Metal Box

The fact that we live in the timeline where this album got rave reviews on release and the Brighton Hotel bombing was not successful shows how awful this world really is. Albatross has a line that sums up my thoughts on this album and Public Image Ltd in general: 'You are unbearable'. Following the intense dickriding of punk music, John Lydon decides to form a new band and lead the wave of post-punk which would be met with more intense dickriding from music critics whose minds have become so drained of whatever brain chemical allows you to actually enjoy music that they decide THIS dogshit is good music. Once you place this album in the context of late 70s England a lot of things begin to make sense, life was fucking dogshit and this clearly seeps into some of the music of the time. They could have fixed their economy however by manufacturing and selling hatchets to the general public with which they could hack music critics and journalists into tiny pieces which could be processed into biofuels and fertiliser, thereby making the UK a leader in the field of alternative fuels and agriculture. Therefore Thatcher would not have been elected and Neoliberalism wouldn't have taken off. In short, if this album was not released it would have definitely prevented the Falkands War, and maybe at least one of the Iraq Wars.

This album brought back Memories of Poptones over Swan Lake.

Didn't do much for me. Mostly just dark and grinding.

I found this as "Second Edition" on Spotify, no album called "Metal Box". I know the band as Johnny Rotten's spinoff from the Sex Pistols but only remember a few super annoying songs from the late 80's or early 90's. This album does nothing to suggest PIL is a good, or even average, band. I now solidly remember why they never went mainstream and why no one I knew actively listened to them. The opening track is 10 mins long, super dreary and highlights his weak singing voice over a repetitive drone of guitars, and that was one of the more listened to tracks. Pure garbage. It went downhill from there... No one can call this crap a masterpiece! "No Birds" and "Chant" are unlistenable. The songs on this album were not hits, not influential to anyone that came after them, his vocals are intolerable, clumsy drumming, the music sounds like an intoxicated 8th grade garage band from Boise. Zero reasons for this to be on any Top 1001 list!! One star just for showing up.

I understand that this was ground breaking at the time, but by today’s standards it’s a bit messy

The bass is the best part of the album by far, it truly helps save the whole thing. I like the droning, repetitive, and oppressive sound of the music, really creates an atmosphere. The worst part was definitely the vocals, I just wish the dude would shut up so I could listen to the music. Favorites: "Albatross", "Poptones", "Careering"

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.

Interesting experimental/post-punk stuff. Definitely never would have found this without this list, presumed everything Johnny Rotten touched would have been overrated. Some interesting moments on here, specially in the first half. Latter part runs flat a bit, The Suit & Chant particularly poor moments. Delete the naff and there's a great EP here.

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.

It sure what I just listened to here but it was terrible

Not horrible, but not worth the listen, kinda grungy sound

Weird album with prog rock vibes with sampling. Didn’t click for me. 2/5

the instruments are great the vocals not so much

I thought I like PiL but albatross is a terrible start to any album

A really tough listen

I could not make it through the album

I couldn't even finish it, that was boring as hell

boring and uninspired. went on way too long. some redeeming qualities, though.

Red hot garbage

I didn't need to listen past the first few songs.

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

A very grating and uninteresting listen overall. Some sections were ok, but mostly this was one of those times I couldn't wait for the album to end. 1.7/5 -> 2/5

It's fine, but pretty uninteresting

Metal Box is bad, almost no redeeming qualities, noise trying to pass itself off as music for the most part, atrocious vocals, lots of really bad new wave tropes, it's a painful 1.

I've listened to this three times now, to try and work out what KRS and Hector see in it, and I really can't. It's not angry enough to be a proper punk album, and doesn't have energy, but you lose so much in terms of thought and soulfulness from his voice (or lack thereof) that it makes most of the music unintelligible. 2/5.

Am I done with John Lydon yet? Am I done with whatever the fuck a Jah Wobble is yet? I was very down on both Jah Wobble's Invaders of the Heart (JFC, what a band name) and the first PIL record, and unfortunately we're back for more. For the record: I like post-punk. I like post-punk where the artist sounds like they actually give a shit, instead of half-assing one take and calling it a day. Lydon moans over this record with lyrics that sound like they've been sketched on a napkin. The drummers are faceless. Wobble's bass is occasionally interesting, but more often than not sticks to a formula and doesn't break. The guitars? Man. The guitars are the worst of all. Whoever it was must've walked into the studio blind, tried their best at improv, and called it lunch. I genuinely believe they thought more about the album packaging (which was apparently a large, metal box, hence the name) than absolutely any note of music on this thing. Please. Please. No more.

I didn't enjoy anything about this one. A bit too weird for me.

Metal Box, for me, was an unpleasant experience. I found it grating, irritating, and mostly very annoying and on the whole kind of boring. https://open.substack.com/pub/richcain/p/project-1001-metal-box-by-public?r=4ztyq&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Couldn't make it through the first song (which is very long, and I don't mind long songs when they are good). Has the vocal style I don't particularly care for, and the guitars I found to be grating. Just a bunch of noise, which I get is probably the point, but it's not for me.

I found this very jarring. Maybe I wasn't in the right mood. Seeing this kind of punk live is very different to just listening to it on an album for me. I just couldn't get into and wanted it to end. Reminded me of the fall stuff that I don't like

I thought this was pretty bland. It's a shame because I like John Lyndon's voice but the music was like they'd given up and just made any old thing.

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

It had everything to be a good Post Punk album, but the vocalist gives me the impression that he is eternally falling down a staircase while singing! Although the instrumentals are very good, it was painful to listen to until the end. I'll leave 2 stars.

Not much better than their other album I listened to, I guess it’s more miserable. It’s still just meh.

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.

I acknowledge that they were the first of their kind, but everyone that came after did it way better

I adore long songs, but not this crap - this album could’ve been an email

The music is mostly bad but the bass lines save it from disaster.

Better than expected.

Every song is the first few seconds repeated. But I guess this album is very special because it came in a "metal box".

These guys got another album on the list? I mean it's not horrible but it's still meh. 2.5/5

Raw, disconnected, basic. Sounds as if each of the 4 focused on their own instrument ignoring what the rest are doing. 2/10

Low expectations because I really don't like the Sex Pistols, but this was actually kinda good. For this type of album you just have to accept that it's going to get tedious at times; that's just part of the deal.

Interesting instrumental sound that was totally unique. But some of these songs suck and I never want to hear them again.

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.

