Tag Archives: Thrasher magazine

Gang Green – Album Review

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Gang Green – We’ll Give It To You

Cherry Red Records

Release date: 13/01/2023

Running time: 2 hours 49 minutes

Review by: Alun Jones

8.5/10

As a teenaged skateboarder in the late 80’s, Boston hardcore legends Gang Green were definitely on my playlist.  They appeared on a Thrasher Skate Rock tape, what more do you need to know?! Merging hardcore punk with a more metallic edge, Gang Green added a technicality and rock’n’roll, beer drinking party vibe to their unique take on crossover/thrash.  It was mostly fun, though sometimes dumb, times – with a fast and crazy energy.  Eventually finding a home on Roadrunner records in 1987, the albums Gang Green recorded for that label are collected here by Cherry Red Records.

Working through the discs chronologically, we’ll start with the first Roadrunner release, “You Got It”.  Featuring what is possibly the worst album cover all time – the band in a sewer?  Why is (vocalist/guitarist) Chris Doherty jumping through a fence?  And where are his legs?!  This atrocious shot always bothered me, so I’m delighted I get to bitch about it now (though it only appears as a  small pic!).  Music wise, “You Got It” is chock full of belters: the storming thrash of ‘We’ll Give it to You’ setting out Gang Green’s goods; ferocious hardcore with ‘LDSB’ and ‘Born to Rock’.  There’s even a surprise social conscience (and mellow intro) on ‘Another Bomb’.  Plus, bonus track ‘Skate to Hell’ is worth the price of admission alone.

If Roadrunner were relieved they’d done the right thing signing this bunch of unruly punks after that first record, ‘Older… Budweiser’ went even better.  Armed this time with a great cover/title (thankfully), Gang Green delivered more of the same, but amped up even further.  ‘Church of Fun’ bolts out of the gates; ‘Just One Bullet’ and ‘We Can Go’ show exactly how to meld hardcore and thrash into a furious, fun time.  The rock’n’roll edge that began on the previous record becomes more prevalent, adding a distinct flavour to the band’s sound (see ‘Tear Down the Walls’).  The humour misfires on ‘Bedroom of Doom’, but the does-what-it-says-on the-tin ‘Ballad’ is a nice attempt to branch out musically before closing time.

On disc three, we have the live album “Can’t LIVE Without It”, recorded at the Marquee Club in London in 1990.  Most of the live tracks appear already on this compilation, but it’s a solid recording of an energetic, relentless show.  There are a bunch of non-Roadrunner tracks which add value for money; plus, the inclusion of the “I81B4U” EP and ‘Living Loving Maid’ single, which is great news for obsessive nerds like me.

Finally, the compilation album “King of Bands” rounds out the collection.  If you’ve not had enough of hearing some of these songs twice already, prepare to experience some of them yet again with this “greatest hits” set.  Although, there are two new tracks and three from Gang Greens first album on Taang! Records for VFM.  The two tracks – ‘Thunder’ and ‘Rub It In Your Face’ are OK, but not up to the standard of older material.  Still, this last disc seals the lid on this barrel of good times very nicely.

The history of Gang Green proves to be a fascinating tale.  Predating Jackass by some years, the party hard doctrine of the band remains resolutely in place.  Some of the lyrics are juvenile at best, out right sexist at worst (‘Cum In You’, oh dear); but if you can forgive that, the attitude and fun remains infectious.  Yes, it’s all about partying and beer, but the music is still great.  Not as metal as COC, or as punk as Circle Jerks, Gang Green added a rockin’ flare to their brand of crossover and brought the party home. 

A great compilation featuring tons of interviews, info and photos, “We’ll Give It To You” is a comprehensive guide to beer-soaked thrash punk.  It’s time to get out on your skateboard, rock out to Gang Green, and celebrate with a few beers.  Afterward, that is.  Ever Metal wants you to take care: don’t drink & skate.

Gang Green can be found on Facebook and Spotify.

Cherry Red Records do loads of good work, check ’em out online, on Twitter, Instagram and Bandcamp.

This has been a Platinum Al presentation, in partnership with Ever Metal.

SK88: Old School Skateboard Playlist

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Best years of my life? 15/16 years old, skateboarding all day and hanging around with my friends.  It was the late 1980s, and the days of the 180 Boneless, No Comply and learning to Ollie.  Back when kickflips were the raddest trick in the car park – except we called them “Ollie kickflips” back then.

This was also the time when I started to really veer off the obvious track as far as music was concerned.  Skate videos and Thrasher magazine began to open up a whole new world of music.  Sometimes these bands would enter the mainstream a couple of years later; sometimes they never did.

I remember hearing a great song on a Vision video.  I had no idea what the song was called, but worked out from the credits that it was most likely performed by the Descendents.  I recorded the song onto cassette off the TV as there was no other way to hear it.  A few months later, on a skate buying trip to Manchester, I stumbled across a record shop that stocked a few records by the band.  I had to buy one: taking a gamble on “All” as it featured a song called “Coolidge”, which fitted the lyrics of the track I loved.  I was so stoked when I got home, played the vinyl and heard the song I was hoping for!  Great album, all in all.

This practice of researching and hunting became a big feature of my relationship with music ever since.

Skating all day, then listening to music in the evening was a big part of my teenage years.  This playlist is designed to reflect those days: music I enjoyed back then and became the soundtrack to that time.

Some songs featured in skate videos (McRad, Odd Man Out).  Some were checked out after I saw them advertised or reviewed in Thrasher (The Cult, Misfits).  Others were just part of the current soundscape, and are forever linked with those halcyon days.

