Back in time

24 November 2024

45 years ago, on 23 November 1979, PUBLIC IMAGE LTD better known as PiL released their second album titled METAL BOX. One of the most inventive, bold and middle-finger-to-the-musicbiz album of the so-called post-punk era. A masterpiece in many ways, even
in its way of packaging, as it came out as 3 x 12″ 45rpm records in a tin film canister.

The core’s band consisting of former Sex Pistol John Lydon, ace guitarist Keith Levene and equally ace bassist Jah Wobble didn’t give a flying fuck about what sort of music was hip or not, popular or not at the time. On the contrary, it was like they tried really hard to make a record that was unsalable. Respect!

No Sex Pistols Mark II (although later Lydon turned into Rotten again in order to cash in with the original Pistols. Well, aren’t they all the same?). Levene‘s metallic and wayward guitar sound was essential to Pil‘s far out and radical sonority, but it was Wobble‘s mighty wall-of-dub-bass resonance and Lydon‘s mostly wailing vocals and his dark stories/lyrics that made this whole unorthodox and outlandish noise enterprise freakishly perfect.

SINGLES: Death Disco / Memories

AllMusic wrote: “PiL managed to avoid boundaries for the first four years of their existence, and Metal Box is undoubtedly the apex. It’s a hallmark of uncompromising, challenging post-punk, hardly sounding like anything of the past, present, or future.” Full review here.

METAL BOX

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PiL: Facebook