Most of the songs have a more raw sound akin to hard rock bands of the period compared to the group's later more polished power pop style, and the song lyrics deal with more extreme subject matter than later albums. For instance, "The Ballad of T.V. Violence" is about serial killerRichard Speck, "Daddy Should Have Stayed in High School" is about an ephebophile, and "Oh, Candy" is about a photographer friend of the band, Marshall Mintz, who committed suicide.
Critical reception
The album was generally well-received by critics with favorable comparisons to the Beatles and the Who, with critics likening Robin Zander's vocals to John Lennon's. Charles M. Young, writing for Rolling Stone, said the album had a "heavy emphasis on basics with a strain of demented violence" and that the lyrics "run the gamut of lust, confusion and misogyny, growing out of rejection and antiauthoritarian sentiments about school—all with an element of wit." Ira Robbins of Trouser Press noted the album's "wall-of-guitar sound" and said the band was "sarcastic, smart, nasty, powerful, tight, casual, and destined for something great."
Track listing
All songs written by Rick Nielsen except where noted. Note: The original vinyl record had "Side A" printed on the label on one side and "Side 1" printed on the other, a humorous touch reflecting the band's conviction that they didn't have any "B material". The placement of the track listing on the jacket seemed to indicate "Hot Love" was the first track on the album. When the album was released on CD in the mid-1980s, it followed the same sequence. However, when the album was re-issued in 1998, the band's preferred sequence was used, placing "Side 1" before "Side A" and included five bonus tracks:
In the documentary , Johnny Ramone stated that the guitar riff in "The KKK Took My Baby Away" was inspired by the riff in "He's a Whore". Big Black released a cover of "He's a Whore" as a single with a picture sleeve in the style of Cheap Trick's album cover. The back of the sleeve was a similar take on the German band Kraftwerk and their song, "The Model". Big Black's version was included as a bonus track on the CD release of their second album, Songs About Fucking. The Methadones covered "He's a Whore" on 21st CenturyPower Pop Riot, an album of covers released in 2006. Concrete Blonde covered "Mandocello" on Still in Hollywood.
