Reviews (page 4 of 7)
The kind of album a band can only make when they're young and unaware of what they're not supposed to do. Naïve and scattershot punky reggae. Shame about the album art. You could say it's in the name of artistic freedom, but it's a pretty flimsy reasoning - like their name, the nudity is meant to be shocking. They didn't need to be shocking, they should have just been comfortable being weird.
I likey! I used to think there was no way this album would ever be made without nepotism. Must be nice being the step daughter of punk royalty. It’s got budgie, it’s got unmistakable vocals, & they made lots of videos that offer a glimpse into England's early punk scene. It’s fun, funky fresh and I still have a couple slits songs on ye old daily Spotify mix. I also love the raincoats.
Down-tempo reggae with punk flair from a trio of pre-historic riottt girls? I'm in.
liked it
For a punk album, this is weirdly tame. Like it still undeniably has that punk energy that you would expect, but for whatever reason it really doesn't get me all that hyped up and angry at the government like listening to The Clash or The Sex Pistols would. Still an interesting listen though, with there being a lot of influence from typically less conventional genres when making punk music.
It's Ska-punk. Basically, Ska-influenced music with punk-rock lyrics.
I like the Slits, but Budgie sucks.
I did not necessarily enjoy this album, but I’m not sure you should. I didn’t hate it either. Right now, it’s a 3, but it is one I might return to, as I found it an interesting listen
I’d never heard of The Slits, this was good I enjoyed it
Well, that was something Honestly I really enjoyed some of these songs! And I also hated some of them. The rest were ok, but it makes it hard to rate Going down the middle and giving an ok score 3 ⭐️
First ever listen for me. How people can sing the Clash's praises but hate this is beyond me. 3.5/5.
This is a pretty interesting sounding. The standout tracks on the back definitely carry the album but it's a unique experience for any punk fan.
Interesting album of raggae and ska more than punk really. I liked it but I didn’t love it. Whoever says they can’t play their instruments is out of their mind; the songs, particularly the drumming, is spot on. This is much better than the unproduced and tin can sounding crap like The Birthday Party.
Wonderful album cover. So-so music.
Thought it was ok but not my piece of cake.
Disappointing! I had high hopes for this island but was pretty underwhelmed. It's not bad, just not good
06/07/2025 Bang average at best, of the time.
I like a lot about this album, it's got punk and reggae influences, doesn't take itself too seriously and is a lot of fun to listen to. That being said, after making it through the whole thing I definitely felt like I had enough of their sound and truthfully can't imagine looking to listen to this again, except maybe to show someone else out of curiosity under the pretense of "ever hear anything that sounds like this before?".
Fairly interesting early punk record with some ska/reggae flavours. Her voice got a little annoying at times. Overall, I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t love it either.
Well I am certainly attracted to the cover's flamboyant display of their ahem charms, but I am not sure I can get behind the DIY-pre-riot grrl-punk/postpunk aesthetic, though Typical Girls begins to confront the male gaze and what lies behind it (a marketing ploy?). I think I am beginning to hear a very interesting sound, but it needs to be worked out a little more to be fully engaging. I like the idea of this.
Although the singer's voice had quirks I didn't like, I actually thought this wasn't too bad, even though it's punk. Rating: 3
Enjoyable, rough. Good stuff.
Don't have a ton to say about this one. Influential as hell but its more of just a fine album to listen to. Deserves to be on the list though. 6/10
Their description said they started with little to no musical experience which I think is kinda inspiring
I get why people don’t like this, but i must insist that it is awesome. Heard it through the grapevine? Wow.
I guess I expected, by name, album title, and cover art, something more punk? Still, it was fun and interesting enough.
I'm sure they're important, and groundbreaking, and whatever, but they're certainly not good. Really cool sound. Awful songwriting.
wasnt really my thing, favorite song was Typical Girl. i am open to listening to it again though. Just wasnt really familiar with that sccene and it just sounded like a weird clash for the first kilsten
Este é um álbum objetivamente ruim; mal-feito, performances porcas por todas as integrantes da banda, liricismo e melodias insípidas… Mas, foi um disco que me agradou do começo ao fim. Gostei do estilo espeloteado das faixas. Gostei dos vocais gratinantes e dos instrumentos rudes. Os vocais me lembraram bastante a Siouxsie Sioux. A fusão de dub e reggae com punk. Tudo isso foi do meu agrado. Mas não se engane, esse é um disco RUIM! Ruim, mas legal. E eu gostei dele. Fazer um disco tipicamente bom ser agradável e engajante é fácil, trivial na verdade. Fazer um disco RUIM ser agradável e engajante requer muita habilidade, carisma e jogo de cintura. Parabéns às moças seminuas. 3/5
Confusing album. I need to listen to it again. The production or mastering or whatever make it hard to listen to. Reminds me of old The Police, raw garage power trio. Love the variety of influences.
74% Best: Instant Hit; Newtown; Adventures Close To Home Must-Hear? Nah
Look, some bands, get low fi, right and some bands get lo.Fi, wrong, these girls got it right. I've come to understand that they had little to know musical ability going into this project.But nevertheless created interesting fun tunes. I'd also like to mention that albumart.Does come into play when I make my ratings?It's not necessarily a full star, but it comes into play
Band name screams punk -- interesting to discover this as dub-punk fusion. I guess this is like a predecessor to ska? Not a careful set of listens by any means, but my overall impression is that this was quite enjoyable. Not something I'll spend a ton of time with, but I enjoyed it more than I didn't. SO for that I'll go high 3 verging on 4.
-wow this is REALLY interesting. not at all what i was expecting to hear when I briefly skimmed the Wikipedia page for the album -honestly never heard anything like it. female punk rock but with dub reggae and crazy vocal harmonies.. massive points just for originality -it wasn’t all great. I def got a bit bored by the end. but I appreciate the innovation and can’t get over how catchy the whole album was -Favorites are Instant Hit, Newtown, and Adventures Close To Home
Fun. Always appreciate some early punk. (34 known/76 new)
It was better than expected. I like they’re take on things.
