Metal Box

I want to like this more than I do. Normally, I love avant-garde and post-punk music, but this one just doesn't quite hit the mark for me. I do really enjoy the dub bass and a lot of the guitar work, but John Lydon's singing just doesn't fit and some of the tracks go on a bit too long. This is another album that I respect, but just don't think I'll be returning to it.

2
I get that this was hugely influential and I could see the ways that so many bands i like were inspired, but I just would rather be listening to any of those bands. This sucks. And any good will that it would get from me for the influence is canceled out by John lydon being a complete bellend

Slashing biting guitars from Keith Levene, dark dub bass from Jah wobble, trancy krautrock drumming, and snarling vocals from John Lydon - foundational formula for dancey post punk - jammy and loose songs with a bit a disco remix approach of stretching out the dance bit, but with a squall of guitar riffs and noise. Reverby and kind of muddy production makes it sound like a rave happening a mile away under a highway. A total racket. Great fun.

Metal Box is one of those albums where it tries to be so weird and out there that it ends up just becoming really repetitive. This album gives me quite a bit of deja vu to Suicide's self-titled album i did way back, however this album isn't nearly as bad as that one because its not nearly as annoying. There were some good basslines on this album and they definitely did try a lot of things here. But it just all ends up blending together considering the album's ho-hum production and it simply goes on for too long, like an hour of this is excessive. I was initially thinking of giving this a 2.5 but due to the length, it got knocked down to a full blown 2.
Best Song: Memories
Worst Song: Chant

375/1089 - Sounds like Joy Division except even shittier and more repetitive. Seriously, the repetition on this gives EDM and Reggaeton a run for their money.

Non-list rec: Breakfast in America - Supertramp (1979) Excellent showcase of the Wurlitzer and a very solid Prog Pop record.

2.13

I quite liked it, actually. It was weird, and I didn't know this was Johnny Rotten's band. It's nothing at all like The Sex Pistols.

This is a tough one to rate, because I'm not sure I liked it 4 stars worth, but I like it better than most of the stuff I've given a 3.

I wanted to give it four stars for being innovative, but I just don’t like it enough. I wanted to! I think it’s mostly the vocals that put me off. I don’t expect post-a to have a ton of melody but this was a bit too repetitive both within the songs and throughout the album. That said, their are moments of very nice instrumentation

Abrasive, but in a good way.

Honestly a 4.5 rounded up for how out there and brilliant parts of it are, offset by it sagging a bit by the end John Lydon being a MAGA geek.

Nonetheless, if listened to through the eyes of 14 year old Adam... it's incredible and Keith Levene made me pick up a guitar in new ways... 5 it is :)

I love post-punk and this is a great foundational album. Love how much they let the grooves just go here, and the funky bass. That packaging is iconic too.

re-listen: Frank Reynolds face “I get it”. It takes some time to adapt to the sound but I get the brilliance. Pop tones is an incredible and complex rhythm combination, and the experimental and puzzled together sounds are visible elsewhere. There are still some tough to manage parts, but I will relisten to this often.

First listen: Couldn't make it through the first song (which is very long, and I don't mind long songs when they are good). Has the vocal style I don't particularly care for, and the guitars I found to be grating. Just a bunch of noise, which I get is probably the point, but it's not for me.

Low expectations because I really don't like the Sex Pistols, but this was actually kinda good.

For this type of album you just have to accept that it's going to get tedious at times; that's just part of the deal.

I'm convinced the people on this website just want to pretend they hate long songs. If a 10min song was split into parts floyd-style no one would bat an eye, I tell you. That being said, this was... fine. I'm sure if you're actively looking for things to hate that's all you'll find, though. This album deserves to be looked upon with fresh perspective, as hard as that may be to do.

Boring

Yeah, no, mostly irredeemable nonsense.

For those unaware, Public Image Ltd. was formed by John Lydon aka Johnny Rotten shortly after the Sex Pistols broke up. He recruited an old friend of his Jah Wobble as bassist and former Clash member Keith Levene as guitarist.

Metal Box, subsequently known as Second Edition, is their second album, categorized by what they're getting away with as an "avant-garde" sound, with stream-of-consciousness lyrics, dub-inspired bass grooves, and an abrasive "metallic" guitar sound.

Now that formalities are out of the way, my enjoyment was admittedly slightly better than the Sex Pistols' one album. Keith Levene's guitar playing may not be as hook-driven as Steve Jones's was, yet it's also weirdly hypnotic in its unorthodox behavior. The rhythm section shines here, where Jah Wobble's playing up and down bass is well executed, and the session drummers do a superb job with the beats.

Once again, Johnny Rotten is the worst part of his own group. He's a terrible singer, but instead of badly snarking he's now badly wailing. Similarly, he hasn't improved much as a lyricist, though he probably got away with using abstract imagery under the guise of "avant-garde." Thankfully, we don't get a "Bodies" here. Also helping to ease things between are the instrumental tracks "Socialist", "Graveyard" and closer "Radio 4", which I admittedly found pleasant.

Overall, it is technically a step up from Never Mind the Bollocks, but not by much. I can see how someone would classify this as a landmark album for post-punk. Just one more Public Image album on this journey, and then Johnny can fuck right off.

Muy post-punk. No está mal pero no lo veo imprescindible. Para mi gusto son 2 estrellas y me guardo Graveyard.