An interesting album with some nice grooves, but too much atonality and ugly vocal parts to return to it any time soon. Here and there it reminds me of Joy Division, which I much rather listen to.

Some good grooves are present, the sound is somewhat dull.

This album is fucking garbage.

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.

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

Had to skip through the first song after 4 minutes Like I get the trancy metal-late '70s vibe of it, but it's so repetitive Poptones had an interesting beat. That one got me into counting. Maybe just the drummer's drumming on the offbeats. It is definitely a one sound kind of sound

Fuck this

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.

Awful droning nonsense

Yikes I really don’t see how this is influential. You can’t even consider the guy making noise a singer because it was more just cries (for help I assume?). Dog poop album.

Knowing how much I hate their debut, I can't WAIT to hear this one... First song: Albatross. This sounds remarkably similar to something I recorded in high school as a joke on my pocket cassette recorder. And because I was a stupid 16 yr old with the accompanying sense of humour and used that in the "lyrics" it was infinitely better than this zero effort pile of dogshit. I like my fair share of post punk emo mopey Brit c1980 fare but this is hilarious how utterly and distinctly terrible it all is. I don't chafe a bit at the length of the songs. I do mind however that there's no evidence whatsoever that whomever recorded the parts on this album had ever actually played an instrument before. Comical that this album even was released let alone in this book. Run Away. 0/10 1 joke of a star

Couldn't finish it, an album I'd rather hear after death

Rock experimental. Un tostón. Un 2.

Experimental rock. PUFF. Nada.

Metal Box was Public Image Ltd.'s second album, released as three, 12" 45 rpm discs, in a metal box which resembled a 16mm film case. The production costs limited the first run of the box, so the material was re-released as Second Edition, a 2-LP version of the work. Public Image, Ltd. was formed by John Lydon - Johnny Rotton - after the break-up of the Sex Pistols. The band went through a number of line-up and stylistic changes in their career, and their progress is considered noteworthy in the development of post-punk genres. Metal Box was created when PiL was exploring a bass-heavy, dub version of their sound. As a defining element, Lydon's vocals give the band's work the energy and angst of punk, through all of their post-punk experiments.

Quite surprised that I didn't hate it! I didn't like it, but I didn't hate it! Not really sure what I think of it!

Definitely "ran away" from Albatross about halfway through. The sound of the rest gives me a bit of Talking Heads vibes but just... not as good? I'm not sure, I can appreciate the music, and the style of vocals, but I just think the vocals weren't done well enough to work. It quickly just becomes annoying. This is a shame too, because the music without the vocals is quite good. Fav track: Poptones Least fav: Albatross 2.5/5

It's far from the best album on this list, but it does not deserve one of the last positions in the global status rank. Yes, it's strange and sometimes annoying, but many other post-punk albums follow the same pattern here. It was at its best when it somehow resembled Sex Pistols. Post-punk is better when the "post" part is ignored; that's interesting.

Broke my balls after 5 minutes.

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.

joy division enjoyers creaming rn

I'm convinced the people on this website just want to pretend they hate long songs. If a 10min song was split into parts floyd-style no one would bat an eye, I tell you. That being said, this was... fine. I'm sure if you're actively looking for things to hate that's all you'll find, though. This album deserves to be looked upon with fresh perspective, as hard as that may be to do.

Shades of Devo here

I don’t know how many times I have to say this about a post punk album on this list, sarcasm 👏 doesn’t 👏 make 👏 music 👏 inherently 👏 good. It’s whiny, it thinks it’s better than you, and they have nothing to back it up with. Absolute fuckers.

Boring

On Spotify as "Second Edition," it's a pure post-punk play full of avant-garde weirdness that moved to define that genre as it developed.

I wish John Lyndon wasn’t such a cunt but this music is decent.

Albums like this are why I signed up for this project. They're strange, cool, I've never heard of them before, probably won't listen to them again, but love that I took the time to listen to them once and know about them and that they're out there

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.

Songs are way too long. The awful singing makes them seem even longer. It's not 1 star bad, but not much better. At least the production is OK. I think this was the right record at the right time when it was new, but it's not now. Favorite song: Poptones

I bought this as a real metal box when it came out with 4, 12 inch singles in a metal tin. It is not an easy listen but I think there are a few gems here. Hasn't aged greatly but an important album for the time.

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

3-4

One extra star cos of what this led to.

I’m all for experimenting in music but this tuneless mess of an album isn’t anything more than up his own arse Lydon furiously masturbating at how edgy he thinks he is. The only thing holding this together is the bass playing on every track which might be the only redeeming feature.

not good

The lowest energy "punk" record I have ever heard. Did not like, won't come back to it. Just kinda boring meandering garbage.

bloody hell no

I turned it off when it started affecting my ability to focus. Not for me.

I usually like post-punk, but this was hard. It had some redeeming points, but... 2.5/5

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.

3.75

Entirely meh, feels like they may have made the misfits intro though.

memories is good didn’t have have time to listen to all of it i like some of it - some of it sounds like joy division

This is John Lydon's monstrous prank - defying the world to call out the emperor's got no clothes. It's deliberately anti-music and it's just terrible.

Yeah, no, mostly irredeemable nonsense.

This is from that era after punk had hit the scene, but they weren't really sure what the next big wave of music was going to be and it shows.

Traditional English folk rock yesterday and post punk experimental music today. How diverse is that? Reason why I like following this list religiously every day. This album received glowing accolades from the music press and I was tempted to buy it. But what I heard of the album beforehand put me off as I had no interest in sitting through a protracted jam session with wailing inaudible vocals over the top. So I didn’t bother but a part of me still wishes I had had done just to possess one of the most iconic album covers of all time (and worth a bit!) John Lydon now becoming a national treasure also makes me regret not buying this album at the time. But looking at the low average rating given by fellow reviewers it is obvious that the musicality of the album still leaves a lot to be desired despite a lot of music critics still hollowing on about what a game changing album this is. Listening today was very much a chore and on some of the longer tracks the FF button was deployed. I like John Lydon and what he stands for. So, as I do occasionally, I will ignore what the music sounds like and reward a rating based on my appreciation of those who make it even if it’s rubbish. The average global rating today is 2.49 and Johnny Rotten deserves more than this so he can have a 3. 3/5 4/8/24

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.

