Bad Religion released Suffer through Epitaph on 8 September 1988. It was the band's first full-length in five years and reunited Greg Graffin, Brett Gurewitz and Jay Bentley with Greg Hetson and Pete Finestone.
Short Songs, Plenty To Say
You Are (The Government), Do What You Want and the title track barely need two minutes to make their points. Graffin chooses his words carefully, but the harmonies and Brett Gurewitz's guitar writing keep it from feeling like homework.
Recorded At Westbeach
The band recorded and mixed Suffer at Westbeach Recorders, the studio Gurewitz had helped build. Being able to write, record and release independently helped Epitaph establish itself for the next wave of American punk.
You can hear Suffer's fast, melodic, political approach in the skate punk and pop punk that followed. The original still bites. Catchy choruses don't make the questions in those lyrics any easier.
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