Fugazi’s latest release, First Demo, is now streaming, some three days ahead of the planned release date for the record.

Early on in their career, Fugazi absconded to a studio to figure out what their songs would sound like on tape. While initial pressings weren’t horrifying, Fugazi ultimately made several changes to the songs they recorded, the indecision ultimately leading to the recordings being delayed by a couple of weeks. The demo sessions were eventually given away as free tapes, Fugazi themselves encouraging the listeners to distribute the tapes amongst themselves and get the word out. A few weeks later, their eponymous debut record released without a hint as to any previous recordings. The only song from the demo sessions, “In Defense Of Humans,” surfaced on their State of the Union record in 1989.

Now, for the first time since the demo recordings, First Demo will be available for a wide audience. The demos themselves sound absolutely fantastic on their own merit, yet it’s understandable that Fugazi wanted to evolve the recordings beyond those sparse recordings. First Demo is as raw, unfiltered, and outstanding as anything Fugazi has ever put out before, and that’s really not a very fair statement to make. The reason these recordings feel special is because they have the spirit of something that Fugazi can never replicate in any fashion: they were recording those songs for the first time. Just like the Woodstock anniversary concerts could not have replicated the same spirit as the original 1969 festival, First Demo captured a band that was venturing into new territory.

First Demo Track Listing
01. Waiting Room
02. Merchandise
03. Furniture
04. Song #1
05. The Word
06. Bad Mouth
07. Break-In
08. Turn Off Your Guns
09. And The Same
10. In Defense Of Humans
11. Joe #1