Kick Out the Jams

The attempt at falsetto singing on Ramblin’ Rose sounds like Homer Simpson trying to sing. Other than that this album absolutely rocks and sounds like nothing else from 1969

This album is the equivalent of a man who taped his eyelids open and took coffee every hour. But it's also the equivalent of a woman CEO.

Just fine and forgettable

As a Michigan native, I really want to say that I love MC5. But man, idk. This was like a wall of distorted guitars with chaos and energy amped up to a 1000 with the occasional melody. Which, some people might enjoy and I might even enjoy it on a different day. Today was not one of those days though

I generally don’t like live albums but it was easy for me to forget this was live. MC5 is one of those bands that I should like but never get around to listening to, and when I do I don’t feel like I’m ever left with much of an impression. That’s kinda my takeaway here too; I liked it but I already can’t tell you anything about it. I want to like it though!

It ALL and I mean ALL started with the MC5. No punk, post punk, metal, hardcore or hard anything. No stooges, dolls, Dead Kennedys or CBGBs. None of it- without the MC5.

And yet, Kick out the Jams is the only song I’ll come back to and I wish I never heard Starship.

Would others come after and do it better? Of course? Does that matter, hell no.

Not as in love with this as some people seem to be but it's still a fucking good time

Inaugurating the great punk tradition of putting style over substance, except in this case the style isn’t that good either.

Most of the music I love would not exist without the MC5. Fuzzed out psychedelic blues played with a strong 'fuck you' attitude. Proto-punk doesn't even begin to describe how important and powerful this is. Pure musical revolution.

I've listened to this album a few times in the past, but I don't think I ever full appreciated the context around it. It's a wild choice to come out of the gates swinging with a live debut album in 1969. Especially a live album that is so noisy and aggressive and clearly controversial. Kick Out the Jams may not be a display of talented musicianship, but it absolutely captures the primal energy and chaos of these shows and laid the foundation for punk to come.

Wild ride, this one. The energy of this live recording is physically palpable even when listening to the digital files on some crappy headphones on an overcrowded train during your daily commute, surrounded by all the smells and background noise that come with it. This proto-punk beast yells and screams at you relentlessly, and I love every second of it. Ever since having my inner peace shattered by having children, I've come to appreciate the raucous side of early, no-frills guitar music from the late '60s more and more (I used to prefer the more "polished" punk incarnations with an outright knack for hummable melodies, such as the Clash or the Ramones). The songwriting (and the lyrics) on Kick out the Jams isn't (yet) particularly inventive, nor are the musicians exactly brilliant. But that's neither why it was so influential, nor why Kick out the Jams is considered a landmark recording. I mean, all this lo-fi, fuck-it-let's-go aesthetic is just the perfect basis for a real musical gem. MC5 reduced "the blues" elements to their barest bones but increased the speed and gain to make the most fun out of it. Even with its mere 40-minute runtime, Kick Out The Jams still has some of the "flaws" that proto-punk and early garage rock records tend to have, especially the repetitiveness – not the good kind you get in classical minimalism or the trance-inducing motif shredding of Krautrock. But somehow, mind you, it all works in its favor, adding to its all-in character. MC5, I regret having underappreciated you before. I'll cherish this one all the more from now on.

Seminal. Unfortunately not timeless for me.

The Wikipedia article says this album is early punk, and I would kind of agree with that. I would say it sounds like a classic-rock infused punk rock sound. For a live album, the sound was very clean. It got kind of weird at the end with the last song, the music got more jam-like and the singer went on about the revolution, so it got more psychedelic. It was okay to me.

I hadn't listened to this full album in probably 15+ years and it was a real joy to revisit. It's gut punching heavy punk rock from weed smoking Black power activists. What more could you want? It's a shame MC5 never really put out their *album* that totally captured this kind of live performance mania.

I don't like the proto punk label. MC5 stand on their own and they were very much of their time just as much as they were timeless or influential. They weren't no John the Baptist to punk's Holy Saviour status.

Just cos Henry Rollins is a big fan he doesn't somehow claim the MC5 solely for punk. Lemmy originally saw Motörhead as an English MC5. He had the rock n roll but louder and faster thing down but his despairing cynicism meant he was never going to write his own wide eyed Kick Out The Jams screamer. So, are MC5 proto metal too? What about Mothership? Is it proto ambient? Proto space rock?

They were exciting and innovative and still raise a thrill or a hackle.

Puntos extras porque en directo siempre mola todo más. Es bastante pepino aunque la segunda mitad del disco igual cansa un poco.

Sounds like shit but I quite like it

I’ve only ever heard the title track before, which is an absolute BANGER. Unfortunately, while the rest of the album is good, it doesn’t come close to the KOTJ.

Proof that being good can be overrated

The singer can't sing, the guitarist can't play, the music is as basic as can be… but this is Shear brilliance

Strong evidence for the ( mistaken) case that Punk originated in New York not London

Pure electricity loved it