Finally! This is what Alternative Tentacles should’ve done all along as this great debut Lp and their weaker 2nd Lp These People are both reissued on both Lp and CD with bonus tracks on each. The Lp version comes with a download code that also contains the now classic “Dicks Hate the Police” 7” while the CD has those tracks added on as bonus cuts (the bonus material on These People is the equally essential Peace? 7”).
Anyway, this Lp is sometimes overlooked compared with the even better 7“s and great non-Lp tracks like “I Hope You Get Drafted” from the P.E.A.C.E. compilation. It shouldn’t be, though, as it’s pretty much an early ’80s U.S. punk tour-de-force all the way through, just stomping from the opening “Anti-Klan” to other ultra-political (but intelligent and rarely hectoring; this is pure anger, folks) anthems like “No Nazi’s Friend” and “Bourgeois Fascist Pig”. There are a few missteps, though, like the OK but totally unncecessary cover of “Purple Haze” and the almost fusion-esque, 12-minute “Dicks Can’t Swim”. The latter is especially a track that’s OK to listen to once or twice, but won’t garner repeated plays. These tracks just distract from the greatness of the rest of the Lp.
