Black Flag vs. Big Black

i appreciate all the lore and contributions from the old schoolers on this thread

hillarious

That must have been one hell of a show.

When they say "best" they really mean "most accessible". I don't know that you could really rank them anyway, but as I said...SAF is the most, uh, commercial of all Big Black releasese. A great album, too, but maybe not their "best"....whatever that means.

BIG BLACK was great band. Yes, GREAT. BLACK FLAG on the otherhand, had a huge impact on Punk's evolution. As mentioned by others on this thread. Weather it be Keith Morris, Ron Reyes, Dez or Henry Rollins, BLACK FLAG was a major influence on many 80's Hardcore Punk acts by touring, starting your own label and in attitude.

BLACK FLAG led a rebellion in the 80's that they were banned from playing certain clubs in the Los Angeles area. Not too many band can have an impact like that.

yeah I'm not gonna go one way or the other on this one. both are great and influential for entirely different reasons, most of which have already been covered, so why repeat the opinions of others just because I share them?

Cherry's been waiting two years for the answer to that!!

What a weird thread bump.

Yeah, I really don't even know how I ended up here, either. Oh well.

I've always been way more into Big Black than I am into Black Flag, but you can't deny the massive influence of the Flag. On the other hand, I thing Big Black's music holds up much better over time...

I'm a less than typical Black Flag fan...I like their early stuff but for me they didn't get great 'til they neared the end. My War is their opus for me. I'm not really into Big Black all that much. I love Shellac and I even like Rapeman a lot better than Big Black...if I ever had my druthers I'd love to record with Steve Albini but I have a Black Flag tattoo on my wrist so there's my answer.

I'm really into Big black right now but I've been loving Black Flag for long(er) time

Plus I have a Flag tattoo

Big Black is amazing, but I think Shellac is better. But when it comes to Big Black v. the mighty Flag, Flag wins out every time. Plus, their music evolved over the years. Most punks seem to hate Rollins, but some of those later songs are fucking awesome. No one can deny My War.

plus, if you call SST today you can talk to Greg Ginn without any problem. oh, and the Duke rules all!

Big Black is amazing, but I think Shellac is better. But when it comes to Big Black v. the mighty Flag, Flag wins out every time. Plus, their music evolved over the years. Most punks seem to hate Rollins, but some of those later songs are fucking awesome. No one can deny My War.

plus, if you call SST today you can talk to Greg Ginn without any problem. oh, and the Duke rules all!

Obviously Black Flag is superior, although I would also highly, highly, highly recommend Big Black to anyone who likes music that doesn't suck. Now Big Black vs. the Jesus Lizard would be a more difficult question...

god.... how does this thread come alive... i just hope the guy who started this has now heard big black.

obviously. duh.

Really? I think Atomiser is far more accessible (and also by far their best, but the 2 are unrelated)

I guess people just like saying 'Songs About Fucking' it is a great album title
And probably their most well known album too which is why it usually comes up.

I feel the need to listen to 'Kerosene' now