Black Flag is an American punk rock band formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California. The band was founded as Panic by guitarist Greg Ginn, and singer Keith Morris. They are widely considered to be one of the first hardcore punk bands, as well as one of the pioneers of After breaking up in 1986, Black Flag reunited in 2003 and again in 2013, however due to a legal dispute two versions of Black Flag were formed, one under the Black Flag name featuring Ginn and a revolving door of touring musicians and the other, FLAG, featuring Morris, Chuck Dukowski, Bill Stevenson among other ex-Black Flag members. This resulted in a highly public lawsuit between Ginn and FLAG, ultimately ending with both versions to exist and tour. The second Black Flag reunion lasted well over a year, during which they released their first studio album in nearly three decades, What The... (2013). Ginn announced Black Flag's third reunion in January 2019.
Black Flag's sound mixed the raw simplicity of the Ramones with a style of atonal guitar soloing compared to that of the New York Dolls' lead guitarist Johnny Thunders, and, in later years, frequent tempo shifts. The lyrics were written mostly by Ginn, and like other punk bands of the late 1970s and early 1980s, Black Flag voiced an anti-authoritarian and nonconformist message, in songs punctuated with descriptions of social isolation, neurosis, poverty, and paranoia. These themes were explored further when Henry Rollins joined the band as lead singer in 1981. Most of the band's material was released on Ginn's independent record label SST Records.
Over the course of the 1980s, Black Flag's sound, as well as their notoriety, evolved. In addition to being central to the creation of hardcore punk, they were innovators in the first wave of American West Coast punk rock and are considered a key influence on punk subculture in the United States and abroad. Along with being among the earliest punk rock groups to incorporate elements and the influence of heavy metal melodies and rhythm, there were often overt free jazz and contemporary classical elements in their sound, especially in Ginn's guitar playing, and the band interspersed records and performances with instrumentals throughout their career. They also played longer, slower, and more complex songs at a time when other bands in their milieu performed a raw, fast, three-chord format.
Black Flag has been well-respected within the punk subculture, primarily for their tireless promotion of an autonomous DIY punk ethic and aesthetic. They are often regarded as pioneers in the movement of underground do-it-yourself record labels. By way of constant touring throughout the United States and Canada, and occasionally Europe, Black Flag established a dedicated cult following.
History
Formation and early years (1976–1981) Initially called Panic, Black Flag was formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach by Greg Ginn and Keith Morris.Morris & Ruland, pp. 28-30 Morris originally was to play drums for the band, until Ginn, impressed by his energy and charisma, insisted he be the front man.Morris & Ruland, pp. 29-30 Ginn and Morris had trouble early on finding bandmates. They had an especially difficult time finding a reliable bass guitarist and often rehearsed without a bassist, a factor that contributed to the development of Ginn's distinctive guitar sound.Grad, David. "Fade to Black". Spin. July 1997 Ginn's brother Raymond Pettibon and SST house record producer-to-be Spot filled in during rehearsals.Morris & Ruland, pp. 33-34 In the beginning, Ginn and Morris were inspired by the raw, stripped-down attitude of bands such as the Ramones and the Stooges. Ginn has said "We were influenced by the Stooges and then the Ramones; they inspired us. Keith and myself saw the Ramones when they first toured LA in 1976. After we saw them, I said if they could do it we could do it. I thought Keith would be a good singer and after seeing the Ramones, it made him think that he doesn't have to be some classical operatic singer."
Chuck Dukowski, bassist of Würm, liked Ginn's band and eventually joined, forming a committed quartet with Ginn, Morris and drummer Brian Migdol. Dukowski insisted the band rehearse much more frequently, sometimes seven days per week.Morris & Ruland, p.36 The band held their first performance in December 1977 in Redondo Beach, California. To avoid confusion with another band called Panic, they changed their name to Black Flag in late 1978. They played their first show under this name on January 27, 1979, at the Moose Lodge Hall in Redondo Beach, California. Future Black Flag vocalists Dez Cadena and Ron Reyes were both in attendance at the Moose Lodge show.Morris and Ruland, p. 51
The name was suggested by Ginn's brother, artist Raymond Pettibon, who also designed the band's logo: a stylized black flag represented as four black bars.Morris & Ruland, p.45 Pettibon stated "If a white flag means surrender, a black flag represents anarchy." Their new name was reminiscent of the anarchist symbol, the insecticide of the same name, and of the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath, one of Ginn's favorite bands. Ginn suggested that he was "comfortable with all the implications of the name."Azerrad, Michael. Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground, 1981–1991. Little Brown and Company, 2001. , p. 19. The band spray painted the simple, striking logo all over Los Angeles, attracting attention from both supporters and the Los Angeles Police Department. Pettibon designed all of the band's early flyers and album covers through the 1980s.
