•
Rating:
THE REVIEW
It is often said about this or that person or this or that artist, that there are no middle ways, you either love them or hate them. This could well be the case with Agnostic Front.
However, I have always loved and hated them at the same time, followed and snubbed them, listened to and repudiated them. Their intrinsic roughness repulses and attracts me at the same time, Vinnie Stigma and Roger Miret, now outdated, overweight fifty-somethings full of New York suburban rhetoric churning out albums from time to time of their usual rocky and anthemic hardcore and getting tattoos where the little free skin allows, dressing like Italian farmers from the 50s.
Coming to this "Liberty & justice for...", I believe it's a rather unfortunate album, which at the time (1987) did not enjoy good success among the group's fans, and perhaps the group itself was on a bit of a decline due to the explosion of the NYHC phenomenon which saturated the scene with a myriad of more or less valid bands, the same scene that Agnostic themselves helped create a few years earlier.
The fact is that this album is a big punch in the teeth, a well-calibrated punch, one of those that breaks your lips beyond your top incisors. The directives are those of "Cause for alarm," hence a mix of hardcore punk and thrash metal, but here, compared to that record, everything is more frenetic, more compressed, and angular.
The rhythms are very intense, the guitars of Stigma and Steve Martin frantically chase each other as per thrash tradition, and Roger Miret's voice is less monotonous than on the previous record, though he continues to pursue the style made of gasps and sobs that will later define him over time. I won't dwell on the song lyrics because they seem to be a bit of a weak point for them, not so much for the right-wing nonsense, etc., etc., but because they are a bit predictable.
Nevertheless, having said this, I find "Liberty & justice for..." an extraordinary NYHC album, bursting with fury in every note, and despite the predominant thrash matrix, it does not lose a shred of its hardcore impact. And then the penultimate track ("Crucified") is a cover of the Washingtonians Iron Cross.
An album that definitely deserves to be re-evaluated.
Loading comments slowly
Summary by Bot
This review examines Agnostic Front’s 1987 album 'Liberty & Justice For…', highlighting its furious blend of hardcore punk and thrash metal. Despite initial mixed reception and some lyrical predictability, the album's intensity and raw energy stand out. The reviewer praises the frenzied guitar work and Roger Miret’s evolving vocal style. A notable cover of Iron Cross' 'Crucified' adds to the album's significance. The album is recommended for re-evaluation as a key piece in the NYHC genre.Tracklist Lyrics Videos
Agnostic Front
Agnostic Front are an American hardcore punk band from New York City, formed in 1980. Co-founded by guitarist Vinnie Stigma and fronted since the early 1980s by Roger Miret, they helped define NYHC with the United Blood EP (1983) and Victim in Pain (1984), pushed into crossover with Cause for Alarm (1986), paused in 1993, reunited in 1997, and roared back with Something’s Gotta Give (1998). They remain active, releasing records and touring widely.08 Reviews
