Fugazi fans already know that this is the original gospel according to Ian MacKaye. This Washington, D.C., quartet hit harder, faster, and franker than just about anybody--and were willing to see through their own bull as ... more »quickly as anyone else's. MacKaye manages to be charismatic and confrontational at the same time: tossing brilliant, genuinely funny asides into his serious-as-a- heart-attack lyrics. Meanwhile, the band, led by Lyle Preslar's staggering guitar attack, pushes MacKaye on with the tightest, most razor-sharp sound in all of hardcore. Nothing in the punk pantheon can come close to "In My Eyes," "Out of Step," or "Salad Days." Absolutely essential. --Michael Ruby« less
Fugazi fans already know that this is the original gospel according to Ian MacKaye. This Washington, D.C., quartet hit harder, faster, and franker than just about anybody--and were willing to see through their own bull as quickly as anyone else's. MacKaye manages to be charismatic and confrontational at the same time: tossing brilliant, genuinely funny asides into his serious-as-a- heart-attack lyrics. Meanwhile, the band, led by Lyle Preslar's staggering guitar attack, pushes MacKaye on with the tightest, most razor-sharp sound in all of hardcore. Nothing in the punk pantheon can come close to "In My Eyes," "Out of Step," or "Salad Days." Absolutely essential. --Michael Ruby
"You should be happy that your kid is listening to Minor Threat instead of, say, Limp Bizkit. The lyrics are socially responsible. Isn't that what you want your kid to be? As for the language, your kid probably uses the words in the songs anyways, so you can't protect them. The album is definatly one of the best punk rock album ever. It's better than "Nevermind the Bullocks" by a thousand miles! It changed my life, and it will most likely change your's. The music and lyrics are encredibly powerful and rocking. I hate kids who think KoRn or Limp Bizkit are hardcore. This is hardcore."
It's been said, but this is the BEST!!!
james | Lawrence, KS(via chicago) | 08/30/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The first time i listened to Minor Threat, frankly, I didn't like it. The music was too fast and it was devoid of any melody(that i heard at the time). Ian's vocals were screamed so fast and unintelligibly, that it turned me off at first. At the time I was listening to Rancid, The Clash, and The Sex Pistols. I bought the Blue Minor Threat tape, thinking it would be along those lines. It wasn't. But there was something infectious about the music that kept me coming back for more. I didn't know what straight edge meant at the time,(i thought it was some reference to cocaine) and I wan't sure what the hell Ian was talking about. Then I started analyzing the lyrics. They cut with such razor sharp poingancy and heartfelt honesty that the music started to make my stomach churn. I finally got it. This music blew away my old punk records. Minor Threat presented rage in an honest and beautiful way, whereas the Sex Pistols were just out to shock people. Musically these guys were tighter than 95 percent of the hardcore bands of their day, and the music stands up. Ian's lyrics stand as some of the best, dare I say it, "rock" lyrics of all time. I can only imagine how revolutionary this band must have been when they came out, both musically and politically. All I know is that I can still put this record on in my room and roll around like an idiot, get all sweaty, and sing along, and love every second of it. This record transcends punk, hardcore, or any B.S. label like that. This music is timeless, and it WILL live forever, albeit, a little Out of Step..."
Straight edge brilliance
james | 10/20/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Ian Mackaye and the boys deliver one of the best albums to have come out in the 80s punk scene. Think about it, in a time where most bands were singing "hungry like the wolf" they were talking about individualism, fighting the desire to conform to the assimilating establishment--an idea lost on many new and upcoming punk bands. Labelled as straight edge and not your typical lager lout, debauchery-loving guys this album is more of a tribute to ideals than to the pervading mediocrity of so many "punk" bands (read:Blink 182,Green Day, Offspring). Songs like: I Don't Wanna Hear It, In My Eyes, Out of Step instills that wrathful energy that only punk can saturate in your psyche. This is one of the remaining compilations left of a band whose influence sustained and took our music into a totally intellectual sphere. Piercings and tatooes don't make you punk kids, your brain does."
Not a kid reviewer, just an angry punk
TimothyFarrell22 | 07/21/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I'm in my 30s, not 13 or younger, but I'm pissed and didn't want to leave my email address. To that kid who called Minor Threat talentless posers and said listen to Good Charlotte and Sum 41 instead, you have got to be f***ing kidding me. If you think that Good Charlotte is punk, than you don't know what punk is. It's not a fashion statement, it's a lifestyle and an attitude. You little Hot Topic posers have ruined what used to be a great scene, a scene that actually once meant something. And you know what else? Real punk bands hate you little bastards. I know this because I am friends with many of them and we laugh at you. Minor Threat is one of the greatest, most influential punk bands of all time. Instead of whining about how their dad sucks or how much they love their girlfriend, their lyrics actually mean something. Instead of being obsessed with money and getting laid, they cared about the music and making a difference. That, my young friends, is punk."
Definitive hardcore
TimothyFarrell22 | 10/24/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Minor Threat is the definitive hardcore punk band, at least for 1981-1982. They rank just behind the Dead Kennedys for me, and that's saying a lot, considering how great they are. They got their start from the debris of one of the DC scene's first hardcore bands, the Teen Idles. They, just like Minor Threat, took their influences from the Bad Brains, one of the first hardcore punk bands anywhere, and British punk, like the Sex Pistols, and the Damned. These are also great bands, check em out. But Minor Threat was something special. They weren't only more accomplished players than they had been in Teen Idles, but they also incorporated the idea of straight edge into their songs, which Ian Mckaye always was but dodn't sing about. Look at almost any song here and you'll see straight edge. "In My Eyes", "Minor Threat", "Out of Step", "Bottled Violence", and obviously "Straight Edge". You'll also see many critiques of the DC scene, which wasn't very supportive of their reunion just a few months after their breakup. Especially the last four, in which McKaye has realized that his beloved DC scene is changing (especially Salad Days). These were recorded after they had decided to break up. His voice sounds resigned, except in Stumped, when the question "Why did we go?" rings out. This sharply contrasts to the younger band on the first half of the album, where they seemed so full of hope. If you like punk at all, buy this. Its awsome. Also, check out the book Dance of Days, for more info about the band and also the DC scene as a whole."