Pink Flag by Wire
Style: Art Punk
Release: 1977
Length: 35 min.
Round: post-punk
I think, when it comes to the label “art Punk,” Wire is one of the primary examples of how the super-restrained genre of punk can be used for more artistic purposes, and very successfully. Pink Flag shows off just how different and how experimental punk can get with varying lengths, time signatures, tones, and lyrical content.
This was one of the harder albums to write about. I've never heard an album quite like this, so I'm not entirely used to it. Still,. I do not deny the talent at all. I mean, it almost seems like the band is talentless. But as far as punk goes, I can't really call it that flawed. I mean, sure it gets a little bit tiresome, but overall it's one of the more creative punk albums. Upon the first note, I knew the tone would shift between deep and eccentric. The first track, “Reuters,” seemed to have a little of both. The vocals were the most creative aspect as they tried to blend perfectly with the tone of the song's strange usage of playing the same note over and over in the form of successful creativity, something Ramones failed to do. The entire album carries varying lengths, different tones, fast-paced skits, and slower paced full-length songs, as if Wire tried to match speed with time. They take after Ramones in the sense they are repetitive. And usually this will be creativity. Sometimes it's a lack in creativity, but mostly it's fun to listen to.
I wanted a special album to listen to, since I have listened to 99 punk rock albums. I decided on Pink Flag. I had been wanting to hear it for a while. I guess it succeeded at its job. I was hoping for something five stars, but I never know.
95/100. I actually rated this higher than I expected to. Despite this, I don't really think it's post-punk. I mean, it didn't envoke any of the same emotions I feel when I hear albums by Joy Division, Television, The Cure, Echo and the Bunnymen, The National, Swans, From what I hear, the second is supposed to be more post-punk, so I'll vote it off pretty early. I'm aware that the album is one of the more notable influences on the post-punk scene, but I think the later influences did a better job. Plus, I know what my top 3 are.