Definitely a surprise, pop punk album full of reggae & ska flavours. Quite uneven
Listens: 3 Standout Tracks: I Heard It Through The Grapevine. Album is RAW. Raw in the same way that Wu Tang Clan's first album is raw. Stripped down; minimal, rough around the edges. Definitely not bad. Some of the tracks are pure punk, but some of them are more like punk-disco or punk-ska or punk-dub/reggae. It's interesting; there is a lot of variety here, but with the scream-o, punk undercurrent throughout. 3.5 (rounded down)
I enjoyed this overall!
Not bad.
This was interesting. It's not quite my taste, but I appreciate the eclectic mix of different sounds and I love that it's a female band. I wouldn't listen to it again, but I didn't hate it. Another forgettable middle of the road album
3.5/5
Was okay. Appreciated the variety, and truly an album I wouldn't have found otherwise. 3/5
Ah, I wanted to like this, but while it was certainly interesting, I didn’t enjoy it much.
Cool, angular punk. Sexy ska-jazz, riffy, dynamic. Slightly savage. Infecting. Moves like anger. Dance to it. If you can.
Yeah I get what it was trying to do
A creative and original album. I know a lot about it from a podcast. Not the worst, but I don't enjoy listening to it.
Girly Reggae Punk.
i wish there was a button for “the album is good but not for me”
Better than I thought
I think the album cover and the in-your-face name of the band kind of sets them up for a bit of disappointment, at least for me. It's a solid album and well produced, but I'm a little baffled by the Wikipedia references to punk or even post punk, as this sounds a lot like a female trio playing Clash/Police style white reggae, *without* much in the way of punk elements (a bit like the B-52s, but not as quirky, although Ari Up's human tremolo is pretty distinctive). I wish there was more variety to the songs, but I thought "Newtown" and "Typical girls" distinguished themselves pretty well, and I *really* enjoyed their fantastic cover of "I heard it through the grapevine" (technically a bonus track, I know, but still). And it's nice to think that The Slits were the predecessors to the riot grrrl phenomenon.
in one ear out the other
Girl punk rock. More rock than punk. The sometimes reggae? The vocals, while active and unique, are repetitive. The music is explorative, energetic and unique.
Pretty rad. Can see how they paved the way.
Een soort rustige Chicks on Speed / Lords of Acid van voor het digitale tijdperk. Het is wat kinderachtig cq. provocerend. Maar bereikt dat ook weer niet omdat het ook wel heel vrolijk en bij vlagen relaxt is. De zang is heel matig, maar dat lijkt bij het provocerende te horen. Normaal zou ik er helemaal op afknappen, maar ze bieden een geheel. Ik denk dat ik een lijstje ga maken: 501 albums die onterecht in de 1001AYMHBYD staan.
Álbum de post-punk setentero de enorme influencia, que con su actitud desafiante y letras feministas y anticapitalistas dio forma al movimiento riot grrrl. Aunque técnicamente sea mediocre en el mejor de los casos, me ha gustado mucho su estilo experimental con influencias ska mezcladas con esas armonías vocales disonantes, que a veces me recuerdan a The Specials (por ejemplo en "So Tough"). Y ese vibrato vocal a lo Dead Kennedys también mola bastante. En general, un álbum muy experimental y bien ejecutado, aunque no sea la cosa más melódica del mundo. Me ha gustado mucho, sobre todo puesto en contexto. Y esa versión de "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" es un locurón.
This is fun! Fun-weird. I probably wouldn't listen to it a lot, but it's a unique sound.
These ladies need a shower. But their hair is perfect.
bjork coded
An album that I happen to hold in very high esteem has an album cover with a large purple border surrounding a landscape image in the lower half of the album cover. This one could be promising (I am an ultra srs critic with ultra srs, objective reviews btw) The vocals are a very strange inbetween for me. They're at a crossroads between being pleasing and being obnoxious. Same goes for the instrumentals. There are moments that are competent and polished (the guitars on Adventures Close To Home) and other moments that are annoying just as regularly (the spoon-tossing on Newtown). Strangely, the songs on the album that lean more into the reggae/dub influence are a better listen to me than some of the more punky tunes. A lot less screaming and a lot more time for me to pause and catch my breath. The album held my attention for the entirety of it's runtime and I respect the ambition, which are the chief reasons for why I am giving this album with a gracious 3/5. This album also beautifully, poetically ended at the exact moment where I was beginning to feel fed up of it. I applaud these mud-caked vixens for reading my brainwaves and conveniently ending things on a good note. Almost 50 years after the release of the album, no less.
Favorite Track: Typical Girls
The Good: Boobs!!! The Bad: They are kind of muddy… and there’s a slit... The Ugly: The injury that could give you, mud in a cut… not good, better call a doctor! It’s not bad. It’s not great. It’s just what it is… However, someone is going to have to answer me this: why do so many German singers of the female kind have the need to sing with such an aweful baritone? Just like what’s her face that joined Warhol’s crew; Nico. Anyway, to tell you the truth, I was kind of enjoying it as background music, so that’s worth something I guess. Call this one a line-drive straight down the middle, which will land us on first base and only allow us to think about stealing to second so we can fondle some muddy breasts… what? 2 1/2*
This is going to get a 2 or worse but this is pretty influential - there's actually some hing here
Enjoyed this a bit more on second listen. Still not all the way there with it, but perhaps I will be one day. 3/5
Killer opener, rest just aches a bit too much (except for the smashing „grapevine“ Cover)
Interestingly weird
I want to like this more than I do because I know it is important to the history of punk rock and the predecessor to the riot girl movement but it just doesn’t so a lot for me. I think it is the reggae sounds. I’m not much of a fan of reggae and Ari’s singing style is very much inspired by that.
