Cut

I read several positive reviews for this album because I was trying to understand it. Nearly all of them mentioned its influence and apologized for the sub-par musicianship. I'm sure they inspired a lot of people, but if the music isn't good, I'm not sure I need to hear it before I die. I can't imagine getting hit by a bus and my last thought being, "But I never got to that album from The Slits!" Best track: Adventures Close To Home

I found that I was relieved when my phone unexpectedly lost connection and the music was paused, I preferred the sweet sweet silence to this.

I'd like to believe they went with "The Slits" as their band's name because "Gash Wound" would have been too on the nose. For review purposes, one has to include the incredible cover of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine", which is officially listed as a Bonus Track and was the B-Side to "Typical Girls" (Both songs are classic 5's). It puts the album over the top for me. Make that your Side 1, Track 1 and you've got a classic album. One could add one point for the audacious album cover photo, only to learn the girl on the far left was all of 17-years old in said photo so let's call that a wash. What else? Their original drummer's name was Palmolive, who felt that posing topless for the album's cover was a bridge too far and got thrown out of the band. Apparently none other than the great Nenah Cherry provides backup vocals on this album. According to my math, Nenah would have been 15 or 16 years young at the time, which is just insane. This album is a blast.

Oh good, more late 70s English punk. Again. After all the rest of it. But it's ok, I'm sure THIS one will be a masterpiece and not amateur garbage like everything else from that time. And they're called the SLITS! I'm sure that's not a reference to anything. About as subtle and sophisticated as everything else about this genre I guess. But I'm prepared to be blown away. ha ha no, it fucking sucked. 1/5.

Now, here is a real classic. I love this record a lot, and their cover of "I heard it through the grapevine" is a regular feature of my DJ sets. This record genuinely sounds like nothing else. heavily influences by punk (although really presages post-punk) and reggae, it isn't really either of those things. It is its own unique and wonderful thing, with its own logic. It's angry and weird and fun. In Viv Albertine's fantastic autobiography "Clothes Clothes Clothes, Music Music Music, Boys Boys Boys" (highly recommend, worth a read) she describes the way she approached guitar, which was largely self-taught and completely fresh. She talks about how she was attracted to the treble tones of the guitar, and you can really hear it in the way that she plays. There is a an unapologetic "this is the way we choose to play" sense of what they do. Although I think there was some backlash for doing so. And this record is a wonderful and unique thing. the songs are.... different, but they always sound fresh and surprisingly and strong and relevant and beautiful within their own aesthetic framework. Punk always claimed that it was people who "couldn't play", but many bands (Pistols, Clash, etc) were in fact working within a pretty well-trodden back-to-basic rock and roll style and technique. The Slits were really something new and revolutionary. It doesn't surprise me that it took women to really break out and do something this different and extraordinary. Five stars.

Not my favorite. I know that The Slits were a ground-breaking, genre-defying band and, for that alone, they deserve a place on this list. That said, this album is a total mess. There's really one good track here ("Typical Girls") and the rest is kinda noise for the sake of noise. It's okay. But it's not good punk. It's just punk.

What a fun pop punk album full of reggae & ska flavours! Loved it!

How have I never heard this??

I can't help but think of Ludwig Wittgenstain's quote that "the limits of my language means the limits of my world", when I hear an album like this. It's an amazing thing, when something entirely new enters into the world, because before it there were just some unstructured inklings waiting to be connected. Then after it, there is a blueprint and a new path for anyone that wants to follow and build on it. This album is elegantly simple and spectacularly raw. The fusion of reggae/dub and punk, with an Avant Garde and art-house affect is sublime. I'd point to 'Newtown', with its punchy guitars, high-hat and tom laden drums, matchbox and dropped silverware utility percussion, and the moaning and vibrato vocals, as a perfect example of what I'm talking about. While it is uncomfortable for me to point out the importance of this also being an all-female band, because I wish we lived in a world where that wasn't something extraordinary at all, I am glad that these women were who they were, had the environments they had, and gave this music to the world. In turn, they gave the language for many in the world to move past the limits they didn't fully comprehend a way past yet.

I love this album. It's so interesting and the vocals are great and the structure is fresh. Love it.

