Violent Femmes

One of my favorites.

I know this whole album back to front, and although I haven't listened to it in years it's still so much fun.

Many great folk punk records but they're all indebted to the sexual angst and janky midwest cabin guitars of this record. The silver lining of centuries of oppressive puritanical Christianity is this awesome gross look into the human heart.

Bass went off, wildly standout. 5+

Good feeling Won’t you stay with me just a little longer? It always seems like you’re leaving When I need you here just a little longer Same, Gordon. Same. Violent Femmes are in my top 3 favorite bands of all time. I am unsure who the other two bands are, but The Femmes have it locked. They helped inform my taste in music. I was introduced to the Gordon Gano gang around 12-13. I didn’t know what new wave was, and it still feels weird thinking of VF as a new-wave band. To me, they were passionate and honest. I needed them and they were there, just like they are today. This album has a handful of my favorite songs (all-time). Kiss Off Add It Up Good Feeling 5 out of 5 stars on a bad day.

Wow! That was awesome! Guess I wasn't ready for them the first time I heard them back in HS, but that went right on my "to buy" list

I'd forgotton how much I loved this album. Its one of those that as your listening through you register you are way more familiar with it than you realised. The opening strains of Blister in the sun might just be some of the most fun moments in all of music and puts an instant smile on my face. The songwriting on display here is absolutely top notch and I adore the way the whole thing seems to barely hang together production wise. It's so chaotic and I get the impression that if any one small element of this was slightly diffrent it would bring the whole thing tumbling down. I'm also trying to rack my brains to think, was this the first album that we'd identify as 'Indie'. This was a decade before Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain came out and slightly off key ranted vocals and jangly plucky instrumentation became the norm. I think it was these guys, Dinosaur Jr and Pixies that really kicked off and set the template for alternative music for the next few decades. Thats a hell of a legacy.

Strong start; Grower; The bass lines! The horniness is as weird as it is irresistible.

An absolute gem. Acoustic punk for the win.

An absolute fire starter from front to back. Starting off with the bands most iconic song and ending with a “Good Feeling” you never want to end. I loved this record. Seek it out, enjoy it, love it!

Loved it

Knew the song Daddy gone but not heard this album before and I loved it

I consider Violent Femmes, this album in particular, to be in a genre of music I particularly enjoy called "they obviously want us to sing along". See also: They Might Be Giants and Journey.

I looked this album up - it's their debut (!) and came out in 1983 (!). This is way too good for a debut and way too ahead of its time for 1983. I'm too young to have firsthand knowledge of the reception this album got when it came out, but I imagine it being like the Velvet Underground where few people bought it but it had a massive influence on alt rock. This album opens with the one-two punch of Blister in the Sun and Kiss Off. Other standouts include Add It Up and Gone Daddy Gone. The only skippable track is Please Do Not Go.

One of the best LPs of 1982, if not THE best of that year. The amount of earworms in that album is simply incredible, and its unpretentious production values (in an era that was literally *plagued* by them) makes this debut a timeless masterpiece. It's hilarious how many listeners in the reviews thought this thing was released in the early *nineties*. 5 stars, no hesitation here. Number of albums left to review: 684 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 156 (including this one) Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 72 Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more essential to me): 89

Still sounds fucking great 40 years on.

Wow! What a great surprise!

I didn't know I l9ved the Violent Femmes this much, but I did hear them a bunch on my favorite radio station as a tren. Listening to this album made me realize it wasn't just the radio played songs I dig, but the whole vibe.

iconic. bangin'. makes my head bounce and my feet tap. i will listen to this album forever

Classic

Mmmmmm yummers!!! Chef’s kiss

all killer and completely their own thing

Excellent spikey rock n roll, great baselines, wonderful sometimes nonsensical lyrics but excellent EXECELLENT attitude. I've listened to this album since I was a teenager and I have always loved it. Liberating, fun good guts - pitched just right between interesting and melodious and edgey effortless cool. I could probably listen to this album every day til I die

I love this shit. I'd heard the band name before but never listened. Absolutely what I look for in music.

I first heard this album while sitting on a beach in San Diego. It was night, we had a pretty good bonfire going, and the Violent Femmes were on the boom box. It was a magical night and also this album absolutely rules.

What a stellar album! When I first heard this album, I thought it was from the early 90s because it felt like it fit in perfectly with the alternative scene at that time. The fact that it was made 10 years before I thought it was blew my mind. This album seems to come out of nowhere, drops a bunch of times alternative rock songs, and then it disappears just as mysteriously as it came. So many of the Midwestern punk/postpunk albums seem to have this quality where it seems like they're coming from the future to release their albums Every single song is good, and there's no consistent musical style, yet the album feels like a coherent whole. 5/5 This album fucks

I hadn't listened to this in far too long.

Bloody brilliant. A whopping album that still feels fresh. Am I emotionally stunted because some of these songs still resonate? Fantastic from start to finish and Good Feeling is a haunting poignancy-fest. The xylophone playing on Gone Daddy Gone is still the most fabulous use of the xylophone since the late Patrick Moore. Good Feeling - please do not go!

Music for dorks, wimps, geeks—my people, who could never be cool enough to be cool outcasts. Still sounds totally unique.

Love this album. I've always really dug just how up front in the mix the bass guitar is. And it's such a clean but also unpolished recording. If it weren't for the sound of the vocals, it's easy to think this was recorded in the 60's or 70's.

the perfect saturday night warm up tracks. wow. just... wow.

I actually know this album pretty well, as my mother would play it constantly as I grew up. Despite now questioning if this was the best lineup of songs for a child to be listening to, this album is excellent. The song has a great presence of punk that a lot of folk "punk" bands miss. It certainly feels just like raw emotions, and sounds good doing it. Are the lyrics questionable? Absolutely, but I'd say not understanding that that's the point would be a major disservice to this album. Every song just knows exactly what beats to hit when needed, and ending on a slower, melancholy note really wraps it all up. Just wonderful.

