Detroit's Negative Approach, along with Maumee, OH's Necros, were the undisputed champs of Midwestern hardcore in the early to mid-'80s. Legend has it that vocalist John Brannon recruited drummer OP Moore and the guitar/bass team of Rob and Graham McCulloch at a skate park sometime in 1981. Lead by the bald-headed 's hoarse wail, the band concocted an extreme sound devoid of frills that alternated between violent and mean. This was first fully documented in 1982 on their self-titled Touch and Go 7". The band released the more metallic-sounding Tied Down 12" on Touch and Go in 1983, but died out in 1985 as  incubated  blues of . Unfortunately lacking the more widespread post-hardcore fame of peers Ian McKaye and , 's Negative Approach has not gotten the later-day due often accorded  and . Negative Approach was certainly as influential as those two bands, touching everyone from  to  to , as well as entire generations of hardcore fans in Boston and New York. The band was also as original and extreme as any early-'80s punk outfit -- the rhythmic crush created by Moore and the McCulloch brothers continues to be an undeniable steel-toe to the face. Touch and Go compiled the band's discography as Total Recall in 1992, an essential listen for anyone who wants to understand hardcore. ~ Matthew Kantor, Rovi