MC5Best MC5 Albums Ranked

Are You Ready to Testify: The Live Bootleg Anthology

rollingstone

7.0

“In a late-sixties detroit rock scene that gave rise to the uncompromising protopunk blast of Iggy and the Stooges, the Motor City 5 were the rulers of the roost, crafting a kind of soul music for disaffected white freaks. On Are You Ready to Testify?, the three mid-fidelity CDs present a trio of Michigan-area onstage […]”

Heavy Lifting

guardian

6.0

“an enjoyable coda for Detroit’s punk pioneers”

Back In the USA

murfocakes

6.5

“MC5's second album is one of rock's great contradictions: a record that strips away almost everything that made the band famous, yet accidentally invents something influential in the process. Coming after the incendiary chaos of Kick Out the Jams, Back in the USA must have sounded bizarre in 1970. Producer Jon Landau famously sanded down the band's raw edges, and the result is one of the driest-sounding rock records ever made. The production is all treble, snap and attack, with very little low-end warmth. Having since watched live footage of the band, it's clear the album captures only part of the MC5 story. On stage they sound dangerous and explosive; here they sound controlled, economical and strangely restrained. Yet the album works more often than it fails. The songs are tight, concise and full of energy. If Kick Out the Jams was a manifesto, Back in the USA is a rock and roll record. The opening cover of Little Richard's "Tutti Frutti" is an interesting case. From a modern perspective it can feel conventional, but it's worth remembering the song was barely fourteen years old when MC5 recorded it, roughly equivalent to a current band covering a mid-2000s hit. Seen in that context, it doesn't feel quite so retrograde. The second side is particularly strong. "Call Me Animal", "American Ruse" and "This Is It" showcase a band discovering a leaner sound that would echo through future generations. Listening today, you can hear clear links to The Clash, Television and countless garage-rock revival bands. At various points the album feels remarkably like a strange hybrid of Blue Öyster Cult and The Strokes decades before either comparison should be possible. The guitar work is a major attraction. "Looking At You" contains some superb solos, and while they reminded me strongly of Television, that's arguably evidence of the album's influence rather than derivativeness. MC5 were among the earliest bands to build their sound around intertwining dual guitars and extended soloing, helping establish a template that others would refine. The difference is that groups like Thin Lizzy would later bring greater melodic force and power to the format. Perhaps the album's greatest problem is historical comparison. The Stooges, who once opened for MC5, ultimately eclipsed them. Iggy's band retained the raw menace and unpredictability that MC5 seem determined to suppress here. Back in the USA often feels like a fascinating attempt to remove the band's defining characteristic. Surprisingly, in doing so they stumbled upon an early form of garage rock that would prove hugely influential. Lemmy was famously an admirer, and it's easy to hear why. The record's relentless forward momentum, stripped-down attack and no-frills attitude all point towards the type of rock and roll Motörhead would later perfect. Not every song lands, and the album lacks the towering moments required to rank among 1970's elite releases, but there's an undeniable sense of a blueprint being sketched out in real time. Ultimately, Back in the USA is more enjoyable than it is legendary. It's probably better than Kick Out the Jams as an album, even if it's less iconic. The songs are stronger, the pacing sharper and the second side especially rewarding. The unusual production remains an obstacle, but also part of the record's unique character. It's not a Top 10 album of 1970, and probably not a Top 30 either. But it's a very good record from a genuinely important band, full of ideas that others would later develop more successfully.”