Black Flag (band)

Template:Infobox musical artist 2 Black Flag was a hardcore punk band formed in 1976 in southern California, largely as the brainchild of Greg Ginn, the guitarist, primary songwriter and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes.

Black Flag forged a unique sound early on that mixed the raw simplicity of the Ramones with atonal and microtonal guitar solos and frequent tempo shifts. Over this could be heard lyrics—mostly written by Ginn—about isolation, neurosis and paranoia, themes which did not disappear when Henry Rollins took on the role of lead singer in 1981. Most of the band's material was released on Ginn's independent label, SST Records.

Black Flag were (and remain) well respected among their underground culture, with their influence primarily in their tireless promotion of a self-controlled DIY ethic and aesthetic. They're often regarded as pioneers in the movement of underground do-it-yourself record labels that flourished among the 1980s' punk rock bands. Through seemingly-constant touring throughout the United States and Canada, and occasionally Europe, Black Flag established an extremely dedicated fan base. Many other musicians would follow Black Flag's lead and book their own tours, utilizing a word-of-mouth network.

Over the course of the 1980s, Black Flag's sound, as well as their notoriety, evolved in ways that alienated much of their early punk audience. They were part of the first wave of American West Coast punk rock, are considered a key influence on the punk subculture, and are especially important in the creation of hardcore punk. Along with being among the earliest punk rock groups to incorporate elements of punk metal (particularly in their later records), there were often overt jazz (mainly free jazz) and contemporary classical elements in their sound, especially in Ginn's guitar playing, and the band interspersed records and performances with instrumentals throughout their career. They also played longer, slower, and more complex songs at a time when many bands in their milieu stuck to a raw, fast, three-chord format. As a result, Black Flag's extensive discography is more varied than many of their punk-rock contemporaries.

History

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Black Flag's iconic logo, designed by artist Raymond Pettibon, often found spraypainted in various places in Los Angeles in the 1980s

Early Years

Formed in 1976 and initially called Panic, Ginn insisted that the band rehearse several hours a day. This work ethic proved too challenging for some early members; Ginn and singer Keith Morris had an especially hard time finding a reliable bass guitarist, and often rehearsed without a bassist, a factor that contributed to the development of Ginn's distinctive, often low-pitched guitar sound. Ginn's brother Raymond Pettibon and SST house record producer-to-be Spot filled in sometimes at rehearsals.

Chuck Dukowski, bassist with Wurm, took a liking to Ginn's group, and eventually joined, forming a committed quartet with Ginn, Morris and drummer Brian Migdol. The band played their first performance in December 1977 in Redondo Beach, California. To avoid confusion with another band called Panic, they took on the name Black Flag in late 1978. They played their first show as 'Black Flag' on January 27, 1979, in Redondo Beach. This was the first time Dez Cadena saw the band.

Their new name was reminiscent of the anarchist symbol, the insect spray of the same name, and was reminiscent of the British heavy metal group Black Sabbath, one of Ginn's favorite bands. Ginn suggested that he was "comfortable with all the implications of the name." The name was suggested by Ginn's brother, artist Raymond Pettibon, who also designed the band's logo: A stylized black flag represented as four black bars. The band spray painted the simple, striking logo all over Los Angeles, gaining attention from potential supporters, and thoroughly irritating police. Pettibon also created much of their cover artwork.

There were few opportunities for punk rock bands to perform in southern California, (Los Angeles club The Masque was the center of the L.A. punk scene, but was also rather provincial, and didn't often admit bands from outside L.A. proper). Black Flag organized their own gigs, performing at picnics, house parties, schools, any place that was available. They called club owners themselves to arrange appearances, and plastered hundreds of flyers—usually Pettibon's severe, haunting comic strip style panels—on any available surface to publicize performances. Dukowski reported that the "minimum (number of flyers) that went out was 500 for a show."

Though Ginn was the band's leader, special note should be made of Dukowski's contributions to Black Flag. Ginn was tireless and profoundly disciplined, but he was also rather quiet. Dukowski's intelligent, fast-talking, high-energy persona attracted significant attention, and he was often Black Flag's spokesman to the press. Dukowski acted as the group's tour manager even after he no longer performed with them, and he was probably as important as Ginn in establishing the group's DIY aesthetic and demanding work ethic. Dukowski's bass guitar was a vital part of the early Black Flag sound; "TV Party", for instance, was one of many songs "driven more by Chuck Dukowski's percolating bass line than Ginn's stun-gun guitar."

