Reviews (page 5 of 8)
This just feels... a bit much?
Great hardcore album. Good variety of songs, and TV Party was pretty hilarious.
Werde in diesem Leben wohl kein Punk-Fan - Fand es furchtbar
Weiß selbst nicht was ich von Hardcore Punk halten soll. Hat seinen Platz, aber hab auch selten Lust sowas zu hören. 3 Sterne, aber auch nicht wieder hören muss ich dies
Tough rate for me. I think this album would be a home run if they had shaved a few of the songs out of the album. I was rocking out to most of the songs, but felt the album went on for a bit too long. To me, the perfect punk album thrashes about for 25 minutes MAX. I liked the songs that had funny party lyrics, a good breath of fresh air from all the "death to everyone, I wanna kms" lyrics mostly present. A true rating would be 3.5, but I gotta round down because I can't discount all the times I felt annoyed by either length of song/album or just annoyed with the sounds in general.
Rise Above is decent. The rest sounds identical and I just can't deal with those shitty vocals.
Short, angry, with moments of wtf humor while going after america's commercial culture juxtaposed with feelings of depression and loneliness.
Upon listening to Black Flag’s *Damaged* (1981), the extreme vocal delivery makes it genuinely difficult to classify, as Henry Rollins' unintelligible screaming and guttural shouts blur the line between rock aggression and a highly abrasive form of rap, given that I could barely decipher a single lyric. Furthermore, beneath the chaotic presentation and historical hype, the album's foundational punk and thrash elements ultimately fail to offer any structural or thematic innovations that hadn't already been explored by other bands within the burgeoning hardcore genre.
most metalheads had a punk phase and i am no exception so this was quite nostalgic. closing track was a standout
Beautifully, wonderfully, aggressively perfect album. The raw aggression, and the DIY feeling of the album only improve music. Wonderful
The aggression is real, I could see my younger angrier self just banging my head ti this but alas I’m much older now and enjoy more melody
respira
I can certainly see how it was so influential. The lisp is iconic. Also, I know it's supposed to be ironic but a TV party does sound pretty fun
Lots of fun. Classic sneering hardcore
American The Clash
Yikes - not for the sound of mind!
Blisteringly relevant Timeless Hard Core Noise
My ears hurt
01) Rise Above - 6,0 02) Spray Paint - 4,0 03) Six Pack - 5,5 04) What I See - 5,5 05) TV Party - 5,5 06) Thirsty and Miserable - 5,0 07) Police Story - 5,0 08) Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie - 5,5 09) Depression - 5,0 10) Room 13 - 5,0 11) Damaged II - 4,0 12) No More - 4,0 13) Padded Cell - 4,0 14) Life of Pain - 4,0 15) Damaged I - 3,0 TOTAL: 4,73 (47/100)
obviously punk. If you love punk, listen to it. If you don't, then don't. I don't but am giving it a 3 for truly embracing being punk. And that's all I can say.
5.0/5.0: Iconic
iconic punk album, easy 5
Just not for me.
Sound of my childhood
First listen. Not a fan of the vocals but enjoyed the music.
Gimme Gimme Gimme
This was pretty disappointing when it was released. It still is.
4 - the og hardcore. Mix is a bit rough but the energy is definitely there
Probably a historic punk rock album but who cares. Not the worst thing I've ever heard and it's short at least but still. Not something I need to listen to ever again. Really grating by the end of it. 3.75/10 (1.875/5)
Music for angry young white males. Too bad I' just old and cynic now.
It's a good punk album, but I'm just not really into that kind of stuff.
Black Flag is not for me, the first song was nice but the more you dive in, the more it just sounds the same. This is a cool band tho, and they deserve an album on this list. I'll give a fair 3 stars.
Upbeat and hardcore
I quite enjoyed this
It's nice to finally put a singing voice to the face of Henry Rollins who I've seen pop up throughout the years in various documentaries and interviews. I like the sound of the guitar. It's rough and heavy. Thick and fuzzy. The notes the guitar is actually playing excited me slightly less. Better than most hardcore punk I would say but still doesn't make me want to check out more of Black Flag. The vocals are your typical hardcore punk vocals really. Loud, aggressive, not melodic in the slightest. Almost shouting. Thankfully, like most punk, it is quite a short listen. I would have started to hate it more and more as time went on. Not quite my kind of music, but good to stick on if you're in the mood for something aggressive.
While I can’t imagine I’ll ever seek this out to listen to again, I can’t deny there’s a charm to the earnest angst this record showcases. This group hates a lot of things, ironically lists stuff they like, but does so in such a gloriously punky way. 3/5
It's funny, I've probably seen more Black Flag t-shirts than listened to their songs by 1000:1 if not more. Definitely remember the fighty individuating teenage years, wherein I listened to fair amount of punk music, but I was apparently too late. Didn't super enjoy listening to this, but at least now I can say that I have.
+1 Rise Above, aggressive, unfocused musicianship
Das Album Damaged der US-amerikanischen Band Black Flag erschien 1981 und gilt als ein prägendes Werk des Hardcore-Punk. Die Aufnahmen fanden in den Unicorn Studios in Los Angeles statt und wurden von Spot, einem wichtigen Produzenten der damaligen Punk-Szene, betreut. Musikalisch bietet das Album eine rohe und energiegeladene Mischung aus schnellen, aggressiven Gitarrenriffs, wütendem Gesang und einer ungeschliffenen Produktion. Besonders Songs wie „Rise Above“ und „Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie“ stechen hervor, da sie exemplarisch für die kompromisslose Haltung der Band stehen. Mit Damaged setzte Black Flag einen wichtigen Meilenstein für den Hardcore-Punk und beeinflusste zahlreiche nachfolgende Bands. Die rohe Intensität des Albums vermittelt eindrucksvoll die Frustration und Wut, die viele junge Musiker dieser Zeit bewegten.
Les américains ont élu deux fois un misérable punk à la con alors qu'ils avaient le grand Henri Rollins !!!
