Lots Of Noise And Even More Disturbances

We played a weekender a few weeks ago and to make time on the road pass by a little easier, my bandmates and I made a playlist every one could contribute to. Now, we do have a lot of bands in common that we all love or at least like, but there‘s also some huge differences. Gaps you might actually say. Abysses might be another word that comes to mind. I had to endure more metal than I usually listen to in ten years probably. However, I was pleasantly surprised when a song by The Mighty Mighty Bosstones came on. When I was back home, I decided to revisit their catalogue and after doing that, I decided that I wanted to finally own their first few records. Originals are hard to come by, so I was more than happy to just grab s repress. Especially because it comes on this nice green color. 

2021 Repress on Clear Green on Taang

Wrong Men

I don‘t like to listen to Spotify radio or to playlists I didn‘t create myself, but every once in a while the algorithm actually points me towards a band I didn‘t know before and actually end up liking. I don‘t remember what I was listening to, but at one point I noticed this wasn‘t the record I‘d put on. I did like what I heard, so I checked out the band. Enter Wrong Man from Belgium. The people behind this band have all played in various bands, some more well known than the others. With Wrong Man, they decided to stray from the more heavy paths of guitar music and enter more of post-hardcore and indie influenced world. There‘s also some classic rock in there I‘d say. And they‘re doing an excellent job. 

After listening to the bands material for a while, I decided to see what records were still available. Luckily both 12“s were still for sale on various distros‘ websites and it was a very welcome surprise to see that both of the 12“s cost less than 20€. Granted, there are only four songs on each 12“, but still. 

1st Press on Black on Atomic Action! /300

1st Press on Clear w/ Blue and Black Marble on Thirty Something /100 

Close up of the color because it was hard to take a decent photo with the record lying on the floor. 

Don’t Look A Free Record In The Mouth

When we played the festival in Berlin some time ago, there was a table with records right next to the bands’ merch tables. Best of all, the records were all free. I was told that someone decided to liquidate their old distro and just wanted to get rid off all the remaining records. I browsed through the records and noticed a record by this band Think Twice. The cover looked kind of interesting and the name is sort of cool (a Minor Threat reference?). When I flipped the record, I saw it was released on Crucial Response and I figured it’d be stupid not to take a free record that somehow had peeked my interest. 

I don’t know why, but I expected a youth crew record. There are some youth crewish elements to the music, but the vocals are much more Revolution Summer influenced. All in all, this record was a pleasant surprise and getting this for free makes it even better. 

1st Press on Black on Crucial Response /1349

One Last Wish

While browsing records at Bis Aufs Messer, I stumbled across this one. I’d never heard of the band, but the cover looked intriguing and after seeing on the back cover that it was released on Dischord and featured members of Rites of Spring and Embrace, it was a no brainer to pick up the record. And what can I say, it sounds exactly what you would an expect from a record recorded in DC in 1986/87 with that personnel. This one was a very pleasant surprise. I also like the coke bottle clear vinyl. It goes very well with the sleeve. 

Edit: When I published this post, I hadn’t checked the pressing info for this release. After Marcus had commented on the color and the similarities between the two color pressings, I checked out the Discogs entry for this record. The 2008 repress on clear vinyl says on the back cover “This LP is $11 plus postage.”, where as the 2021 repress does not state a price at all. I checked the sleeve of the record I bought and I have the 2021 repress, which makes the color shown “sea glass green”.

2021 Repress on Sea Glass Green on Dischord

Instrument

A couple of weeks ago, my band got to play a festival in Berlin with a bunch of awesome German hardcore bands. The festival itself was great. Cool venue, cool people and a general cool vibe for both days. We were supposed to play Sunday night (next day was a holiday) and I had really looking forward to playing that festival. Unfortunately it turned out to be a night to remember for all the wrong reasons. The cops showed up while we set up on stage and we didn't really know what was going on. During the first song my guitar strap broke and after the second song our singer twisted his ankle so badly we had to stop playing and call an ambulance. Not a great evening for us. 

