Cut

Absolute banger album. Genre defining masterpiece and a pinnacle of one of the coolest sounds in the continuum of punk, dance, rhythm based music. Love love love.

Some of you think you're too good for Kurt Cobain's 50 Greatest Albums List. It is certainly disheartening to read some of the reviews here, just as it is to read the reviews for other maligned records like Kollaps or Junkyard. More disheartening, though, are the ecstatic reviews we see for utterly banal, conventional albums. Cut is full of charm, exuberance, and abandon - the opposite of banal, the opposite of convention. It is no demerit to The Slits that the needed a great drummer like Budgie to ground their frivilous excitement. It is no demerit that they needed a skilled producer like Dennis Bovell to bring it all together. It is no demerit that they never achieved this quality again. But it is precisely the unschooled chaos that the Slits bring here, the wild element that is neatly framed by the men, that makes this such an enjoyable record. It is a joyous, positive album, unbothered by the limitations of the players or the limits of conventional taste. A greater punk statement than either the pompous rage of the Clash or the nihlistic snark of the Pistols. Great. 3.5 This was charming. The core of its charm is surely its frivolousness, notwithstanding how dreadfully important posterity has declared the album to be. Cut’s best moments savour of weird playground chants and its duller moments (FM, Newtown) occur when it moves furthest away from that energy. The drums are excellent. I love German accents. I like that shade of purple. 2.5/5

This is definitely not easy listening! In fact, The Slits are so bad that it’s actually funny: no one can play their instrument, their sense of rhythm is pretty rudimentary, and the vocals… well, they’re there, at least. Is this a must-listen? Surprise: I think so! In terms of the songs, it’s clearly a 1 out of 5, but in its own unique way, “Cut” is so consistent that I’m actually giving it a second star.

Didn’t realize that this album was so influenced by reggae. Very interesting listing and Typical Girls is a standout track here.

long live feminist punk!! Rating: 3.5/5 GEMV (06.11.2026)

This is a great album. Love how the dub and reggae influence merges with the punk sound. Great basslines, poignant lyrics, impassioned performances all around.

Extraña musica, no logro encontrarle el ritmo, no me gustó

Shit

I loved this album. What a great attitude these girls had, to form this band with little or no musical knowledge/experience. And … there were a lot of punk bands out there, which were not musically so advanced. But most were able to achieve any fame at all. BRAVO!

Frábær plata. Brautryðjandi sound. Hrátt og ógeðslegt. Mjög áhugaverðar og sorglegar wikipedia síður varðandi hljómsveitina og meðlimi.

Legendary hljómsveit og plata. Kærustur Clash og 15 ára stjúpdóttir Johnny Rotten. Einfaldleikinn í fyrirrúmi enda hljóðfærakunnáttan ekki sú mesta. En þú þarft ekki að kunna mikið ef þú ert skapandi og hugmyndaríkur. Hægt að draga beina línu frá þessari plötu í frumraunir margra hljómsveita, ekki síst stelpupönk seinni tíma. Tek þetta alla daga fram yfir tónskrúð Steely Dan.

This was pretty good but I would only do it in small doses

Okay, that was good fun :) very rough around the edges as is understandable, but definitely one I've listened to a couple of times now - I'll always place emotion and enjoyment over pure technical prowess, and The Slits have them in spades!

Meandering and boring.

I kinda like this. The ska/dub or whatever it is element caught me by surprise, as did the Marvin Gaye cover, wow. I expected more screaming, which shows you how much I know about or appreciate punk. So very not on the radar of 15-year-old me, and I won't listen to it again, but this felt like much less of a waste of 40 minutes of my life than number of other albums I've forced myself to listen to up until now.

Not a fan of ska/dub influenced punk. It always sounds off somehow.

not bad.

A good time Ahead of the time

Good but not an album I envision myself grabbing for much. 3.5 stars.

loved how crazy and madcap this whole thing is. the whole thing is a feast for the senses with all the unusual sounds and influces and lyrics and how she uses her voice. Typical Girls and Heard It Through the Grapevine were standouts.

Weird as hell but in a good way, I think. Parts of it work better for me than other parts. Took me a bit to get on board with what they are doing but I thought the energy was great, the drumming was good, the vocals were grating at times but also a huge part of what makes it enjoyable. I’m happy to have listened to it, but I think I’d really have to be in the right mood to listen to it again. Fav song: Spend, Spend, Spend Least fav: Shoplifting

It's unapologetically messy and noisy and energetic, so much so that if it was made by men I think I'd hate it. But it was made by 17 year old Ari Up and so every choice that might annoy me instead feels revolutionary. It's also not hard to see why this made it on the list- beyond it's impact it's so interwoven with other artists of the time. Johnny Rotten's stepdaughter, The Clash's Mick Jones' girlfriend and the future Siouxsie and the Banshees drummer make an album together that becomes one of Kurt Cobain's favourite 50 records. I don't love the reggae aspects. Favourite song: So Tough Least: Instant Hit

How do you even ruin Grapevine? I'm all for women making it in rock music especially at that time but I hate it

I want to like this - I like the attitude - but the vocal style is somehow doing both way too much and not near enough. It’s both overly affected and boring to me because it’s trying so hard to be cool and disengaged. I need more feels, personally. Cool name tho.