Punk's anyone can do it approach, some ska/reggae/glam rock sounds, some cool uncoventional guitar parts, some classic robotic funk post punk bass playing, and an off kilter detatched sing-songy vocal delivery for some cutting dark lyrics. Cool as hell.
I kind of liked the beat. I understand the hate, though.
I do like crunchy punk girl groups, refreshing in a way. Not my go to for sure, but interesting nonetheless.
I’ve listened to this a few times here and there over the years, and it’s hard for me to get into it. I can see how it’s influential and you can hear them in some newer all female and female-led bands. It sounds good and is an interesting listen, but not one that compels me to come back often. I can’t help but wonder how much the album cover has influenced its renown..
An okay album but no real standout songs.
Gear: ZMF Bokeh Artwork: 🍒🌹🟪 Production: 🥩😊👌 Music: 👩🎤✂️🔮 Rating: 🍇🍇🍇/5
3.3
Very experimental, cool as an idea but in practice it just did not resonate with me. Shotty musicianship and melodic negligence turned this album into a blended slurry of sounds that made me dizzy. Some aspects of nu-wave and ska additions were nice.
I was hoping for a little more from this album, but it didn’t quite click with me.
Instant Hit Shoplifting Typical Girls I Heard It Through the Grapevine
An artist and album I know nothing about going in. Surprisingly fun to listen to. Punk, ska, layered ideas with a lot going on. Discordant at times, but I’m feeling it. This is at least a 3 for me, maybe a low 4.
It was different, I'll give it that. Different in a good way even.
There's some interesting beats and song structures here, but they're all ruined a bit as soo as they open their mouths and start wailing.
3/4
Very much of its moment. Some interesting reggae dub beats but the dissonant vocals wear thin quickly and lots of the tunes are rather rudimentary. Interesting Germanic influence though
Vähän artsyä punkkia, mikä yrittää olla taas "huonoa". Mutta tää ei ollut niin paha. Vähän jopa harvinainen kun tyttöbändi. Parhaat: Newtown, I Heard It Through Grapeline (cover?)
Interesting mix of punk and reggae. Vocals reminded me of Siouxsie and the Banshees, but might be just a case of “British woman”. Nothing too incredible, but it was fun. Favorite songs were Shoplifting, Typical Girls, and I Heard It Through The Grapevine.
Harsh but at the same time groundbreaking. I find it hard to listen to but considering the circumstances, good on you slits for making this.
Liked the cover of heard it through the grapevine
typical...
I was a bit skeptical of this, thinking it was going to be a hot mess. Turns out I was right, but in a good way!
I really like British punk. Though it wasn't as good as the Clash.
I very much want to love this. I like the voices, the quirky beats, the instrumentation, and THAT COVER. But the songs don’t quite grab me. Plodding, not melodic. Heard it through the grapevine was a highlight. I still like this and perhaps with repeated listening it would grow on me.
All of you people, HEAR ME OUT... 😈😈😈
Eclectic, raw style
Not at all bad
first listen its really bad. like yoko ono bad.
the cover was awful but the rest wasn't that bad, the accent adds to it
I thought I would enjoy it a lot more than I did. Awesome cover tho Rating: 2.7
Fun, but very one note
It was fine I suppose. Parts of it felt like they were trying to capture the same vibe that the stuff the b52s were making at around the same time captured, but didn’t do it nearly as well. Fine album, will never listen again
Interesting and with energy. I like this and the context but still probably on the three side of a 3.5 for me.
Unique for sure, not my favorite.
entendo que pode ter sido crucial pro riot grrrl. mas num curto mto reggae e derivados não, daí fica difícil mas pô, tem umas boas, vai. "shoplifting" é bem boa.
Album 574 of 1001 The Slits - Cut (1979) Rating : 2.75 / 5 I remember liking this a lot when I first listened through the playlist. As it is now album of the day, my enthusiasm for it has waned a bit. Still an interesting and fun album. Just not too much going on. A decent punk album to experience. Unique cover of "Heard it Through the Grapevine".
Before listening I was pretty worried I was going to hate this. Glad to say I was wrong. I don't necessarily love it either, but it's kind of catchy. It sort of reminds me of really early Police, if they were girls and recording in a garage. Also, the singer's style reminded me of Bjork a few times during the listen.
can't help saying the band name the way it's pronounced in \"Losing My Edge\" by LCD Soundsystem
Enjoyed this one. Feel like I've heard of this band before but didn't know what to expect. Love a good all-girl punk band, they nail the sound pretty well, not to mention a few interesting deviations like "Liebe and Romanze," that was really cool. I think this project has helped me refine my palate for punk because I'm developing a taste for some of these acts. Also kudos for the Marvin Gaye cover! Favorite tracks: Spend Spend Spend, Shoplifting, Heard It Through the Grapevine, Liebe and Romanze. Album art: A classic, I've definitely seen this before. Cro-magnon woman? Bold if this is, in fact, the band. They're in loincloth hunter mode. The purple frame and text is good too. 3.5/5
This album was super cool, was not what I was expecting. The drumming was mind blowingly good and the songs were quirky
Cool album! Couldn’t find it in the book though…
Far more ska-ish than I was expecting it to be, and clearly there's a lot of reggae / dub influence going on. What there also is is an abundance of 70s bad punk vocal. It's not exactly sonorous, is it? That's being said, there's some groove to it that isn't objectionable, and I guess getting their tits oot for the album cover didn't do any harm to their chances. Many of the tracks are as stripped back as the band themselves, and that was very much the style at the time. I can see how they've influenced so many - but I think they've planted the seeds. Other people have cultivated.
This has a unique feel. The drums aren't the most complex but are very tight and caught my ear on every song. The singer has a great style to catch your attention. Good use of stereo to play around with noise and feel on this. Good one to have on the list
It's meh! Pretty edgy for it's time and that's all I'll say about it!
There's some interesting tracks on this. Never heard of them before so always cool to hear a new (old) punk group.
