Before The World Caves In

A couple of months ago a buddy of mine asked if I wanted to go see Good Riddance with him next August. I didn’t hesitate to say yes, because Good Riddance rules, and the last time I saw them live, maybe five years ago or so, they were excellent. When I happened to see that they had a new record out, it didn’t take me long to order a copy. Their 90s records are untouchable and some of my all-time favorites of that genre, but I also have a soft spot for their post reunion records. Before The World Caves In however is somewhat disappointing. I haven’t found the tracks on this album yet. Maybe I need to spend more time with it, maybe I wasn’t in the right mood, but this is my least favorite GR so far. I’m still very excited about seeing them soon live. 

1st Press on Black on Fat Wreck /???

Hope Vs Disillusion Pt. 2

Along with the compilation I posted about in my last post, I also ordered this split between two German bands that were both active in the early 2000s. Highscore had actually started in the lates 90s and were one of the premier hardcore bands of that era. The Now-Denial formed in 2000 out of the ashes of some other hardcore bands active in the 90s, like Enfold and Durango 95. I own records by both bands, so getting this split for very little money was a no brainer. This is a really good example of a split well done, musically speaking. The aesthetic is still 90s inspired, e.g. the ‘Only for Promotion’ stamp and the other stamps on the labels. But I like it. 

1st Press on Black on Tomte Tumme Tott /???

Nice six-panel fold-out cover. I have a soft spot for covers like this. 

On the back of the cover/lyric sheet you get some more thoughts by members of both bands. Very 90s. 

I Against We

If you‘ve been following this blog on a regular basis, you know that the number one golden rule of collecting for me is that if a record is related to Bane, I need to get it. I‘ve owned a copy of this 7“ compilation forever and I the last time I listened to it was probably right around the time I got it. But since there are different versions, I‘ve still always kept my eyes open. At this rate, I might get the other versions that are out there about 10 years into my retirement. If I ever get them, because they‘re super rate and probably sit in someone‘s collection who doesn‘t realize that, not that they‘re worth much, or they rot in a $1 bin somewhere. 

Anyway, the most interesting aspect of getting this copy is the fact that it differs so much from the version I already owned. I mean, who changes the title of a comp from one pressing to the other? And why? And why only on the cover, but not on the labels? The cover is completely different, too, so someone clearly put in time and effort to make those changes. Who knows…

I know it’s a long shot, but if anyone has a copy with the blue cover and/or blue vinyl, or even a stamped version, I’m definitely interested.

Smash Hits

Despite the fact that this version was available exclusively from a mailorder in Europe, I initially missed out on it. Copies became available on the second hand market pretty soon after, but I definitively wasn’t willing to pay the kind of money asked for those copies. Patience did pay off eventually when I found an affordable copy in the UK and thanks to Marcus, I managed to finish this micro collection (= 6th press of Bane’e Don’t Wait Up on End Hits) after two years. I only realized this while writing this post, so there’s no family picture I’m afraid. 

6th Press on Blue & Yellow Smash on End Hits (‘Devil Dog Exclusive’ /100)

Here’s a picture of the B-side because it looks much nicer than the A-side in my opinion. 

It’s A Secret

The parcel that keeps on giving. I’m still posting records I got from Marcus recently. I discovered them last year and in the post about the 7“ I picked up I wrote that the band had just released a full length the day before. Well, I made that post in September last year and I did order the record soon after and here we are!

The record picks up where the 7“ left off. The songs are still really melodic and so catchy. Fun fact, my wife and I both discovered the band simultaneously, but autonomously. So this ended up being played a lot in the car during our last family vacation. 

1st Press on Clear / Black Smoke on Sunday Drive /500

More Blood

One more record for the ever-growing Bane collection thanks to the myriad of represse. I‘ve posted about the regular white w/ red cross version of the latest Give Blood repress not too long ago. A little bit longer ago, well 2.5 years ago, I posted about the special version of the Give Blood repress with the special sleeve that was released through Tiger Records. Well, apparently there was some left over vinyl or some left over sleeves or both, and et voila, you’ve got a third version just like that. 

This record is a little annoying, because the spokes don’t align with the red cross on the label. On the flip side, it’s interesting what different variants of this might be out there: different alignment, maybe only three or even five spokes? Who knows. 

White w/ Red Cross on Equal Vision aka ‘Tiger Records‘ Version /70

Big Dreams

A record I have fallen totally in love with again over the last couple of years is Hoop Dreams by Big Kids. I listened to the record a ton when I got it and I put a variety of songs on . I managed to pick up a pink copy and a red copy last year, so of course I needed to get an orange copy eventually, and thanks to Marcus I finally managed to get one from the US. The pressing info on Discogs is kinda vague and just states ‘random mix (blues and oranges)’ for part of the first press, so there might be many different shades out there. 