I liked this but I'm not sure why. I think I recognise one of the songs from an old Tony Hawk game?

Another one of my favorites from a "power" trio. This is raw folk-punk that is driven by Victor DeLorenzo's straight forward drum parts and Gordon Gano's rhythm guitar. Gordon's whiney vocals give the color but Brian Ritchie is core to their success (in my opinion.) He is an extremely gifted bass player and bumped up the energy and interest in every song. He also plays the xylophone in "Gone Daddy Gone" which claws that pull you into the hook. This album is full of teen angst and sexual frustration which makes it less accessible to the main stream but it's real even if you don't want to say it out loud. I love this album as a reminder of my awkward youth even if it doesn't apply to adult life or current mindset.

11/10 for the acoustic bass and the awesome bass fills alone. This album is lightning in a bottle.

Nice. Another one I haven't listened to since I was a kid. I was 12 when this came out. I never owned a copy. Owning a cassette with cursing on it? No way. I felt like a rebel as my friends and I would crowd around my friend Andrews boom box at school and try to sneak in a song or two at recess. I don't think I ever even heard the second half of the album until today. Too bad, because it's great. Even more adventurous and fun. Loved the xylophones on "Gone Daddy Gone." It's an interesting album in that I don't think there's anything else quite like it. It's quirky and fun and funny but also angsty and ragged and nervous. I was too young at 12 to really understand everything he was singing about but I definitely agreed with the vibe. And the band crushes it, especially the bassist. And even though I was bitching about the '80s the other day, here's an example of an 80s album that still sounds great, precisely because it doesn't have any of that '80s production that sounds so dated today. This thing could have been recorded this year. Reading about the album, I keep seeing comparisons to the first Modern Lovers' debut, and yeah, maybe, I guess I can kinda sorta see it, but Jonathan Ritchman was singing about Pablo Picasso, whereas Gordon Gano, is singing about being a teen in America, and he nails it better than most YA novels ever have.

I mean, it's a classic and a pioneering "alternative" record. Rate it up there with the best REM, The Cure, The Smiths.

I mean just classic badass punk rock. It's not complicated but it doesn't need to be to sound great.

Love this album.

This is such a raw honest album that captures something of what it is like to be a teenage boy. I loved it then (on vinyl) and it still sounds great

holy crap what a debut. so many classic tracks I've heard before but not known it was this band. catchy, loose, jangly instrumentation. fun and often weird lyrics. slightly horny. def gonna enter my rotation.

So there's me in 1993, a 18 year old 'soutie' in the heart of Bloemfontein doing his South African national service. I had Add It Up (1981-1993) to keep me and a few of my fellow 'troepe' company. Never listened to the back catalog, but my god I'm glad I did. Takes me back while making me look forward I'm not a punk fan, but this scratches an itch I definitely have .

Classic. Really served as my introduction to alternative back in the day (with The Cure's \"Boy's Don't Cry\" album), and whether it's nostalgia or more than that, it still holds up to this day. So unique musically and lyrically.

TOP TEIR ALBUM the perfect the meaning of strong chorus and soft verses I actively enjoyed all the songs on this album except “Gone Daddy Gone” Also Brian Ritchie’s bass brings such a unique sound to this album and band that if everything else was bad it would be the only miracle drug thatd keep you sucked in

Amazing album. This sums up all of my later high school years in one album. 5/5

Loved the first track, obviously. Some other good tunes as well. Really related to Add it Up

Pure, raw, angsty teenage energy right here.

amazing of course

Holy shit....how have I never heard this album before!? Immediately listenable and now I need liner notes with lyrics.

Rugged energy, powerful bass, joy to listen to

No need to criticize. This album is 100% banger. Alt rock before it existed. Kinda reminds me of Meat Puppets but fully acoustic. I love this 10/10

All time great album.

Knew this album by heart in college. Got to see them live about 1987.

To start i dont hear voices in my head, stop asking that my name is jeff and i have cancer i have no hair and am bald and fat and ugly.

The term 'folk punk’ would normally strike fear into my heart, but I have always loved this album since I first heard it back in the day. The lyrics may be a bit juvenile in places, but this a fantastic set of songs (other than To The Kill, which seems to be trying too hard) and they flow together as a good album should. To me, it’s definitely more punk than folk, but the harmonies help take this away from the punk formula, whilst retaining that same energy. And Gone Daddy Gone is a bonafide hit-single-that-never-was.

Ya gotta love it

An incredibly formative album for me during high school. I haven't listened to it in at least a decade and yet I can sing along like I wrote the damn things.

Perfect folk punk album. Absolutely loved it.

Strong from beginning to end. Adding Gimme the Car into this album was not a good decision. The song is rape-y and should be delegated to the vault

LET ME GO OOONNNNN

Отличный альбом для юношей честной судьбы. Обязательно войдет в коллекцию! Бас, околонытье и драйв.

Attitude, great songs, killer bass runs. I love this album. I can see why a lot of people will be turned off by the singing, but it works perfectly for me.

Maybe I just never grew up from being a teenager, but I think this is pretty cool.

A classic.

An all time classic for me. Already know pretty much every lyric back to front.

Had only head one of these songs before, a great discovery. heard it described as folk punk and love it.