Whoa, hey! Remarkably good. The Slits were not on my radar at all, but this album is an unmitigated triumph.
It was okay, but not my thing
Not bad
6/10
I'm surprised to say I kinda like this? It's not a love by any means, but I was grooving with it a lot more than I typically do with punk. Maybe I am getting an ear for it, or maybe I just like the more because it's a female punk band. Either way, a fun listen.
It was alright. Weird fucking cover tho.
There's better versions of this kind of thing out there
A surprisingly well-produced album of the early reggae-infused punk subgenre, popularized by bands like The Clash. This one is all about rhythm and vibes. Some really cool, interesting grooves and transitions here.
Better than I expected. Leans much more to Ska than harsh punk. Probably won't listen again but if a song came on randomly, that would be fine with me.
Pretty creative, as original as post punk can probably get.
Post-punk. Un megahit. Ni fu ni fa.
Son graciosas, pero no me ha gustado mucho ... Les daré un 3. Es como punk.
Goofy maar fun 3/5
Intriguing music that does however not quite grab me; the mediocre singing doesn't help.
Though this wasn’t an Instant Hit, it wasn’t So Tough that I couldn’t take it in.
Skönjar många bra melodier men så blandas det med "ska" och rätt oskön sång. Hade varit trevligt med en annan approach och satsat på mer melodiskt och kanske lugnare eller rockigare. Sångens "svaghet" hörs tydligt på covern som ju är grym, men rösten/sången drar ner.
Alright, kinda whatever, nothing particularly memorable
Decent
3.5! Enjoyed
Solo me termino de gustar 1 cancion (Shoplifting) pero si aproximacion experimental no se le quita . La escucha del álbum es agradable pero no me hace destacar más.
Pretty unique, messy in a good way most of the time. Will I listen to again: 60%
Eka kuuntelukerta oli ihan roskaa ja oli ilo kun spottari vaihtoi muihin saman genren artisteihin. Tokalla kerralla sai jo jalkaa vispaamaan mukana ja ihan vekkuli setti. Rimaa hipoen ja ehkä säälistäkin kolme*.
I liked the Marvin Gaye cover and Typical Girls. Not really my thing overall though.
This is like a 2.8ish for me. I kind of hate that we don't have a more precise rating range. I have seen this cover in my record collecting and did not expect it to sound like it did. I was expecting punk rock energy and this was more Ska/reggae/dub which was cool.
If Kurt Cobain had posters on the wall of his room they’d be of this band. It’s just ok. Almost annoying but not. They sound like Jefferson airplane at times, but mostly not.
Much better than all the rest of the post-punk dogshit on this list. 2.6
Decent, melodic 70's punk.
I wanted to like this more. It was fun overall, but some of it was grating.
Liked this one. Bounced along very nicely
One of those album that influenced better albums, therefore probably deserves to be on the list for that reason alone
Instant Hit was a fantastic song, I'd never heard that before. I was indeed captured by the instantaneous hitness of it, the unusual instrumentation, the dissonant rhythm, the call & response harmonies. However, that was the high point, I didn't care much for the rest of the album. Grapevine was ok I guess but more out of familiarity than the quality of the cover. I struggled to decide on the score for this one. On a whole it's a 2/5, it's a non-repeatable album and I have no interest in exploring the rest of their discography. But I did really enjoy Instant Hit to the point that it increases the score to a strong 2, rounded up to a 3.
I'm gonna be real with you all, I was dreading this album when I first got it. I mean, an English punk-reggae fusion album from 1979? That sounded like Hell to me. I just "knew" that the vocals would be annoying, the lyrics would be meaningless, and the songs would all sound the same. I was so caught up in being upset that I got such a "bad album" right after The Dark Side of the Moon that I didn't even realize until just before I listened to the album that it was from an all-female band! I just thought the album cover was a random thing they found from like a movie or something. Anyways, this album, despite my preconceived notions, wasn't bad. It was kind of like Germfree Adolescents by X-Ray Spex in a way. A surprisingly tolerable English punk album with a female vocalist that does something instrumentally to stand out from other punk albums. My main worries were that the vocals would be annoying. Fortunately, while they were a bit quiet and hard to understand at times, I wouldn't say I found them annoying. The writing has variety and isn't meaningless. The sound is fine. It's perfectly fine. I think I kind of enjoyed it. This is FAR from my favorite album I've gotten for this project. Again, I listened to The Dark Side of the Moon yesterday. This is nothing compared to that album. But, I respect this album. I'm not upset that I listened to it. I can see why it's on the list. This is an album with value. It's just not really my thing personally. Light 3/5.
Fm //
Had never heard of them but a few songs deeper in the album had me grooving
A perfectly for. Album and maybe one of the first punk albums by a pure nepobaby?
This album is more a testament to the fact that Heard it Through the Grape Vine is such a good track that anyone can make it sound good. In all seriousness, I hear the shape of feminine punk to come within this album. Not the easiest listen but probably influential
This would normally be something in my wheelhouse and I like the idea of it more than the execution. I'm not a big fan of Reggae tho, so probably why I checked out. Probably awesome to see live!
Eh
I've only heard of The Slits because I reviewed Neneh Cherry's album several months ago. I was looking forward to this album, but lukewarm reviews dashed my hopes a bit. I thought this album was pretty good, and a little bit better than user reviews suggest it is. The lyrics were the star of the show here, and were really the only thing about this album that felt punk. "Spend, Spend, Spend" and "FM" were probably the best songs when it came to lyrics, and I thought that FM standing for 'frequent mutilation' was pretty clever. Musically though, this album was pretty middle of the road. There were some really good moments (I liked the drumming, and the ska and reggae influences were unique), but it seemed like none of these parts ever came together to create a whole that attracted my interest. I really loved the scratchy guitars on "Newtown" and the piano on "Love Und Romance." Ari Up's German accent gave the album a nice touch as well, and I'm glad she didn't hide her uniqueness in her singing. Even though this album was pretty middle of the road for me, I can understand why it's on this list. The ideas here are big, even though the end result couldn't cash in, and you can hear this album's influence in so many other artists' work. This was an interesting journey, but I don't think I'd go back down that road.
