Yes, I’m listening to a compilation album, but hear me out. This isn’t your normal “derp, let’s pull a bunch of random, unconnected songs together in an arbitrary order so we can make some more monies” comp record. Being a considerate punk rock band, Minor Threat decided to gather every single studio recording of theirs and combine them all, in chronological order, on a single disc.
That sounds intimidating, doesn’t it? I figured that I’d be listening to this thing for a few days before getting through every song. Fortunately, Minor Threat only had 26 tracks (recorded in a studio) at the time of Complete Discography’s release. In true punk rock fashion, this record wraps up in just about 47 minutes.
I was a little worried about flow going into this. Sure, the songs are in chronological order by release, but most albums, even if by the same band, don’t transition well from one to the other. I kept waiting for an obvious break to occur, but before I knew it, Complete Discography had run its course, and I couldn’t tell Salad Days from Out of Step.
That’s just the type of music that Minor Threat made. In fact, it probably doesn’t matter what song I linked you to up top—you’ll still get the general idea. Fast, sloppy guitars, reckless drumming, and a whole lot of shouting are prominent in every single song. Minor Threat knew what they were good at. Sure, it may get old after 47 minutes, but in smaller chunks, this is really potent stuff.
Swole Ear 