Firstly, I wouldn't call this punk, it's a reggae album to my ears. Secondly, this is a masterpiece in uncanny irrelevance. It's just so FUN to listen to. I love the layered vocals They can't really sing, at least not in the traditional sense. But it doesn't matter. They make it work. And I love the way the bass, guitar and percussion make such a tight groove. The music is quite exotic sounding. A wonderful discovery!

I know this album. Love this album. Get bothered by this album. Love this album again - and this time I realised why. It's lyrically seminal - avante garde even for 2022 - it's unique, it's powerful - rhythmically sophisticated and musically interesting. Every song has it's place in the album - but this is not an album that you listen to in the background while doing something else, this is one of those that demand your full attention. I listened to it three times in a row this time round - first while doing something else - and that kept me wondering why the hell I used to like this album - then I wore headphones, and gave it it's due attention, and there I was rewarded and realised what's so great about it. Loved it.

Short, sweet and perfect British punk.

Well that was painful. I assume they are included in the 1001 albums as some sort of politically correct quota - "we have to have a really bad all girl punk band". I can think of no other reason for the inclusion of this drivel

I wouldn't recommend this to someone if I knew they would die at some point in the future

Love this album. It does take a bit of a dive in the last little bit though. Overall, I can listen to 80% of this album on repeat. 4.5/5

I’m really running out of things to say, aren’t I? But this is pretty good stuff, I can see why it resonates. B

The Slits is a name I've known forever, but never listened to until today. But I listened to this album twice, it was really good. They are super effective at blending Jamaican/reggae influences into their style, better than I think I've heard most other punk bands pull off. New household favorite, for sure.

Hier, nous avons été victimes d'un énorme soucis technique au bureau, qui m'a empêché de pouvoir écouter mes albums générés comme à mon habitude. En effet, un electricien devait venir s'assurer que le système d'alimentation de l'étage était en bon état, et effectuer quelques réglages si necessaires. Seulement, après quelques minutes passées à examiner les differents circuits électriques, la lumière de l'étage commença à crépiter, pour ensuite clignoter. Après quelques minutes, nous étions plongés dans la pénombre. Pas d'inquiètude cependant, puisqu'un professionnel était déjà sur place, il devait sûrement tester la robustesse du système. Après plusieurs dizaines de minutes sans lumière, je me rendis à la cuisine pour chercher un verre d'eau. Quelle ne fut pas ma surprise: la cuisine était absolument inondée. Soudain, je fut pris d'un flash mental très puissant. Je me rendis au bureau de mon directeur, et lui demandais des informations sur la société de maintenance des locaux de notre étage. Un brin surpris, il me dit que la société en question était intitulée "Die Türe AG". Commençant à comprendre, je me rendis dans la salle électrique, et y découvrit une carte de visite laissée par l'electricien: Joachim Mörrisone, Elektriker. Je partis alors dans un franc rire, m'exclaffant: "Ahahahah, sacré Jim".

No. 83/1001 Instant Hit 3/5 So Though 3/5 Spend, Spend, Spend 2/5 Shoplifting 2/5 FM 2/5 Newtown 2/5 Ping Pong Affair 2/5 Love Und Romance 2/5 Typical Girls 3/5 Adventures Close To Home 2/5 Average: 2,3 Didn't like their style at all.

Was hat dieser Schrott auf der 1001 Albenliste verloren?

Wonderful oddball punk. Short and snappy. Some great songs, best being Typical Girls. And some magnificent shouting. Wonder if they'd be thought of on a par with the Clash and Sex Pistols if they were men?

So cool

Fantastic listen for the whole album. A ska soaked masterpiece. I had no idea that The Slits had influenced so many outfits that followed. Grrrl power in proto form. I'll be suggesting this record to some folks.

When I think of post-punk I think of this. Such a unique sound. Like The Shaggs raised on punk and reggae.

Reminded me of Dresden Dolls, energetic “post punk”. Apparently Kurt Cobaon really like track “Typical Girls”.

Punk was meant to be the nail in the coffin of what came before. When it proved itself to be bastardized into becoming more of the same, a newer more radical world opened up. Which was where The Slits operated. Presenting themselves as unabashedly experimental, free-form, chaotic and innovative as their largely male brethren, The Slits provided a cut (hehe) of what they were capable of. The carefree environment is wonderfully represented throughout and it doesn't feel neither pastiche or forced. It honestly comes as no surprise that Cut made it's influence apparent in the years and decades after its release, most notably far away in the Pacific Northwest. And for good reason, for this is the sound of those who come to the power of their potential and decide to wield it for maximum good.

