Bad Kids

My love for Big Kids has been well documented on here, especially my love for their first LP. I think they were on tour in Europe once, at least that‘s what I gathered from their blog, but unfortunatley I missed them back then. I don‘t know when the band disbandened, but I think they just fizzled out. That’s why the surprise was even bigger, when a few months ago I learned that the guitarist and singer had a new project, which could qualify as the third Big Kids LP. I mean, the name of the LP is very on the nose (if you know) as is the cover art. The band name, however, is pretty weird. But hey, so is Gorilla Biscuits. 

Like I said, the music on Bad Kids leans very heavily into the Big Kids direction. I actually like this one more than the second Big Kids LP. This was a really nice surprise and would have easily made my 2025 list if I had known about it sooner.

1st Press on Bone on Lauren /300

Darryl Against Darryl

Another really cool record I was inspired to buy by Nico. There are some really cool jazzy songs on here, plus two new Interpretation of songs originally released on I Against I. I really like the nods to Bad Brains when it comes to the imagery on the cover and label. This is a really nice listen. 

1st Press on Clear Red on ORG /???

Shopping For A Test

It‘s a very rare occassion for me to add anything to my Good Clean Fun collection because as far as I‘m aware, I‘m only missing misprints and test presses. I‘m not sure what people think about Good Clean Fun in 2026, but those misprints and test presses don‘t show up as much as I‘d like. When a record store in the US put up two promotional copies for the Shopping For A Crew 7“ for sale on Discogs, I had a casual glance and put them in my shopping basket, even though I had no real intentions of buying either one, because I already own a bunch of tests and a promo copy. It was more a ‘just in case‘ scenario. 

But a few weeks ago  I was bored one weekend when I was staying up late and I decided to read the descriptions of those records more in detail because they were priced lightly differently. Usually that has something to do with the condition, but you never know. The seller had written that one of the promotional copies comes without the lyrics written on the inside of the cover. So I went to check out my copy and lo and behold, it did have the lyrics printed on the inside. All of a sudden, there was a new version I‘d had no idea existed and I knew I had to get it. 

Side by side of the two copies. My old copy on the right, the new one on the left. The paper pretty much looks the same in real life. The old promotional copy says /30, but I‘m not sure if that refers only to the version with the printed lyrics or all promotional copies combined. 

Here‘s a fun snapshot of all the tests and promotional copies of this 7“ I‘ve acquired over the years, because why not?

In Reverse

Thanks to fellow record enthusiast and blogger Nico, I learned about the new Drink Deep record. In Reverse is another EP, but this one comes on 12” format. Whereas the demo and the first 7” reminded me heavily of Minor Threat, they departed from that style a little bit with their second 7”. In Reverse reminds me more of Dag Nasty and Revolution Summer and I’m all here for it. Let’s see where the musical journey takes this band. The cover are is simple and has a nice 80s indie touch. I opted for the more common version on purple, because it works better with the cover in my opinion. One of my favorite release this year so far. 

1st Press on Purple on Thirty Something /200

Live At CBGB’s

The last of the 7“s and the last of the records I bought from my friend. I haven‘t bought a Youth Of Today record in some time and I‘m glad I added one I didn‘t own a copy of yet, in fact had never even listened to before. It‘s always fun to dive into new old records. Low budget live recordings of hardcore bands have a very unique charm to them. The quality usually isn’t that good, not necessarily the case here, but they transport the energy of hardcore show pretty well. They also speak to the resourcefulness of hardcore kids at a time when not every recording of a band was widely available and not every show was filmed to be maybe enjoyed after the fact. 

1st Press on Solid Yellow on Reality Records #11/123

Since this is the final post of this little series, here’s a nice group shot. Thanks again to my friend André, who cut me a really good deal on the whole lot. It was a fun time browsing your collection, talking hardcore and life, and just having a great time. 

The Absolute

I’ve been a big fan of Spirit Crusher since I caught them at one of their early shows. The Absolute is one of my top 3 German hardcore records of all time and if I occasionally still stage dive at a hardcore show, it’s either to Bane songs or to one of the songs on this 7”. I’ve had a pre-oder copy and a release show copy of The Absolute since the record came out and I was quite happy with that, but I’d toyed with the idea of actually collecting this 7” for a while. So when I had the chance to add two copies at once, I jumped at it. 

This is the regular version of the first press. It’s listed as ‘red’ on Discogs, but it does look like orange to me.

1st Press on Orange (listes as ‘Red’ on Discogs) on The Essence /???

