Hex Records

SHOWS!

2012-02-07T21:29:00.000-08:00

Well, it has been awhile. But I've also had a wedding to plan (man, those things take some work, I'll tell ya). Nevertheless, how about a quick update? Some bands are playing some shows. Not too many, but they will still get you out of the house this Winter.

LIKE WOLVES
Thurs. Feb. 8th
Pussy barrel, Rochester, NY. 7PM. $3

BEASTMAN
LIKE WOLVES
HVNGER PAINS (members of Oak & Bone)
LEAKING HEAD (alt rock)
PUBLIC DEFENDER (first show)

Thurs., March 8th
Bug Jar, Rochester, NY. 6:30 PM. $8/$10

POLAR BEAR CLUB
LIKE WOLVES
WHITE PICKET FENCE - Syracuse
BLACK THROAT WIND - Syracuse (members of Oak & Bone)

Fri., March 9th
Flemington, NJ

Sat., March 10th
Boston, MA @ Democracy Center
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OAK & BONE

Friday, March 30th
Syracuse, NY @ Badlands
7PM. $7

HUNTED DOWN
OAK & BONE
GENETIC INFANTRYMAN
HERPES
SCHOOL SHOOTINGS

BEST OF/FAVORITES OF 2011

2011-12-21T16:04:00.000-08:00

That's right. It's my own damn list. Feel free to post yours below. It's rather comprehensive, but it was a pretty eventful year, so deal with it. Next year will obviously have a 'doomsday' theme... what will annihilate us in 2012? Aztec mystics? Republicans? Zorp/Reasonablists? Massive corporations? Only time will tell. Place yr bets.

FAVORITE RECORDS (in no order):

CUTMAN, "Universal Laws"- Dude rock, as played by dudes with fully functional brain stems. I do not expect anyone under the age of 27 to really enjoy this since it nitpicks from a variety of early 90's heavy rock such as Helmet, Jesus Lizard, Clutch, and post-hardcore-meets-mainstream type bands. But they do it so damn well! Intelligent songwriting, incredible guitar and bass tones, and one of the coolest record layouts I've seen in a long time. (Underground Communiqué)

RESTORATIONS, s/t- Sometimes when a new band's former band makes a big impression on you it's hard for the new band to do the same. But the Philly dudes in Restorations really hit the nail on the head here. They know exactly what they're doing and the result is a record taking all sorts of things- post-hardcore riffing, folksy introspection, hints of Americana, and big anthems, and rolling them into a cohesive whole. (Tiny Engines)

HELMS ALEE, "Weatherhead"- These are the loudest riffs you'll hear all year. This is the sound of The Melvins, KARP, Unwound, and Sonic Youth butting heads and spewing forth this most excellent collection of massive riffs, off-timed weirdness, subtle melody, and the bear-like howl of guitarist Ben Verellen alongside the soft croon of bassist Dana James. (Hydrahead)

CREEPOID, "Horse Heaven"- Best surprise I had all year. This isn't my typical platter, but something about this record just slays me. There's a spooky vibe, mixed with plaintive melodies, loud-quiet-loud stoner riffs, and beautiful soothing vocals. Hearing them sing, "It's gonna kill you all" in such a way that really makes one not fear death at all is kind of downright awesome. (Ian Records)

LIKE WOLVES, s/t- Kicked it into the next level. I used to be so-so about their music, and way into their live set. Now I'm all about both. They cut the fat out of the songwriting, and distilled it down to raw punk power, recalling the bad ass rock of Hot Snakes and some of the post-hardcore riffing of At the Drive In. (Hex)

OAK & BONE, s/t- "Hello, Oak & Bone? This is Riffs. You won." Psychedelics, sludge metal, weed, and raging crusty hardcore combined to lay down a smoke-filled haze that will turn your face to dust and melt your bones into your feet. Get destroyed. (Hex)

