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User
Reviews 5
Approval 95%
Soundoffs 61
Album Ratings 6402
Objectivity 88%
Last Active 09-06-22 1:37 pm
Joined 09-24-05
Review Comments 9,228
| tec's FUGAZI, Ranked
A long time favorite of mine, and possibly the most consistently great band that I can call to mind. Not a single blemish in their catalog - not just albums, but down to the damn *songs*. Pioneers of a genre and an era that will never quite be the same. Lots of bands are indebt to the 'gazi. | | 7 |  | Fugazi
Steady Diet of Nothing
Overall Score | 3.41 | 🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑
🥇 Exit Only
🥈 Long Division
🥉 KYEO
Try to imagine, if you will, a world where STEADY DIET OF NOTHING is somehow a band’s “worst” album. Seems impossible, dunnit? A testament not only to Fugazi’s remarkable consistency, but their generally impeccable quality, too. Every time I relisten to this, I’m always taken aback at how good it is and wonder why I don’t rank it higher. (That is, until I relisten to everything else.) I think the “issue” here is that it too easily slips between the cracks; with the trailblazing REPEATER on one side and a fully macerated IN ON THE KILLER TAKER on the other, STEADY DIET sometimes feels like little more than a stepping stone for Fugazi’s Phase Two. A robust, really good, occasionally *great* stepping stone, but a stepping stone nonetheless. The “least memorable” Fugazi album, too, perhaps for the same reason. But choosing a least favorite Fugazi record is like choosing the worst color M&M candy. 🤷♂️ | | 6 |  | Fugazi
In on the Kill Taker
Overall Score | 3.70 | 🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑
🥇 Smallpox Champion
🥈 Public Witness Program
🥉 Walken’s Syndrome
As previously mentioned, this has always felt like a glossier, more indulgent version of what Fugazi was trying to achieve with STEADY DIET OF NOTHING—an edgier and noisier permutation of the revolution started by REPEATER, plump and dynamically obese, mostly unforgiving, and occasionally toying with a touch of harmonization, melody, and camaraderie (those hand claps in “Public Witness Program” - oh my!). It’s merely a personal preference that I favor the slightly more dissonant, angular, experimental, and/or somber directions to which they’d carry their next several albums, but there’s hardly anything here I can criticize, other than *maybe* a very, very mild lack of variation, overall, when compared to the rest of their discography. But I’m reaching, of course; this is pleasantly raw and rebellious in all the right ways; angry and invasive but surprisingly approachable, all said. | | 5 |  | Fugazi
Red Medicine
Overall Score | 3.88 | 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑
🥇 Do You Like Me
🥈 Long Distance Runner
🥉 Birthday Pony
This marks the point—in the context of my list, not chronologically—where the albums transition from “extremely good” to various shades of unequivocal greatness. (And it only took us three records to get there!) Surely eyebrows will be raised as to why and/or how RED MEDICINE winds up on the bottom rung of this gradient of excellence - it, perhaps more than any other, seems to be the consensus pick for most ubiquitously agreeable and stupendous Fugazi album nowadays - and I can only sheepishly surmise: It’s not that I like this *less*, per se, I just like everything else *more*. Let’s be honest, to dissent against RED MEDICINE in any appreciable way is to admit that your favorite flavor of ice cream is vanilla and you refuse to make love with the lights on. Any album that commences with an anthemic squall à la “Do You Like Me” is bound to be something special. Anxiety, personified. *Swoooon* | | 4 |  | Fugazi
13 Songs
Overall Score | 3.96 | 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑
🥇 Waiting Room
🥈 Bad Mouth
🥉 Suggestion
Debated on whether to split my rankings into the self-titled debut EP (which might rank a spot or two higher) and MARGIN WALKER (which might rank a spot or two lower), but it seems this compilation is widely accepted as canon now, so who am I to argue with the status quo? It’s astonishing how quickly these guys hit the ground running. Obviously they all (mostly) have prior musical experience, but the pace and efficiency with which they transitioned from the crude hardcore punk sounds of Minor Threat and Dag Nasty to this now dubbed “post-hardcore”—an infinitely richer, more complex, and (gasp!) strikingly “intelligent” manner by which to alleviate and collectively protest against the stresses, corruptions, and malignities of the world—is extraordinary in retrospect, almost unfathomable. They delivered the same raw passion and aggression as their forefathers, but with more sophistication and palatability. | | 3 |  | Fugazi