Morris appeared as vocalist on Black Flag's earliest recordings, and his energized, manic stage presence helped the band earn a reputation in the Los Angeles area. Migdol was replaced by the enigmatic Columbian drummer Roberto Valverde (a.k.a. ROBO), whose numerous clicking metallic bracelets became part of his drum sound. The group played with a speed and ferocity that was all but unprecedented in rock music; critic Ira Robbins declared that "Black Flag was, for all intents and purposes, America's first hardcore band." Morris quit in 1979, citing, among other reasons, creative differences with Ginn, and his own "freaking out on cocaine and speed." Morris would subsequently form the Circle Jerks.

After Morris's departure, Black Flag recruited fan Chavo Pederast (real name Ron Reyes) as singer. He was in the band only a few months before quitting mid-performance (for the remainder of that gig, the group played an extended version of "Louie Louie" and invited audience members to take turns singing). The more reliable Dez Cadena--another fan--then joined as singer. With Cadena onboard, Black Flag began national touring in earnest, and arguably saw two peaks: First as a commercial draw (They sold out the 3,500-seat Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, a feat they were never able to manage again); and second, perhaps seeing the peak of attention from police in the Los Angeles area, due to the violence associated with Black Flag and punk rock in general. The band members have often insisted, however, that the police instigated far more problems than they solved.

By the summer of 1981, however, Cadena's voice was worn. He had no formal training or previous experience as a singer, and had severely strained his voice during Black Flag's seemingly nonstop touring, and he wanted to play guitar rather than sing.

Rollins Joins

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Henry Rollins stage diving, ca. 1981

Twenty year old fan Henry Rollins — then living in Washington D.C. — had corresponded with the band, and met them when they performed on the U.S. east coast. At an impromptu show in a bar, he asked to sing "Clocked In." Since vocalist Dez Cadena was switching to guitar, the band invited Rollins to a rehearsal. Impressed by his stage demeanor, they asked him to become their permanent vocalist, and despite some doubts, he accepted, due in part to Ian MacKaye's encouragement. He accepted, and acted as roadie for the remainder of the tour while learning Black Flag's songs during sound checks and encores while Cadena crafted guitar parts that meshed with Ginn's. Rollins also impressed Black Flag with his broad musical interests during an era when punk rock music and fans were increasingly factionalized; he introduced Black Flag to Washington DC's go go, a distinctive take on funk music.

Rollins was Black Flag's longest-lasting singer, and has remained active in music to the present. When he joined Black Flag, he brought a different attitude and perspective than previous singers. Some earlier songs, such as "T.V. Party" or "Six Pack" (a song written about ex-singer Keith Morris) blended a nearly goofy sense of satirical criticism (of apathy and alcoholism, respectively) with driving punk rock. The muscular, tattooed Rollins became the focus of considerable attention. He was a dynamic live performer and powerful singer, who usually appeared on-stage wearing only shorts. Ginn once stated that after Rollins joined, "We couldn't do songs with a sense of humor anymore; he got into the serious way-out poet thing." Rollins also became known for his frequent fistfights with audience members.

With Rollins onboard, Black Flag and The Minutemen made their first tour of Europe in the winter of 1981, encountering hostile audiences and aggressive skinheads as much as meeting eager fans. They happened to meet punk icon Richard Hell on this tour, and opened a concert for him. Robo was detained in the UK due to visa problems, and never rejoined Black Flag. He was briefly replaced by Bill Stevenson (of the descendents), before Chuck Biscuits (previously of D.O.A. and later of Danzig) and Emil Johnson each took a turn behind the drums before Stevenson became the full-time drummer.

Mid-Career

1981 saw the release of Damaged, generally regarded as Black Flag's most focused recording. One critic has written that Damaged was "perhaps the best album to emerge from the quagmire that was early-'80s California punk" and that "the visceral, intensely physical presence of Damaged has yet to be equaled, although many bands have tried."

