Bleed, Manimal I don't mind unintelligible lyrics sometimes. I don't mind hardcore sometimes. I don't even mind them together. This is another album where it's the vocalist who gets on my nerves. I like what's going on as far as energy goes. I can hear where Green Day got their sound early on. This is exactly the kind of album I need to be listening to this morning. It's fast, it's loud, it's leaning heavy in the treble way. I liked the guitar solo at the beginning of Richie Dagger's Crime. Lexicon Devil reminded me of a sick cat I'm afraid. I thought the very abrupt endings were funny but also felt unfinished. It wasn't even a clean cutoff; it was like someone just stopped the recording and moved on to recording the next song. Overall, it's alright. It went on maybe 10 minutes too long. I just won't listen to it again.

It’s a forgettable punk album

No thank you.

Couldn’t get thru it

This was painful. I liked the music. Those vocals though…they were like vomit-screaming hopped up on speed. You couldn’t understand the lyrics, maybe thy were decent I have no idea. Plus they seemed almost out of sync with the music itself, like they were playing at 2 different speeds. It made for an extremely long 38 minutes. 2/5 because I did enjoy the music anyway.

Not for me

Instrumentals are decent. I can’t for the life of me understand what this guy is saying. If you’re gonna make angry music, you should probably let everyone know what you’re angry about.

I didn't enjoy this album that much, a lot of the songs sounded the same and it wasn't my style of music.

First song: actually pretty cool 5 songs in: getting a bit annoyed Another 5 songs: please be over

alright

Raw

Not for me

I hear it's influential, but I didn't really enjoy it.

Punk is punk, it speaks to one or not. If I think about album that are experienced during this project I use reasoning to give one start to irritating or bad records. Germs doesn't irritate me but in the same time it doesn't give much. Two for this.

Listens like generic pre-hardcore punk rock to me, doesn't do anything for me. Kind of in the Sex Pistols bucket of things, which has not been my favourite box of chocolates. Feels like it's less about the music and more about the performative end of things, type thing.

Shite

Germs? Noen mener at dette er det første hardcore punk-albumet som er gitt ut. Problemet mitt med (hardcore) punk, er at det oppleves som ensartet og repetitivt. Har ikke sjans til å skille de ulike låtene fra hverandre her. Jeg er en fan av punk-estetikken, men jeg foretrekker mindre voldsomme varianter av sjangeren. Top 3: Manimal, Lexicon Devil, Communist Eyes

i'm just bored