It’s not the first Crass album I’d recommend to the unfamiliar, but Penis Envy is certainly one of my favorite statements the band made during their run.
After two solid albums, 1978’s The Feeding of the 5000 and 1979’s Stations of the Crass, the English anarchopunk band reacted to sentiments that Crass was contributing to the male dominance of the punk scene by releasing Penis Envy in 1981. The dude who had mostly rocked the mic on previous albums, Steve Ignorant, was noticeably absent from the recordings. Instead, the powerful voice of female Crass member Eve Libertine leads us all through the album which primarily focuses on feminist issues of sexual repression, abuse, gender roles, and the institution of marriage. Rather than proceeding with the brute force sound people had begun to expect of Crass, the album shows a slowed, sonic sophistication that still fits the definition of “punk as fuck.”
And the cover asks “What vision is left, and is anyone asking” – lyrics from the track “Berkertex Bribe.” This, juxtaposed with the image of a sex doll in packaging that reads “An amazingly life-like companion,” is a powerful statement regarding the hegemonic, sexist ideals of what it means to be a woman.
I’m trussed and bound like an oven ready bird,
But I bleed without dying, and won’t say a word.
Slice my flesh and I’ll ride the scar,
Put me into gear – like your lady car,
Drive me fast, and crash me crazy,
I’ll rise from the wreckage as fresh as a daisy.– “Beta Motel,” from Penis Envy by Crass
The album gained notoriety after its release when English officials called for the seizure of all copies of the album, and brought charges against the band under the Obscene Publications Act (along with other albums from The Dead Kennedys and Flux of Pink Indians). The ensuing trials resulted in the charges being overturned EXCEPT in regards to the lyrics of the album’s first track “Beta Motel”. The case proved to be so financially burdensome that it was part of what ultimately led Crass to disband.
Check out the full album, along with some of the album art below:
