Bad Brains took longer than most bands do to reach the majors (that is, among those that ever do), and by now they are very different from the group that made its debut with a self-titled cassette on ROIR in 1982. As heard on Rise, they are basically a thrash metal band with elements of rap and reggae. In other words, they're fairly trendy. Meanwhile, of course, they're now playing in a bigger league, and their competition includes everyone from Metallica to Public Enemy, against whom they come off as reasonable competition, but no more. Hope they got a big advance and didn't spend it all in one place. ~ William Ruhlmann