Entertainment

Actually really vibed with this. Some bangers and great energy. Ahead of its time in many ways. Damaged Goods and At Home He's a Tourist were highlights for me

The perfect post-punk album. No notes

Definitely enjoyed. Will have to give them another listen.

Post-punk masterpiece with infectious funk bass, guitar abrasiveness and politically charged lyrics.

It’s fine, I’m finding “post”-anything doesn’t really work for me that much

Nah

A fine post-punk album. I enjoyed it, but was not particularly grabbed by it. 3/5

an erratic, tense, artsy spin on 70s uk punk. particularly enjoyed a lot of the interesting guitar work and funky, driving basslines. consistent tracklist, but it does get a bit repetitive going into the last couple songs favourite songs: damaged goods, return the gift, love like anthrax least favourite song: none

Fun

Plain, boring and the singer sounds like a bored lecturer

Fairly experimental. I enjoyed this but I won't come back to it.

For the genre, this was pretty good.

Irritating.

Enjoyed this more than I thought I would. It's sort of like Talking Heads if they were British and a bit more up their ass about politics. Very hypnotic, trance-like guitar and drum work.

Some great songs. A little slow for my liking for a punk album but still groovy

Never heard of this group but will check out more of their stuff. Gives me Adam and the Ants vibes.

Gang Of Four's debut album mixes punk rock/post-punk with more off-kilter rhythms that you might hear in funk/disco/soul. It does this to a surprisingly good degree, in the process It creates a sound/genre called dance-punk. Themes are quite political and conscious which are more aligned with straight punk rock rather then the sub-genre of post-punk (which is more likely to feature themes of isolation, anxiety, alienation) that this album tends to be labelled as. The vocals (by Jon and Andy) tend to be quite preachy and confrontational (like in the opening song "Ether") but there are still some moments that aren't like that (e.g. "Damaged Goods"), it's not totally predictable which I like a lot. The guitars sound real sharp, angry and bristle-like add a lot to the aggression that is apparent in some songs, some songs I really like the guitars in are the aforementioned "Ether", "I Found That Essence Rare" and the pure noisefest and not-so-bristle of "Love Like Anthrax." The bass guitar and drums are what gives the album (imho) it's character. Bass guitar tends to lock in whilst providing a counter-melody (typical post-punk) for the listener to get stuck in their head. Drums are totally top-notch as well, and chooses colourful choices galore throughout the runtime and is arguably probably the most important step of this dance-punk sound. I really like this album, such a unique sound I feel that hasn't been copied to death and back. It's a nice combination pure unfiltered punk aggression, off-kilter rhythms and melodicism. This album is very, very inspiring to me and fills me with nothing but great ideas. I think just for that 5 stars is a must, but add everything I said above, it deserves it EVEN more. It fully deserves a place on the must-hear before you die list. Highlight Song/s: "Ether", "Natural's Not in It", "Damaged Goods" and "I Found That Essence Rare"

Good one here. Pretty solid in the post punk genre, which seems weird on the timeline I keep in my mind of when that kicked off (79!?!).

Ah man, great album. Sharp and angular, it has a kind of martial energy acting as a foil for its politics. Early enough in the process to not quite know when to end a song, or at least not mix it up enough to justify a song's length, but as a debut and a foray into post-punk (contra PiL and the recent Fall album and more like Devo), it does a great job of brandishing a knife and keeping your attention. Damaged Goods is a great song and despite song length/variety complaint, at 40 minutes it's just about right.

Super boring albim cover. The title is at a random 7° angle, and why is it screaming at me?? I Found That Essence Rare rhymed bikini with bikini. God awful lyrics and not a single good song on here. Genuinely have no reason to listen to this again, and almost didnt even make it through the first listen. And before asking, yes, I listened to this twice. No, I cannot remember ANYTHING about it. Best Song: Not Great Men. Worst Song: I Found That Essence Rare.

This should be renamed, “Gang of No”

Is he on beat? I mean the vocalist, of course. Right? Surely it’s not the guitarist who is off-beat, too. Am I going crazy? The ending is fairly well done, so I’m not sure what happened at the beginning there. I think those first few tracks made me lose interest in the album, even if the second half was okay. The choppy, broken singing and similar guitar style does not work well. Good thing they partly fixed it at the end, or this would have been a 1 star.