This is the kind of thing I want to see here. Super unique and inventive, but also has a unique place in music history. I love how forward thinking the feminism of this album is. The mix of reggae and punk is also super cool.

I fucking love this. So odd, out of place, yet completely enthralling and even catchy at points. The singer has a unique voice, kind of like Björk's voice. I think the drumming is the biggest highlight for me, so fun

I absolutely loved every single moment of this, I can't believe I'd never listened to the Slits before because they're definitely a new favourite! I love how rough around the edges everything is and how genuine each moment seems. Top tracks: So Tough, Shoplifting, Ping Pong Affair, and Typical Girls

Man, that was fun! That raw, distinctive sound morphed into something completely different on many occasions - I got a whiff of early B52s, early Elvis Costello and some ska, it's full of surprises, a great album. The Slits were were fearless and one of the first, if not the first all girl punk band. And Neneh Cherry is a back up vocalist on this record! I'll definitely be listening again.

This is so good I can't believe this was recording in 1979 especially when thinking of how different this is to the 1980 Steve Winwood album. I certainly have come across these gals before and I'm a fan. So hard to pick a fave from this album but maye Instant Hit, So Tough, Fm, Newtown, Ping Pong Affair.

This was awesome. Raw, frantic energy that kept me drawn in the entire way thru. This is the first album out of 60 where I was completely unaware of the artist and scored a 5. It made me think of Entertainment by Gang of Four so I was curious and looked up the release dates, Wild to see Cut came out Sept. 7 1979 only a few weeks before Entertainment Sept. 25 1979. This had an almost primal feeling to it, I peeked up from the first song and was in for the ride all the way thru. Albums like these re-energize me for this 1001 journey. 5 stars

I like it. Kinda bouncy sometimes. Kind crazy other times. Good listen. Looked for more and was disappointed by how little I found.

This has to be the best music ever made by a white person who grew dreads. (are there even any other contenders...?) Clear vision, inventive, invigorating. What more can you ask for? They sound a fair bit like the Raincoats tilted more aggressive, upbeat & silly, and I think I will mostly continue to go listen to the Raincoats instead. but like the Raincoats this is as cool as it gets. There's plenty of art of all kinds that takes itself too seriously, plenty that's irreverent & not much else. Every once in a while there's something that takes both itself and its audience the exact right amount of seriously to be fun, a little challenging, moving. music: rules. (⌐■_■)

Legendary band and album but is it any good? Well it's FUN but not Punk but more New Wave Reggae/Ska which is really sketchy but enjoyable. Musically tight with interesting lyrics. It's amazing that records like this got made and infuenced others. It deserves a place on the 1001.

They are just typical girls

I really needed this one to cleanse my palate. The combination of wood blocks, cymbals, and her whimsically frenetic voice was incredibly refreshing. It's playful, it's powerful, and, hands down, the best version of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" I've ever heard

fierce, female, fabulous, five stars

I loved this. Radical women being radical. More please.

Quirky and silly, it's a fun listen all throughout. A fusion of the absurdity of post-punk with dub and tribal instruments to give it a mystical sound. As a fan of reggae and New Wave, this was an instant like for me. Very accessible but also artsy, it's an inviting listen for anyone to very quickly enjoy this on the first listen. The female vocalists are so fun, making all sorts of noises that work in the context of the album. They compliment each other well, whether as harmonious back vocals or to conflict and cause chaos. I enjoy how everyone plays. Whether that's the New Wave guitar, the sporadic drumming, or the groovy bassline. All 10 tracks are unique and memorable. It's only a half hour long, so with all the crazy ideas, it really flies by. The bonus tracks are great too! "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" is a strong and creative cover. As a lover of reggae, "Liebe and Romanze" was nice to listen to. And the Brink style dub version of "Typical Girls" was also fun, but could be a bit difficult for some.

eu gostei muito e não conhecia <3

Brazen and brace. I am a massive Clash and Sex Pistols fan but wish the legacy of the Slits was as revered. Punky, reggae ska and pop thrown in a blender. From what I've read they copped a lot of abused and threats which to me makes the righteously dangerous

It’s a banger, boys. Like Gwen Stefani singing David Byrne lyrics over a Frank Zappa punk record.

