MDC

Millions of Dead Cops [Millennium Edition] (2014)

kfrench

For Black Friday, MDC reissued their classic album, Millions of Dead Cops. The CD version also includes the Multi Death Corporations EP, the Millions of Dead Children EP, the Stains EP and almost an entire live show at CBGB's from 1983, along with some previously unreleased tracks. All of the songs were remastered, making the sound quality excellent compared to most hardcore albums.

Being a fan of MDC, I was most interested in the live show. The only real complaint I have about it is that the last song of the set gets cut off in the middle of it because whoever recorded it ran out of tape. Other than that, it is a great display of MDC's strong ability to perform. The quality of the recordings is pretty decent, as well, especially considering when and where it was recorded. I was pleasantly surprised to hear just how clear the recording was. With many live hardcore recordings, the quality always seems to be relatively poor (The live tracks on Negative Approach's Total Recall come to mind).

The previously unreleased songs "(R)Evolution in Rock," "Pay to Come Along" and "Pecking Order" are able to be found on the Millions of Dead Cops/More Dead Cops compilation from 1988, leaving me to wonder why they are labeled as unreleased. However, "Corporate Deathburger" and "Dick for Brains" from the original Stains 7-inch were unreleased until now. The Stains EP is a good way to close out the album by showing how MDC's style shifted between their first EP and later releases.

I would highly recommend this album to anyone who is interested in hardcore. Fast music, extreme political stances and powerful lyrics are three things MDC provides on this reissue of a hardcore classic.