10 Darkest Rock Albums Of The 70s
6. Raw Power - Iggy Pop and the Stooges
As the '60s ended, rock and roll was just starting to get used to the heavier side of music. Even though the Doors had hinted at something a little more off the rails in the '60s, metal didn't really have a name yet, and punk was years from forming out of the New York underground scene. Just before anyone could lay claim to the punk throne though, Iggy Pop birthed the entire genre from the ground up on Raw Power.
Being inspired by the heavier side of rock, Iggy holds nothing back on this entire record, going for the throat on songs like Search and Destroy and Shake Appeal. With James Williamson in tow behind the fretboard, every one of these songs sounds like it could fall apart at any moment and never does, being just one big blast of energy for its entire runtime. Even when they strip things back on the acoustic cuts, the sound of a song like Gimme Danger feels like you walked down the wrong alley in Detroit and are about to get mugged.
While this record might not have been called a classic at the time, countless metal and punk bands have used this album as their unofficial handbook. The stripes of rock music may have been a little bit different, but the darkness behind everything was a lot more gritty than most people were ready to hear.