Hard Raw Punk Energy. Review on Buddha - Blink 182

''what has come to be known as the 'Buddha Record' was actually a limited cassette only release of our earliest studio recordings with no title, just a picture of Buddha on it. After a long rest on the shelf at Tom's house the good people at Kung Fu have agreed to unleash these 24* track 'cries for help' from the vault. They've been digitally remixed and remastered to create a sound that is better than the way they used to sound.

Please enjoy this whimsical journey back to our humble beginnings recorded at double time studios in San Diego California over three nights <with a very sick Mark Hoppus> in 1995, just six months after the band formed.''

That is the wording on the inlay card for this release from SD punk rockers Blink 182. And that is exactly what this cd shows. That this band are pure hard, raw punk rock energy. They aren't human forms!!! At least that is what I feel....and it sounded pretty cool when I thought of it. This album, although supposedly sounding a little 'edgey' with a much less honed sound, and a very sick bassist (and he does sound like he has quite a bad cold or something.), this album sounds almost perfectly like a studio album, maybe with a little less producing, but still pretty good quality....much better then the original!!! I find that some of these songs are Better (thats right, BETTER) then some of the musical ingeuiteys that have been released by a lot of punk bands that have been going longer. It shows the band how they were in teh beginning, but they still sounded amazing (although a little less, due to the fact that this has been remixed and remastered). It gives hope to all the wannabe punkers out there (including me), and shows that it is indeed quality over quantity, in the dog eat dog world that is music.

i will mark the ones which were on the Cheshire cat album with a *.)

1 : Carousel

2 : Tv

3 : Strings

4 : Fentoozler

5 : Time

6 : Romeo And Rebecca

7 : 21 Days

8 : Sometimes

9 : Poin Of View

10 : My Pet Sally

11 : Reebok Commercial

12 : Toast And Bananas

13 : The Girl Next Door

14 : Don't.

(Original)

-Transvestite

-The family next door

Carousel : I find that the guitaring on this version is a lot lighter then on the later version. Also this version of the song is a full 29 seconds shorter (it hasn't got the guitar programming at the beginning of it)!! quite a fast paced song, a lot faster then you would think by listening to the opening 45-60 seconds!! they are slow, but then the song kicks in and it speeds up,if only a little bit. Great song and one of the best on the album.

Tv : This song isn't exactly the best song on the album, and it doesn't do itself justice with a bit of a weak guitar riff, and some lousy drum beats. The lyrics are pretty cool.....good idea....write a song about how much you love tv...must use that one some day........

Strings : This is another great song and would rank number three in my top three list. The lyrics that are on the song. (and there isn't many) are repeated twice and are put together with the guitar riffs and solid drumming to render this song amazing.

Fentoozler : This song isn't a bad one, and doesn't sound that different from the Cheshire Cat version although the guitars are a bit heavier and the drums a bit lighter adding to that feeling that this song is a good one, that had it been mucked around with a bit more, could have been amazing.

Time : This is,to me, the best song on the album. The guitar starts off by itself, before the song kicks in and gets a bit cooler. (as if it could!!) The guitars on this one give you that Hawain feeling like you are on the beach. That is how much it sounds like that. The way Mark sings, with Tom backing him 100%, this song just gets better all the time. A very cool way to say that wasting your time trying to be popular and cool and 'in' is stupid, and that you should live life for yourself.

''

Romeo And Rebecca : This is the second best song on the album, combining some simple yet effective riffs with some easygoing drumming to give that easy tune that is sooooo catchy!! I like the lyrics on this one as well. This song sounds only marginally different on the later version but is better for the fact. Changing this would have been a miscarriage of justice!! oh, and the intro guitaring is cool to!!

21 Days : Everybody loves this song, and I can see why, as it grows on you after a couple of listens, and is a pretty good song...even though there is better (only three better tracks)......not bad at all, about trying not to fall in love with someone, and it is very effective, with some very catchy riffs.

Sometimes : This one clocks in at only one minute and four seconds, but doesn't lack a thing. Very fast after a bit of a slow start, and a very bouncy song....great!

Point Of View : This was originally on the Flyswatter Lp, and wasn't very clear and listenable, but redone it sounds pretty amazing....shame that this one wasn't added to any of the albums....or that they won't re-release the Flyswatter demo....oh well....this is a very fast song.

My Pet Sally : This one is a bit of a weird song, about Tom getting a pet salamander and playing with it all the time and no longer being lonely...strange!! a bit of a slower one, and not the best....oh well! (Could have done with a bit more fiddling around with.)

Reebok Commercial : Another song taken from the Flyswatter LP, and another great one....now that I can finally understand it! a kinda fast / slow one, but still great!!

Toast and Bananas : this is another good song, although the titles a bit weird, no? A sort of average song, with the right tempo to it....i think you will agree....i like it a lot, but not as much as some of the other great songs....

The Girl Next Door : This one is the only one on the album NOT written by Blink 182. This one was written by Ben weasel/Screeching Weasels. Good song and would have done well on Cheshire cat, had they chosen it…(even though it was done AFTER cheshire cat). Not a bad song at all!!! Good guitar intro!! The riff on this one sounds a LOT like the Man Overboard riff. (well to me it does…some of it, anyway).

Don't : This one starts off with a good guitar riff, and some solid drummingthis one didn't appeal to me the first time I heard it, and the sound isn't as clear Mark sounds worst off on this track, but he trys hard and pulls this one off, barely!!

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Transvestite : This one is a quiet one, with Mark and Tom both whispering, and a lot of echoes;..this one is about one of there moms, being a man and hiding behinda disguisepretty funny, and slow-ish.

The Family Next Door : this one is a fast track that wouldn't be out of place in Cheshire Cat. It is about someones retarded family next door who sleep and have sex with each other. This is a funny one, with some easy riffs.

(this was originally WAY longer but I had to shorten it to fit it in.)