MIA: The Complete Anthology [ORIGINAL RECORDING REISSUED]

The Germs

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 17, 2000)
• Original Release Date: August 3, 1993
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording reissued
• Label: Rhino / Wea
• ASIN: B00004YLAR
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (67 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #37,530 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. Forming - The Germs, The Germs

2. Sex Boy [Live] - The Germs, The Germs

3. Lexicon Devil - The Germs, The Germs

4. Circle One

5. No God

6. What We Do Is Secret - The Germs, The Germs

7. Communist Eyes

8. Land of Treason

9. Richie Dagger's Crime

10. Strange Notes

11. American Leather

12. Lexicon Devil

13. Manimal - The Germs, The Germs

14. Our Way

15. We Must Bleed

16. Media Blitz

17. Other Newest One

18. Let's Pretend

19. Dragon Lady

20. Slave

See all 30 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Formed in 1977, these angry, snotty-boy punks came on like an L.A. version of the Sex Pistols: sneering, shouting, and provoking violence wherever they performed. Leader Darby Crash was genuinely threatening as he railed against the society that had spawned him. Unfortunately, Crash's dark and destructive side would eventually consume him. A mere three years after the band's first gig--and in fitting tribute to his hero and role model, Sid Vicious--Crash died of a drug overdose. This anthology documents the Germs' short but furious reign as the kings of L.A. punk sleaze, from their ascension to their eventual decay. It also manages to break through the myths surrounding the band that often overshadow its legitimate contributions to the L.A. hardcore scene. --Mike Corrigan

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

85 of 92 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for any fan of punk, December 3, 2001

By	D. K. Malone (earth) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Usually I credit Black Flag or the Middle Class or the Bad Brains with being the progenitors of the hardcore punk sound. But sometimes, I think that perhaps the Germs might deserve the credit for it. In any case, the Germs are definitely one of the more influential and memorable groups from the 70s L.A. punk scene, and this CD belongs in everyone's punk collection, right next to the Ramones first two albums, Never Mind The Bollocks, The Clash, etc. One thing that will always set them apart are Darby Crash's lyrics. (...) he was also one of the most creative and interesting lyricists in the history of music.

My only gripe is that the sound quality on the song "My Tunnel" is actually WORSE than the tape I have of it being played on KROQ by Rodney Bingenheimer.

EDIT- Thank you to the Amazon editor who made the bizarre and arbitrary decision to censor my mention of Darby Crash using *gasp* "DRUGS." Never mind that it's a well documented fact and he's been dead for over 20 years and that I didn't even name the drugs. The bottom line is, Amazon needs to protect the children from the word "drugs." (...)

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars essential early SoCal hardcore, January 4, 2006

By	Ludwig J. Pluralist "avantepopgospeler" (Beacon, NY USA) - See all my reviews

The Germs were, in my opinion, one of the great and essential American punk bands. Their sound was a particularly primitive stripped down three chord punk; listening to them it sounds as if they could barely play when they started. No matter - neither could other punk legends like Sid Vicious or the Ramones, both of whom were obvious influences here. The other obviously key part of their unique sound is singer Darby Crash. Darby was no poser; for him, punk was a total way of life, one to which he committed his (short lived) life. On songs like What We Do is Secret, Richie Dagger's Crime or Lexicon Devil, you can hear the power of his vocalizing; and you can also hear a deeply buried but inherent tunefulness, deep within the musical muck.

The Germs may have been one of rock's more delf-destructive units, but no matter. Listening here, you can begin to understand why they mattered, and why they have influenced so many bands that followed in their wake.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars CLASSIC, November 15, 2006

By	Amazonian (San Francisco<P>San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews

From the moment I purchased the album years ago, it was clear that it was going to be one of the classics in the punk repertoire. In reality, the Germs might very well have helped spawn the hardcore moviement, and Joan Jett's production lends a razor-sharp immediacy to the songs.

The tunes aren't so much sung as growled, and Darby Crash's lyrics can be among the most expressive I've heard in the punk genre. There's a grueling intensity to the tunes that's exciting even now. While the band won't appeal to everybody, the record left me slack-jawed with amazement the first time I heard it. The band X may have encapsulated the hopes of the L.A. punk scene, but this record still makes the hackles on the back of your neck rise. There's nothing formulaic here. If you're willing to give it a chance (and that means something more than listening to a bunch of twenty second audio samples), it's hard to imagine your not being moved. That's why this is punk music at its very best.