''Flex Your Head'' is a
sampler album
A sampler or promotional compilation is a type of compilation album generally offered at a reduced price to showcase an artist or a selection of artists signed to a particular record label. The format became popular in the late 1960s as record lab ...
featuring early
hardcore punk
Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier punk ...
bands from the
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
area.
[Curd, Zach]
"''Flex Your Head'': AllMusic Review by Zach Curd"
''AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
''. Retrieved April 20, 2016. It was originally released in January 1982 on
Dischord Records
Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in punk rock. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release ''Minor Disturbance'' by their band The Teen Idles. ...
, with a
press
Press may refer to:
Media
* Print media or news media, commonly called "the press"
* Printing press, commonly called "the press"
* Press (newspaper), a list of newspapers
* Press TV, an Iranian television network
People
* Press (surname), a fam ...
ing of 4,000 copies on
vinyl record
A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts nea ...
that sold out within one week; an additional 3,000 copies were released shortly after. In 1982, a third pressing of 2,000 copies was released under
license
A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit).
A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...
in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
by
Alternative Tentacles
Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 in San Francisco, California. It was used by Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single " California Über Alles". After realizing the potential for an independent label, ...
.
[ Azerrad, Michael (]Little, Brown and Company
Little, Brown and Company is an American publishing company founded in 1837 by Charles Coffin Little and James Brown in Boston. For close to two centuries it has published fiction and nonfiction by American authors. Early lists featured Emily ...
, 2001). ''Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Rock Underground 1981-1991''. First e-book ed., 2012. Hachette Hachette may refer to:
* Hachette (surname)
* Hachette (publisher), a French publisher, the imprint of Lagardère Publishing
** Hachette Book Group, the American subsidiary
** Hachette Distribution Services, the distribution arm
See also
* Hachett ...
. . p. 376. Each of the first three pressings featured a different
front cover.
Background
The compilation takes its title from the
Minor Threat
Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Washington, D.C. by vocalist Ian MacKaye and drummer Jeff Nelson. MacKaye and Nelson had played in several other bands together, and recruited bassist Brian Baker and guitaris ...
lyric shouted in the song "12XU", included on the album, originally by the English band
Wire
Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample diameter 40 mm
A wire is a flexible strand of metal.
Wire is c ...
.
Dischord assembled ''Flex Your Head'' as a way to record the many punk bands that had started up, and sometimes also ceased, in the previous years in the D.C. area. The album served as either a debut or sophomore release for every band on it
except Minor Threat, for whom it was their third.
At the time of the album's release not only had most of the bands on it already have broken up, but many had gone on to start other bands, some of those bands also appear on the album.
The Teen Idles had broken up in late 1980 and by the time of the release of ''Flex Your Head'' members had already started
Minor Threat
Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Washington, D.C. by vocalist Ian MacKaye and drummer Jeff Nelson. MacKaye and Nelson had played in several other bands together, and recruited bassist Brian Baker and guitaris ...
and
Youth Brigade.
The Untouchables
Untouchables or The Untouchables may refer to:
American history
* Untouchables (law enforcement), a 1930s American law enforcement unit led by Eliot Ness
* ''The Untouchables'' (book), an autobiography by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley
* ''The U ...
broke up in 1981 and with the former members joining a multitude of bands including
The Faith,
The Warmers
The Warmers were an American post-hardcore band based in Washington, D.C., United States, active from 1994 to 1997. The band was a trio featuring former Faith vocalist Alec MacKaye (guitar and vocals), Juan Luis Carrera (bass and vocals), and ...
,
Rites of Spring
Rites of Spring was an American punk rock band from Washington, D.C., formed in late 1983. Along with Embrace, and Beefeater, they were one of the mainstay acts of the 1985 Revolution Summer movement Andersen, Mark; Jenkins, Mark (Soft Skull ...
,
One Last Wish
One Last Wish was a short-lived post-hardcore band from Washington, D.C. It was formed in May 1986 by members of Rites of Spring, and split up in January 1987.
Amidst the breakup of Rites of Spring in 1986, three of its four members – Picciott ...
,
Skewbald
Skewbald is a colour pattern of horses. A skewbald horse has a coat made up of white patches on a non-black base coat, such as chestnut, bay, or any colour besides black coat. Skewbald horses which are bay and white (bay is a reddish-brown colo ...
,
Happy Go Licky
Happy Go Licky was an American post-hardcore band formed in the spring of 1987, and which broke up after their final show at Washington, D.C.'s 9:30 Club on New Year's Day in 1988. The group was a short-lived reunion of the renowned D.C. hardc ...
, Youth Brigade, and
The Meatmen
The Meatmen are an American punk band headed by Tesco Vee, originally existing from 1981 to 1988, before reforming in the mid-1990s, and again in the 2000s. They were known for their outrageous stage antics and offensive lyrics. They reformed ...