The other variant comes on a different color and with a stamp showing the logo of the record label, The Essence. I’ve seen the sticker on many different colors, but it’s a nice touch that they color-coordinated this one with the color of the record. 

1st Press on Clear Blue on The Essence w/ Stamped Sleeve /???

I Recover

A couple of years ago, I Recover released their one and only album (so far), and I was all over that record. I still spin it on a regular basis and a couple of songs are on constant rotation in some of my playlists. I’d been a fan of theirs since I got my hands on the 7” they had released prior to the LP, but I’d missed out on their s.t. debut 7”. Again, it’s one of those records I probably could have gotten pretty easily, but I never did. Musically, the 7” is alright, but the band did get better with each release in my opinion. What has been great from the get go is the artwork and the love and detail that went into the sleeves. Flaps, fold-outs, the quality and texture of the cardboard, it all adds to the great packaging each release offers. 

Babylon Straight Edge

Dogchains was a one of my favorite local bands and I can‘t believe they broke up almost 10 years ago. I didn‘t make it to their last show because I‘d just become a dad, which also means I missed out on the limited versions they put out for their last show(s). This rip-off of Bad Brains’ Quickness LP is pretty cool, because the usual move would have been to go with the artwork of one of the first three albums, and also, they pretty much nailed the clothes and the poses. As far as I remember they had two different variants, but I can‘t recall what the other one was and my five minute research didn‘t provide any answers. The orange vinyl is the same color as for the regular first press, so my guess is that they still had some of those in a box or so and decided to sell them with a different cover. I didn‘t find any info on how many copies were made with this sleeve, but it couldn‘t have been many. 

Last Show Version on Clear Orange on Straight And Alert /???

Weezer Denied

As of the last post, I‘m done talking about all the LPs I got from my friend, all of which would have made a nice haul on its own, but I also got a bunch of 7“s from him. I used to confuse Tides Denied with another German band of a similar name, which is why I missed out on them for quite a long time. But all of that changed when a good friend of mine put on a local show with them and right there and then it clicked. I‘ve shared the stage with them, we went on tour together and I‘m still always very happy when I run into any of the guys. When I saw this great rip-off cover of Weezer‘s blue album for their second 7“, Find Your Place, I just had to get it. The record colour works so well with the alternate artwork, too. 

1st Press on Blue Turquoise on Backbite  w/ Pre-Order Cover /30

Just Another Record

Another gap filler that found its way into my collection. Whenever I put on Holding On‘s second LP, Question What You Live For, I really enjoy listening to it. Problem is, I don‘t put it on often enough. After getting Holding On‘s demo on vinyl last year, I finally managed to get my hands on their first LP, Just Another Day. 15 songs in a little bit more than 20 minutes. Yes, please! 

1st Press on Black on Havoc /1200

Double Allegiance

When browsing my buddy’s pictures on Instagram after he’d decided to sell his collection, I saw his pictures of the two Allegiances albums and I thought it’d be fun to listen to Allegiance again because I hadn’t done so in a long time. So I went to my record shelf and wanted to dig out their first LP because my first instinct to reach for albums first most of the times these days. I didn’t find it though and after checking my record list there was no doubt that I didn’t own any Allegiance albums (anymore). I could have sworn I owned at least the first one on vinyl, but either I misplaced it or, which is more likely, I traded it away, thinking I could replace it easily along the way, and then forgot about it. Well, at least the replacing part finally came true, even though I actually don’t know how many years later. Listening to Allegiance brings back a lot of memories surrounding the mid-2000s. Not just about the band and their records, but of that whole time in general. Makes me kinda nostalgic. Looking back, there are so many great records that were released in the 2003-2008 era and Overlooked is one of them in my book. 

1st Press on Yellow w/ Red Splatter on Rivalry/603

The second and final album by Allegiance, Desperation, was released in 2007 and the disbandened some time after. I don‘t remember exactly because I think they went rather quietly and didn’t have a big send-off like Champion or Have Heart. I remember listening to this album, probably on some burned CD on a way to a show. It’s also a very good record, but I prefer the first album. 

1st Press on Gold Metallic on Rivalry /600

It’s A Cold World

Cold World is a band I‘ve always been aware of, but I‘ve only listened to them occassionally. A couple of months ago I had a discussion with a friend and he kept talking about how great Cold World is. So, when I saw a copy of How The Gods Chill sit on my other buddy’s shelf, it was really a no brainer to add it to my pile, so I could finally check out the band properly. I‘ve really been enjoying this album the last couple of weeks. It‘s like a harder version of Blacklisted, but with more hip hop and metal influences at the same time. The clear vinyl goes really well with the artwork and I love that shade of blue as well. I‘m really glad I got this record. 

