Record #182: Fugazi – End Hits (1997)

end hits.jpgAcross six albums and two EPs, Fugazi created some of the most fearlessly adventurous, boundless experimental post-hardcore ever released.
And even in the context of their full discography, End Hits is a strange beast.
On one hand, it shows Fugazi at their all-time most chaotic (“Place Position,” “Caustic Acrostic”). On the other, they had never been as ordered as they had been here. “Recap Madotti” grooves calmly behind the beat; “Arpeggiator” finds the band showing their technical chops with as much glee as anyone ever had; “Closed Caption: features two drummers (in cooperation with a drum machine) that create a landscape befitting their legacy.
Throughout the rest of the disk, they blend these elements together with wonderfully effective results. “Floating Boy” infuses one of their most patient compositions with a healthy dose of noise bursts. “Pink Frosty” teases a climactic catharsis that never comes. The closer, “F/D” is the most brutally ominous track they ever put to tape. “No Surprise” moves between their trademark rhythmic free-for-all and a coda dripping with pop sensibility.
Of course,  is nothing new: Fugazi has always wavered between their more chaotic and more meticulous tendencies. Their entire catalogue is an exercise in balancing these two forces. But they never walk that line better than the organized chaos of End Hits.