One of the best ever! Got the vinyl at home! Guerilla world struggle is still the new entertainment!

Nice punk sounds

Another one of many albums that gets categorized as "post-punk" -- I guess a lot of things could be *post*-anything, if you think about it...

(4/7) sounds like "post-punk"

Another Okay British Punk album. If they were the first one or this list as a whole had any kind of balance I would like this, but it is exhausting. Still, it on it's own should get a 3

Quirky, interesting and fun. Great guitar riffs and funky beats. Some songs can get a bit repetitive though. 4/5

Like a barbed wire whip with attitude. No notes needed. Just brilliant

While Entertainment! by Gang of Four is often praised for its dance-punk rhythms, it can be a frustrating listen for those who prefer their music without a heavy dose of political lecturing. The album's relentless focus on Marxist theory and social critique can feel intrusive and dated, overshadowing the actual music. Instead of just enjoying the funky basslines and catchy beats, the listener is subjected to a cynical and overly academic manifesto that ultimately detracts from the album's potential as a fun, danceable record. So says Siri because I’m on holiday and had little time to review. 2/5 16/10/26

Really cool guitar tones

Crap

Damaged Goods is a good song, I like Idles and enjoy their cover more but it surprised me because I didn't know their song was a cover. The rest of the album was good too

Супер класика, подобається танцювальність та як від цього альбому хочеться рухатися. Із задоволенням переслухав.

Розумію впливовість гурту, але ніколи не подобались вони мені настільки, щоб мені захотілось переслухати альбом. От і зараз послухав - ну прикольно ніби, але слухати ще раз нема бажання. З пісень звісно ж виділяється Damaged Goods.

The first new wave band I've heard that seems to actually like playing their instruments.

Awesome stuff! A captivating mix of dance and punk that you think would clash, but actually work very well together. Politically conscious lyrics and delicious-sounding instruments (especially its prioritisation of bass) are the cherries on top of this thrilling and socially confronting sundae. This is a fascinating and seminal showcase of post-punk you can tell hugely inspired bands like Fugazi and Nirvana. 5 stars might just be me being overly generous but who cares anymore :D

Another British rock group.

Surprised at how cool this album is. Really feels like it has a lot of punch and force behind it

Was not familiar with this record. Quirkiness of the Talking Heads, the abrasive but rhythmic sound style and vocal delivery of Public Image LTD. with some sick bass lines. Surprisingly awesome!

Listened to this on the drive to London and cant say anything left much of an impression. Not a bad album, just nothing of note. Meh!

I wish I could explain why I liked this, but I can’t.

At points he really sounded like James Acaster, especially on Not Great Men, which was odd. Sort of The Jam style punky music, although parts of this were very 'early Arctic Monkeys'. I liked the bass quite a lot. I got to the end of the thinking, I really enjoyed it and then Amazon autoplayed The Clash, and suddenly the comparison was stark. Good, but not great. Should be a 3.5, but getting a 3/5

Before Gang Of Four drifted into the world of drum machines, replacement band members and extravagant box sets, there was this - a punchy, wiry statement of purpose, a lean, tough record that turned post-punk guitar playing on its head. True to their Marxist roots, the band's egalitarian approach benefits this record immensely, as every instrumental and vocal part contributes equally and nothing is an afterthought.

Cool

Una sorpresa muy buena. Me encantó, amo el postpunk y me encantó tanto musicalmente como liricamente. Inesperadamente le doy un 5

An album that probably does numbers in independent record shops & and suburban garages across America. Nothing really groundbreaking for me, though. Serves as good background music when you want someone to think you have deep cuts. Highlight: At Home He's A Tourist

When I first got into Entertainment! as a teenager in the mid-1980s, it completely changed how I thought about heavy music. I was into early hardcore and Heavy Metal, Gang of Four was a total curveball, but it clicked with me immediately because it possessed that same raw intensity I was looking for, just delivered in a completely different way.

It really didn't grab me. I like punk quite a bit and I've gotten some really dull recommendations from this list. Do I not like "post punk"?

This album is undamaged goods

Heard this album at times during the years but never really gotten into it. Now spinning it again few rounds and i started to enjoy it more. Such an influential album to the whole post punk genre.

