Customer Reviews

Against the Grain

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is one of the reasons I ended up going to college for philosophy. Take that as you will.

If you are looking for an introduction to Bad religion you could do no better. If you are looking for an intro to punk in general, be warned- this will spoil you. It's just too good.

This is the album that got me into punk, the one that showed me what the medium could do, how thoughtful and acerbic it could be. Behold- This one is a band-launcher. Such thematic diversity and rhythmic variety, propulsive and tight, such ferocity...

I don't care much for BR's work post- Stranger Than Fiction (though Process was a nice surprise), but thanks to this and Suffer they can do no wrong in my eyes.

Modern man, Entropy (the only song I bet to ever mention Ludwig Boltzmann), faith Alone, walk Away, Misery and Famine, 21st Century Digital Boy, the sweet-arena rock drums that close out Anesthesia... There are NO Sleeper tracks.

PS I learned more vocab by sitting around reading BR's lyric sheets with a dictionary than I ever did in any English or SAT-prep class. So adventurous home-schoolers take-note!!!! The opening lyrics of 'Positive Aspect of Negative Thinking,' for example...

"Let's gather 'round the carcass of the old deflated beast,
we've seen it through its accolades and rested in its lea
syntactic is our elegance, incisive our disease,
the swaths endogenous of ourselves will be our quandary..."

si jadis me souviens...

PS thank you, Josh Locker, for turning me on to this, all those years ago... If you're out there...

If you listen to this album for the first time and don't feel changed, there is something wrong with you. The guitar work, the vocals, the lyrics, it's all great. I wouldn't say it's their best but it definately set a stride for the next few years to come. This is the last album to feature drummer Pete Finestone, he was replaced by Bobby Schayer, and let me tell you, if Bobby had have been on ATG instead of Pete, this album would be up their in my top 5. This album perfectly blends the melodicism and guitar technique that they have been trying to get out for years, along with their SUFFER-esque song structures.

1. Modern Man (10/10)
2. Turn on the Light (10/10)
3. Get Off (10/10)
4. Blenderhead (10/10)
5. Positive Aspect of Negative Thinking (5/10)
6. Anesthesia (10/10)
7. Flat Earth Society (10/10)
8. Faith Alone (10/10)
9. Entropy (10/10)
10. Against the Grain (10/10) my personal favorite BR song
11. Operation Rescue (10/10)

12. God Song (10/10) incredible song, a must listen to track.
13. 21st Century (Digital Boy) (10/10) BR's classic hit, still played live every night
14. Misery and Famine (7/10)
15. Unacceptable (10/10)
16. Quality or Quantity (10/10)
17. Walk Away (10/10)

This completes my BR studio album collection, and it seems I've unintentionally saved the best for last. The usual quota of 4-6 good songs per album seems to have been ditched, because these are all at least good, and several make me salivate heavily.

And, while still a loyal BR fan, I admit that the last two albums have been a disappointment. "The Gray Race" and "No Substance" have their highlights, but they seem to lack a certain energy (not necessarily just reflected in speed) and only feature a fraction of the hooks of earlier albums. The most logical explanation is the loss of the Mr. Brett half of the songwriting team. Between Greg Graffin and himself, they seemed to be able to come up with a solid album per year. Left to his own devices lately, Greg does a competent but unspectacular job.

Check out the following tracks for the tightest harmonies, catchiest hooks and cleverest lyrics BR have to offer -- "Modern Man," "Turn On the Light," "Anesthesia," "Blenderhead," "The Flat Earth Society," "Entropy," "21st Century Digital Boy," and especially the title track. Hummmm, dawggy! Check out who wrote what tracks, and you'll see that Mr. Brett's influence seems indispensible. Yet, he's since been dispensed with.

This is their masterpiece, in my opinion, and the most musically appealing punk record I've ever heard.

Bad Religion is an awesome band. I can not say this enough. From their classic Suffer to their under-apreciated Recipe for Hate. After their short but great No Control, Bad Religion released Against the Grain.