A harcore fan of punk but not a fan of hardcore punk. I grew adolescent with punk rock, the Buzzcocks, the Cramps, the Sex Pistols, The Clash, the Gen X, even "les Beeru", but never heard of them... And I hear nice things here and there in this album, but it's mainly boring and noisy to me. Talk about growing old ;-p. Yet I'd give a few points here to recognize the influence it could have had on one of my favourite the Toy Dolls, especially when singing in choir (yes, yes I hear it at times)
What a nice album, what a melody.... no I'm kidding, absolutely not my taste. No interest at all
Nah it ain’t hitting for me
Not fun
Henry Rollins, it’s a minimum 3 stars!! Maximum subjectivity, but I’ll give it a shot explaining. The man is inspiring to me … and as it must be the only Black Flag record on this list, I got no choice (even though ‘My war’ is better in my opinion). Coming from a troubled childhood marked by abuse, Rollins has become an iconic symbol of sobriety and maybe of wisdom in the US—he became stand-up comic, radio host, publisher, anti-racist and pro-LGBT/human rights activist, author, actor, spoken-word artist, and the champion of reason. None of this would have been possible without his wild stint as frontman (I cannot say singer :)) with Black Flag, the hardcore punk powerhouse, where his stage presence was legendary, like a rising psychopath in the making. Five years of raw violence with Black Flag that earned Rollins his punk cred and gave his later initiatives a unique touch. ‘Damaged’ can never quite capture the band’s fury; and the lyrics mostly tell stupid tales of drunken escapades and brawls, but this is a wildly cathartic outlet. Mayhem!!!
I dunno, this was just a mess to me. Maybe there's something I'm just not getting. Best I can say is I'm glad they're having fun and that all the songs were short.
I only knew Black Flag through "Black Coffee", an anthem for my drug of choice. But instead of fun, biting punk, this is more depressing, introspective, and angry - the chaotic and discordant instrumentals reflecting the torture in the mind and soul. It's taking hard rock and punk, and stripping it down to - tell us how you really feel, which can feel angry sometimes. the TV song has analogies to my favorite Pink Flag, but I like raw this whole thing is.
Seems like Pink Flag > Black Flag. I can see how Billy Joe Armstrong was influenced by these guys, but I'm a strong believer that punk can be more than fatalist or nihilist musings of angsty teams. I look for something a little more tongue-in-cheek and optimism in my punk which is probably why I like pink flag more. Go figure that Rise Above is black flag's most popular song. Not every album can be Dookie, but albums that aren't Dookie aren't getting 5s. This one is getting a 3.
Some pretty great punk here. Also a lot of alcoholism. As a political program, this feels less like strident punk and more like primal shouting. As primal shouting though, it's pretty solid. Guitar is solid ,rocks pretty hard. You can't the lyrics that well, but you get enough, and they're often semi-coherent shouting anyway (complimentary). Runs out of steam on the back half a little. And TV party stinks. And the counterculture of the late 70s/early 80s was cooking. The way the pop art and angry-bitter art of this era separate is something to think on further
This may be an exemplar and a critical album in the evolution of the hardcore punk sound, and for that I'm willing to give it four stars. But I just don't think that it's a fantastic sound when everything sounds so similar and is at the same intensity and emotional tenor.
thanks i hate it
\m/\m/
I get it, I can see why it’s influential, but I just don’t love it. Important for heavy music so I’m thankful for its influence
Great!
I actually know of rollins band more than black flag itself
claaaaassiccc
After the first three songs, I honestly forgot that I'd put this album on for the project instead of personal listening enjoyment. It's right up my alley, excellent stuff.
Hard rock/punk/metal mix. Introspective personal lyrics, more reminiscent of later post-punk and even nu metal Best track - TV Party
Let me be apparent from the get-go that this debut album from Black Flag is a foundational record from the hardcore punk scene, and that cannot be denied. The fast guitar riffs from Dez Cadena, the shredding lead from Greg Ginn, the chugging bass from Chuck Dokowski, the visceral howls from Henry Rollins, the claustrophobic atmosphere as the album transitions from the wild party into pure self-destruction, the timelessness of the lyrics that stray from any explicit political references. These elements coalesce into a brutal record that served as a much-needed catharsis for the underappreciated youth that has maintained relevance, even if some of the shows mentioned on "TV Party" have long ended. Sure, it's not a lyrically deep record, and the grooves could have afforded a little more support on the low end to drive them further in the mix. But those issues I have don't stop Damaged from being a potent slice of bleak introspection that has transcended its time.
i would genuinely be curious as to discover what makes this kind of music appealing to me (big black, drive like jehu, violent femmes) versus what makes it sound like stupid bullshit, considering there aren’t a lot of objective differences in sound that i can really detect. so what is it that makes, say, “kerosene” by big black sound fairly cool and interesting to me while “tv party” off this record sounded so stupid i actually felt a sense of rage bubbling up inside of me while listening to it. THEY ARE FUNDAMENTALLY THE SAME SONG. and yet i like one so much more than the other. so what’s my fucking problem???
that was fine. this kind of music always sounds all the same to me
I am going to be honest, I did not care for this album. Most of the songs just didn't do anything for me. The background instrumentals just sounded very repetitive, and not in a catchy way. I don't automatically think repetitive is bad, but it's gotta be catchy or something. I also did not care for the lyrics in most of these songs. It's all the same thing. "WE GOTTA FIGHT THE GUY FIGHT THE WAR DRINK BEER GRRRRR I AM SO TOUGH"
I can no longer say that I don’t understand Black Flag. Prior to this experience, I have tried to listen to the album specifically and it just was not something I could appreciate. It was abrasive, fast and felt sloppy. Everything sounded the same if I felt tired by the end. This time though, the abrasive and fast aspects of the feel unrelenting and angry. I could feel it for once. I could FEEL it. I am so hyped up on adrenaline right now I could run the 2 brick walls. I think the lead vocalist will run through them first though. Henry Rollins here. Just an oppressive presence throughout this 34 minute run time. The energy never falls through. It’s 200% go-go-go the whole time. The rest of the band tries their best to keep up. And yet, it works for me now. I felt the pocket the band was in and found myself constantly banging my head. I’m so excited to listen to more Black Flag.
This seems a fine hardcore album. But surely hardcore was already a bit passe by 1981?
An essential hardcore punk record for any punk rock music collection. Highly influential and still cool 40+ years later. Fuck Greg Ginn though. He ripped off everyone who was ever a part of Black Flag and that nonsense he trotted out not too long ago masquerading as Black Flag is a sham.
