D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

That was a really horrible listen, thanks very much.

DOA and Final Report I really don’t think this is the worst album on the site, and I feel broadly similar about it as I did Kollaps, although I think you can kind of tell this was made by British Art School people, as opposed to abrasive Germans, as it has a bit of a sarcastic performative feel running through it. I do feel like I’ve heard quite a few tracks soundtracking a short film in an art exhibition somewhere in London on a Thursday night about 30 times though, particularly recorded conversation tracks like Valley of the Shadow of the Death and Hometime, or an exercise in unsettling noise like Walls of Sound. There is still quite a bit to like though, and I started to get quite into it on repeat listens, its atmospheres becoming quite entrancing. Dead on Arrival is great, the rhythm ordering it while the noises and sounds circle around, and it's followed by the disquieting Weeping, the only time that a glimpse of human feeling peeps through. Hamburger Lady really grew on me, the air raid siren propelling it, and sounding similar to some of the stuff on My Life in the Bush of Ghosts. AB/7A is obviously the most immediate track, and it is great, proto synth pop with echoes of Eno and Low. E. Coli has a bit of Public Service Broadcasting to it, and is another ominous, creepy grower. Enjoy is not necessarily the right word, but I really liked this, possibly the most interesting of the abstract/industrial/experimental albums we’ve had, perhaps as it seems to pull in influences from Eno and Bowie, rather than just being noise for noise's sake, and has some genuinely great moments and a unique, haunting but engaging atmosphere. It’s probably on the edge of 3 and 4, and I’ll just tip it to 4, as I found it something I really liked listening to, as well as being a genuinely interesting art-industrial album. 🥣🥣🥣🥣 Playlist submission: Dead on Arrival

1001 Albums Generator 367 (10/08/2026) How did this come out in 1978? I understand that Throbbing Gristle are like the best trolls of music history (case in point: this being their second album, and the album cover of "20 Jazz Funk Greats"), but they were also way ahead of the curve. Unfortunately, the curve was the trajectory of an ICBM aimed directly at my earholes. 2/5. Favs: IBM Weeping AB/7A Least Fav: United

Album was definitely an experimental sound. I would admit this would have been ahead of it's time in 1978, but that doesn't make it good. Sounded more like background sounds that could be used for flashbacks in a movie or documentary. Definitely not something I feel I needed to hear. I was generous giving it 2 stars for the effort.

Strange experimental.

As expected: a lot of this barely or doesn't qualify as music, in my book. It's difficult to tell when performative art moves outside of being art at all, however I think this album is close. It's pretty insulting that people were asked to pay money to listen to this; and I have to wonder who was interested enough in it to buy it.

Definitely one of the stranger records from this list. I feel like there are times where it’s okay but a lot of the time the music just gave me anxiety. The best description I found in my head for this music was “music for psychopaths”.

This just sort of freaks me out, honestly. It's not even that interesting as a bad album.

Weird, vibey, ambient… it’s not for everyone, but it’s definitely for me. Big fan of experimental industrial vibes and these were the pioneers right here, we wouldn’t be getting any of what we have today without ‘em.

Baby ears on this website, let me tell ya Incredibly forward-thinking. Does not make for a really "listenable" experience, but certainly sticks out in the brain. I understand if dada anti-art is not one's thing, but the album is clearly cohesive, progressive and a "statement" if nothing else. People unwilling to even acknowledge that and call the record "noise" can get lost

WTF did I just listen to

sucked

1.5 por el valor artistico...

Por qué?? Que necesidad de escuchar esto??

Man, this was a tough listen. Definitely cool! Unique for sure. Especially for 1978. I thought it was pretty cool, but def not something I'm going to relisten to.

This left me highly uncomfortable. 0/10. Terrible experience.

To say something positive this widened my perspective on music by a lot, and therefore maybe I did need to hear it before I die. Cant say I enjoyed it though.....

But why?

That...was different. Liked it though

I'm sad I had to listen to this album.

OMG what the heck is this? This is not music, it’s just a bunch of noise - horrible noise. Unlistenable.

