Metal Box

Since this is Johnny F'ing Lydon I'm certain that he purposely made these songs as unpleasant and abrasive as possible just to prove a point, and point taken as this was an ice-pick to the ears. Jah Wobble injects his typical infectious dub rhythms but that fails to save this. I guess I could describe this band's sound as Joy Division, but with much less joy and even more gloom.

The epitome of post punk. All of the talent and charm of punk with non of the energy or excitement.

shitty guitar sound

5. Could’ve just as easily been a 1. I wasn’t enjoying this album, especially not Poptones (more like Pooptones cuz it was shitty), but at some point it clicked and I found myself quite enjoying it. The original packaging is a cool, unique idea. Johnny Lydon is a cunt, no doubt, but this is still an impressive work.

I love that PIL was saying something not only with this album or that album, this song or that song, but with their entire career. Led by the frontman of a band created in a lab, Public Image Ltd was repeatedly questioning the relationship between performers and those performed upon, posers and consumers, and pushing down all the props on the stage. (Last couple albums, maybe not as much, but I blame the 80s for that.) This album is really, really good, and it’s like nothing else in their catalog. It flips the musical script in so many ways. It’s post-punk but also post-post-punk and probably anti-punk. It sounds like an ancestor of trip hop, with its hypnotic, atmospheric grooves. It’s intriguing and innovative, and it sounds great. It was originally a double album but clocking in at just one hour, it’s quite manageable. Only the last track tested my patience. Otherwise, I’m all in… and have been for a long time.

This album takes every post punk element and moves from the angsty garage into a wigwam. Lydon comes across more like a shaman than a lead singer, guiding you through hypnotic sound poems of rebellious lament, cynicism, and critique. And Jah Wobble does anything but wobble with the most compelling baselines you'll hear in years. I get that this may not be everyone's cup of tea, but this album isn't for everyone. PIL is putting a definitive stamp on the genre with a significantly different approach. If it clicks for you, everything else will fall into place.

You don't come here for the words. It's all about the music. Levene and Wobble made something new.

I did not think this would been good, let alone think it would this good!

The bassline is SOOOOOOOO YUM in albatross. i really like the singing. it feels post-punk-ish to me. holy dash. i listened to this for the first time coming home from a rehearsal and it was warm enough to put my windows down and i was just blasting this. my ride home from rehearsal is 10 minutes so albatross filled all of those. it was very cool. i really like albatross. this feels like music that my friend's dad would bump while we're going somewhere. it's a little nostalgic in that way.

Unlike almost any other album I've heard. Might be even more bizarre than their debut, and also slightly better. The guitar sounds wicked, Wobble is great on bass, and I love the drumming. Funny how many drummers are actually all over this album, the wikipedia page says most of them left before sessions ended. And that they technically didn't even rent a studio they just snuck in. I also still cannot believe this is the singer for Sex Pistols, I can't imagine the whiplash following his career and going from one side of punk right to the other

I saw PIL live this year in Jan 2026, the backing band to Lydon pumping out the Bass, I did have this album in its metal box for several years, so many great tracks on here, listened whilst on my drive to watch the football at Portman Road - Albatross, Suit, swan lake, graveyard - Tunes from 1979

This genuinely might be my favourite first listen from this list. I was aware of this band but had never listened to any of their songs before, but this is genuinely brilliant. The fact that Lydon was making stuff like this so soon after the Sex Pistols has kind of blown my mind. Really unique while quite clearly being influential to a lot of other bands that came later.

In highschool, this album was my introduction to weider music. After being a Sex Pistols fan discovered PiL and bought this CD. From here I followed the way to Throbbing Gristle, No Wave and alot more different sounds.

This is a brilliant album, one of the earliest in what became known as 'post-punk' along with albums such as Real Life (Magazine) and The Scream (Siouxsie and the Banshees). It's pretty uncompromising stuff with Wobble's rumbling dubby bass and Levene's scratchy guitar, not to mention Lydon's vocals on top of all that. I never bought it at the time (I was a poor student), but the conceit of presenting it in a metal film can was great (and was used also in the later CD releases. The Super Deluxe version is worth the extra. A very influential album.

Appreciate that ‘weird’ experimental albums are on this list. Even if they don’t get rated so well by everybody else it seems. I feel a lot of the sounds explored in this album inspire a lot of the more contemporary music I love today, for that PIL deserve their flowers. Don’t get me wrong, none of this is going on my playlists anytime soon, but it’s a cracking experience as an album.

It's dissonant and abrasive, I love it! This is more punk than the Ramones and the Sex Pistols combined. "Chant" is pure genius, and Keith Levene one of the most underrated guitar players of all time.

Most of PIL's good shit is on this album. Some of these songs are my absolute favorite songs everrr. "Memories," "Swan Lake" and "Careering" are like sooo fucking good. When PIL does disco punk, it's the fucking best; like, it hits the perfect tone, perfect ingredients. Heavy dub influence here, with loads of dub bass lines played with punk characteristics. Many tracks are droney, meandering, vague and lost feeling but not necessarily in a bad way. There's an effective mood throughout, like impoverished life in a collapsed post-industrial society or something. Like there's really no where left to go. It's really good at being grim and destitute whilst dancing on dirty drugs in the final days. This album shows a band just getting started on something spectacular. Unfortunately, the vast majority of PIL is trash. It has always irritated the shit out of me how awful most PIL is. Like, it's legit terrible, offensive-to-the-ears music, like actual crap music. PIL should be way-better but they aren't and I gave up long ago trying to pretend they're anything but awful. But I absolutely love this album. And I love the few other good PIL songs outside of this album. PIL songs I love are some of my favorite songs everrr.

Near

When I first discovered this, it was 1985. I loved it without knowing why. Now it’s 2025 and I love it. Still, I don’t know why!

This is one of the greatest post-punk albums ever released. It is brilliant mainly because of John Lydon’s near-manic and unpredictable performance. He sounds as if he is constantly on the tipping point of sanity, shifting from bellowing to whispering, from stammering to screaming. The band (especially Wobble's hypnotic bass) creates the perfect, repetitive backdrop, sounding like Can performing from inside a metal box (forgive the comparison), with the dissonance turned up to eleven. It is a staggering document of its time: a smudged version of post-punk, fronted by a genius "actor" who tries to tame the chaos just enough for the songs to remain discernible beneath all the misery. A true piece of art. Inimitable, astounding and unique.

Gritty

this fuckin bangs!!!!!!

Wow. What an album. Introduced me to post punk.

Still got mine & treasure it. Love PIL

Brilliant

I bought my copy of this in my teens off a Great Rock and Roll Swindle punk in my class. He hated it and let me have it for 50p. Whichever punk had it before him had thrown away the metal cannister and put it in plain paper inner sleeves in a plastic outer sleeve. Shame. I had no idea it was three 12" singles and listened to the whole thing at 33 and a third a few times thinking hmm this is a bit of a challenge. Best thing all involved ever did.

Highlight Song/s: Albatross and Poptones What a bleak album. I feel dreariness; I imagine heavy fog; I feel like I'm on a conveyor belt in this huge factory and seeing thousands of other conveyor belts whilst being completely stunned and helpless; It is SO repetitive to the point it's hypnotic; Possibly, just maybe, I could dance or march to my death whilst listening to this album. All of that above is what I would imagine if it was a type of weather, or if it was a place, or ultimately my feelings this album evokes. This album has me in its complete grasp.

I've been listening to this every two or three months since 1979. I've largely had to do it on the downlow because past and present partners were not and are probably still not fans. Like other singular records, this soothes my soul. Other albums in this category include Robert Wyatt's _Rock Bottom_, Hüsker Dü's _Zen Arcade_, Captain Beefheart's _Mirror Man_, and Pere Ubu's _The Modern Dance_. There are more. Essential listening.

This album is like being locked inside a fridge that’s somehow also a haunted political manifesto. It’s industrial, strange, slippery—like trying to punch fog. It sounds like punk died and came back as a bitter, avant-garde ghost. And John Lydon is its mouthpiece, spitting cryptic prophecies through a distortion pedal while the bass drills holes in your spine. Rating: 4.6/5 Short Review: This isn’t an album, it’s a metallic hiss from the abyss. Favorite Track: Albatross – a slow descent into dub hell. It’s 10 minutes long and every second feels like you’re being hypnotized by a very angry filing cabinet.

one of the best/hardest albums ever made. i rip off jah’s playing style on this bad boy every chance i get

I call myself a fan of post punk music, but I wasn’t a big fan of PiL’s First Edition, so I wasn’t incredibly excited to see this album pop up for me today. To add to my trepidation, I see that Metal Box clocks in at one hour. I’m going to give this album a fair shot, but I’m not going to get my hopes up! Well touché, PiL, because Metal Box was incredible. I don’t think I’ve ever heard an album with such amazing bass playing like this from start to finish. Every track had an incredible bass line, but each bass line was distinct and unique. On top of that, the guitar playing was fantastic too. I loved the screeching and angular guitar playing on each song, and for such a dark and moody album, the guitar playing was really varied too. Metal Box had an incredibly cohesive sound, but each song was its own dark and moody journey. PiL really shows how versatile post punk can be. When it comes to post punk from the late seventies, I’ve loved Joy Division, Magazine, and Gang of Four, but Metal Box is so different from those albums, and I loved it for entirely different reasons than why I loved those other albums. I’m really in awe at how awesome this was, especially since I didn’t care for First Edition all that much, and I absolutely hated Jah Wobble’s solo album. If I ever become independently wealthy, I’m going to snag an original pressing of this on vinyl. Some notes on the songs themselves: “Albatross” immediately snagged my attention. The bass was fantastic, and so was the screeching guitar. The vocals weren’t my jam, but they fit the overall vibe and sound of the song. “Memories” was excellent. The bass was awesome, and there were some shifts in sound that I can’t quite put my finger on that I really loved. I think it was the tempo that changed a few times? I don’t know for sure, but it ruled. That guitar on “Swan Lake” was fantastic. Probably some of the best rhythms on the album. I loved the jangling of the guitar on “Poptones,” and the cymbal crashes were outstanding too. Easily one of the best songs on the album. “Careering” was awesome. The bass was fantastic, the rhythm was awesome, and I loved the vocals and lyrics. The gun-like sounds were an excellent touch. This is in contention with “Poptones” for best song on the album. The synthesizers on “Socialist” were awesome. It had such an alien feeling, which is probably what being a socialist felt like under Reagan and Thatcher. “Graveyard” is so dark. The guitar has such a haunting sound to it, and the bass accentuates everything perfectly. “Radio 4” was the perfect closing track. The synths were bright, but still managed to fit the dark, deep sound of the album. Truly mesmerizing stuff. This was in contention with “Poptones” and “Careering” for best song on the album. I’m going to be thinking about this album for days. It’s dark and brooding, but there’s so much going on, just with the guitars and bass. What an incredible work of post punk music. I can understand that this isn’t up everyone’s alley, but damn, what an incredible experience.