35 minutes of maybe even too intense punk music with miserable vocals. 1,5
I'm RED flagging this album as something I never want to hear again.
I grew up with this music. It was already old, but new to me. I haven't played it for years. It's harsher than I remembered. There's still new bands that try to sound like this. Favorite song: depression. They recorded more versions of this song before Henry Rollins became the singer. The other versions are better.
Not for me
Leuke punk, maar ook niks aparts
LOVE IT!! Such an awesome cover too... rules
Hell yeah Henry Rollins! Johnny Mnemonic is one of my favourite movies. I would especially recommend the black & white version.
just such a perfect capsule of one of the coolest sounds on earth
OTT heavy metal. I didn’t last long!
Nice to have some straight-up punk for a change. I don't really listen to much punk, but I enjoy it every now and then. Extra points for making me laugh with "TV Party." Hey, wait a minute, my TV doesn't work! It's broken!
7/10
I listened to this whole thing and unsurprisingly TV Party was the only song I liked. Otherwise allot of mediocre noise
Typical punk album (yawn) 1001 album worthy: No - 52/100
Angry and aggressive but not without some charm.
Feels like quintessential punk, though I don't know the exact timeline of bands to know where these guys fall. According to other reviewers, it's immensely important. Fast instruments, screaming, angst and social commentary, it has all the elements you want. It's pretty witty in it's cynicism in a pretty entertaining way. I think my favorites were TV Party and Damaged I. I'm going to knock it a star for it's mixing, as it's kind of hard to hear, even compared to other lo-fi punk.
4/5. Excellent guitar work and yes, vocals are interesting for sure, but it never was annoying which could have been the case. It's aggressive and they are still smart with their delivery and choice of words. It truly feels like someone on the brink of breakdown, less so an angsty attitude. It was a quick and to the point album, lingering on some songs a little longer than others. I wouldn't say I would dig this all the time but overall, much better than I was expecting from the get go. Definitely a solid punk record. Best Song: Rise Above, TV Party, Damaged II
Pulp's "This is Hardcore" is on this list. but it's britpop and it's not hardcore. and THIS, my friend, is TRUE HARDCORE. 3/5
I like it for the most part. Could use a little more variety to it for me. Still right up my alley Will I listen to again: 90%
A quintessential punk album. Doesn’t take itself too seriously, but still serious enough. Blast it, now.
Who knew I liked Black Flag? Not me.
2/10. Oh God this is really not my genre I guess. Was trying to work out if I liked this more or less than Peggy Suicide and genuinely I think less. It just really hard on the ears, I didn't like the vocals and the guitar playing isn't even interesting it's just the same boring power chords. I think the angry vibes is not why I listen to music and this is becoming more evident from my scores.
Rock
Probably the wrong choice of word to describe ‘Damaged’ by Black Flag, but I thought this was a lot of fun….angry and violent, but fun. The guitar playing (and drumming) is ear-splittingly hard and frenetic, like a pneumatic drill in your skull, but it’s Henry Rollins’ desperate, insistent screaming and pleading that really elevates ‘Damaged’ to its well-deserved classic status.
Maybe punk just isn't my thing.
Found to be almost grating to the ear
An okay album, I liked Rise Above but the songs started to sound a bit repetitive after a while.
This ended up being much better than I thought it would be. It starts off a bit unassuming, but the more you sit with it, the more its greatness shines. I do think that this album benefits a lot from hindsight as well as taking its cultural and musical impact into account. But it's still a really good, borderline great hardcore punk album. Then you add in that Kurt Cobain listed it in his top 50 albums, and you can hear some of the music that came after it clearly followed in its footsteps, and you can see that it really is a great album. Favorite Song(s): Thirsty and Miserable, Police Story, Damaged I
Ooh, raucous fun!
Classic album. For when ya just gotta rage.
One of the essential Punk albums. Henry Rollins has enough energy to bring down an entire building here. Rise Above is my clear favorite here but I like everything else on here as well. Maybe not my complete favorite Black Flag album but still a great one nonetheless.
nix für mich!
Had a great workout to this to be fair. Other than that it's pretty average (which is almost a good thing for punk).
She's no My War or Slip It In but I still have love for her. My War would be a 5 and should be on this list. Slip It In would never be on this list but I'm just yapping about how much I like it anyway because I think anyone who doesn't like that record is an idiot. Here's the real question: why is there no room to put in My War too but somehow all these irrelevant 00s British indie bands and every CSNY, Simon and Garfunkel and Beatles associated album known to man? The guy who made this list is so insufferable. But I listen through the list anyway... day 189
Rise Above - 5/5 (punk anthem fr) Spray Paint - 3/5 (short but intense) Six Pack - 4/5 What I See - 3/5 TV Party - 4/5 Thirsty And Miserable - 2/5 Police Story - 4/5 Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie - 4/5 Depression - 4/5 Room 13 - 4/5 Damaged II - 2/5 No More - 3/5 Padded Cell - 2/5 Life of Pain - 3/5 Damaged I - 3/5 Average score: 3.3/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ essential punk listening first two-thirds of the album was pretty good, could do without the last 4-5 songs
1/2
The saddest part is they really thought they cooked with this one
I know of Black Flag for two reasons - 1. I went thru a punk rock phase and 2. I know they’re one of John Frusciante’s favorite bands. However, this record didn’t really move me at all…
Just like My War, Damaged has horrible production. That being said, I prefer this album over My War because it's significantly more fun and energetic. But just like My War, it's way too simplistic to my taste, and where Dead Kennedys, for example, have been able to compensate with just how incredibly fun their vocals are, the vocals here are just fine, I guess. One song here (TV Party) even has a similar vibe, but the rest are quite a bit different, so I didn't like them as much. Still a good album, but there are other ones that do the same better. 7/10
Influential Punk album my arse! Released practically in 1982. So only 3 years late to the party then. Punk had burned out by 1979 you twats. Listen to Ramones, UK Subs, Sham 69, Sex Pistols, Damned if you want to be influenced. This album isn't at all bad, but influential? or something I need to hear before I die? Do me a favour, mate!
Very good genre music, not really my thing overall though
++: Rise Above, Six Pack, What I See, Thirsty and Miserable, Police Story, Depression, Room 13, No More, Life of Pain +: Spraypaint, TV Party, Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie, Padded Cell +-: Damaged II, Damaged I 7,9/10
Really good thrash punk rock album. Henry Rollins just destroys!!!
