Join the Army is the second album by American crossover thrash band Suicidal Tendencies. It was released in 1987 – four years after their self-titled debut album – and is one of the most well known albums for crossing over the genres of punk and thrash metal, known as crossover thrash, a genre that Suicidal Tendencies have been credited for creating. Join the Army is arguably one of Suicidal Tendencies' popular efforts, although it only reached No. 100 on the Billboard 200 chart. This was their first album with guitarist Rocky George and drummer R.J. Herrera, and their last recording with bassist Louiche Mayorga. This is also the last album to feature the band playing hardcore punk.
Musical style
used vastly different vocal techniques and range compared to their debut album. Original guitarist Grant Estes had been replaced by Jon Nelson in 1984, who was then soon replaced by Rocky George, who influenced the change of the band's sound into the thrash direction. Original drummer Amery Smith was replaced by R.J. Herrera, who used the particularly metal drum feature of double kick.
Reception and legacy
Reviews for Join the Army have been mostly positive. Allmusic's Eduardo Rivadavia awards the albumthree stars out of five, and calls it "a transitional album in the transformation of the band's sound from hardcore punk to thrash metal." Join the Army was also the first Suicidal Tendencies album to enter the Billboard 200; it peaked at No. 100, and remained on the chart for thirteen weeks. "Possessed to Skate" preceded the album's release as a single, which also had a music video created for it. The video featured skateboarding tricks, and as such is considered a classic visual period piece of skateboarding. The success of Join the Army garnered attention from major labels, including Epic Records, with whom Suicidal Tendencies would eventually sign in 1988. "War Inside My Head" is featured in the game . "Possessed to Skate" is featured in the game Skate 2. "Suicidal Maniac" was covered by Hatebreed on their 2009 release For The Lions. Over the years and with the involvement several line-ups, Suicidal Tendencies have recorded new versions of 10 of the 13 songs originally included in Join the Army, including two different new versions of two of those tracks: "War Inside My Head" and "A Little Each Day" ; "Join the Army" and "Go Skate! " ; "Two Wrongs Don't Make a Right" ; "Suicidal Maniac", "Possessed to Skate", "The Prisoner", "I Feel Your Pain... And I Survive", "Join the ST Army", "No Name, No Words", and "Born to Be Cyco".
Track listing
"War Inside My Head", "Human Guinea Pig", and "You Got, I Want" were originally written by previous guitarist Jon Nelson. He traded the rights for "War Inside My Head" for a Flying V guitar after he left the band.
"Human Guinea Pig" does not appear on vinyl or cassette versions of the album.
