Bad Brains are revisiting the earliest recordings of their influential career, with the band’s first studio sessions set to receive a new official vinyl release featuring a fresh mix from Ian MacKaye.
Titled ‘Are You Ready: The First Studio Recording’, the release is due out November 6 through Trust Records, which partnered with Bad Brains in 2025 to oversee the band’s catalog and intellectual property.
The recordings date back to March 1979, when Bad Brains entered Inner Ear Studios in Arlington, Virginia. For the upcoming release, MacKaye — known for his work with Minor Threat and Fugazi — returned to the material to provide a new mix of the original sessions.
A newly updated version of “Pay To Cum” has now been released alongside a video featuring archival footage of Bad Brains performing at the legendary CBGB in New York City on October 24, 1979. The footage was filmed by Barry Masterson.
Bassist Darryl Jenifer reflected on the origins of the song and the early influences that helped shape Bad Brains’ sound.
“The riff for ‘Pay To Cum’ started as a stream of punk rock vibes fueled by the Ramones, the Damned, and Return to Forever. It was a gift that served as a springboard into our sound — sheer, straight-ahead three-chord mayhem with a few breaks and a stop. The title actually meant nothing to us; it was just a fun-loving play on words.”
The six-track ‘Are You Ready: The First Studio Recording’ features some of the earliest material from the pioneering hardcore outfit, including “Pay To Cum,” “Don’t Bother Me,” “Black Dots,” “Migraine,” “Send No Flowers” and “Jamming At The Atlantis.”
Various colored vinyl editions are currently available for pre-order ahead of the November release.
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