Idol Listening: Fight Amp’s Favorite Songs from Bands’ Final Albums

Perennial MetalSucks prog/sludge/noise favorites Fight Amp are throwing in the towel. The group’s upcoming tour — which starts tomorrow, November 4th! — will be their last. Until the inevitable reunion, anyway.

To celebrate, Fight Amp bassist Jon DeHart put together a playlist of his favorite songs from bands’ final albums. We’d have to chew on which song from Fight Amp’s swan song Constantly Off is our favorite — that’s a tough decision! — but you can listen to it at the end of this post and choose for yourself. Those farewell tour dates:

Nov 4 – Kent, OH @ Outpost
Nov 5 – Chicago, IL @ Township
Nov 6 – Detroit, MI @ Sanctuary
Nov 8 – Toronto, ON @ Coalition
Nov 9 – Montreal, QC @ Turbo Haus
Nov 10 – Boston, MA @ tba
Nov 11 – Philadelphia, PA @ Kung Fu Necktie
Nov 12 – Brooklyn, NY @ Sunnyvale

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAXcMq3laHlilYf3w5MUbjI-G-q7wNQPb

Iron Age – “The Sleeping Eye of the Watcher” from The Sleeping Eye (2009)

We played a few shows with these guys not long after this record was released, and I’ve always thought they were the perfect blend of punk, hardcore, and metal. They could shred with incredible precision live, but at the same time they didn’t take themselves too seriously and weren’t afraid to play it loose and bring the slop. I like that in a band.

Nirvana – “Radio Friendly Unit Shifter” from In Utero (1993)

There’ve been plenty of records over the years that I would categorize as life changing for me, and In Utero would have been the first… if it weren’t for Nevermind. But this song reaches a level of self-loathing that’s remarkable even for them.

The Velvet Underground – “Rock & Roll” from Loaded (1970)

OK, so technically this isn’t the last VU record, BUT, this is the last one with Lou Reed in the band and I’m making a bit of an exception here. This song in particular is special to us since the name “Fight Amputation” is derived from the line “despite all the amputations, you know you could just go out and dance to the rock and roll station, and it was alright.”

Dead and Gone – “Thin Red Wine” from The Beautician (2002)

After a brief hiatus, and one fantastic “Creeps on Candy” record (seriously, if you’re not familiar, do yourself a favor), Dead and Gone returned for what would be their last album. It was more adventurous and more focused than anything they’d done previously. The whole record just has a great flow between quick, jagged punk jams, and slow, spacey introspection, not to mention incredible tone (that bass!!). It was a huge leap, and they pulled it off perfectly. This track has always been a favorite of mine.

Hot Snakes – “Hatchet Job” from Audit in Progress (2004)

The most original and interesting two-guitar interplay in the biz.

Combat Wounded Veteran – “Activate the Corpses” from Duck Down for the Torso (2002)

It’s like they took the spastic power violence they were known for and fed it through a skipping CD player. They caught a lot of people off guard in the best possible way by opening their last release with this track.

The Smiths – “Stop Me If You Think You’ve Heard This One Before” from Strangeways Here We Come (1987)

I know this pick is gonna rustle a few jimmies, many of my close friends included, but The Smiths can do no wrong in my eyes, and it’s my playlist and I can cry if I want to.

The Jesus Lizard – “Horse Doctor Man” from Blue (1998)

While I’m sure many people wouldn’t point to their final album as their best, Blue still has some gems. David Yow is channeling his inner Alice Cooper with this one, and I actually had to triple check to be sure that it wasn’t a cover.

Quicksand – “Backward” from Manic Compression (1995)

In eighth grade, a friend and I went to see The Offspring for what would be our first show ever. Quicksand were one of the openers and their set had just started as we walked in, making them my very first live music experience. I had never heard of ’em until then, but they completely blew me away. The Offspring just seemed like cartoon characters after that, total toys. It was like having a shaman explain to me the concept of “real” and “not real.” I dove into the deep end of punk and hardcore after that night and never looked back.

Fugazi – “Epic Problem” from The Argument (2001)

The realest of the real.

Botch – “Afghamistam” from An Anthology of Dead Ends (2002)

A track that wouldn’t feel out of place if it appeared on Slint’s Spiderland by a band who spent their entire existence crafting menacing songs that were anything but. I would’ve loved to see these guys continue and push further in this direction.