I am blankly staring at the wall

absolutely brutal listen 1/5

More Goth than punk, Metal Box by PiL is not for everyone. It's full of noise, unusual but dancable rhythms, and sounds not typically found in popular music. Overall, it sounds experimental, but that's because it is. It presages the industrial sounds of the later 80s and early 90s rather than the sensibilities of late 70s punk and post-punk. Johnny Lydon's limited range and wailing is oft times unsettling. It's like keening at an Irish wake. It is, however, worth listening to if only to see the evolution of Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols to Johnny Lydon of PiL, as will as punk to industrial.

What sounds like an experimental jam session that I appreciate more in creativity than in actual practice.

not good. only made it half-way through. Will not listen again.

John Lydon should be put in solitary confinement for the rest of his life for this.

The accursed precursor to music of the penis. A minimalist motherfucker. Hobgoblin music. Can't believe there were only 2 years between "Nevermind the Bollocks" and this, because this is something you should only drag from the darkest depths of your subconscious after 30 years of being stranded in the Gobi Desert. I don't exactly love it, but some unabashed weirdo shit is always a nice change of pace.

Let me preface this by saying, I try to listen to every album like a friend has recommended it to me. Most of the time it has helped keep my mind open, but I hated PiL’s First Issue almost immediately. Imagine my disbelief when I found out there was another on this list, longer and even more abrasive (according to reviews) >:0 But, like many entries on this list, my opinion of First Issue has changed over time, most notably with the opening track “Theme”. Once an atonal slog, the emotion & intensity became more believable to me on repeat listens. It also seems to be the prototype for how this album sounds, cold & uncompromising. Yet against all odds, this longer offering felt easier to listen to. While the greater focus on the rhythm section and atmosphere drove many of the songs into repetition & abstraction, it also means there’s less of Johnny Rotten’s more annoying vocal tendencies. If you’ve heard Trans-Europe Express, you might agree that despite the repetition, you feel like you’re in transit, on the way somewhere. Metal Box/Second Edition, gives me a similar vibe, except the destination sounds a lot more ghastly. There are perhaps too many stinkers to rank it higher (um, “The Suit” for one, don’t really like “Albatross” either), but overall I loved the strange guitar tone (which maybe isn’t as strange compared to later new wave releases), as well as the more dubby bass from Jah Wobble. HL: “Radio 4”, “Graveyard”, “Poptones”, “Swan Lake”, “Memories” July 27, 2024

-This is pretty interesting, has a sort of darkwave vibe to it -Anything experimental I’m all for but it definitely dragged on a bit long in some songs -Favorites are Careering and Socialist

brilliant

I didnt think I could find Johnny Rotten anymore annoying than I already did but here we are! The music is pretty good, Jah Wobble's bass is fantastic but those vocals are worth a minus star

Amasing start

Awful

Absolutely God awful. There is nothing to take from this except "how not to make a record" - I liked nothing in this record. The singer sounded like a shitty Jim Morrison. Not in vocal ability but in singing nonsensical lyrics that I'm sure pretentious people think are poetry. Piece of shit.

The two stars of the album are Keith Levene's icy guitar stylings and Jah Wobble's slinky bass lines. They give this album depth and musical tastiness. The two problems are it's too long and John Lydon's somewhat dispassionate vocals. Having said all this, I thought it was better than most reviewers think and I may give this a follow up in the future.

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

I do have to admit that this coming out in '79 surprised me since it sounded more experimental in a way than I would've thought at that time. The rhythm section on Poptones feels a bit like someone is trying to hypnotize me. Man, the more I'm ignoring listening to this as a normal album and letting myself focus rhythm first and the rest to round it out the more interesting it is. I almost hate that I'm saying this but I could see myself wanting to hear this again and seeing if I find something else.

This has a lot of good ingredients. Vocals are not one of them and the rest were not mixed in the right ratios. The bass did a lot of heavy lifting to keep this interesting.

Really strange sound but not bad.

Meh

Thoughts before listening: Johnny Rotten's post-Sex Pistols band. I don't know much about them, but I believe it can get a little out there. Weirdo 80s new wave style music with sneering punk vocals maybe? I've always assumed I probably wouldn't like this and it's not worth my time. Review: Man, this first song confirms all of the reasons I never listened to these guys. Its over 10 minutes of atonal post-punk jamming with John Lydon slurring weird ass lyrics over top. Pretty bad. While the sound is carried on through the rest of the album, PiL does at least add some melodic sense to a few of these songs. I was about to give them some credit for this, but the overall sound finally wore me down. I don't like this. 1-star

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

To no one's surprise, John Lydon's vocals are the worst thing on this album. And then I made the mistake of going on his Wikipedia page. Never again. I wish I could give this zero stars, but the musicians do hold up.

