''Fugazi'', also known as the EP ''7 Songs'',Dischord Records: Fugazi – 7 Songs
/ref> is the debut

eponymous An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

release by the American

post-hardcore Post-hardcore is a punk rock music genre that maintains the aggression and intensity of hardcore punk but emphasizes a greater degree of creative expression. It was initially inspired by post-punk and noise rock. Like post-punk, the term has been ...

band

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 ...

. Unlike all their other releases,

Guy Picciotto Guy Charles Picciotto ( ) (born September 17, 1965) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, musician, and producer from Washington, DC. He is best known as the guitarist and vocalist in Fugazi and Rites of Spring. Career Rites of Spring ...

did not contribute guitar to this record; all guitar was performed by

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 ...

. It was originally recorded in June 1988 and released in November 1988 on vinyl and again in 1989 on the compilation release '' 13 Songs'' along with the following EP ''

Margin Walker ''Margin Walker'' is the second EP by the American post-hardcore band Fugazi. It was originally released in June 1989 on vinyl and again in the same year on the compilation release '' 13 Songs'' along with the debut EP '' Fugazi''. The 12" vi ...

''. The photo used for the album cover was taken on June 30, 1988 at Maxwell's in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Content

The release features "

Waiting Room A waiting room or waiting hall is a building, or more commonly a part of a building or a room, where people sit or stand until the event or appointment for which they are waiting begins. There are two types of waiting room. One has individuals ...

" which is often seen as the band's most well-known song, notorious for "the attention-getting drop into silence that occurs at the 22-second mark," as well as for its "relentless

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

-inflected drive", and "Suggestion", a "

Meters The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its prefi ...

-meets- Ruts thrust."

Reception

The band's entry in the ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

'' record guide, written by Ian McCaleb,

Ira Robbins ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference ...

and Mike Fournier, calls the EP an "impressive debut" which "blends a classic DC-core sensibility with a mature, objective outlook and crisply produced mid-tempo songs that are dynamic, aggressive and accessible." They write that MacKaye and Picciotto "trade raw emotionalism for an introspective, almost poetic vision, using abstractions in strongly structured compositions like “Bulldog Front” and “Give Me the Cure,” a contemplation on death." Andy Kellman of

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 ...

calls the EP "excellent".

Legacy

Accolades

In 2018, ''Pitchfork'' ranked the EP at #45 on their list of "The 200 Best Albums of the 1980s", with Evan Rytlewski writing that while the band "would go on to release hours of the most inventive post-hardcore ever, ..they never recorded anything else so instantly gratifying."

Influence

According to

Kim Thayil Kim Anand Thayil (born September 4, 1960) is an American musician best known as the lead guitarist of the Seattle-based rock band Soundgarden, which he co-founded with singer Chris Cornell and bassist Hiro Yamamoto in 1984. Cornell and Thayil ...

Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil (both of whom are the only members to appear in every incarnation of the band), and bassist Hiro Yamamo ...

, the band would regularly listen to cassettes of the ''Fugazi'' EP and

Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...

's ''Bleach'' whilst on tour. "Waiting Room" has been covered by a wide range of musicians since the EP's release.

Tropical Fuck Storm Tropical Fuck Storm are an Australian rock band from Melbourne, Victoria, formed by Gareth Liddiard and Fiona Kitschin from The Drones. Lauren Hammel, from the band High Tension, plays drums, and Erica Dunn, from the bands Mod Con, Harmony, an ...

covered "Burning" live.

Prong Prong or Prongs may refer to: * Prong, synonym of tine (structural), a branch or spike of various tools and natural objects * Prong (band), an American metal band * Prong (company), an iPhone accessories company in New York City * Prongs, British ...

covered "Give Me the Cure".

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), and Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, guita ...

covered "Suggestion" in various concerts in the early 1990s, usually as a tag to another song or an improvised jam. The track was also covered by

Jonah Matranga Jonah Rzadzinski Matranga (born Jonah Sonz Matranga, August 11, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who has released a variety of solo material under his own name and onelinedrawing, and has previously been part of the bands ...

and Taina Asili (in collaboration with the

Nuyorican Nuyorican is a portmanteau of the terms "New York" and "Puerto Rican" and refers to the members or culture of the Puerto Ricans located in or around New York City, or of their descendants (especially those raised or currently living in the N ...

hip-hop/punk band

Ricanstruction Ricanstruction was a New York City based Puerto Rican punk/ hip hop/salsa/jazz/reggae fusion musical group and artist collective. When Ricanstruction first started, the band consisted of lead vocalist Not4Prophet (also known as N4P, Zero Proph ...

Track listing

Personnel

– vocals, guitar *

– vocals *

Joe Lally Joseph Francis Lally (born December 3, 1963) is an American bassist, vocalist and record label owner, best known for his work with Fugazi. Biography Lally was born in Silver Spring, Maryland. Fugazi Joe Lally formed Fugazi with Ian MacKaye in ...

– 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

References

{{Authority control Fugazi EPs 1988 debut EPs Dischord Records EPs Albums produced by Ted Niceley Albums produced by Ian MacKaye