CHRISTGAU CONSUMER GUIDE
BLACK FLAG: Damaged (SST):: Although the B side drags more painfully than I bet was intended, this is powerful stuff. Greg Ginn is the greatest noise guitarist since Johnny Thunders, new, vocalist Henry Rollins can snarl along any tortured contour they serve up, andRise Above,Six Pack, and the uproariousTV Party prove they can write songs as well as gnash fragments.
CHRISTGAU CONSUMER GUIDE
by Robert Christgau
BLACK FLAG: Damaged (SST):: Although the B side drags more painfully than I bet was intended, this is powerful stuff. Greg Ginn is the greatest noise guitarist since Johnny Thunders, new, vocalist Henry Rollins can snarl along any tortured contour they serve up, andRise Above,Six Pack, and the uproariousTV Party prove they can write songs as well as gnash fragments. Inspirational Verse: f| wanna live/I wish I was dead.
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THE BLASTERS (Slash):: One reason the originals work, better than the covers is that Phil Alvins blues-tinged moan, while easily the most expressive vocal style in all of nouveau rockabilly, does sound pinched sometimes, so that even when you dont know the source recording (which you probably dont) you can imagine it fuller. The other reason is that Dave Alvins originals introduce a major songwriter, with John Fogertys bead on the wound-tight good times of Americas tough white underbelly, though his focus is shallower, sexual rather than spiritual. The band plays—and Phil sings—with comparable fervor.
A-