Public Image Ltd. (or PiL with this release) have been a major figure in Post-Punk although their commercial success wasn't as strong as Joy Division or Television. Like the Velvet Underground & Nico and Sticky Fingers by the Rolling Stones, the design of the packaging was something really special. Unlike the ones I've mentioned this wasn't designed by Andy Warhol and not even released as a standard 33rpm 12' LP. Instead the songs were printed on 3 12' 45rpm LPs. Freaky, I know. Sadly this design was UK only. Other issues in other countries were simply called 'Second Edition'. (Booooring!) The album slickly combines Post-Punk, Punk, Experimental Rock as well as some Noise Rock, Disco and Dub. This combination might sound and feel weird but that is exactly what they were going for as it was pushing the sound of Punk even further. The album starts with the 10 minute monster 'Albatross' with its repetetive riff and the abstract and ominous lyrics and distant vocal style that together make this an atmospheric and anxious listen. A perfect opener for such an experimental and dark album. In the end of that song the vocalist switches the style he used as the lead vocalist in the Sex Pistols, contradicting the dark and echoey vocal style from before. It is, in my opinion, the best song on this album and there is a case to be made that this is pretty close to the greatness of 'Marquee Moon'. That vocal style gets used again for 'Memories'. I have to say that I am not the biggest fan of that vocal style, mainly because it feels so alike to the Sex Pistols and I feel that vocal style works only with Punk Rock and not so much with their Post-Punk style. Still, the song is fantastic instrumentally especially the high pitched guitar. 'Swan Lake' pushes the energy even further. I prefer a lot over 'Memories' because this is much more focused on the rythmn section and the bass sticking out even more. A perfect example of Dance-Punk and Mutant Disco (yes this genre actually exists). The second LP opens with 'Poptones'. A very hypnotic song that even features a tiny little bit of Post-Rock. It is noisy and builds up a suspenful tension with the listener over the 7 minutes of playtime. It's really good especially because the build tension gets really anxious half-way through, a point where you'd expect it to loose the listeners interest but no it keeps it perfectly. I'm just not the biggest fan of all the things "around" of it although the chorus is pretty funny. 'Careering' has a lot of groove and the added synthesizer, the abstract drums and the final build-up make this a great tune. Especially the misanthropic vocals really add a layer of emotional depth to this very suspenful track. 'No Birds' is much less "noisy" than the other songs. The melody is also much more conventional? It's not really but compared to the rest... This feels very emotionally empty but in a good way. I don't mean that there is not emotion in there, more like the that someone's lost all their emotion and that it's empty now... No birds that fly around. And that is undermined by another very dark sounding song. With 'Graveyard' the noise returns already with the guitar that stings you with its first notes. The abrasiveness and the groovy instrumental nature of this really make this stand out to me. The last disc opens with 'The Suit', a much slower song that because of that looses my interest very fast. It's not bad at all and I love the bass but there isn't anything other to catch on for me. But I do have to appreciate the dark lyrics that with a bit more enthusiasm would make this song much more interesting. I also like the "thrown-in" avant-garde piano that plays for just a couple of notes and then disappears. Funny thing. 'Bad Baby' is better by a bit. The weird vocals that sound like they were sung drugged up as well as lots of ominous sounds both do a slighty better job in achieving what the album intends with its chaotic songs although it isn't anything too special compared to the rest of the album. The albums finale is a 12 minute song split into three parts. The streaming releases do split the song into each part but 'Socialist / Chant / Radio 4' was intended as one piece. 'Socialist' starts fast-paced with synthesizers that make the sound you would expect in a sience-fiction spacecraft. The drums are also really interesting as the sometimes feel "edited"? As if someone put them into a synthesizer itself and then sometimes changed the sound a little bit. It kinda freaks me out. 'Chant' is the one with vocals but to be honest, they get annoying very fast. I would've prefered it to be instrumental with that awesome guitar and just the ad-libs sometimes in the background. But the build-up to the repeating "Chant, Chant, Chant" is worth it. 'Radio 4' is a mix between their typical style (mainly bass and noise at the end) but added classical instruments and a kind of ambient sound. It sounds like the outro to a majestic movie and in a way this album is. There is a lot to get out of the album and it obviously was very influential but I think I have to give this album some time until I can really appreciate it but for now: Great but not perfect. favourites: Albatross, Swan Lake, Graveyard, Poptones least favourites: The Suit, Bad Baby, Socialist / Chant / Radio 4 Rating: decent 8 https://rateyourmusic.com/~Emil_ph for more ratings, reviews and takes

john lydon:obnoxious arrogance::anthony kiedis::sex and wieners

One of those albums where it sounds like the vocals were conceived entirely separately from the rest of the music and the bass player demanded to play a starring role. My dad would love it. He probably has it, actually.

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.

Radio 4 was the best song by far and it gets the benefit of being the end of this charade of an album. This was pretty awful. Shoegaze???

These songs were too dang repetitive. I have a tough time listening to this singer as well with his whiny kind of voice. Not the biggest fan of unrefined/raw instrumentals either. Radio 4 was a cool end though with the spacey piano and synth sound.

Excited for this one as I have come to realize I'm a big post-punk kinda guy apparently. A few songs in and it sounds dirty and improvy - not complaining about either, I like the style. Careering is ominous af. The album as a whole reminds me of Can, but drags on a little bit too much for my liking and at times gets a bit too noise-rocky. Really enjoyed a lot of it though. Going high 3 here.

There’s some good stuff on here, but I also feel like a lot of it is just John Lydon trying to feel cool/different by making weird songs and lyrics.

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.

After the first song, I was ready to give Metal Box 1 star, the vocals alone are a non-starter for me, but I kept going. Swan Lake was interesting and I actually kinda liked Poptones. Love the guitar, still hate the vocals. Metal Box rotates between decent at times and some of the worst sounds I’ve ever heard 3.4/10

A mix of genres brought together in a very jarring way. Sometimes it's almost deliberately unlistenable. Which is an interesting approach.

Bass is great, voice is terrible

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.

This sucks

Absolutely terrible

Honestly, not a huge fan. There was like one song that was aight and the rest sounded like two machines fucking.

Sometimes the background was pretty cool, but hated the singing. I originally wrote that sentence about the first song Albatross, but then realized it also applied to the whole album. This one is a nope for me.

Wut

A riff would come up that I liked and then the lead singer would come in and ruin it. I definitely think there’s something there with this album, but I wouldn’t be impressed if I heard it at a bar.

Back at it again with the strange vocals. The instrumentals were just a little too strange for my liking. Overall, it’s a no from me, dawg.

I want to start off by saying that I love the drummer and bass player! That's where my praises end. This whole album feels like the guitarist, vocalist, and producer are just adding random sounds on top of what would be a solid bass/drum beat. Hey, guess what! That's exactly what they did. According to Wikipedia, "Albatross" was completely adlibbed and recorded in one go and you can tell. I wish that we could get an entire album with just the bass and drums. We got a taste of that with "Socialist", but even then they couldn't help themselves by putting random beeps and tones on top of everything. If I was a record label in this time, I would steal Jah Wobble and David Humphrey, pair them with a strong lead man who can play four cords on a guitar, and own the 80's. This would be a 1 star album for me, but the drum and bass brings it up to a 2.

Weird but good

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.

not for me

It's good if you like avant guarde. It also still sounds fresh. Not what you might expect from PiL, but it's their second album, so they were telling you to abandon your expectations.

I continue to be confused how people hate the lowest-rated albums so much. I didn't mind this at all. I even saved "Socialist" for my 1001 Highlights playlist. I probably wouldn't listen to the entire album again but it wasn't bad.

Just couldn’t get into this one, no matter how hard I tried. I think it was the vocals that I just couldn’t stand.

I wasn't a huge fan of this album but it wasn't bad.

It might be groundbreaking for the time but I found it quite annoying, sorry.

Pleasantly surprised. Truly captured the post-punk vibe and made a blueprint for all the bands that followed. I had to go to YouTube music to find this in streaming format and im not sure why it is not available ( record company dispute?) but it is an important album and a great listen.