Weird art-punk/new wave that's, I dunno, endearing and charming. The kind of band that's always fun to have pop up on a playlist but I wouldn't go crazy listening to entire albums.
Is this a brilliant record? No. Is it groundbreaking? Not really. Does it deserve to be on this list? I like it. The Slits were sort of the punk band that was really only punk for a short time before they recorded this album. This album plays more like an early ska record. It's raw, uncomplicated, and inexplicably good sounding, maybe vocals excepted. You can certainly see who they were looking to for influence and I think as an all female band they had a good influence on bands that would come after. Even still, an all female rock band is relatively rare which is a shame if you ask me. They formed as teenagers who didn't really know how to play instruments and somehow landed a spot opening for The Clash. That in itself is something that would be so foreign to any band starting today. So does this record belong on this list? Yes, I think it does if not for them being sort of one of the pioneers of all female rock then certainly for their cover of I Heard It Through The Grapevine. 3/5
An interesting debut album from The Slits that was rock/punky and despite the Wikipedia entry claiming a reggae style - I can't really hear it. Cut feels ahead of it's time being an early girl rock band, as opposed to a singing disco/pop style group. Best: I Heard It Through The Grapevine Worst: Love Und Romance 3.5 Stars
Interesting, would give it a 3.5 if I could, but it’s not quite enough for a 4
I wasn’t expecting this album to be reggae- inspired. It is certainly different from what we’ve heard so far. I think I would’ve liked this album more if the singer didn’t sound like a 12 year old boy. Love Und Romance is an interesting mix of The Beach Boys and The Adams Family. Typical girls - they really called out the “not like other girls” girls/guys in the 70’s, ahead of their time I heard it through the grapevine - I swear this sounds like the guy from Naked Brothers Band singing. Fun cover! Honestly surprised this isn’t a more talked about cult classic album.
2.75
It was OK. "Newtown", "Love und Romance" and "Ping Pong Affair" caught my ear.
3,5. hrátt en skemmtilegt. óttalegt lífræntsíðhipparugl auðvitað.
I'm not sure whether this album is genius or horrendous, I find the idea of purposely playing your instrument badly very odd. But at the same time they are incredibly tight as a rhythm section, and you know that every song here was written for that effect, the bass & drums have a nice groove together and the guitar sounds like its both in key and out at the same time, but the odd times they actually lock in, in a more traditional sense you can tell that these are competent musicians playing an almost The Police meets Anton Webern mash up that is both repulsive and addictive
Dit is gelabeld als Punk, ik vind het meer experimentele rock met gekke reggae invloeden. Al met al is het niet slecht, maar niet bijzonder.
First half better than the second. an interesting introduction. Always thought it was more punky from the name and cover.
Pretty interesting and a fun listen.
Kinda okay.
Slightly bizarre, but oh, so fun. I really enjoyed this. Never heard of them before, glad I have now.
Cool vibe, very rhythmic and has really nice vocals and chorus works
Weird reggae punk. A few dope songs
3.2/5 Best Track: I Heard It Through The Grapevine
Definitely the highest quality, but a solidly ambitious and weird ordeal. I enjoyed it more than I expected to.
At first listen I thought this was just awful. Possibly my first 1!... but then they had to go and pull out that awesome cover of Heard it Through the Grapevine. And you know why I like her version better than the original? When she says she's just about to lose her mind, I fucking believe her! So I gave the album a deeper listen. This music is just really odd. The changes are totally bizarre. The more I listen, the more I can't turn away. It's really awful but in an awful way that I kinda like. Clearly nobody with good musical taste would give this album more than 2 stars.
I've heard of the Slits, but I think I've heard any of their music before. By the end of the second track, I could tell that The Slits would be categorized somewhere within the punk movement. Cut sounded like the album would fit in somewhere between the Clash and the Talking Heads. The music was okay, but I did not find any tracks that I wanted to save for a re-listen. I could listen to more from the Slits because there is potential, but I probably wouldn't come back to this album.
These songs all sneak up on me. They start and I don't really like them, and then by the end I'm bopping along. It's kind of refreshing to hear a DIY punk record that actually sounds DIY. Apparently The Slits couldn't really play their instruments when they first started, and although I can hear that on this record a bit, if I didn't know I would think this simply was creatively composed music. (And it is still that.) To be honest, as important of a record as I'm sure this is, I don't think I'll revisit anytime soon. But I'm glad I heard it and had fun along with the band. Highlights: Instant Hit, So Tough, Newtown, Ping Pong Affair, Typical Girls
This just sounds a bit too artsy, while the effect they wanted to achieve with all the artsy stuff does not come through as much.
Buen álbum
Cool record. Their vibe and sound reminds me of Talking Heads and XTC although the last song, Lieb and Romanze, which sounded mich different than the rest of the album was more like Bauhaus. Love their cover of I Heard it Through the Grapevine.
Alright .. but didn't click for me. Still feels like they would be really influential though
Sound is to shrill
A nice and pleasant art-punk album with creative and eclectic ideas all the way. Sadly, the songs are kind of not hooking our ears that much. 3 stars all the way!
Revolutionary at the time
Dig. Dag. Dug. Punky Reggae, influenced bands. Why do many word when less word do trick.