I try and anticipate the Global Rating for each album while listening. Based off my estimation of the racial and age demographics of this project, I can usually get pretty close. Kinda hilarious how low this one is compared to how much I enjoyed it. Rule of thumb; if it's challenging in the slightest, it's below a 3. 4.5/5

God, what an album. Some of the best bass lines and guitar work I've ever heard. Poptones alone is worth the price of admission. There are some classics I love but never listen to. but I've been returning to this one over and over again for decades. A monster.

Legend.

In junior high, I frequently purged my adolescent frustration and angst by blasting the Sex Pistols from my boom box. At least initially, despite the legacy of Lydon, PiL did not scratch that particular itch. Later, in high school I finally “got it” and this album become among my favorites. A post-punk kid needing post-punk music. My God, this album brings back memories, some of them are actually good. It has too long since giving it a listen. Metal Box (AKA Second Edition) is a masterpiece. Yes, this music is somewhat challenging, but sometimes innovative work sounds weird. It is entirely possible for something to be both weird and amazing, I exist after all. Despite being released in 1979, the album continues to seem innovative today. It is worth noting that Lydon wanted this music to be uncomfortable, the intent was to get rid of the albatross of rock, by sowing seeds of discontent. The guitar and basslines are very experimental, but technically impressive. The varied time signatures the Wobble pounds out on the bass in sounds like “Poptones” feel unsettling, but also draw one into the layered complexity of the guitar and drums underneath. Speaking of guitar, the Levene is a master, mostly creating tones in the background that are wonderfully textured. Lydon’s vocals are equally impressive and innovative, sometimes haunting, sometimes bracing, but always emotionally evoking. An excellent of is the grief one hears, and feels as Lydon wails about his mother dying from cancer. The lyrics on many songs are actually pretty profound and integral to understanding the importance of this outstanding music. This is another album that absolutely deserves a place on this list. It remains unique even today, yet despite nothing being quite like it, its lasting influence is hard to deny. There are many great PiL albums, but this is probably their most important record and my personal favorite. God save the queen and God save Johnny Lydon! In the spirit of what initially brought me to this music: if you don't get it, fuck you, just scurry on back to your comfy corporate shell (while I pretend I don't have one).

Okay, now we are getting into the terrible music that I enjoy and has shaped my interest in music. This Metal Box is mostly put together with songs from Second Edition, which is one of my favorites, but the album, Flowers of Romance (most certainly an acquired taste) introduced me to producer/drummer Martin Atkins. I immediately fell into the PIL trap and became a devoted fan of First Issue and Second Edition. John Lydon's self-proclaimed "anit-music" struck a chord with me. I then woke up from the spell once Album was released and it was the Album tour in 1986 that was the last time I saw them live. Was so excited when Martin joined with the MINISTRY/RevCo team of misfits.

Classic 5/5

Just like the other PIL album I've gotten, the real draw here is Jah Wobble. The bass playing makes this album for me. I also enjoy Johnny's vocal sneering, his anti establishment attitude strikes a chord in me. While this is an hour long it passed by quickly and I listened a few times. Dig it.

10/10 fun and weird! kinda reminds me of Pere Ubu a bit

The bass and drum parts are so tight. I like dub music already but the added dissonance from the guitars/vocals makes everything more tense. I appreciated something that felt like my own anxiety and frustration. I suppose it's here because it's experimental and innovative, but I personally found it to be a gratifying experience. I like Lydon’s voice and lyrics; he’s really expressive. He showed his catchy rock side with the Sex Pistols so I think it should be evident that there’s both an underlying musicianship here and an underlying anguish and alienation that led to this music. I also think it’s a clear step forward from the first PiL album.

This sounds like how I feel all the time - but in a good way! Weird, wry, goofy, with a great groovy bassline throughout. I liked the energy of the other PiL album on this list; I liked both the energy and sound of this one.

fuck i want some box rn (slang for vag) because i am a virgin who hates women

I loved it; Especially the coarse voice matching the tempo of the songs; Felt like eating ice-cream with lemon squeezed all over it!!

One of the greatest albums ever made. The sound, the packaging, the influence. That said, Albatross is not an auspicious start, and sounded stodgy as an opener on this listen. But the combo of Lydon's voice, angular guitar and heavy heavy bass on tunes such as Poptones, The Suit, Bad Baby, are worth 5 stars on their own. Nothing sounds quite like this, and probably never will.

Just the bass by itself dude

## In-Depth Review of *Metal Box* by Public Image Ltd. **Metal Box**, the second album by Public Image Ltd. (PiL), released in 1979, stands as a monumental work in post-punk, renowned for its radical departure from punk orthodoxy and its profound influence on alternative music. This review delves into the album’s lyrics, music, production, themes, and influence, weighing its strengths and weaknesses. --- ## Lyrics John Lydon’s lyrics on *Metal Box* are abstract, cryptic, and emotionally charged, marking a significant evolution from his days as Johnny Rotten in the Sex Pistols. Unlike the overt sloganeering and direct attacks of his previous band, Lydon’s writing here is more introspective and elusive, often hinting at trauma, alienation, and existential dread. - **Personal and Oblique**: Tracks like “Albatross” and “Poptones” showcase Lydon’s move toward personal and impressionistic lyricism. “Albatross” opens the album with a sense of doom and repetition, while “Poptones” draws from a real-life crime story, using fragmented imagery to evoke paranoia and horror[4][2]. - **Grief and Loss**: “Swan Lake” (also known as “Death Disco”) is a raw, anguished tribute to Lydon’s dying mother. The lyrics are direct in their pain but filtered through Lydon’s unique, almost theatrical delivery, making the grief feel both universal and deeply personal[4]. - **Ambiguity and Distance**: Lydon’s words rarely offer clear narratives. Instead, they create an atmosphere of discomfort and ambiguity, pushing listeners to interpret meaning from the emotional intensity and sonic context rather than explicit storytelling[2][5]. **Pros**: The lyrics are emotionally resonant, original, and avoid cliché, adding depth and mystery to the album. **Cons**: Their opacity can alienate listeners seeking clear messages or traditional song structures. --- ## Music Musically, *Metal Box* is a radical blend of dub, krautrock, avant-garde, and post-punk, rejecting conventional rock forms for hypnotic grooves and abrasive textures. - **Bass-Driven Sound**: Jah Wobble’s bass is the album’s anchor, mixed unusually high and drawing heavily from dub reggae. His playing is melodic, relentless, and often trance-inducing, providing a foundation for the album’s experimentalism[5][2]. - **Guitar Experimentation**: Keith Levene’s guitar work is shrill, metallic, and unconventional. Using an aluminium Veleno guitar, he produces sounds that are more about texture and atmosphere than melody or traditional riffs. His playing is often described as “clangorous” and “untamed,” contributing to the album’s sense of unease[3][5]. - **Percussion and Rhythm**: The drumming, handled by various musicians, is tight and repetitive, reinforcing the album’s hypnotic quality. The rhythms borrow from krautrock’s motorik pulse and dub’s spaciousness, further distancing the music from punk’s aggression[4]. - **Synths and Soundscapes**: The closing track “Radio 4” introduces synthesizers, hinting at ambient and electronic influences that would become more prominent in later post-punk and new wave music[2]. **Pros**: The music is innovative, immersive, and influential, with a unique sound that remains fresh decades later. **Cons**: The lack of melody and traditional structure can make the album feel cold or inaccessible to some listeners. --- ## Production *Metal Box* was recorded with a sense of urgency and experimentation, and its production choices are as radical as its music. - **Packaging**: The original release came in a 16mm film canister, containing three 45rpm records. This packaging was both a statement of intent and a practical challenge, as it made the album physically unwieldy but visually iconic[4][5]. - **Mixing**: The production foregrounds the bass and allows space for each instrument, creating a sense of depth and claustrophobia. The sound is raw and unpolished, emphasizing atmosphere over clarity[2]. - **Atmosphere**: The album’s sonic palette is metallic, spacious, and often disorienting, with effects and reverb used to enhance the sense of alienation. **Pros**: The production reinforces the album’s themes and musical experimentation, making it a cohesive and immersive experience. **Cons**: The rawness and lack of polish may be off-putting for those accustomed to more conventional production values. --- ## Themes *Metal Box* is thematically dense, exploring alienation, grief, paranoia, and the breakdown of social and personal order. - **Alienation and Disconnection**: The music and lyrics together evoke a sense of being out of step with the world, reflecting Lydon’s own feelings of isolation after the Sex Pistols’ breakup and personal losses[2][4]. - **Grief and Trauma**: The album is haunted by loss, particularly in “Swan Lake,” which turns personal grief into a universal howl of pain. - **Societal Decay**: Songs like “No Birds” and “Careering” hint at political and social breakdown, though always in an oblique, impressionistic manner. **Pros**: The themes are powerful, universal, and handled with originality and emotional honesty. **Cons**: The lack of directness can make the album’s messages hard to grasp on first listen. --- ## Influence *Metal Box* is widely regarded as a foundational work in post-punk and alternative music. - **Legacy**: Its influence can be traced in bands as diverse as Sonic Youth, Nirvana, Manic Street Preachers, The Strokes, and countless others. The album’s use of dub, experimental guitar, and non-traditional structures opened new possibilities for rock music[1][3][4]. - **Critical Reception**: Though divisive at first, *Metal Box* is now considered a classic, frequently appearing in lists of the greatest albums of all time and cited as a touchstone for innovation in music[1][4]. - **Genre-Bending**: The album’s refusal to be pigeonholed has inspired generations of musicians to push boundaries and defy expectations[3]. --- ## Pros and Cons | Pros | Cons | |------|------| | Groundbreaking musical innovation | Can be inaccessible or alienating | | Powerful, original lyricism | Lack of melody and conventional structure | | Influential on multiple genres | Raw production may deter some listeners | | Cohesive, immersive atmosphere | Lyrics can be overly opaque | | Iconic packaging and presentation | Physical format was impractical | --- ## Conclusion *Metal Box* by Public Image Ltd. remains a towering achievement in post-punk, a work of uncompromising vision and lasting influence. Its blend of dub, avant-garde, and rock, combined with Lydon’s abstract lyricism and the band’s radical approach to production and packaging, make it a singular listening experience. While its challenges—opacity, harshness, and lack of accessibility—may deter some, its rewards are immense for those willing to engage with its depths. The album stands not only as a document of its era but as a blueprint for artistic reinvention and boundary-pushing in music.