I liked the beginning a lot, the bass was great and the music set a moody atmosphere very well. But it got quite tiring by the end, not helped by the occasionally annoying vocals. Stand-out: Memories

For those unaware, Public Image Ltd. was formed by John Lydon aka Johnny Rotten shortly after the Sex Pistols broke up. He recruited an old friend of his Jah Wobble as bassist and former Clash member Keith Levene as guitarist. Metal Box, subsequently known as Second Edition, is their second album, categorized by what they're getting away with as an "avant-garde" sound, with stream-of-consciousness lyrics, dub-inspired bass grooves, and an abrasive "metallic" guitar sound. Now that formalities are out of the way, my enjoyment was admittedly slightly better than the Sex Pistols' one album. Keith Levene's guitar playing may not be as hook-driven as Steve Jones's was, yet it's also weirdly hypnotic in its unorthodox behavior. The rhythm section shines here, where Jah Wobble's playing up and down bass is well executed, and the session drummers do a superb job with the beats. Once again, Johnny Rotten is the worst part of his own group. He's a terrible singer, but instead of badly snarking he's now badly wailing. Similarly, he hasn't improved much as a lyricist, though he probably got away with using abstract imagery under the guise of "avant-garde." Thankfully, we don't get a "Bodies" here. Also helping to ease things between are the instrumental tracks "Socialist", "Graveyard" and closer "Radio 4", which I admittedly found pleasant. Overall, it is technically a step up from Never Mind the Bollocks, but not by much. I can see how someone would classify this as a landmark album for post-punk. Just one more Public Image album on this journey, and then Johnny can fuck right off.

Halfway through I was like "Okay, I get it but it's not for me, three stars" but I decided to be fair and keep listening to the end. Two stars!!!! NOT FOR ME!

I did not enjoy this ... what is this post punk randomness? I need the person who enjoyed this album to explain why!

This album sux. I hate it. I find no redeemable qualities anywhere around it. No need to listen. 1/5

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

Ixi, nem percebi que o cantor era o vocalista do Sex Pistols. Achei bem chato a substituição da energia punk pelas camadas pós-punk.

I'm not gonna pretend - I don't like this

It's okay

Ja, för fan.

The sound of a Hastings street in the early hours on a Sunday. Favourite track: Radio 4.

We’re off to a bad start with the first track - the singer sounds bored and it seems to drag on forever. The rest of the songs that I got through were droning and tinny to the point that it actually kind of hurt my ears. Dnf

ok ich bin sehr vorigboh well de johnny rotten isch en erzkonservative wichser worde sit de sex pistols. albatross isch chli kryptisch? de bass isch recht cool aber d gitarre macht nöd so sinnvolli sache. und was de text will sege checki au nöd. mann de shit goht e stuuuund. oh mein gott und albatros goht über 10 minute. wiso. oke langsam wirds unagnehm. zum glück bald fertig de song. memories isch miiiindestens so schlecht wie albatros. ich mues immerno 45 minute vo mim tag mit dem album verbringe. fuck. ich hass au swan lake. ich check s ostinato bass ding immerno und drums sind au nice aber da labget afoch nöd zum en guete song haa. aso wemmer denn no 5 minute s glich drüberschreit bringts au nöd. au am tchaikowski sini melodie rettets nöd. poptones isch chliieh mellow aber ich verstoh halt au meistens nöd waner will sege. aso die meiste wörter verstohni aber waser mit ihne will sege nöd. careering isch en guete titel, ha etz e pause gmacht chan drum vlt chli neutraler anegoh. wieeeder coole bass coli drums und drüber chli atonale stuff dasmol mit synths. ich checks aber s holt mi nuuuull ab. no birds, ah kein vogul ok. ich schmöck s 1 scho jetz. bi glaub nonig mol ide hälfti. graveyard isch wieder coole bis sogar seehr coole bass aber s wird nüüüüt demit gmacht. hass the suit soucial secouriteeeey heb fresse. aso jo s isch kritik ade elite aber s isch trotzdem ass. bad baby so schlecht fuck was gseht d kritik i dem??? "futuristic" "like nothing in the past or future" ah geil jo d zuelunft tönt afoch noch umegehüüle? super. dass en trump wähler 1979 es lied socialist nennt isch au es super zeiche. wiw socialist isch under 3 minute!!! wow! chant isch 5 minute und foht ah mit "chant chant chant chant" und atonale gitarre und isch mega unorganisiert ah geil!! es goht au glich wiiter yay!! figg dich johnny rotten. ich weiss scho dases SÖLL unagnehm und avant garde sii aber au das machts nume imme ton wi irgendwie überheblich isch. ich freu mich so fest dases bald verbi isch. radio 4 isch chli synth strings bis etz ABER JO GEIL ES HET TONALITÄT UND BITZ E MELODIE IDE STRINGS. und de bass isch immerno ume

bruh 1h oke s isch recht weird und de gsang hetmi nanig so überzügt hahahaha de bass findi no cool aber ehm giti macht eifach irgendöppis?? diggi wie ass isch das wow jz passiert echli meh aber jz d stimm eifach ass?? d bassline isch iwie immerno glich BRO DAS FILL CHAN DE LARS ULRICH BESSER WAS graveyard AASSSSSSSSSSSS WIE NERVIG ISCH DAS s schlimme isch, es isch nödmal ahsatzwiss spannend und kreativ sondern eifach nur nervig. die huere musical lüt und d band mitem fucking aug hend wenugstens funny stuff gmacht (wenn au ass) bruder am liebste 0 stern

I get nothing from this absolute noise

hmm, ehkä olen kullut niin paskoja aöbumeja viime aikoina että tämä on melkein henkäisy raikasta ilmaa. basso vie kiimassa koko bändiä eteenpäin kuin iroquois šamaani konsanaan koko saatanan studio heiluu kun basso soi, ja "metallimainen", heh, kitaransointto kuulostaa raastavalta, hirvittävältä ja perkele hyvältä. kuitenkin on selvää, että laulu tuo albumia pakosti aivan vitun paljon alaspäin, edes minä en voi mitenkään tykätä tuom brittinilkin vittumaisesta vinkumisesta + paskat lyriikat + ratio swan lake

That was unpleasant nonsense for me. 1.5/5

I wouldn't repeat it...

Ok so influential to the development of post punk and new wave. But apart from the tight rhythm section I don’t enjoy this. Tuneless singing and discordant guitar noodling.

I still don't dig their style.

A diligent exercise in studied noise. Not a "listening album" per se, but I still found it quite listenable. Probably because of the groove laid down by the bass, primarily.