1st Press on Clear on Deathwish /720

The Quest

Considering the fact how much I like youth crew music, I have a very weak collection when it comes to European bands of that ilk. Mainstrike is probably one of the 90s European hardcore bands in general and definitely of the bands that helped establish European youth crew to begin with. A Quest For Answers is the band’s debut LP, offering 12 songs of youth crew influenced hardcore, but not necessarily with typical youth crew lyrics. Definitely an important record for European hardcore. 

1st Press on Black on Crucial Response /???

Chung King?

Humans are incredibly interesting individuals. Some people consider a record trash and don’t want it released at all, others are willing to pay huge amounts of money for that exact record. Some of those people who really want to have said record are apparently also willing to bootleg the record, or at least are willing to help along the way to create the bootleg, so more people can enjoy the record that was never meant to be enjoyed in the first place. It’s really fascinating. 

Then there’s me, who would never spend the kind of money on a Chung King that seems to be the going rate these days, because objectively it is a shitload of money, but I might be tempted to spend a lot of money on other records and not bat an eyelash. I’m not a big fan of bootlegs in general either, but some bootlegs are pretty cool and are maybe even more interesting than the original record because there’s a interesting back story, which then makes them desirable after all.

The Chung King album has been re-released officially by Revelation Records, both as part of the Judge discography and the actual re-release of the Chung King record, so the actual recordings became widely available to the masses, making any further bootlegs obsolete. But at one point, it did make sense to bootleg such a rare record. 

The 10” bootleg of the (in)famous Chung King album, originally released in the 90s, has become kind of a collectible in itself, commanding three figures in some cases, which is kinda ironic. Kinda supporting the point I made about humans being complex beings. My buddy was pretty surprised when I told him about that, but great guy that he is, he didn’t take advantage of that and he made me a really good price.

Close up of the insert, part 1. This shines some light on the bootleg itself. I don’t know how well kept the secret is who bootlegged this record and whose number was whited out, but I have no clue who’s responsible for it.

Close up of the insert, part 2, with the original back cover and label art. 

13 Years In The Making

About 13 Years ago I traded away my copy of the Internal Affairs LP. I must admit that I didn‘t think all that much about Internal Affairs in the years since and I‘m not sure how many times I listened to them in the past 10 years. Still, when I saw this record amongst my buddy‘s collection, I kinda wanted to get it. He and I came up around the same time in the hardcore scene and we have a similar taste. So, on the one hand, there were a lot of the same records we both own, on the other hand it was a very nice walk down memory lane and I saw a bunch of records from the early and mid 2000s that I don’t own (anymore). 

The s.t. album is such a fun listen after all these years, even though I didn’t quite remember the vocals being so high. Listening to this record is a great throwback to the mid 2000s.

In case anyone was wondering, I traded my copy to Marcus and after all these years I can say with certainty that only positive things have come from that one trade. 

1st Press on Black w/Record Release Cover on Malfunction /300

Disco Boots

There was a time when I bought pretty much everything released by Grave Mistake records. One of those records was the Iron Boots Demo 7“, even though Grave Mistake only took over pressing the band‘s demo with the third pressing. I really liked that demo, but for some reason I never picked up any of the band‘s other records. When I spotted the Discogrpahy among my friend‘s collection I saw no reason not to buy it. In 2026 a 12“ discography with all the band‘s material seems much more appealing than getting the individual releases. It‘s funny how these things can change, because up until a few years ago I was a staunch defender of buying releases only in their original format. This is a fun listen and even though there are 20 songs on this 12“, the record doesn‘t get boring or feels long. 

1st Press on Orange on Grave Mistake & Triple B /225

Cast The First Stone

Let‘s stick with the 90s. Ensign have never been a huge band for me, but I do like their catalogue as far as I‘m familiar with it. Cast The First Stone is their second LP. It‘s a good album, but overall I prefer their debut The Direction Of Things To Come which is overall more straight forward hardcore.

1st Press on Black on Nitro /???

Back On Track

I’ve always enjoyed the Ten Yard Fight 7”s I own, but for some reason never managed to buy a copy of their only LP, Back On Track. When I saw a copy of the album in my friend’s shelf, I put it on to my pile pretty much without thinking. My buddy had told me before visiting him that he was going to make me some really, really good prices, so adding to the pile was way too easy. 