Just read that Mike Valooloo is fronting this band now ... ? Wha, wha, whaaa?! I don't know about you, but that sounds more like a business move than a good fit. And who knows about business..? Even shady business ... Greg Ginn. Greg Ginn of SST records was kind of a kingmaker in the 80's. Bands like Dinosaur Jr., Sonic Youth, Minutemen and yes Black Flag among others all went thru SST who made musicians famous and collected a lot of money for themselves. With bands leaving over unpaid royalties and shady deals SST folded. Greg Ginnn, (fun fact, is also Raymond Pettibon's brother) and with Henry Rollins were founding members of Black Flag. Rollins left the band and as far as I knew BF was defunct which leads me to Mike V. I've always been a fan of Mike's talent on the board going way back to Search for Animal Chin (look for him during Johnny Rad's set doing hell Mary's and street plants), but that was a long time ago. He's evolved, grown up and aged. Mike, tired of being bullied (and scared shitless after a demo in Toledo Ohio) adopted a badass persona and had the skills to back it up. There's the time he tried to fight Rocco and the board that teases this right before he left World and of course there's the famous ass-kicking he serviced three or four dudes with, and if you haven't seen that, you need to. And there is also the poetry he began writing and performing. I once saw him reading in RVA. It wasn't great. I've read Rollins, books, seen Rollins perform, granted after the BF days, and enjoyed his spoken word, quirky late night talk-show type entertainment. Mike V has other skills, skateboarding, yes, hockey, yes. Poetry and stage performances.... hmmm I gotta say no. But how was the album... ? Good / meh. I think BF's popularity came from the scene that it existed in. SoCal, aggro fuck shit up, SST records and the environment it built. But, 40 years on, I'm not sure it has a place in today, but I do appreciate Ginn's efforts to include a frontman who carries his own stardom. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cT0aajmFZs
Henry Rollins seems like a great guy. But Henry Rollins is a pretty intolerable singer. He did get better. His use of his voice for the Rollins Band in the 90s is definitely less grating. But he also started mixing in lots of spoken word, and then did whole albums and performances of spoken word as a solo artist. So maybe he agrees with me.
I like the energy, but I don’t know that I like the vocals enough to get through this again.
Not really my style of music but I got through the majority of the album. I can only do punk music in small doses.
Completely understandable why this included but not one for me 2*
It is just as angry as it was in 1981. Despite this level of gritty Punk not being a genre I enjoy now (ever?), it is still pretty f*cking badass.
This is probably one of the most influental albums out there. Voice of the youth in those days. And there is nothing more important than that.
Cant stand this sort of thing.
This albums stupid. It’s really fun. TV Party is objectively such a shitty song. I love it so much. It’s all about this vibe that just doesn’t exist anymore. I used to hate Black Flag because of that but in hindsight this album is a really fun little punk album
Albums like this makes me realize I have a pretty happy life, all things considered. A personal 3/5 but an objective 4/5 in terms of innovation and historical importance.
Once again, beef with punk
Didn't like
Repetitive and boring. Really hated, DNF.
insane. really intresting music, fell asleep through half of it due to feeling a sort of serene state. didnt fully grasp the concept but have a general feeling of it. overall, a very intresting album, one i would like to play back in the future.
It’s damaged, alright. I hated this shit when I was 20 and I hate it more now.
Would listen again - took me back to being a teenager!
At the risk of sounding like my mother, it’s just a lot of noise isn’t it! Hard to find too many redeeming features in this one unfortunately.
A frantic and often naive sound that is just plain noise at times, but there is a couple of songs I liked. Influential on later bands, but could have done with better production and fine tuning.
Defo an album that can only be really appreciated if you were in the scene when they were about. TV party is quite amusing )and feels like a massive influence on the Beastie Boys), the last song I quite liked, I think the riffs were slower. Otherwise, yeah it’s a massive influence etc etc, but I’m out.
I understand why it’s on the list. It makes me want to break shit. If I was 15 again and angry, it’d be my go to. But at 35. Not my speed anymore.
3.4 2x catch up 2/10
"Rise Above", "Six Pack," "TV Party", "Police Story" and "Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie" are the best tracks. Solid work from California punks. 3.6 stars rounded up.
gonna be honest. this one really grew on me. i'm not a huge punk guy, but i appreciate the genre for what it is. i have heard the name black flag a million times and have, of course, seen the logo in countless hot topic stores on the t-shirt wall, but have never actually listened to them until now. really fun, really frenetic, really aggressive. i liked the second half of the album more than the first half.
So this is how Henry Rollins started. Same raw energy. Abysmal production, but maybe fitting to this kind of punk. Still too much hardcore for me personally, but I can respect the importance of this.
Pretty great Black Flag record. Maybe kind of a low bar? Anyway I dig this. I was in a band when I was a kid and could totally picture how TV Party got written haha
Lekker ruige punk, wel echt op het randje van wat ik nog trek.
Goes hard. Interesting how much heavy punk today still sounds like this. Like I could even throw on a bunch of different local bands from 4ZZZ or wherever and their songs could almost be Black Flag and vice versa (I mean that in a positive way, like the genre is strong). Dug the track TV Party the most, it’ll be going in my playlists.
Boy this was a tough listen, and the closest I came to stopping an album part way through. Too bleak and despairing for me. Though I can say, I did get a small chuckle out of TV Party.
Not really in a punk mood today, but it was only 35 minutes, so that was a bonus.
I couldn't listen to this.
It was fine at first but man does it get exhausting the more you listen to it
Rubbish drivel
Great
Fuck ya!
I feel like I've been slagging a lot of albums lately because there's nothing on the album supporting the singles. I think this album is the opposite - the singles are good, and the whole album is great, singles and non-singles supporting each other. Great album.
15 tracks for a total of 34 minutes! I love this album, it might be my favorite Black Flag album. I would go all the way to 5 stars, but there are a few songs that don’t quite match the energy of the rest of the album.
A classic that hasn't aged at all. Still relevant topics unfortunately, guess we'll never learn.
Yup, still pretty darn good!
Way to much for me, very heavy rock.