Fav songs: Swan Lake; Poptones; Careering This album is fantastic. It's going on the list of albums I didn't know I loved until this list project.

A hard to get to package, with a headstrong determination to continue their trajectory towards further hazy musicality, Metal Box (Second Edition for those who could not hack the tin without ruining the records) is the quintessential post-punk album. Public Image, Ltd. continued their bewildering yet invigorating journey away from the haphazard punk rock that defined John Lydon's irascible alter-ego, and his whole career, and delved deeper into impenetrable sounds unfathomable before and thus unsurpassed since. Whether or not it is the last great album of the 1970s is a debate for another time but what Metal Box/Second Edition captured was the decay that was plaguing Britain during a time of upheaval and soon-to-be selfish ideologies that would come to characterize their Conservative Party and this album was one of the many warning signs. Inevitably, the road taken here wound up being the farthest this iteration of Public Image, Ltd. would go as they'd disintegrate and take on the shapes that would be the opposite of what they had set out trying to be. But Metal Box/Second Edition remains in all its dented, nicked, rusted, inaccessible yet richly awarding glory, still scoring the atmosphere that sows seeds of discontent.

Great album

Honestly a 4.5 rounded up for how out there and brilliant parts of it are, offset by it sagging a bit by the end John Lydon being a MAGA geek. Nonetheless, if listened to through the eyes of 14 year old Adam... it's incredible and Keith Levene made me pick up a guitar in new ways... 5 it is :)

A whirling, spiked flail of an album. Music to be crushed in an iron maiden to.

Deranged, confrontational, awesome. music: appreciated. (⌐■_■)

Johnny has 2 legendary albums? Good for him.

zeer goed album van een groep uitmuntende muzikanten... ook de stem van Lydon is hier soms meer instrument dan echte zang... OK, sommige nummers mochten misschien wat korter zijn, maar da's muggezifterij

Reconstruction time again

WOW. It was hard to find this album, but YouTube came in clutch. I absolutely love it. An hour of rage, driving bass, and hard hitting percussion. Took years off my life in a good way.

This is more like hip-hop than punk, with the music providing a blank canvas for Lydon to ad-lib over. It's progressive, occasionally sublime, and sometimes completely discordant. But it's always really good; I especially love those creeping bass lines.

I unashamedly love this. It's genius. Though I totally get why it's rated so low on here, I don't think it's for everyone. I can see John Lydon's vocals as a sticking point but I've always thought he was unique to the point of greatness. For the people who do connect with this for one reason or another, it's just brilliant. I can't even describe why I like it, there's just something about it that seems so far ahead of its time and wonderfully arranged and produced. As others have said the bass is fantastic throughout. I wouldn't ever throw this record on to just have it play in the background, I'd want to play this when I'm in a certain headspace and sit and listen to it. It would be a really good record for driving. Like maybe hour 2 or hour 4 of a 6+ hour drive. Anyway, this is an unexpected 5/5 for me.

Loved it

Yes

I have to say at the time I wasn't a fan of PIL but listening to this now 35 years later it's really good. Drawing on a lot of stuff that had already been going on- experimental, Throbbing Gristle and other early Industrial music it's actually quite enjoyable. Lydon is a genius that much is true now. At the time he wasn't appreciated for what he was doing.

Yes this is long, abrasive and weird, but post punk is the reason we even had music at the end of the dreadful 80's at all... I quite hated "First Issue" but this is something else! it should be 4 stars but that baseline is insane.

Groovy, repetitive and hypnotizing. The bass playing is phenomenal throughout the whole thing -- Jah Wobble is king. I adore Keith Levene's metallic, shrieking guitars that threaten to cut you in half. Lydon's ragged and sickly vocals fit this record perfectly. A true wonder on all fronts.

How to write a review of Metal Box? Try to defend it from it’s detractors, make a comparison to other Avant-Garde music, place it into historical context, make jokes? I don’t think any of that matters. If the music isn’t for you, it isn’t for you. I can’t stand Michael Jackson’s big albums, but they’re all very highly rated on here. In the reviews of those, I didn’t disparage, I made what I thought were salient points about the quality of the music as I experience it. Metal Box is supposed to be difficult, and yet despite it’s uncompromising nature and bleak sound, it is often hauntingly beautiful in it’s own way. It is the sound of anxiety and of anger, the Id lashing out at a world that isn’t listening. Lydon’s lyrics are brief snapshots of the inner working of his mind, with everything from observations about people he knows (Albatross) to musings about news stories he’s read (Poptones) to reminders about his schedule (The Suit.) Nothing but snapshots of thoughts, scattershot, meaningless, random, ephemeral yet eternal. Where else are you going to get a listening experience like that than with the Avant-Garde?

The power of repetition. Five stars, obviously.

Grinding, paranoid, relentless, utterly beautiful. Many imitators, but the sound was born here! I could listen on repeat for hours.

Metallic guitar sounds and cold, mechanical bass-lines permeate this record. The vocals drone on with intensity and relentlessness that bring you into the dark sonic world that has been constructed. It is disorienting and unsettling but at the same time hypnotic and groovy thanks to the incredible bass slinking all across the record. Definitely will be too abrasive for many, but for me, the atmosphere this record brings is undeniable. It's not something you'd throw on all the time, but when you do, it WILL drag you into its distorted world, whether you like it or not.

Чувствую себя прямо экспертом, когда дело касается PIL и этого альбома в частности (Rip it up and start again-core!) Это великий альбом, и вероятно самый важный альбом в пост-панк поджанре. Это альбом, который представляет собой всю суть пост-панка не просто как коллекции музыкальных клише, но в самой своей идее. Пост-музыка! Лучшая песня - Albatross.

This shit is ground breaking and interesting. I didn’t love every track, but overall it’s so good it can only get 5 stars. I would totally buy this on vinyl.

Beautiful atonal caterwauling atop avant dub post punk. Fearless.

Ngl, this is dope. I mean, I love noise rock and unhinged goth shit, so take that into consideration obviously, but yeah. I'm actually a little surprised I had never listened to this before, it's definitely way up my alley. The vocalist is definitely going to be an acquired taste (or not lol), but the bass playing and drumming here is absolutely sick, and the guitar player is unhinged and wild (so also pretty sick). Add in the occasional weird synthy tones and there you go. I'm giving this an instant based/5, but again... Fan of The Fall here. Not for everyone lol

Post-punk masterpiece. The jangly, funky tunes are of course excellent, but when the looseness and seeming disregard for tonality become transcendent, particularly on “Poptones”, is when the album really shows it’s colours. Great effort by all the players, Jah Wobble’s bass standing out especially. Punk’s not dead!

Listened to this before and I didn't like/get it. I love it now. The bass lines are catchy, punchy, and the squad loves to go in different sonic directions. Fun n great

I like some avant garde in my post punk

john lydon consistently surprises me with how many great tracks I've never heard of from him, not that I knew that many to begin with. But shit this was great, dragged here and there but I had lots of fun so 5 stars

There is a bit of The Slits on Metal Box if you really listen closely. This is the kind of art rock I like. It's abstract and the sounds are cool. I think a bit of editing for time could have made this a masterpiece but it's a bit long. Or perhaps they could have leaned even more into the vibe and created something truly daring.

New one for me which was surprisingly quite enjoyable and fun to listen to.

I love this! Post punk reveals the aesthetes that emerged from the punk scene who paved the way for New Wave. There is a true appreciation for beauty buried inside all of the cold repetition. Death Disco still gets me going!

Demonic disco!

Good

It’s post punk and classic but not for me

Is it wrong that I am enjoy this album more because of how interesting its packaging is? Innovative and weird are the two adjectives I would use to describe this album. That's readily apparent by just looking at the unusual metal canister in which the album was initially released, or from hearing that they originally wanted the record sleeve to be made from sandpaper. The tracks are long and meandering in a very intriguing way, and it is definitely a unique sonic experience. Favorite track: "Albatross"

I know Jesse won’t like this album, but it’s a classic, best PIL album, backing band are excellent and Johns haunting voice, I saw PIL in Feb 2026 in Cambridge, great show, I had metal box at one time too on vinyl, but sold it for £80…..

Slashing biting guitars from Keith Levene, dark dub bass from Jah wobble, trancy krautrock drumming, and snarling vocals from John Lydon - foundational formula for dancey post punk - jammy and loose songs with a bit a disco remix approach of stretching out the dance bit, but with a squall of guitar riffs and noise. Reverby and kind of muddy production makes it sound like a rave happening a mile away under a highway. A total racket. Great fun.

A stunning post punk masterpiece. Bass heavy and pioneering

It sounds different, at times bordering on annoying. I liked it.

Despite myself, I am somehow predisposed to like John Lydon. His proclamations that PiL were gonna change music reminds me a lot of Tom DeLonge talking about how Angels and Airwaves were gonna do the same, and while neither were even remotely correct, at least Lydon went into new territory. Incredible how it sounds pretty of 1979, pretty of 1989, and pretty alien. There's a lot to hate here for the haters, as Lydon wouldn't have it any other way, but for a guy who was in a dangerous boy band, there's also an incredible amount of intentionality. The bass kicks ass, the wiry guitar kicks ass, the drumming kicks ass. However, for all its planning, it still gets to be a bit one note: sometimes that drone is hypnotic and sometimes it's just a song overstaying its welcome, but that's kind of a characteristic of this flavor of post-punk. Hell, even the packaging sounds like it was a challenge and a poke in the eye. It sounds nothing like the PiL of 45 years later, which is a good thing, but I also don't think this kind of thing would fly today - it's been plumbed to death and its...shock value? abrasiveness? oppositional defiance? just isn't today, but recognizing that its of a time, well damn it's pretty good. I think this is just the right album for the right kind of person and everyone else will think it's shit.