Back On Track is such a fun record, exactly what I want from a youth crew record. Yes, the cover is so cliché, but a great live picture plus bold lettering just works for youth crew records. An orange copy would have been nice, but as long as I can finally listen to this record on vinyl, I’m fine with black too. 

1st Press on Black on Equal Vision /???

Choose Wisely

This post is the start of a series of records I bought from a very good friend of mine a couple of weeks ago. He’d told me a while ago that he was thinking about selling (part of) his collection and he finally pulled the trigger about a month ago. I looked through his Instagram and picked out a couple of things that I was interested in, but I also knew that he didn’t have pictures of all of his records online, so I decided on a whim to make the 5 hour trip by train to hang out with him and browse his collection. It kind of was perfect timing, too, because it was the start of the summer holidays for me, which meant the weather was really nice and I didn’t have a care in the world about grown up stuff. So, in the end I got to spend a great weekend with an even greater friend I rarely see and I went home with plenty of new records. What better way to start the summer? Now the big question was, which record should I start with? Newer record? Older classic? In the end, I decided on a modern classic, at least in my opinion.

Magnitude released one of my favorite albums of the last 10 years. I can’t really fathom that this is a pre-Corona record, but To Whatever Fateful End was indeed released in 2019. It’s such a great throwback record to 90s hardcore and hits all the right spots for me. It’s one of those records I would love to collect, but since there are so many variants out there, I can’t really get myself to actually start a collection. As a compromise, I decided to just go after the special covers, which is a more manageable taks. Not necessarily cheaper and easier, but more interesting. 

This particular variant is a repress done as an exclusive version for Disorder, which is a record label and record store based in Atlanta. The limited variant comes with a special cover, which is just a single sheet of paper on top of the regular cover. The alternate cover is also stamped and hand-numbered /75. 

Sidenote: Purple and pink are my favourite colors for records in general, but there is something about white and clear for records by straight edge bands. 

Repress on Clear on Triple B w/ Alternate Cover (Disorder Exclusive) /75

Close up of the stamp and numbering. I don't know what the deal with the raccoon is, but I guess they look cool. 

The More, The Merrier

Well, another month, another Bane repress. I’m really glad that there seems to be still so much demand for Bane records, but I wonder sometimes how many of these are sold to younger hardcore kids and how many copies just go to collectors. 

2026 Repress on Yellow (“Golden”) w/ Black Splatter (Rev Exclusive) on Equal Vision /500

Red Red Medicine

One down, one to go and then my micro collection of colored Fugazi represses should be complete. Red Medicine might not have as many hits as the albums before, but I still really enjoy listening to this album.

2024 Repress on Red on Dischord /???

Bring On The Psychics

Any new material by Walter Schreifels is always a reason to be happy. When a friend texted me if I’d seen the announcement for the new Quicksand LP, this put an instant smile on my face. The tricky part was to find a version that looked good and was available in Europe. There are ten variants I know of, but only a handful is actually nice to look at. But after some research and letting some days pass, I found out that my go-to mailorder was getting one of the variants I’d eyed anyway. 

The record wasn’t readily available, but the wait for the pre-order wasn’t too bad compared to a lot of other other records released in recent years. The artwork is alright, but I really, really love the color of the record. I think I chose wisely. The album starts off somewhat slow, but picks up tempo (and groove) halfway through the A-side and starts sounding more like Quicksand. After the record ended, I immediately flipped it over and started listening to it again. And then again. There’s no particular song standing out so far, but the album flows very nicely in itself. I have a feeling that I’ll be playing Bring On The Psychics a lot and that it will end high on my 2026 list. 

1st Press on Dusk Blue w/ White Swirl (‘Retail Exclusive’) on Equal Vision /???

Two Words

A couple of weeks ago I met with a good friend of mine for a coffee date. We hadn’t seen each other in person in quite a while, which is one of the woes of adult life: one-on-one time with friends is getting scarce. At some point during that period of time he’d texted me that he’d finally picked up a bunch of classic 80s hardcore records he’d long wanted to own. We acutally ended up having a fun conversation about those records (and some newer stuff) during the aforementioned coffee date. What he hadn’t told me was that along with the records he’d ordered, he’d been sent an album by a relatively current band called Two Words.

Since he wasn’t into the album, he decided to give it to me because he knows my love for youth crew. I really appreciate the gift. Thanks again. In case you were wondering, yes, youth crew is what you get on Rejoining The Forces. I mean, the band name, the name of the album, the insert, the cover art - it’s all there. Add the fact that the album was released on Crucial Response. Even without looking it up, I sort of knew this was a project by slightly older folks, which as it turns out, was the correct assumption as all of the band members are veterans of the Italian (straight edge) hardcore scene. This is a well done record and you get exactly what you expect. 