End Hits
Overall Score | 4.04 | 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑
🥇 Break
🥈 Arpeggiator
🥉 Foreman’s Dog
Have never, will never understand the casual undercurrent of (comparative) disrespect and general oversight this album has slowly accrued, even among the most hardcore of Fugazi fans. I’ve met and chatted with people who believe that THE ARGUMENT was the album that directly followed RED MEDICINE, either completely unaware of END HITS’s existence or somehow programmed to repress it from their collective memory henceforth. Shame, because those people typically claim that Fugazi finished their career at their absolute peak but completely fail to see how integral and important END HITS acts as a bridge between the two aforementioned albums. THE ARGUMENT would not exist without END HITS! The term is often too saturated and overused, but I think in the context of Fugazi’s discography it’s a fair assessment to say that END HITS is their most “experimental” release. Or, at the very least, their most exploratory. | | 2 |  | Fugazi
Repeater
Overall Score | 4.23 | 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑
🥇 Repeater
🥈 Merchandise
🥉 Blueprint
My relationship with REPEATER has shifted drastically over the years, unquestionably more so than any other ‘gazi record. High school me was unfazed and unimpressed with the album’s trailblazing qualities and unmoored by the seeming lack of what I once considered “melody.” After having finally grown to appreciate its place in post-hardcore history, I was still somewhat ambivalent toward its place among such an unbelievably stacked discography. But, as is the case with many of the records I now deeply cherish, the ones that take the longest to grow on you are ultimately the ones that sustain their eventually position among the top of the pile. I can only listen to the dicey energy of the title track, the propulsive ethos of “Merchandise,” or the atypically measured and rhythmic beats of “Blueprint” and wonder: What the hell was younger-me thinking? Has withstood the test of time with stunning aplomb. | | 1 |  | Fugazi
The Argument
Overall Score | 4.45 | 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗
🥇 Cashout
🥈 Strangelight
🥉 Epic Problem
Used to think my undying love for this album and its consistent spot at the top of my Fugazi winner’s podium was heavily tethered by pure, unabashed nostalgia, as this was the first ‘gazi that sunk its teeth deeply into my tender, impressionable skin ca. early high school, when my predilection for angsty and rebellious music was burdened by the desire for structure, melody, some sort of atmospheric and discernible tone. Thing is, I still feel the same about THE ARGUMENT’s more digestible and “commercial” sound in the wake of every other Fugazi album hitherto, but I no longer see that assessment as pejorative. On the contrary, it’s astounding that the gang managed to embrace a significantly more affable and inclusive dynamic without sacrificing the insubordinate and discontented spirit upon which they were founded. To say nothing of the record’s spellbinding uniformity of quality. All killer, no filler. | |
tectactoe
04.11.22 | GOddamn what a great BAND. | Cormano
04.11.22 | noise | fogza
04.11.22 | kill taker 2nd from bottom i take issue good sir prepare to be slapped by pair of white leather hunting gloves | tectactoe
04.11.22 | Noise?! You say that like it's a bad thing!
It's not so much "second to last" as it is "they simply have five albums that are even better," believe me this was no easy task. | DadKungFu
04.11.22 | Disagree with every placement here except 7 and 1 but Fugazi is so consistently good that literally any ranking would be valid. | DoofDoof
04.11.22 | Excellent stand out track picks…I’d have 3 second to last just because for me the atmosphere is a little off with it overall.
All great albums though, almost an impossible band to rank - all the others except Steady and End Hits have been my favourite at some point
In particular 6 is very unlucky to rank 6th | DadKungFu
04.11.22 | Something like 7, 3, 6, 4, 2, 5, 1 | DoofDoof
04.11.22 | Guess I’d go 5, 6, 2, 1, 4, 3, 7 if pushed at gunpoint | tectactoe
04.11.22 | Yeah, that's the trouble (?) with these guys, the consistency is almost overwhelming, to some extent. For me, THE ARGUMENT is the clear favorite and STEADY DIET the clear caboose, but just about anything in between could be shuffled around and I'd have a difficult time disagreeing. Can't really overstate just how solid these guys have been in their ~12(ish) years of existence.
