Can I Say


Can I Say is the debut album by the American melodic hardcore band Dag Nasty, originally released in 1986 on Dischord Records. It was remastered and re-released on CD with bonus songs in 2002. "Circles" appeared on a best-of emo songs list by Vulture and was featured in the soundtrack of the videogame Tony Hawk's Proving Ground.

Music and lyrics

Musically, Can I Say is a hardcore punk album. According to Ned Raggett of AllMusic: "Baker's roots in Minor Threat are clear throughout, but at the same time, the production, assisted by Ian Mackaye, is actually stronger and crisper than much of that band's work." The album occasionally incorporates call-and-response vocals. Raggett said that frontman Dave Smalley "has a vocal delivery halfway between strident pronouncement and anguished reflection -- it's not emo in the original sense of the term, but it's a careful balance just the same." Lyrical themes explored on the album include the personal politics of Smalley.

Reception and legacy

Ned Raggett of AllMusic gave the album three and a half stars out of five, and wrote: "Can I Say helps mark a turning point between hardcore's straight-ahead origins and a more accessible approach that would eventually prime the way for punk's breakthrough in the mid-'90s."
Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker has the phrase "can I say" tattooed on his chest as a tribute to Dag Nasty's debut album, which is one of his favorites.

Track listing

All tracks by Dag Nasty.
Side one
  1. "Values Here" – 2:23
  2. "One to Two" – 2:15
  3. "Circles" – 2:46
  4. "Thin Line" – 2:30
  5. "Justification" – 2:51
Side two
  1. "What Now?" – 2:16
  2. "I've Heard" – 1:43
  3. "Under Your Influence" – 2:36
  4. "Can I Say" – 1:59
  5. "Never Go Back" – 2:52

2002 CD reissue bonus tracks

  1. "Another Wrong" – 2:18
  2. "My Dog's a Cat" – 2:19
  3. "I've Heard " – 2:18
  4. "Another Wrong " – 2:22
  5. "Trying " – 2:09
  6. "Justification " – 3:58

Personnel