I think you mean Johnny Rotten's/Lydon's voice? I didn't like it at first either. I'm guessing you're no fan of PIL? I hated the Sex Pistols when I first heard them. What made me want to circle back to the album and give it another shot (many years later) was listening to PIL, and reading the Clash biography "Last Gang in Town", which had a ton of info about the 70s punk scene in the UK (which had its roots in glam rock).

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LionsMouth
I think you mean Johnny Rotten's/Lydon's voice?

Yeah, that's what I meant, "Sid" was a slip. And I have some PIL as well and you nailed it I don't like that either. I got all my Sex Pistols and PIL records from a fan who babied his records and insisted I had them so I could "learn" to love them. I don't know how many times he expected me to force feed them to myself but I tried to learn to like those records at least 5 times and I haven't been able to get past their god-awful vocals.

I feel both relieved to air that out and embarrassed that I still don't like a quintessential album, but I am at peace with my disdain so there it is. Every so often I feel the urge to listen again but I only get 2 songs in before I feel like I'm gonna have an aneurysm.

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That is funny. There are plenty of punk related singers that are very polarizing (i.e. Jello Biafra et. al). If you listen to some of Peter Hammil's vox on certain solo albums and stuff he did with Van der Graaf Generator, you can hear where Lydon got some ideas from. There was an interview with him where he mentioned he was also influenced by a performance of the play Richard III.

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D.R.I. - Dealing with It LP



Classic hardcore punk/thrash metal crossover. On this LP, there is definitely much more of a punk/hardcore flavor than some of their later stuff. This is a very good album, high energy, not too serious, just the kind of thing teenaged skate rats in the 80s loved I'm sure. I do think their 22 song LP/7'' is a bit more intense than this, but it's also very rough in terms of sound quality, while this album has fairly clear production for the type of music we're talking about here. My copy is an old 80s pressing on Death/Enigma.

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Verbal Assault - Trial CD



For those outside the hardcore/punk scene, you've probably never heard of Verbal Assault and I can't think of a single context where they might come up. They were just as important as any band on labels like Dischord or SST in the 80s, yet because they put out this album on the notorious rip-off Dutch East/Giant imprint and didn't really go on to form any well known or popular bands they remain largely forgotten.

By the late 80s, hardcore was dying. Most of the good bands had broken up or were playing incredibly bad rock/metal stuff. The hardcore bands that were around were largely formulaic Youth of Today clones. This album was one of the very few bright spots at the time that was doing something truly different and original, and represented VA at their peak. Not only that, but it is possibly the greatest melodic hardcore album ever made.*

To me, this album bridges the gap between the DC Revolution Summer bands and later melodic yet aggressive emo-core bands like Split Lip and Falling Forward. Musically, there's some semi-metallic riffing that breaks into frequent fast, but slightly chunky parts with a subtle "groove" (for lack of a better term) while never sounding like bad rock/metal. The bass and drums are right on too, and help propel the songs perfectly while making the band sound incredibly tight. The vocalist really stands out because he's got the perfect melodic hardcore voice. His vox can go from a clearly enunciated, impassioned yelling reminiscent of Ian Mackaye at his his best or a more melodic style similar to Dag Nasty-era Dave Smalley or Geoff Turner in his later Three/Gray Matter days. The songwriting is rock solid, with every song being anthemic, catchy, and energetic.

Unfortunately this album is now out of print. The former band members have promised to reissue it for several years now but so far it hasn't happened. If you search around, it isn't too hard to find. You may have to pay a little more for it, but it's well worth it. Also, the album WAS issued on CD, so copies are out there for those without a turntable.

*Back when "melodic hardcore" was NOT synonymous with bad pop punk or whatever.

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