Meh

More British garbage taking up space that rightfully belongs to Bob Seger.

曲听不懂词听不懂靴靴

Here’s another one of these albums… the vocals suck, the instruments are fine but repetitive, and maybe I can mildly groove to the bass line for a bit. But if that’s all I get, and then the vocals or dissonance brings me out of the groove, what’s the point? Especially when there’s at least 20+ of these albums on this list.

I think I don't like post emo and goth music much. This is like third album like this and I'm sure it's genre defining but I didn't like the sound much.

Never been a big fan and this doesn't move the needle upwards

Metal Box is the second studio album by Public Image Ltd, originally released in 1979. I'm an American so I feel as though post punk music would truly hit different for me if I was British. A lot of these bands' lyrical content revolve around British life and the tongue-in-cheek stuff doesn't land for me most of the time. Anyways, I just learned that this band was Johnny "Rotten" Lydon's post Sex Pistols project. Had no idea. I previously got PiL's first record on this list, so getting Metal Box today made me decide to revisit it. Metal Box is pretty damn different than First Issue. It's a lot more ambient, you could tell the influence of New Wave was on the horizon. It's also more "deconstructed" in a way. The guitar on Metal Box acts as more of a background texture instrument, whereas on First Issue the guitar is more upfront, distorted, and driving. The songs are bass and drums heavy. And oh man the bass on here. Really reminds me of dub greats like Lee Perry. I did have some problems with this record, though. Lydon's vocals can get annoying at times. They're also way back in the mix so I can't really make out some of the lyrics. Some of the songs meander as well and devolve into jamming for half the track. Maybe all of that is the point, though. Am I not genius enough to "get it" completely?

Good

I can see how this would have been interesting at the time. It's interesting now, but didn't grab me.

With few exceptions, a 10min+ song is just indulgence that doesn't lend much to the music or the enjoyment, unless an 8hr bender is what you're looking for and don't want to pay the royalties for 200 songs. This one is no different. Feels very much like a live album to me.

Definitely a tortured anguish slow punk vibe that is pretty cool. The first part of the album is really strong... i like Albatross, Swan Lake, Poptones and Careering. Even though Graveyard is an instrumental, i think it is the best track. Unfortunately The Suit undermines all the good will they built up to that point. I feel like given the arrogance of Johnny Lydon, he would put out something better than The Suit... i'm not sure its even defendable. The rest is pretty mediocre and though we were strongly headed to 4 territory at the beginning... we ended up pulling back to a...

This is quite possibly the worst album I've ever listened to. The music is bad and droning, the lyrics are completely unintelligible and every song sounds so similar I often miss the transitions between them.

Pil can’t have 2 on this list. Other is better

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

Started to get into it. The post-punk sound is representative of the feelings of creeping paranoia and self-doubt. I felt that for the first 3 songs, but then this one just goes off a cliff. Too long and the second half suffers from falling off the deep end.

Meh

Unimpressed. Sounded like looped background music. Maybe the album was influential in its time, but it has no influence on me.

There is really nothing like this album. If you want to talk about something you should hear before you die, it’s this wildly unique blast of sounds. Every time I listen to this one I hear something new or I hear a snippet of another band this influenced. Albatross and Poptones are my favorites, both are so stark futuristic and nihilistic, but almost all the song are great (the exception being the somewhat annoying The Suit). The close out Radio 4 was my new favorite this time around, reminiscent of Angelo Badalamenti’s work on Twin Peaks. One of the more astonishing things about this album is that John Lydon basically tore down everything you knew about him from the Sex Pistols, he is almost unrecognizable from his punk guise. The guitar work is also fascinating, it drives the dystopian soundscape that permeates through the whole album. This one is important.

One of my favorite albums in college was PiL's "Album". Really, that seems like a John Lydon solo album. He assembled who he wanted and made some great rock tunes. This is a bit more experimental, and unfortunately, most of the tracks go on WAY too long. "Albatross," the 10 minute opener, gave me a good idea that I was in for a bit of a slog. Still, this is definitely a step up from their first album. I don't know what that really says. I did like "Poptones," and "Death Disco," but things like "Chant" _REALLY_ overstayed their welcome. Better than the first album? I gave the first album a 2, so this gets a 3.

Because this is the second Public Image Ltd. album I started to read up on them more and learned a lot. Yes, Johnny Rotten (John Lydon) is their lead singer but I didn't realize the Clash's Keith Levene was on guitar or Jah Wobble was on bass. It is such a different album than anything else, and that's both a good thing and a bad thing. That said, I do hear where other post punk bands came from (New Order, the Fall) and where the 80's went to. Metal box feels like an appropriate title, it sounds tinny and like screeching metal at times. It's very stripped down and yet abrasive, and this can make it very hard to get into. But man oh man does it have some unique, cool work on guitar (Albatross) and bass (Memories). Even synth (Socialist, Radio 4). And Lydon is still a clever lyricist. Still, it all kind of drones on and on - both within and across songs. The album could be tightened up so much and sound far less monotonous or uninviting.

4.25 Great!

ну это совсем уже) пост-панкисты поют в альтернативной тональности примерно одну и ту же песню весь альбом и из всего этого можно нарезать заставку мисфитс. очень знаково

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

Not really my thing. Too much wailing from Lydon and overly long. Some decent instrumentals at times, but otherwise just a bit shit. Can hear some PiL influences in music by The Rapture who are much, much better.

This was significantly better than their debut - a massive step up in quality with some grooves here and there that really pulled me in. Still hated it mind

Though the instrumentation is fine in parts, the real weak link in the band is the singer, Johnny Rotten...oh I mean, John Lydon. He is not a gifted singer, nor even a passable vocalist, but he seemingly gets a free pass from his work with the Pistols, where shouty, snotty punk vocals suited the sound and image of the band. Unfortunately, in this "serious" work post-Pistols, it's unlistenable for the most part and progressively gets worse and it disintegrates into a sloppy mess. So, without Lydon there would be no PiL and we weren't have to suffer through this record. On the positive, there was some pretty nifty bass work throughout and it would be cool to own the original pressing metal box packaging.

i kind of understand the whole post-punk movement, but it really isn't a sound that i'm a super big fan of - it feels like it meanders and oftentimes is just so disjointed that i can't get into it. I didn't realize that John Lydon (Sex Pistols vocalist) founded this band though

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.

