Rancid Rancid
Epitaph Records
1993
[URL]www.rancidrancid.com[/URL]
Tim Armstrong Vocals, Guitar
Matt Freeman Bass, Vocals
Brett Reed Drums
After the success that was underground ska band Operation Ivy, Matt and Tim bounce back with raw and hard punk at it’s very best. This is before Lars was recruited into the band, so the songs either had one guitar or Tim did two when recording. On this album, they had Brett Gurewitz (owner of Epitaph Records and guitarist of fellow punk band Bad Religion), and other Epitaph musicians such as Pennywise members Fletcher Drage and Jim Lindberg (to my understanding) on back-up vocals.
As Operation Ivy had done, the songs basically live from the basslines. The guitar in the songs on this album can’t last by itself, just like O.I., so they depend on the bassline to carry the song. Just like the O.I. basslines, they are well constructed, fast and something to admire. The basslines to “Rejected�, “The Bottle� and “Detroit� being my favourite basslines on the album. Matt clearly shows his talent by mixing things up, and not playing root notes alone, like most punk and pop-punk bands today, such as Blink-182, Sum 41 and Pennywise.
The lyrics in this album, when you read them or if you can understand them, are well-written. Tim is a masterful lyricist. The lyrics to “The Bottle� show the troubles of an alcoholic.
“It makes no difference when i'm way out of line, things i can't remember comes back to haunt me
a lot of people out there who seem to want me
climb in the bottle and never come out�, while in “Another Night� the problems of living out on the street are told.
“In the dark with the okland skyline, as i cross the city i avoid the landlines, all i wanna do is make it through without dying, all i wanna do is keep on trying. Tim never ceases to impress me with his lyrics, and in this album, his lyrics are more about problems and troubles in life than anything else.
The drums are no different from any other Rancid album to follow. So, I can’t go into much detail with them. The guitar is the same on the most part. Mostly powerchords, which again is the same as any other pop-punk/punk band today. Although, there are some nice riffs here and there, like in “Unwritten Rules� at the beginning, and “The Trenches�.
The singing in the album, is angry and shouting on the most part (by Matt), while Tim has scratchy vocals which he mostly talks through songs. Even though Matt and Tim aren’t the best singers in the world, and their singing tends to put people off listening to them, their singing is perfect for the music. It’s aggressive. It’s loud, and it’s fierce. The backing vocals always make me like their songs more, because it feels as if everyone who is listening to it shouts along and becomes part of the music.
Recommended Tracks:
Rejected
Another Night
Hyena
Adina
The Bottle
This is one of my favourite Rancid albums, because of how raw, and energetic this album is. It’s a must have for any Rancid fan, although if you like this album, you might just prefer “Rancid [2000]�. I give this album a
4/5.
And on a side-note, my 6,000th post. :cool:
