Album Rating: 5.0

Punk died before this thing was even released though

"In my opinion, this is not punk in the slightest (excluding by association, but does that count anyways). It is the explicit marketisation of that which was supposed to be a big, "fuck you," in the face of the capitalists. It could've easily been the death of punk, but punk didn't die until a lot later."

Yeeeeeeah, go listen to The Clash and Never Mind. Maybe you're not aware of this but because of its catchiness and simple working class-touching lyrics the original punk rock became very popular and indeed a new tool for capitalists to become richer. London Calling *is* thus a big "fuck you", because it doesn't strictly follow the usual, expected and then-popular punk ethos.

The "fucking around" attitude is also there, because this is a bunch of guys playing whatever they like, reggae, ska, punk, pop, rockabilly... whatever they felt like. It's a record of freedom and not caring about anything. Seems pretty punkish, don't you think?

Finally if you don't think the album's simple... wow.

their first two albums were huge in the UK

"their first two albums were huge in the UK"

exactly

Album Rating: 2.0

okay guys: so if punk died before this was released, and post-punk was created a year after punk rock did, did punk rock ever even exist at all?! :o

Album Rating: 5.0

Side 4 isn't horrible but it feels like 'victory lapping' to me, they've won the race already thanks to the strength of sides 1-3 and finish by waving to the fans. They do earn it but I find it a bit boring to listen to.

Album Rating: 5.0

It was all a Fugazi dude

Album Rating: 2.0

fugazi, the only true punk band !

"Side 4 isn't horrible but it feels like 'victory lapping' to me"

Last two songs though

Album Rating: 2.0

at the very least, much better this than sadinista!

Sorry man and I know I'll be in the minority, but Sandinista! is where the real fun begins. It's like London Calling squared, this one is boring as fuck and straight punk from start to finish compared to what their golden triple 1980's album offers.

Album Rating: 5.0

Alter - you will not convince me revolution rock is anything more than a throwaway 'thank you' to the fans. Nothing song

yeah I won't even try, I remember you hate "Life in a Glasshouse" so we clearly have very different points of view. However you might consider listening to side 1, then side 4 and then sides 2 and 3. You just might find that the problem is not the songs but the length.

Album Rating: 2.0

title track is sweet af but that's basically it for me

"It is a spit in the face of their peers, rather than a spit in the face of those the genre is/was fighting against"
Yeah, they changed their objectives, so what? Dylan got tired of working on Maggie's Farm as well, you know...

"They didn't go global quite like this one though, did they?"
... and he recorded his most successful albums after that. Did he go commercial too?

How is that even an argument? Metal Machine Music sold a lot as well and I don't remember you complaining about what a sell-out it was.

"They didn't go global quite like this one though, did they?"

no but the difference isn't so stark as to be receptive to the stringent ethical/political framework you want to place on this album in relation to the punk music the clash helped define and from which this album germinated

Part 2: I mean I don't want to make you like it (I'm not the biggest fan of it too) but you should probably respect it. Some of the most original, visionary albums in the world haven't all been harsh and lo-fi, some of them were even catchy! and deal with it. By releasing London Calling Clash contributed to the world of rock music much more than say Werewolf Jerusalem or many other "difficult" bands that may seem more ambitious to you, or me. Want to shit on some universally acclaimed, catchy albums that actually don't deserve it I highly encourage you to listen to The Beatles or The Beach Boys.

"a spit in the face of the movement the composer initially belonged to"

how is that a bad thing?
how is staying inside the boundaries of your movement a good thing?

you almost sound like a metallica fan after hearing load tbh

Album Rating: 4.5

I'd call this new wave tbh

there's nothing impressive about the array of styles they attempt on this and other albums because the clash just aren't very good and pretty much everything they do including "arty" sounds stiff and labored as fuck. lazy co-opting. getting into punk and trying to figure out what made this so special and worthy of acclaim compared to other things i was listening to was a wake up call