Customer Reviews

Scratch the Surface

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I am really surprised to see that 10 years after its release, Scratch the Surface would have a rating of only 2 stars. I have always considered it one of the most important hardcore albums of the nineties.
In 1994, popular music was in a state of flux: Weezer The Blue Album; Live Throwing Copper; Green Day Dookie; Jeff Buckley Grace; Soundgarden Superunknown; Hootie and the Blowfish... these were the albums that the music industry put their muscle behind. In that same year, Sick of it All created Scratch the Surface, the album that made New York Hardcore MATTER, the album that cemented Sick of it All as the most influential and musically accomplished of all NYHC bands.
I understand that the music SoiA wrote fell somewhere in between the popular genres of the day, and may have turned off the punk kids expecting Green Day, the metal kids expecting Pantera, and the grunge kids expecting Soundgarden, but the release of Scratch the Surface not only defined a genre, it heralded the beginning of a growing acceptance of real punk; punk that didn't have to have fake british accents, california license plates, or gimmicky videos attached to be heard. Sick of it All might never have reached the heights they were destined for, but to this day, I maintain that Scratch the Surface stands out on the punkrock road map: a landmark of where punk has been and where it can still go.

I don't know why people gave this album such bad reviews they must be idiots. Sick of it all Offers the best of old school Hardcore with a grooving edge. The other reviwers needs to go back to listening to their Yanni and Micheal Jackson Because they will never understand or be a part of HARDCORE

I've seen so many bad reviews by customers that I have to agree with most people who say you've never been a fan of SICK OF IT ALL to begin with so why even buy the CD. SCRATCH THE SURFACE is one of Sick Of It Alls strongest efforts to date, if not THE best CD they've ever made. To date they haven't made an album heavier than this one. It's sound is very Raw but very well produced by Billy Anderson and recorded at Normandy Sound which is where the legendary BLOOD, SWEAT AND NO TEARS was recorded. Sadly Sick Of It All hasn't recorded there since but have made great follow up albums but THIS is the album to me that made the strongest statement and drove me to go to MANY shows during their tour for this album plus a funny video came out of it for STEP DOWN. Maybe some of you who trashed this album so much have never seen the band play live and don't really understand why people Like this cd and Sick Of It All in general. In closing I'll say this is the Sick Of It All album that has meant the most to me as far as getting me out there and supporting them by going to shows and dancing my head off. Negative reviewers, open your minds and give this CD a few more spins and check them out when they come to your town.

Firstly, you must ignore all the one star reveiws here.

I picked this lil' punk treat up at a sale having only heard the song Step Down. Once played I wasn't dissapionted. Scratch the Surface, Step Down, Insurrection, and Consume stand out as my favorites, Step Down is perhaps the best track. It's a real track to get ya riled. This is good hard (New York) style punk from the mid 90s. Listening to it ya can smell the mosh-pits, the sweat and frenzied throng. Don't look for deep meanings in the lyrics, it's a punk album to get ya real amped.

These guys have it all....Lou Koller is the best voice in hardcore with the presence and personality to go with it....basically most hardcore singers wouldnt know a melody if it kicked them in the head....Lou Koller is melodic in a way that doesnt detract from hardcores' standards of intensity....you hardly notice his melodic ingenuity because its so brilliantly subtle....it takes a couple of listens to get past the sheer anger and rage in his singing to start hearing its tunefulness....SIOA is also the most charged band ever to hit a stage...They also manage to diffrentiate the songs very well which is usually a problem for hardcore bands....in addition to anthem-like lyrics in just about every song without being cliche in a genre that is 90% cliche.

Some of you people are crazy for not liking this band or cd .I think they are one of the best hardcore bands out there.So don't like this band maby you should go back and get the back street boys maby those songs you really touch you .

Years after activity in a healthy hardcore scene, I feel this CD still merits very special consideration. I saw them in 1994, had the CDs, and Sick of it All are still as vital now as they were then. This is what hardcore is all about: energy, aggression, heaviness, pushing yourself to new heights, and of course an attitude of rebellion... In a typical day where I listen to everything from Thelonious Monk, to the Grateful Dead, to Pantera, and to Eleventh Hour (Tyler, Texas' classic hardcore band), this CD is still the [best]!

S O I A is one of the best oldschool hardcore band in the wordl,and this cd is the best released of this band.it is strong,fast.there are a lot of breaks.songs are wroten right to the point.but if don t like hardcore and oldschool you won t like this cd

I don't know who the loser is who wrote the same review about 50 times but get over it, you wouldn't know a good band if it hit you between the eyes, which I am sure this band would if they knew who you were. Overall this cd is hardcore punk at its finest and they are even better live.

This classic CD was SOIAs most aggressive to date, which was surprising considering it was their major label debut. The song "Step Down" makes it worth the price alone. This album seems more focused than their later offerings. Get this or "Just Look Around," the album credited with saving hardcore in the early nineties.