What's THIS For...! is the second studio album by English post-punk band Killing Joke, released in June 1981 by E.G. via Polydor Records.

Recording

Like Killing Joke's debut album, What's THIS For...! was self-produced by the band. It was engineered by Hugh Padgham and Nick Launay. Launay, Padgham's assistant at that time, finished the album after an altercation that resulted in damage to the mixing desk, causing Padgham to leave before the album was mixed. Launay continued to work under the band's direction. Padgham contradicts the mixing desk incident saying that Jaz's recollection is "all rubbish. The thing is they were so out of it."

Release

What's THIS For...! was released in June 1981 by E.G. Records. It entered the UK Albums Chart at number 51 on 20 June and peaked at number 42 on 4 July. A remastered version with three bonus tracks was released in 2005.

Reception

What's THIS For...! was generally well received by critics. In a 5 out 5 star review, John Gill of Sounds wrote: "it's an album of incomparable verve, energy and aggression, and you might even risk a dalliance with the slumming glamour of its violence. NME hailed the album, saying: "In its own terms, What's THIS For...! is an excellent record - even if those terms are the most hopeless ones to be found in rock today. It's the same wardance as before, slightly better realised." Trouser Press described the album as "nearly as terrific" as their debut album, "bringing funk to ambient music, implying feeling sublimated in a chaotic world". A significant contemporary dissent came from Melody Maker, whose Adam Sweeting called the album "a tired and very noisy collection of ripoffs", and deemed the whole effort "unlistenable... apart from the spaces between the tracks". In a 2016 review, Paste magazine's Josh Jackson listed the album at No. 48 on his list of "The 50 Best Post-Punk Albums", noting that "the real genius here is the human emotion that comes through such spare efficiency". The Pensive Quill's Christopher Owens calls this "...the greatest album ever made."

Cover image

The image of the photograph was taken at 88 Colegate in Norwich, though only the left hand side is visible.

Track listing

Personnel

Charts