Technically, playing the festival was the main reason to go to Berlin, but since Monday was a holiday and my wife and I had time off work, we'd decided to stay in Berlin a little longer. As did some other friends. So we got to hang out with a bunch of friends and enjoy Berlin for a few days. Not a bad deal. Whenever I'm in Berlin, I make sure to go to Bis Aufs Messer record store. One of my favorite record stores to go to. Great selection of records and the owners are always down for a chat. This time I used the opportunity to fill the last gap in my Fugazi collection. 

Now, I have to admit that I've never actually seen the documentary this records is the soundtrack for. Talk about being a poser. I guess this is my next item on my to-do list. According to the matrix this is the repress from 2009, which I somehow find hard to believe. The last entry on Discogs is indeed from 2009 and the matrix does match, but still, there hasn't been a more current version in 15 years?

2009 Repress on Black on Dischord

Gute Laune, Ungerecht Verteilt

I love hardcore and punk. Those are my two favorite genres and the vast majority of records I won can be classified as one or the other. Or both, depending on your definition. However, if we played the “Which record would you pick to listen to if you were stranded on a deserted island?“-game, I‘d probably pick the first album by German indie band Kettcar. I love the band‘s entire catalogue, but the first LP is still my favorite. A couple of months ago my wife told me that Kettcar were going to release a new record and go on tour to promote the album. One of the tour stops was only half an hour from where we live and since our son is now at an age where he loves spending a night or two at his grandma‘s, we bought tickets right away. Dinner and a concert will forever be our favorite kind of date night. 

Gute Laune, Ungerecht Verteilt (Good Mood, Spread Unjustly) was released online before the actual tour, but I didn‘t want to listen to the new songs before I got the vinyl. The concert itself was a lot of fun. They played a bunch of new songs, which went over pretty well because apparently I was the only one in the audience who hadn‘t listened to the new songs before, and all their greatest hits. 

The album is good, but I have to say it‘s not their best material and so far I haven‘t heard a real hit. I‘ve had this experience with other records by this band, so I‘m not too fussed. Even if the record doesn‘t click, I always have their back catalogue. I really like the artwork though. 

Limited Tour Edition on Yellow and Green on Grand Hotel Van Cleef

Echo Chamber

Arguably the hottest hardcore band from Germany on the arguably hottest label from Germany right now. Echo Chamber from Cologne, which is also where Down But Not Out Records is based, have received a lot of hype from the get go, and deservedly so. As a band from Europe, it's still very hard to make it to the US, and Echo Chamber have managed to play shows/festivals in the US as well as have a US based label release their music. All of the members have played in a myriad of bands before and listing the Echo Chamber family tree would take a loooooong time. 

The demo, which was released in 2022, was already received very, very well and my guess is that the band members spent the pandemic listening to a ton of NYHC and that was the impetus for the band itself. Or maybe it had been a long time plan to have a band in the band of Breakdown, The Icemen or early SOIA. Who knows. 

What I do know is that many people were looking forward to seeing the band release new music, me being one of said people. And what can I say, the band doesn't disappoint. The six songs on their s.t. 7" hit hard. If you have the opportunity, catch them live. Their shows are always wild and fun. 

1st Press on Sea Blue on Down But Not Out /???

Times Of Strife

It‘s funny how hardcore comes and goes in waves. Right now, the German hardcore scene is in a much better state than it used to be in a long time. There have always been a ton of German hardcore bands, but in pre-pandemic times, not that many bands managed to really pull me in. However, in the last two or three years that has definitely changed. One of those bands is Force Of Denial from Hanover. Look at the cover, look at the names, look at the pictures and you know exactly what you‘re going to get. If you like 90s influenced straight edge hardcore (with a modern twist), look no further. I was too slow for the colored version on matching yellow vinyl, but the black works for me as well. 

FOD had released a demo and promo before, both on tape. The classic hardcore move. Times Of Strife is their first vinyl release, and they damn made sure it is a great one. FOD are also so much fun to see live. Plenty of mosh, plenty of singalongs, plenty of everything a good hardcore show needs. If you have never listened to FOD yet, make sure you change that. 

1st Press on Black on Down But Not Out Records

How It Feels To Be Something On

Not too long after ordering Diary I felt the need to dive deeper into the Sunny Day Real Estate catalogue. I didn’t find any decently priced original pressings of How It Feels To Be Something On, so I settled for a repress. This is another really good record, but it’s not on par with Diary. The lyric sheet that comes with this record is amazing. Look at the huge foldout. 