PRAYERS FOR ATHEISTS, "New Hymns For An Old War"- I'm not terribly concerned that most people find music like this to be out-of-date (or, when done poorly, or for radio rock intentions, nothing short of nauseating). Jared Paul and crew have made some of the most inspirational music my ears have heard all year. Take the dissident protest rhymes of Rage Against the Machine, stack it up against the punk power of The Clash and Propaghandi, and spit it out at an apathetic world. "Guns Up" might be the protest theme of the year, while "Keep Left" is for those struggles you share with those closest to you. (self-released/ Strange Famous)

THE MEN, "Leave Home"- I used to think they were far too noisy. Their previous records had that recorded in a trash can quality that doesn't exactly appeal to me. But here they broke out, still pressing forth with lots of noise, but refined in a such a way that makes everything stand out. You can hear all the really cool melodies alongside their ferocious roar all their own. (Sacred Bones)

FUCKED UP, "David Comes To Life"- It feels like all the progression this group has made over their last two full lengths has come to fruition on this double LP. I don't care if the whole thing is one big, complicated story. The A-side of this is unfuckwithable. Probably 5 of the best back-to-back songs I've heard all year. The rest of the record ain't bad either. (Matador)

ENGINEER, "Crooked Voices"- Every Engineer record takes a few listens to fully sink in, and that makes a good band. This one took at least 6 or 7 listens before I really got it. So that makes it a great record. If this is the last thing they do it will be a great way to go out. Knowing them, they'll probably hide in the shadows for another 4 years and then drop something even better. (Black Market Activities)

HONORABLE MENTIONS: JESUS LIZARD, "Club" (Since it's a live record of a reunion tour, does it count? Either way, still middle-aged men putting on a better show than most bands in their prime), TRAP THEM, "Darker Handcraft" (a fully realized bludgeoning to the face from beginning to end, non-stop riff fest), NIGHT OWLS, "Rapture" EP (swan song for this Syracuse group, all-around super catchy, but aggressive, punk/rock jams), YOUNG WIDOWS, "In and Out Of Youth and Lightness" (Enthralled by their progression, and all the great sounds they always conjure up, but doesn't supply quite the kick I was hoping for)

BEST SHOWS OF 2011 (in no order):

1.) ANOTHER BREATH final show(s) weekend, 8.26.11-8.28.11 with Achilles, Oak & Bone, Engineer, Soul Control, Victims, Whiskey, Mayflower, Night Owls, and more in Syracuse and Fulton, NY: A really fun way for a really great band to go out. A total weekend rager.

2.) GAINESVILLE FEST 2011, Gainesville, FL, 10.28.11-10.30.11: tons and tons of bands, great weather, fun people, good times, exhausting weekend. The only reason to really miss Halloween at home.

3.) GREAT FALLS & ENGINEER, 8.9.11, Syracuse: So all of about 20 people were there, but to hear Engineers new full length the whole way through live was inspiring. And to see the Seattle dudes in Great Falls just destroy the place (as it is rare to see these dudes at all) was an extra-special treat.

4.) PRAYERS FOR ATHEISTS, 5.26.11, Syracuse: Sometimes you like a band so much that other people really don't get, and you wish there was a show where people really 'get it' and all go nuts and have fun? This was that show. Maybe 50 people there, but every last person was having fun, dancing, going off, singing along, and having a blast. Plus, drinking smoothies and watching "Dune" late at night with Jared was pretty fun too.

5.) OAK & BONE/ LIKE WOLVES record release show, 7.24.11, Syracuse: It's nice when you have great faith in a couple bands, feel really confident about their new records, and then over 100 people show up in a small venue to share that as well and go totally bonkers for all the bands playing.

BEST OTHER STUFF (in order):
1.) Getting engaged: it only took 6 years
2.) Seattle vacation in April: most relaxed time in my favorite region of the country with great people
3.) Involvement with the Occupy movement: Finally, a populist movement that draws from the experience and energy of many different sub-sections of the activist community under one umbrella to really work for change in desperate times
4.) Flyerstorm: My first art show, a history of Syracuse flyer art from the last 20 years. The crew involved were the best ever to work with and the whole thing went off really great
5.) Great garden harvest this year: If we planted it, it grew. And we ate well. Up the compost soil.