I love the idea that two of punk's main architects were also the ones who took it apart and rebuilt it into something stranger and more interesting. John Lydon is a madman. That's not a revelation. I recently went to see him do a talk in my hometown with a friend, expecting lots of interesting and crazy stories from his time as Johnny Rotten in the Sex Pistols, or on tour with PiL. Instead, we felt like hostages, trapped in our seats as he ranted aggressively at us about life in general. It was an uncomfortable experience to say the least. Back in the day, though, he was a defining figure and the unofficial frontman of punk. So, for him to go on to be an equally defining figure of the post-punk movement is fascinating and totally unexpected. Keith Levene was another important figure in the world of punk, helping The Clash to shape their sound, a sound that would be another crucial part of defining punk as a genre. So, for him to also go on and become part of a group that helped to carve out the post-punk genre is equally fascinating. On "Metal Box", Lydon's stream of consciousness free-form shouty rants float about, almost in the background atmosphere of the songs. They collide with Levene's mind-bending, metallic guitar textures (sounding like he's laying down blueprints for Joey Santiago). Jah Wobble's dub-reggae bass lines add a looming darkness and yet another level of unpredictability to the chaos. They are all held together by Jim Walkers' drumming, seemingly the only one not improvising his way through these songs. Put it all together, and it makes one hell of a weird listening experience. It's not easy listening. It's about as comfortable as having John Lydon aggressively rant at you about life, while you are trapped in your seats. It's certainly not something you'd throw on as background music over dinner. It's fitting that it's called "Metal Box", as everything sounds quite metallic and almost industrial. It's intense, cold, weird, yet oddly hypnotic and enjoyable. An important, confrontational and experimental record. Punk pulled apart by key figures of punk, and reassembled into post-punk.

I've always felt that this album is just as important to the post-punk genre as something like Unknown Pleasures, but instead of the tight instrumentation and songs found on that record, here the songs are seemingly infinitely expanding outward and have a controlled aimlessness to them. That might not be everyone's cup of tea, but for me this style of post-punk hasn't been bettered than it was on here. A phenomenal and important record for the genre.

I didn’t know what to expect from this but I was pleasantly surprised. Some cool riffs and strange mixing experimentation made this a treat. Will listen again soon

finally listened to it, its as good as expected.

It’s like really pioneery n shit dawg. I’m sleep deprived and so is this music. I like it. It’s got groove and punk which is a combo that gets me hard and staying hard. Yum. Let’s see what much more intelligible and respectable review Drake has for us. 3.6

Heared only First Edition beforehand and some selected songs beforehand. My opinion is that Johnny did "Nevermind" for the world and everything he did later he did for himself. It's artsy, and I know that Jah Wobble and Keith Levene brought a lot to the sound, but it sounds so personal by Johnny that it even feels eerie time after time. And I'm not sure where he is dead serious or when he is taking a piss. This album is even more repetitve than the first and has less songs that I like, so only 4. Best track: Poptones. The worst thing is I don't know what on here is to take serious or not. The best thing is I don't know what on here is to take serious or not.

Weird ride but I like it. Cathartic and trance-y if you let it be.

reminds me of college :)

I can't figure out how much I love it yet based off of one listen. Need to come back to this one.

These albums just keep wowwing me

I understand the sentiment from the reviews towards the album. It’s certainly a quirky album that’s not fitting any mold you try to put it in. Wasn’t a bad listen to me

8/10

Depressed Bon Jovi? Actually really good, love the sound and the moving tempo.

More of this please

8/10 Favourite: The Albatross Least Favourite: Bad Baby

I don’t enjoy it as much as their more straightforward debut but this is still great. My enjoyment of this has skyrocketed since I first listened to this last year. I’ve gone through Can and the Fall since then which has definitely helped. The best tracks are in the front half but it’s all solid. I love them putting the softest sounding song at the end to reward you for making it there. It reminds me of Kid A in that way. You can hear so many elements that helped define the post punk sound. The three main members are all legends along with the story of the album container. It can be a tough listen all at once but if you just play 10 minutes and then come back to it like they intended then it’s much easier. If I could change ratings, I’d change my rating on their debut from 3 to 5. This is a solid 4. Rating: 4.4

I'm certain this one will be a grower, it's pretty obtuse. Love Poptones and Radio 4 which I'd heard before.

albatross swan lake 1979 post punk, experimental rock united kingdom

[For reference I listened to the rerelease Second Edition.] Let's take the Sex Pistols, Clash, Joy Division, and Can and put them all into a blender. What we get is this album. I can see it being swept under the rug in a musical year which saw London Calling and Unknown Pleasures, and so much dub or unconventional bass was being heard in places like The Specials S/T or Regatta De Blanc. In short, this is a lot like so many other bands but also wildly different. It's definitively post-punk and "anti-rock". The gritty improvisation is not as off-putting as something like Trout Mask Replica but is not polished like some kind of jazz form. It is dark and nihilistic and industrial with its ripping unrelenting guitar lines. Lydon's voice meanders in and out and spits and sputters in punk freeform. It gets a bit tired in some places (e.g. the long instrumental in the second half of "Poptones" really began to drag for me), but what drives all of this along are the bass lines. The dub playing is a masterclass. What is great is that many long, downtrodden songs like "Albatross" (which is great) are complemented by faster, almost danceable tracks like "Swan Lake" or "Socialist" or "No Birds". The song "Careering" was probably my favorite on the album with its almost Neu! style beat and synth, and is a great performance by Lydon. Tracks like "The Suit" and "Bad Baby" showcase the improvisational aspects, and these tracks in particular are two of the hardest to listen to in my opinion. Some tracks feel almost like a response to new wave, but a inversion of the genre, a corrupted version of Fear of Music which came out the same year. Then a track like "Radio 4" comes along and its synth lifts you out of the malaise and you wonder where the hell you've been. It is by no means a relaxing listen or one you can really tune out. It's really great, and I think will be even better in subsequent listens.

This album was filled with surprises…good songs! Not sure what to expect, this box delivered.

Jeez this is a weird album but I actually kind of like it. The bass playing is brilliant. John Lydon's lyrics and singing are out there. Even the guitar is a really good jangly. I know others have struggled with this but I really liked it

New one on me. Not always an easy listen but once you get into it you can hear why it became so influential.

The warmed over classic rock riffs (and production) of the punk boy band Sex Pistols get most of the press. But PIL was way more interesting. Where sex Pistols were stuck in the present (of 1976/77) PIL is forward thinking. Imagine hearing this album of you were executing SP Part 2. Bass takes precedence over guitars - shout out Jah Wobble for bringing reggae/dub to the chat. Strange sounds abound. The centerpiece is still the singular wail of J Lydon. This album is still challenging and rewarding in equal measures. 4.5

Loved it since the 70s. Lost the tin in the 90s :(

Yes!!!!power to the flower*

Everything's weird here, from the packaging down to the incredibly under produced music (glossed as mutant disco by RYM). Personally, I'm here for ALL of it. Favorite track: Swan Lake

Title checks out. Best industrial electronic music out there. Maybe not the best, but still.

++: Albatross, Memories, Swan Lake, Careering, Graveyard, Socialist, Chant +: No Birds, Radio 4 +-: Poptones, The Suit, Bad Baby 8,7/10

4.5

I absolutely loathed the first Public Image Ltd album I got from this list, so I did not have high hopes for this. And maybe I was just in a weird mood, but I fucking loved it? I mean, I hated it too, and John Lyndon's voice is the worst part about this band. It works for the Sex Pistols but not for anything remotely melodic. But where I found First Issue to be just noise and grating vocals, this was actually interesting. The songs seemed to have a purpose. The album was long, but I never felt the length, which is quite a feat. Honestly I think the lack of vocals really helped here. But the songs were interesting, and it really seemed like they were doing something new here. I totally understand why this album made the list and was somewhat critically acclaimed. On a different day I could very well have rated this a 1, but I really enjoyed listening to it. This album had a uphill battle against my expectations going in, and it really exceeded them and then some.

8/10

What can I say about a legendary album which I haven't listened to since the 1980's, and that time was once round a friends house. For some reason in this modern age of streaming, I have not thought to return to this. So, I was finally nudged into playing it today. Did this live up to my expectations? Yes and no. Yes, Metal Box had influenced just about everything in the five years after it's release, from Bauhaus, Big Black to Simple Minds. It is groundbreaking in its style and musicality. My only problem is that I should have been playing this over the decades once in a while just to get used to it's harsh abbrasiveness, but I haven't. Maybe I should play it more often, as on the first listen in recent times, I was intrigued by it and I find the best albums always require several listens to 'get' it completely. My uncle owns an original copy. Lucky bugger.

A great Post punk album but it’s not as great as I hoped it to be. I don’t know what I don’t like but something is pushing me away from giving it 5 stars.

I quite liked it, actually. It was weird, and I didn't know this was Johnny Rotten's band. It's nothing at all like The Sex Pistols. This is a tough one to rate, because I'm not sure I liked it 4 stars worth, but I like it better than most of the stuff I've given a 3.

Having seen Johnny Rotten at Isle of Wight festival in the mid-noughties, I'm not a massive fan, but I did enjoy this album from PiL. Fairly stripped back and accessible post-punk

Great stuff, nice and weird. First two PiL albums are far more interesting than the Sex Pistols.

too long for an album, sounds really good. a songs should not be more then ten mins, and not at all an opening song. but I enjoyed the music.

Experimental punk melodic sounds, very avant guard coded. Heavy bass sounds...this hit a spot I didn't know I had in me.

I thought this was a pretty cool album. John Lydon abandons the punk scene that made him a household name and makes something totally different, but also influential in it's own way. I can see why it's an acquired taste for some, but I think it's neat. Probably longer than it needed to be and there's a few tracks that don't really work for me, but "Swan Lake" is amazing, and there's some other tracks like "Memories" and "Poptones" that are very cool too. 4 stars.

Surprise! This wasn’t the angry, thrashing chaos I expected from John Lydon’s post-Sex Pistols life! Instead, it’s this strange dub-punk vibe machine with hypnotic bass, jagged guitar, and Lydon ranting like a street-corner prophet. The sound itself is quite listenable, even groovy at times. My favorite surprise was “Bad Baby” — sarcastic, funky, and fun in a way I didn’t think PiL had in them. A strange, sprawling record, but one I enjoyed way more than I thought I would.

