Forever Came Today (album)

Last updated

Forever Came Today
Forever Came Today (album).jpg
Studio album by
the Flesh Eaters
ReleasedMay 2, 1982
RecordedFebruary 14, 1982
Genre Punk, heavy metal, rock and roll
Label Ruby/Slash
Producer Chris D.
The Flesh Eaters chronology
A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die
(1981)		Forever Came Today
(1982)		American Youth Report
(1982)

Forever Came Today is an album by the American band the Flesh Eaters, released on May 2, 1982. [1] [2] The band supported it with a North American tour. [3] "My Life to Live" was rerecorded for the band's 2019 album, I Used to Be Pretty . [4]

Contents

Production

Forever Came Today was recorded on Valentine's Day 1982. [5] Frontman Chris D. wanted a more stable lineup for the band, as he was tired of being unable to practice on a regular basis. [6] He included spiritual themes in his lyrics, and lamented that most young hardcore punk listeners did not respond to such concerns. [7] D. admired Motorhead and Girlschool and wanted his guitar playing to take on a more heavy metal sound. [8] He was also influenced by Catholic imagery and horror movies. [8] Steve Berlin contributed on saxophone. [9] "The Rosy Hours" is about finding and talking with someone who sees the world in a similar fashion. [8] "The Wedding Dice" is about a murder in Mexico. [10] "A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die" employs a Bo Diddley beat. [11]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [12]
Robert Christgau C+ [13]
The Great Indie Discography 6/10 [14]
Spin Alternative Record Guide 8/10 [15]

Robert Palmer, in The New York Times , called the album "a more readily accessible mixture of punk, heavy metal, and early rock-and-roll influences." [7] He later wrote that D.'s singing is "an effectively eerie howl". [16] The Argonaut described the album as "possessed, frenzied singing on an overlay of aggressive, pounding music". [17] The Star Press noted that most of the songs are about love—"mostly the painful and brutal side—and seldom has the music been able to deal with this dark side of emotion any better than the Flesh Eaters can and do on Forever Came Today." [18]

The Baltimore Sun opined that D.'s "word play is far too busy to be borne by the generally frail melodies, and as a result the album suffers from a terminal case of overreach." [19] LA Weekly concluded that Forever Came Today "edges closer to the Great Punk-Metal Fusion". [8] Robert Christgau panned D.'s voice and use of "horror-movie imagery" as metaphor. [13]

The Spin Alternative Record Guide labeled Forever Came Today a "pure [blast] of high-energy stomp" and "a firestorm of unmatched ferocity". [15] The Trouser Press Record Guide praised the "epics of sweaty desperation". [20] In 2015, The Big Takeover called the album the band's masterpiece. [21]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."My Life to Live" 
2."A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die" 
3."Secret Life" 
4."Shallow Water" 
5."The Rosy Hours" 
6."The Wedding Dice" 
7."Hand of Glory" 
8."Drag My Name in the Mud" 
9."Because of You (Every Legend Dies a Quick Death)" 
10."Tightrope on Fire" 

References

  1. ↑ Cogan, Brian (2010). Encyclopedia of Punk and Culture. Bloomsbury Academic. p. 74.
  2. ↑ Gimarc, George (2005). Punk Diary: The Ultimate Trainspotter's Guide to Underground Rock, 1970-1982. Backbeat Books. p. 603.
  3. ↑ "Rock Tracks". The Southwest Builder News. Vol. 3, no. 61. Sulphur. August 1, 1982. p. 13.
  4. ↑ "Magnet Exclusives: Video". Magnet. November 27, 2018.
  5. ↑ Hinman, Jay (January 2001). "The Flesh Eaters: Heavy Punk Thunder from the Lake of Burning Fire". Perfect Sound Forever.
  6. ↑ Spurrier, Jeff (July 18, 1982). "New Incarnation for Flesh Eaters". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 84.
  7. 1 2 Palmer, Robert (March 24, 1982). "The Pop Life". The New York Times. p. C19.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Waller, Don (July 22, 1982). "Chris D. on the Ways of Flesh (And Spirit)". LA Weekly. p. 23.
  9. ↑ Cosloy, Gerard (July 12, 1983). "Records". The Boston Phoenix. Vol. XII, no. 28. p. 3.8.
  10. ↑ Harry, Rich (July 11, 1982). "Records". The Morning Call. p. 63.
  11. ↑ Lee, Craig (August 22, 1982). "Novelty Releases Tend to Trends". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 80.
  12. ↑ "Forever Came Today The Flesh Eaters". AllMusic. Retrieved August 8, 2025.
  13. 1 2 "The Flesh Eaters". Robert Christgau. Retrieved August 8, 2025.
  14. ↑ Strong, Martin C. (2003). The Great Indie Discography. Canongate. p. 69.
  15. 1 2 Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. p. 150.
  16. ↑ Palmer, Robert (June 20, 1982). "Poets Put Their Stamps on Rock Lyrics". The New York Times. p. A25.
  17. ↑ Wyszpolski, Bondo (July 1, 1982). "Record Review". The Argonaut. Marina del Rey. p. 12.
  18. ↑ Teverbaugh, Kim (July 11, 1982). "Blossoming Bands". The Star Press. p. B7.
  19. ↑ Considine, J. D. (July 11, 1982). "It's hard-core punk for soft-core listeners". The Baltimore Sun. p. N1.
  20. ↑ The Trouser Press Record Guide (4th ed.). Collier Books. 1991. p. 252.
  21. ↑ MacInnis, Allan (January 3, 2015). "The Flesh Eaters' Chris D. Talks A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die". Interviews. The Big Takeover.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.