7 - Various Artists "Flex Your Head"

I think this is the first Dischord album to use non-black and white on the cover. How much do you think that would cost in the early 80s?



Oh, Flex Your Head. What am I gonna do with you? 32 tracks that sound the same. Hell yeah. Let’s go.

SIDE A


Teen Idles <3

I love how silly and goofy this band is. They are truly a lot of fun. “I Drink Milk?” lol. If this came out today, it would be considered “pop punk.” Just goes to show, pop punk is one of the most loaded terms in our musical lexicon.


Untouchables

Sloppy. Fun. Sounds like other hardcore around this time. I’d rather be listening to the Teen Idles. And to be fair I’d rather listen to the Teen Idols than the Teen Idles.


S.O.A. 

Back to Alabama with the State Of. I always enjoy a good song about hating kids. I think this is more fun than the Adolescents “I Hate Children,” but I’m not sure why. Also, I love how fucking raw this recording sounds. That crash symbol is something else. Lol @ the “thanks Mom.” More proof that hardcore wasn’t always so serious. Oh shit - is this a “Stepping Stone” cover? Long live the Monkees.


Minor Threat

I actually didn’t realize these two songs were from FYH. I think I even talked about “12XU” when I wrote about the first two Minor Threat 7”s. Furthermore, I forgot that song is a Wire cover! Punk points lost, I guess. “Stand Up” isn’t my favorite song but I just realized he yells “State of Alert” at one point, which is pretty cute. “12XU” is also where “Flex Your Head” comes from yeah? Wow! I know nothing.


Government Issue

Gotta love an 80’s hardcore song about Reagan. The “butt fucked” at the end didn’t age so well, though.


Youth Brigade

It’s honestly really nice to hear a band sing about the Moral Majority. “Try to take away rights.” I wish more modern-day punks knew about this part of history and how much it’s hurt us today. I was raised in the culture created by things like the Moral Majority, and the damage is real. These songs are fun, too (as opposed to the EP, which I thought was “meh”).


SIDE B


Red C

Not to be confused with Hi-C. This is interesting. Definitely different than the rest of the hardcore at the time. More space, sounds like it could be a tiny bit more introspective or out of the box? Lol the wanking that goes on after “Pressure’s On.” This is cool. OH this band has 4 tracks here eh? Wow okay - this is like a mix between post punk and hardcore (sorry for all the dumb genre signifiers). This is very cool - maybe my favorite on here so far.


Void

If I remember right, Void rocks. *Listens* This is definitely unique. Love how they’re treating the guitar more like a noise machine than a melodic instrument. “NO MORE AUTHORITY” by Void  > “Fuck Authority” by Pennywise. Third song is super rad. Love this.


Iron Cross

Not my favorite so far. This guy is all like “GRRRRRRRRRRR” and he’s like “We are the new kids” and I’m like “bro you sound like you’re 40.” Actually, come to think of it, that’s pretty dope.


Artificial Peace

Before starting this, I thought “doesn’t Artificial Peace rock?” as I tried to remember my Dischord adventure from years ago. Now I can safely say YES, they rock. Really unique band for their time. Maybe my favorite band on this split. Using chorus pedals, understanding song dynamics with three instruments, surprising you with the fast “hardcore” parts, so they retain the excitement of the energy. Some great chord work too - there’s a catchy melody they’re playing here. Almost a spy movie melody.


Deadline

Meh.


Favorite 3 bands on Flex Your Head

  1. Artificial Peace

  2. Teen Idles

  3. Red C


Listen to Dischord no. 7 here. (scroll to the bottom of the Bandcamp page)

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