Such a unique album when it came out and I still love PIL

Like this one a lot! Crazy to me that Johnny Rotten pivoted so well from punk into this type of post-punk. 4.5/5

46/1001 :: Public Image Ltd. - Metal Box / Second Edition Heard before? :x: Would I revisit? :white_check_mark: Rating: 7.5 Fav Tracks: Memories, Albatros, Swan Lake This is a very interesting album. I should start off by saying I figured this album was gonna sound like the Sex Pistols. That it did not. In fact it wasn’t really a Punk Rock album. Maybe Punk in spirit but it was definitely more New Wave or even at many times Noise Rock. I guess this shows my knowledge of Public Image Ltd. which is nonexistent. The album also definitely starts off more structured but as it progresses the songs become more textured than anything. And while some of the songs have lyrics a couple of the songs in the 2nd half are more instrumentals than anything. Also, the rhythm section of this band is really strong. On almost every track they’re laying down a great grove that lets abstract guitar work and Johnny Lydon’s trashy vocals to float over top. I’m not sure when I would listen to this again but it’s certainly a vibe and even at an hour I’m glad I got 2 listens in. One that I won’t rule out. Listen to this before you die? Yes

I like the repetitive nature of this album. I like the sharp guitar sounds and bass. Lydon's vocals work better with this type of music than I expected. 8/10

What a wild way to start this off. Enjoyed it a lot, blew my mind at points. Something I never would have listened to of my own volition

I love these albums that inspire either 1 or 5 stars. Often these late 70s post-punk albums. Suicide, which I listened to a couple of days ago was similar. Again, a unique new sound that earns its place on the list for me.

The epitome of the post-punk era. Solid fun, despite the fact that Johnny Rotten is a prick.

Abrasive, but in a good way.

It's no secret that I enjoy garbage music

Lourd, déstabilisant, expérimental. Pas écoutable mais ça l'air important.

I was seriously doubting I'd like or even finish this album because of my previous listening to Pil. The "singles" they had put out were fairly atrocious and Johnny's voice is horrific. Sex Pistols at least gave a wall of sound and it kind of fit (for a song or two). I thought they only got albums made because of his notoriety and didn't give their musicianship much credence. So, with a finger hovering over the Next button, I got this album going. First song, Albatross, was pretty cool. Johnny's not screeching or yelling and the music is quite cool. A little atonal, but interesting. Overall, I like this album. Especially when Johnny is just talking or singing in a "normal" voice. It really sounds a lot like the early Bauhaus albums that came out about the same time; the musical style, tone, and metallic guitar. Of course, Peter Murphy is 10x the singer that Johnny is, but some of these songs sound quite similar. The best songs are the instrumentals like Socialist and Graveyard. Chant is unlistenable. I probably would have loved this if I'd heard it 30 years ago because it does fit into the post-punk, pre-goth, or industrial that came around then or right after. Perhaps some of those others were influenced by this, but I don't recall anyone saying that. It's not easy listening and I'm not sure when would be a good time to spin this up, but I added a few of the songs to my playlist and may even try a little more Pil now. I think it's a solid three, but will give it 4 because of it's historical and influential status

I enjoyed this album listen! Public Image Ltd. is such a solid new wave/post-punk band and I very much dig their vibe. I would definitely listen to this album again. There was only one song ‘chant’ that I gave up on because it became very repetitive to me but I liked the other songs on the album!

Poptones

excellent noise, excellent bass. gets even more hypnotic as it goes.

Johnny rotten’s singing on this album is cool and interesting but this album would still rock if you took him off. There are some phenomenal musicians, making some spooky tunes on this bad boy.

Went into it expecting to hate it, but it was actually pretty good. John Lydon is a talentless hack, so I can only imagine this album is decent despite his involvement. In fact, the music is the best bit, the vocals are sort of there...so kind of proves my point.

Wow! This is cool as fuck. As someone who loves modern post-punk bands like Protomartyr, FACS, etc, this is an insightful look into some of the early forebears of the style. And wow, it is uncompromising. Dark, hypnotic, disturbed. I was uncertain with the first track, but the little bits of melody and atmosphere that begin to emerge in the subsequent tracks deepened my appreciation. Very cool stuff and must-listen #174.

very cool!! need to relisten

Ощущение что летишь под серым небом над серой водой, в тумане и берега нет.

An absolute monster of an album - dark, weird, abrasive, pointedly clever and relentlessly creative. It's an album which recognises and makes the most of its limitations with drawling vocals, cryptic lyrics, spikey guitar, distant production and unconventional arrangements which could drag and meander if it weren't so deranged! Favourite tracks: Albatross, Swan Lake, Socialist

It starts out like just noise, but the sound evolves over the course of the album and becomes very interesting, its hard to believe this was made in the 70s.

I can’t really explain it but I thought this was pretty great. Not sure I would want to relisten much, but the spirit of these tracks felt so genuinely gritty and punky. Fave Tracks: Albatross, Memories, Poptones, Chant 3.9/5

On Apple Music as Second Edition. I was good and I can tell that it is important. Would have been really into it in high school, but probably won’t choose to listen to it again. https://music.apple.com/us/album/second-edition/95911817

A very muddled album. And it's all the better for it. You feel like you are fighting against the music, struggling for air. Sometimes you need music to be a challenge.

Describing this as “post-punk” seems a bit obvious given the presence of John Lyndon, but it is! The angular sharp spiky guitars weren’t a surprise, but the grooving jam-band nature of it was a surprise for me. Like if Gong were really angry about stuff! It was weird and interesting and I need to check out more PIL.

I can’t imagine what this must have sounded like at the time, really experimental and still sounds fresh and interesting today…

Dug it. Like a holding area between music eras, little bit of 70’s rock melding with what would become 80’s mid.

On *Metal Box*, Public Image Ltd. retain the anger and anarchic spirit of punk but pursue an entirely different direction musically, a fusion of dub-inflected basslines, Krautrock-influenced instrumentation and John Lydon's unique approach to vocals. A solid rhythm section holds down the bottom end, leaving space for Keith Levene's guitar and synthesizer experimentation. While most of the tracks are exceptional, not all of them are entirely compelling, and the instrumentals (with the exception of "Radio 4") aren't terribly essential. On the whole though, this is an audacious album that shows the strength of the band's vision.

Joy division is better

Took me a second listen to appreciate this oppressive, upsetting nihilistic post-punk album.

Really enjoyed this!

3.8

1001 ALBUMS - # 54 Just like taking a metal Pill 💊, this ain’t your grandma’s Sex Pistols! Man oh man Mr. Johnny Rotten sure gets dumped on quite a bit…okay yes, he was a whiny little piss ant with the Pistols, however his influence cannot be denied, and yet just a year later he reinvents his style to usher in the sub-genre of punk and still gets no respect. So here, he gives a great big 🖕 with an abrasive, unsettling, rhythmic yet interminable onslaught of hauntingly cryptic songwriting. Metal Box is a sprawling, avant-garde album that defies traditional song structures. Opening with the 10-minute ambient piece “Albatross,” the album ventures through dub, krautrock, and industrial landscapes. Guitarist Keith Levene’s jagged, metallic riffs and bassist Jah Wobble’s deep, dub-infused grooves create a hypnotic foundation, while John Lydon’s impassioned vocals deliver abstract, politically charged lyrics.  The album’s unconventional packaging—three 12-inch records housed in a metal film canister—mirrored its boundary-pushing sound. This design choice reinforced the band’s commitment to challenging norms, both musically and aesthetically. 🎧 Classic Track: Death Disco (Swan Lake) 🎧 Deep Cut Gem: Careering 🎧 Personal Favorite: Albatross The album stands as one of the most daring and influential albums of the post-punk era. Emerging from the cultural aftermath of punk rock and the disintegration of the Sex Pistols, PiL—helmed by former Pistols frontman John Lydon (formerly Johnny Rotten)—set out to reinvent not just his own musical identity, but the very structure and purpose of popular music. With Metal Box, PiL delivered an audacious and uncompromising work that remains a benchmark for experimental music. Critically, Metal Box has been hailed as one of the most significant records of its time. The Guardian compared its impact on post-punk to the influence of Coltrane’s A Love Supreme on jazz. Rolling Stone included it in their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, while AllMusic called it the “apex” of PiL’s creative output. At the time of release, however, its abstract sound and high price point made it a commercial challenge. Over time, its visionary qualities came to be more fully appreciated, and it has since been recognized as a foundational work in the evolution of post-punk, industrial, and experimental rock. 🖼️ Album Artwork: The Metal Box tin! 💽 What makes Metal Box remarkable in hindsight is how far ahead of its time it was. It anticipated the sonic landscapes of industrial and noise rock, the minimalist repetition of ambient and electronic music, and the anti-consumerist ethos of later indie scenes. The album is now understood not just as a pivotal moment for PiL, but as a blueprint for a new kind of music: less about rebellion through noise, and more about resistance through experimentation. Metal Box is intended to be appreciated as a work of art, love or hate the music, respect it.

John Lydon is a prick but this album rules.

Almost felt like listening to The Rapture, so yeah, I liked it.

Another great album from John and the lads

Якщо колись і був альбом, який узяв панк, розібрав його до останнього гвинтика й зібрав наново в досі нечувану гіпнотичну та похмуру конструкцію — це Metal Box. На своєму дебютному альбомі, що вже був сповнений експериментів, John Lydon ще притримувався більш канонічного панк звучання, яке прийшло разом з ним з Sex Pistols. Натомість у своєму другому альбомі, він пішов у повний "відрив": звучання стало максимально незручним, психоделічним та дисонансним, додалися електронні краутрокові текстури, ритм став холодним та відстороненим. Тут немає "куплетно-приспівної зручності", лірика абстрактна та схиблена, і єдиним, що хоч трохи "вгамовує" увесь цей потік підсвідомості є теплі басові лінії. Навіть якщо ми подивимося на інший постпанк, що почав зародження приблизно у той самий час - Television, Magazine, Wire, врешті-решт Joy Division, то побачимо наскільки виразно від них усіх вирізняється Public Image Ltd. Якщо всі перераховані гурти та їх ранішні роботи були просто “ще одним після панковим експериментом”, Metal Box пішов значно далі, та став пращуром усього похмурого, рваного і мінімалістично-психотичного, що ми потім почуємо в нойзових речах від Sonic Youth, гранж сцені, та й у значно більш пізньому - гараж рок/постпанк ревайвл (The Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs).

not quite joy division but a cool experience

This album was a lot of fun. I had never heard of PiL before, but I love the experimental nature of Johnny Rotten's post Sex Pistols group. It's not always great, but it is always interesting.

PIL has always been a band that fascinated me. The politics of the lead singer is straight up punk and demands attention while the music itself is somewhat post punk/ industrial and just has something special in it that rises it above. I think if I remember correctly this is one of those bands that evolved and moved around genre with time. I wouldn't say they ever hit mainstream too hard and for me I think of them as a small club band, like the ones I used to go to in my "youth." The musicians keep it in that kind of small space groove and it never feels overproduced or made up for some other (commercial) purpose. Yeah, this is a good band, good groove. (Maybe for today a bit intense, dark, but PIL is PIL!

