When Bloomington, Indiana's MX-80 sound released their first full-length album, Hard Attack in 1977, it bewildered listeners. Inspired by modern classical composers of the time along with "out there" rock bands Captain Beefheart and the Hampton Grease Band, the harsh and disjointed sounds contained left many people wondering if they were a heavy metal band on some bizarre art trip or something even stranger. Through their four-decade career, the band has been labeled noise rock, post-punk, acid punk among other pigeonholes.