Hearing this one I thought to myself "Hmm, very PiL-esque." but then I looked into it more. "Wait, The Slits were formed before PiL? Wait, John Lydon is the stepfather of a founding member?!" Research into this one proved more interesting than expected. Either way, it's post-punk, which is proving to not really be my favourite genre in most cases, at least from what I've heard so far on this list. However this one was okay I guess? Made for a nice change hearing a post punk album by an all-female group, and the songs (and the album as a whole) tended to be on the shorter side which made this quite a bit more palatable than what I've heard of PiL. It has somewhat of a groove throughout, which helps too. However, I feel it does sometimes suffer a bit from being a thing with no real direction, simply existing just to be a bit jarring and avant-garde. "How about I let a blood-curdling scream midway through this track? Just try and fucking stop me." Once again, my favourite track on this post-punk album is the most disco-sounding one. The cover of I Heard It Through The Grapevine was really cool, funky and danceable. That bassline and drumming though! I can totally see how Disco morphed into House a little later, when I hear tracks like this. Favourite: I Heard It Through The Grapevine
Not bad. Did like their rendition of "Heard It Through The Grapevine"
Features hints of ska and punk this is quite a trek for a record that’s only 40 mins long. I liked this but didn’t love it. As a punk aficionado it’s surprising to me I’ve never heard this. What I got was some excellent female fronted punk.
Fun female fronted punk
Pretty good, it's amazing how many of these old albums have so much influence after the fact. Never would have known until now.
Cool album. New Town caught my ear with the arrangement.
Crazy Punk album. I heard it through the grapevine was a cover. Then Typical Girls was decent. Not a huge punk fan tho.
Standout songs: - Instant Hit - FM - I Heard It Through the Grapevine
Me opening up today's album: What is up with this cover? It looks like a still from a B-movie and I'm turning on MST3000. I've never heard of this band. Me listening to the first song: holy shit! This is awesome! Where has it been all my life??!?? The song definitely lived up to its name. Me listening to the final song: o.m.geeeeee will this never end??!?? It starts off ok but just disintegrates into crashing sounds. Now that I've listened to the whole thing, I can say that only liked a handful of the tracks: Instant Hit, Newtown, Typical Girls, and wow! I Heard It through the Grapevine. So this album is a hit or miss for me. 2 for the songs I don't like, 4 for the songs I do, and I'll average it out to 3.
It’s fine but Lord it gets a bit tiresome over the course of an hour. Something that’s great for a song or two but not a whole album The Heard It Through The Grapevine cover makes you realise what a great sound they have when coupled to an actually decent song though
I always assume these late '70s bands will be punk bands. This was not. Interesting to see the evolution of punk to a reggae/ska genre. Sounds like early English Beat with more punk style vocals. Interesting historically. Will I ever listen to this again - no. But I guess it was an interesting listen.
Learning that they fired their original guitarist because the Clash told them that she didn’t “look cool” really soured me on these girls. Album is ok.
Proto-riot grrl. Kind of annoying though.
Some nice grooves on here.
It was alright, very interesting.
A pretty solid record, although plagued by a number of tracks sounding very much alike. I wasn't expecting the reggae/dub influence given the labelling as punk, and it resulted in the record coming across much lighter than I was expecting. A pretty mid 3 for me.
Solid early new wave/post-punk feel. Was not previously familiar with them, but I enjoyed the album.
Nothing really to write home about, but ther cover of "Heard It Through The Grapevine" was enjoyable.
Didn’t love it and probably won’t listen again but rating it for the influence
It was alright, I liked the funky sound
Not really my vibe, giving angsty
I mostly enjoyed it: the oddness of it, the lead singer and background vocals, the weird drumming. It was unique and had quite a few fine moments. Definitely an attention-grabbing rendition of “I Heard it through the Grapevine.”
The lyrics were my favorite part; cheeky and like song 2 (So Tough) says, they deliberately seem like they don't take it serious. The music and beats leave something to be desired. If this is the pinnacle of white reggae then it should be left to non-whites. Typical Girls and Adventures Close to Home were better musically (or more passable) and just as witty as others. Overall, they blazed a trail for girl punk and riot grrrl, but later groups improved on the sound a lot.
Based on a first, agnostic listen in 2023, this doesn't sound like it belongs on a list of 1001 albums to listen to before you die. But then you realize it came out in the late '70s, and how it differed from standard punk, and how it influenced future grrl bands, and you can see why it's on the list. Even so, it doesn't belong with a lot of 4 star albums. I'd give it 3 1/2 stars if I could, but since I can't I'm rounding down.
Post-punk. Un megahit. Ni fu ni fa.
I think this is probably more known for its album cover than anything else. I started off enjoying this as its gurlpunk and ska, but then it continued, and it didn't stop, and I wasn't sure if I was listening to the same song as before. It has its moments and I'm glad I listened, but its a 3 because I'll never listen again
It had its ups and downs I reckon.
Interesting one
I've never listened to this band before. It didn't do much for me.
At first, I was not sure how I felt. Somehow, somewhere in the middle of the album, it almost clicked? And I was almost having a good time! So that's something.
Cool, albeit rough. Maybe that's why it's cool. Maybe I have no idea what I'm talking about.
This is the second time I've listened to this. There's nothing on this album that stands out to me or makes me want to listen to it again. But I really enjoyed Viv's memoir, and I get what they were trying to do.
I enjoy a bit of post punk and this compared well to a lot of things I've listened to here, including this week. So I listened to it a few times and though it's never going to be a favourite I'm still OK with it.
Broke a few molds here. Unique punk sound and girl power way before the spice girls. Bold
It’s nice to see more female musicians on the list. Unfortunately, this album is quite average.
Decent reggae influenced post-punk
Wow, they were all in. Fun, especially 'heard it through the grapevine'. Shit, but fun.
