Before The Clash, before the Sex Pistols, heck, even before punk itself exploded upon the mainstream, there were only the Ramones, who immediately made their presence known with their astounding self-titled debut.
Packed with unforgettably classic tracks, this outstanding disc truly made punk a force to be reckoned with. However, while there’s no denying that the songs are fun, they unfortunately lack the revolutionary political pretensions that would come to leave a lasting imprint on the genre, which only leaves what the lead singer, Joey Ramone, wants (“I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend”), what he doesn’t want (“I Don’t Wanna Go Down To The Basement”), what he desires (“Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue”), and what he most definitely does not desire (“I Don’t Wanna Walk Around With You”).
With such contrived subject matter, one might drub the album as an overly goofy mess. Luckily, expert hooks, humorous songwriting, irresistibly catchy tunes, and unrelentingly punchy vocals lift the album far above that level. And even if you don't like it, one must remember that without this groundbreaking album, punk would never have even come CLOSE to the level it did exactly one year after this album first hit stores, which in turn also wouldn’t have given rise to such important pop-punkers such as Green Day, Blink-182, and The Offspring in the 1990s. The point is, while this album definitely is not the very best of the genre, it is still most definitely worth your time, even after all these years have passed.
Wait, where's the number grade?
© 2018 Ben Parker
All Rights Reserved.
Packed with unforgettably classic tracks, this outstanding disc truly made punk a force to be reckoned with. However, while there’s no denying that the songs are fun, they unfortunately lack the revolutionary political pretensions that would come to leave a lasting imprint on the genre, which only leaves what the lead singer, Joey Ramone, wants (“I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend”), what he doesn’t want (“I Don’t Wanna Go Down To The Basement”), what he desires (“Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue”), and what he most definitely does not desire (“I Don’t Wanna Walk Around With You”).
With such contrived subject matter, one might drub the album as an overly goofy mess. Luckily, expert hooks, humorous songwriting, irresistibly catchy tunes, and unrelentingly punchy vocals lift the album far above that level. And even if you don't like it, one must remember that without this groundbreaking album, punk would never have even come CLOSE to the level it did exactly one year after this album first hit stores, which in turn also wouldn’t have given rise to such important pop-punkers such as Green Day, Blink-182, and The Offspring in the 1990s. The point is, while this album definitely is not the very best of the genre, it is still most definitely worth your time, even after all these years have passed.
Wait, where's the number grade?
© 2018 Ben Parker
All Rights Reserved.