Songs were short, played at a constant high speed, abrasive and minimalist. Riffs were a near constant wall of fast tremolo strum, and wasn’t rhythmically ‘expectational’ in the way most rock inspired music before it was, giving a greater sense of momentum and continuity to the songwriting process, aided by a constant, monotonous percussion that would become quickly known as ‘D-beat’.
Whilst the position of Discharge was essentially a left-wing, anarchistic one, their lyrical output is deeply nihilistic and alienated, cursed by a then common fear of nuclear conflict within the Cold War, and the subsequent annihilation that would come with it. Lyrics often tend to repeat phrases, words embedded into memes that serve to create a more stark image of the themes that are dealt with.
Devoid of do-gooder agitprop, these sonic sculptures conjure visions of cities burning in monochrome.