Love the violent femmes

A pervy demented almost proto weezer album with a folk spin. I think that’s how to describe it. I’ve edited this rating quite a bit, it was a 2 then a 4 and finally a 5/5

GOAT. Great album

One of my favourites, know it inside out

🤘

Classic and timeless VF album - shows how to rock without playing loud.

not sure if i’m giving this a five because it’s genuinely a really cool album or whether all the shit ones have made this seem like a masterpiece. either way it’s cool and i liked it

Oh wow, I had no idea this album was as old as this. So, clearly an inspiration point for a lot of the stuff being done in the late 80s/early 90s, just to pull from stuff I’ve covered from the generator, I’m hearing Pixies and Green Day in this. But Violent Femmes doing it a lot better imo.

Catchy, unique and memorable.

Fantástico. Blister In The Sun.

Crazy

Didn't think I would like it at the start but listening to it more I really started to jam with it

Love the folk punk genre. Really unique and great to listen to

Incredibly ahead of its time, can’t believe it’s from 1983; right up my alley; super fun listen despite the depressing topics

excellent classic. Heavy bass sound.

At one point in my life I had only heard Blister in the Sun. Then I heard the rest of this album and absolutely love it, along with a lot of the other Violent Femmes catalog. Energetic punk/alt rock. Could have been recorded in a garage. 5

this album is awesome. such a great listen.

One of my all-time favorites

Didn't realize this album was from the 80s. Really holds up.

the 80s version of the theater clique got really high and horny and put out some weirdly catchy music. youthful, lusty, old school grungy folk punk. 5/5

I hope you know this will go down on your permanent record. Oh yeah.

ohhh folk-punk, I like

tony hawk's underground 2's soundtrack had a big impact on my little smooth brain. nothing stood out to me more than "add it up," a song i didn't understand until i was older and hornier. it just sounded unbearably cool. i like this album for the same reasons everyone likes this album. it's brash and perverted. unsophisticated and catchy as hell.

What a strange name for a band. But if they can keep making music like this, they'll go places I tell ya! What I love about it is how unproduced it is. Just simple raw music.

Great. Fun, poppy nostalgia

Ich mochte es sehr sehr gerne. Ein Album für den Herzschmerz. Ein Album zum abgehen und ein Album zu fühlen. Ehrlich, solide, kräftig.

I have never really heard Violent Femmes except for Blister in the Sun and I'm super into it. I love the energy and the willingness to make a bunch of weird noises and do some very theatrical vocals. There really isn't a dud on this album, very impressed. I'm a new fan.

Great album. The combination of folk and punk makes this a refreshing punk album.

A delight, blister in the sun is such an iconic track but I'd never heard the album, great stuff

I had no idea this album was so good. Very surprised, 11/10

Love this album. Haven't listened to it in years but it still slaps.

I LOVE THIS ALBUM ITS GOOD

Tik Tok. Omg. Whatever this is, I’m loving it. Folk punk is a vibe.

Very interesting. Had heard of them but had never listened before. Nice clean sound and vocals. Compelling lyrics. Gonna listen again on my way home

хождение по классике продолжается. На этот раз выпал альбом, который я сам ещё не так давно заслушивал чуть ли не на постоянной основе. для меня это вообще пример идеального акустического проекта — при том, что нет долбящей ударки и тяжёлых гитар, он звучит максимально драйвово и по-панковски задорно. Будь моя воля — я бы именно это называл пост-панком. Сонграйтинг везде на уровне, почти каждая композиция имеет несколько частей, динамические перепады, по паре-тройке цепляющих хуков, а также абсолютно легендарные басовые партии. Причём звучит всё невероятно свежо и качественно, для 80-х годов это очень нестандартная запись в плане продакшна. Ну и главная звезда «Отчаянных слюнтяев» — вокалист Гордон Гано. При всей сочности инструментала без его актёрского мастерства в плане подачи альбом не был бы и вполовину так хорош. Плюс хочется отметить очень плотную химию между лид вокалом и бэками — вместе они порождают интересное многоголосое полотно, к которому тянет возвращаться снова и снова. Ten outta ten, will listen again!

Brilliant album, distinctive twangy acoustic sound, like nothing else in the 80s

Saved Prior: Blister In The Sun, Kiss Off, Gone Daddy Gone Not Saved: 12. Gimme The Car 11. Good Feeling Cutting Edge: 10. To The Kill Saved: 9. Confessions 8. Promise 7. Add It Up 6. Ugly 5. Please Do Not Go 4. Prove My Love 3. Blister In The Sun 2. Gone Daddy Gone 1. Kiss Off Overall Notes: Angsty, immature, chaotic in all the best possible ways. Filled with catchy guitar hook after catchy guitar hook and the instrumentation and voice compliment each other perfectly. Big fan.

Great album, still remember every song

AMAZING. I mean... it's the violent femmes. Of course it's a great album. Pure wonder the whole way through.

slaps

so good why did i not listen to the whole thing before

Very punchy guitar and bass. Simple arrangement that works so well with the songs. Harmony is very nice. Nasally vocals could be off putting to some. There is a reason why most of the songs on this album are still on the radio almost 40 years later. Good use of stereo mix/recording, especially during Gone Daddy Gone.

I really like this genre. This album would maybe crack my top 200. They sounded like a less self-involved Smashing Pumpkins. I got a bit of Brobeck vibes from it which is why I liked it. And didn’t give me anxiety to listen to for the most part so kudos.

every track gives me the feeling that i've herd it somewhere before. familiar and comforting through and through

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS. Love the re-listen.

NOSTALGIA!!!

I can appreciate this album as much now as on my first listen when I was six years old. It isn't subtle. It is still brilliant.

2nd album from a band I've seen live. This record still kicks after all these years. Just fun as fuck.

I didn't like it at first but as it went on I really started to enjoy it

Probably just me, but I've this album

I still have trouble hearing the actual lyrics to songs, but the energy of this album was infectious.

One of my favorites!

