Steady Diet of Nothing

Tracks:

Exit Only
Reclamation
Nice New Outfit
Stacks
Latin Roots
Steady Diet
Long Division
Runaway Return
Polish
Dear Justice Letter
KYEO

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This is punk rock slowed down to a lope, transformed into angry meditations on, well, a number of things--sometimes alienation, sometimes the fashion industry, and sometimes things too vague really to specify. Fugazi are always interesting, if only because of their absolute willingness to overturn every established punk rock convention (and what could be more punk rock?). On this record, inventiveness generally outpaces quality, and protest songs without catchy melodies--for all their good intentions--are pretty quickly forgotten. Regardless, their trademark staccato guitar attack and fractured rhythms are here in force, and at least two songs, "Reclamation" and "Nice New Outfit," rank with their best. --Percy Keegan

Customer Reviews:

Fugazi's most underrated effort.......2006-02-22

You know, I don't know why everyone dislikes this album so much. Sure, the production could've been better - cut them some slack, this was their first attempt at self-production - and "Reclamation" and "Dear Justice Letter" aren't up to par with Fugazi's other tunes, but this is an overall good cd.

Highlights include "Exit Only", "KYEO", "Runaway Return", "Long Division", "Latin Roots" and the title track. Though not quite as good as "In on the Killtaker" or "Red Medecine", this is a worthy addition to the Fugazi catalogue and I highly recommend it.

Steady Diet of Stagnation.......2005-10-24

Other reviewers have said that "Steady Diet..." is perhaps Fugazi's most cohesive effort. They would be right, if by cohesive they meant stagnant. Yes, that's right; this album, though a solid rock album, is definitely no stand-out of Fugazi's. Sure, there are good songs on here, and the band does tackle the subjects of women's rights ("Reclamation") and war ("K.Y.E.O."), but these simply do not stack up to classics like "Merchandise" and "Suggestion". A song like "Nice New Outfit" simply does not contain the enthusiasm of a song like "Bulldog Front"; while both were indeed written about the same topic, the former seems like it was simply being made to emulate the latter, with the end result being that "Nice New Outfit" falls tragically short.

A good album nonetheless.

the change is beginning.......2005-10-10

although a good Fugazi record, this one struggles to find it's step. the production sounds really flat and boring to me. nothing pops out. everything just sort of lies in this grey audio mass that never moves. given a proper production, some of these songs could have really come to life. Fugazi is beginning to experiment a bit in the song structures and musical ideas on this record; and it's a progression that doesn't come accross as fully developed yet. "Reclamation" has some nice lines in it, but is marred by uninspired guitar noise that doesn't lift up the song, but merely drags it along from verse to verse. and "Dear Justice Letter" has some strong political statements (which is rare for Fugazi to sing about such things in literal language); but the song's momentum seems to never really take off. the band tries a semi quiet song (as in, no distorted guitar) with "Long Division" and it's a nice tune and a sign of what's to come on future albums. "Steady Diet Of Nothing" works well with songs like the quirky "Stacks" and "Nice New Outfit" which sounds like it could have been written at the same time as the Repeater sessions. not a bad record...but def. not the one i would recommend to newcomers.

The most cohesive offering from the vets..........2004-04-19

My opinion of this Album may be colored by the fact that it was the first one i got by the band in question. First impressions and all. I think is their high-water mark, their best score... But...

Here's a way of handling this quandary, or illustrating my take on it- I have burned a two CD set of Fugazi tunes- a running/lifting/driving set, my fave songs from their (currently)8 running CDs. Not one song from 'Steady Diet,' is included...

I think this one stands by its own virtues. And I don't like the way the songs go when they're removed from the context of the album- everything just flows together- drives into each other. A perfect album. So perfect in fact, that removing songs to other contexts (a running mix) makes them weaker. Perhaps that actually works against these songs- the album is so strong on its own virtues, it makes the songs less effective, song for song, pound for pound...

Every other Fugazi album has a number of great tunes, usually 3-5 per album, and some good ones and a couple filler tracks ('In on the Kill Taker' being a notable exception- beyond the first two incredible and incendiary songs the album is nigh-unlistenable). But 'Steady Diet,' is just a phenomenally badass work that not only pushes through the limits of the genre- it's a damn fine rock album in and of itself.

All just my opinion. But if you're looking for a good jumping in point for Fugazi- this was mine and i haven't regretted one damn second!

A downslide, but still good........2004-04-16

This isn't as strong 13 Songs or Repeater. They take some chances, instead of staying with the tried and true, but some fall a bit flat and the songs aren't as strong.

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