Smash
by The Offspring

I didn't find the songs as melodic as some say, and for me they tend to sound a lot like each other. Despite being a bit samey, I really like this band's driving punk sound, with classic punk backing harmonies, and the thrash slant they've put on it at times with the beat. And the album is very good all the way through. Best: "Gotta Get Away", "Genocide", "Self Esteem". I would have liked "Come Out and Play" better without the Middle Eastern riff, that gets old pretty quick.

This is an album that hasn't aged very well for me and I find myself enjoying it less and less with every listen. I think this is mainly because of the fact that the more I listen to it the more I start to see how many filler tracks there are on here. There are only 4 or 5 great songs on here and the rest just don't match up in quality. I think they seem to lack that infectious feel and raw energy that they had on the better tracks and I find the slower tracks to pass me by without me paying any attention. They do have a fantastic energy as a group though and they are consistent in maintaining their style. Overall, this record feels rough around the edges and without those 4 or 5 tracks this record would really struggle in my opinion.

From Jboy56 03/17/2022 06:14 | #282934

Two hits and a couple other good ones.

The joy of albums is discovering the superior non commercial deep cuts within. Unfortunately with this, it's commercial hit 'Come Out And Play' is by far the best song. "Killboy Powerhead' is good as is the ska infused 'What Happened To You?' As for the rest, mediocre at best. Probably due to a vocal range that only seemed to have one setting. Still, it was early days for them. They got better.

From llibnanoon 09/08/2020 17:36 | #257916

Classic 90's Punk! Rating (78.92)

Favorite Tracks:Bad Habit, Something To Believe In, It'll Be A Long Time, Killboy Powerhead

From planetneutral 01/07/2018 17:56 | #204833

Better than I expected. They did a good job identifying the potential hits on this album. The rest is more of the same, just not as good.

High energy album, with many great tracks in the first half. It's a shame that in the second half the overall level is lower, although Self Esteem and the title track keep it high enough to make Smash an excellent album.

From Strangel 07/20/2016 02:22 | #171557

This is the album of early adult youthful abandon for me. Great nostalgic tunes that get you up and about. Suffers from an element of juvenility but has integrity due to its honest self-expression. Unlike Anericana, there are few pretentions here.

From RoundTheBend 05/14/2016 22:24 | #165975 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

Bad Habit is the greatest road rage song ever written. Self Esteem is what got me into these guys. When I was 10 years old this was a fantastic album It was just as powerful (to me) as Smells Like Teen Spirit for this era in music. I think pop-punk is a REALLY loose term to use on this band. They are probably as pop punk as Pennywise or Social Distortion. No... they don't sound like Blink 182 or Sum 41.

Favorite tracks:
Bad Habit
Gotta Get Away
Come Out and Play
Self Esteem