Literally never heard of this album or band. Very 1980s slow, punk, BritRock style music (a la Joy Division). Don't really like this one, not for me. Couldn't make it through, it also just didn't feel like the vibe for a Wednesday morning

Practically unlistenable

First the good; nifty bass lines and cool danceable grooves, an uneasy and unsettling atmosphere. Next the bad; the tracks are overlong and there's no real sense of purpose and the songs just don't go anywhere; I was bored listening to it and couldn't wait for each track to end. Last the ugly; the vocals are terrible and I couldn't hear any of the lyrics. I'm not sure what they were trying to achieve with this. It just felt like an irksome itch that was really rather irritating. End result a failed experiment that maybe should have stayed in the can (pun intended).

An improvement over their debut album but still mostly a chaotic mess

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).

"Guys, I am running out of cash let's make an album. Call the producer." "What do I tell him?" "Like, say, we need a mansion with some recording equipment and a genius Sound Technician guy." "K" "Yes, and some K" "He says, have you rehearsed?" "Fuck it. Just say we have."

Incoherent self-indulgent tosh. Yeah, I didn't like it.

Johnny should have stayed sucking at punk rock instead of transitioning to sucking at post-punk rock

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

- Also ich muss sagen, dass ich bei dem ersten Track ziemlich abgetörnt war. Wirkte auf mich fast wie eine Persiflage auf 70s Rock. - Danach hat mich das Album doch nochmal gekriegt, zwischendurch echt coole Ideen dabei gewesen und ein insgesamt ganz nicer Vibe - Hintenraus hat es mich dann aber wieder verloren Rating: 2,25/5

- Hmm war irgendwie ein wilder Ritt - Kann nicht leugnen, dass ich unterhalten war, aber jetzt nicht primär aus musikalischen/vibey Gründen. - Krass, dass die 1979 einfach solche Mucke gemacht haben - Vor allem zum Ende hin wirds mir leider zu experimentell 2,5/5

- Moody Tracks dabei, wobei gesanglich nicht so ganz meins (immerhin ist der Gesang sehr zurückgestellt und damit leicht auszublenden) - als Hintergrundmusik allemal geeignet - Graveyard und Chant sind mir negativ aufgefallen, sehr nervige Tracks

Pain. Sounds like they just put a single mic on the ground 10 feet away and went with it.

Youtube

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 really did not think this album was good in terms of music or vocals. Absolutely none of the songs appealed to me. I didn't think I would ever give an album a 1, but there it is.

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

Blind album, know the artist from another album on the project. Why is this even considered good.

I hate punk but this post punk is pretty damn good. I especially enjoyed the bass. I quite liked the vibe. This album surprised me. 3

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.

Post Punk Album mit dem unverkennbaren PIL Stil. Aber das improvisierte Werk ist stellenweise sehr anstrengend mit seiner experimentellen Art. Man muss dem Album Zeit geben - aber manches wird man wohl nie verstehen. Ganz gut sind „Memories“, „Swan Lake“ & „Radio 4“ furchtbar „No Bird“.

I didn't care for it, but I'm sure it was influential for other shitty music

I don’t think I’ve knowingly ever met any one that admitted to liking PiL. I really don’t get it - who are the demographic that enable his continued existence in the music scene? That said, tight drumming and driving bass elevate it to a mighty 2*.

So I’m assuming John Lydon’s idea with PiL (at least initially) was to be a sort of antithesis of punk. So fair play, mission accomplished. Does it make it a great piece of music, not in the slightest. Really repetitive grating guitar or keyboard lines over some pretty basic rhythms and very little development in each song. Only ‘Socialist’ had me vaguely interested and that’s probably as it was borrowed from the Krautrock formula. Obvs a complete low score from me, but then that’s probably what Mr Lydon wanted anyway.

Can't get more post punk than Lydon and enjoyed the driving base in most of the songs and albatross and careering were a bit of a revelation. Lydons sneering grates after a while though.

On first listen I was using EarPods and thought it was almost good but kinda flat. It was not till I drove home and felt the bass cords from the car stereo that I realized there was more to this album

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.

I'm really not feeling this one. It definitely has what might be considered a strong emo/goth sound. That can be okay sometimes, but it's not my everyday kind of listen. In fact, the more I listen to it, the less I care for it.

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.

Throwing on Never Mind the Bollocks as a palate cleanser following this total mess

Truly one of the worst records I’ve ever heard.

I hope I never hear this band ever ever again

For an album that relied heavily on experimentation with a harsh noise, I can see a lot of good elements going into it. Just a shame that it does NOT come out that well and is a sludge.

I listened to this whole dumb thing for some reason, but I had my review within ten seconds of the first song. This is terrible. Just a hodge-podge of noise and words without any meaning. I don't know why anyone would want to listen to this.

When he sang "You are unbearable" on the first song, I felt that. 1/5

This is my first 1/5 stars (a little over 100 albums in). There is nothing redeemable or functionable about this record. I tried SO hard to justify a 2/5. But I can’t. The instruments are often atonal, the composition is so forgettable, the recordings/mixing is ?????. https://imgflip.com/memegenerator/260817778/Guy-taking-off-headphones

This was interesting. Home to some really cool songs and ideas but as a whole it's very strange. If anything, I would add a few songs to a playlist and check out some other albums by this group or at least dig into their history.

ª Fav songs: graveyard =*

This album was just middle of the road for me. Unfortunately it’s getting a lot of bad reviews because people are completely unaware of the context around the album, such as what was going on with music and the UK punk scene at the time. Also even though it’s a very influential album, but it’s for a very niche genre, which will make if more unrelatable to the average person. although it was a influential album, it really phase doesn’t seem to hold much value against time.

John Lydon: *listens to Joy Division once*

I almost liked Albatross. It intrigued me at first, but never paid off for me. Swan Lake was the same feeling. I liked Socialist, after that the album degenerate for me. Most of it sounds like they recorded a jam session and called it a day. I can't imagine ever listening to this again. John Lydon's are a little grating to me. Sometimes he's ok to me, but not on this album. The bass saves the day here. The only thing that got me through it.

Punk pop

Eh, I'd probably rather listen to an entire album of just the rhythm section here. Maybe even the guitar on top of it. But I could do without Lydon's caterwauling.

Punky. Too chaotic

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.

Johnny Rotten can't sing for shit but the music is so damn good

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

Was told this is a band and an album people really love and one that others really hate. I'm the latter.

