Big Brother and The Holding Company, “Cheap Thrills” (Columbia, 1967)
Janis Joplin’s first band would have been remembered as a great chaotic, exploratory, hard-rocking San Francisco acid rock band even without her. With Joplin’s unstable vocal pyrotechnics, their twisted cavern of sound was downright explosive.
Try 1/ 1, 2/ 4
7/29/13
Bikini Kill, “The Singles” (Kill Rock Stars, 1998; original recording 1993-5)
We’ve already got some of this, but not the Joan Jett-produced first three tracks, in strictly music terms the apex of their work — punk rock with teeth-rattling beats, and massive jagged guitars grinding like tectonic plates.
1, 2, 3, all great. Of the later stuff, try 7 (blink-quick, desperate blaster), 9 (spooky-to-frantic).
Bad Brains, “I Against I” (SST, 1986)
Following a hiatus in the wake of their trailblazing proto-HC early work, Bad Brains returned in ’86 with a record that has been described as “a cross between Van Halen, Black Flag and the Police,” which only begins to hint at how original and cool this is. Dub and metal influences, once discrete, are now interwoven into a booming, shimmering, immense Halloween fun-house of tightly coiled sound, the perfect backdrop for HR’s yearning, alienated, soulful voice, as he finally finds his own equivalent of his reggae idols’ hymns of exile and freedom.
Try 4, 5, 10
10/13/11
Bad Brains, “Bad Brains” (ROIR, 1982)
The band that can be credited with inventing both NY and DC hardcore, in their first, most wall-blasting incarnation. You almost can’t believe that this stuff could be so melodic, so fast, so structurally twisted, and so technically spectacular at the same time, but it is.
Try A/1, A/3, B/3, B/4
4/11/11
Baby Shakes, “Shake Shake” (Douchemaster 2005)
Second excellent single I’ve heard from these garage-punk gals ‘n’ guy. They’ve got a knack for finding a good groove and riding it around and around for rockin’, poppin’ fun.
Try A/1
1/23/14
Babies, “Our House on the Hill” (Woodsist, 2012)
Side project thing from Cassie of Vivian Girls and some dude (who actually does most of the singing). This is Velvets-inflected garage-punk, much in the vein of Cassie’s “real” band, but sweeter and more down-home. Lacks the Vivian Girls’ visionary chaos, but still really good.
Try 2, 8.
1/13/13
test copy
Baby Shakes, “Shake Shake” (Douchemaster 2005)
Second excellent single I’ve heard from these garage-punk gals ‘n’ guy. They’ve got a knack for finding a good groove and riding it around and around for rockin’, poppin’ fun.
Try A/1
1/23/14
Babies, “Our House on the Hill” (Woodsist, 2012)
Side project thing from Cassie of Vivian Girls and some dude (who actually does most of the singing). This is Velvets-inflected garage-punk, much in the vein of Cassie’s “real” band, but sweeter and more down-home. Lacks the Vivian Girls’ visionary chaos, but still really good.
Try 2, 8.
1/13/13