20XX Repress on Black on Sub Pop Records

 

Sweet Caroline II

I got another record from the same seller I bought the CCME on Caroline Records. This copy is part of the 2nd press on Caroline Records, although it comes without the "Remix" sticker. But the matrix reads "Mix #2". Apparently the sound on the first mix wasn't that great. Maybe that should have been a hint for Porcell not to record at Chung King studios again with Judge later on, but then again record collectors worldwide would have one white whale less to chase, so it was probably a good move nonetheless. 

Since I don't have a first press copy on Caroline, I can't really speak to the poor quality of that press and can't compare it with this one either. At least for now. 

I'm really glad Revelation decided to return to this cover artwork after using different artwork for many years. However, the blue version on We Bite is still the best looking one. 

2nd Press on Black on Caroline Records (Matrix says "Mix #2")

Sweet Caroline I

Here’s adding to my officially non-existent, yet steadily growing Youth Of Today collection. This time I managed to find a first press of Can’t Close My Eyes on Caroline Records as you can see by the white labels used for this record. The pressing history of Youth Of Today releases is so interesting from a nerd’s perspective. So many different record labels, colors, designs of covers and labels as well as remixes of the songs. It’s this dream / nightmare scenario for collectors all at once. 

1st Press on Black (White Labels) on Caroline Records

This Is All We Ever Get

A couple of weeks ago I posted about the first Spaced LP. I‘d been reminded of Spaced‘s first LP because they had a new record up for pre-order, which I had been unaware of. The first LP was a real banger and I was really looking forward to the new LP. I wasn’t the only one apparently who liked the first LP, because Spaced landed on Revelation Records. Now, this may not carry as much weight as it used to, but it is a pretty big deal nonetheless. This Is All We Ever Get hasn‘t grabbed me the way Spaced Jams had to be honest. It‘s a good record, but so far I haven‘t found a hit yet. Maybe it‘ll grow on me. 

1st Press on Green on Revelation /1064

 

Some Boots

One more puzzle piece down of the Karate discography. Some Boots is yet another stage of the band’s evolution and makes sense in the context of their whole catalogue. I sort of regret not getting the colored version for this record, but with records being as pricey as they are right now, I opted for the cheaper version. I really like the cover of this record. Very simple, very minimalistic, very good. 

2023 Repress on Black on Numero Group Records

 

Boxed In

It’s still a big deal when Rev signs a current band. I feel like in the last couple of years Rev has done a much better job signing current bands. Speedway, Spaced and now Planet On A Chain are all bands that I thoroughly enjoy. Before those bands it was slim pickings for me for quite a while. 

Anyway, Planet On A Chain play 80s style hardcore the way I love it. It's fast, it's ferocious, it's fucking great! I mean, just look at the cover. That pretty much tells you everything you need to know about the music you can expect. I definitely need to get their other releases. 

I'm only two years behind on this band / record, which is not too bad. That's also the reason why I only managed to get a second press, but I actually like the updated cover, especially in combination with the red vinyl. Well done, Rev!

2nd Press on Opaque Red On Revelation Records /???

Dear Diary

As mentioned in previous posts I was on a 90s emo trip some time ago and listened to a bunch of bands or records I’d never listened to before or rediscovered bands I hadn’t listened to in a long time. One of those records was Diary, the first LP by Sunny Day Real Estate. For some reason I gravitated to bands like The Get Up Kids, Jimmy Eat World or The Promise Ring much more than to SDRE. It’d been a long minute since I had last listened to Diary, but when I did, I couldn’t come up with a good reason why I hadn’t listened to that record in so long. Stupidity is the only answer I can muster. 

This is an absolute masterpiece, plus it looks so dope. The artwork on the front and back cover are awesome and I can’t imagine having to look at this only on CD format. The vinyl color is chosen well too.  The picture doesn’t really do it justice and I might have to take another one to show off the cool shade of green, which comes with some black streaks or a hint of marble if you will. 

1998 Repress on Green Vinyl on Sub Pop /???

Edit: Close up of the record to show the color properly.