.
State of Alert
State of Alert (often abbreviated to S.O.A.) was an American hardcore punk group formed in Washington, D.C. in October 1980, and active till July 1981. S.O.A. was fronted by Henry Rollins, then using his original surname Garfield.
History
S.O. ...
had also folded in early 1981 as singer
Henry Garfield had joined
Black Flag. Minor Threat had disbanded (although they would reunite a few months after the album's release) and since then
Ian MacKaye
Ian Thomas Garner MacKaye (; born April 16, 1962) is an American musician. Active since 1979, he is best known as the co-founder and owner of Dischord Records, a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label and the frontman of hardcore punk ...
and
Jeff Nelson had founded Skewbald while
Lyle Preslar
Lyle Preslar is an American musician best known for being the guitar player and songwriter for the hardcore punk band Minor Threat. Before that, he was the vocalist for The Extorts, who later became State of Alert after he quit. Despite not perfo ...
joined an early version of
Big Black. Youth Brigade and Red C both existed solely during 1981, and both Artificial Peace and Deadline would break up within a few months of the release of ''Flex Your Head'', aside from Youth Brigade these band's only recorded output is on the compilation, though from those bands would come the longer lasting
Beefeater,
Marginal Man
Marginal Man was an American hardcore punk band from Washington, D.C., that formed in 1982. Three of its members—Steve Polcari (vocals), Pete Murray (guitar), and Mike Manos (drums)—had previously played together in the Bethesda, Maryland h ...
and
Fugazi
Fugazi (; ) is an American post-hardcore band that formed in Washington, D.C., in 1986. The band consists of guitarists and vocalists Ian MacKaye and Guy Picciotto, bassist Joe Lally, and drummer Brendan Canty. They are noted for their style-tr ...
. Only
Government Issue
Government Issue was an American hardcore punk band from Washington, D.C. active from 1980 to 1989. The band experienced many changes in membership during its nine-year existence, with singer John Stabb as the only consistent member in an ever- ...
and
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia est ...
would survive past the next year.
The songs "12XU" and "
Steppin' Stone" were extremely popular covers in the D.C. punk scene. "Steppin' Stone", which was performed by State of Alert on this album, was also covered by Minor Threat on their second EP ''
In My Eyes'', while the song "12XU" was so commonly covered that several shows would have multiple bands playing their renditions.
Recording
''Flex Your Head'' was recorded between April 1980 and December 1981.
The Teen Idles, Untouchables,
[ Blush, Steven (2001). '' American Hardcore: A Tribal History''. Second ed., 2010. Feral House. . p. 164.] and Red C songs were recorded at Hit and Run Studios with
engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...
Steve Carr, Iron Cross' tracks were recorded at C.A.B. Studios with engineer Tom Scott, while all the other songs were recorded at
Inner Ear Studios
Inner Ear Studios is a recording studio founded in Arlington, Virginia that has been in operation since the late 1970s. Originally started in founder Don Zientara's basement, the studio spent many years on South Oakland St. in Arlington. The s ...
with engineer
Don Zientara
Don Zientara ( ) is an American record producer and musician. He owns and runs Inner Ear Studios in Arlington, Virginia, located just outside Washington D.C., and is most widely known for his production work with Fugazi, Minor Threat and various ...
.
[''Flex Your Head''](_blank)
''Dischord Records
Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in punk rock. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release ''Minor Disturbance'' by their band The Teen Idles. ...
''. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
Cover art
While the back cover of ''Flex Your Head'' has remained almost the same, its front cover has changed throughout the years.
When the album was first released, featured a
stock photography
Stock photography is the supply of photographs which are often licensed for specific uses. The stock photo industry, which began to gain hold in the 1920s, has established models including traditional macrostock photography, midstock photography, ...
of a painting of a violin, roses, and
sheet music
Sheet music is a handwritten or printed form of musical notation that uses List of musical symbols, musical symbols to indicate the pitches, rhythms, or chord (music), chords of a song or instrumental Musical composition, musical piece. Like ...
. The second pressing, released almost immediately, came with a stock image of stalks of wheat. A third early cover, designed by Jeff Nelson and used for the British pressing of the album, displayed a black and white version of the
flag of Washington, D.C.
The flag of Washington, D.C., consists of three red stars above two red bars on a white background. It is an armorial banner based on the design of the coat of arms granted to George Washington's great-great-great-grandfather, Lawrence Washing ...
with the stars replaced by Xs. Later, in 1985, the record was re-released with a new cover featuring a blurry photo of a man in a hat, which was used until 2008. The most recent version, a variation in red and white of the D.C. flag cover from 1982, came in 2010 on a remastered LP re-release.
