IGNITION

The Offspring are, in many ways, the very definition of '90s punk. Combining the rawness of the '80s hardcore scene with the pop smarts of The Ramones, The Offspring had a winning sound that stretched across their first four albums (the later albums, while still containing glimpses of punk, contained more humor and MTV-friendly, polished material). Their first, self-titled album was solid, but really didn't have much standout material. "Smash", the album that succeeds this album, had the right balance of polish and fury, but wasn't their most consistent release. "Ixnay On The Hombre", their fourth album, and last to contain their "classic" sound, showed what they could really do with their old sound intact, but still strayed away quite a bit from traditional "punk", with its many ballads and upbeat material. So, even with all these great releases, was there ever a "sweet spot" that the Offspring found between catchy hooks and the rawness that they were once so renowned for? Yes, there was. And its name is "Ignition". At first glance (or listen), "Ignition" is not particularly standout. It begins with a basic, mid-tempo song that you could predict would open an album like this ("Session"). However, once you listen to the album song-by-song, you find that it's more than another "90's punk" album. "L.A.P.D." is a powerful, dark commentary on police brutality, and is so sinister sounding that you could totally imagine the Dead Kennedys performing it. "Kick Him When He's Down", the only single released for the album, is very suitable for a skating or X-Games video, and that's no insult. "Dirty Magic", probably the best song on the album, is dissonant and moody, both in melody and in lyrics, and it's blissfully morose and unlike anything The Offspring have released, past or present. Obvious influences and comparisons aside, this is 100% The Offspring, and 100% The Offspring at its peak. "Ignition" does not contain the polish of its successors, but surely contains at least twice as much spirit as anything they've released since 1998. But hey, this is punk music. Why be so concerned with anything such as polish to begin with? Put it in, crank it, and enjoy. This is '90s punk at its peak.

I grew up with the cassette tape in the early 90s in my teenage years then eventually the CD. Having this for my record player is pretty sweet. I won't give you a track by track critique, but I will say the original version of Dirty Magic found here is one of their best recordings ever (much better than the remake on a later album). And while LAPD still proves a point, it's a very dated song and I'm assuming they don't play this song these days. Session is such a great adrenaline-pumping opener, Burn It Up is still hilariously phsychotic, and Forever And A Day is the perfect choice to end the record. Man, I miss Ron Welty's drumming..

This album is freaking awesome! I have listened to this album hundreds and maybe even thousands of times since it came out and I never grow tired of it. It has some really good tunes if you want to go for a workout at the gym or if you want to go running. Trust me in that you will never regret buying this album as it has some really good power tunes that will energize you to the core.

Thank you.

I guess I'm the type of Offspring fan that several old-school Offspring fans love to hate; I didn't discover this band until Pretty Fly For a White Guy but I purchased Americana and loved it and The Offspring's easily one of the best bands I've ever been a fan of. I went back and have listened to all their CD's many times, (the exception being their self-titled debut and, until now, Ignition) and CD after CD they always amaze. Some have held up better than others but they've never released a CD without at least some excellent tracks on there and Ignition, it turns out, was no exception. Despite the common consensus, I didn't like Smash that much. I didn't find the subjects of the songs all that interesting, I didn't think musically it was all that great, I only liked a couple tracks off of it, and it's just not one that I played all that much. After hearing some song samples of Ignition online (now that the CD's been digitally re-mastered) I decided to check it out, and it sounds SO much better now than it ever did, the digital re-mastering makes all the instruments and Dexter's vocals crystal clear, and I'm really starting to consider picking up the re-mastered Smash and giving it a shot. But back to Ignition. This was released at a time when the band was not famous, when they were underground and indie and it's a fairly different sound than what they have now. In general songs are much more about energy than melody, and the instruments overall have a much rawer and less-produced sound. But I disagree with some who say that this CD had would have had no commercial appeal...songs like Get It Right sound like they could easily be featured on some of the Offspring's newer CD's, as does the excellent Dirty Magic and the energetic Hypodermic and the closing Forever and a Day. (Easily my 4 favorites on the CD) But those looking for familiar Offspring should stop there because everything else on the CD's vastly different. Session, (which the band's just recently started to play live again,) with its drum solo and high energy, is the perfect example of the sound to expect on the CD. It's fun and catchy but not necessarily bogging itself down with a melody. We Are One goes on a bit too long but it's another cool song with a unique sound and a very "punk" message. Same for Kick Him When He's Down, which sounds unlike anything I've heard from the Offspring. Forever and a Day's a great song to end the album, reminds me of some of the stuff off Ixnay. Again sounds very different from other stuff the band's done and lacking a well-defined chorus but again, it's all about the energy. GREAT guitar solo, too. Excellent lyrics. Other songs on the CD retain a distinctly "punk" sound to them, songs like No Hero and LAPD, which are just heavy and with no "melody" to speak of, just anger. But these are good songs too, in their own way. Not ones I see myself listening to over and over again once the novelty wears off but it's interesting to see the sound this band once had. Not every song on this CD's a winner. I thought Burn It Up featured both a corny delivery by Dexter and also pretty lame subject matter. I just can't seem to get into Nothing From Something, and despite great instrumentals, Take It Like A Man just feels a bit aimless and not all that interesting. (Although I can already tell there's a possibility that I might get into this a bit more with some listens down the road.) But this is easily a CD that's worth listening for Offspring fans. While not quite as accessible as the stuff that followed, I think the re-mastering helps a lot, and while the songs on here may not reach the heights of the likes of The Kids Aren't Alright, A Lot Like Me, or Change the World, it's a great CD and any Offspring fan owes it to themselves to pick up this re-mastered copy, it's great stuff and very different and energetic. In order, my thoughts on the Offspring CD's (except self-titled, which I haven't heard yet) - Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace (Best) Americana Ixnay on the Hombre Ignition Splinter Conspiracy of One Smash It's not up there with their best but it's a very good CD and Offspring fans should definitely try it out, it's something very different and an interesting listen.

Great album. No skips or pops. Record quality good.

I believe this is one of their earliest albums, and every track is a winner. I used to listen to this in the early 2000's and was never really done listening to it. So I recently took the opportunity to buy it, and have uploaded some of the songs to my phone. Perfect!

Offspring's second best album besides smash. Any punk rocker worth his sand loves Ignition!