Obviously, there was a lot of fun to be had years ago (and it still holds up today!) with this early Descendents’ gem. It occurred to me this week that in perhaps the song’s most celebrated lyric, “Do you want Bill’s sperm with that?” that sperm would be produced by none other than Gene’s now friend and musical compadre, drummer Bill Stevenson.
This is something you should investigate further, Gene.
are here to educate and inform, first and foremost. Wouldn’t want any of our seven followers walking around not knowing what the hell is going on.
And because this site needs a swift kick in the ass:
Gotta clear up a few things here, etc.
1) Me saying the Bad Brains have as much chance of getting elected as Trump had everything to do with the very slim chance of Trump winning and nothing to do with any notion of me hoping he wins.
2) When I said the Bad Brains are superior to the Clash, Ramones and X, I meant purely in terms of power.
3) And it’s so ironic that in the company of 99 percent of shit-loving music fans, I’d be aggressively defending these three bands. I will say:
Clash – Great first album (both versions). Good second album. Kind of went off the rails from there, spotty at best, horrible by the end. Wish you guys would read Gene’s favorite, John Lydon, call out Joe Strummer and the Clash’s “smart” political lyrics as nothing but a cheap, cheesy marketing ploy.
Ramones – Great first three albums. Very good fourth album. Fifth album had moments. Horrible from there on. Certainly had their own kind of power, but not as white hot as the Bad Brains at their best.
X – Betting I had their first album before Lawr. Liked it a lot. Second was good. Lost interest after that. Agree with Gene on the “going through the motions” of that video. Can’t Billy Zoom even smile anymore? (And please, Lawr, if you like X so much, you owe it to yourself to read John Doe’s very good recent book.)
4) Would never, ever, never say any of these bands aren’t rock ‘n’ roll. And some very fine rock ‘n’ roll at that. My qualms are with the frequent “not sure this is rock ‘n’ roll but” articles on Remnants and stupid shit like Tupac leading the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall ballot for 2017. Like I’ve said before, if Tupac belongs in the Rock Hall, then the Beatles certainly belong in the Rap Hall (if there is one). “Icon of non-rock popular music” shouldn’t put you in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall.
And good God, Lawr, I certainly envy your happiness and the fact that you’re happily retired and have set yourself up well. A hearty and sincere “Good for you!” from me to you.
Finally, here’s that wasp in the pants song (can you guys seriously sit still and listen to this?):
And finally finally, here’s National Official Spokesperson Of Rock ‘N’ Roll Dave Grohl talking about the Bad Brains. Hell, if it’s about rock and Dave Grohl says it, how can it not be true?
If these guys weren’t from Maryland, and this video wasn’t from a show in Philadelphia, I’m not sure I’d be posting it, but some small part of the fun was trying to find our buddy Steve in the crowd at this show.
It’s quite a show. I love the hurtling, twisting, spastic bodies of the stage divers, the oculus of mosh out in the middle of the floor, the way the bass player puts down his guitar and dives into the crowd, then returns to stage and joins back in with the band.
I love the vocalist saying he’s not much with words, and the way he shares the mic at every opportunity.
I love that there are straight edge kids.
I compare this stuff to the Bad Brains clip Steve posted last week and I have to say that it surprises me that this is a style that endures. But the vocalist loves hardcore, it gives him a voice, and you can see it in every angular strut by the stage divers that it means a whole lot to all of them. That’s a great feeling, one I’m happy to share.
Melodies? Who cares?
