Hammer Party

The HAMMER PARTY CD contains the first three Big Black EPs - LUNG, BULLDOZER, and RACER X.
Big Black: Steve Albini (vocals, guitar); Santiago Durango (guitar); John Bohnen (saxophone); Jeff Pezzati (bass); Pat Byrne (drums).
Additional personnel: Mark Hayes (background vocals).
Recorded in Chicago, Illinois in 1982 and 1983. Includes liner notes by Steve Albini.
Personnel: Steve Albini (vocals, guitar, drum programming); Mark Hayes (vocals); Santiago Durango (guitar).
Recording information: Chicago, IL.
Photographer: Gail Butensky.
The early '80s rock scene in Chicago seems to have been equally influenced by punk rock, industrial, and the decay of '70s cock rock. Out of this Petri dish came former writer Steve Albini and his band, Big Black. Starting as solo affair, Big Black combined these elements into a confrontational noisefest that lyrically addressed issues of concern to Chicago's largely blue-collar populace, from racism to driving trucks.
Combining the first three Big Black EPs, LUNGS, BULLDOZER, and RACER-X, HAMMER PARTY features punishing drums--sometimes played live, sometimes programmed--and dual guitars (distinguished by the liner notes as "knife" and "hammer"). Pealing and skittering across the surface of the songs, these guitars call to mind the sound of tension wires stretched to their breaking points. "Steelworker" and "Cables," an ode to hanging around slaughterhouses for fun, are among the best tracks. They show Albini at his most aggressive, spitting out such lines as "I'm a murderer, I kill what I eat" and "I don't know why I come here, guess I just like the bang" with amazing vitriol. The collection closes with a brutal take on James Brown's "The Big Payback."