Bad Brains - Rock For Light - LP

After an impressive but, somewhat tinny sounding debut, the second Bad Brains album came as a real blast of sonic fresh air. Producer Ric Ocasek is largely responsible, but the increased tightness and focus are also a function of maturation. This band was a weird bundle of contradictions from day one: black Rastafarian instrumental virtuosos playing hardcore punk, formerly the exclusive domain of white, aggressively atheist musical amateurs. That last contradiction would come to full musical flower on I Against I, but Rock for Light shows the band at the height of its punk energy. "P.M.A.," "Joshua's Song," and "Coptic Times" are typical examples of Bad Brains' unique blend of punk velocity and Rasta ideology. When they suddenly swing into mellow reggae (on "I and I Survive," "The Meek," "Rally 'Round Jah Throne," and the dubwise instrumental "Jam"), the effect is like some kind of pleasant musical whiplash. 

Limited edition reissue

Tracklist

A1 Coptic Times

A2 Attitude

A3 We Will Not

A4 Sailin' On

A5 Rally Around Jah Throne

A6 Right Brigade

A7 F.V.K. / Riot Squad

A8 The Meek Shall Inherit The Earth

B1 Joshua's Song

B2 Banned In D.C.

B3 How Low Can A Punk Get

B4 Big Takeover

B5 I And I Survive

B6 Destroy Babylon

B7 Rock For Light

B8 At The Movies