Bad Brains: One of punk’s most respected acts, despite a slew of career moves that would have erased the cred of any other 1980s hardcore outfit. Can you imagine if Minor Threat had played Spring Break ‘87? Bitter punks probably would have retaliated by firebombing the Dischord House, and no matter how many Fugazi albums Ian MacKaye put out, he’d still have to hang his head in shame knowing he once busted out “Screaming At a Wall” for throngs of shirtless, drunken college kids in Daytona Beach.

An earlier dubious chunk of Bad Brains’ history found the band working with Cars frontman Ric Ocasek on their second album, 1983’s Rock for Light. Critics and fans have long dismissed this sophomore effort as impossibly slick, a record that seems to completely negate the hypnotic lo-fi approach that made the group’s first release, 1982’s Bad Brains, so accessible and fun. Plus, Rock for Light’s cover is that gross faded yellow. It looks like new wave vomit.

While it’s true that Rock for Light found Bad Brains leaning towards a more professional sound, the sonic perception of the album today is sort of unjust when you consider the strange mistake that occurred when Light was issued on CD for the first time in 1991: For some reason, a number of the album’s songs were increased in pitch one half step.

While half a step doesn’t sound like much, it was just fast enough to eliminate what bottom and grit the original recording had. The CD ended up making Bad Brains sound like a thin Looney Tunes parody of themselves and reinforced the idea the band only ever recorded one good album. The $64,000 question, of course, is how did this pitch mistake happen, and why? About a month ago, I decided to investigate the curious case of Rock for Light.  Surprisingly, I managed to get some concrete answers.

The label responsible for Rock for Light’s 1991 CD release was Caroline Records, a company with a history of strange business boners (they were the ones who tried to put out that Misfits compilation 12 Hits from Hell without contacting or notifying any members of the band). Caroline Records basically doesn’t exist anymore—they more or less transmogrified into something called Astralwerks—and nary a person employed by the label circa the Rock for Light reissue could be found. Luckily, the Bad Brains are still out there kickin’ shit up on the punk circuit, so I went to them. Bassist Darryl Jenifer was surprised when he found out why I was calling.

“You’re actually the first person to ever ask us about that,” he told me over the phone. “I guess that shows how much the literal act of listening to music has changed over the years. With all the computer programs and technology that’s become accessible, it’s easier for people to hear tiny things like that now.”

Indeed, the pitch increase isn’t immediately noticeable unless you put the original vinyl release and the CD side by side. Bad Brains certainly didn’t think the digital version of Rock For Light sounded different enough to warrant immediate fixing in 1991 (besides, as Darryl put it, the band always played the songs that much faster live anyway). Per the cause, Jenifer offered a couple theories: the original master tapes had some kind of error that went unchecked in 1983, and the equipment the band used to transfer the album to compact disc in the early nineties was far from top of the line.

“That was some junk system Ric had,” Jenifer said. “In fact, it was so lousy that when we were finished with the CD, Ric offered to give it to me. He said, ‘If you don’t take it, I’m gonna put it out by the curb.’ I didn’t want that shit, so I think he just threw it out.”

Despite numerous attempts, producer Ric Ocasek could not be reached for comment regarding Rock For Light. It is assumed he was too busy getting just what he needed, letting the good times roll, or dealing with his best friend’s girl.

When asked if Bad Brains have any intention of ever repairing Rock for Light to its original speed, Darryl Jenifer suggested that task was not even on the group’s radar. Bad Brains is all about “moving forward” and “not dwelling on the past,” Jenifer told me, which seems like a pretty healthy attitude. Alas, this does not help obsessive compulsives like me who cannot live with such small and inscrutable mistakes.

If you look hard enough, you can find original copies of Rock for Light at its correct speed both on the Innernetz and in real life. Oh, and as for working with the guy from the Cars in the first place, Darryl noted he had doubts of his own before meeting Mr. Ocasek.

“I was the type of punk where if I heard you playing the Cars, I would have smashed your stereo. I hated those guys. But, you know, life can take you interesting places, and Ric turned out to be a real cool guy. He got what we were about.”

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