Loved the hits for decades but never listened to the full record. Randomly got to see Ari Up perform at a party in Brooklyn, back in the 00s. She was tall and elegant, with no makeup and dreds to the floor. Cooler than cool could ever hope to be. This record is better than expected. Apparently, Bjork’s been channeling Ari Up, all along. The influence of The Slits is far broader than I’d realized. There’s something about Heard It Through the Grapevine that makes it one of the best covers of all time. And the original is immaculate. This version surpasses the typical karaoke style to make it feel fresh and reverential. Another one of those albums that improves with age. Hard to remember this was just a few teenage girls in 1979. Very clever work.

Man so much fun I love early punk stuff. I also (due to alphabetical seating) sat behind someone with a The Slits patch on her jacket for every exam I did in high school and it's very satisfying to finally give a proper listen and enjoy it. Finding out they didn't really know how to play the instruments makes sense lol but they made so much with so little at their disposal and I think that's the absolute pinnacle of what music can, and is supposed to be. I may not come back to this album too much but it easily gets 5 stars for being a representation of why I love music so much.

I pissed in my knickers.

You hate to see a banger album with such a low rating on here, I get it though, the weird post-punk stuff isn't for everyone. I love it though. The way the songs just flow from part to part, the wild vocals all over the place, sick basslines, it's so much fun to listen to. 'Shoplifting' and 'Typical Girls' are just straight up bangers, along with the amazing 'Heard it Through the Grapevine' cover. I hope nobody turned off the album before that one comes on at the end.

An amazing find. Awesome debut. Seems this album is very polarizing. I can see why it’s influential, and while most people seem to dislike this album, I love it. Greta example of early punks.

pre listening notes: just listened to the new cmbc on Carrie Brownstein/Sleater Kinney and i’m excited to listen to a female punk rock band! even if it’s like 20 years before Sleater Kinney. also i always joke to my sisters that if they see i’m listening to british punk it means i’m not doing well. Let’s gooooo. Instant Hit - woah this is.. reggae? what are they doing here. i haven’t heard anything like this before So Tough - i wonder if this song is about the same guy from before? interesting to me that they’re singing about men. very experimental sounding, the lead singers voice sounds very raw, almost like she didn’t warm up Spend, Spend, Spend - good to know that in the late seventies, consumerism was still destroying our lives as much as now Shoplifting - a great song to follow up spend lol. this is so fun actually. this is my fav one so far, the energy is palpable FM - who is going to tell the slits that fm doesn’t stand for frequent mutilation.. i honestly think this song relates to the present day in a way that is kind of insane? this song is over 40 years old but i still can’t help but wonder what is feeding my screen & waiting for todays transmission to give me the solution. i sound like a stoner. Newtown - back to reggae! i don’t care for the lyrics so much but i LOVE the way this song sounds, particularly in the second half. we need another fix! catchy. would listen again! Ping Pong Affair - i feel like this song in particular has had an influence on the girl punk scene (which like, i get referring to it with “girl” in the front is reductive but hear me out). i also like the message of this song tbh, fuck a man and his comics. this song follows a girl post breakup and i have personally related to so much of it Love Und Romance - they talk about Babylon a lot. what was going on back then. it’s also funny to have a song like this following a breakup tune. it kind of reads like a joke in the context of the rest of the album. again, Up’s vocals are so wild. Typical Girls - the message of this one is revolutionary for the time! i can see the influence on lager music here as well. i love the question “who invented typical girl?” and calling the idea of being a typical girl a marketing scheme because it is! god, sometimes i need to listen to stuff like this to realize that the capitalist critique i feel daily is not new. it’s a system that feels unnatural to live in. there’s a binchtopia ep where they talk about how the “teenage girl” was literally created to be marketed to. so much of what society considers a woman to be is a consumer. anyway, the song itself is also a bop. second fav on the album after Newtown (did i mention i like newtown more than shoplifting?) might be tied!! Adventures Close To Home - sometimes girls should be allowed to be crazy and selfish. idk! I Heard It Through The Grapevine - this song seems to be from the perspective of a man whose girlfriend is planning on leaving him for another man. and it’s a fucking BOP, feels of it’s time. this is their most streamed song on spotify and i understand, it is definitely the most easily digestible, i’m very used to hearing men moan about women. and as i said before it’s a bop. def a fav! Liebe and Romanze (Slow Version) - musical noise. i wonder what the not slow version sounds like. i will use this time to review the album overall! I feel like i wrote a lot more for this one than others but it just came to me at a good time and is a breath of fresh air after Kings of Leon.. sorry not sorry. this album was unique and inventive and not always my personal taste but had some certifiable bangers and it’s influence on other bands i like and respect is palpable. especially knowing the background of the band and that the people in it (thinking about Up in particular) we’re young and inexperienced musicians who just got out there and did the thing. like Abbey Road, I’m glad to have listened to it!! feels like music history. 5/5