This album is so amazing. It combines the speed of Suffer with the emotional and melodic aspects of later albums like Recipe for Hate and Stranger than Fiction. The blending of Greg Gaffin's thounderous and haunting vocals and Greg Hetson and Brett Gurwitz insane guitar work, this is probably the most different Bad Religion disc around. Tracks like "Anesthesia", "Faith Alone", and the classic "21st Century Digital Boy" give a more emotional and deep side of Bad Religion. It also has the fast tracks of their other albums like "Modern Man", "Turn on Your Light", "Operation Rescue", and "Walk Away". This is one of the most interesting punk records ever released and I highly recommend it.

This albums only contains rock'N'rollin songs to make your simple plan crap in his pants!

Though Bad Religion has released three classic punk rock albums, this one is the Everest. Rising above the angst of Suffer, the anarchy of No Control, Against the Grain is a step into a whole new world. The songs are longer, solos tighter, lyrics tougher. Though not as direct as No Control, not as fast as Suffer, Against the Grain brings along whole new elements of songwriting. Greg and Brett go from writing two-verse jabs to solid 3-4 minute tracks, and more varying sounds. They still have some bursts of their old selves, as in Modern Man, a song that may have been written back in their lder days. New to Bad Religion here, is their longer, deeper, slower songs, such as Anesthesia, a great song about lies and how your emotions make you lose control. Overall, a must have for any punk rock fan, or alternative rock fan. Standout tracks are, Modern Man, Anesthesia, Faith Alone, Against the Grain, and 21st Century Digital Boy.

I've had this CD for over a year and I still listen to it reguarly. Every song is at least very good. I can only say that for a few other albums.

This CD being the last part of the "Bad Religion trilogy" of Suffer, No Control, Against the Grain has very developed melodies and harmonizing. The music itself is somewhat simple but works extremely well in the songs. There are some pretty cool guitar solos too. Greg Graffin's lyrics are very advanced. They are very intelligent. His vocals fit the music too.

The songs are all short and sweet and catchy, most of them being in mid tempo. Here is a rundown of the tracks:

Modern Man: Good opener, not one of my favorite songs. The lyrics and the solo are good though. The song deals with human carelessness and irresponsibility. 8/10

Turn on the light: Great song, it is a little on the poppy side. I really like the melodies in this one. There's a little bass solo too. 9.5/10

Get Off: Another good song, not one of the best though. THe melodies aren't as good as those on the other songs. Still good though. 7.5/10

Blenderhead: One of my favorites. The song's lyrics are about questioning established beliefs. Pretty good music. I like the verses a lot. It ends in a weird place though. 10/10

The Positive Aspect of Negative Thinking: Short, fast song. The lyrics in the first more upbeat section are very hard to understand. So many big obscure words. The second section starts with a key change and mentions "terrorist religions". The song is good but i doesn't move me much. 7/10

Anesthesia: A superb more emotional song by Brett Gurewitz. It tells a story. THe melodies in this song are really great. I like the closing section with the great drums. 9/10

Flat Earth Society: Another one of those songs that don't move me so much. The chorus is good though. 8.5/10

Faith Alone: Awesome slower song. Great melodies. It is really beautiful. The solo is great too. As usual, the lyrics are good. Reminds me of the song "Sanity" off No Control. 10/10

Entropy: Another great song. The song topic is a little out there but the song is great. I love the pre chorus. Some of the harmonizing toward the end is superb too. 10/10

Against the Grain: The title track is another one of the best on the album. It's pretty fast and talk about non comformity(hence the title). Another beautiful song. 10/10

Operation Rescue: I love this song. The lyrics are great and deal with religious fundamentalist groups(such as "Operation Rescue"). I love the chorus too. 10/10

God Song: One more song dealing with religion. It talks about how man creates God and how religion is a "synthetic frippery". The music is good too. There's a cool solo as well. 9/10

21st Century Digital Boy: This song is a true Bad Religion classic. Great lyrics about the suburban youth of today. The chorus is great. The lyrics at the end are partially taken from King Crimson's 21st Century Schizoid Man (another great song).10/10

