Tracks

Performer Notes

Richard Hell And The Voidoids: Richard Hell (vocals, electric bass); Robert Quine, Ivan Julian (electric guitar, background vocals); Marc Bell (drums).
Recorded at Plaza Sound and Electric Lady Studios, New York, New York.
BLANK GENERATION is now widely regarded as one of the seminal points in the punk explosion, along with the Sex Pistols' NEVER MIND THE BOLLOCKS HERE'S THE SEX PISTOLS and The Ramones debut. It is a startling, urgent record filled with the pent-up frustration and nihilistic despair that earmarked the potency of the late '70s punk movement. Former Television member Hell, however, was considerably more well read than the bulk of his punk counterparts, a circumstance that ups the ante on BLANK GENERATION.
The title track has become one of punk's signature tunes, and it certainly seems to embody the entire spirit of the movement in one fell swoop. Although Hell has repeatedly insisted that the title refers to "blank" as in "fill in the...", it was taken literally, and the deep-seated nihilism struck a resounding chord. The Voidoids themselves helped in no small part make BLANK GENERATION a touchstone. Guitar greats Ivan Julian and Robert Quine provide a searing backdrop on the title track, "Love Comes In Spurts," as well as a weirdly straight reading of Sinatra's "All the Way."

Professional Reviews

Spin (5/01, p.109) - Ranked #12 in Spin's "50 Most Essential Punk Records" - "...This is the classic CBGB jizz-guitar spaz-out..."

Q (5/02 SE, p.138) - Included in Q's "100 Best Punk Albums".

Q (4/00, pp.108,111) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...[Hell] riffs like a decadent Dylan off the warped punk-funk of Robert Quine's guitar....BLANK GENERATION promised a great end."

Uncut - "'Love Comes In Spurts' is usually described as an anti-love song, but beneath its surface grubbiness it's a teenage lament as touching in its way as a Brill Building ballad."

The Wire (3/00, p.56) - "...Stands up as a song cycle whole - an extended quarrel between rock-as-life-force versus the terminal consolations (junk, nihilism) of retreat."

Melody Maker (2/22/00, p.46) - 4 stars out of 5 - "Smashing 1977-era punk, with the chaotic schizo-babble of 'Love Games In Spurts' - the sound of a nervous breakdown just beginning."

Mojo (Publisher) (3/03, p.76) - Ranked #25 in Mojo's "Top 50 Punk Albums".

Mojo (Publisher) (4/00, p.104) - "...There's no denying the shredding power of BLANK GENERATION....the high points on this album remain unsurpassed in the punk pantheon."

Album: Blank Generation
#	Song Title	Time
1)	Love Comes in Spurts
2)	Liars Beware
3)	New Pleasure
4)	Betrayal Takes Two
5)	Down at the Rock and Roll Club - (alternate)
6)	Who Says?
7)	Blank Generation
8)	Walking on the Water
9)	Plan, The
10)	Another World
11)	I'm Your Man
12)	All the Way

Album: Blank Generation
#	Song Title	Time
1)	Love Comes in Spurts
2)	Liars Beware
3)	New Pleasure
4)	Betrayal Takes Two
5)	Down at the Rock and Roll Club - (alternate)
6)	Who Says?
7)	Blank Generation
8)	Walking on the Water
9)	Plan, The
10)	Another World
11)	I'm Your Man
12)	All the Way