#494 / 1089 Heard before? ❌ Revisit? ❌ Again, not my kind of music. This pop post-punk sounds so similar to hundreds of other bands I've heard, it doesn't matter how important the band was in the evolution of this or that, if the music doesn't speak to me. I would not call it annoying, but definitely something I forget to listen and it turns into aural wallpaper. Mere 2/5 for me

Low 4 but still

Spiky, sparky, political punk funk, charged with brittle energy

I am hopeful that I’ll get a really good album soon. There have been so many misses recently. I truly want to know what makes all of these albums “worthy” of listening to?

The Plimsouls are about as close to punk as I want to get. A lot of meaningful lyrics, not really.

Very much of its time.

Doet me niet veel

Ik snap dat punk super edgy en anders was rond die tijd. Ik vind de stijl eigenlijk ook wel tof, maar het is vooral gwn heel erg slecht.

Ik hoopte toch wat meer funk of jazz, maar teleurgesteld toen ik hoorde dat het weer gewoon rock was. Weer wel oke, maar niks voor mij

A painful listen for me. Unexciting instrumental and lyrics were just repeated lines shouted. Albums like these make me wonder how low the bar is for 1001 albums!

4/5

Yep I can see the influencers this band would have given out, cool album and different

This was a fine album for what it is. It's a solid '70s punk album with some good moments, but I'm not sure I'd listen to it again.

yep

Solid album Standout songs: Damaged Goods Glass 5.45

Surprised how little entertained I was. Recognised a fair few but failed to really grab me.

I am feeling post punk fatigue. This is fine I guess.

MIRA, es un buen disco. con bastante cohesión y fui capaz de escucharlo entero.

Owned for many years....not a massive fan. However... Back in the early 00s Mojo magazine published a '50 punk albums you must hear' article. Sounds familiar? As a young professional with spare cash and a decent record store in my city I went out and bought the lot. And discovered that I don't really like punk!! There were some surprising success. Dead Kennedys (are they on this list?) but most of it wasn't that great. Including this album. Three tracks in I hadn't changed my opinion. But then on came Damaged Goods and something changed. Firstly that song is awesome anyway and I'd forgotten that! But it sounds so like Fontaine's DC and I'm a big fan of them and suddenly I was hearing it through fresh ears and I enjoyed it a bit more. It went from 1 star to 2 stars and by the end I was enjoying it enough to give it 3! As well.as Damaged Goods, Return the gift and at home he's a tourist were also superb.

Not terrible considering the circumstances. At least it was real music. Good drums and had some feeling to it

Hard to get past how much I dislike the vocals, but the themes and the music are really good. Punk rock mixed with funk and other genres is exactly up my alley, I wish they weren’t so British. I did enjoy Return The Gift.

I’ve always heard this was a great album and it did not disappoint. In the same vein as Talking Heads

hmmm... i'll have to think about this one, listen to it again

There was something so incredibly modern about this album. It's hard to date it in the seventies, it could've been made in the 00s

Minutemen minus the fun?

***An ok album

Not bad. Kinda generic punk after a few songs.

Fucking awesome! Gang of Four Stars more like

up the punk

muy goat

I've definitely heard better(and worse) entertainment. Favorite Track: "Damaged Good".

Good

Never heard of the band before, but after listening to this album, I'll be on the lookout for more of their stuff.

I quite liked the sound of this album, interesting to hear another album that started the post punk sound and how much it was different to joy division. Still quite complex with a punk edge but definitely distinct

I swear every Post-Punk album I get on this list pushes the timeline in my head back a little. I could've sworn Post-Punk was a distinctly mid-80s thing until finding out today that these guys made this work of art in 1979. Then again, This Heat put out their debut in the same month as this album and Unknown Pleasures was only a few months before this, so maybe I'm just time-blind. Either way, this sounds so far ahead of its time. It's also pretty fun. I'm a big Dance-Punk fan, so pretty much everything in the genre is fun, but these guys really go all over the place with it. I like the really wild guitar parts on a few of these songs especially and the groove of the record as a whole. I will say I definitely had to do some research to understand what they were talking about in a few of these songs (i.e. what Great Man Theory and Long Kesh are), but very few things on this earth are more punk rock than staying informed. Not doing that is exactly how we fall for the stuff that people on the right say and elect people like Trump into positions of extreme power. Knowledgeable people are what authoritarians fear more than anything. To the Americans doing the challenge, stay knowledgeable on who your representative is. If you don't know who your representative is, here you go: https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative

A new band and a new album for me. While never truly enjoying the post-punk classics, the lineage from here all the way to Kaiser Chiefs is immediately apparent. On reading about their influences, I found that they were both from Leeds, albeit a generation apart with Kaiser Chiefs dedicating The Job Centre Shuffle to them. They might not be exactly what I’m after a lot of theirs lyrics and content are easily recognisable and applicable even in today’s post brexit society. Great album

I largely enjoyed the first ~2/3 of the album, and I thought maybe post-punk could be good. It devolved into some noise rock toward the end, though, so I ultimately ended up at a 3. 3.2

Not bad just not my bag

Predecessor of what was to come in the realm of punk, good stuff Playlist add: “Natural’s Not In It”

Short album that deserved a few listens. They found a way to combine raw punk sounds with a clean production. The balance between instruments is fantastic, with clean bass lines leading. Like most punk, the lyrics are more a vibe than a hook. I'm glad I read up on some of it. Anti-Fascist, Pro-Feminism, all punk.

Yksi parhaista uusista löydöistä, mitä tämä haaste on tarjonnut. Damaged Goods-biisin tiesin entuudestaan ja pari muutakin kuulostivat tutulta. Todella tasalaatuinen kokonaisuus, joka tuntuu kestoaan lyhyemmältä. Särmikästä ja energistä post-punkkia, jonka pariin tulee vielä varmasti palattua.

Favourite Songs: Natural's Not In It Damaged Goods I Found That Essence Rare

Now is the time for us all to revisit Entertainment! The music is singular, amazing, astonishing. But there's so much more to it and that's what makes it a true masterpiece of any era and any genre. Read Kevin J.H. Dettmar's excellent 33 1/3 analysis/memoir about Entertainment! for a really in-depth look at the philosophies, attitudes, and politics that make this album more than just a groundbreaking and earth shattering work of musical art. Here's the thing: fascist white nationalist scum repeatedly try to castrate and cut the legs off of us humans. Men, women, and everyone in between. They will burn this place to the ground in their narcissistic attempts at gaining power at any cost. Our lives become flatter, less colorful, less fun. Resistance and acceptance both end the same. Turning humans into a commodity started a really long time ago. Sending soldiers to war with the promise of heroic status on return, working your ass off (starting as a child) for some small meaningless consumer product, transactional sex in and out of the bedroom, music that is manufactured for the most efficient psychological impact, love like anthrax. So, Gang of Four address this problem and provide its soundtrack. You can't dance away these systemic problems. Andy Gill's slashing atonal guitar will pull you back in line, crashing the party that started with the hippies and found its groove in the disco era. That malaise you feel when 'your new purchase' does not provide the joy you expected? It has no lush reverb, it has no catchy, easy to digest power chords or twee vocal to divert your attention inward. Nah. GoF don't provide us much of a solution. But they absolutely help us detach ourselves from the situation and invite us to reestablish our deeper more meaningful human essence.

3.5

Some interesting elements but not enough

I’ve been poisoned by this whole thing to see “post punk” and expect the worst British garbage imagineable, but this was actually quite good. It’s a great in between of the 70s punk classics and the burgeoning 80s pop/rock sound. The drumming and vocals really did it for me; there was never a dull 4/4 bass/snare/hat combo for a song and the vocals where interjected all over like a proto David Byrne. The guitars and bass were well performed and the bass in particular had some great lines early in the album. I ended up listening to the extended version with extra songs without even noticing. It wasn’t the best thing ever but for me it was the first actual post punk album that sounded like the moniker would suggest, and was finally fun to listen to. Nice.

⭐️5.45

Just some rock solid post punk

This wasn’t bad. Like a lot of the bands that weren’t on my radar at the time, or even closer to the time, they hold little longevity now unless the music does something interesting to me. I appreciate this but have no desire to venture further or listen again. Solid though.