Potverdikkie, de trommelvliezen krijgen het de laatste paar dagen sowieso al stevig te verduren, maar dit album doet er nog echt wel een schepje bovenop. Het geluid op dit album bestaat voor 90% uit een soort distorted noise en daar doorheen hoor je dan flinterdun wat muziek en geschreeuw. Alles wat er gebeurt op het album lijkt heel ver weg te gebeuren, verstopt achter een soort muur van matrassen gevuld met ruis. Veel hoge frequenties, drums die heel plat klinken. Een soort matige demo-tape. Schuurpapier, korrelgrootte 40. Ik wil dit graag hoger dan een 1 geven omdat ik de muziek eigenlijk wel tof vind, maar het kan gewoon niet. Heb het na 10 van de 15 tracks af moeten zetten omdat ik het geluid niet meer trok.
It’s too angry for me. I’ve never liked Henry Rollings personality and suspected I wouldn’t like his music. I guess this list has helped me confirm the fact I don’t like his music. Cool.
Nah bruh
It amuses me to no end that I can say, in all seriousness, that I prefer their later works.
Definitely a hardcore classic that set the mold for much of the hardcore bands that were to come throughout the 80s and 90s. As a lifelong tea-totaler Rollins straight edge-ish leanings always made this band more interesting to me than most of the punk bands out there. I personally love the tracks "Rise Above" and "Gimme Gimme Gimme". Now, having said all that, it is clear that the debut album is pretty rough and clearly recorded on a very limited budget. I can see how listeners today would be pretty hard pressed to enjoy it on first listen, but let me tell you, it was mind blowing at the time to hear a Black Flag record on cassette in the early 1980s for the first time.
I'm not usually into punk like this, but I thoroughly enjoyed this album.
Bollocks, another punk offering. At least they are short.
I was just having a moan yesterday about the lack of punk on this list - and here we are! 2 stars for the music, because I'm more into the fun cheeky punk than the angry punk, but an extra star because I think this is an important addition to the list in terms of music history and genre.
Henry Rollins barefoot stomps the Beatles
Hitta Hard
Didn’t resonate at all. Songs felt cheesy and forced
Не очень зашло это грязное звучание
Not very memorable.
What I thought was going to happen: a kinda wild hardcore album of satirical Dead Kennedys-ish songs with chaotic guitar solos playing a rhythm role What did happen: an album that gets increasingly insane and starts to sound like early Swans by the end?? so that was cool.
WHAT DO THEY KNOW ABOUT PARTYING….. OR ANYTHING RLSE?
4.5/5. So punk, fuck yeah Henry Rollins the man that you are.
ja jo men det är ju gött
A bit too angry for my taste.
Actually ended up enjoying this one more than I thought I would. Solid backup instruments, pretty generic sounding punk singing, but that's OK!
Sounds kinda rough, no?
Awesome riffs throughout this album.
Not into it
“I've got a six pack and nothing to do! I got a six pack and I don't need you!” OK, Henry.
# Album Name: Damaged # Artist: Black Flag # Rating: 2/5 # Comments: Decent opening track in Rise above. Pretty basic lyrics but some raw energy. Fuck me, i did not realise this way henry rollins lol. I wonder where that sucker came from. Now i know. The production on the album seems pretty fucked. Its like someone is playing the record in the room down the hall and i can hear it from the distance. Thats a big miss and a big shame. This band could and should have a big fuck off sound. Shame it doesnt live up to its reputation. I have a soft spot for british punk but this misses the mark for me. Theres way too many songs below average. # Top Tunes: Rise above / Thirsty and miserable. # Would I listen to it again? No
Frantic US hardcore punk which sounds a bit wimpy now. Its Ok but I was pleased when it was over.
I never got into Black Flag when I was younger and exploring punk/hardcore, and they still don’t appeal to me at this point in my life. It’s just a half hour that I wanted to hurry up and get through.
8/1001 Damaged is a very interesting album with some, at times, very shoddy production. Since getting properly into prog and latter doom the shorter songs, which are a hallmark of punk and even more so hardcore, made it hard for me to differentiate and appreciate it. Damaged is both instrumentally and vocally a great album with loads of fast and aggressive songs. Where it lacks, in my opinion, is when the production becomes too unpolished, which takes away some of the quality of Henry Rollins voice. One song I would like to highlight is Damaged I, which to me seem like an almost proto sludge song, and I’ve never heard it being spoken of like the b-side of My War. I just found that pretty interesting. 3,5/5
dnf
So this is what Henry Rollins did when he was younger? I was surprised how "adolescent" the themes were e.g. I'm bored, don't wanna watch TV. Not bad as hardcore punk, but not my bag. 2.5⭐️
It's ok but I would not be able to tell these songs apart if they didn't all begin with a guitar screech.
Very noisy and angry. Its not for me but I can appreciate it coming out in '81 and important it likely was
Honnêtement un peu déçu. Considérant le statut du band et de cet album, je m'attendais à être un peu plus impressionné. En comparaison à des contemporains comme Dead Kennedys, Minor Threat ou Descendents ça tombe un peu à plat. Ça valait quand même largement la peine d'être écouté. 6.5/10
West coast punk album that appeals to the teenager in me but at forty something just hit as hard
Very raw and angry punk. Honestly not a very pleasant listen. Stand-out: Damaged II
This time last year I got a Phil Spector Christmas album. That one was awesome. This one is awesome. I was 11 when this came out so it wasn't on my radar. I did see the Rollins Band with Gwar in '90. A memorable gig for sure. This banger is good aggressive fun. Classic Punk.
Not for me.
Give a few preteens enough instruction to hack out a crude melody and keep time. Then have them come up with lyrics about drinking and partying. Plug them into a PA and turn up the volume. This is what you get. It’s the first thing a garage band knocks out for a cover because it takes minimal talent and musicianship. This has no place on a best-of list.
Not my favorite hardcore punk band/project, but still undeniably great. 3.5/5
Whilst I like a lot of the music itself, there's something about the way its recorded that makes it feel small and lack punch. This is loud, raucous, messy music, but it sounds so distant and lacking in power. It's a weird dissonance between the music itself and how it sounds to me.
Ingratiatingly painful to listen to.
