"Cut", The Slits, 1979
Dia: 7
Mês: Maio
Ano: 2013
Ano: 2013
The Trouser Press Record Guide – Fourth Edition (Collier Books, 1991): Lurching into existence during the original 1977 explosion of pre-commercial London punk, the all-female Slits wrested the anyone-can-make-a-band-so-why-not-do-it-yourself ethos away from the traditionally no-women-allowed rock brotherhood and unselfconsciously paraded their stunning amateur rock noise with support from bands like the Clash. While on the road as part of a punk package tour, the Slits were immortalized in all their primitive glory in "The Punk Rock Movie". Looking back at the group's tentative beginnings now, it's clear that while the Slits may have been truly awful, they weren't much worse than many of their male contemporaries, and undoubtedly a damn sight better and smarter than some.
It was probably fortunate, however, that several years elapsed before the Slits got around to recording a debut album; by the time they reached the studio, Viv Albertine, Ari Up and Tessa, joined by drummer Budgie (later of Siouxsie and the Banshees) had become reasonably competent players. Spare and rudimentary but bursting with novel ideas and rampant originality, Cut – brilliantly produced by Dennis Bovell – forges a powerful white-reggae hybrid that serves as a solid underpinning for Ari Up's wobbly, semi-melodic vocals.
The Virgin Encyclopedia of Indie & New Wave (Virgin Books and Muze, 1998): Signed to Island Records, the Slits worked with reggae producer Dennis Bovell on the dub-influenced Cut. The album attracted considerable press interest for its sleeve, which featured the group naked, after rolling in mud. ★★★
AllMusic: Its amateurish musicianship, less-than-honed singing, and thick, dubwise rhythms might not be for everyone, but there's little denying the crucial nature of the Slits' first record. (...) Cut placed the Slits along with the Raincoats and Lydia Lunch as major figureheads of unbridled female expression in the post-punk era. Sure, Hole, Sleater-Kinney, and Bikini Kill would have still happened without this record (there were still the Pretenders and Patti Smith, just to mention a few of the less-subversive groundbreakers), but Cut placed a rather indelible notch of its own in the "influential" category, providing a spirited level rarely seen since. Heck, the Slits themselves couldn't match it again. ★★★★1/2
Pitchfork: This album is a keystone for any and all punk-based grrrl movements. And – though it goes without saying, it's often said anyway – this album is terribly, terribly important in the history of the rock music and the grand scheme of canonical flippity floo flap. (...) Cut is actually a lot of fun. Fun in the way the group turns every subject it touches into a giddy playground sing-a-long, whether it be a diatribe against pre-set gender roles ("Typical Girls"), a story about Sid Vicious and Johnny Rotten butting heads ("So Tough"), a cautionary tale about PiL's Keith Levene's drug use ("Instant Hit"), or songs tackling other didactic topics like invasive media propaganda, shoplifting and the idealized love of a new purchase. (...) If you're coming to them for the very first time, then I envy you. [9.3]
Rolling Stone: The record is an innovative mix of punk and reggae, with flip, deadpan lyrics ("He is set to self-destruct!/He is too good to be true!") followed by singsong choruses. Lead singer Ari Up carries many of the tracks with her hot scream and weird vibrato, paving the path for a generation of riot grrrls. If you're wondering where Bikini Kill and Sleater-Kinney came from, Cut is a chance to fill in the blanks. ★★★1/2
BBC: Known to the legions of John Peel's listeners as a regular session act who had created an amusingly chaotic punk noise, The Slits are a great example of a band who, having taken a while to actually get a record deal, became something far greater. Cut, their debut, is a startlingly complex and compelling hybrid of punk, dub and pop that sounds as fresh and contemporary as ever.
The Guardian – Mud, music and mayhem: why the Slits' 'Cut' is still up for a fight: With Ari aged 17 and the others not much older, its songs lay out a set of frustrations – such as the choking stereotypes of femininity in "Typical Girls", or disappointing boyfriends on "Ping Pong Affair". (...) Released in 1979, as wilfully amateur, clashing guitars had begun to seem an exhausted gesture, Cut retained the defiant attitudes but moved on to more adventurous sonics. Almost from the off, Jamaican music had been the preferred listening of the bands making their reputation with shouty noise. The Slits were among the first to try absorbing that influence fully into their own music.
The Guardian – Ari Up: a punk with the courage to confront (Jon Savage): By the time the Slits recorded their first album in 1979, they were a completely different band from their thrash beginnings. Produced by Dennis Bovell, the reggae-infused Cut is justly celebrated as a landmark statement that includes strong songs such as "Newtown", "Shoplifting" and, of course, "Typical Girls" – an enduring manifesto for young women who seek to reject the norm.
Punk has now become so familiar that people forget its primal, revolutionary drive. For a brief period, everything had to be new. If it hadn't been done before, do it: why not? What's to stop you? Ari Up enacted this impulse on stage, on record, and in person into the 21st century. In any language, this was heroic, and I salute her for that: I'm sorry she's gone.
Pitchfork – The Story of Feminist Punk in 33 Songs: The Slits waited three years after forming to record their masterful debut, Cut, which fused punk, dub, and reggae with more poise and intelligence than any of their punk comrades. Sounds zipped in and out from all sides: flecks of piano, rattling spoons, splashes of minimal noise guitar. “Typical Girls” wound up and unraveled so many times that the whole song seemed to spin in circles. It protested female stereotypes with pure magic, Ari Up incanting over its spindly spirit: “get upset too quickly”, “don’t think too clearly”, “buy magazines”, “worry about spots”, “don’t create”, “don’t rebel”. The Slits defied all of this.
The most pressing question of “Typical Girls” is right at the heart of the song: “Who invented the typical girl?” At a time when the widespread image of a feminist was unfairly dour and militant, the Slits were funny and playful—and though they rejected the tag of “feminist” at the time, they were. “Typical Girls” was the Slits doing exactly what they wanted. It was a sprint with a smirk.
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