Noise. An exercise in endurance

This is like the soundtrack to a cursed episode of Doctor Who that was only shown once and led to an entire town disappearing. Is that a good thing or bad thing? Well that’s entirely subjective On a serious point though, I’m not against challenging music but this is unsettling and transgressive to a degree that was beyond challenging and just left me uneasy

Look, I get that this is a potentially difficult album to get through. I'm not even sure I enjoyed much of it. But it's different. It has a definite point of view. It's influential. It's a hell of a lot more interesting than Taylor Swift. Wouldn't the world be a more boring place without a few oddballs along the way. Where's your will to be weird? 3.5 stars, rounded up.

Not for me at all.

Cool noise music but stressful for me at times

Why

Pitchfork would like this

Horroroso.

It's not bad, it's not good. It's barely a thing. Boring. Boring boring boring.

Far too experimental ‘music’ 😕 One star…

Really! I needed to hear this before I die. Ffs

the first album that i actually couldn't finish.. can see how it inspired some industrial artists like trent reznor a few years later though

It's influential, it's one of the very first Industrial albums and it deserves a spot on the list. It's also completely shit to listen to. Barely anything noteworthy happening, like a sound collage more than a piece of music. It's interesting on its own, but just not something I would actually wanna listen to. I find a lot of Industrial to be just garbled noise and this is no different. Someone else can defend it and give it a higher rating because of its influence blablabla, I'm not gonna be the one to do that.

ja maar wat is dit, okay eerlijk is eerlijk wel een paar prima nummers

controversial but i will say i totally understand why this album is on this list. will never return to it however

Just not music , is it

I kind of have…no thoughts about this? It feels like this album went inside my brain and dug a bunch of needles into it, yet I think I can still appreciate the artistry going on here. One could certainly consider this proto-NIN, but I would hesitate to put the two on the same level, or even the same ballpark for that matter. I'm sure this was revolutionary at the time, but damn, was this a hard listen. There were certain elements of it that I kind of enjoyed, I guess? But I can absolutely see why this is nearly universally hated. Favorite (not) tracks: AB/7A, I guess?

holy fuck i didn't realize this was from the 70s this is super ahead of its time i thought this was from the early 2000s do i think this is particularly outstanding, not really but i feel like everybody gotta listen to throbbing gristle atleast once, its a rite of passage. i like the creepy songwriting and the ominous synths and guitars plucks, tons of eerie atmosphere. i would never return to this but i wont forget it

The record that started the pop music wave that would persist for over two decades. Simply put, modern pop wouldn't exist without this record. Hell, "Oops I Did it Again" is a direct lift of "Hamburger Lady." I'm surprised Britney Spears wasn't sued. Too bubblegum for my tastes, though.

wow, beautiful experimental stuff. just gorgeous. edit to say i'm listening to Tool's Faaip De Oiad at the end of Lateralus, and it's like a Throbbing Gristle cover. Crazy TG was doing this in the 70s!

Shut up.

Music is subjective, but I do not want to subject myself to this anymore. Couldn’t even finish the 41 minute on time, which is sad.

Just no

Industrial.

Throbbing Gristle? Wow.

Still better than derivative blues jams and brit rock.

Sound experiments that evolve into sonic experience. Genesis P-orridge has his fingerprints all over this along with his signature vocals

There’s a good bit of shitty nonsense here but wade through the filth and there are some good tracks and great moments. A worthy entry, if not a good one.

I don’t think I’ll listen to this agin

I wanted to appreciate what they were doing and I simpy couldn't. I listened to the whole thing and I suppose I'm glad I experienced a forerunner of industrial music, but that's about it.

let me tell you, this was NOT the vibe to listen to on a 7am flight from boston to denver... its harsh, it had a lot of wtf moments... but still wasn't as insane/bad as Kollaps. still not enjoyable though... could potentially be a 1, but i'm feeling generous

Nope.

This album has everything! Beeps, boops, swooshes, plinks, and even hamburger lady!

Oof…was just not for me. Could not finish.

Eh

Yesterday, I had one of the highest rated albums to listen to and today I get the lowest rated one. Honestly, it's not as bad as people make it out to be. Yes, it's uncomfortable and weird, but songs like Hamburger Lady really capture the feel of the lyrics. Hamburger Lady and Hit By a Rock were very interesting.

This is punk. Yeah! Later acts (e.g., Matmos, Einstürzende Neubauten) do this better—or, at least, in a more noise-can-be-music way. But D.O.A. absolutely deserves to be here. I’m baffled by the fact that this is the lowest-ranked album on the project. There are literally *dozens and dozens* of albums of . . . lesser merit here.

