Catching Up 04/14

More keeping up-to-date with recent releases and re-reissues. Scratch The Surface was one of the first hardcore records I ever listened to and it's one of the few records I can (still) listen to in one go. So many good songs on that record including many live classics. I was very pleased to read that there would be a re-issue of this classic SOIA record to honour the 20 year anniversary of its original release. It rightly deserves it. Even if you already have one of the original records, you should still buy it since this re-issue comes with "Straight Ahead" as a bonus song. The whole package is pretty well done. 180g vinyl and a nice colour that matches the artwork really nicely. You probably don't have to hurry since there are 1,500 copies of this, but you shouldn't wait too long either.

I also picked up the latest release by one of my favourite bands from Germany right now: Jungbluth. They did a split with Callow, who I didn't know before. Okay band, but nothing that gets me overly excited. Jungbluth clearly wins this, although I have to admit that I might be a little biased here… I might be what you call a fanboy. Anyway, if you're into dark and heavy hardcore with a political attitude, you should definitely check out this band. So, so good.

Holy shit. This might be one of my favourite records this year already. Doesn't matter that the songs were originally recorded in 1980. Yes, I'm talking about the S.O.A. demo that was recently released on vinyl by Dischord. 80s hardcore at its best with Henry Rollins' trademark vocals. All killer, no filler. Makes me want to shave my head so badly, haha.