NOFX have had a long and storied career that brought them from young, daring generic hardcore punks in the early 80s LA scene to perhaps the most influential (along with Bad Religion) in skate-punk. They’ve also been releasing killer albums for over 20 years running (about a dozen in all if you count two live albums and their Mystic collection) and not all of them have been equal, or as brilliant. A list of just what makes NOFX so great. So if anyone’s new to the band, anyone overwhelmed by the size of their catalog, or anyone who just doesn’t have the time to wade through their less-than-worthy tracks, here are the top five NOFX albums in chronological order. .
Ribbed (1990)
Well, maybe lead guitarist El Hefe wasn’t on board, but Ribbed is introducing the current NOFX sound. Vocalist/bassist Gross Mike once claimed that he didn’t even know what the melody was until Bad Religion front-man Greg Graffin told him , and Mike seems to be learning fast on Ribbed. The opener “Green Corn” could quite fit on any NOFX album for the excitement of the pounding drums, the scatty vocal approach, the lyrical prowess and the songwriting. Sure, the guitar solo is a bit too “metal”, but it wouldn’t have worked for SPOT for another few years. What’s more interesting is that the scrappy hands finally shed, Germina’s cacophony was so intense before. They now had a melody, which is in full prodigious display “Moron Brothers”, song with a barbershop quartet breakdown. So, yeah, there are duds on this album, but this is mostly a very blue print for the skate-punk explosion of the 90s that saw bands like Ten Foot Pole, Pennywise, Lagwagon and No Use For a Name coming to fruition.
White Trash, Two Heebs and a Bean (1992)
This was the band’s first full-length to feature new lead guitarist El Hefe (he had appeared on the Longest Line EP prior to this album) and further cemented the NOFX sound. The edgy vocals and ska songs were still present among the extremely tongue-in-cheek cover straight on the edge of Hardcore founding Fathers Minor’s menace “Straight Edge”. “ Now the band had the pleasure of El Hefe’s trumpet skills and vocal support. Songs like “Bob” and “Liza and Louise” are now classic NOFX tracks that you can still hear the band rocking live while others like “Doubtful Soul” and “Stickin’ in My Eye” showed the band their hyper-speed refined formula for producing a catchy nugget of unbridled rock.
Punk in Drublic (1994)
Often regarded as NOFX’s finest moment, Punk in Drublic saw the band finally shedding their baggage. Gone were the metal-tinged moments, the unnecessary annihilation was replaced with sharp and exquisite reiffing, and even the “Joke” songs were now on repeat for several auditions. Fat Mike also helped write his own melody and lyrical score, which was either surprising or not difficult to move depending on how you look at it. Still, songs like “Linoleum,” “Dig,” “Don’t Call Me,” and “Dying Degree” album saw NOFX at the top of their songwriting game. These were the singles that formed the bonds of punk at the time, everyone was trying to emulate, and well, some of their songs still they are trying to emulate today. Catchy, fast, energetic, hard, sometimes funny, sometimes very serious, Punk on Drublic still serves as a testament to how good a punk album can really be.
So Long and Thanks for All the Shoes (1997)
Take and repeat all the fantastic details about Punk in Drublic. Okay, that may be too simple of an explanation. The fantastic thing about So Long is that it was the first time NOFX was noticed that they branched out from a patented formula in writing songs. who is not a random type of fun or experiment. 180 Degrees” showed that a ska band couldn’t sing a funny song, while “Tear All Her Sects” was mid-season /a> a song with a wonderful nuance, “Monosyllabic Girl” was a pure pop rally and “Falling Love” was an experiment with heavy submissiveness. tag/punk-rock”>Punk Rock Elite” and “Kids if K-Hole” were NOFX classics, but they also delivered a surprising amount of energy and pop-sense.
The Decline (1999)
Okay, so it’s not an album, but just an EP with one 18 minute song. That’s right, a punk band wrote an 18 minute long song, and it’s good, damn good. The decline was a sign of NOFX stepping outside the parameters that everyone else had built for themselves and still making amazing music. And yes, NOFX had political songs throughout their career, but Decline was an anthem, sung along with a raucous, fist-pumping close-up. So many ideas are tackled over the course of thirty-two minutes, as the band knocks everything from relentless skate-punk, to reggae rock, pounding hardcore, and of course it’s brilliantly transcendent.
NOFX has released several albums over the years, and while none of them disappoint, none of them have had the same power, creativity or staying power as these five. These are the 5 definitive NOFX albums.
