Better Than Nevermind - No. 8 : Pegboy - Strong Reaction

Pegboy - Strong Reaction (Quarterstick)

Hot on the tracks of one of my favorite hardcore bands of the Eighties, Naked Raygun -- with guitarist John Haggerty in its ranks -- Pegboy comes out as the dignified inheritor of the former in terms of frenetic melody with relentless energy. Their first true record starts with a punch, deep bass and intelligent drumming pummeling accompanied by searing guitars and hard yet clean vocals; the band never lets up, with each following song bringing to front complex yet never pointless drumming from Joe Haggerty (ex-Effigies), driving rhythm with throbbing bass (Steve Saylors) and solos that never overstay their welcome. Larry Damore shouts and howls his desperation, incomprehension and exasperation with rage but not virulently, and we want to accompany him in his declamations, much like the early Clash managed to foster, and thus his personal life rants become anthems for a generation that does not fit however hard it tries. Pegboy even indulges in instrumental music (cf. Locomotivelung) which rivals the heavy metal counterparts of the band, brutal and efficient without the useless guitar noodling and endless solos. Superstar and Fields of Darkness are the real highlights of the record, in Superstar, when Damore shouts << Sometimes when I’m all alone/A part of me starts to roam/ And I want to get away, get away from here >>, he speaks not only for himself but many a young person who feels trapped by the sudden shatter of dreams of  better life. Fields Of Darkness is one of the best ignored generational anthem US punk rock has given to the world, a rigmarole of furious drumming, ringing guitars and throbbing bass that delivers an uplifting punch even the syncopated cymbals cannot keep us from humming the tune. Once that peak is achieved, Strong Reaction stays wonderfully coherent in its sonic assault, until the last song Hard Light comes, a traditional hardcore gallop that is efficient as it is short. Twenty years later the album aged beautifully and stayed relevant in the constellation of punk rock and hardcore.