With Damaged and their growing reputation as an impressive live band, Black Flag seemed poised on the cusp of a commercial breakthrough. The record was to be distributed by now-defunct Unicorn Records, a subsidiary of MCA. Trouble began when MCA refused to handle Damaged after MCA executive Al Bergamo determined Damaged was an "Anti-Parent" record. However, according to longtime SST employee Joe Carducci the "Anti-Parent" statement was not the real reason for MCA's refusing to distribute Damaged; Carducci reported that Unicorn Records was so poorly managed and so deeply in debt that MCA stood to lose money in distributing the record, regardless of its content. This was the beginning of a legal dispute that would, for a period a few years later, disallow Black Flag from using their own name on any records.

Black Flag released Damaged on SST Records, and placed a copy of the "Anti-Parent" statement on the record's cover. Cadena left Black Flag after Damaged, and formed DC3 (band). By late 1983, Dukowski had retired from performing with Black Flag (some accounts report he was "edged out" by Ginn).

Ginn has also stated that while he liked Dukowski personally, his bass playing was not progressing, though a few of his songs were featured on later records, and he continued acting in his capacity as tour manager. Ginn played bass guitar on some Black Flag recordings as "Dale Nixon" before Kira Roessler joined to replace Dukowski. With Roessler, Black Flag had arguably found their best bassist. Dukowski was a powerful player, but Roessler brought a level of sophistication and finesse to match Ginn's increasingly ambitious music, without sacrificing any of the visceral impact required for punk rock.

1983 found Black Flag embroiled in a legal dispute over distribution. They were prevented from using the name "Black Flag" on any recordings. They released a compilation record, Everything Went Black, which was credited to the individual musicians, not "Black Flag". In fact, wherever the original album artwork had the words "Black Flag", they had been covered up with small slips of paper, thus adhering to the letter of the law.

After Unicorn Records declared bankruptcy, Black Flag were released from the injunction, and returned with a vengeance: Black Flag released four full-length albums in 1984, and toured nearly constantly, with Rollins noting 178 performances for the year, and about that many for 1985. With Dukowski gone, Ginn ceded much of the spotlight to Rollins, who has expressed some discomfort over being the group's de facto spokesman, while Ginn was the recognized leader.

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Greg Ginn, Henry Rollins, and Kira Roessler in 1984

With Roessler on board, Black Flag began earnest experimentation, sometimes to critical and audience disdain: One critic writes that Slip It In "blurs the line between moronic punk and moronic metal"; another writes My War is "a pretentious mess of a record with a totally worthless second side." Rollins reports that Black Flag's set-lists in this era rarely included older crowd favorites like "Six Pack" or "Nervous Breakdown", and that audiences were often irritated by the new, slower Black Flag. Some years later, however, My War would be cited as a formative influence on grunge music.

Ultimately, Ginn and Rollins decided to eject Roessler from Black Flag, citing erratic behavior. It's also been suggested that Ginn's accommodating Roessler's college schedule created tension in the group. Her absence, and the lack of a steady drummer Steveson quit and was replaced by Anthony Martinez), contributed to the comparatively weak reputation of the last few Black Flag tours.

Black Flag members grew tired of the tensions of their relentless touring schedule, infighting, and of living in near-poverty. Ginn was so creatively restless that Black Flag's records were often very dissimilar; shortly before the group disbanded, Rollins suggested to Ginn that perhaps Black Flag should release two similar records consecutively so that the group's fans wouldn't always feel lost. Ginn was stunned by the suggestion; it was one of the few times Rollins had ever openly offered an opinion contrary to Ginn's.

Black Flag played their last concert on June 27, 1986, in Detroit, Michigan; this show has been widely available through online music trading services and is of surprisingly good sound quality. By this point the band had become increasingly talented at performing improvised "jams", with Rollins screaming out lyrics quite literally as they came to him (as is evident on this recording), turning some songs like "Louie, Louie" into frenetic, almost unrecognizable blasts of intensity.

Break Up

In Get In The Van, Rollins writes that Ginn telephoned him in August 1986: "He told me he was quitting the band. I thought that was strange considering it was his band and all. So in one short phone call, it was all over." Many sources claim the band did not "officially" break up until 1987, but this appears to be false.

