Public Image - First Issue

released in 1978, 'first issue' (or 'public image', i don't know) is part one in the trilogy of pil's best albums (which, coincidentally, are their first three albums).

musically, there are some ties with the past, especially on the bouncier numbers, such as the single 'public image'. but for the most part, the newly-made pil trademarks are already there: lydon's sneering has been replaced by agonizing shrieks and howls and the drums sound like machine gun shots. keith levene's guitar work is all scratches and slashes, razor-sharp riffs. but the true star here (yeah, take a step back, john) is bassist jah wobble. there's a famous quote of his: "nobody listened to the bass in rock music before pil." gone are the times when the bass was just some quiet boom in the background. as soon as you hit play, wobble's signature low-end dub rumble comes at you from all sides, the grooves rattling the walls and shaking your senses.

'first issue' is basically an album of bleak, claustrophobic noise rock, with subtle inflections of dub and even disco (that would become even more obvious on the next album). the journey begins with the nine-minute dirge that is 'theme'- "I WISH I COULD DIIEEEEE!" screams lydon. you'll either become entranced or get bored swiftly. 'religion I & II' is lydon's voice chanting out the evils of religion, first completely solo, then reprised with instrumental backing.... the pace picks up for the ever-so-slightly reggae-sounding 'annalisa', signalling for the brutal barrage of the next three songs: the single 'public image' (lydon nags the punk fans for not getting it), 'low life' (lydon mercilessly puts down malcolm mclaren) and 'attack'- well, i dunno what this one's about, but it's still good. the album concludes with it's strangest track, 'fodderstompf', an inkling of what was to come next. keith levene swaps his guitar for synthesizers, creating a disco-esque rhythm track, while wobble's bass pulses away. it's a seven-minute jaunt with the band members trading cynical and frequently very funny snipes and jabs, their voices distorted and high-pitched, repeating their mantra "we only wanted to be loved!". it all ends gloriously with lydon spraying a nearby fire extinguisher into the mic.

the pistols were good, in fact they were great, but pil are the real thing. after you've got the pistols album, get this one and get ready for a shock. it's a great album, and the next one's ('metal box') even better. wobble left after that, and from there everything started to slide a bit (unsurprisingly), but the first album they made without him ('flowers of romance') was still pretty good.

public image ltd- the real john lydon... Read more ›