Trash

Interesting sounds but pretty uncomfortable as an album. Not something I'd reach for.

Finally, my favourite album of all time, I knew this would come round on the list and couldn’t wait to listen to it again, CLASSIC. SAID NOBODY EVER.

The other people doing this need to stop rating weird and different stuff so low. It deserves to be on this list more than like 7 of the Beatles albums

An interesting listen and a first for me. Can appreciate how advanced / influential it was for 1978 when you had to work pretty hard to make electro squelchy noises vs today so chapeau for the effort. Its not a particularly great listen - the tuneful AB/7A very much the exception - but it was interesting. A lot of the tracks reminded me of the beginning of I wanna be adored before the bass kicks in - except the base/song never kicks in. I doubt I will ever listen again so it should be a 2 - but giving it a 3 as apparently its the lowest scoring album (and its a lot better than so many albums on this list)

Atrocious. Give me another from that white british rapper instead of this. 1.

I can appreciate the rust and friction that lives in proto-industrial works like this one. It’s intriguing and hypnotic. Would I sound pretentious if I say that I liked it? Color me delighted, then.

could do with more jazz funk

I love this record, maybe even more than 20 Jazz Funk Greats. Step aside from their notoriety, Throbbing Gristle deftly used the dubious talents at their disposal to create evocative, unsettling yet entertaining music. Most Industrial types in their wake were glowering at their drum machines while TG executed a dark sort of camp while glowering over their drum machines.

Based on a quick background read, I expected straight industrial music, but this is closer to what Negativland did years later, and I hear the seeds of ambient electronica, noise and echoes of Krautrock. It sounds like a late-night broadcast from a college radio station when the DJ is practically daring whatever listeners are still hanging around to react.

Not my favorite of theirs, but a group you absolutely have to reckon with to understand contemporary noise and experimental music.

Wow this is fucking shit. Thanks 1,001 Albums To Listen To Before You Die list.

Some tracks are actually quite nice such as AB/7A, but I can’t get into the less melodic ones. Still better than John Zorn though?

I experienced a movie in 4DX for the first time this weekend (Jurassic Park) and my reaction to this album is the same as that theater experience. I don’t think I’d seek it out again, but I enjoyed it in the moment. Also, this album made me noticeably less wet.

I understand, but I do not enjoy

Terrible ! and terribly painful

What a stupid album.

If i could give this a 0, I would

Yes this album is bizarre as fuck and yes half the songs here barely qualify as music. But this album kept me on my toes throughout and I’d rather remain intrigued than listen to a boring bland Nick Cave and Elvis Costello album for the tenth time. Brownie points for being different even if it wasn’t “good”

I have so many regrets due to my autistic insistence on listening to every single second of the albums in this book. AB/7A was fine. The rest was definitely the worst album I have ever listened to, I don't actually have any words to describe this pile of manure

Released on my birthday the year after I got out of the Army. With a name like throbbing Gristle how did I miss this group? With all the pot l I smoked back then, it might have been a fun listen but I was quite happy with Frank Zappa. And after listening to the whole album, I don't think I'd would have had enough pot. If I'm going to listen to DOA it's gonna be by Bloodrock.

This is not music. Unlistenable.

Pure garbage! 1 star or F-.

existieron para que otros artistas vengan y hagan mejor que lo que hicieron en este album

It can be easy to convince yourself you're mainstream because the only industrial punk you listen to is Throbbing Gristle, and they were on the soundtrack to a movie with a major theatrical release. And then I interact with literally anyone irl. (+.5 a star because I'm a special little boy who has unique music taste)

You know, I'm 250-some albums into this project, and I've tried to keep an open mind about stuff that I normally would turn off or skip in my day to day life. And I think most of the time that open mindedness has been, if not rewarded, at least met with some interesting ideas and thoughts, even if the thoughts are "wow this sounds a lot like Bob Dylan". This is just .. nothing. It's like this album is trying to ask the question "what is music, anyway? Is *this* music?" And maybe I'm just too mainstream but I have to answer No. Is it art? Sure. Did it make me feel emotions? I guess. I got creeped out and wanted it to end. You know that tweet that's like "I hope death feels like falling asleep as a kid and being carried to your room"? I think this is how starving to death through neverending sleep paralysis would feel. One star, I guess. I don't know. I feel gross.

