If you want to own a piece of San Francisco punk chaos, this is it. The original 1981 pressing of Flipper’s debut LP on Subterranean Records (SUB-25) is one of the most confrontational, deliberately ugly, and genuinely unsettling records the American underground ever produced. While the hardcore scene was racing faster and faster, Flipper slowed everything down to a sludgy, lurching crawl — a choice so extreme it felt like a punk statement in itself. Will Shatter and Bruce Lose traded off vocals in a style more akin to drunk bar ranting than polished performance, and the bass-heavy murk of their sound influenced everyone from noise-rock bands of the ’90s to Kurt Cobain himself (who was famously a devotee). Original Subterranean pressings are extremely scarce; this copy has 10 watchers and free shipping from Chico, California.
Track Listing: Side A: (I Saw You) Shine / Flipper Blues / Way of the World / Life Side B: Nothing / Living for the Depression / Sex Bomb