Nervous Breakdown by Black Flag

Nervous Breakdown, Black Flag's debut EP, was the very first release on SST, Greg Ginn's own label, and it's pure Hermosa Beach bile. Ginn and singer Keith Morris had started the band as Panic, and with Chuck Dukowski on bass they cut a record that takes the stripped-down bash of the Ramones and makes it meaner, faster and more unhinged, Ginn's guitar squalling out atonal solos while Morris sounds ready to snap.

This is where hardcore punk starts to take shape, and it's the only non-compilation Black Flag release with Morris on vocals. The band produced it themselves, and "I've Had It" says everything about its mood in three words.

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