D.O.A. – Smash The State: The Raw Original D.O.A.[DVD]

The first thing I realized when watching Smash The State – which is comprised entirely of various live shows by early lineups of DOA – is that the group, even as early as 1980, were fucking spot-on, ferocious, and musically way more advanced then I ever gave them credit for. Band was smoking, seriously. Made up of excerpts from four live shows in the SF/Bay area throughout 1980-81, a TV shoot from 1980 and some early footage from 1978 (Joey Shithead just sang back then), the sound quality is impressive – especially considering the time period and means we’re talking about here – but it’s the performances and charisma of the band that really shine through.

It becomes obvious by, oh, the second song or so on this DVD that the lineup of Joey Shithead, Dave Gregg, Chuck Biscuits and Randy Rampage may pretty much be considered the classic lineup of this band, despite the fact that the latter two would leave the group fairly soon afterward this footage was filmed. I’ve mentioned in previous reviews about the dangers of holding those bands with legacies to a higher standard than those without, how we sometimes find ourselves co-signing a lot of the crap they put out in later years, but it becomes apparent watching this thing why DOA has the legacy they do. I honestly haven’t cared much for their output since the 1990 collaboration they did with Jello Biafra (could that even be considered a DOA album?) but there’s no discounting the fact that they were punk as shit in their early years.

I wouldn’t necessarily recommend Smash The State to those looking for an introduction to the band (look for the records, you know – try Something Better Change, Hardcore 81, Bloodied But Unbowed, War On 45, various singles collections, etc.) but for those who’ve grown a bit tired with their spotty output these days – shit, they wrote “Disco Sucks” thirty fucking years ago – and want to check out what is some damn decent archival footage of a band that was just on fire, grab it up. Terrific release.