1st Press on White on Crucial Response /???

Split Decision

Sunday Drive has become one of my favorite labels these past few years, so I regularly check their web store for new releases. I’d been recommended the Turn Of Phrase demo by a friend, but it was sold out on their website and ordering from the US was not an option because it’s become way too expensive. But when I saw that Turn Of Phrase had a vinyl release out, I knew I could get my hands on a copy through German mailorders. It’s still a very steep price you have to pay for a 7” these days, but it’s still much cheaper than ordering directly from overseas. The Turn Of Phrase side is really, really good and I definitely want to hear more from that band. The Square One songs are good as well, but don’t grab me the same way the Turn Of Phrase ones do. Overall, this is a really good split record

1st Press on Clear Green on Sunday Drive /200

Not Nothing To Me

The Start Today 7” was one of my favorite 7”s in 2025, so ordering the LP was a quick and as it turns out smart decision. Nothing To You is a great follow up for the 7” and leaves nothing left to be desired. 9 Songs and the longest one is not even 1:30 minutes. Just the right length for this kind of music.

I would have preferred the ice blue version, because that is a sick looking colour, but this was the much cheaper alternative. 

1st Press on Olive Green on Rebirth /100 (‘Merchpit Exclusive’)

Legend

As you may have noticed, I have a very soft spot for Bob Marley. My starting point when I was a teenager was Legend, which is a Bob Marley & The Wailers best of album, and as it happens, it’s also the most sold reggae record of all time. I’ve never owned a copy of this record before, all I had when I was younger was a burned CD from a friend. There are really only hits on here as far as I’m concerned, but now that I’m more familiar with the full catalogue, there are some glaring omissions in my book. But hey, you can only fit so many songs on one LP. Be that as it may, listening to this record again brings back a lot of happy memories. 

Red Apples

After picking up the blue vinyl version of the Beatles 1967-1970 compilation, obviously I needed to get the red vinyl version for the 1962-1966. The time was right, the price was right, so here we are. I really like how the red rectangle saying “Neu - Limitierte Sonderauflage rote LP’s” was placed so neatly alligning with the staircases or balconies or whatever that is supposed to be. Someone could have really fucked that up. It’s small stuff like this that makes me happy. 

1978 Press on Red on Apple /???

Hot Bodi-Gram

Whenever there’s a Dischord record sitting in a record store, you should pick it up. Doesn’t matter whether you know the band or you don’t. If you do know the band, that’s all the more reason to get it, because, well, it’s Dischord. Hot Bodi-Gram may not be the best Dischord release, but it’s still an interesting listen. 

Wake Up And Live

The last trip to the local record store was very successful indeed. This is the third and last record I bought that da. I only knew a few songs on this album but I was pleasantly surprised how well it flows as an album and there are no songs I‘d skip to be honest. I was kinda amused at the title of the last song because my first asscoiation is obviously the Youth Of Today song, but this LP was released way before YOT were even a band.  

German Press on Black on Tuff Gong /???

Greatest Hits

I‘ve been enjyoing Bob Dylan for a bunch of years. I don’t really look for his records online because it’s fun to pick up records randomly at actual stores and this is an artist primed for that because there are so many releases with his name on it. This Greatest Hits compilation triggered my interest because it has some all-time great Dylan songs obviously, but also some songs I wasn‘t really familiar with. This is a fun listen, althought it feels a little long-winded. 

Europen Pressing (Printed in Holland) on Black on CBS /???

Not Another Wasted Night

I‘ve never drunk alcohol in my life and I’ve claimed straight edge for a very long time, but goddamn, Alcohol by Gang Green is such a fucking fantastic hardcore song. The album the song is on is called Another Wasted Night, so alcohol and getting wasted is obviously the central theme going on here. Lyrics aside, this is a banging 80s hardcore record. 

This is the German repress on Funhouse Records, which comes with a bunch of extra songs compared to the original pressing and subsequent represses on Taang. Another sweet find at the local record store. Nothing like finding cool records in the wild. 

Repress on Black on Funhouse Records /???

Pure Gold

Getting one step closer to having a colored repress of each Fugazi album. I know that some people don‘t like the later material in the band‘s discography, but I‘m among for the whole ride. There are really good songs on every Fugazi record, including End Hits. This repress comes on what is actually gold vinyl and as always with Fugazi, the color works really well with the album art. 

2024 Repress on Gold on Dischord /???

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.