10/10 holy shit, I already have a HUGE bias for post-punk, it’s one of my favorite genres, but this album really surpassed my expectations it’s really insane just how creative and diverse this project is I love it so much

Was not expecting to fuck with this so hard. Björk but punk pop and… reggae??

Known about this album for years, never listened. Love the “dubbiness“ of these songs.

That cover and the description of this album had me feeling like this might not be for me. WRONG! Definitely for me. Perfectly unique! Terrific!

Amazing

absolutely loved this album. Had never even heard of this band before but you can here the influence on Blondie it had

Unique and interesting sound! I've long been curious about this band. Really enjoyed their take on I Heard It Through the Grapevine (bonus track).

good weird. instant hit fm newtown ping pong affair love und romance typical girls adventures close to home

I have never been aware of the band THE SLITS before, although I am a fan of the Punk and Post-Punk era of music. I believe part of the reason is that the band is known for me is that they are from the UK and are probably unknown in the US. Also, being an all-girl group also probably contributed to the lack of awareness with the male punk groups grabbing the headlines and making the reviews. After listening to CUT, I must say it is excellent. The use of dub music reminds me of Public Image Limited which formed later and being an all-girl group really impresses me now. They should be as well known as the boys were. Their music is fun, catchy and probably groundbreaking with the use of dub. This is one is the reason why I am going to enjoy joining the 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die is to listen to music that I am barely aware of and give me a deeper appreciation. THE SLITS are no longer falling through the cracks in my book. In 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, this was the only album issued in the book. Rate Artist: THE SLITS (5) Rate Album (Year): CUT (1979 Original) (4.5) Rate Album (Year): CUT (2000 UK CD Reissue with Bonus tracks) (4.5) Rate Album (Year): CUT (2009 UK 2CD Deluxe Edition) (5)

I really enjoyed this entire album and although I had heard of the Slits, I had never heard any of their music. This is the kind of stuff I was hoping to hear when I started doing this.

I loved this from the opening track, “Instant Hit.” It was so not what I was expecting, but so fun, distinctive, bizarre, and imaginative. Their sound is a unique amalgamation of Talking Heads, The Cranberries, The Sugarcubes, and The Police. Or like The Shaggs if they were actually good. I feel like half the people in the reviews didn’t actually listen to this album. They talk like all punk music sounds the same. That’s bullshit. Punk has got to be one of the most varied subgenres of rock. I guess I can see not liking this, but it’s unfair to say they “lacked musicianship” or were just making noise—that is clearly not true. But as T-Swift once said, the haters gonna hate. I loved this album, and their cover of “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” is better than the CCR version (and I love CCR).

I’d heard of The Slits, thought they would be a challenge, wasn’t expecting this at all. It’s loads of fun, incredibly catchy post-punk/ska.

Really Good, from start to finish. Instant hit is an instant hit!

Was so happy to see this come up, this is an album I have loved for years. Seen the slits condescended with such accusations as not being proper musicians but this is a truly groundbreaking album, and sounds better than anything the sex pistols put out

Hoe krijgt dit album gemiddeld een 2,7?!

Classic post-punk! I love "Typical Girls", "Shoplifting", and the "Heard it through the Grapvine" cover. It's really spare-sounding and catchy in parts but full-sounding and powerful in others. Irreverant and full of punk rock spirit.

pretty good alt

I like the raw lean style of this album.

Fun lil ska / punk album.

This took me by surprise I must say. I was expecting some standard punk rock but this was much more intriguing. Kind of like Nico, Bjork, and Yoko Ono had a baby and that baby decided to make a reggae album. Although that might not sound like it would turn out great, it did! Interesting, different, and enjoyable. 4 stars.