Это ваще чё? типа.. не совсем понимаю как мне относится к группе "Щели". Это оригинально? Да. Неуклюже в своей оригинальности? Тоже да. Но я все ещё хз как это воспринимать. Типа, вы смешали регги ритмы с панк-структурой, ок, мы поняли это ещё по первым двум трекам, но это альбом не с двумя треками, чё дальше то? Увы, тут нет талантливых мелодистов с хуковыми мелодиями как Баззкокс, Рамонес или Пистолз, или здесь нет разрушительно гипнотического балагана, который приковывает тебя (Студжес) здесь сборник довольно слабеньких песенок. Возможно стоит послушать девчонок с их "Don't take it serious" и действительно просто похехать с этого альбома да и всё.

I guess there’s no sitting on the fence with this one. I actually enjoyed it. Would I buy it? No. Would I listen to it again? Yes. 3 Stars.

Best Track - "I Heard It Through The Grapevine"

Cack

és com un reggue punk molt raro turbio no he agabat d'entendre bé la vibe pero x las mujeres unga bungas ! confirmo es com flos mariae raríssim q merdes no mg. chando estava a sobre meu però s'ha traumat i ha pirat

This album is kind of wild. This is a classic "I appreciate that it exists, but I didn't really enjoy the actual music." I don't even know how to describe it except that it's a little punk, a little reggae and really out there. My favorite track was the bonus cover of I Heard It Through the Grapevine, mostly because I already like that song and so The Slits' style didn't ruin it for me. I feel like I have to give this two stars just for the weirdness of it.

Slits? More like the shits…amirite???? Thought maybe this would be some edgy clever kind of thing. It just sucked. Really bad. Drummer had some talent but really an awful record. Hated it.

Painful...

Weird in 1979, still weird 45+ years later. Awlright, three chicks naming their band The Slits and being topless on their debut album cover is gonna get ya on The 1001 Must Hear List whether you’re good or not. These gals seem like a local fad to me, but ida gone to see them. They’re definitely different than everything else we’ve heard on The List, but that doesn’t make it good. (2.45*s) I wonder if Cyndi mighta gotten some of her ideas from The Slits.

The debut album from The Slits is unique. A blending of ska, reggae, punk-rockabilly, pop, with some silverware thrown in. I wasn't hating it. Sloppy and scattered at times but good fun. You gotta follow the advice on "So Tough" and don't take it seriously. "Typical Girls" is top track. Got to admit I even liked the grapevine cover and the weird finale added some more character to the whole affair. I'm sure the muddy buddies cover probably got banned. 2.70 stars for being not so typical girls cutting a cool record.

What a weird album. Almost hard to take it seriously at times as it sounds like a bunch of drunken female hooligans just rambling on a mic in front of some oddly punk-but-not-really-punk beats. For the first few songs I was kinda on board, but the novelty did wear off by the end of it. Credit given to The Slits for being original, I'm just not sure it's any good beyond a handful of songs, though I am glad that I heard it in the end. I'm sure it was fun if you managed to catch them during the couple years they were active. Otherwise I can see why this would be a weird musical footnote and otherwise mostly overlooked album from the 80s. 2.24 stars

This one was fun, good energy. No real standout songs though, when it ended I just kind of moved on and didn't really think about it at all the rest of the day.

This grew on me a little bit since I last listened to it, but it's still not entirely my thing. There were moments I liked though, especially the drums. I'm gonna give this a 3

Great stuff

I like the Heard It Through The Grapevine cover, the rest not so much.

alsof Crass samen met the B-52s een reggae album wilden maken...

idk i liked it dont @ me

Fav song: I Heard It Through The Grapevine

Gleich nach Duck Stab/Buster & Glen - The Residents ist alles ein Schritt nach vorne. Dennoch war ich nach ein paar Liedern gelangweilt.

"Die Schlitze" Wow so edgy

*1979. *I want to like girl punk and riot grrrl type music, but rarely does it hit. *This was fine - a little noisy and disjointed, but not offensive. *Probably a 2.5, but I'll round up. RATING - 6/10

Cool!

I have never heard of this group but it was an interesting listen. Simple reggae with the raw emotion of punk music. This would have been a fun band to see back in the day.

