Customer Reviews

Rock for Light

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Bad Brains is a classic, immensely talented, frenetic hardcore band (...), and "Rock For Light" is arguably their best release (although I probably prefer the more punkish "Black Dots" album a slight bit more). I know a lot of folks prefer the self-titled release to this, but I have never understood that. RFL is so much more diverse, with a handful of great reggae songs and some wonderful "pop-core" (the title track and "At the Movies," for instance). The song selection, for sure, is far superior to that of the self-titled release (including the already-mentioned "Rock for Light" and "At the Movies," as well as "Coptic Times," "How Low Can A Punk Get," "Joshua's Song," and "Riot Squad"). My one complaint is that I take great umbrage with Darryl's decision to resequence the track order on the Caroline CD. The new tracking blows and completely ruins the flow of the album. For those of you who really want to experience the greatness of this album, reprogram the tracking as follows:

Coptic Times (the perfect opener)/attitude/we will not/sailin' on/rally around jah throne/right brigade/f.v.k./riot squad/the meek shall inherit the earth/joshua's song/banned in d.c./how low can a punk get?/big takeover/i&i survive/destroy babylon/rock for light/at the movies (you can add the three bonus tracks at the end -- supertouch/I/jam)

For this CD, you need to talk about not just the music but also how it has been presented. First, the music part. "Rock for Light" was the Bad Brain's first full-length vinyl release, coming a couple of years after their attention-getting (on the underground scene) release for New York's cassette-only ROIR label. A lot of the tracks from the ROIR release are repeated here. In case you don't know--and maybe you don't, which is why you read these reviews--the music here is punk rock. The Bad Brains' fast, precisely played interpretation of it was one of the sounds that helped create the template for hardcore punk, for better and worse. Vocalist H.R. does everything from croon to screech to yowl as he belts out frequently Rastafarian-themed lyrics about freedom, social ills, and the like. Three reggae tracks are mixed in--not the greatest reggae you'll ever hear, but a nice change of pace and certainly played from the heart. The riffs are hard and the musicians know what they're doing; this is great music to set your heart racing and get your arms and legs pumping.

The presentation: As two earlier reviewers (Tokyogarman and ebblank) suggested in their comments, all of the hardcore songs have been sped up a full half-step on the CD reissue from the original vinyl release of "Rock for Light." I used to play these songs on guitar all the time and have them pretty much committed to memory, and I had to play everything higher when I played along to the CD. If you've got the LP, you can play it side by side with the CD--you'll hear the change right away. Oddly, the reggae songs still play at the same speed, though a lot of the toasting (the bits thrown in at the end of the reggae songs where somebody, presumably an overdubbed H.R., throws in the occasional, "Rasta say 'revolution' bingity bingity bong," and so forth) is now buried in the mix for the CD.

Hard to say whey they did this. Speeding up a recording is frequently a producer's or record company's trick to make a band seem more energetic--surely, that's the last thing anyone had to worry about with the Bad Brains?

The ROIR cassette was indeed a classic, but the sound was terribly muffled (I haven't heard the CD reissue so I don't know if they "fixed" that), like they had recorded it in a large cardboard box. That made the cleaner-sounding "Rock for Light" a most welcome release in 1983 (at least if you weren't hung up on the idea that a muddy recording was somehow more authentic and "real"). But the LP still suffered from some odd choices about the sound balance between the instruments, and that problem has not been fixed with the CD. The biggest complaints about the vinyl mix are (1) you can hardly hear or feel the bass, and (2) the guitar solo overdubs seem to float on top of the music. Given that bassist Darryl Jennifer had a hand in so-called remix for the CD, I was surprised to discover that the bass was still pretty inaudible. Moreover, the guitar sounds REALLY strange now--all treble, no midrange or low end sounds. The only improvement was that the vocals seem to be clearer and have greater presence. After purchasing this, I was tempted to just burn my vinyl to CD and tack on the three extra tracks that appear on the CD version that weren't on the LP.

(In the end, I just ripped the hardcore tracks to my computer, slowed the speed to about 93% to shift the pitch down, recorded the vinyl versions of the reggae tunes, and burned myself a "proper" version of the CD.)

All told, the music itself rates a 4.5; this CD gets a 3 mainly for the disappointments. If you can't find (or play) the vinyl, you won't suffer if you buy the CD, but you should be aware of its quirks.

surely one of the best punk hardcore records, and at this day the only all black punk band. they introduced reggae in the punk (which became "fashion" since then). this record is 22 year old, but kicks asses of bands like nofx and that kind of crap... A must have for all music addicts

Don't get me wrong-this ALBUM is one of the best punk records of all-time. But the CD sounds terrible and is actually inaccurate when compared to the original vinyl release. I'm not a vinyl nazi but in this case the parties concerned really screwed it up. The CD is 5% faster and is pitched up as well when played alonside the vinyl. That means that the songs aren't even in the same key anymore! Why? Why did they ruin this amazing record? The tunes on the original vinyl release were faster than anything before. They sounded insane and that was good. Now HR sounds like a damn chipmunk and the drums have no guts at all. The mix is all screwed up as well. In the mythic "someday" this will be restored by finding the original 2 track mixes and then re-releasing them on CD. If you can find the vinyl buy it, but if you can't then the CD will have to do. Just know that the CD does not contain the sound that makes this such a classic record. To me, the funny thing is that there is a whole generation loving this CD now that would hate the vinyl 'cause it would sound "slow". A better purchase would be the ROIR sessions.