There were few opportunities for punk rock bands to perform in Southern California (Los Angeles club The Masque was the center of the L.A. punk scene, but was also rather parochial, and did not often admit bands from outside L.A. proper). Black Flag organized their own gigs, performing at picnics, house parties, schools; any place that was available. They called club owners themselves to arrange appearances, and plastered hundreds of flyers—usually Pettibon's severe, haunting comic strip style panels—on any available surface to publicize performances. Dukowski reported that the "minimum [number of flyers] that went out was 500 for a show." Black Flag shows were regularly broken up by the LAPD, often violently, at the direction of Chief of Police Daryl Gates, who targeted punk rock shows in the city.
In 1979, the band released their first recording, the Nervous Breakdown EP. It was the debut release by Ginn's SST Records, which he created due to the band's difficulty in securing a contract with existing labels due to their reputation.
Though Ginn was the band's leader, he was more quiet than Dukowski, whose intelligent, fast-talking, high-energy persona attracted significant attention, and he often served as Black Flag's spokesman to the press. Dukowski acted as the group's tour manager even after he no longer performed with them, and helped establish the band's DIY punk ethic and demanding work ethic. Dukowski's bass guitar was a vital part of the early Black Flag sound; "TV Party", for instance, was one of many songs "driven more by Chuck Dukowski's percolating bass line than Ginn's stun-gun guitar."
Morris performed as vocalist on Black Flag's earliest recordings, and his energized, manic stage presence was pivotal in the band earning a reputation in Southern California. Migdol was replaced by the enigmatic Colombian drummer Robo, whose numerous clicking metallic bracelets became part of his drum sound. The band played with a speed and ferocity that was all but unprecedented in rock music; critic Ira Robbins declared that "Black Flag was, for all intents and purposes, America's first hardcore band." Morris quit in 1979, citing, among other reasons, creative differences with Ginn, and his own "freaking out on cocaine and speed." Morris would subsequently form the Circle Jerks.
After Morris's departure, Black Flag recruited fan Ron Reyes as singer. With Reyes, Black Flag recorded the Jealous Again 12-inch EP and appeared in the film The Decline of Western Civilization. This was also the line-up that toured up and down the West Coast for the first time, the version most fans outside of L.A. first saw.
In 1980, Reyes quit Black Flag mid-performance at the Fleetwood in Redondo Beach because of escalating violence. For the remainder of that gig, the band played an extended version of "Louie Louie" and invited audience members to take turns singing.
Dez Cadena, another fan, then joined as a vocalist, and the band continued touring throughout the United States. By the summer of 1981, Cadena opted to play guitar rather than perform vocals, and the band sought a new singer while on the East Coast of the United States.
Rollins era (1981–1986)
Twenty-year-old fan Henry Rollins (birth name Henry Garfield) was then living in Washington, D.C., and singing for hardcore band State of Alert (S.O.A.). S.O.A. drummer Ivor Hanson had a father who was a top admiral in the US Navy, and his family shared living quarters with the vice president of the United States in the United States Naval Observatory. The band held their practices there, and would have to be let in by United States Secret Service agents.
S.O.A. had corresponded with Black Flag, and met them when they performed on the U.S. east coast. At an impromptu show at A7 in New York City, Rollins had asked the band to perform "Clocked In", and the band offered to let him sing. Since vocalist Dez Cadena was switching to guitar, the band then invited Rollins to audition. Impressed by his stage demeanor, they asked him to become their permanent vocalist.American Hardcore. Dir. Paul Rachman. AHC Productions LLC, 2006. Film. Despite some doubts, he accepted, due in part to Ian MacKaye's encouragement. Rollins acted as roadie for the remainder of the tour while learning Black Flag's songs during sound checks and encores, while Cadena crafted guitar parts that meshed with Ginn's. Rollins also impressed Black Flag with his broad musical interests during an era when punk rock music and fans were increasingly factionalized; he introduced Black Flag to Washington D.C.'s go-go, a distinctive take on funk music.
Rollins was Black Flag's longest-lasting vocalist. When he joined Black Flag, he brought a different attitude and perspective than previous singers. Some earlier songs, such as "Six Pack" (a song written about original singer Keith Morris) blended a sense of black humor with driving punk rock. Rollins was an intense performer, who usually appeared onstage wearing only shorts. Ginn once stated that after Rollins joined, "We couldn't do songs with a sense of humor anymore; he got into the serious way-out poet thing."