Review #126: White Flag - S is For Space (1982)

S IS FOR SPACE

Year: 1982

Genre: Punk Rock
Sub-Genres: Hardcore, Pop-Punk
Label: Gasatanka Records
Tracks: 12
Length: 14 Minutes
Style: Rebellious/Fun/Happy
My Rating: 6/8

White Flag is a punk band that formed in 1982 in California. The band remains active since, and they have released over twenty different albums, including an LP with 3 sides! I'm presuming the band's name and logo are a parody of Black Flag, but if you listen to these guys, they sound more influenced by the Germs that anything else, which is very evident from this album alone. The group was even formed by Pat Fear, whose name is an obvious parody of Pat Smear... there were even members in the original line-up with names such as Al Bum and Pick Z. Stix. The band actually recorded an album before this called "R is For Rocket", but it did not see the light of release until 2003. So this iz the first White Flag album to be released, and also the first record to be released through the band's label, Gasatanka Records.

1. Not All Right
Starts with a sound-clippet of either White Flag or the Germs being interviewed. I think it's the Germs... I've never heard White Flag talk; in fact, I'd never heard a White Flag song outside the "Party Or Go Home" compilation or the Germs tribute album until YESTERDAY. SO I DON'T EVEN FUCKING KNOW!!! AGHHH. Anyways, as you may have guessed, this is a cover of a song by the Germs. It's a pretty good cover, but of course, nothing beats the original.

2. Go to God
Now, for a REAL White Flag song. The song is fast. Midway through the song, there guitar solo.

3. White Flag
Starts out mid-tempo and then becomes even faster than the songs before it. This song makes fun of people who "go church, go to school, and have respect Ronald Reagan", accusing them of "raising a white flag." Very catchy in some parts. I guess this is sort of the band's theme song.

4. Joy Chip
Many of the songs on here are pretty short, but this song is REALLY short, it's only eleven seconds long! I can't even tell what the hell they're singing about here, but it's a very fast short song, so I know that. What IS a "joy chip", anyways?

5. Mirror Mirror
This is a slow song. It criticizes "posers" in the scene who all try to look the same and just try to fight all of the time. The chorus is a bit faster. One of the best songs on the album -- at the end of the song, Pat asks: "IF GOD WROTE YOU A LETTER WOULD YOU READ IT??"

6. Suzy Secret
This song starts with about a minute of stage banter recorded from a live concert. Then the song begins. A lot of backing vocals saying "secret" a shit-ton. Another noodly-needly guitar solo here. End of Side 1.

7. Hell In a Handbag
Begins with the exact same intro as the song "Manimal" by the Germs. The song then segues into the main parts of the song, which are very fast. The song seems to sing about pressures from society and religion to conform to their image of what they want you to be, but I'm not completely sure 'CUZ I AIN'T GAWTZ NOPE LYRIK SHEETZ, MANG.

8. Cleocin
My favorite song on the album! It's really catchy, especially in the chorus section. Gotta love the messy group-shout of "CLEOCIN!" with the Darby Crash-sounding Pat Fear and then the cleaner-sounding backing vocals. In the verse section, he sings in this weird fake British accent with a slight humorous inflection. Once again, the song seems to be poking fun at organized religion. The only song on here longer than two minutes.

9. Video.D.
"Look! You grew a new one!" - "Almost". That's the dialogue that opens this song. The song's about videos... and stuff. I think I dunno. I think the phrase "VideO.D." is supposed to be some sort of pun on "O.D." or something funny like that. This song's okay, but there are better ones on the album.

10. Cheze
Like, as in "cheese"? This is a very short, upbeat pop-punk song with a nice melody to it. However, it could've been longer.

11. Gumby
I used to be obsessed Gumby when I was a little kid. The song is fast, and there's a weird-ass slow mid-section. The song seems to portray some brain-dead psycho-botic clone army lead by emperor Ronald Reagan (born again with fascist cravings). The mid-section has a weird guitar solo and is very trippy and blurry n' stuff.

12. R n' R
The shortest song on the whole album. After some thumping bass-drums, the song is one-second long. But it makes its mark, I suppose.

Well, that's White Flag's first album. It's pretty good. After this, the band has released many, many more albums, several of which also elaborate on the whole alphabet theme, such as "R is for Rocket", and "R is for Rad". R and R. R n' R. Like that song I was just talking about. The last song. Anyways, yes, it's a pretty entertaining, light-hearted hardcore album with a bit of a pop-punk tinge as well. I have not listened to any of their other albums, so I will do so in the future. We'll do this together! Like a team! YAEY...

Top 3 Favorites:
1. Cleocin
2. Mirror Mirror
3. White Flag