Wtf

Det är ok med experiment. Det är däremot otroligt dåligt. Herregud.

?????

It sounds like I'm listening as a fly in some random industrial maintenance complex, weaving in and out of every day conversations, radio speakers, mechanical slams and electric zaps. It feels like specialized machinery running through the slowed down earholes of a tiny pest in a man-made-world. It slowly, very slowly, turns into music with the relation of these sounds blending into eachother every once in a while into something that feels like a thought out composition, but always stemming from the abstraction of every day life in a big city. I can see myself seeking this record out to scare people who find themselves in the dark. Otherwise, not a lot of musical merit, it's more of an art instalation for the ears. I listen to this one the same way I peek into an odd museum. I'm glad it's on the list, as it speaks honestly about the first steps in industrial music, but I won't be listening to much of this in the future. 2.1/5

Boiled some piss, so three stars. Didn't much like it, but then, it boiled some piss.

experimental noise loops. Not sure I can say more than that. The biggest novelty is the name

My head is throbbing trying to comprehend the industrial trend.

It doesn't surprise me that this is the lowest-rated album on the site. One thing I've realized is that safe, familiar, middle-of-the-road music typically gets the top scores. However, I gave Rumours a 5, and I'm also giving this a 5 because this is equally brilliant. Want to know why? In college, I started discovering lots of interesting underground music thanks to new friends and a girlfriend (now ex) at the time. Three albums that particularly left a mark on me were Swans' Holy Money/Greed split LP, the No New York compilation on No Wave, and this album. Throbbing Gristle was basically unhinged musical and artistic expression at its finest. They weren't afraid to explore the darkest corners of humanity and shove them in your face. Tracks like "Weeping" and "Hamburger Lady" are truly terrifying and disturbing and "Dead on Arrival" and "Walls of Sound" head-bangingly cool. The sound collages, recorded phone calls, noises, and musical experimentation are hair-raising and unlike anything I'd heard before. Nothing was hands off for them. Little did I know that nothing that came after would sound similar! None of them were musicians, but they did really amazing, sometimes unbelievable things. Chris Carter created synthesizers using electronic manuals and Peter Christopherson basically created the prototype for sampling machines in 1975. Christopherson would use found sounds and even go as far as record brothels and wiretap for-hire mercenary agencies to use for their music. Cosey Fanni Tutti and lead singer/screamer Genesis P-Orridge, already established in shocking performance art with COUM Transmissions in Hull since the late 60s, used guitars and bass as rhythm instruments, not even knowing how to play them at first. They didn't want a drummer so that they could feel free to explore new ideas, new melodies, and new rhythms without falling into the Western style of songwriting. The result is music unlike anything we'd heard before. I don't think many of you realize how groundbreaking and racy this kind of stuff was for 1978—and yet, given the reviews on this site, it still is today! Pure punk philosophy and energy, and more than any punk band I've heard to date, at times. It basically sounds like post-industrial society falling apart, as it was at the time. Even the cover is demented, with juxtaposition of the cute and the perverse. They hold a mirror in front of all of us, asking where humanity stays humane and where it loses that sense altogether. I haven't heard this in full in maybe 10 or 15 years, but I find it more impactful now, given the world we live in today. We all have a choice: to find comfort in the safe and the familiar, or to engage with music and art that reveals the world for what it is, no matter how ugly and terrifying that may be. TG showed me what true expression could be and gave me the confidence to do the same in my music and my life. I can only thank them for it, no matter how unpleasant their way of functioning may be. For people that say it isn't music or that you hate people that like this, don't bother trying to understand why this is here. This album was never for you. It isn't a perfect album, but their vision was pure. Truly original, mind-boggling stuff, whatever it is.

This is an impossible album to rate. I'm not sure if I would even consider this music, but maybe that's the point????

no. just no. just a bunch of noise.

Goods as advertised?

Voilà sûrement le seul album que j'avais besoin d'entendre avant de mourir. Excellente musique pour s'en crisser. √4 étoiles

now girlll

Oh dear. The first track set the tone and it didn’t get any better.

Awful

Hats off to anyone who can enjoy rather than endure this. But for me it's a strong 1*