Post Black Flag

Since Black Flag's breakup, Rollins has had the most visible public profile as a musician, writer, and actor. Most Black Flag members have also remained active in music, especially Ginn, who continued playing with groups such as Gone, October Faction, and Screw Radio.

In September 2003, Black Flag played three reunion shows, two at the Hollywood Palladium and one at Alex's Bar in Long Beach, to benefit cat rescue organizations (a current passion of Ginn's). The lineup for the shows was Dez Cadena on vocals, Greg Ginn on guitar, ROBO on drums, and C'el Revuelta on bass. Professional skateboarder and singer Mike Vallely also sang all the songs from My War at these shows.

Legacy

Throughout their ten-year career as a band, Black Flag’s experiences became legendary, especially in the southern California area. Much of the band’s history is chronicled in Henry Rollins’ own published tour diary Get In The Van. Black Flag were reportedly blacklisted by the LAPD and Hollywood rock clubs because of the destructiveness of their fans, though Rollins has claimed that police caused far more problems than they solved.

Kurt Cobain has been quoted several times citing Black Flag as an influence and claimed, though it is disputed, that the first live show he ever saw was Black Flag in 1984 along with labelmates Saccharine Trust.

SST Records, an independent American record label that was initially founded to release Black Flag’s debut single, released recordings by influential groups such as Bad Brains, the Minutemen, The Descendents, Meat Puppets, and Hüsker Dü. As well, SST released some albums by Negativland, Soundgarden, and, for a short period, Sonic Youth. Black Flag were involved in legal battles when they attempted more mainstream distribution for their records.

Black Flag's career is chronicled in Our Band Could Be Your Life, a study of several important American underground rock groups. Most of the grunge scene cited Black Flag's My War album as being influential in their departure from the standard punk model. Pennywise has covered two of Flag's songs: "Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie" and "Nervous Breakdown". Good Riddance recorded a version of "My War". It is a secret track on their record Operation Phoenix, released in 1999. It also appears on their compilation Cover Ups released in 2002.

A Perfect Circle covered Flag’s "Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie" on their 2004 release eMOTIVe. Australian post-grunge band Silverchair covered two Black Flag songs on their single for Miss You Love: "Fix Me" & "Wasted". Chicago Punk band Rise Against portrayed Black Flag in the 2005 Lords of Dogtown film. Their cover of "Nervous Breakdown" can be found on the Lords of Dogtown soundtrack. Rise Against also does a cover of the Black Flag song "Fix Me" on the video game Tony Hawk's American Wasteland.

The Brazilian death metal band Sepultura covered "Rise Above" on the digipak version of their 2001 album Nation.

Their strong influence continues even now as evidenced by the popularity of toddler-sized Black Flag t-shirts. The Black Flag song "Rise Above" appears on the popular skateboarding video game Tony Hawk's American Wasteland. The Black Flag song "TV Party" appears on a Futurama episode Bender Should Not Be Allowed On TV where parts of the song lyrics are sung by Futurama cast. TV Party was also sung by Emilio Estevez in the movie Repo Man. TV Party is also on the compilation album Skate to Hell, devised partly by Extreme Sports TV. An Episode of the Fox Network's Millennium (TV series) entitled "Somehow, Satan Got Behind Me" features a scene in which a CGI dancing baby dressed as a devil slam dances to "My War."

The Ataris changed the Don Henley's original lyric "Out on the road today I saw a Deadhead sticker on a Cadillac" to "... Black Flag sticker..." in their cover of Boys of Summer. The Unseen covered the song "Rise Above", releasing it as a bonus track on their album State of Discontent. The extra track was only included in Japan. Now defunct hardcore punk band Kid Dynamite also covered "Rise Above" as a b-side. American punk rock band Guttermouth recorded a version of "Rise Above" during the recording session for 2006's album Shave The Planet and released it as a free mp3 on their website in October 2006.

Fifteen modern hardcore/metalcore bands such as Most Precious Blood, Converge, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Drowningman, and Coalesce collaborated to form a Black Flag cover album called Black On Black: A Tribute To Black Flag, which was released by ReIgnition Recordings on March 14 2006. John Belushi, who had joined Black Flag on stage during a Chicago performance in the late 1970s, secured a performance slot for Black Flag on Saturday Night Live. However, a notorious performance by punk band Fear during an earlier SNL episode made SNL producers wary of having punk acts on the show.

