Just as a disclaimer: I know absolutely nothing about this band. I don't know who the members are, when they were formed, where they're from, or whatever.

That being said, this is, in all honesty, one of the greatest albums I've ever gotten. I'm not saying that it's one of the greatest punk albums of the `80s or anything like that, but that's only because the False Prophets don't appear to have had any influence on punk in general, unlike many of their contemporaries.

Blind Roaches and Fat Vultures: Phantasmagoric Beasts of the Reagan Era is a collection of what appears to be the False Prophet's first (only?) album and their first few singles. These songs are just truly, truly genius. Basically, this is old-school hardcore punk in the vein of Reagan Youth or early Dead Kennedys. However, this is so much more than one-dimensional punk. The album begins with a few slower hardcore songs, one of the best being the anti-moshing tirade "Good Clean Fun." The song has the perfect combination of sarcasm and seriousness that makes a great punk song. Another of the better singles is "Suburbanites Invade," a surprisingly convincing reggae-punk song. Even though it goes on for about 4 minutes, an eternity in hardcore, it never gets boring.

The actual album starts with "7 Deadly Sins," a typical anti-religious screed. It gets a little more interesting with "Scorched Earth," one of the only punk songs I've ever heard that incorporates hip-hop, and still manages to sound good. On "Functional," the element of keyboard is introduced, which adds an almost goth-y touch. They even (correct me if I'm wrong) cover a showtune with "Marat/Sade." It certainly sounds like a punked-up version of something from Phantom of the Opera or Les Miz. The album ends with the haunting "Faith."

This compilation also includes "Banana Split Republic," which was included on the (in)famous compilation, Peace/War.

Now, after reading this, you may not think this is all that special. But really, it's not easy to describe. The False Prophets are much more than the sum of their parts. You'll understand once you listen to them. Just please, give this a chance.