1/12/21 i start my journey with the violent femmes self titled. Headphones on seinfeld on mute. Great album. Punk acoustic

Super klimacik, bardzo letni, Blister in the sun - bardzo fajna piosenka, az bym się zimnego piwa napił

A classic, hasn't aged a day

already listened, love it. only album from these guys I like though

Wonderful album. Pop Punk royalty and the grandfather of the genera.

where did i hear blister in the sun? searched, prolly from Sex Education, Carrie Diaries or I, Tonya. This album is an absolute delight!

Pretty peak! Somewhat repetitive

Love this band, strong album, campfire friendly cover fodder but still.....

Some tracks sound like acoustic post punk, others sound like 2000s indie folk tracks. Couldn't grasp this is an early 80s record

I am familiar with Violent Femmes and know and really like 3 songs on this album - "Blister in the Sun", "Add It Up", and "Gone Daddy Gone" - which were all popular on the radio at the time. Probably on the college/alternative radio station near me called WLIR. But I don't think I've ever actually listened to the whole thing. I'm only going to review the first 10 songs because that was the original release. Thoughts after listening 3 times ... I also like "Kiss Off", "Please Do Not Go", "Prove My Love", "To The Kill" and "Good Feeling". So I now have 5 more "new to me" songs in my Spotify library. A lot of these songs have a good, and somewhat morbid, sense of humor. Like in "Kiss Off" when he's counting down the number of pills (or shots of booze??) he's going to take and why and he says "I forget what eight was for". While listening to this I definitely hear the influence of Lou Reed/Velvet Underground - it first hit me on the song called "To The Kill" - but on subsequent listens I hear it all over the place. Extra credit for adding a xylophone (like on "Gone Daddy Gone") and making it sound cool. Liked songs on Spotify: 8/10 Rating: 4/5

Loved this. I knew 'Blister in the Sun' bit nothing else about the band, and was surprised to learn how old it is. Fur me, it has a similar punk energy to early Billy Bragg. Where he defied convention by being a solo singer with an electric guitar rather than an acoustic one, they do it by playing raucous punk on acoustic instruments.

Still nothing is quite as catchy, bratty, horny, and weird as this album. I still love it.

Quite alternative, very acoustic. I like it.

This crew rocks it raw, acoustic and with basically 3 instruments. Their hits hit hard. No filler in between. Adding this to my favourites.

Its a good alternative indie punkish album and I like the laidback vibes and unique sound. Bonus points that they're from Milwaukee !

Pretty good punky stuff.

Punking around the indie space, violent femmes have been rocking for ages. Generations have grown up tossing glass bottles and shooting tin cans to their music, as an anthem to injustice and powerless of teenagers world wide. The acoustic punk space will always have its place but only after violent femmes truly appointed a name to the movement.

i had no idea they made that / 5

Nostalgic and angsty without being too harsh. Really fun

As someone who loves the Front Bottoms, this was surprisingly pleasant to come across on this list. I love silly messy music that is very well written and poorly sung with passion and emotion. I think I will enjoy this just listening to the first few seconds of the first track. i wish i knew of this album when i was 16. ———poem——— there is the itch of a knife below the last rib behind whatever organ there is I cannot reach it, no matter which way I bend I tear apart my skin Dig with my nails Invite men in Fingers past my throat There is nothing there It stays lodged Squatting in this place for which I struggle to care I listen to songs from back then, from back when, from back before when, it screeches to the sounds like terrors of its nights it aches

This wasn't a bad album, and I'm teetering between a 3 and a 4, because I liked it but it didn't stop me in my tracks ever. Fuck it, I'll give it a 4.

4.4 4x this is a great album i'm not sure i've listened all the way through

Really good album. Enjoyed the mix of punk influences and country ish structures. Will check out more from this band. Lead vocalist has a good delivery.

Классный, веселый, для тех времен довольно новаторский и влиятельный, особо нигде не проседает, заслуженное место в списке

Класс

при прослушивании этого альбома произошло очередное открытие "ты не знал, что это кавер", на этот раз по поводу gnarls barkley - gone daddy gone. альбом приятный и интересный, но не прямой восторг, потому - 4

I started listening to the Violent Femmes in Highschool/College time (which was 20+ years after the album came out). There is something really charming about the record, it has a kind of naive innocence to it, and it sounds like the album a lot of teenagers would make to try to capture their adolescent angst and melancholy.

its angry, simple, and raw. some evil spirit possessed that acoustic guitar and was recorded as proof. these guys were really like how do we punch up this track and brought in a xylophone. captures that feeling of being so horny you want to actually be dead but also youre just a a silly little guy, a really core part of the human experience. ive loved this album for a long time but also i just saw the jackass movie last night so i was really primed for anything that does a lot with very little resources and a lot of energy this morning. i guess im just a teenage boy in spirit. fave tracks day after day, add it up, promise

Much better cohesively than I thought/remembered!

Dit albumpje van de gewelddadige dames heeft alle ingredienten om het af te kraken: matige zang, schijtlollige teksten, een xylofoon. En toch vind ik dit aanstekelijk leuk om te luisteren. Met name het eerste nummer is zo'n typische evergreen, die je onder veel films kan zetten en wat gelijk sfeerverhogend gaat werken. Je zou nog kunnen betwisten of dit dan in een beste album-lijstje hoort, of "Blister in the Sun" in een beste nummers-lijst. Maar alleen voor dat nummer krijgt dit lollige albumpje een extra ster. Laat ik ook weer niet te gek doen met 5 sterren, maar ik had hier meer plezier dan ik vooraf had verwacht. Een schijtlollige 4 sterren!

MILWAUKEE MY HOME TOWN

Really enjoyed this album and the acoustic approach to punk and new wave Fun listen, added to my library

Really enjoyed this, only knew Blister and Good Feeling but nice little weird half hour (until the very creepy bonus track)

Really like the mix of acoustic and punk.