F*CK YEAH
Damaged is one of the best punk albums we've had, huge energy, MASSIVE influence on so much that came after it, Rollins dominates without feeling like he's taking over, songs and album overall are super tight, gets a 4 because the only problem with albums like this is that they can be a bit samey song to song but it still does a fair job of avoiding that. Top stuff.
Don't get the outpouring of love for this, to be honest. Obviously it's got tonnes of energy, but it's so tuneless and throaty, without much there that's lyrically interesting. It starts off pretty well and reasonably catchy, but loses that in the second half. Think it manages a 3 on the strength of the first half and the influence that it has had on the evolution of the punk scene, but it's not a particularly good 3 from me.
I have a friend who is probably Rollins' number one fan. I've seen Henry doing his spoken word thing a couple of times. I really enjoyed him as Zaheer in The Legend of Korra. Yet I've never really dug into Black Flag so it was nice to sit down with a short sharp introduction. If you'd asked me if I like hardcore, I would probably say no but albums like this make me question my understanding of hardcore. Faves: Rise Above, Six Pack, TV Party, Life of Pain
Heh, I was just wondering if there was any _hardcore_ hardcore on here, as the few albums we've had from hardcore acts have not sounded like my idea of hardcore. (Not that I should complain too much, as I'd generally rather listen to post/prog hardcore than the vanilla product!) Well, this album has a credible claim to spawning the genre. I'm giving it an extra star for respect, because pushing the whole DIY ethos really was a baller move. Fave tracks - "Six Pack", "Gimme Gimme Gimme", "Room 13"
Not my jam
Fast and fun
punky punky quote boring
This is punk / hardcore in it‘s purest form. Shredding guitars over some shouting and talking that sounds like their singer is drunken during the whole recording session. I like this album because it obviously was one of the first bands with a sound like this and that took some more steps into the hardcore genre.
4.5/10
Amazing, but not perfect
Not really into this style of punk but I can generally listen to it without hating my life too much thanks to my girlfriend being into punk. It was all just a bit too tuneless and thrashy for me.
11/12/24 This wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.
I get why this is good, and I typically love classic hardcore. This was a surprisingly difficult listen
wish i liked them more because Henry Rollins is cool. But as far as hardcore punk bands go they are more tolerable.
I got into a friendly argument with my British friend who asserted that if it's not from the UK, it can't be punk. Clearly, this album would prove him wrong? Punk in the UK came out of socio-economic hardship for the youth entering a stagnant adult world. Besides the location of the youth, what is this album if not that – a clear reaction to maturing into a stagnating world? He's wrong, I'm right. Black Flag = Punk Rock.
No
Not my type
I wish I could give this a 2.5. It's too harsh for my taste, but there are interesting ideas.
Same issue ive had with other Punk albums. A bit too angry without musical prowess. Interesting, but not amazing
Now that’s a proper punk album.
Pretty spectacular hardcore. Black Flag are angry but they’re also smart and witty and strong songwriters. This album is plenty noisy but the feedback and sloppiness don’t get in the way of the riffs. And the vocals are produced in a way that makes them easy to hear on most songs. It’s well controlled chaos. Damn, this last track “Damaged I” is so heavy. I’m gonna have to revisit this album some more. This is incredible.
One of the best hardcore punk metal bands ever, this is such a classic. "Rise Above" probably launched a thousand hardcore/punk/metal bands. I know it really inspired some of my bands- we used to cover it at the ends of shows when our time slot was just about over and we wanted to squeeze in one more song. Some really brutal songs on here- "What I See" is particularly rough. Funny how it goes from that into "TV Party". Solid album. It's really in between a 3 and a 4 for me, like a 3.4.
influential! i hope they find a way to watch the monday night game
Yet another punk album, and they are all the same; shouting lyrics, fast tempo and wall of guitars! Not a lot here that is different but the song intros do allow for some hope ... but no ... they just go back to the standard genre. I did quite like 'TV Story' though. Nothing particularly noteworthy otherwise.
I’d forgotten all about this album. I had it taped for me. Not as earth shattering as the Dead Kennedy’s debut but it did leave an impression. Listening to it now I can hear much in common with other bands I listened to around this time, it seems very British Punk. Definitely one of the influential bands and albums of the Early 80’s punk scene
Oi oi oi
Ok like.
Too much for me
Legendary punk rock from early 80s. Loved this kind of music as a teenager back then… but now I am older, and have moves on
I appreciate them more now then I did then
Great record. Despite what my wife said when she walked into the kitchen with me playing this a 6:30am.
Damaged is the debut studio album by Black Flag, originally released in 1981. What a landmark recording in music history. One of the early hardcore records. And man this thing is packed with energy. Right off the bat with "Rise Above". It immediately draws you in. Many would say this isn't their best album, but it's so damn good! You 100% need to hear this before you die.
Rise Above has been a mainstay on my punk playlists for ages now. This album is fantastic. I hear it in all the albums I grew up listening to later.
3☆/5 11.14 2024
Yeah, I like early Black Flag and this album is good, mostly great songs on this one!
The first time I heard Black Flag was when I saw the video for, "TV Party" and what struck me the most was their sense of humor. Sure, the music is hard-hitting, aggressive and angry, but the best long-running punk bands, (Descendents, Circle Jerks, NOFX) use humor to enhance their message, be it political or "raging against the machine". I would love to have been at early Black Flags shows to experience the intensity and vigor of the band, but surely I would have been terrified to get the shit kicked out of me from skinheads or an angry Henry Rollins. "Damaged" is up there with the best punk albums, it's influential sound and amazing playing makes this a must-hear classic, even if you don't love the genre it's still essential listening. And besides without Black Flag, guitarist, Greg Ginn and their debut, there wouldn't be the SST Records label that became the driving force for the 80's hardcore American underground scene.
I have never listened to Black Flag and this is not a genre I usually listen to, but that was pretty fun. I think I’d enjoy listening to this album during hockey scrimmages or if I needed to really intensely get into some other activity. I’m also generally a Henry Rollins fan, so even better.
I have tried over and over to get into Blag Flag and it's just not for me. The manosphere is too strong to get through. I need my punk rock spiked with a little sugar and this was pure adrenaline all the time. I get why it appeals to people, just not for me.
I'm not a huge punk fan but this is not terrible. It's not too wall of fuzz sounding as some punk can be. The singing is not terrible either, I'm sure there is a great punk type message there if I looked at the lyrics. Not bad but I probably don't need to listen to it again.