There’s so many different directions I could go with this but none of them are very positive. Three topless girls on the cover? Trying to make up for their lack of talent or professionalism originality with their muddy boobs? That trick isn’t going to work on me. The Slits are still just a band of three who bring nothing special to the table.

By all rights, I should have hated this. Certainly there was nothing to like. But at the same time, it was not repulsive. Reminds you of steel pans, but without a single steel pan. I guess the best characterization is punk + steel pans without steel pans. ? Guaranteed I will never be putting it on.

I can honestly say I've never heard music that sounds like this. Yes - it has a lot of reggae and dub influence. And it's clearly early punk. And yet - it doesn't sound quite like either of those things. The novelty doesn't wear off. There's a surrealism to the entire album, but not dream-pop surreal or shoegaze surreal - the guitars are jangly, the bass is all over the place, and the drums are snappy and precise. It's all in your face and clear - and yet - it doesn't add up. It's a delightful feeling. I really enjoyed this! FOUR STARS

2,4 Highlights: So Tough, Spend, Spend, Spend

I recognize that this was supposed to be a fun listen; I just think they caught me at a bad time.

Not my thing

I <3 women who can't sing

Really weird and obscure, especially in the voices (reminds me of Bjork, but without the danceability) No wonder why it's absolutely forgotten today

Minimalistischer punky dubby Reggae, 1979 -> 2

Good

Just a bit rubbish really

This sounds like the essence of DIY music, so i can see how it would be influential. I doubt it ever would have gotten noticed (or made) if the Clash hadn't already given them a spot on their tour. I can hear some interesting musical ideas brewing way under the surface, but ultimately this is a bit too rough of a listen for me to likely return. It is interesting that the drummer would go on to join Siouxsie not long after.

I enjoyed a couple of the songs, but most of them were underwhelming, and the playing and singing were amateurish as is typical with early punk music. Maybe that’s part of the point, but that’s why I’m not a fan of most punk. 2.5/5

This was nothing more than just a bunch of rhythmless noise and “singing”. I’d rather listen to The Shaggs than whatever the hell this was any day.

Revolutionary! Legitimately sounds like something that would be played in Australian pubs these days tbh

Wacht, dit is een punk band toch? Wat gebeurd er dan bij het eerste nummer? En het tweede nummer? Misschien wel het hele album..? Ik had nu punk verwacht, maar in plaats daarvan luister ik naar een soort vreemd ska achtig album. Ok, dit is dus een punk album, op de manier dat traditionele normen zoals song structuur enzo niet serieus worden genomen. De cover geeft natuurlijk al best wel wat weg. Dit is een provocatief album, ben alleen niet heel erg weg van deze punk ska stijl van reggae... Ben ook echt echt echt echt geen fan van de Heard it through the grapevine cover... Maar moet wel zeggen dat ik iets beter de artiest begrijp daarna. Het is gewoon niet helemaal mijn stijl, ska trek ik al matig, punk is niet zo mijn ding en reggae... Tsja ik vind Bob Marley echt wel vet en kan ook van andere reggae als Mo'Kalamity en Jimmy Cliff best genieten, maar het is altijd in kleine doseringen. Uiteindelijk; verfrissend om een volledig vrouwelijke ska punk band te horen, het is niet echt mijn smaak, maar ik snap wel waarom ze op de lijst staan. FAVO:

To the person who said this was only included for political correctness - suck it!

Felt a little bit light weight punk/ska that did not really connect with me. It scrapes a 3 with bonus point as Lizzie just read Viv Albertines book and loved it (and her)

Female punkers in a man's world and brave enough to go topless on their album cover, but the music was shite.

Ever been to a musical and there is a petulant child in the cast who gets to be her smarmiest with her own song? And it's the worst part of the musical . . . This is like an album full of that. Just not good.

A real oddity this one - I've always been aware of the Slits of course (and not just for this album cover!) but had very little idea what to expect musically. I knew and enjoyed the "I Heard it Through the Grapevine" cover but think I always saw The Slits as more punk and less dub. There's a very earlydoors DIY ethos going on here which works better in some instances than others, but I can imagine The Slits being (to the dismay of their parents) the idols of many a young person growing up in the late 70's. The somewhat unfathomable "Ping Pong Affair" is quickly followed by the great "Love und Romance" and "Typical Girls"; it's all a bit of a mishmash but I'm glad I listened.

Definitely hard to rate this. Clearly influential, but I can’t say I liked it. I didn’t hate it either, and I did feel that by the end it had clicked. Maybe worth another go.

Going through this album was definitely a challenge. I feel like it just didn't "click" for me - I was surprised to see so much love on this site and from critics for this album. The singing didn't land well on my ears at all. A lot of times the instrumentation felt clunky or awkward. I will say that near the end there were times that the song structures (or lack of structures at times) did sound nice - it's unfortunate I didn't get more of that feeling throughout. I have this one as an even 1.5 in my head, but will round up 2 given how influential I heard The Slits were.