WORST STUFF:
1.) Getting my wallet stolen in Alexandria Bay, the safest, whitest place in the Northeast on the 4th of July
2.) R.I.P. Chocolate. Our poor, young foster cat got sick and died within a couple of days, right in our arms. He was a good little fella.
3.) Having an ulcer most all of the Winter and giving up coffee because of it (see Translate #6)
4.) My car suddenly died out on me at only 90,000 miles when the timing chain snapped and destroyed my engine.
5.) Delta Airlines canceling my flight to NYC (connecting to Seattle) and upon my return as well as a week later. Bastards.

DECEMBER REVIEWS

2011-12-11T08:59:00.000-08:00

Read on all ye who enter here. I figured I'd throw in some reviews of some stuff that arrived at my doorstep before getting on to an end of the year list thing (which I'll do in another week or so). Behold these offerings, and take heed to what I have to say about them.

"AWESOME FUTURE: STORIES OF VICTORIOUS ACTION", by Robnoxious
The last thing this fella released was some pretty weird stories/comics and this is no different. You get some fairly entertaining tales of his family moving to Alaska via school bus when he was a kid, to the story of a dog's day as seen through the eyes of the dog, to a spiritual Buddhist retreat to relieve stress. On the more bizarre end of things we get a brief how-to on taking a proper shit (squat, don't sit). Honestly, the strangest part of this zine is the artwork. It's like pre-adolescent kids drawings mixed with sociopathic prison dweller. I'm not sure what to make of it all. (Microcosm)

CIA MAKES SCIENCE FICTION UNEXCITING, THE #6
This particular issue of this conspiracy-theory themed zine focuses its lens this time on Lee Harvey Oswald and the utterly confusing litany of events that led him to being pegged as the guy who pulled the trigger on Kennedy. This zine has always tackled compelling topics that are not easily explained, but it has consistently failed to do so in a way that doesn't further confuse the issue. I can appreciate shedding light on things that others try to bury, but hey, at least do it in a way that compels one to look further into it instead of confusing readers to the point where they wish it got buried forever. This zine makes Oswald look like either a flip-flopping idiot, or a complete schizophrenic who changes his mind like the wind blows. On one end he has a master plan, on the other he bumbles his way through all sorts of wild adventures seeking attention, eventually stumbling into the business end of Jack Ruby's pistol. And in the background it appears there is a watchful government ready to set him up as the patsy who takes the attention off of however many different shady organizations who really pulled the trigger on JFK. Is that what the author was going for? That's what I read anyway. Confusing? Yes. But the whole ordeal from beginning to end no matter what version you read is pretty damn confusing. (Microcosm)

COUNTERPURSUIT, s/t
The first proper full legit full length from this Syracuse band that only took a good year of intense OCD-style scrutinizing over every minute detail of the mix before being unleashed on the public. It works in their favor though I guess because this sounds great. How can I properly describe this band without sounding too ordinary? Upbeat rock music puts it out there in broad strokes. A bit more specific would break things down into a range of influences that seems to include everything from King Crimson to Cheap Trick, to XTC, and about every J. Robbins band to ever exist filtered into intelligent and well-thought out songs. The only exception being "Gus", a track found later on that has a decidedly heavier rock feel akin to Far or Texas Is the Reason (and bringing it closer to home a nod to Syracuse's former mainstays This Afternoon). It's actually my favorite song on here, though quite a bit different than what you get on the rest of the recording. Nevertheless, a great first official effort (self-released)

FRODUS, "Soundlab 1" 7"
I know this has already been out for a bit, but I was really into Frodus when they were originally around so I felt it worthwhile to write something up about this reunion 7". It really remains true to the Frodus people knew best- the spazzy and uncontrolled-sounding punk band from DC. Commonalities abound to groups such as Nation Of Ulysses, but perhaps with a tightness that gives the illusion of unhinged chaos, but in fact, has their spasms down to a science. This is far more in tune (and could basically be unreleased tracks from) their most well-known record, "FCI" as opposed to the more refined and introspective "We Washed Our Weapons..." swan song. Two songs, both pretty blasting make this 7" worth picking up. (Lovitt)