I really only know The Slits from the LCD Soundsystem song Losing My Edge where James Murphy rapid-fire namedrops every cool band and artist he knows. He says "The Slits" with a kind of slickness, like it was a bad word. Hardly bad, an all-woman post-punk band that is rough around the edges, but embraces that wholeheartedly. Cut is a definitively creative album, finding rhythms and harmonies in the most unlikely of places. It's a strange and perhaps polarizing sound that is certainly not going to appeal to many, but I think the innovative aspects of The Slits is what makes them so great.

Good stuff. The early days of punk rock were weird and so were the Slits. I dig it.

Hey, it’s that album with boobs on the cover! J/k - it’s actually a really good album with a lot of replay-able tracks. 4/5

Never heard this before but really enjoyed it.

Sick jättebra unikt

Real nice early post punk, stoked there are so many post punk trail blazers on this list to be exposed to

The unpolishedness of the album is perhaps its defining characteristic. I was amazed by the fact that they were supporting The Clash on tour years before releasing this debut album - I looked up some live footage of them and it answered all my questions about how they might have pulled that off. The charisma, and lack of self consciousness of those performances, luckily is captured reasonably well in the album as well.

As JF said, not bad at all, definitely could re-listen with the right context (African girls dancing around me ideally)

I thought L7 was the original merry prankster all girl band but credit to the Slits! Loved "shoplifting". They sound like a less manufactured version of the Clash.

Total outsider music, which kind of makes it awesome. Their origin story is fun, basically didn't know what they were doing... until they did-ish. A strange punk meets reggae oddity, it didn't make much sense until I read Wikipedia. Fav track is Shoplifting followed up by Typical Girls

The Slits are one of the many, many cool female rock groups that slipped through the cracks while their more mediocre male counterparts got all the credit. I've had to hear about the Sex Pistols for my entire life, despite the fact that they were nothing special compared to a lot of their contemporaries, and yet I never hear about the Slits. Shout out to the No Dogs in Space podcast for introducing me to this group and their history As far as the music goes, it's really cool to see how fast punk groups shifted to post-punk and started exploring other genres. The Reggae influence on this album is clear from the first song, but you can also hear psychedelic influences among others, on top of the punk music that the band coalesced around. 4/5

The Slits know how to throw down and rock. They have a funky sound while still raging for traditional punk sound. Hearing them perform this album opening for The Clash would have been a bonkers show. One of my favorite punk albums.

Get album bättre än förväntat

Here we have some badass bitches out in the wild, harnessing the combined powers of punk rock and unapologetic raw sexuality to flip misogynists everywhere the bird. We control our bodies, we control our messages, and you can fuck right off if you think you're entitled to a say in any of it! I love the boldness of it, I love the sounds of it. I love all of it.

I'd heard of The Slits but never heard their music. This was surprisingly interesting, and a bit different given when it was released.