Almost wilfully difficult. Half expected John L to start shouting "Exterminate!" during Chant. But I really enjoyed it. Quite a departure from the Pistols. Socialist is the standout track for me.

surprisingly enjoyable, i wasnt looking forward to it from what i'd heard about this album, but it was a very interesting sound

Interesting album. I like to see the development of genres and you can clearly hear the punk/dub blend.

JAH WOBBLE IS ON HERE. I quite like some parts of the stripped back songs like the guitars and the synths, the vocals are a bit hit and miss, but do work well in some areas. The atmosphere which is made in some songs is really haunting, in a good way. It captures that same sense of dread which joy division also had, however this is also very, very different in many ways. I really like the first song, which to me seems to be the most ''post-punk'' or ''anti-punk'' song ever, with minimalism and art-ish absurd lyrics and it kind of uses its length almost as an art form in itself. Favourite songs: albatross, memories, careering, graveyard, socialist, radio 4 Overall around 7/10

FUCK YEAH 4.5

Bizarrely enjoyed it? If I started thinking too hard I was just like 'what's happening???' but despite confusion at why and how anyone wrote this, I had fun listening. Maybe this is something to be felt. And laughed at a little. The artist pic on spotify backs up this last argument haha

Challenging, fierce, unsettling, singular, slabs of atonal noise, hints of disco, splashes of dub, rooted in krautrock, with Lydon's sneering howl the icing on the cake 4 stars

This was an interesting record. It really branches out from what I expect from a punk or post punk record. I'd go 5 but at some point this made me feel jittery. Not even sure what song it started on.

Like the first PiL, I’m not exactly sure why I like it so much, but I really do. First time hearing this album, maybe with some more time it might even get to a 5 but it’s a strong 4 right now.

I love post-punk and this is a great foundational album. Love how much they let the grooves just go here, and the funky bass. That packaging is iconic too.

An odd anomaly that feels lifeless and unfocused but somehow it grips me and I want to play it all on repeat. 4 Stars

It always throws me to remember that Sex Pistols is a drop in the bucket of Johnny Rotten’s career. Not the sort of guy you’d expect to have a deep well of inspiration to draw from, but he does. This is a great one. It’s so wonky and deranged. Maybe tails off a bit in the back half, after a few real strong ones off the top. Still, like it a lot.

Surprised how much I enjoyed this one. Will have to add it to a regular rotation

decent post-punk sound, very unique. Would like to listen more, but not on my streaming so hard to listen to.

Cool sound, reminded me of going to the symphony and having your thoughts trail around elsewhere and then being brought back to the music as it dramatically changes

Sounds kinda new-wave/goth. A little weird and discordant, but in a way that was interesting rather than off putting.

7/10 loved the riffs and how they incorporated parts of the ballet music into Swan Lake

Drags on a bit but some of my favorite bass playing I've ever heard

I get it… former punk rock gods realize they actually are musicians. Love it!

I don't love everything about this album, but it sounds like very little else from that time. Lots to commend it, especially the strange mash-up of Krautrock and dub. A line in the sand. I don't think it's an exaggeration to suggest that Metal Box can upend - even if temporarily - your notion of what popular music can be.

Legendary post punk k album that soon sounds fresh. Their career highlight by far

Important early alternative....

I generally liked this more than I expected. I liked most of these tracks but sometimes they went in way too long and other times John Lydon’s voice is too grating for me. Other times it totally worked for me. Like a mix of the Fall, the Birthday Party and Joy Division.

Starts off so abrasive and disjointed, but after a couple songs you sink into it and this is actually a damn quality album. Really keen to have another few listens, I feel it will only get better. The only PiL album I'd listened to in full before this was "Happy?", which I found to be fairly mid, so this was a really nice surprise. 4.5/5

Idk why I had such a negative opinion of these guys going in. This album was solid. Vocals like a less ridiculous talking heads with the punky/pre new wave instrumentals make for a good, almost trippy, yet stoic mix.

I hated it. I tolerated it. I thought it interesting. I really liked it. That’s my summary of listens #1 through #4 of this album. Who knows what the ceiling is?

A great album that is something post-punk'ish, post-rock'ish, funky, groovy and still something you could also see Bauhaus or New Order doing if they'd a bit happier. While not everything works on the album it still really deserves to be on this list for that rhythm section alone!

great album

I like the punk stuff from that era - but this is a bit too much for me. But I can notice how it influenced bands like System of a Down

Liked this one a lot.

A quite unique sound that is mostly amazing but sometimes disappears up it’s own arse!

achei que tivesse colocado na minha playlist de musica gótica por engano nossa eu adorei esse album 5 estrelas (2a música) pegada the smiths gotico estranho esquisito post punk pulei the suit muito post punk pra mim n gostie de chant

This album a bit of a difficult listen, but when I gave it my full attention I found that I liked it. I doubt I'll listen to it again often but, for the right frame of mind, it's a good album.

You've gotta admire these guys. John L had been at the peak of Sex Pistol notoriety, and could just have continued as the crown prince of punk. But no. Joining up with Wobble and Levene, they struck out in an entirely new direction., creating one version of Post-Punk. OK, not everything worked. Like Capt Beefheart, there is much kudos in trying something new, and looking back and seeing how much of later music followed in their footsteps. Metal box is like that... it's now difficult to see just how jarring it was to the music establishment. Good on you guys.

A tough one. Would you be following my reviews, you'd see that I'm really not keen on all this (post) punk business whose main raison d'etre seem to have been to shit on the giganto rock of the earlier 70ies and to replace the musicianship with edgy, performative nonsense and willfully dumb vocals. But this isn't somehow that. Oh, it bears all the hallmarks of it but it's also a continuation of music that existed before it. Krautrock, both the groovy and weird kind. And - this is going to be a stretch but - maybe even The Doors. On heroin. Or on *more* heroin, all of them. Did I enjoy "Metal Box"? Phew. But in parts, yes I did. It surely was interesting. In line with my usual review practice, I would almost give this 5 stars - I listened to it a lot since it came up yesterday - but there are twothree tracks on it which are the worst. Of everything.

Een taaie, maar zeker het luisteren waard. Het andere album van public image vind ik absoluut niet te harden. Hier hoor je de kraut invloeden die mij wel stemmen. Lange, monotone nummers, en toch interessant. Je moet ervan houden, en dat doe ik. Heb niks met de sex pistols, vooral om deze guy, vind dit een stuk leuker.

Stone cold classics from a punk era that was fading into the 80s.

Having never been a fan (and certainly wasn't one back in the day) and have not much patience or poseurs like Lydon in general, one didn't know this record which is more interestingly vibes-y than one expected and much more engaging than the earlier work (inclusive of Sex Pistols) and later work (the more lurid, dancier, less serious PiL to come). This is expansively dark and droning, with major Joy Division vibes and early Cure (which probably means rotten Johny might be due more credit as an influencer than one has been historically inclined to give him). It's a plus that the yodel-y vocals are de-emphasized and sublimated here to the industrial-tending-with-dub-overtones drum and bass foundation – that's the greatest contrast to the to the didactic and very talky first album, where Lydon's "singing" is almost as grating as his speechifying. It definitely goes on too long and descends into a not-great trough though the middle of the album ("Socialist" and "The Suit" are low points) and the sameyness will certainly wear on certain types of ears. Still, strong overall with a (dare one say it considering the frontman) sort of understated focused on a shadowy aesthetic. "Radio 4," the mournful, churchy closer seems just about the least-PiL-ish thing PiL ever recorded (no wonder one likes it). One is inclined to quibble with 2 PiL records on this esteemed list; this would certainly be the one to keep.

I took a second attempt at this. I first played it in my shitbox car, on its shitbox stereo. I was fully prepared to write it off as an abysmally produced album. Honestly, I started to question everything about it. It sounded like I was listening to it from 2-3 metres away as it leaked out of somebody else's headphones. The tinny and hollow-sounding hi hats and cymbals overwhelmed the whole experience, Lydon's voice sounded feeble and phoned in. After getting home and boring myself with a couple of hours playing Fallout, I queued it up to give it another go. Mainly because I didn't want to listen to Joan Baez, like I probably should given my couple of days of backlog with the project. And... Well! On a stereo system that cost approximately 5x as much as my entire shitbox car, I can tell you, there is bass here. Hefty geet wodges of it. There is nothing tinny or aggressively sibilant about the hi hats or the cymbals. And Lydon's voice control swings dramatically into focus. Between Nevermind the Bollocks and Metal Box, he had singing lessons. And you can tell. His enunciation is clear, his timbre is deliberate and his knows how to put power in. Yes, this album is a bit challenging. The tracks are too long, but there is a lot of experimenting in there which seems to have directly opened the door for later stuff. And bugger me, there are better things to do with your life than listen to FOUR HOURS of "special deluxe super edition". Do yourself a favour. Listen to the original track list, leave it at that. And listen to it on kit that can actually manage to distinguish between lows, mids and highs. I can't think of many albums produced with such dramatic clarity and separation between the instrumentation and the vocals. Each of them tend to do their own thing, slightly, which adds to the challenge, but it does mean that you can listen to a different album every time you put it on, and that's actually really quite fun.

brilliant

Amasing start

It's very fun lyrically. Kind of stuck musically, but at least it's stuck somewhere interesting and atmospheric.

Lots of hate in the reviews for this album, buy I enjoyed this. I listened to it twice back-to-back.

Listened to this one straight through back to back. While I don't love it in all respects, I respect all of it. There was a lot of range on here, going from sprawling post-punk (Albatross) to dancy pop-punk (Memories) and dub-inspired (Careering). Plenty of throbbing bass throughout, and while the vocals were often polarizing, I enjoyed most of it. I will say that certain aspects here remind me a bit of LCD Soundsystem (Swan Lake in particular). All said, this was mostly enjoyable even if it did at times feel like it was dragging. For that, I give it a soft 4.

You know, I can see why people wouldn't like this. I don't like the sex pistols at all but this I can get behind. It's weird, spooky, different and that's what I want my music to be.

I like PiL, and I like the genre overall, but I’m not sure why this would be an essential Post-punk album. It’s pretty good, but Entertainment!, Real Life, or Jane from Occupied Europe are all better and more interesting.

Weird but good

La première pièce particulièrement me fait penser à Joy Division. La recherche formelle, l'acuité des sons (synthétiseurs) en fait un projet à l'écoute de lui-même, moins dans l'ouverture immédiate. C'est singulier et cohérent.

