Formed in 1982, U.K. speed demons Onslaught were on the front lines of the rising thrash movement, smashing together punk and metal to create their own high-velocity, antiestablishment and often satanic sound. The group disbanded in 1991 but re-formed in 2005 and have released four albums since, including this August's Generation Antichrist, the band's seventh studio LP. Considering Onslaught's heavy punk influence, particularly in their early days, we asked founding guitarist Nige Rockett to share his picks for the five greatest punk albums of all time. He zeroed in on some tried and true classics.
1. Discharge - Hear Nothing See Nothing Say Nothing
The ultimate album of all time, any genre, any era, bar none! When this was released, it was like an atom bomb had hit the world, pure noise destruction from the band that influenced a thousand others — Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax and, of course, Onslaught, to name but a few!
2. Sex Pistols - Never Mind the Bollocks
This record was probably the most impactful and important album release of all time! Total theater, total shock value and incredible songs that still stand strong and proud today. Bollocks completely changed the music world forever — and for the better, of course!
3. GBH - City Baby Attacked by Rats
GBH was another band I trekked the U.K. to watch in my youth, [but they were] very different from Discharge in the fact they were far more polished and slightly more commercial but shed loads of raw energy all the same. Hugely underrated, and one of the best live bands of their time.
4. Dead Kennedys - Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables
What can you say about this amazing record? Frenzied, controversial, divisive, politically sarcastic, or just the best America punk album of all time!
5. The Clash - The Clash
The first truly political punk band, these guys were the real deal and this was a groundbreaking album in so many ways. Tracks like "White Riot" and "London's Burning" became the backdrop for a bored and violent generation here in the U.K.
