Customer Reviews

Greatest and Latest

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

 

 

It's weird: Agent Orange's original recordings have been remastered and sound strangely slick for a punk/surf/skateboard/Orange County . . . whatever kind of band they are. So AO re-records many of their best songs and makes them sound more raw than ever!

Yes, these are mostly remakes, but they are remakes of really, really good stuff. If you liked the originals, you should have this in your collection as well. And yes, this album is the same as "Blood Stained Hitz" but that's a dorky name so i'm reviewing this one instead. And finally, yes, this band is actually Mike Palm and two other guys who seem to keep changing. None of those three facts keep this from being a great collection.

So, these are rougher and faster than the originals -- not sloppier but definitely more noisy. This treatment generally works well and gives the songs a new feel. "Say It Isn't True" sounds refreshingly angry, which is how I always thought it should have sounded. It could be argued that the original versions of "Bloodstains" and "Everything Turns Grey" are superior than those here, but the originals were so great that it's sort of a moot point. It could also be argued that the edgier treatment these two songs receive here better matches their dark lyrics. However you slice it, both of these classics work well in their "Greatest and Latest" incarnations. For the record, the "two other guys" playing here besides Mike Palm comprise a tight and vigorous rhythm section and I wish I had their names to post to give them the credit they deserve.

"Message From the Underworld" and "Dorado" might be just a bit too hyper in this incarnation. This is compensated for by two new songs which are great additions to AO's playbook and fit nicely in the mix here. "It's All a Blur" is a great way to start any CD, and "What's the Combination" seems to promise that the band is not done yet (listen to the last line before fadeout . . . .) AO has always had a small, intense catalog of great songs and they do justice to it in this collection. Highly recommended.

These songs will never get old for me. They were excellent songs way back when, and they are excellent now. This time around the energy and recording quality is better then ever. Also, The versions of the songs are just a little bit different then past albums making the songs fresh and alive again. The new songs fit right in. If Agent Orange is new to you or not this is a top notch album. Buy it.

The review below was obviously done by a ... who knows little if anything about Agent Orange. Lets start off with the only thing he stated correctly. Most of this CD is rerecorded classics. What he neglected to state is that they sound GREAT. I feel this is the first CD that captures the intensity and energy of their live performances. These classic songs are redone with more speed and intensity then the originals and are very good representation of how the band sound live today. It also contains a few new and very cool tracks that rock like “What’s the Combination” plus a blistering version of the Weirdos classic “Message from the Underworld”. As far as original members they were Mike Palm, Scott Miller and Steve Soto. Take a look at the liner notes of “Living in Darkness” Agent Oranges first full-length release you will not see Steve Soto by this time Steve was in the Adolescence. If the ... was referring to James Levesque and Scott Miller no they are not on this disk and have not been in the band since the late 80s. I can recommend this CD to anyone from diehard Agent Orange fans to some who has only hear of the band. This is a GREAT CD!!!

It's nice to have good modern recordings of the classics, as well as a couple of new treats and finally a studio version of the Weirdos cover they've been playing live forever.

Bloodstains in particular has gotten harder and faster. The old versions of Bloodstains--that I've loved forever--now seem kind of plodding in comparison. A truly world-class window-shaker.

The only frustrating thing is, Mike shows he can still write, the two new originals are awesome, but 2 new songs in a decade? C'mon Mike, get off your butt and write!

Is it the original lineup? No--so what? Are there ANY punk bands out there (O.K., O.K., except X) still playing with their 1980 members? I think Taylor and Latanation are an improvement over their original counterparts.

I also have to disagree with the prior reviewer's assessment of their live performances--I've seen them several times in the last few years, musically they're as good as ever, although Mike's voice sometimes gets a little thin by the end of the show.

Note that this is exactly the same album as "Blood Stained Hitz", the only thing missing here is the incredibly stupid title of the newer release.

Buyers should be aware that this release primarily consists of year 2000 re-recordings of classic early 80's material. Only one original member of Agent Orange, Mike Palm is credited as having participated in the recording sessions.

Don't waste your time. I saw Agent Orange about a year ago at the Avalon in Boston. Maybe it was the sound system, but they were not what they once were - much like this album. Stick to the original Posh Boy release of Living in Darkness. Maybe it IS better to burn out, than fade away . . .