It takes some (post-punk) nerve to start your second album with the most overlong, repetitive improvisational dirge within its tracklisting. Very much a second hand version of the sorts of cold, hopeless soundscapes Joy Division had specialized in during those late-seventies years, "Albatross" never soars in the course of its 10 minutes indeed. Instead, it stays stuck to the rotten ground, eliciting an ill-at-ease response at best. This opener bordering on parody is definitely not a proper way to welcome your listener. Fortunately, the rest usually fares far better if you're interested in experimental grooves that are admittedly unsettling, and yet often evocative--the sort of groove fitting to a society of misfits living in desolated warehouses after the apocalypse. The first half of this album is especially notable in that regard. "Memories" is a somewhat intense cut where the record truly hits its stride. "Swan Lake" builds up its own noisy mayhem around the famous Tchaikovsky leitmotiv--an ironic borrowing that blurs the line between catchiness and a total mockery of it. And while "Poptones" and "Careering" explore moodier territories, subsequent tracks like "No Birds" manage to liven up the proceedings a little (if you can consider demented howls over cranky noises a proper option to liven things up). The last half of the album is less memorable, but it often succeeds in pulling the rug from under your feet (those stylistic changes) while keeping you on your toes (the tension remains in spite of those 180-degree turns). Which is quite a feat, you gotta admit it. :) PIL inherit from all sorts of influences here, from punk to Can to dub to musique concrete. But their sound is unmistakably theirs. They admitted a large part of this album has been "improvised" or written on the spot as they booked late-nights sessions between other bands in the studio (the famous metal packaging came first, what music would turn out to be was only considered later). But somehow, the artful pretense worked out in this case--even if not totally--the 10/10 or 5-star reviews feel a little unwarranted in 2024. But the overall proposition still holds water today, given how vital the current post-punk scene feels like. Of course, one can't write a small review of this record without saying a few words about the individual contributions of PIL's key members at the time. Jah Wooble's dub basslines are often mesmerizing. David Levine's slashing guitar lines and overall sound are both spooky and groundbreaking. And of course, there's John Lydon. Yes, the public persona of the former Sex Pistols is 'obnoxious' in all the worst meanings of the term today. He is a "reactionary" fool, an old man yelling at clouds. But maybe the man has always been a fraud after all. The thing is, in this record (as in the Pistols' *Never Mind The Bollocks* and a couple of other PIL albums), the fraud manages to convince you he is the best thing that could have occured to punk and its later offshoots. And you just need to be somewhat open-minded for this miracle to happen. The sort of miracle that didn't happen on this app, given the small global score *Metal Box* received, admittedly. My score is different: 3.5/5 for the purposes of this list, rounded up to 4. 8.5/10 for more general purposes (5+3.5). Number of albums left to review: 160 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 362 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 212 (including this one) Albums from the list I won't include in mine: 269

Ja, för fan.

This, flowers of Romance and Album are all great PIL albums. This may be the hardest to appreciate but I do like its self defining confidence. Maybe what the Pistols could have been conceptually, an attempt to reshape music in a way that pushed beyond what is considered marketable and pop yet still being sonically rich and wild in a way rock only attempts to be.

I cant explain it but this really works for me

4.25 Great!

Their first album was too similar to pistols and other pioneers (which the memebers of PIL were part of) and although good as an album it was jist the same music. This second album they went a bit further and really experimented with new sounds and new wave and its a great concept album with it raw punk roots. Its a wierd album but musically better and very innovative for the post punk movement. Liked this one a lot. First song is really bad but the second track makes up for that one

These guys do that freestyle Jazz thang where they fuck around and occasionaly make a 2 second moment of genius. You have to sit through a 9 hour song. Is it worth it yes, have a huge soft spot for John Lydon, nothing rational just glad its there.

Intriguing and irritating in equal measure, with an inconsistent sprinkling of genius. John Lydon can be an insufferable prick sometimes but when he's on form it really works (and when he's not, the rest of the band are easily good enough to carry the odd duff track).

Liked it more than I expected. Cool punk style and neat muffled bass sound

i tried listening to this album a year or two ago and gave up three songs in because it was so obnoxious. now im a pretentious music nerd so i love this. i think people overstate how unlistenable this is, the bass is so groovy it kind of allows the other aspects to be noisy in an enjoyable sense. my favorite song was probably poptones but every song rules honestly. 8/10

I liked this a lot more than I thought I would, the album has some catch pop/punk songs. I loved the swan lake version! Favourite song: memories and swan lake Least favourite: Its a long album with too many filler instrumentals. Album artwork: I have always loved the symbol for the band. Simple yet effective art work

You know what helped me get through this album? Pretending that its like disco without the dance! Wait, no, that defeats the purpose... oh, I know, its like System of A Down without the metal? No, that's not really accurate either. It's like... Real Life by Magazine but worse? Yeah, that's kind of it, but its certainly not bad, in fact I'd say its pretty good. It has this groove to it through most of the album thanks to Jah Wobble's bass playing, yet is still haunting due to its music seemingly looping over and over and over, as if you were stuck in a spinning ballroom straight out of the 80s, except its still the 70s and you have one of the most baffled sounding guys warbling in your ear for a good chunk of it, once again in the best of ways. Actually, even better, it just feels like being trapped inside of a cold, derelict tin can (emphasis on the Can with the repetitive nature of most of these tracks) while there's a party down the street, and you're yelling for help, but the party is too loud and your screams are futile. If I haven't sold you yet, this album probably is not for you, but I had a good time, even if it is too long by the end.

this is actually way better than i expected from public image ltd.. the first album i listened to was "public image: first issue" and i loathed every second of it. seeing that this was the album generated for me just a few days later was, in the moment, devestating, but to be honest, this was a very enjoyable listen! i ended up loving a LOT of songs on this album. radio 4 is the perfect way to end an album, it is so groovy. the whole tracklist made me want to start painting or drawing again- it revived my love for being creative! that's what a creative and thought-out album can do to someone, it can inspire them to do the things that they love. originally, i thought that this album wouldn't deserve a place on this list, but i was proven wrong. this was an amazing listen and i would recommend it to anyone who needs a little bit of something new in their life.

There’s a lot going on in this seminal post-punk album. It sounds like a hybrid of the Doors (mostly vocally) and Joy Division. There is a lot of experimental and Krautrock influence as well. I was pleasantly surprised to find John Lyndon fronting this band was was impressed with his musical versatility and embrace of experimental music as I only know him through his Sex Pistols persona. This album is disconcerting and challenging.

Solid stuff. A more out there and dancey version of Joy Division. Will revisit.

Who doesn't love stream of consciousness lyrics with heavy base accompaniment? A fine album.

Never heard of this group before but I somehow dug it. I didn't like the droning dissonant sounds on some other albums here, but this one strangely worked for me. The vocalist was not great, but that only fed into the vibe. The bass guitar rocked and the weird sounds that would flare up during songs were intriguing. I don't know if I will revisit it, but I enjoyed the ride more than I expected. My vaorites here are Albatross, Swan Lame, and Socialist.

1979 Post-punk, experimental rock, dub, Avant-garde 2nd Album by PiL Standouts: Albatross, Careering, Bad Baby Others: Memories, Swan Lake 4/5 Albatross is a great song - great sound! "If you describe something or someone as an albatross around your neck, you mean that they cause you great problems from which you cannot escape, or they prevent you from doing what you want to do."

Quick clarification note: Metal Box is occasionally also referred to as Second Edition, particularly in reissues where the album does not come in a metal box. It is technically a triple LP, although it is played at 45 RPM so there's less space per side, clocking in at a little over an hour for the runtime. Absolutely incredible post-punk. It's a mess, but it's an enticing mess. MVP has to go to bassist Jay Wobble and his dub-influenced grooves. This, combined with the complimenting drum rhythms, gives a solid foundation for John Lydon and Kevin Levene to experiment and explore. It's best executed on the first five tracks before dropping off, but I'd forgive it for how enjoyable it is as an overall product. Metal Box makes me wish I owned the album in the metal box and everything. Obligatory "fuck you" goes to John Lydon for being a reactionary punk loser. I'm never going to let this go.

Vibe, chaotic-artistic, from lead singer of Sex Pistols. Listened to their first album as well, Fodderstompf “we only wanted to be loved” jam

One of my favorite albums. A haunting display of atonal pieces that evoke feelings of fear and anxiety, completely unpredictable in direction and approach. The tracks are bleak yet somewhat minimalist. The bass and drums are rhythmic and repetitive, with only the chorus-heavy screeching guitar, metallic synths, and Rotten's wailing as being abrasive and off-putting. To many, this can be enough to put them off. But it grows relatively quickly. After several listens, I found his vocals, the synths, and guitar to meddle into a softer harmony that I find entrancing and somewhat beautiful. But everyone plays extraordinarily well. Jah Wobble's dark bass is what primarily sticks out and defines these tracks, with several drummers playing their own styles ranging from sporadic to simple and constant. For innovation and empathogenic qualities, it receives top remarks. The track ordering is perfect too, with "Albatross" setting the mood, slowly and carefully, followed by several anti-pop loud and catchy tracks. The album closes with "No Birds" picking up the insanity, "Chant" reaching the peak that'll drive anyone insane, and suddenly making a 180 into the uncomfortably pleasant and serene "Radio 4" that just keeps going despite the false endings. My only reason for giving it 4 stars is that the second half is a dip in quality. I love them and they leave an impression, but the run from "Socialist" to "No Birds" often has me spacing out with how tamer they are. "The Suit" and "Bad Baby" in particular contribute almost nothing and just pad out time. I wish they stood out to me as much as any of the first 5.

Indispensable del punk

Post-Punk with a menacing tone. Super heavy bass, piercing guitars, and Johnny snarling. Delightful.

Reading some of the reviews and ratings on this ground breaking album you would wonder why it is inculded here. And I get how difficult a listen it is for someone coming at it new. But in 1980 when I was 18 and thirsting for "new" sounds that broke boundaries, Second Edition as it was called in Canada was food to a starving man. My lasting impression of this album and Public Image Limited in general is watching them perform Poptones on Amesican Bandstand to a stunned, uncomfortable and perhaps even fearful live audience. For me it ranks up there with The Clash on Fridays, Elvis Costell and the Attractions on SNL and Future Islands on Letterman as the best Television perfomances I've ever seen. Yes it's a difficult listen, especially sides 3 and 4, and the music is unconventional and jarring and the singing annoying and off key. Taken on it's face I get a 1 or 2 rating, but taken in the context of its time and place this is important ground-breaking music. 4 stars

Some of the songs might be too long. But I loved others

Punky and fun. 4 stars.