Not a fan. Found the music to be annoying and not worth another listen.

To say up front, I don’t think I could truly click with this because I don’t think the vocals are my bag - they fit with the punk sound and the general tone of the music and all that, I’m just not on the vibe. But doing heavy reggae and dub influence over some punk, so you can play loose with the instruments but tight with the production, that’s kind of some real good shit. The production is incredibly clean which gives it more of a timeless feel, as well as the influence going forward from the sound and lyricism to current acts (I.e. I kept thinking about Last Dinner Party for whatever reason listening to this).

This album is more important than it is great. That said, it has some great moments and tracks. I am more a purist on track listing, so I am not factoring in the wonderful cover of I Heard It Through the Grapevine. However, I still think you get a really solid album here. They remind me a little of early Police, but it makes sense to me why they didn't develop into a more accessible band. More importantly, I don't think it bothered them at all.

Really tried to like this album but it just didn't hit home. Not too fussed on the HITTGV cover either.

Punky, not really for me

This was awesome! What a kickass group and I totally dig the unique qualities of the songs and sound. Wish they’d lasted longer. I’ll revisit this for sure. ML414

Such a singular awesome lp

I rather enjoyed that.

DO NOT! There is help available if you need it!

Throw a punk band that don’t know how to tune their own instruments at a reggae producer and somehow you get a masterpiece.

Some proper punk here with great music. A little frantic at points but I guess that's kinda the point. The greatest cover of Grapevine known to humankind.

A mystery how this can be rated so much lower than stuff like the Sex Pistols. I guess it pays to be a male band!

Meh

Typical Girls is a good song, and I understand why riot grrrl movement starts with them, and without the Slits, we wouldn’t have bands like Bikini Kill, but oof. Not a painful listen, but clearly not for me. The blend of reggae and post-punk is not something I was expected, and in a sense I didn’t like it. Typical Girl is the only “punk” song of the album, and their best by a mile. 1/5. Won’t listen again. Instant Hit : 1 So Tough : 1 Spend, Spend, Spend : 1 Shoplifting : 1,5 FM : 1 Newtown : 1 Ping Pong Affair : 1 Love und Romance : 1 Typical Girls : 4 Adventures Close to Home : 1

Жіноча панкуха) Ну нарешті)

just because you had influence doesn't mean it was good music... more late 70s English punk. Again. yay

Just as postpunk was starting, The Slits were there early on as this badass all-girl band with a strong dub influence (thanks to Dennis Bovell's production that makes this album worthy of 'the cut'). This is the fun, zany and crazy without being super quirky music of the 70s that should be heard by more people. The Slits influence is somewhere under the 'your favorite musician's musician' sort of thing, they weren't around for too long unless you managed to see them during their semi brief reunion tours. Certainly a little more than an interesting footnote for postpunk history

1979 Post-punk, dub-reggae, art rock Siouxie and the Banshees en sus canciones más punk.

This was interesting listen. Definitely a must-listen and sounds very innovative for its time but lot of the songs were a bit - meh. It should be a 4 but its a 3 for me.

Meh

Ok, wow. It was kind of like looking at a car accident; like I know I needed to leave but I couldn't stop staring at it. I wanted to turn it off but I'd be like "ok one more song then I'll stop" but I couldn't stop. It was bad but I actually loved it because it's just so different from anything I listened to previously.

This is great vibes, but it’s a lot of the same. Reggae punk. Extra points for being a badass girl band with an attitude.

I’m pretty certain one of my older cousins used to rave about The Slits and I might have heard fragments of this before but the cover of Heard It Through The Grapevine was the only one I recognised for definite. Overall I really enjoyed this, but there were quite a few points where I wanted it to have a bit more attack, snarl and bite.

I have to own that I'm partial to things that sound more like raw artifacts than ultra polished albums. I think the recordings that come from exploration, error and serendipity create something more interesting to listen to even if the original artist feels like they failed to convey their idea. I don't really know much about the Slits or what they were setting out to do but I like it. I had heard 'Typical Girls' many years ago and I became temporarily obsessed with it. I think it's the most fascinating song on here. I understand the criticisms a lot of the other raters have on here but after all of the astonishingly bland entries on this list, this album is like a freshwater oasis in an endless desert for me personally.

Interesting fusion of genres (feel like ive said that before!)

Very enjoyable, snotty post-punk that has never quite given me an adrenaline spike like similar albums of the era.

A revelation

Wacky but tilting more to the weirder side than the cool side

I really wanted to like this. I appreciate the whole Riot Grrl thing so much, but this was not my kind of music. I guess I can appreciate them for the work they did, even if I don't want to listen to them.

I liked the ska/reggae flourishes enough to elevate this over the standard punk fare. It was nicely poppy.