This is one I’ll have to come back to i think. Not too sure about it.
ok
Known of the Slits for ages, but never sought them out. Expecting typical UK 70s punk, but this subverted those expectations
more paper than deep
Cool post-punk with heavy dub influence
Fave tracks: Instant Hit, So Tough, FM, Ping pong affair, typical girls, adventure close to home This is v rough around the edges but in an endearing way lol 3/5
какой-то не мой пре-панк. я вообще больше люблю когда поют, а не кричат)
Interesting
I find it funny that reviewers are trashing this album but heaping praise on Nirvana, who cite this group and this album as a major influence in the 90s punk / grunge resurgence. Anyways, this is a good album. The Slits are at the prime years of Punk and you can hear a little bit of everything that was influential in the late 70, early 80s. 3.5/5
Different from what I was expecting. Thought it was a punk album but instead much more dub and reggae than punk. Maybe post punk is a more accurate description. Liked the guitars on Ping Pong Affair. Strong bass work by Tessa Pollitt throughout. Liked the tracks Instant Hit and Typical Girls. Shoplifting was a weak track that brought the album down. Overall influential and decent.
Post-punk dub or something. I like it. That is, I like every song by itself, but an entire album is too much. Favorite song: instant hit
Mezcla de pop-rock con algún toque algo más punk con una buena sucesión de canciones guitarreras y con voz enérgica femenina
Not bad, but not for me.
16.04.23. Весёлый женский арт-панк с сильным влиянием регги. Крайне странная, дурашливая и неоднозначная музыка. Если вы любитель дерзких девчачьих альбомов, то, быть может, вам понравится. Я же получил незабываемые впечатления и довольно забавный опыт, послушав это.
can see how it's influencial but it's disjointed - 3
Not half as tough as I thought it would be. In fact quite a pleasant listen.
Irgendwie total komisch aber irgendwie auch cool
A nifty lil dub punk thing, but I don't think it was interesting enough to return to often.
Decent Manic art punk. Maybe lacking something that really draws me back, but I could enjoy it while it is on.
Bit stilted at times, as I got into it was better - Ping pong Affair was the best song, bit doesn't reach great highs but will listen again. 3.4
I enjoyed this more than I thought I would! i found it a fun listen with at least a few songs I’d put on again.
Pretty okay for me. I would have mixed the vocals differently.
3.5/5
Fun pop punk album, love the Ska sounds and driving drums...crazy to think these girls were just teenagers.
Pretty innovative. Not very well produced. Sounded pretty thin.
Cut is the debut album by English punk band the Slits. It was an innovative album, fusing punk and reggae with an ample helping of pop. Cut was critically acclaimed and remains ranked as one of the best post-punk albums of all time. This was a great album that I enjoyed listening to. Not the greatest album I've ever heard, but not bad by any stretch.
Skemmtilegt stelpupönk!
Raw punk!
It was alright!
Je ne suis pas une grande fan de la petite influence ska. Par contre, j’aime les voix, l’énergie, les thèmes. Je veux en écouter plus de ce groupe.
3- for the ska beats
Genre bending is pretty neat. The album is more to listen to for bits of inspiration rather than to enjoy, though. 3/5
A weird mix of grunge/punk and what feels like reggae. I really don't know how to feel about this album with it being a little all over the place. 3/5. Favorite Track: Newtown
An important record. a kind of strange record.
fine punk/reggae band. nothing to be annoyed about, nothing to be blown away about. i get it. i bet it was edgy in ‘79. go rock people.
Still a great listen after 40+ years. A sign of things to come for Ari Up and Viv Albertine.
70s punk ska reggae thing that inspired a million Riol Grrrl things. It has an innocent charm and some of the song structure are unusual. Angular guitars in fractured rhythms. Groundbreaking and well worth a 3.
Really hard to listen to. The sound of the music is okay, it is a unique blend of ska, raggae and punk, with some piano here and there. But the vocals are atrocious.
Definitely a very unorthodox listening experience but oddly enough, the longer it went on, the more okay I got with it
I enjoy this album on an intellectual level more than on an emotional one. I have huge respect for what they are trying to do, and the musical approach is super interesting. They have ideas for sure, and cojones grandes, so to speak. But the actual execution leaves a bit to be desired. Extra star for them being them in the 70's.
Not bad really. Worth another listen
Going in completely blind, I was completely immersed in the record's unique sound and texture for the first few tracks, but as the record progressed, it became clear that they didn't have much else to say. The vocals are without a doubt the highlight of the album, I was a huge fan of the harmonies throughout and how and when rhythmic unison was used. The lead vocal performance is infectiously energetic so even on some of the weaker tracks it never becomes boring. For a debut record it’s heavily ambitious but they never really try to go out of their comfort zone and just stagnant on the main idea of this record so it can get repetitive. On a side note I’m always going to appreciate a record where the percussionist goes the extra step with writing their parts to make something unique and this is very true for this album. Although I very much enjoyed the main idea, I wish they wouldn’t have dwelled on it as much. Still I’d be interested to see where this band went after this album and will definitely now check out the rest of their discography. A strong 3
Engaging post-punk mashup of punk, reggae/Jamaican sounds, and lyrics that should be more out of date than they are. I also enjoyed reading about the furor generated by the cover and the contemporary and subsequent reflections of the band and the photographer.
Counter to much of the presumptions about Punk today, a degree of musical knowledge and awareness was useful in the genre. To break the rules, you need to know what the rules are in the first place. Reference points are an important aspect of building a canon. So this album certainly pushes away from the over-elaborate theatricals of prog (and, in a sense, Disco), but retains a attachment to melody as the ('a', actually) motif that can hold a song in place – without feeling bound to engaging with the trope in the same way that their musical forebears did. There's something coy and endearing in Ari Up's delivery, which too marks it as not fitting the Punk consensus. Good find
A-puoli oikein hyvä, onneksi B-puolellelin on jätetty I heard it through the grapevine. Sanoisin post-punkiksi, asennetta on ja huuteluharmoniaa, joka on hauskaa.
77-vuoden punkbändi kuuntelee reggaeta ja muuta sellaista luodakseen musiikkia, joka ei ole reggaeta, mutta ehdottomasti on jotain muuta. Miten tällaiseen soundiin voi päätyä? En tiedä, ei ainakaan täysin tahallaan, mutta joka tapauksessa lopputulos houkuttelee kuuntelemaan levyä uudelleen ja uudelleen, kunnes siitä alkaa pitää. Asiaa auttaa, että levyllä on muutama helvetin kova kappale, kuten avausbiisi ja Grapevine.
