Their eponymous debut was a rodeo bull bucking at the gates of taboo, thrashing listeners into submission to their unabashed tirade against political injustice. London Calling, their third album, galvanized their socially conscious punk with an onslaught of infectious hooks.
In the balance is the Clash's fifth studio album, and our Cülture Clüb pick of the week, Combat Rock. In the forest of Clash discography, Combat Rock has grown to Sequoian proportions in its relevance for current bands. The obvious example is M.I.A.'s sample of ""Straight to Hell"" in ""Paper Planes."" This party anthem relies on Joe Strummer's spaced-out riffs, but where the Clash use desolate soundscapes to point listeners toward their political message, M.I.A. thrives on a sardonically upbeat track—this irony backs up her message of the gentrified glory of a criminal lifestyle. Don't lie—we and our middle-class suburban friends happily shoot our finger-guns along to the chorus whenever the song comes on at a party.
It would be excessive to elaborate on the cultural significance of songs like ""Should I Stay or Should I Go"" and ""Rock the Casbah."" That said, Combat Rock tempers the poppiness of London Calling with more directly political albums like The Clash and Sandanista! The bitter minimalism of Combat Rock is also what makes it so attractive to artists: it shows a frustration with the ease of modern life, which parallels the angst of many indie artists today.