Ughh
Just not for me.. 4/10
Great punk! Like it!
Really not for me
I liked this more than I thought I would for a 7am pre-coffee listen. I've been excited to listen to some of the most influential punk albums through this project, but punk is not usually how I ease into my morning, ha. I'm actually listening a second time right now and think this will grow on me more. I liked the first half a lot more than the second, with Rise Above, TV Party, and Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie being the standout tracks as of now.
Raw power hardcore punk music. Rollins is angry and he shows it through every song. My favorites: Six Pack TV Party Thirsty and Miserable Room 13 Must-listen if you say you like punk music. 5/5
Seminal hardcore punk album, with a couple of stand out tracks.
Did not like a single song on this album. Maybe this genre of music is not for me
Really not my thing at all. Every word is spat out rather painfully. It doesn't sound as much like the vocal control you normally hear in metal (I dont listen to metal much...), as it does someone with a bad cough going onto stage anyways. They are probably skilled on their instruments, but everything sounds the same, and when I skimmed through the album before writing this, I had a very hard time finding anything to like at all. Best Song: No More Worst Song: TV Party
Unlistenable, it's chatoic with harsh vocals and rough production. All the songs sound the same and it's hard for someone outside the hardcore punk circle to enjoy any of this. Best song: Rise Above Worst song: Damaged II
Certainly one of the angrier albums I've heard in this project. There are good bones on this album, a solid foundation. But some of the songs border on incoherence and really detract from the songs that are a bit more fleshed out and actually decent. Punk is slowly growing on me, but this isn't quite it. Top tracks: Rise Above, Damaged I
Like a really good shit. Two thumbs up! The butt!
I think I want to like this more than I actually do. The vocals get old but the content and message is strong.
I guess I had to be there. The guitar sounds are kinda cool though. And I kinda like “TV Party”. I just don’t like Rollins. Wouldn’t load on Spotify so I had to listen on YouTube and ironically, therefore sit through commercials between songs.
It was okay
wtf
Sjonge jonge. Mijn 'Life of pain' raakte hier behoorlijk 'damaged' van. 'No more', riep ik al snel, ik raak in een 'Depression', ik ben nu al 'Thirsty and miserable', 'Gimmie gimmie gimmie' alsjeblieft een 'Six pack', het is tijd voor een 'TV party' in 'Room 13' of in een 'Padded cell' om enigzins bij te kunnen komen van deze achterlijke bagger...
Er staat veel te veel punk in deze lijst. Er kan heel wat uit. En dit lijkt mij een prima kandidaat. Wat voegt het toe ten opzichte van de rest? Ik ga het niet opzoeken, maar muzikaal in elk geval niets. 1,5 ster.
Yes, weer een grondlegger. Ik ken Black Flag voornamelijk van naam. Ik heb meer de muziek geluisterd, die hieruit is voortgekomen. Al is deze plaat ook overduidelijk voortgekomen uit een ander genre, namelijk de punk. En dat hoor je heel duidelijk terug in een nummer als TV Party. Ze hebben 'nothing better to do', maken gewoon een bak herrie en roepen lekker hard dat ze niks te doen hebben. Maar in andere nummers hoor je al wel meer de hardcore punk terug. Veel energie, een rauwe bak herrie en een moordend tempo. En met teksten die je met zijn allen kan meezingen of schreeuwen, zoals in Six Pack. Het is muziek voor in de obscure en kleine achterafzaaltjes, waar dan een groep jongeren zich even helemaal kan uitleven. Alle agressie eruit gooien. Het is allemaal wat ongepolijst, later komen er ook bandjes die er wat meer melodie in verwerken. Maar het tempo blijft en ook de zang blijft vaak ruw. Alleen bij een band als Ignite kon de zanger een beetje zingen en dat is dan ook gelijk een vreemde eend in de hardcorebijt. Overigens is 'zanger' Henry Rollins later meer spoken word gaan doen, waarbij hij ook gedichten ging voordragen enzo. Dat past hem vast beter, want zingen kan hij zoals de meeste hardcorezangers niet. Performen wel. En dat was in de 80s hardcore punk veel belangrijker. Ik geef het 4 sterren, omdat ik aan het genre veel plezier beleefd heb. Dit is een grondlegger en wat ruwer en ongepolijster dan ik graag zie. Daarom geen extra bonuspunten om het op te hemelen naar 5 sterren, om te compenseren voor minimaal 1 zure broeder. Desalniettemin vind ik Black Flag wel een terechte toevoeging aan de 1001-snoblijst.
Y'know? It's fine. Standard punky fun. "TV Party" is endearingly goofy.
Always makes me watch to listen to Rise Above by Dirty Projectors
Black Flag's Damaged is one of the greatest debut albums in the punk rock genre. Infused with fury, humor and the decency to keep things short and sweet (with a few exceptions), there is an unrelenting intensity across Damaged's thirty-four minutes that would have been laughable if it were any other band (okay maybe Dead Kennedys would have done something similar). It's only in the album's last few minutes where we hear the band drift into a far slower, yet no less menacing, tempo that would be expanded upon in subsequent records. But that's for later. Damaged is essential listening for anyone willing to delve into the American side of punk rock.
Perfection
Mystic spiral did it first 4/10
Not so good, but I heard it anyway
Absolutely seminal, one of the most influential albums of all time, absolutely bangs.
Interesting early punk album TV party Depression
Too angsty for my liking.
I can't discern one song from another, what the heck is this dude yelling about
8/10. Really sick. Really influential. I love its energy!!! :)
i am a massive punk fan. this type of grimy, filthy, and typically offensive (at least to some listeners) music is what keeps my faith in music as an art form. being able to just say whatever over simple riffs hits the same way that roadside graffiti hits for me. a simple statement that says "fuck the mainstream" and exists for the sake of creation. id love to see more punk as i keep doing this project.
Full marks for lack of subtlety. I have a huge soft spot in my heart for Henry Rollins.
Brilliant, angry lashing out
Sometimes punk works for me. Mostly it doesn't. This is great for what it is. And I'm always grateful that bands like this can never sustain a song for more than 2 1/2 minutes. I can deal with the songs where they actually tried to craft a song. But the ones that are just let using their instruments to jerk off? Not so much. An extra star for being ahead of the punk curve for the 80s.
