Yeah, my dad is definitely setting me up with this one. In case you didn’t know or haven’t guessed, I have a thing for band shirts. My obsession is actually kind of a problem—I’d say that I have more than thirty, and that’s not including the ones that I’ve outgrown or that have been ripped to shreds at concerts. And as anyone who’s ever been to a show that involved at least a single guitar knows, Black Flag’s logo is one of the easiest to find on the shirts of punks, hipsters, and dads alike. Whether seeing Andrew Jackson Jihad or Matt & Kim perform, you’re guaranteed to spot at least one dude rockin’ that staggered stripe logo.
I find it kind of funny that such a key punk band (punk being a movement that’s all anti-establishment whatnot) has fans so willing to serve as walking billboards, but whatever.
I will admit, however, that it is a pretty cool logo, which goes along well with this angry and fast-paced music. Henry Rollins is the definite centerpiece of this record. He completely overshadows everything else that’s going on with his vocal-cord-shredding shouts and angsty lyrics. For a 2012 listener checking this stuff out for the first time, it’s interesting to see just how important these guys were to punk rock. I easily could have been listening to a Bomb the Music Industry! record for quite a few of these songs, minus the ska influence.
That being said, I don’t think I would willingly listen to Damaged again. Popular logo or no, it offers nothing that my modern angry music can’t do better. I must commend Black Flag’s ability to burn through 15 songs in 35 minutes, though—you’ve got to love that.
Swole Ear 
Nothing wrong with Six Pack but how do you not link to this one?
I was definitely never a fan of Rollins on vocals in Black Flag. “Nervous Breakdown” is by far my favorite song. I was much more a fan of Greg Ginn: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTxoXxzg8Ns
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But can we talk about Henry Rollins turn as the evil white supremacist on Sons of Anarchy? What? No one else watches that show? Never mind. I’m with Chopsy — TV Party. And as for Ty’s comments, I think Henry knew he couldn’t sing. He just didn’t care. You have to respect that (even if you don’t listen to it).
I was very specific about what I said with Rollins, as I do like his earlier band State of Alert (when he was known by his real name, Henry Garfield). 😉
I guess it’s mostly because the first I’d heard from Black Flag was the Nervous Breakdown EP, which solidified what Black Flag sounded like in my mind. Hearing Damaged afterward (and already knowing SoA) just sounded wrong, haha
Good point, J$. The only time I ever saw Mr. Rollins live it was at a live poetry reading in about 1983 (I believe Mr. Porter may have been there as well). The highlight was “Fuck You, Allen”, a touching ode to his colleague at the Baskin Robins who had the effrontery to turn up late for his shift, leaving Hank to soldier on. Good fun.
It appears that Mr. Rollins no longer needs to pull a shift scooping ice-cream at the B-R if his new-found audiophile hobby is to be believed: http://www.stereophile.com/content/i-am-audiophile.