Often considered the first full-length punk record from the UK, Damned, Damned, Damned was released in 1977, a year after the Ramones' debut. The songs are hyperspeed bursts of alternating snottiness and...nevermind, there's really not much alternating going on. The chorus of the pedal to the floor opener "Neat Neat Neat" is reduced to "Ni Ni Ni," and the barely one-minute "Stab Your Back" manages to sound like a complete song.Thankfully, no amount of remastering can eliminate the rawness of the record, which, fidelity-wise, actually sounds worse than the first Ramones record. The band obviously has a direction and a personality on their debut, but when comparing them to the Ramones, the vision doesn't sound quite as unified. It's damn good, but in between the Chuck Berry guitar and endlessly active bass, there's a hint of missing character that would have bumped this to another level. Maybe I'm just annoyed that "So Messed Up" is a cautionary tale rather than something more jubilant.
On a happier note, Rat Scabies is probably the greatest stage name anyone has ever come up with. He's the dude licking the pie out of bassist Captain Sensible's hair on the cover. It doesn't show up on the cover, but frontman Dave Vanian's white makeup and slicked-back hair would eventually be ripped off by many a young band, and he looks as badass as M. Shadows from Avenged Sevenfold wishes he did.
"New Rose"
"Fan Club"
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