Primo first lp from PIL

Outstanding post-punk album. Noisy and strident in the best way. Fantastically jarring, jagged guitars and twisted disco rhythms. Somewhat obscure, unsettling lyrics. Fave Songs: Swan Lake, Graveyard, Memories, No Birds

If you’re not a PIL fan but want to try to give it an honest listen, I might recommend starting with the last track and working backward. It might make this a little more accessible for you. If you’re me? The cranky, rough, aggressive guitar with the impressive-if-outsider bass coming at you from the mash up of part Sex Pistols and part Clash (rip Keith Levene) scratches an itch for some stretched out post punk. It’s interesting to listen to this with an ear for how this predates Rise but you can definitely feel the “anger is an energy” vibe here. Not gonna lie, this one may try the patience of some. But if you need some cranky but cool and ironic music to accompany a certain feeling of snark with a surprising groove and scratchy vocals? This is a good pick.

I really like the experimental aspect of PIL's music, but I feel that a few songs toward the end could have been left out and it would have made a stronger album. Still, I really enjoyed it.

Experimental but still enjoyable. The emotions are palpable in several songs. The drums are plain but driving. The guitars are searching for the tune, and kind of oscillating around it.

Brilliant and grating, Metal Box doesn't smash new glass, opting to tread and retread in glittering patterns. The mix is deranged, the vocals likewise, the rest of the instruments less so. Fitting the album uncomfortably into an ambient mode, still incapable of being background.

Guitar just attacks your ears. Singing is rotten. Noise everywhere. Was that a synth? What a bewildering experience. 8/10

I have always loved this. Would it be better without Johnny? Probably. But it’s still such an excellent case of groove

I can understand why this is an influential album, it seems to take punk and split it wide open into a sprawling landscape. Some of the songs are a little too long for me but all in all I quite enjoyed this.

One nasty jam session.

Like some tracks more than others, singing can get a bit annoying after a while since it's so "one-note", but I do dig the style. 3.5 to 4.

Post punk in all its glory.

Not an easy listen by any means, but treat it as one long soundscape inhabited by Wobble's dub bass, Levene's sparse guitar and Lyndon's vocals and it accumulates over time. Normally I'd split a double album for two listens, this one is best done right through.

Jah Wobble brilliant again, and the music less arousing but equally interesting as the Sex Pistols classic album.

Interesting and not nearly as annoying as I feared. I quite liked it.

Never heard of it, actually loved it

Pretty wild. Keith Levines guitar work carries this so hard you can just hear it trickling down to every single experimental rock guitarist of the generations to come in some way or another

Segon treball de Lydon, Levene i Jah Wobble, una de les obres principals del post punk. Disc complicat, abrassiu, serpentejant, opressiu, amb temes llargs que donen camp de feina a Lydon i sequaços per il.lustrar el baix moment pel qual passaven, depressió continua a base de drogues i incertesa vital que es trasllada a la música de forma magistral

C'est vraiment spécial, je m'attendais pas à aimer, mais overall je suis très satisfait. Certaines pièces étaient un peu trop étirées (Albatros), mais généralement le son post punk expérimental était tellement bien exécuté que l'album se laissait écouter tout seul. Vraiment surpris d'avoir autant aimé un projet de Johnny Rotten. 8/10

Great sound. Love the punk and dub mix.

Wish I still had this one on vinyl

A little over-long but more personal than their first album

Rating: 7/10 Best songs: Memories, Swan lake, Careering

Lovely bits if chaos. Gritty and full

e sjećam se ovoga kad sam slušao, jako dobro je sjeo. noćna spika i šetnja.

Disliked it at first, but have since gone warm to it. 3/5

this was fine but bloated

Not terrible, definitely a more interesting band than the Sex Pistols. Some echos of Joy Division. Favorite song is "Memories"

Wow, for an album that was hardly produced and hardly prepared for, that is stellar. If only they put more time into it or cut a few of the songs though

This style is starting to grow on me. Probably won’t always seek it out but this one hit. I’m putting three on it but could easily advance after a few more listens.

pretty weird, not as good as their other one from what I remember Will I listen to again: 30%

Clearly massively influential and I can hear the genesis of so many bands that I really enjoy in this. But as an album it lacks charm or excitement really. Perhaps if I were 10–15 years older I'd have gotten in to this when it was released and I'd love it. As it is I'd like to find something to like in it a bit more 3 stars for the influence, but it's only just getting the three.

Metal Box, or Second Issue, is such a wild project much like design used to initially distribute this wild and exceptionally weird sophomore album from Public Image Ltd (PiL). Much like the packaging, this album is wonky and weird even for today's standards on Post-Punk. Even with the strangeness of the music I feel there is a lot to be desired from Metal Box that I could easily achieve by relistening to First Issue again. It is dark, mind scratching 1 hour long experiment into the most uncharted territory Post-Punk had ever seen since the genre started exploding in 1977. While I may be mixed on the whole production standpoint of this project, when I say this album is worth it to hear for the bass playing I really mean that. This album was BUMPING and made a lot of the very strange tracks somewhat groovy and unusually danceable. Metal Box is a very important release as it showed some of the finest creativity and artistry working together to create something that still feels very unique and one of a kind to this very day. I have a lot of respect for this project even if my feelings are quite lukewarm.

Forgettable

this like the most tense anxiety enducing albums i've ever listened to. i do find the vocals a bit grating, but i do enjoy the janky ass production. theres some really funky shit on here. this like my favorite type of punk, the really odd and surreal shit. not my favorite album on this im glad i got to experience it tho

Pretty good, you know

Not something that I can imagine repeatedly listening to, but definitely interesting. Heavy - HEAVY dub bass throughout.

I unfortunately thought this was quite good but the seething brings it down to a 3 in the end

my hatred for john lydon may border on irrational. if anyone else was at the front of this project i'd adore it but i couldn't get through it. 3 stars because everyone else on this seems to be killing it.

Good bass the vocal work is rough

- ts is the stuff you would hear at the radio and not know ngl - dont know man theyre hollering in my ears - its not hitting man im not high enough - psychedelics music only

- opening impressions… I thought the album cover would be some Aphex twin stuff, however to my surprise its bass induced alt rock??? Sounds amazing so far and super excited to get more into it. - so upon deeper research, this album has been almost like transformed into a new one under the same name of the artist. " Second Edition" by Public image Ltd. with a whole new cover too. idk why they would do this because I much prefer the original album, however we will just deal with it I guess. - a famous redditer once said, "And isn't that was avant-garde post-punk is all about?" and to that I say hell yeah. - Never heard anything like this before. I think that's why I love it. PropTones is hitting rn. - really cool album however relisten quality low bc its hard to get into... Also most songs are ez skips. - Radio 4 is like a resolution to the madness. Its a peaceful conclusion to the album.

Ни о чем . 5/10

3⭐️/5 [05.28.2026] 06.08.2026

Albatross - 4 Memories - 4 Swan lake - 4 Poptones - 2 Careering - 2 Socialist - 2 Graveyard - 3 The suit - 2 Bad baby -3 No birds - 3 Chant - 2 Radio 4 - 3

Better than Tical, and Albatross is a great track. Otherwise, PiL not my faves. 3 "barely tolerable" stars.

A real rollercoaster, some of it sounded intentionally awful but I really liked some of it so I guess 3 is fair

I have listened to a few public image albums like Happy, Album and 9. This is definitely from the early avantgarde part of their career, and I do appreciate the avoidance of radio friendliness in many of the songs, I also enjoy it where a song has a repeating percussion/bassline sequence while Johnny Rotten blares out some kinda ridiculous lyrics. It should sound pretentious but it actually works. I still prefer their more commercial records though but they do occasionally go back to their early sound, especially on recent albums like This is PIL and What the World Needs Now.

When it's good it's very good, but it's too often too long and repetitive. Bad off tune vocals, which I understand was part of Lydon's shtick, but great drums.

Well for starters, Albatross definitely didn’t have to go first. It was kind of daunting right out of the gate for a first timer. Most of the rest was pretty groovy though! Idk man. Swan Lake is cool, Radio 4 is cool, Chant and some of the other stuff kind of drove me bananas. Not quite my favorite! I might go back to PIL at some point but maybe not this record.

Joy Division. Too long. The Suit

I liked this more than I was expecting! I think the guitars were a bit trebbley for me and they were the only thing that was so it really stuck out. Amazed what Mr Rotten's vocals can actually do - he's better than I thought!

Album #144 Public Image Ltd.: Metal Box After changing the state of popular music with the Sex Pistols, John Lydon decided to join a band that could actually play music. Though the Sex Pistols promised to turn music on its head and provide unregulated, vulgar, and edgy music, in hindsight, everything they did was quite tame. Metal Box, however, shows Lydon at his true boundary pushing peak, which is why it’s no surprise that this album was not even remotely as successful as the Sex Pistols were. Metal Box is a grim album, with not much to grasp onto. It’s sort of like Joy Division, but with even less melody and even less production. The closest album it reminds me of is The Idiot by Iggy Pop; they both just sound like they need a shower. Though this album has a lot more artistic merit than the Sex Pistols, I’d be lying if I said I prefer listening to it. After Careering, the tracks don’t really do much for me, that is, until the instrumental medley at the end, which is great. Overall, I can definitely see people not liking this at all, but since I’m quite partial to post-punk and coldwave, I actually quite enjoyed it. Best Tracks: Swan Lake, Poptones, Memories Worst Track: Bad Baby Score out of 10: 7.5

Nok det bedste sex pistols adjacent album jeg har hørt, meget bedre lyd end på deres første album

Not bad, not bad. The interesting noises and instrumentals (especially that beautiful bass) scratched my brain in all the right ways and elevated the record for me. Can't say there was ever a dull moment (though the guitars did start taking on a sharp droning quality after a while). It started to get tiring during the second half and I'm not the biggest fan of the vocals. However, I can definitely respect it's innovation and it landed pretty well overall. I think more than anything, I liked how it challenged me and my current music taste.

Truly hated it and was so mystified and intrigued and hooked, wild listen worth the long play time

500th album! Both PIL albums within one week! I like this one a little more than their debut. More post punk, less Sex Pistols. Favorite track: Memories 3.5/5

No está mal, pero me dio un poco igual. Tiene buenas canciones y los ritmos están padres, pero terminó cansándome un poco.

i have no idea what hes talking about but i kinda feel it