Minor Threat First Demo Tape CD

It was early 1981 when Washington D.C.'s Minor Threat made their first trip to the studio. The band recorded all of the songs that they had written in the short time they had been together (three or four months), but were apparently unsatisfied with their performance & never bothered to do a final mix of the tape. Instead they went back into the studio a month later & recorded what would become their debut, the 8-song eponymous 7 inch EP. The unmixed tape of the first demo was discovered when Dischord started work on the 'Twenty Years of Dischord' box-set. Ian MacKaye & Don Zientara (of Inner Ear Studios) mixed the tape in December of 2001, but the release was shelved by the label while work was being done on the box-set. These recordings have only been available previously as low quality rough mixes on bootlegs. Tracks include, 'Minor Threat', 'Stand Up', 'Seeing Red', 'Bottled Violence', 'Small Man, Big Mouth',

FIRST DEMO TAPE contain Minor Threat's previous unreleased first recordings from 1981, newly mixed from the original master tapes in December 2001.
Minor Threat: Ian MacKaye (vocals); Lyle Preslar (guitar); Brian Baker (bass); Jeff Nelson (drums).
Personnel: Ian MacKaye (vocals); Lyle Preslar (guitar); Jeff Nelson (drums); Henry Garfield (background vocals).
Audio Mixers: Ian MacKaye; Don Zientara.
Recording information: Inner Ear Studios (02/1981-03/1981).
Photographers: Skip Groff; Susie Josephson.
It's amazing what one finds when looking for something else. While going through tape after tape putting together the 20 Years of Dischord box set, Ian MacKaye and company found these tapes that comprise the first recording session of the now legendary hardcore band Minor Threat. Granted, there are no new tracks here and no new revelations musically, but it is interesting to hear the playing progression from these demos to the tracks that actually made release (which can be found on the Complete Discography CD). A very cool view into the embryonic days and some rather hilarious pictures of the D.C. kids make this a very desirable item for fans of the band. ~ Chris True

Mojo (Publisher) (08/03, p.98) - 5 out of 5 stars - "...Eight songs, nine minutes, none finer."