Oh! We got acoustic punk

Seems ahead of their time to me

Like a Kettle in the Sun.

Loved this album for years! Also surprised it came out in 1983, these guys were really doing it. Not every song hits, but there’s soooo many hits

Blandade känslor. Ibland rockar det fett, ibland känns det som en oengagerad efterapning av Talking Heads. Av någon anledning väldigt lite nostalgi, utom för hitten Blister in the Sun. Den gitarren är helt sjuk! Svag fyra.

Such a blast to go through this one. Pretty amazing folk/punk/alternative mashup, very college radio vibes. I get a little Modern Lovers/Patti Smith in there as well as some blues but the vibe is unique to the group. I listened to the demos on the 20th anniversary and its clear the group was fully formed at such a young age and had everything in the chamber. Must have had some Wisconsinites shook.

excellent - I have not listened in a while

I love this album. It mixes '80s alternative with rock and blues. They even quote Willie Dixon in Gone Daddy Gone.

always will rock w this

Kept me interested, but some parts were just noise. 3.7.

Unrefined but raw and catchy; an unique fusion of folk and punk. 4/5

Only knew Violent Femmes through 'Color Me Once' (The Crow) and was not expecting a pretty crazy folk first album! Enjoyed it very much, curious to hear more. Favorites : 'Blister In The Sun' and 'To The Kill'

Surprisingly good

Such an important album, years ahead of it's time. Growing up, I thought this was a 90s band. I was blown away when I found out these songs were from the early 80s.

Never gets old.

Violent Femmes really hitting the mark on this fantastic run.

J’ai trouvé ça sympa

whole lot of nostalgia tied up in this album. 4/5

Essential album, but I may have burnt myself out on it over the years.

A cool, jangling mess of an album. It's on the edge of falling apart, but it still manages to just about keep it together. Great stuff. Vocals reminiscent of The Velvet Underground at times.

Hér er hljóðheimur sem er talsvert á undan sinni samtíð, aldrei hefði mig sem ungling grunað að Violent femmes væru 80s band. Blister in the sun er hresst en talsvert ofspilað, en hin lögin eru annað hvort hress og góð, eða a.m.k. sæmileg. Rúmur fjarki eða tæp fimma, þar liggur efinn.

When I was younger I never gave the Violent Femmes a second glance. I thought their music was hokey and silly while absorbing Motley Crue, Metallica, and Slayer. Anthrax was about as silly as my tastes ran. Listening as an adult has been a totally different experience. I now know that I was totally missing the point. Turns out that what I thought was hokey and dumb was a killer punk music band thumbing its nose at what they thought of pop culture. Youth truly is wasted on the young sometimes 😂🤷‍♂️ Plus, it's hard to believe this came out in 1983. It could easily be 1993 or 2003 and still sound contemporary.

The song "Confessions" has the vibe of a song that would be played at the Roadhouse in Twin Peaks

Great important LoFi Punk

Bueno rock alternativo

not bad

I like the bass

Starting off strong with Blister in The Sun. Inmediatly got me groovin' and kept it up with Kiss Off and its weird guitar riffs (ill have to look it up because it sounds like the guitar is not tuned). So far Im loving this raw punk sound. At Add It Up i start to realize its unapologetically revolutionary for its time, also, overall angry. Moving on, Prove My Love has to be one of my favourites, chorus sounds very much beatley while mainting those "dirty" rock riffs; and Promise just very much feels like a continuation of Prove My Love. Who said you cant absolutely rock it with a xilofone, masterpiece!!!

why is it folk, it’s okay I just wasn’t expecting it. Pretty good introduction to folk punk I enjoyed the following tracks ‘Bloster in the Sun’, ‘Kiss Off’ and ‘To the Kill’ Rating: 4/5 GEMV (29.05.2026)

yeahhh heerlijk ik hou van folk-punk. dit is niet het beste van het genre by any means ("best" is een lastig woord voor zo'n genre natuurlijk), maar ik geniet er altijd wel van om lekker blister in the sun te jengelen

I knew 2 songs here but the rest were pretty good too.

Every time I listen to this it blows my mind that it was released in 1983. It feels like quintessential early ‘90s alternative. Nothing else in the mainstream sounded like this in the ‘80s. Great stuff. Favorite songs: Gone Daddy Gone, Blister in the Sun, Good Feeling, Please Do Not Go.

Me gusto bastante y pude reconocer algun tema que resonaba por mi vieja memoria. Cuesta creer que este disco sea del 83, parece muy avanzado y moderno para su epoca. Me agrado la experiencia

Great obviously Blister in the sun is the stand out track. A lot of fast acoustic style guitar nice vocals a bit samey but good stuff in the whole.

i weirdly liked the songs (have listened to "blister in the sun", "kiss off", "please do not go", "add it up", "confessions", "prove my love", "promise", "to the kill") my fav is the 3rd one, 2nd fav would be "to the kill"

8/10

i like these songs so much i'm gonna have to clicker train myself into liking gordon gano's godawful singing voice.

Some songs sound like they were the inspiration for some songs by the raconteurs. Also the voice is very unique and sounds like the singer of „surfin bird“

Pretty cool album. More than just Blister in the Sun

Fun raw energetic album with great tracks all around. Can sound a little messy at times but in a good way.

A 3.5 if I could. Catchy and full of personality

Strong 4

liked this quite a bit, fun that it's acoustic

Couple bangers in there!

Blister in the sun is a classic. I liked this album a lot more than when I first listened. Didn't realize it was so early, 83. It sounds much more like a 90s album, which makes me think it influenced that sound a lot. Bands like Pavement and such.