This is a great album, but get the PVC Records release which is available on CD, the reason being that the Caroline re-issue has been sped up making HR sound like a chipmunk and the bass guitar and floor tom seem non-existent. I don't know what the reviewer down below is thinking--with Rock for Light you get blazing furious hardcore assault with some reggae tunes where the extremely overhyped I Against I doesn't come close...If you like 80's rock mixed with hardcore than get I Against I...If your full of testosterone and you just wanna go nuts, then get Rock For Light!!!!!!!

Very few bands can claim to have invented a type of music, but Bad Brains sure as hell can. They are THE hardcore punk band of the century. The fast pounding guitars and HR's awesome voice really shine on this cd, but on all Bad Brains cd for that matter. And then once you're really getting into the amazing hardcore they'll slow it down into the best reggae/dub I've ever heard. "I and I survive" is my favorite reggae song ever, and one of my favorite songs of any type of music ever! The lyrics are meaningful and politically insightful and have a great message behind them. What else can I say, this album rocks! I wish I could see em live someday, ... they were most active before I was even born!

If you are a Bad Brains fan, or are interested in the early 80s hardcore scene in DC, this album belongs in your collection. The songs show strong punk influences -- long before BB adopted reggae and progressive hardcore sounds into their songwriting -- but the lyrics show the same angry, topical style as is found in later releases.

The production is raw (I think it's an eight track recording, and I heard that Rock for Light was originally released on cassette!) but the CD sounds good. The title track and "Big Takeover" are particularly good.

As other reviewers have said, the hardcore songs on this CD master are artifically sped up.

I have no idea why, as the Bad Brains were already really really fast, but what truly baffles me is that the people producing the CD remaster are Rick Ocasek (the original album producer) and Darryl Jennifer (the bassist of the Bad Brains). Simply put, they should've known better. I can't imagine how this happened knowing that the task of putting this on CD was in their hands.

This album is an absolute punk rock classic, no doubt about that, but speeding up the tracks dilutes the album of its power and impact. Their speed is no longer impressive since its no longer real. HR sounds way to high pitched, everything is in the wrong pitch now.

I don't know if was a fluke or a mistake or what, but it really kills the experience.

If you would like to hear some Rock For Light tracks at the right speed, I know that songs like "At The Movies" and "Sailin' On" were transfered from vinyl for the "Banned In D.C.: Greasest Riffs" comp, so you can hear some of those classics at their correct speed and pitch on that CD.

Lastly, to Caroline Records: If you really wanna do us a solid, remaster and re-issue this thing on CD at the right speed with the right track order. I'll be the first to buy it, I promise.

I am one of those unlucky bastards that did not hear this album when it came out in mid 1983, albeit,I knew it existed and always wanted to hear it.Back then (1983)I was a metalhead into bands like Priest and Maiden and Motorhead,thinking that they were the apex of heavy music.Fast forward to 1998,when I finally got the chance to purchase "Rock For Light" and I was literally blown away by its sheer ferocity,break-neck-speed and unrelenting musical attack.This is one of the most visceral rock albums ever,brimming with a power that will make a lot of Nu-Metal clowns ... in their pants!Although modestly produced (the guitar sound is weak, to say the least, by today's standards, and the drums are not as loud as they should've been)it still manages to enthrall the listener with unapologetic attitude.Songs like "Riot Squad","Joshua's song" and "How Low Can a Punk Get" are an all-out thrash fest, that would certainly have appealed to early Metallica and Slayer fans, while "At The Movies" and "I And Survive" show the more musical style of the band. The latter song is a Dub/Reggae jam that manages to remain appealing to me; even though I'm not a big Reggae fan, I must confess IT is a good, catchy song, with a mesmerizing chorus that sounds dark and sad. For those who prefer the heavier,speedier side of Bad Brains, then look no further, as "Rock For Light" is basically an all out hardcore album, with just 3 or four detours into Reaggae/Dub...and even those detours sound cool amidst the rage and thrash of the rest of the songs.Fans of Minor Threat, early Hüsker Dü and fast Dead Kennedys, this IS the album to die for!

How can you describe Bad Brains? How can you describe the first time you listened to Bad Brains? First off you are blown away by tracks like Supertouch and Sailin' On then the next minute you get hit with some pure reggae tracks like The Meek and I! You are left thinking to yourself "What the ****!"

Bad Brains are a band like no other and this is one of their best albums, no matter what anyone says about this band they are unique in music. Hardcore that leaves Minor Threat in the dust.

Buy it, buy it now!