Slits, The – “In the Beginning” – [Lilith Records]

The slits are a botworthy all female punk rock band who paved the way for many she-rockers to come. This record contains highlights from live performances recorded by the Slits 1977-1981. These ladies gained momentum after touring with the Clash’s White Riot tour in 1977. The music here is simple and minimal, in a pretty typical punk rock fashion. Short tracks, lots of energy, gritty, fuzzy and raw with tastefully sloppy musicianship. The Slits did not make music based on their amazing technical ability, and you can certainly hear it. But what they lack in technical skills, they make up for in enthusiasm and the insatiable urge to rock. The music here is playful,. I like Side B myself, it has a bit more of a groove with reggae and funk influences though it still fully rocks. (check out A7, A8 and B3 for a little touch of reggae) B1 is a playful cover of “heard it through the grapevine”, or “heard it through the bassline” as the Slits seem to sing it. B4 is a long, jam track which floats around for about 12 minutes. Pretty sweet. There is some banter between songs as these were all part of a live set. The record is clean for the most part, profanity is marked. Watch out for a FUCK in the intro to A8, the song is clean but the band chat is not. – Surfer Rosa