Misery or Famine: Very good song, not as exceptional as the 5 or 6 previous songs but still good. The lyrics are thought provoking as usual. The key change somewhere in Misery or Famine really lifts the song up. 9/10

Unacceptable: Another song that doesn't really move me. This song is about pollution. It good but not exceptional. 8/10

Quality or Quantity: A little better than Unacceptable but still not spectacular. The lyrics seem to speak in part about poverty. 8.5/10

Walk Away: A worthy closer to this great album. It is also another exceptional song. The melodies are great but I don't quite get the lyrics (they probably tell a story. 10/10

All in all, this is a great album that anyone even having a passing interest in punk rock should check out. If you like this album you should buy No Control and Suffer as well.

Anyone who knows anything about the history and evolution of punk rock will tell you that Bad Religion is one of the genre's greatest bands. They essentially created the "Epitaph sound," a combination of punk rock aggression, speed, and political awareness with melodic sensibilities, vocal harmonies, and legitimate songwriting. Despite their influence on hundreds of bands after them, however, no one's ever done it better than Bad Religion.

Against the Grain is the third installment in the legendary trilogy of early Bad Religion (also including the albums Suffer and No Control) as well as the strongest musically. Suffer shows the band working out the kinks of their new sound, No Control puts more emphasis on speed and aggression, and this album represents the culmination of their efforts. The songs show a noticeable improvement over Suffer and No Control, especially the inclusion of myriad, effective, not-in-the-least-bit-self-indulgent guitar solos. Against the Grain also showcases a bit more variety than their previous efforts, with such songs as the eerily reserved title track, the slowed-down, yet powerful "Faith Alone," and the unforgettable "21st Century Digital Boy." Despite these few differences, however, the album is mostly made up of the classic Bad Religion sound heard on Suffer and No Control.

It would be pointless (as well as tiring) for me to go through and describe or rate all seventeen songs on Against the Grain and gush about how this melody is perfect and that solo is incredible, etc; this is an album that speaks for itself. It's intelligent, it's melodic, it's aggressive, it's catchy, it's Bad Religion.

Pure speed, pure intensity, pure insight. One of the finest of BR's many wonderful albums. An album that will leave you pondering for days. So many syllables in so little time!

This is one of the very best Bad Religion albums - I'd put it just above Suffer and just below No Control. It's the point at which Bad Religion started aim for slower, more emotional music. And that's not a bad thing.

1. Modern Man 10/10 - great lyrics, great tune and a great song to start with.

2. Turn of the Light 9/10 - this is one of the more emotional songs on this album, but not on the scale of some of their later work.

3. Get Off 9/10 - great rhythm, great song.

4. Blenderhead 9/10 - one of the best songs on the album, but it ends suddenly which sounds a bit wierd.

5. The Positive Aspect of Negative Thinking 6/10 - Jay Bentley's attempt at writing a song. This has the best title and possibly the best lyrics of any BR song, but the wierd change of key at the end completely lets the song down.

6. Anesthesia 10/10 - one of my all time favourites. Bad Religion prove that they can write a decent emotional song without sounding like No Substance.

7. Flat Earth Society 10/10 - I love this song! Great chorus!

8. Faith Alone 8/10 - for some reason I could never really get to love this song as much as the others. It's still pretty good though.

9. Entropy 10/10 - great tune, great lyrics, great song.

10. Against the Grain 10/10 - one of Bad Religion's masterpieces, and a worthy song to name the album after.

11. Operation Rescue 9/10 - good song.

12. God Song 10/10 - begins with words from an ancient hymn, except that 'England' is now 'America'. Great guitar as well.

13. 21st Century (Digital Boy) 10/10 - my favourite BR song of all time. The original is a lot better than the 'remaking' of it on 'Stranger than Fiction'.

14. Misery and Famine 10/10 - amazing lyrics.

15. Unacceptable 7/10 - average BR song (which still means that it's better than 99% of music nowadays).

16. Quality or Quantity 9/10 - good song.

17. Walk Away 9/10 - good song to end with.