Printed To The X

Violent Reaction's s.t. 7" is such a ripper. I already had a regular copy, but I always wanted one of those fancy covers that fold out to this gigantic X. Looks so cool. 150 copies on red vinyl with the red X sleeve.

Marching On

Music for the not so quiet moments in life. Violent Reaction have been keeping busy and released their 2nd LP earlier this year. This copy on clear green vinyl is part of the 2nd pressing. Not bad, considering this was released not too long ago. Nothing's changed on this release as far as the music is concerned, which is definitely a good thing. The folks at Rev seem to like the music as well, so they decided to release Marching On on their label. Honest question, is this the first release on Rev by a European / non-American band?

Catching Up 08/2014

I picked up a couple current records and represses a couple of  weeks back but only get to post about them today.

First off I got a repress of No Warning's 2nd album Suffer Survive. I really liked their first record, which I only picked recently, so I thought I'd give their second LP a shot too. There are some really good songs on it, but overall I prefer the first LP. Six Feet Under repressed this record on four versions. This is the least rare one on black vinyl out of 800. 

I was quite astonished when I found out that Shook Ones had released a new LP since I though they'd broken up some time ago. Turns out I'd been living under a rock and The Unquotable A.M.H. already came out in 2009. Now I'm not sure if this variant was released back then or if this is a repress. The mailorder lists it as a 2014 release, discogs.com tells me that there is a grey version that came out in 2009, the label website tells me this variant doesn't exist. First world record collector's problems... Anyway, good jams by a good band. Now I only need the summer to come back.

UK hardcore seems to be thriving right now, with Violent Reaction and The Flex spearheading this revivial. Like Violent Reaction The Flex play hardcore in the vein of early Boston Hardcore mixing in a little NYHC. Et voilà, you have the formula for good records. Not new, but who needs new when it's just good music? Split release by Milk Run and Video Disease. There's also a variant on red vinyl out there, but personally I think black works better here, because it'd be too much red otherwise.

UK hardcore takeover #2. Violent Reaction released their 2nd EP. Two 7"s, one LP and a US tour within two years is not bad for a newcomer band from Europe. It might just be that they hit the nerve of time or are just that good. You decide. The music is a little more punk than hardcore, but just a tad. Dead End was recorded with Violent Reaction being a full band unlike the two previous releases. This is the Painkiller release on black vinyl out or 800. Quality control released this in the UK.

Another reissue of an early American hardcore classic: Verbal Abuse's debut Just An American Band. Raw, savage, primal hardcore. Nothing else to say here really. You need this. Beer City rereleased this on clear red vinyl. Maybe there are other variants out there, but I haven't found any pressing information on this one. 

Catching Up with today

Enough with the represses already! Time to check out some current bands. First off we have Everybody Row's first 7" The Sea Inside on Vitriol Records. Everybody Row shares members with the late Comadre and you can hear that very clearly. If Comadre had made another record after their self-titled LP, it would have probably sounded something like that. A lot more pop, but still very powerful. I really dig this release. Hopefully there'll be more material from this band soon.

 

Gas Rag from Chicago play hardcore-punk with the emphasis on punk. Throw in some D-Beat, throw in some rock, throw in some classic mid-western hardcore and you get Gas Rag. This is their first 7" Human Rights released on Way Back When. Definitely the most 'punk' record I've bought in a while. Good one.

I saw SVFFER live last year once or twice if my memory serves correctly and I really liked what I heard. I'd meant to pick up one of their records for quite some time but only got around to do so recently. Sadly this record doesn't do anything for me. I'll probably have to listen to it a few more times but so far I'm a little disappointed. Will try to catch them live again though to see if I was completely off somehow.

A couple of months back I got the Violent Reaction LP, which was really really good. The band also put out a 7" last year and I finally got around to picking one up. Just as good as the LP. Looking forward to hearing more from the band and hopefully seeing the band at some point.

All On Black II

Not only did I manage to pick up a whole bunch of 7"s on black vinyl, but with the same order I got three LPs that came all on black vinyl, too. What are the odds, right?

Some time ago I complained about the lack of compilations nowadays. So when I heard that Crucial Response was to release a compilation I knew I had to get it. Crucial Response had some quality releases in the past and from what I read the list of bands on this compilation sounded really promising. I do have mixed feelings about this LP though, now that I actually have it in my hands. There are some really good bands on it, both veteran and current. My favourite songs on here are probably by Snob Value, Sniffing Glue, Skaggs and Become. I'm really bummed that the latter already broke up. I had really enjoyed their demo and was looking forward to more to come. If you're into early, Boston-style hardcore at all, you should definitely check out Skaggs and get the two tapes they have put out so far.
However, my mixed feelings stem from including this band Dogends on the compilation. If anyone out there still thinks it's ok to use words like 'faggot' as an effort to insult someone, you can fuck off. I don't know if this was just 'meant as a joke' or that 'if I knew these guys, I'd know they weren't bad guys and didn't mean it like that' - these being the most common excuses around -, but that doesn't make it any less stupid. I also wish the label had taken more interest in the lyrics their bands have. Somewhat ruins this for me.

I've heard and read a lot of good things about this LP and it ended quite highly on many of the TOP 2013 lists that I saw, so I had to get it and see for myself. And I didn't get disappointed, that's for sure. Rough hardcore played in an early 80's style. X-Claim bands come to mind as a reference, but there's also some hint of early British hardcore in there. What makes this band really special is the fact that it consists of only one band member, Tom Pimlott, who plays all the instruments on the recordings. Talk about your DIY ethics. Will be listening to a lot in the future most likely.
This is the Painkiller version on black vinyl. 'City Streets' also comes on blue and red vinyl, and to make it more interesting for collectors, it was released on two different labels.

This is probably my favourite release of the lot 'All On Black' that I recently got. Left in Ruins' 'Ghost' LP, which is a split release by Per Koro, Epidemic and Ruins Records, is 10 songs of pure rage. One-sided LP, 10 songs in 14 minutes, no fancy gimmicks. Just pure raging hardcore. Plus one of the best covers I've ever heard. Classic rock song goes hardcore. So, so good.