Quality of Mercy Is Not Strnen

Here's where it all began. Not the best Mekons album available, but Quality, along with their second album, Devils, Rats and Piggies, and a A Special Message from Godzilla (Red Rhino, 1980, now out of print) shows off the Mekons' noisy, avant-garde side. It's abrasive and not as user-friendly as their later records, but this was an exciting time for British punk-rock, and this music, as dense and difficult as it may be, reflects punk's seemingly limitless possibilities. Issued by Blue Plate on CD in 1990. ~ John Dougan