Actually pleasantly surprised. Dare I say: they took what Lou Reed tried, and made it better?

Det va ikke så verst, men ikke så best heller.

this does it for me and also i know it will continue to do it for me more moving forward

какой-то панк гаражный но прикольно ладно потом еще расслушаю, авансом 4

Love the Violent Femmes. Rad album. Blister in the Sun and Add It Up are the standouts but the whole albums really enjoyable.

Unique. Punk acoustique. Pas besoin de disto pour sonner punk, juste besoin d'énergie brute. Plusieurs bangers. Quelques paroles un peu creepy? Malgré ça, ça touche la cible. Ça parle de solitude, de désir, de frustration

This always feels way ahead of its time for 1983. Feels perfect for 1993 or even 2003.

I know they were popular in Australia as well as the US but Violent Femmes never really found an audience here in the UK. Was there too much cow in their cowpunk? Had The Smiths cornered the market in strumming teenage angst? Not that they sound anything like The Smiths, of course - the nearest UK equivalent I could think of was some of the Wonder Stuff, but that was always tongue-in-cheek and I don't think Violent Femmes were. To these British ears, Gordon Gano sounds a bit off - I think he was being sincere, but he sounds like he isn't Anyway, I enjoyed this and applaud them for having a xylophone solo

A cult classic. Weirdly catchy and cultural touchstone in the 80s. Nothing else quite like it. Really takes me back to junior high school. Thought this was so punk and rebellious! Still a great one.

I really like Kiss It Off and Good Feeling! This whole album reminds me of Harness Your Hopes. Very desperate like country-punk. Acoustic punk if you will. Rough white guy voice you love to hear. Feels very desperate and nostalgic. Messy childhood kind of thing. Feels intimate. Feels like traumatized teens on a playground. They might be kissing sometimes.

8/10 Best songs: Blister in the Sun, Add It Up, Prove My Love, Gone Daddy Gone Another band I'd heard of but never listened to. As it turns out, this is a really great album. Heavily influenced by punk but with a less rock-y bent, it sounds kind of like grunge or acoustic indie rock (think garage band vibes) from the 90s or even 2000s. I'm conflicted about whether to give this a 4 or a 5 - I may just be relieved to break my string of absolute trash albums recently, but this is quite good. I may come back in the future to adjust my rating.

Whiny angsty acoustic bullshit, rocks so fucking hard

It’s fun, a little silly, and raw. Loved it

Cool punk driven by acoustic guitar and snare drum. The best songs has such a cool drive and made me bang my hands to the beat of the music. A few songs are less engaging, but it’s still a great album. Favourites: Blister In The Sun, Add It Up, Cool Feeling and Kiss Off.

Energetic acoustic punk ? How was this not a 90s album .

Class me with the people who would have sworn these guys were a 90s band. There's a lot to love about this album and I don't have time to try to articulate it.

Blister in the Sun obviously everyone knows but beyond that songs of this album are constantly pushed by my spotify recommendations and I used to always slip them because "eh, I probably only like blister in the sun". The lesson is, as always, I'm and idiot.

first songs reminded me of Queen gone daddy gone !

I mean it’s a debut that opened with Blister in the Sub! It might have literally invented a genre.

The first time I was stunned, when instead of the languid riffs I've heard the acoustic strumming, mistaking the band for the Australian grungers Violent Soho. The second time was when I heard lyrics sung in a nasal voice, the author of which would now be called an incel. The third, and most powerfully, was when I saw the year the album was released. This is an incredibly visionary record. I don't think anyone before had thought of taking punk rock, a genre that's generally not the most overloaded, and stripping it bare of all its excess. What's left here is literally the skeleton — acoustic bass, acoustic guitar, and snare drum — and yet it all sounds much dirtier and more energetic than a distortion pedal. Five years later, Pixies were using the band's work, ten years later, Weezer, fifteen years later, Bloodhound Gang. And forty years later, I discovered the album, and such discoveries were worth following this list.

Super solid folk punk album! Amazing out how great something so simple can be.

It is different enough to be really quite good. 4 stars or B+.

This was another one out of my comfort zone. I haven’t listened to a lot of punk before except for a few songs from The Clash. I enjoyed this one a lot, it felt silly at times, and the artists sounded like they had a lot of fun with this one. My favorite songs off the album were a tie between Kiss Off and Good Feeling. I’d give this a 4/5.

Ahead of its time. One of the best opening tracks of any album.

Great album, an absolute classic. Unique sound, very distinct from what was playing in the radio in the early 1980s.

Violent Femmes – Violent Femmes (1983) On Day 119, I closed out the week with a decent listen that maintained a good, consistent flow from start to finish. After the masterclass production of Led Zeppelin, this felt more raw. While I’m not at a 5 yet, the album definitely earns its spot in the rotation. "Kiss Off" and "Promise" were the tracks that stood out most, though I feel like this LP requires multiple listens to fully grasp its energy. It’s a acoustic-punk session that avoids being a boring through its sheer urgency. A very respectable 4/5, and it will definitely be getting those extra listens.

it was nice, made me think of early 2000s films

Some solid punk/fun/rock. The ubiquitous song “Blister in the Sun” kind of annoys me just because it’s overplayed but that’s not the band’s fault. Top tracks: “Gone Daddy Gone,” “Please Do Not Go,” “Kiss Off,” “Blister in the Sun”

