The F.U's

The F.U's from Boston are one of my favorite hardcore bands- I like all their records, so instead of talking about just one, I'm gonna tell ya about all 3.  Like a 3 for the price of 1 bonus blog.  Classic Boston hardcore, right up there with bands like SSD, Negative FX, GangGreen, and Jerry's Kids.  Their first record, Kill For Christ, came out in '82 and featured a sweet Pushead design of Jesus firing a machine gun on the cover.  From the opening track- Civil Defense- you realize that this record isn't gonna last long- it's fast!  It only slows down for one song- Die For God, then ends with F.U.  My Favorite songs are F.U, Me Generation, Peer Police and Trendy Nazi Hypocrites.  If Ya wanna hear real Hardcore, this is it.  No Metal, No Pop, Politically Incorrect, and absolutely perfect.

A year later, the F.U's were back with My America.  This time, the cover is what looks like a stock photo of a sunrise over the mountains, and the back cover is a shot of George C Scott as Patton.  I actually have an original pressing of this on X-Claim and a later pressing (1989) on Classy Records.  The later press has a pic of a waterfall on the front and a pic of the band dressed as a redneck hunting party around a slain skateboarder on the back.  This was another great record from the F.U's. and they certainly didn't slow down.  Easily as good (if not better) than Kill For Christ.  Personal Favorites:  What You Pay For, Unite or Lose, Outcast, My America, and Boston's Finest.

Whoo Hoo!   Here's the whole first side of the record:

The F.U's put out their final record in 1984- Do We Really Want To Hurt You?  A shot of the band riding a tank adorns the cover of this wonderful slab of vinyl.  They slowed down on this one, but not by much.  There are a few songs where that early/mid 80's metal sound starts to seep in (a sign of the direction the band would head), most evident on Young Fast Iranians.  Even with the slight change in sound, this is still classic Boston HC.  Songs like Do We Really Want To Hurt You, Warlords, Killer, and Shitheads are standouts, and rank up there with anything from the first 2 records.  Ode To Larry Joe is a slower tune, reminiscent of Die For God.  After this record, the drummer left and was replaced, they added a second guitarist and changed their name to the Straw Dogs (whose earlier releases I also enjoy).

The F.U's, while not as well known as some of the other Boston bands of the early 80's, should not be overlooked.  They are on a par with or better than many of the other bands of the time.