I didn't like this as much as I had hoped, but I'll definitely dive into the rest of the discography.
I am a bit familiar with The Slits and I have to say I wasn't too thrilled about getting this album... but I was pleasantly surprised by it as a whole. It does sound dissonant and even amateurish at times, but strangely that also seems to add to it! It has this particular groove that I sometimes crave... not very often, but once in a blue moon. So I'm glad it exists.
I normally love spiky punky girl bands but The Slits didn’t quite do it for me. Full of attitude and a lack of polish but I just don’t think i vibed off the dub reggae sound. When their most familiar track is a cover of Heard It Through The Grapevine you have to wonder what’s wrong with the rest of this.
Just okay
Angular fun.
Not what I was expecting at all, tbh. Still sounds really fresh too.
I can see how they led the way for other acts but doesn’t mean I’ll ever listen to it again
Meh. Not for me
I'm not sure if I love or hate the music yet....but I certainly enjoyed learning about these fucking crazy, brave, independent, influential women.
Not for me
Meh
I was happy to have given this a second and third listen, for the first listen did nothing to me. The rambling half punk only did something to me with their great cover of Heard It Through The Grapevine. But the second and third listen brought forth much more of the fun that this album has. Great tunes, great attitude. Punk
Definitely enjoyed it more than I was expecting. I like that it’s so silly and quirky, but sometimes the singing gets a little too out there. Some decent cuts on it though. 5/10
weird post-punk
3.5 stars. Post-punk all female. Not a big fan of the vocals, but like the music. "Newtown" has creative instruments. Standout is "Typical Girls", "I Heard It Through The Grapevine"
Fem punk album that seems to have helped inspire others
Made no impression
I always like this sound, although it also brings to mind Gilda Radner playing Candy Slice, punk rocker... and I kinda weirdly love their cover of I Heard it Through the Grapevine.
As an album? it's okay. As a band name? it's awesome. as a cover of grapevine? it's as good as it gets
It grew on me over the course of the day. But I definitely wanted to like it more than I actually did.
It has a few decent moments, but it feels a bit lame at times.
Off-kilter, spiky songs with a feminist streak that take equal influence from punk and reggae. “Typical Girls” was a standout track for me. The bonus track cover of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” is a gem too.
I'm not entirely sure if I like this or not. I like lots of stuff from the same era/genre but The Slits have never really appealed to me. I did enjoy this listen though, and am glad to have heard it. The album has a great carefree feel to it, and I always love to hear a band enjoying themselves as they appear to be doing here. Favourite tracks include Ping Ping Affair, and of course the very quirky cover of I Heard It Through The Grapevine.
A noisy album with a reasonable amount of ska undertone. It's catchy enough in some respects. Vocals sometimes seem to be an afterthought.
I thought that the vocals on this album were really quiet, but there were a number of really enjoyable songs. Newtown and heard it through the grapevine in particular stood out. I love that on these older albums it is pretty normal to include covers of great songs (when the levee breaks by zeppelin is also a cover). I feel like this practice is one of the things that makes rap music so special, and I wish we saw more of this in other genres of modern music.
Interesting, considering how inexperienced they were at this point.
Somewhere between root reggae and post-punk. Usually not for me, but I was enjoying the vibe. Favorite track: "Instant Hit"
I appreciate where they're going with this, but it's really not all that fun to listen to. I find it a bit of an atonal hodgepodge mess, and my tolerance level is higher than most. They do get points for creativity and the scratchy, jagged guitars are pretty spot on. It's not boring. Fave Songs: FM; Newtown; Instant Hit; Ping Pong Affair
I liked it better than I thought I would. Not sure why I wasn’t excited for it as I’ve been hoping for more female artists but it was a good punk album.
Kind of a bizarre al um that I am just now beginning to appreciate . Dissonant chord progressions, strange, otherworldly vocals, great drumming and cool reggae-esque rhythms that were quite unique at the time. The songs continue to grow on me with repeat listens. 3.5 🌟 with a bullet
I dig the reggae influenced post punk sound. Favorites: "Instant Hit", "So Tough", "Typical Girls"
Listenable and uncommon
Siento que solo fue otro disco de punkyto de finales de los 70 principios de los ochenta. Me gustó la voz de la que canta y tienen buenos momentos con algo como new-wave-esco y de hecho el cover a "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" me latió bastante, pero no tanto como para hacer que el disco entero sea parte de la lista.
The kind of thing that hits me like an interesting anthropological experiment - the trenchant 70s feminism, the crazy German ululating vibrato - but it’s hard to imagine electing to listen to it for the kinds of reasons I listen to music.
This one was enjoyable but overall forgettable. It is really cool that this comes from an all-girl group as not only is this rare to see in general but also happens to be in the post-punk genre dominated by males. The Slits seemed to be having fun (I think) but the music was pretty sloppy for the most part with a lot of the tracks blending into one another. The only song that ended up standing out to me was their cover of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" which I thought was excellent. It was a great twist on the original Marvin Gaye version and surprisingly fit their style perfectly. Outside of that, I didn't find any of the other songs very memorable or catchy, but I still liked listening to them. This is probably not one I would come back to, but I can understand why it might be on this list. 2.5/5.
Was expecting some straightforward noise punk, but was pleasantly surprised by the creativity on show. It's got a bouncy, mildly chaotic energy about it that I like, and it sounds like it could've been released in the 00s. 3.5
Have we already had a Slits album? I love the bass and drums throughout this. I'm sure it wasn't, but it sounds like the album might have been written with the music being added after the lyrics and melody. The instruments drop in and out and seem to mold around the vocals. Really good Adventures Close to Home
Probably the best post punk album we’ve heard from the list yet. Very interesting musically, I think the vocals are great. It’s jarring quite a lot though. Love the moments where the piano is just atonal af.