--Blister in the Sun...weird, alt-acoustic classic --Kiss Off...is Brian Ritchie the greatest acoustic bass player of all time (non-jazz division)? even if it's by default? --Please Do Not Go...an interesting but lazy tune. Ritchie doing the heavy lifting --Add It Up...acoustic punk metal? whatever it's called, it rips. a 90s classic that was somehow released in 1983 --Confessions...I generally like Gordon Gano's nasally snarl, but I don't think it works here. this is too slow, I need speed from these guys --Prove My Love...kind of a lesser "Add It Up" but it's still great --Promise...doesn't really come together for me --To the Kill...a weird band gets even weirder. another track carried by Ritchie's bass --Gone Daddy Gone...this song is co-written by Willie Dixon. Something the Violent Femmes have in common with Led Zeppelin. awesome xylophone solo. don't get to write that a lot --Good Feeling...don't think Gano's voice is built for balladry, but the violin is real nice **US CD Bonus Tracks** --Ugly...fun surfer feel --Gimme the Car...high school sex drama stuff. both bonus tracks are more electric. I wonder if they used the extra studio time to hedge their bets on their mostly acoustic presentation

This band and album was a pleasant diacovery for me. An actual original sound

Xylophone solo and confession of a teenager who needs to get laid

This is someones mums favorite album

Never heard of them. But some great acoustic rock n roll.

Surprisingly good.

Punks with acoustic guitars

Geinig

Now this was interesting! Got a bit bored at the end but a very near 5 star album

My gut wants to give this a 3, but adding a star for being so ahead of its time

Classic Album, a role model for a lot of garage and folky alternative Bands. Fav: Blister in the sun

Pretty great acoustic punk.

Quite a unique sound, I think. Like the punk attitude combined with softer sounding instruments. Vocally it definitely leans toward Lou Reed, but that's no bad thing. Favourite track is Gone Daddy Gone - great to hear a vibe solo in this context. Excellent little album. 4

Classic

I like the lack of subtext, and that every track is about sex, violence, or wanting to die: it's all very visceral, primal, raw. I like Gordan Gano's voice; it's nasally and whiny and full of indignation, but in a good way, or at least in a way that works. I like that half of each track is shout-spoken, and that the repeated choruses have a chanted mantra-like quality. I'd describe this album as cathartic, purging me of strongly held sentiments I didn't realize I had. A few of the tracks weren't noteworthy and felt sort of, scattered and meandering, but that's my only criticism, and despite that, I do think Violent Femmes is an album in which the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, though there were a few parts that I really enjoyed: "Blister In The Sun," "Gone Daddy Gone," and "Ugly." (4/5)

I loved the vibe but the songs were just too similar to me.

always loved the opening track, good to hear the rest. very velvet underground meets 90s

Genuinely really great discovery, went into this not knowing/expecting much but loved it. Confessions was my fav song and first listen of the album. Blister In The Sun and Kiss Off were my other highlights

I liked this album a lot! Will probably be listening to it more in the future.

I HOPE YOU KNOW THAT THIS WILL GO DOWN ON YOUR PERMANENT RECORD! A classic. Pleasantly surprised to see this on the list, and a pleasure to go back and give it a critical listen. Had this on cassette (for those kids out there, a cassette was a music medium that played back sound from a magnetized ribbon held inside a plastic cartridge). Also had The Blind Leading The Naked. Self titled debut album, also their biggest seller. Arguably their best songs, too. Femmes were out of Milwaukee, and pioneers of the "folk punk" genre. I had to actually think about that title for a minute. String indie vibe, striped down and often raw sound. Credited with influence in punk, grunge, and alternative scenes. A couple catchy ones, a couple that grow on you. I still hear Blister On The Sun into at ballgames when the stadium guy wants to get the crowd to clap. Blister a classic, Add It Up was a banger back in the day, and it's still a banger. And a handful of other strong songs. Definitely standing the test of time (1983 release) so yeah, I'm giving it 4 stars.

Was pretty worried that there would be a significant drop in quality after the hit single but was pleased instead with a really good Proto-Indie Rock album that served to inspire quite a lot of important bands. It is really strange to seen an album this early be such a hit with the mainstream, especially since the record is loaded with bizarre musical styles, pretty explicit song topics, and a really awkward and anxious spirit to the whole thing, but it manages to be entertaining track after track even if not every one is a “Blister in the Sun”.

I thought there must be a woman in the band because of the name, nope. Lol the lyrics are pretty misogynistic as well but they're sort of funny and forgivable. Like Add It Up is pretty funny.

Yess, dit vind ik leuk! Na een tijdje beetje veel van hetzelfde, maar wel my kinda vibe. Beste: Blister in the sun.

this rocks!! simultaneously draws really well on 60s influences and somehow sees into the future of the 90s. the acoustic approach overall is great, and the bass in particular is so good. the writing is really interesting (even if horny teenage boy lmao). fave tracks: blister in the sun, please do not go, confessions, to the kill

Neat sound. It's not every day you hear acoustic bass Fav tracks: Kiss Off, Gone Daddy Gone, Good Feeling

Weird not to hear "American Music" because the cassette my friend made for me when we were teens had that on there, along with Ugly and Gimme the Car. Brian Ritchie's bass looms monstrous over the proceedings. There have been times in my life where I'd have rated this a five and others when it'd have been a three. Averaging that out...

I liked this a lot. Felt very blues-rocky to me. Almost a 5

Fun, and blister in the sun is by far the worst and least fun on the record!

This is flawless

Have some cool tracks

This is normally not my bag (at all) but this album in particular has some nostalgia value. On top of that though, I do find it to be enjoyable listening for the most part. The voice is grating at times but each song has some unique flavor to it, and I’ve always loved the last song. captures that 5:00 AM comedown feeling perfectly. Also the song before it has an extended xylophone solo, so it gets the bump from 3.5

Good album

Violent Femmes was the collective noun for Len Houmous’ wives 19-24. 4.3 6/12 Prove My Love

Great album, no skips and some underrated highs

This is a fun album with some iconic songs. Btw 3 and 4.

Kind of wild that almost all the classic Violent Femmes songs are on their debut album. It's good.