Brodie Foster Hubbard has cited Black Flag as an influence, and when he plays punk rock versions of his songs with his band The Hired Hands (members of Night Wolf), he performs wearing only black gym shorts, in tribute to Henry Rollins. Also, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez of The Mars Volta has claimed Black Flag as an influence, saying that "...Music in English always sounded like a novelty - very much like how music in Spanish sounds like a novelty to most people - something funny and cute to me, and then I heard Black Flag and it just completely changed my perspective on what I wanted to be doing."

Members

Black Flag personnel

(1976) as Panic	Keith Morris - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Raymond Pettibon - bass guitar David Horvitz - drums
(1976-1977) as Panic	Keith Morris - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Spot - bass guitar David Horvitz - drums
(1977-1978) as Panic	Keith Morris - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Chuck Dukowski - bass guitar Brian Migdol - drums
(1978 - 11/1979)	Keith Morris - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Chuck Dukowski - bass guitar ROBO - drums
(12/1979 - 05/1980)	Chavo Pederast - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Chuck Dukowski - bass guitar ROBO - drums
(07/1980 - 08/1981)	Dez Cadena - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Chuck Dukowski - bass guitar ROBO - drums
(08/1981 - 12/1981)	Henry Rollins - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Dez Cadena - rhythm guitar Chuck Dukowski - bass guitar ROBO - drums
(12/1981)	Henry Rollins - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Chuck Dukowski - bass guitar Bill Stevenson - drums
(01/1982 - 07/1982)	Henry Rollins - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Dez Cadena - rhythm guitar Chuck Dukowski - bass guitar Emil Johnson - drums
(07/1982 - 12/1982)	Henry Rollins - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Dez Cadena - rhythm guitar Chuck Dukowski - bass guitar Chuck Biscuits - drums
(01/1983 - 04/1983)	Henry Rollins - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Dez Cadena - rhythm guitar Chuck Dukowski - bass guitar Bill Stevenson - drums
(05/1983 - 08/1983)	Henry Rollins - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Chuck Dukowski - bass guitar Bill Stevenson - drums
(My War sessions)	Henry Rollins - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Dale Nixon - bass guitar Bill Stevenson - drums
(12/1983 - 04/1985)	Henry Rollins - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Kira Roessler - bass guitar Bill Stevenson - drums
(05/1985 - 09/1985)	Henry Rollins - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar Kira Roessler - bass guitar Anthony Martinez - drums
(01/1986 - 08/1986)	Henry Rollins - vocals Greg Ginn - guitar C'el Revuelta - bass guitar Anthony Martinez - drums
(9/12/2003 - 9/14/2003)	Dez Cadena - vocals & rhythm guitar Greg Ginn - guitar C'el Revuelta - bass guitar ROBO - drums

Discography

Live albums

• Live '84 (December 1984)
• Who's Got the 10½? (March 1986)

Compilation albums

• Everything Went Black (1982)
• The First Four Years (1983)
• Wasted...Again (1987)

Singles

• Louie Louie (1981) (Originally released on Posh Boy Records PBS 13)

Live EPs

• Annihilate This Week (1987)

Bootlegs and other Various Pressings

• The Complete 1982 Demos Plus More (1996?)
• Spray Paint EP (1981)

References

• Glen E. Friedman, My Rules (Burning Flags Press)
• Joe Carducci, Rock and the Pop Narcotic (2.13.61)
• Glen E. Friedman, FUCK YOU HEROES (Burning Flags Press)
• Henry Rollins, Get In The Van (2.13.61)
• Michael Azerrad, Our Band Could Be Your Life
• Glen E. Friedman, FUCK YOU TOO (Burning Flags Press)

External links

• The Mighty Black Flag (fan site)
• Dementlieu Punk Archive: Black Flag (fan site and tour history)
• Rekindling the Punk Flame (article)
• Black Flag bootlegs - Information on a number of Black Flag bootlegs
• Suburban Voice Interview - Black Flag interview from 1984
• Flipside Interview - Black Flag interview from 1980