{^I Against I} was for {$Bad Brains} what {^London Calling} was for {$the Clash} -- the band's first fully mature work, one which successfully brought together all of its diverse influences while at the same time showcasing a singular vision. Also like {^London Calling}, it was to be the band's masterpiece, in the original sense of that term -- a creative pinnacle which they would not reach again. The album opens with the title track, a blistering and musically exhilarating deploration of violence, and then moves directly into {&"House of Suffering,"} easily the most complex and yet viscerally compelling song the band ever produced. Singer {$H.R.} digs deep into his bag of voices and pulls them all out, one by one: the frightening nasal falsetto that was his signature in the band's {\hardcore} days, an almost bel canto baritone, and a declamatory speed-rap chatter that spews lyrics with the mechanical precision of a machine gun. He positively croons on the surprisingly melodic {&"Secret 77"} and {&"Let Me Help."} But his voice isn't even the best thing happening here. It's the incredibly tight, funky, and tonally rich interplay between guitarist {$Dr. Know}, bassist {$Darryl Jenifer}, and drummer {$Earl Hudson} that gives this album its deeply satisfying texture. The stop/start rhythms of {&"Secret 77"} and {&"Sacred Love,"} the gorgeous guitar hook on {&"She's Calling You,"} {$Dr. Know}'s completely counterintuitive ability to meld the raw directness of {\hardcore punk} with an almost supernatural virtuosity without sacrificing the power of either approach -- this is music-making of an order not usually seen in {\rock & roll}. ~ Rick Anderson, All Music Guide