Dag Nasty
Dag With Shawn LP
Dischord Records
I am long on record as not being a big fan of Dag Nasty. A lot of the things I hate about hardcore begin to trend with their Can I Say record (and Uniform Choice too, but that’s a whole different post). This record contains their earliest record, when Shawn Brown of Swiz fame was their vocalist, before Republican douchebag sellout Dave Smalley took over. Some of this record you’ve likely heard before on the “85-86” CD from the nineties, a collection of Dag Nasty odds and ends. Musically, not much changes from these versions to the versions on the album. Vocally, Shawn’s pissed off grunts don’t really fit the music that well, but sound fantastic as a precursor to what would come with Swiz. Fans of this band will love this record I am sure. Dischord seems to be heading deep into the vault lately. Something has to subsidize those Joe Lally solo records. Support Dischord and buy it straight from them.
Call me crazy, but I actually preferred this over the original Can I Say album. I think it’s the odd mix of Shawn’s aggressive vocal approach with the somewhat light hearted music. True Shawn’s vox can sound a little out of key and it certainly lacks the fit and finish Can I Say has, but I still think it’s better.