Well, to be fair, I haven't listened to it in 20+ years and don't remember it being uplifting at the end, but I'll take your word for it.

I was a little underwhelmed by that Slayer cover; I was hoping for something more along the lines of Ryan Adams' reinterpretation of Iron Maiden's "Wasted Years."

Bravo! This column is always great, and this is no exception. I'd like to add that the sound of the song was also depressing in a uniquely 90s way. Hole's "Doll Parts" comes to mind as another song with a similar tone. These songs go beyond just being "sad songs;" they really had the power to make their listener…

Yeah, Orbach's departure and subsequent death really cast a shadow that he couldn't escape; they probably could have made him work in that role, I suppose. But I think he had too much personality to just be the stoic detective who moved the story along.

There are a lot of podcasts that this column sweats, that very much depend on the guest involved. There are others that are just plain mediocre. So yeah, dropping UYD is wack.

RIP. I think he had a hard time filling Jerry Orbach's shoes, but that was a tall order. And in everything else I've seen, he's always been top-notch.

I'm super bummed to hear about this. I had been so psyched about this since the rumors started floating around. He would have done a great job. I can't imagine a better choice than him, and I think a lot fewer people will see it without him involved.

Yeah, but I think their first 7" came out in '93 or '94. Like I said, I definitely used to see 'em with Bouncing Souls at ABC No Rio a lot back then. Then Choking Victim stopped playing there because there was bad blood between them and some of the folks who volunteered there, I gather.

Yeah, I saw them about 5-6 years ago and they still kicked ass!

Well then DC takes it I guess. I was never a huge Minor Threat fan - I liked them, but was never as blown away by them as most people were. I do love Swiz and the Faith / Void split though.

As a New Yorker, I'm confident in saying that whoever gets to claim Bad Brains wins. Bad Brains were originally from DC, (I heard somewhere they were banned there,) but were based out of NYC.

I dunno - I think there were and still are plenty of cool bands whose music was/is informed by the first waves of punk rock and hardcore. I don't think they have mohawks and play sneering, sloppy 3-chord, 2-minute tunes - if you're doing that in 2013, it's basically the same thing as the swing dance craze of the 1990s.

Were they still around by '99? I remember them being more in the early/mid '90s. I definitely used to see them play with Bouncing Souls a lot at ABC No Rio in '95ish…

I don't think Murphy's Law ever broke up; it's always a rotating lineup around Jimmy Gestapo, but I'm pretty sure they've been going strong for close to 30 years straight.

Mommy's Little Monster, their first LP is a classic. They had some good tunes later, but nothing ever measured up to that record.

Wow - this really spoke to me. I was 15 in 1990, very into metal, but already looking for something that was a little less fantastical and a little more visceral and honest and I found it in the few bands that a friend of mine turned me onto - Suicidal Tendencies, the Ramones, the Circle Jerks, Sex Pistols and…

I am glad to see that Blaze Ya Dead Homie & Anybody Killah are finally collaborating; I'm sure they're project Drive-By will be brilliant.