Bad Brains’ Earliest Studio Recordings to Be Released in November — SkimNews
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- Bad Brains recorded their first studio session at Inner Ear Studios in March 1979, a six-song set that remained unreleased until its upcoming November 6 release as 'Are You Ready: The First Studio Recordings'.
- Ian MacKaye remixed the 1979 recordings, drawing on his long-standing connection with the band and recent archival work with acts like the Cramps, to prepare the material for modern release.
- Darryl Jenifer revealed that the riff for 'Pay to Cum' was inspired by the Ramones, the Damned, and Return to Forever, and described the title as a playful phrase with no deeper meaning.
- Inner Ear Studios hosted the one-hour session in March 1979, predating the band’s 1996 'Black Dots' demo release and marking their first time recording in a professional studio.
- CBGB is featured in newly released video footage from October 24, 1979, filmed by Barry Masterson and paired with the original recording of 'Pay to Cum' for its digital premiere.
- Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library will host Darryl Jenifer and Ian MacKaye in conversation on November 5, discussing the band’s formative years and the significance of the 1979 session.
- Archival exhibition of Bad Brains materials opens November 6 at an unspecified venue, running through November 22 and including contributions from Darryl Jenifer, Alison Braun, BJ Papas, Lucien Perkins, Alec MacKaye, and Roger Gastman.
Why it matters: This release restores a foundational artifact of hardcore punk that had been absent from streaming and official catalogs for decades. For fans and music historians, the 1979 recordings offer a clear origin point for the genre’s most influential band, while the reissue campaign makes previously inaccessible material widely available—changing how new generations engage with punk’s evolution.
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