The CD editions of the album came with all versions of the front cover to be used interchangeably.
Critical reception
Justin M. Norton, contributor at the online magazine ''
Stereogum
''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine.
''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...
'', was of the view that:
Reissues
''Flex Your Head'' was re-released on
CD in August 1993.
A
remaster
Remaster refers to changing the quality of the sound or of the image, or both, of previously created recordings, either audiophonic, cinematic, or videographic. The terms digital remastering and digitally remastered are also used.
Mastering
A ...
ed CD version was released in 2002.
Track listing
Personnel
The Teen Idles
* Nathan Strejcek –
vocals
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...
* Geordie Grindle –
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...
*
Ian MacKaye
Ian Thomas Garner MacKaye (; born April 16, 1962) is an American musician. Active since 1979, he is best known as the co-founder and owner of Dischord Records, a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label and the frontman of hardcore punk ...
–
bass
*
Jeff Nelson –
drums
A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...
Untouchables
*
Alec MacKaye
Alec MacKaye (born 1966) is an American singer and musician best known as a member of the DC hardcore bands Untouchables, The Faith, and Ignition. In the mid-1990s Alec joined the band The Warmers as a vocalist and guitarist. ''Mondo James Dea ...
– vocals
* Eddie Janney – guitar
* Bert Queiroz – bass
* Rich Moore – drums
State of Alert
*
Henry Garfield − vocals
*
Michael Hampton
Michael Hampton (born November 15, 1956) is an American funk/rock guitarist. He is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, inducted in 1997 with fifteen other members of Parliament-Funkadelic.
Career
Hampton was born in Cleveland, Ohio, a ...
− guitar
* Wendel Blow − bass
* Simon Jacobsen − drums
Minor Threat
*
Ian MacKaye
Ian Thomas Garner MacKaye (; born April 16, 1962) is an American musician. Active since 1979, he is best known as the co-founder and owner of Dischord Records, a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label and the frontman of hardcore punk ...
– vocals
*
Lyle Preslar
Lyle Preslar is an American musician best known for being the guitar player and songwriter for the hardcore punk band Minor Threat. Before that, he was the vocalist for The Extorts, who later became State of Alert after he quit. Despite not perfo ...
– guitar
*
Brian Baker – bass
*
Jeff Nelson – drums
Government Issue
*
John Stabb – vocals
* John Barry – guitar
* Brian Gay – bass
* Marc Alberstadt – drums
Youth Brigade
* Nathan Strejcek – vocals
* Tom Clinton – guitar
* Bert Queiroz – bass
* Danny Ingram – drums
Red C
* Eric L. – vocals
* Pete Murray – guitar
* Toni Young – bass
* Tomas Squip – drums
Void
* John Weiffenbach – vocals
* Bubba Dupree – guitar
* Chris Stover – bass
* Sean Finnegan – drums
Iron Cross
*
Sab Grey
Sab Grey (real name: Frederick Prasunitz) is the founder of Iron Cross, the United States' first skinhead hardcore/ Oi! band.
As a teenager, he began to attend hardcore punk concerts in Washington DC, where he met Ian Mackaye, Henry Rollins, and o ...
– vocals
* Mark Haggerty – guitar
* Wendle Blow – bass
* Dante Ferrando – drums
Artificial Peace
* Steve Polcari – vocals
* Pete Murray – guitar
* Rob Moss – bass
* Mike Manos – drums
Deadline
* Ray Hare – vocals
* Christian Caron – guitar
* Terry Scanlon – bass
*
Brendan Canty
Brendan John Canty (born March 9, 1966, in Teaneck, New Jersey) is an American musician, composer, producer and film maker, best known as the drummer for the band Fugazi.
In 2007, ''Stylus Magazine'' ranked Canty at #29 on the list of "50 Gre ...
– drums
Notes
References
Further reading
*
Blush, Steven (2001). "Minor Threat & DC: Flex Your Head". ''
American Hardcore: A Tribal History''. Second ed., 2010.
Feral House. . pp. 149–176.
* Hurchalla, George (Zuo Press, 2005). "Wild in the Streets". ''Going Underground: American Punk 1979–1989''. Second ed., 2016.
Oakland
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
:
PM Press. . pp. 105–111.
External links
''Flex Your Head'' ''
Dischord Records
Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in punk rock. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release ''Minor Disturbance'' by their band The Teen Idles. ...
''.
* Norton, Justin M. (October 17, 2012)
"13 Essential DC Hardcore Albums: Various Artists - Flex Your Head (Dischord, 1982)" ''
Stereogum
''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine.
''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...
''.
''Flex Your Head'' ''
Discogs
Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...
''.
{{Authority control
1982 compilation albums
Hardcore punk compilation albums
Dischord Records compilation albums