This one won't get many 5/5 reviews, obviously. Which is a bit of a shame. *Cut* is a very *weird* record, especially compared to what "normies", for lack of a better word, usually expect from music. But it's exactly where its many charms lie, at least once you manage to let go of said expectations. The only serious issue I have with The Slits' music is that it's very hard to describe to newcomers. Said music is actually brilliantly written and performed--with many borrowings from reggae dub that allow the band to implement arrangements that are precise, intricate and fully original (hence the choice of a reggae producer for this one). If you don't pay attention you may dismiss the end result of that encounter between punk and dub as sheer nonsense (this is definitely not "background music" we're dealing with here). But if you *do* pay attention, most of those tracks' instumentations are pretty rewarding on subsequent listens. Likewise, Ari Up's vocals will probably sound too "out there" during your first encounter with those songs. You may even consider she's off-key most of the time. But that might only be some sort of myopic effect: Ari is actually not really "off-key", she's just extremely theatrical, expressive, "hysterical", you name it... And this is just a perfect way for her to fully inhabit her subversive and sardonic lyrics (won't go through the details here, it's pretty much what you would expect from a witty feminist punk, making those lyrics as relevant today as they were in 1979). Oh, and some of the backing vocals, sometimes popping out in surprising places, are quite impressive as well. A fun anecdote, by the way: a very young Neneh Cherry is among those background vocalists. Of course, not every "cut" (ahem) works perfectly in this record. "Adventures Close To Home" sounds a little too linear and far-fetched, and therefore tried my patience a little. Likewise, "Love And Romance" is still too indebted to the early punk beginnings of the band to fully mutate into a convincing art-rock/dub/experimental tune, just like most of the other tracks manage to do in this record... Yet those missteps do not outweigh the many successful moments in *Cut*. There is a stretch of songs in this album that is absolutely fantastic, the one starting with the hilarious "Shoplifting" , and then going on to "FM" and, finally, "Newtown", a pretty evocative description of urban idleness, "where everybody goes around sniffing televisina or taking footballina". The dub rhythm on that track, helped by the addition of extremely subtle organ and piano touches, is simply infectious. And of course, later on, you have two perfect gems, underground hits in their own right: first "Typical Girls", a feminist anthem for the ages, and the deliriously groovy cover of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" (a version that's radically different from the cover Creedence Clearwater Revival once did, and yet that can be considered as its perfect match). I know that this cover was only released as a single originally. But damn it, the original album was not that long in the first place anyway, so you might as well consider it's part of it now. To put it in a nutshell, this is definitely not a record for everyone here, hence why I'll be reasonable and refrain from giving it a perfect score. But it fully deserves to be on this list, if only for its groundbreaking nature and the influence the Slits had on countless acts later on. Besides, you still have blokes (mostly blokes, right?) considering Beefheart's *Trout Mask Replica* as a masterpiece. Well, *Trout Mask Replica*'s "historical" importance is not to be denied, sure. But compared to other famously "off-kilter" albums such as *Cut*, it's just a sinister experience. At least The Slits are fun to listen to, while having something relevant to say. And *Trout Mask Replica* is neither of those things. Which is why The Slits' debut album will here get a far higher mark than Captain Beefheart's supposed "masterpiece". It won't help a lot for its overall score, but what are you gonna do? 🤷‍♂️ Number of albums left to review: 649 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 177 (including this one) Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 84 Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more essential to me): 96

This is just a great record that was so ahead of its time.

I had not heard of the band or heard their music before. This album is a lot of fun and it's interesting, too. For the late 70s, it's a rather inventive mash-up of a handful of styles and genres, and there's an intelligence to it masked by its irreverence. It's rare to see a band pull that off because too often the music slips into parody and silliness, and that's usually more distracting and, frankly, boring. This album avoids that, thank goodness. The percussion is really strong on most of these tracks. Unusual but not too random. The vocals are delivered superbly. One can hear how they influenced so many acts that followed. Bass guitar and guitar are performed so well. This is a heck of a band. I need to hear more.

Ну блин, это прикольно. Не сказал бы, что я прям не ебейше кайфанул с каждого трека, но удовольствие получил

This reminded me of playing music as a teenager, just learning to sing. The fact that they put this out is crazy impressive!

Ну не, что-то у меня было больше надежд на обнажённых девушек с обложки. Вообще очень забавный альбом, переосмысление регги в какой-то степени. Или даже чем-то напомнило французское йе-йе 60х, типа Галль или даже Бардо. Это было интересно слушать, но в некоторых местах был перебор с "экспериментальностью". Ну и кажется я уже писал, что вокально-мелодические диссонансы мне, видимо, заходят сильно меньше. I Heard It Through The Grapevine у меня почему-то вызвала ассоциации по стилю с группой Eruption (One Way Ticket/Синий Синий иней). Но только в более нуарную сторону, всё чуть больше с надрывом, нежели на расслабоне. 3.5/5->4/5. Хорошо девчонки поют, кайфово. Я вот только на тексты внимания особо не обратил... вокал отвлекал, очень уж резкий, но разнообразный. P.S. Глянув на статистику, увидел интересный факт: самая прослушиваемая песня не была издана на первоначальной пластинке, а была добавлена только в deluxe-версии.

Great all girl post punk band. Typical Girls and Grapevine cover the highlights.

Fun album. Kept me listening all the way through.

Lots of fun from beginning to end. I love punky girls. That Grapevine cover is a hoot.

Manchmal arg chaotisch, aber ich mags trotzdem.

Yes

рэгги панк рок? Это прикольно, но какой-то не мой стиль, но я как начал слушать, так сильно прихуел и сразу решил до конца слушать

Great punk/post-punk album, nice dub stuff too. 4 stars.

Found this really unique, love the singing style. Excellent cover of Grapevine as well

Weird interesting out of tune vibes