Time for a nice family picture. Look at all those beautiful variants. Ah, the good old days… Getting a test press would be the cherry on top, but I doubt that will ever happen. 

6ft 12“

Hard to believe that the Mil-Spec demo came out 10 years ago. They still feel like a new band to me, even though they have a lot of releases under their belt - and I like all of them. So when I saw that they had a new record out, I wanted a copy right away. I didn’t want to order in the US directly, so I had to be satisfied with whatever version showed up in Europe, so black it was. And it works pretty well with the cover, which itself is not that great, but also strangely fascinating. 

The new record has four new songs that make me very happy. I wish there were more songs, then again, those four songs leave me wanting for more, so marketing-wise, the band did a great job.

1st Press on Black on Young Blood /???

Erer

The new Glitterer record - I still call it new, even though it was released in November of last year - picks up where the band left off. Which is exactly what I wanted the record to be. So good. 

The red vinyl really shouldn’t really work with the cover, but somehow it does. Weirdly, the record plays at 33rpm, even though the label says 45rpm. 

1st Press on Red on Purple Circle /1100

This Is Boston

This is the final piece of the repress of Bane’s Boston, 6:58pm. Originally it had been released as a 7” on Triple B, but Equal Vision repressed it last year as a 12”. The other versions were fairly easy to obtain, but this one proved to be very difficult to track down. For the longest time my circle of Bane collectors wasn’t even sure whether or not this version actually existed. It had been announced but no copies popped up anywhere, which was very weird because this the ‘retail version’. But then a friend of mine in Australia picked up a copy, thus confirming it was actually real.

Repress on White (‘Retail Version’) on Equal Vision /500

Here’s a nice family picture, minus the test press, which will be damn-near impossible to track down. Let’s play a game of ‘spot the nice version’, shall we…? 

Blood

In 2023 Bane’s classic album Give Blood was repressed by Equal Vision. I’ve picked up a few copies since then, but I still have a long way to go to catch up with all the variants. Initially, I’d been weary to pick up all colors because there were just so many, but the one I’d wanted from the beginning was the white/red cross one because it looked pretty cool in the pictures. The only problem, this particular variant never really popped up in Europe. Luckily, it was Marcus to the rescue and I was finally able to get one. Actually, Marcus helped me out big time with getting a bunch of records I’m going to post about soon and also the DTN record I talked about in my last post. A big thank you!

This variant is even sicker in person. The colors are chosen well, and not only is the pattern itself cool, but I also love how the red cross pattern of the vinyl aligns pretty much perfectly with the axes of the red cross on the label. 

2023 Repress on White/Red Cross on Equal Vision /500

Down To Six

Down To Nothing were one of the best bands from the 2000s. They released a bunch of great records and were even better live. Their debut vinyl release was their s.t. 7”. The regular version comprised three songs, which absolutely rip. However, there was an alternate version that comes with six songs. It only took 24 years for me to pick up this version. Granted, there are only 34 copies of the clear variant, but that’s still a long time. There are also 16 copies on pink and 5 test presses of this version, which you can take a look at over on Endless Quest. 

Alternate Version on Clear on Dead By 23 /34

G.L.O.W.

I didn‘t plan this, but when I generated the link, I noticed that exactly one year ago I posted about the G.L.O.W. demo. In my post I wrote that the band plays oldschool hardcore with some wave influences. For their vinyl debut, they definitely cranked up the wave influences and there are some interesting vocal choices in particular. I really enjoy the record and I’m also a big fan of the artwork. Keeps in tune with the artwork for the demo, but it’s been changed enough to keep it interesting. I wonder if they’ll continue with the theme and end up telling a story that way. 

1st Press on Black on Kink /???

Fever

I‘d been really looking forward to the Feverchild LP, but ordering a copy proved rather difficult. I was stuck between ordering an ugly copy for an okay price or a nice looking copy that would cost an arm and a  leg. But, sometimes you get do get lucky. I managed to find an exclusive version for a German label, so I ended up with an extremely nice looking record for a really good price in 2026. Oh yeah, and the record itself is really, really good. Somewhere between emo, post-hardcore and indie - just right up my alley.

1st Press on Red Galaxy on Sunday Drive /100 (‘Thirty Something Records Exclusive‘)

What Counts

Band name inspired by Have Heart - check. Hooded Mosher - check. YOT inspired x‘ed up fist - check. Sometimes that‘s all it takes to make you buy a record. And yes, you get exactly what you‘d expect. And sometimes that‘s actually all you need. 

1st Press on Black on Delayed Gratification /200