Black Flag lasted for ten years. It released many albums. It played many, many shows. It was made up of many members in various combinations over the years. It has seen many hairstyles. Ladies and gentlemen, here is Black Flag: A Hair Timeline.

This is pretty much pointless but also awesome at the same time. Black Flag wrote some of the greatest hardcore songs of all time. Black Flag pushed the boundaries of a very strict and uniform genre. Black Flag lived in a van and toured the shit out of the country. Black Flag taught us to hate cops. Black Flag had a female bass player. Black Flag had the coolest logo. Black Flag had the best album art. Black Flag had great hair. Looking at the chart,  it seems that 1981 and 1982 were pivotal years for most of its members, hairwise. In a sense this reflects the seismic shift in the band as well. Dez Cadena was out in 1981, Henry Rollins was in. Also up until 1981, the music was pretty much "punk." After 1981, the Flag wasn't afraid to take a few detours. As the years passed, the band explored -- gasp -- metal and even jazz.

A personal favorite on this chart: 1982 Henry when he had a full grizzly beard. At that point and time in punk rock, he couldn't look any less punk rock in a stereotypical sense. He basically looked scary and psycho, which was a perfect curveball for a Johnny-come-lately-to-the-80s-punk-scene teen trying to figure out what hell this is all about.  I also like that the artist has a sense of humor and doesn't give Henry a neck until 1985 (and what a neck it was!). Throw on "Nervous Breakdown" and enjoy.

[WFMU] via [Boing Boing]