“proletariat”
The Proletariat
Voodoo Economics and Other American Tragedies
Taang!
Huge double-CD album with what looks like ALL the Proletariat’s songs from their heyday back in the early 1980s. Up until now, my only exposure to this band was their four-song contribution to the famous and important compilation This is Boston, Not L.A. Now that I have been exposed to their voluminous output, I feel a certain extra enlightenment.
At first, I thought they sound an awful lot like an American version of the Fall, lazy, overtired vocals with an “industrial” (I’m not saying this is “industrial”) punk background. That is, it’s sort of fuzzy, and sounds of manufacturing. Certainly that’s what they were looking to accomplish, as I am sure they’re a bunch of commies at heart.
Man, there are forty-four songs on this set! That’s serious creative production and a lot of work for punks back nearly twenty years. If you’re looking for some cynical Reagan-era punk rock, this is an excellent choice. Consider these songs: “Religion is the Opium of the Masses,” “Westernization,” “The Guns are Winning,” and “No Real Hope.” A good slice of the punk persona circa 1983.
Taang!, 706 Pismo Ct., San Diego, CA 92109