Here’s the playlist I made, split into a two CD format:

Part 1

  1. McRad – “Weakness”
  2. Odd Man Out – “Four Thirty One”
  3. Descendents – “Coolidge”
  4. Sex Pistols – “Holidays in the Sun”
  5. Devo – “That’s Good”
  6. Black Sabbath – “Paranoid”
  7. Motorhead – “Killed by Death”
  8. Faith No More – “We Care a Lot”
  9. Misfits – “Astro Zombies”
  10. Hard-Ons – “Don’t Wanna See You Cry”
  11. The Stupids – “Skid Row”
  12. Beastie Boys – “She’s On It”
  13. Circle Jerks – “Wild in the Streets”
  14. Spermbirds – “Something to Prove”
  15. Dead Kennedys – “California Uber Alles”
  16. Suicidal Tendencies – “Possessed to Skate”
  17. Generation X – “One Hundred Punks”

Part 2

  1. The Cult – “Wildflower”
  2. The Damned – “Love Song”
  3. Red Hot Chili Peppers – “Higher Ground”
  4. Fishbone – “Freddie’s Dead”
  5. Iggy Pop – “Cold Metal”
  6. GBH – “Too Much”
  7. Mudhoney – “Sweet Young Thing Ain’t Sweet No More”
  8. Ramones – “I Just Wanna Have Something To Do”
  9. The Stranglers – “Peaches”
  10. Bad Brains – “Soul Craft”
  11. Gang Green – “Church of Fun”
  12. Metallica – “The Thing That Should Not Be”
  13. Jimi Hendrix Experience – “Purple Haze”
  14. Rolling Stones – “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction
  15. Jesus Jones – “Never Enough”
  16. The Skids – “Into the Valley”
  17. Fugazi – “Blueprint”

Some of the above tracks I owned on vinyl or cassette back in the day; some I found in later years.  There are still plenty of other bands from skate videos that I either still haven’t tracked down, or as I didn’t own them at the time I’ve omitted for now.

Instead, this is a basic playlist to represent my late 80s skateboarding days, boiled down to the bare essentials.  I hope you enjoy and these bring back some memories.

And this sin’t an exhaustive list: how Anthrax and Run DMC didn’t get included is baffling.  Maybe I can expand with some more for a Part 2…

Classic Albums

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I was aiming to do one of these Classic Album posts every month.  This is February’s…  These posts are dedicated to the timeless, irreplaceable classics of my music collection.

2. Sex Pistols – “Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols”

By 1988 I was looking for something new, music wise.  I had trawled through loads of heavy metal, thrash metal and hardcore, and a lot of it was getting somewhat stale.  The next step to explore was looking like Motley Crue and WASP.  Luckily, something else came along instead.

I’d heard a Sex Pistols song on a late night rock show on the radio.  I’ve never been one to listen to the radio much.  However, when I heard “Anarchy in the UK”, I thought – that sounds great!  Guitars right up front screaming in your face and tons of energy.  The song stayed in my head and I considered saving up a few quid and making the Sex Pistols album my next purchase.  It would be quite a departure from a great deal of my other music; but with punk rock all over Thrasher magazine and skateboarding generally, it seemed the obvious choice. 136184.jpg SP

So I went into Penny Lane Records in Chester a couple of weeks later, and I bought the cassette.  The cassette!  Unbelievable.  One advantage was I had my Sony Walkman with me and could listen to it straight away.  What should I expect though?  My research had yielded a huge amount of scorn for the group – they couldn’t play, couldn’t sing, they were offensive.  Would the tape just be a horrid cacophony of unlistenable noise?  I pressed play.

I heard the jackboot march intro of first track “Holidays in the Sun” and then the music began.  Far from the despicable noise I’d been warned about, I found (much like “Anarchy…”) a sound that was thrilling, exciting, new.  It was rock music, but it was fast and intense and I knew this was what I had been looking for.

“Bodies” followed, and that song is even more exhilarating than the first.  A few rude words though, so don’t play this without headphones.  “God Save the Queen” was a total revelation – anti-establishment hatred wrapped up in the greatest rock riff ever.  Pure genius.  I’d never heard sentiments like that expressed in any form of popular culture before, and I loved it.  “Pretty Vacant” was actually very catchy, not in the least bit talentless noise.  And “Submission” was a change of pace – showing again that the Pistols were not one trick conmen.

Not all of “Never Mind the Bollocks…” is perfect.  I’ve never been a huge fan of “Seventeen”, for example.  Still that song is better than most bands manage in an entire career.

The music doesn’t sound shocking in this day and age, but lyrically we’re dealing with some raw stuff.  What a joy to behold in a Simon Cowell possessed world.

I ended up getting rid of the cassette and buying the album on vinyl later on.  I’ve still got it.  Of course, I then had the CD also.  I listened to it recently on my iPod and it still sounds fantastic.  Quite simply, every home should have a copy of this record.  “Never Mind the Bollocks…” is still, quite possibly, my favourite album of all time.  It opened my eyes (as well as ears) to something different.  It taught me that exploring music, even music that you might be concerned isn’t for you, will provide great results.

Don’t be afraid, try something new.  And listen to the Sex Pistols with the sound cranked up.  Because we still need to think differently, develop our own opinions, and be open minded.  That, ladies and gentlemen, is punk rock.

Sex Pistols – Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols

  1. Holidays in the Sun
  2. Bodies
  3. No Feelings
  4. Liar
  5. God Save the Queen
  6. Problems
  7. Seventeen
  8. Anarchy in the UK
  9. Submission
  10. Pretty Vacant
  11. New York
  12. EMI

Best tracks: God Save the Queen, Pretty Vacant, Holidays in the Sun, Bodies, Submission, Anarchy in the UK

Other cool points: one of the most iconic album covers of all time.

Buy this classic album here.