Thanks Doof - picking standout tracks presents a similarly troubling situation in that narrowing down the "top three" is bound to omit several amazing songs. But damn, Fugazi sure do know how to open and close an album, don't they? | DoofDoof
04.11.22 | Yeah great openers and closers - I’d actually have ‘Facet Squared’ in my top three from ‘Killtaker’, love that long fade in and build
‘Smallpox’ is definitely 1st choice for me on that one too though | normaloctagon
04.11.22 | anyone said check fugazi yet | Avagantamos
04.11.22 | I think they got better with each album. yeah that's right I like steady diet over 13 songs and repeater | fogza
04.11.22 | "believe me this was no easy task"
not acceptable *sound of suede striking skin* | tectactoe
04.11.22 | *sound of suede striking skin*
as if that were punishment 😏 | SmashIsTheWay94
04.11.22 | Well this differs quite a bit from my ranking, but that's the great thing about this band. Astonishingly consistent and very tough to rank. I guess mine would go something like this
Red Med>Argument>Kill Taker>Repeater>Steady Diet>13 Songs>End Hits | GhandhiLion
04.11.22 | check Frodus | Ryus
04.11.22 | my take is almost the opposite
5 and 6 are my favs, 1 is my least favorite | tectactoe
04.11.22 | Still can't even be mad about that tho. Impeccable discog. | Ryus
04.11.22 | havent heard these guys in a while, this has convinced me to do a discog run | GhandhiLion
04.11.22 | Check Solid Gold by Gang of Four | deathschool
04.11.22 | Nice list. End Hits absolutely deserves more respect. It’s my #2. | Cormano
04.11.22 | "You say that like it's a bad thing!"
quite the opposite
ranking is good | tectactoe
04.11.22 | @Ryus, death, Cormano: Nice, nice, and nice. | Kompys2000
04.11.22 | Always nice to see a new Tec ranking! Love how organized and thorough these lists are, with them cute little medals up top :)
Also 1 is 1 yessssss | fogza
04.11.22 | "as if that were punishment 😏"
Those who know know | tectactoe
04.11.22 | God bless you Kompys 🙏 | deathofasalesman
04.11.22 | awesome ranking and i love the love for end hits, that's a close close close second behind argument | BMDrummer
04.11.22 | kill taker is like 2 these days for me, love their noise stuff most
thanks for checking fugazi y'all | Yotimi
04.11.22 | End hits rules agreed | Inveigh
04.11.22 | End Hits, Repeater, Kill Taker, in that order for my top 3
great band indeed, always fun to rank them and discuss, because everyone's is different | neekafat
04.11.22 | still never heard them
maybe i'll change that (; | Kompys2000
04.11.22 | I recommend starting with the Argument, that's their most melodic and indie rock-ish | tectactoe
04.12.22 | I’m always a fan of chronology, myself, both for appropriate context, and because it’s cool to see the progression of a band over their career. But agreed, if you don’t care about that per se, THE ARGUMENT is their most approachable for sure. | z00sh
04.12.22 | that was the first record I ever listened to by these guys, but I think 2 will always be my fav | Kompys2000
04.12.22 | Chronology is a lot of fun but it's a convenient illusion often enough that I'm comfy setting it aside when needed (do you start with repeater? 13 songs?? Minor threat/rites of spring???) | tectactoe
04.12.22 | I mean technically you’d start with 13 songs if you were doing chrono since those EPs came out before REPEATER. And wow, imagine “Waiting Room” being your introduction to Fugazi 😳 hard to think of a better track to start with. But I see what you’re saying. (And “Cashout” ain’t a bad starter pick either 😃) | Demon of the Fall
04.12.22 | Red Med > The Argument > s/t > Kill Taker > Repeater > Margin Walker > End Hits > Steady Diet
something like that
I like the fact you have Birthday Pony top 3 on Red Med, fun song | tectactoe
04.12.22 | Dunno why, Demon, but I had you pegged for a KILL TAKER kinda guy. Good list in any case, though I’m not sure one could really put together any ranking of Fugazi that was truly unacceptable.
And yes, amen - Birthday Pony is RED MEDICINE’s unsung hero!! | tectactoe
04.13.22 | And though it's not a particular 'song', the single best moment on REPEATER might be the silky smooth transition from the title track into Brendan #1 | dedex
04.13.22 | Lovely list, as always. 1 is 1 yeeeehaw | tectactoe
04.13.22 | 🤘 | REANIMATED
04.13.22 | Massively based. Completely agree with you on End Hits and the top 3 as a whole, though I might have Repeater top. | widowslaugh123
04.13.22 | End hits and kill taker tied for first in me eyes | tectactoe
04.13.22 | Glad to see us END HITS champions coming out of the woodwork 😁 |
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