Obviously great, and a fun companion piece to all the whinging people do about basically any remotely challenging album in the reviews.

Creep rock

I see avant garde, I become suspicious. The singing in the first track is already rough, I can't imagine it gets any better. The singing makes this album unbearable. Another why the fuck is this here?

Im not having a good day so i will allow myself to skip this one. First one of 600 ish albums that i dont even turn on. Already know its a 1 anyway (0 if that was an option).

Absolutely exhausting listen I'm surprised I managed to finish it. Some cool riffs I guess but mostly no redeeming qualities - repetitive, boring, and the vocal performance was just awful.

It’s an Interesting album historically but fuck is it hard to listen to at points. I do like how experimental it was for the time and I enjoy some of the hypnotic post punk rhythms but at times it sounds like four people jamming to completely different songs.

One of the worst things I've ever listened to. Sounds like they gave a toddler a synthesizer and pressed record.

Vähän kuin olis polkenut mopoa käyntiin jossa on tulpat kastuneet, ei vaan lähde ja jossain vaiheessa alkaa vituttamaan. Negatiivinen kokemus.

Pitkästä aikaa paskaa. Kuuntelin ehkä yhden biisin kokonaan ja sekin vahingossa ku keskityin liikenteeseen

Different but enjoyable

There is “songwriting” without scope or revision, there is “singing” without tunefulness, there is “a band” without much discernible musuc being played in concert between its members. It sounds like they’re watching each other play through glass and guessing what would work. I can draw lines to Velvet Underground, Joy Division, even modern bands like Women and Preoccupations, but this is completely meaningless to me. Maybe there is some depth to be gleaned from this for someone else, but to my ears it sounds almost antithetical to the entire point of listening to music.

Beautiful atonal caterwauling atop avant dub post punk. Fearless.

Weird but original. Weird darkness to it.

Meh

Sex-Pistols-Frontmann Lydon wandelt mit der Nachfolgeband auf experimentellen, dub-inspirierten Post-Punk-Pfaden. Ein Meilenstein, der mir aber vor allem aufgrund des verworrenen, sperrigen Gesangs nicht ins Ohr gehen will.

Maybe if I'm trippin balls

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

barely made it through first song. rest of album was ok. some hit or miss.

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.

Cross between Midnight Oil and 80’s synth-noise. Way out of my interest zone.

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."

2.5 rounded up

This was a fairly painful listen, and based on the other opinions on this site, it seems I'm not alone in thinking so. I wish I understood what I'm missing, as professional ratings have raved over this collection of long, dull tracks that lead nowhere. And the vocals...yikes! I like modern post-punk, so I hoped I'd enjoy this, but there is minimal musicality here. "Uncomfortably hypnotic" is the best I can offer.

Post-punk rock band

The instrumental is interesting, almost industrial. Lyndon's voice ruins everything though. Even in Sex Pistols, it's my number 1 complaint. Not a must-listen, overall. Hearing this artist's debut is enough, imo.

Second Public Image album on this list, so I kind of knew what will happen. Still, I wasn't prepared for this. One riff for 10 minutes, terrible singing, and general grinding of the gears. It's 2024 and I'm a survivor of Metal Box.

Interesting proto-industrial. A bit repetitive though. I think some of their later stuff is better.

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

I tried to like this and understand it. I even gave it a second, more-dedicated, listen. But it just sounds like noise and unpleasant chaos to me. Didn't enjoy any of it.

Couldn't make it through the whole album

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.

Chato!

Oh goody Johnny Rotten. Being a member of a punk band is the ultimate participation trophy, it doesn't matter if you can't sing, play an instrument or write a song you can still be a succesful punk band. Unfortunately after the punk era finally ended some of these talentless larpers continued to cling on like barnicles to the bottom of a boat and infest the world with this kind of crap. Comparing Johnny Rotten to a barnicle is ofcourse incredibly unfair to the barnicles. At least a barnicle has some redeeming qualities, I don't know what they are but I'm sure if a google I will find some. I am not so sure I will be able to find any redeeming quality in Johnny Rotten.

Þetta er ofsalega tormelt ... og leiðinlegt

This album feels really uneven to me, which has been true of the other Public Image albums that I've heard. Some songs are great, and some songs feel boring and self-indulgent. Much like Johnny Rotten himself, it's a real mixed bag 3/5

Eigentlich genau meins. Aber man muss wohl in der Stimmung dafür sein. Jetzt war's nur anstrengend.

abrasive guitar is right. this stinks

crap album

Reviews were right

Johnny Rotten is quite caustic throughout

I hadn't heard this album before. I only knew a couple songs from PiL's more commercial 80s days. Holy crap was I missing out. As soon as "Albatross" started playing, my immediate reaction was, "Oh, so that's where Siouxsie and the Banshees got their guitar sound from. And also where Ian Curtis of Joy Division got his singing style from, and where Joy Division/New Order got their electronic sound from." The Sex Pistols changed music in a huge way with their 1976 Manchester show. Without that show, we might not have had the Banshees, Joy Division, the Smiths, The Cure, and so many other giants of post punk (and goth), let alone all the bands those groups inspired themselves. Likewise for The Clash's (PiL guitarist Keith Levene's former band) influence on music. After SP disbanded, Johnny Lydon went on to form PiL. This is very different from the Sex Pistols or The Clash. In a great way. It's much more experimental, less one note than the punk that SP put out—don't get me wrong, I like SP, but if you've heard one of their songs you've pretty much heard them all. The guitar on this album is crazy. The bass lines are nuts. The lyrics and the dark pre-goth, pre-industrial atmosphere on songs like "Careering" and "Bad Baby" sound way ahead of their head time (I realize both the Banshees and Joy Division had already released albums when this came out, but it's difficult to disentangle who inspired who at this point). The digital-sounding effects on "Socialist" are mind blowing. This album is basically everything I love about post punk. So so good. 5/5

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

This was torture to get through. Sounds like a high school band that thinks they're actually good.

Meh

Vreemde muziek, zeker geen aanrader op de vroege ochtend.

Ik vind dit ook weer niet prettig om te beluisteren hoor

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!

Nog kova sound, glad att ja hörde det men idk om ja vill höra de igen

It's my least favourite band in one of my favourite genre's of music

It is not the worst album on this list. But it has almost no redeeming qualities. It is just noise. The vocals are bad. It is entirely too long. No need for it to be 60 minutes. Rounding down.

I hate it. Somehow made it through the whole album... It's pure garbage.