Public Castration Is a Good Idea

The majority of this double LP, originally released independently by the band, was recorded at a legendary March 1986 gig at London’s Institute of Contemporary Arts. Swans performed at absolutely punishing volume in this era — eyewitnesses have compared the experience to sticking one’s head in a jet engine — and stretched their songs to mind-warping length. The opening “Money Is Flesh” is 12 minutes long, and the first four minutes of that are just a pounding beat and clanging bass/guitar chords, so slow it’s like being struck by a pile-driver over and over and over. More of a purgative ritual than a live album; when you really do need to be crushed under and obliterated by music, nothing else will do the job like this.