Day 0616 - Vivid

Living Colour "Vivid" (1988) - got it

One of the first black metal bands (as opposed to black-metal), Living Colour was started by guitar maestro Vernon Reid, and originally billed as 'Vernon Reid's Living Colour'.   Vernon was originally from the UK, which I guess explains the English spelling of colour. 

The band sought to break down the idea of rock/metal being for whites and rap/RnB being for blacks.  Reid assembled a highly talented band, including bassist Muzz Skillings, drummer Will Calhoun and vocalist Corey Glover to produce this mash-up of rock, metal, funk, rap and occasional balladry.  A strong sense of melody is evident throughout in even the heavier songs.
 
Brilliant album that I haven't listened to nearly enough lately.  So again I have to thank this 1001 albums thing for (a) introducing me to new and interesting music, and (b) leading me to revisit and rediscover albums that I was already familiar with.

Day 0458 - Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables

Dead Kennedys "Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables" (1980) - got it

Contender for best punk album of all time, in my opinion... shockingly this was my first (second and third) time listening to this album from start to finish.

It combines everything that can be good about punk: there's anger and vitriol, but tempered with a sense of humour.  Blisteringly fast-paced music (but played with tight musicianship) that takes some sideways detours in places. Instead of being macho and body-slamming, or agro in vaguely white supremacist manner like some of their hardcore contemporaries; this music is almost spidery and angular with the bass overruling the guitar in a lot of places.

Jello Biafra's vocals sounds wild, frantic and slightly crazy but when you actually listen to him, you see that he's one of the smarter, more eloquent spokesmen for punk.

I was actually familiar with a lot of the songs, in part because I've heard several of them covered by other bands... always a good sign.

As you can see from the above - I have since picked up a copy of this one.