Customer Reviews

Field Day

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

 

 

Legends of the DC Hardcore scene slow down a little and make an album for everyone. Brian Baker was a personal inspiration to me as a guitar player - save that godawful side trip into Junkyard, his riffs and solos, even on _Out Of Step_ by Minor Threat, were always above average and exploratory - always seeking but never pretending. This album and "Wig Out At Denko's" are their best, mostly because of clever lyrics and great musicianship - but of the two, this album takes the cake because of its ecclectecism and just flat-out great songwriting. Graced with Peter Courtner's smoky vocals, the whole first side of the album is almost pop-punk, its surprising, hook-y and constantly clever and engaging. The lyrics really stand out on "The Ambulance Song" ( but the blues-y Baker solo is a nice touch) and the hard-hitting "Dear Mrs. Touma". "Staring At The Rude Boys" is a raging cover tune, as well as "12XU" (Baker also covered this tune with Minor Threat) and a jaunty cover of "Under Your Influence" with original Dag Nasty vocalist Dave Smalley. "La Penita" is a brutally honest song, sad and lilting (again - complete with some nice flamenco touches from Mr. Baker), almost an anthem for a barfly. Another bonus - the CD includes some additional bonus tracks that the original casette release lacked - the sarcastic "Never Green Lane" and the incredible "Your Mine", which evokes the same kind of lyrical ambiguity that the Police do with "Every Breath You Take". If you're into "forgotten masterpieces" then you had best pull out your credit card and discover this great band.

Field Day is an outstanding pop/punk record that set the bar high for the countless imitators who came in Dag Nasty's wake. For one, the level of musicianship is remarkable for guys barely in their twenties in a genre not noted for the musical chops of its players. Brian Baker practically invents the pop/punk guitar vocabulary on this one--his changes/solos/accents are executed with real originality and panache. The rhythm section is also outstanding with tight drumming and bass playing. And the vocals are raggedly endearing without pretension or bs; they capture a real sense of what's it's like to be teetering in that odd place between teenager and adult. If this classic had been released in the early '90s, it would have sold millions. Forget Green Day, Field Day is your ticket.

I too thought this was a sell-out when I heard it in the late 80s. It was soft and melodic and not nearly as hardcore as Can I Say or Wig Out at Denkos. In my skateboarding days this record was as blasphemous as 7 Seconds going soft with New Wind. Yet I've noticed over the years how much better this has aged than the other Dag Nasty albums. Remove this from the Minor Threat/Dischord scene and appreciate it for the songs. It's excellent, every bit as good as what bands like Husker Du were doing around the same time. In fact, Dear Mrs. Touma may be the pinnacle of American 80s college rock. Other tracks like All Ages Show, Trouble Is, and Staring at the Rude Boys are nearly as good.

By the time "Field Day" was released in 1988, Dag Nasty was a much different band to say the least. This clearly shows on the album; the band by this time boasted only one original member (Brian Baker), and a much different sound than on previous efforts. On first listen, one might be tempted to dismiss "Field Day" as perhaps their worst album (as I did, I must admit), but such assertions ignore the fact that this is simply a whole different album. "Field Day" boasts not so much an emo sound, but rather (and dare I say) a blues-rock/metal sound, as is evident on songs like "13 Seconds Under Water" and "Dear Mrs. Touma". "Field Day" also boasts a remake of the Dag Nasty classic "Under Your Influence", which is another example of the more hard rock sound that Dag Nasty had developed for themselves. All in all, just a solid rock album.

Would I recommend this to anyone just getting into DN, though? Not likely.

This record is incredible. Dag Nasty's best record ever. I've had this since it came out & I still listen to it. This is "Emo-core" at its finest. Forget PROMISE RING & GET UP KIDS, this is what I think about when somebody mentions EMO. Great music, great vocals, real emotion...

One of the best pop punk albums of the late eighties. Unfortunately, they were about five years ahead of their time and they broke up sometime after this. If you like any of the current wave of pop punk bands (Green Day, Offspring, NOFX, etc.), check out Dag Nasty. Also, I think that Brian Baker (the guitar genius behind Dag Nasty) is now in Bad Religion.

Forget all the other applause and accolades you see in the other reviews--this is Dag Nasy at their worst and that's actually and understatement. If "Can I Say" is early emo and "Wig Out At Denkos" is overwrought emo though not a total waste "Field Day" is absolute crap. Husker Du pulled off pop within a punk format---Dag Nasty come off like amatuers and should have stuck with what they started on the first album--including Dave Smalley. Don't waste your money kiddies--this ain't old school punk--emo or whatever--its junk--overwrought--junk.