This was a loud, grinding, screaming album, and I liked it. TV party took me back to the soundtrack from Repo Man. I'll give this album four black bars.
Can hear what influenced the coming surge of speed and thrash metal in this, as well as more avante-garde indie stuff, mixed in with the raw punkness of it all.
Nice Punk Album.
Goes hard.
This record goes by fast. Rollins is now an elder statesman of punk. But at the time this was so raw. It's not my favorite. I do prefer some melody here and there. But this was huge.
sbpunk
One of the first hardcore punk bands, and still one of the best. Fast, brutal, bitingly sarcastic.
And that sucked, even for Punk Rock it was bad.
It's not right most of the time, but when it hits, it hits. Obviously a landmark moment in hardcore punk and everything beyond. Let the boys yell
anotherrubbishpunkalbumanotherrubbishpunkalbumanotherOH It's that track from Futurama!anotherrubbishpunkalbum
Just kept getting worse and worse.
I love this album and it has objectively changed the course of music history. It is good, but it isn’t perfect. The range could be better. The vocals almost work. Henry has the right voice for the band, but they would be even better if he could get the note right when singing. The instrumentation could be a tad sloppy as well. Everything else was beautiful. A perfect “fuck you” to the powers that be. I think everything they set out to achieve and I enjoy it a lot. 4/5
I'm not a punk music guy but when people want to talk punk with me I know a bit about the Ramones and a bit more about Black Flag. This album is a classic punk mile marker. I hope listening to it didn't ruin my day. :p
Starts out on a really solid note with "Rise Above", with a couple other bangers scattered throughout ("TV Party", "Six Pack") but the back half starts to get a little grating and repetitive (even with the short runtime).
Come out hard, come out fast, hit it. Change. Have a brew. Sounds like what DIY should sound like and help remind you why hate overproduced bullshit.
Quite liked the punk vibe at the start but by the end just found it irritating.
My knowledge of black flag before listening to this album was the reference in the Atari’s version of the song boys of Summer (they replaced Grateful Dead sticker with black flag sticker) and a bit of in between song banter from Ryan Adams, where he was stating that some people south of the mason Dixon line listen to Black flag, intimating that they weren’t all dumb shit kickers. So I get that black flag is a cultural touch point, but on my first full album exposure to them I was not super impressed
I was really enjoying the first half — for anyone familiar with the movie Repo Man, the song "TV Party" was always on my radar. There was a lot to like in that first half of the album — good riffs, good lyrics, there was something going on. But that seemed to stop on a dime and give way to a much nosier, less coherent set of songs that were way less intriguing and which really changed my take on the band. Shoulda been an EP!
I didn't hate it. A couple of songs were kind of fun. Other than that, I'm not sure I really see the appeal. Maybe Rollins became a better front man later on, but he doesn't strike me as special on this debut.
noise
Great album of course, with one of the best opening songs, only discovered this album years after its release, it has this typical early 80s american guitar, so like it very much. Well-timed record as well (as I am currently reading Corporate Rock Sucks about SST records).
This had a good energy to it, and Rollins' intense vocals contributed to that, but musically there wasn't enough to really pull me in.
Respectable punk album, a little too intense for me.
Loved that.
I’ve heard of black flag and Henry Rollins but I never listened to any of their music. Punk rock is hit or miss for me, with more than half leaning towards miss. This album was interesting. I definitely want to check out more of their music
Loud and angry, good fun. Unrefined and not very musical. At the edge of my tastes with regards to dissonant vocals, but I enjoyed it.
A pivotal album for hardcore and the indie DIY movement. It takes a couple of listenings but this album is perfect. Raw, ironic, and fun - damaged has it all!
Damaged and Life of Pain. Great titles for my experience listening to this album. Not my genre, for sure.
Probably not the most enjoyable concept to ponder considering my current mindset of late, but I’ve often wondered what effect your mood has on critiquing music. Right now, I was more than happy to dive deep into the cathartic, nihilistic chaos of this album as it resonates. But even without bathing in that toxic soup there’s still such a bombastic blast mostly led by Henry Rollins that sucks you in. A classic for a reason.
I'm actually a little surprised that my recent detour into Hardcore never steered me into Black Flag. Glad for the list to fix that... Unlike some other Hardcore I've listened to this album spans a wide range of emotions and styles. Sure its got the upbeat, angsty, "fuck the system" punk tracks (Rise Above, Spray Paint), and the body slamming fight music (Police Story, Room 13, Padded Cell), but it also has straight up comical satirical commentary (TV Party, Six Pack), and several songs that are a bit more introspective (Depression) and even verging on sludge (Damaged). If nothing else this album is raw and unabashed. While the first half is certainly more "propulsive" in general, I actually found myself more drawn to the back half. Particularly those songs that feel like they are trying to pull themselves apart: Life of Pain (which opens like a perverted Mahavishnu Orchestra song), and Damaged I (which feels completely self-destructive). My fondness has only grown with repeated listens. Unsure if I'm quite in a perfect 5 camp, but were this a scale of 10, this would sit in the low 9s... As it is, this is a strong 4 / 5 for me.
Horrible punk album. Just horrible to listen to. Damaged...yes I am. 1.5 stars
Bad, boring album. TV Party was funny! Glad this was a shorter album and had one good song.
Hardcore Punk is my least favorite kind of punk. And I already do not like punk
This is some solid fight music. I think I was in the right mindset for it but definitely not one I'll always be into. Henry Rollins rules.
with albums like this, i think it’s also important to consider its legacy and impact when rating it. asides the music on the record, this album was amongst the first to showcase proper punk, taking inspiration from british punk bands and channelling it into the us. its impact on modern day music is likely pretty big, so i have to bear that in mind when considering this record. as for the music, i enjoyed it. the short songs make the album very fast-paced, and just as you get into a rhythm, or a certain guitar riff, its whisked away from you as they push on into the next track. for me, that keeps the album fresh. it’s very in your face and very aggressive, and i’m all about that. a great record.
Not a fan
mér finnst þetta einhæft og lítið um melódíur. engu að síður er þetta ekki án sjarma. 3,5.
Please... no more punk... I can't take anymore...
🤮 I don’t like punk
This album was crazy, I wanted to like it but just could not believe a band put this out