Protest and Survive 1980-1984

Protest And Survive: 1980-1984 collects the majority of Discharge's seminal early 80's run of politically infused hardcore punk: a collection of songs that continues to have an enduring influence on all things thrash, crust, death, and grind. Discharge belong in the hallowed halls of early innovators whose work spawned whole genres of music. Their no-nonsense blitzkrieg of furious guitar riffs, noisy solos, aggrieved outspoken lyrical anger, and pioneering d-beats laid foundations that others have endless replicated yet rarely ever outdone.

But why recommend a compilation over the individual albums, EPs, and singles? Normally, I wouldn't go this route, favoring the original pressings as released. But Protest And Survive: 1980-1984 is so utterly compete and compelling in its selection that I cannot help but give it my highest recommendation. Utterly essential, it highlights all of Discharge's endless strengths while delivering a comprehensive adrenaline shot of righteously hellish musical destruction.

For those unfamiliar, Discharge arose out of the late 70's U.K. punk scene, an era of unmitigated political and cultural turmoil with the specter of nuclear war omnipresent and oppressive. Unsatisfied with the level of righteous indignation and overall musical severity of the scene, Discharge cranked up the speed, filth, and intensity, delivering a fury as yet unheard. The guitars grind out speedy, three-chord runs while the drums bash with reckless abandon, egging on a pace that staggered those who heard it, triggering the speed wars that ultimately led to the blast. The vocals bellow above the din with hoarse shouted invocations of nuclear holocaust. This is battering ram music: crude, primitive, and effective.

A prime example of the Discharge sound, legacy, and influence is the nuclear detonation trilogy of "Hell On Earth," "Cries Of Help," & "The Possibilities Of Life's Destruction." These are the most harrowing sounds as yet recorded to wax and you can here therein the kindling of all things thrash (in the riffing), grind (in the ever increasing tempos), and death (the horrific lyrical content). By today's standards, the production value on these tracks is quite rough: the guitars are fuzzed out, the bass non-existent, the drums approaching white noise evaporation but these seeming flaws only add to the overall quality of horrific dread and fear, the nauseating sense that 80's England is about to go up in the smoke of chaos and destruction.

As a compilation of the highest order, Protest And Survive: 1980-1984 works on many different levels -- it is an excellent primer on a band whose legacy is still felt to this day and as such is also an artifact of an important era in the historical development of a variety of musical genres. It also contains more classic songs than I can count. So grab it, crank it, and get the circle pit moving. The "Final Blood Bath" has yet to come.