My aunt used to play this tape in her Ford Escort when I was a 10 year old boy. Some 30+ years later this still holds up for me. I really enjoyed this acoustic punk. Some of the songs seem a little unfinished or not well conceived re lyrics but maybe that adds to the charm.

Played with all the attitude of the fiercest punks, The Violent Femmes play one acoustic banger after another. If it just had Blister in the Sun and Gone Daddy Gone it'd be a classic, but the other songs aren't that far behind.

Didn’t realize this was the origin of college radio rock!!

I like 👍🏼

I enjoyed it! Very good!

Band sounds familiar but.... NEUROTIC YES THAT DESCRIBES THEM SO PERFECT 1: OMG YES. the strung out anxious high happy too much song. love it 2: how have i not listened to this full album before? awesome 3: 4: 5: hmmm im meh 6: missed it. started sweet but then eh 7: I like this tho 8: funky arrythmic 9: i do really like this song 10: good feeling song :)

Now this is more like it, I only knew the very famous opening track, Blister In The Sun, which is a bit of a classic of any indie rock club I ever went to. This also doesn’t feel like it came out in 1983! I wasn’t quite sure how the album would hold up but after a few songs, it was clear how well this was landing, Add It Up being a particular highlight.

It's interesting

Very fun

Albúm que rememora los inicios del folk y post-punk. Una mezcla de ambos. Le doy un 9 🙌🏼✨

Punky folky classic

Really enjoyable listen. Blister in the Sun was a constant on the radio in the 90s but I really enjoyed Good Feeling.

I'm not sure where you'd situate these guys in the genre landscape, guys had a such a unique sound - punk sort aesthetic filtered through almost like acoustic skiffle or something. At least 3 songs on this album that I'd call hits, a few others that I knew as well, some I didn't. A lot of this is just fun, youthful energy that you can clap and dance along to (Blister in the Sun is actually a great karaoke song). The bass playing stands out from an instrumental perspective, whether electric or acoustic upright. Good Feeling has almost a Velvet Underground feel. A fun and enjoyable listen almost all the way through.

Of all the albums I've got so far, this is the one I most want to put in a time capsule and send to my teenage self. It doesn't feel as impactful to me now as it probably would have then, but I like these songs and love the acoustic bass sound. Very ahead of its time for 1983.

Blister in the Sun is an awesome song and the rest of the album is pretty solid too. Punky and with a driving beat throughout, a solid album!

Gas

P nice

Good stuff 4

Мені дуже сподобалося музично. Звучить досі свіжо і тим паче не відповідно до часу, коли альбом вийшов. Водночас рівень інцельства в текстах дуже високий. І це вже не сподобалося. Місцями прямо на межі мого рівня толерантності.

Well, well, well 8.5/10

Some hit or miss, good music, very relatable lyrics.

This is one of those albums that make me reconsider all of my opinions. This album has all of the sloppy production, not-quite-on-pitch vocals, and other earmarks of early punk-adjacent music that annoy me in other albums - but here, somehow it all works. Gordon Gano's hitched, nasal delivery perfectly fits the simple, angsty, sex-obsessed lyrics, and Brian Ritchie's acoustic bass work is frankly phenomenal. I can't tell you why this album succeeds for me where so many others fail, but it does.

goiod

Favorite Track: Blister In The Sun

bastante bueno, se nota que es recontra indie pero muy buen sonido y una voz distintiva, musica q se siente nueva para el año en el q salió

Really love this album, but not the gimme the car song. That one is icky and always was. Violent Femmes we're our hometown band when the world felt a little more small and seeing Milwaukee on the alt scene felt like it was so special. Miss those days a lot!

Feels pretty barebones with minimal production, which really complements the vibe well. Short and sweet. I thoroughly enjoyed my listen.

Punk! I like it, has everything a good punk record needs.

Incredible debut by Violent Femmes, it was due a listen to this record, and it blew me away, so great to listen to it fully and immerse within the folky punk sound and clear vocals. Great from beginning to end.

I will definitely be coming back to this! I enjoyed the elements of folk overlaid with the humor of punk in the '70s and '80s.

Fun. A couple of AMAZING songs.

8.0/10 Really liked this one! Familiar with their hits but other songs on the album are also great.

Great sound. So fresh in those years of its Appeareance.

No. 371/1001 Blister In The Sun 4/5 Kiss Off 3/5 Please Do Not Go 3/5 Add It Up 4/5 Confessions 3/5 Prove My Love 4/5 Promise 3/5 To The Kill 4/5 Gone Daddy Gone 4/5 Good Feeling 4/5 Average: 3,6 Unique listen. Never heard such a mixture of folk and punk before. Cool experience.

Aged really well compared to the rest of the shit coming out of the early 80s.

Side A: 5/5 Side B: 3/5

I’ve heard it before and I own it, in fact I’m on my 3rd copy. First on tape from Columbia house for a penny, which eventually broke, second time on cd which was borrowed by a roommate and never returned, and third time from a download. It’s hard not to look at this through the lens of nostalgia because I listened to this tape a lot in high school and know all the words while not really liking them for a few songs; we didn’t have the word incel back then but the lyrics for a few songs gave off incel vibes to me when I was 15. Gano seems like the type of guy who never got over his high school crush not having sex with him freshman year. If you don’t let that color your interpretation of the more innocent sounding lyrics it doesn’t ruin anything. The songs still sound great and not dated as other early 80s stuff and none of these are filler. I can’t help but love this album. Bumping it down a point for the aforementioned incel vibes.

Iconic album with plenty of great songs but it just kinda dragged in the middle.

When I’m out walking 🚶‍♂️🚶‍♂️🚶‍♂️ I strut my stuff 💃💃💃