I began listening to the Damned in January 2023.
Damned Damned Damned (1977): B+
Music for Pleasure (1977): C
Machine Gun Etiquette (1979): B-
Damned Damned Damned (1977):
The Damned are a meat and potatoes punk band. That's often how I like punk music but this band hasn't impressed me much beyond releasing some pretty well-written, catchy tunes. Unlike their contemporaries, they don't have much of a political lean, they don’t have a fiery front man, and they don’t have very entertaining lyrics. They are proficient musicians and they no doubt have one of the best produced punk debut I've heard, which I guess counts for something. B+
Music for Pleasure (1977):
Wow did the Damned burn out fast. In comparison to what the Sex Pistols and the Clash were putting out by now, "Problem Child" is such a lame ode to teenage rebellion. Perhaps the crash in songwriting wouldn't be so felt if the album wasn't also terribly produced. Most of the time, punk albums don't need to sound great but you definitely shouldn't see regression. Another hurrah for the multitalented Nick Mason. C
Machine Gun Etiquette (1979):
After a brief breakup, the band reformed and released their third album with a slightly different lineup. Though they evolved past being simply "punk," I'm glad there are a fair amount of fast hard rockers. I still yearn for the excellent production of their debut but they pull off the eclectic genres fairly well. So what holds this back? The same things I noted were missing on their debut. B-
