West Coast Straight Edge Legends
08/05/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As an aging (and not so gracefully) veteran of the early-80s West Coast punk scene, 7 Seconds will always stand out as one of the great hardcore bands of the era. Their live shows were amongst the most intense I ever saw (saw 'em with Minor Threat in '82...utter genius). This intensity is ably captured in alt.music.hardcore, a compilation of the band's early ep's. Yeah, the sound quality leaves something to be desired (not everybody was blessed enough to record with Don Zientara), but that's not the point. These guys were blazing fast and sometimes (eek) even melodic. 7 Seconds was about being socially conscious without the holier-than-thou attitude. If you can get past the poor sound quality (which becomes less of a distraction the more to you play it), this is an absolute hardcore gem and a nice testament to the entire early hardcore movement. Toss your Sum 41 and Blink records in the trash. 7 Seconds, Minor Threat, Bad Brains, Black Flag, et al. set a standard that will never be matched by today's snot-nosed punk poseurs."