The Best of Dr. Know compiles tracks from three Ghetto-way releases: Return to Slimey Valley, It Came from Slimey Valley (1984) and Plug in Jesus (1984) and tracks from five Mystic Records LP’s: Sound of Hollywood #5, Du Beat-e-o (1985), Burn Super Seven EP (1985), Sound of Hollywood #3 Copulation, We Got Party III and Party of Go Home I. It’s really really hardcore punk, hyper-speed metal called Nardcore, named for the style’s origin in Oxnard, California. Dr. Know’s guitarist Ismael Hernandez supposedly coined the term in the early 80′s, describing the style popular with southern California bands on the Mystic Records label (False Confession, Ill Repute, Aggression). Nardcore really isn’t my thing. I don’t mind aggressive punk (i.e. I love The Germs, Bad Brains, early Black Flag, etc.) but most of this comp is over the top. “Boy’s Life” isn’t too bad, it has more of a skate punk feel to it than a lot of the rest of LP. But songs like “Fist Fuck” are truly awful – full of 80′s era vile homophobia (I don’t know, maybe it was supposed to be a joke but from what I remember a lot of that scene wasn’t exactly open and tolerant). The Best of Dr. Know is either being relegated to the overflow Vault or being traded in for another, better record.

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Reduced to Equality is loud, fast and brutal (if the cover wasn’t a good enough clue). You can listen to and purchase the record here but the bandcamp site does not include the little gem at the very end of Side B: a voicemail to Dan from some irate guy who just goes off, calling himself a sacrificial lamb because Dan offered him $5 for an Iron Maiden album and rambles on about nuclear weapons and aliens. It is weird. So Happy Birthday Dan! and I hope good triumphs over evil and the aliens don’t get you or whatever.

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