JESUS LIZARD, THE, "Club" 2x12"
I realize I probably reviewed the DVD version of this show captured on the bands reunion tour from 2009 and likely verbally jacked off to it. Well, this LP is no different. Two 12" slabs of wax documenting the same show as the DVD, but with better audio quality I suppose (my TV speakers suck). Finding the band just as tight, coiled, and springing forth with raw energy as they were in their heyday these old farts bring it like no other. This is why they are easily one of my favorite bands ever. Whether it's David Yows between-song off-color humor, or his desperate howls/shrieks/blathering in the songs, or David Wm. Sims surreptitious bass rumbling, Duane Denisons sinewy guitar work, or the polyrhythmic drumming of Mac McNeilly there is no stopping this band as they barrel through about 20 songs. Basically, their whole catalog is represented with a few songs from each record and I couldn't be happier. If you're at all curious about how a live band ought to bring it get this and see how a group can take 10 years off and come back just as hard as ever. (Chunklet)

NIGHTLIGHTS, "So It Goes"
I'm at the point where any record that bears the Eulogy Records logo on it is an instant turn off because I know it will more than likely be total garbage. Victory may have them beat for now, but this label tends to draw some real bottom-of-the-barrel crap and shits it out usually in the form of terrible beatdown mosh nonsense. So it was really weird to see they took a left turn and released this record from a band that takes about as many cues from later-era Hot Water Music as they possibly can. I guess that's not such a bad thing, but then again, it's already been done... so what's the point? The silly song titles don't really save it from being above mediocre. Musically it's decent, nothing to write home about (though I guess worthy to write a review about). And maybe the label is doing itself a service by releasing something palatable for once. (Eulogy)

PREVENGE/ DIG IT UP split 7"
Here we go- two punk bands that can play catchy pop-punk inspired hardcore and actually have a weighty set of balls in their collective trousers! Prevenge are the better of the two I think, and a bit more catchy in their approach. Both groups have a raw dirtiness to them, but know how to dish it out in spades. I can back these bands and this record. Comes in a fancy package complete with a big booklet with some wild artwork inside. Well done! (Pavonos Records)

"SO RAW IT'S DOWNRIGHT FILTHY: A RAW VEGAN COOKBOOK", by Joshua Ploeg
Points to the author for having fronted Behead the Prophet No Lord Shall Live, and for being a funny-ass dude. But while this claims to be a cookbook it basically only qualifies as a short zine. Additionally, 'cookbook' is sort of a misnomer seeing as this is for raw recipes and no actual 'cooking' ought to be taking place. Amirite? Still, I do not adhere to the raw regimen in my vegan diet, but I'm down to check what's out there and I have to hand it to Josh- he's come up with some really strange recipes, combining a lot of things I would never think to put together in new and interesting ways. Most of these recipes involve coconut so I will never in 1,000 years try them. But others give me ideas on how to tweak them my own way and put a spin on regular things I make. In that respect, as a conduit for further creativity, this succeeds. And if you're into the raw diet thing this zine will probably give you some ideas as well. (Microcosm)

THOU, "To the Chaos Wizard Youth" 10"
Can this band do no wrong? If you dig having your hearing ruptured by slow, agonizing and ungodly heavy music Thou is the place to be. Apparently, this was recorded at the same time as their most recent outing "The Archer and the Owle", but this takes a much heavier, more dirgey approach, complete with lots of noisy feedback, guitar strings flapping around from how low they are tuned, and a B-side that has the band playing at their most upbeat I've heard since "Tyrant" (which is still just a shade below 'mid-tempo'). They are this decades Ire, for lack of a better comparison, but in a class all their own. I feel like I'm being crushed under the weight of life every time I hear this stuff. Truly awesome. (Howling Mine)

WILD, THE, "A Collection"
I'm at odds as to what to think about this. OK, here's the basic description of band: jangly campfire rock with lots of harmonica, a stack of Woody Guthrie recordings, and a desire for social change. Fair enough. Typically, when it's a decidedly punk band doing this I really hate it because bands of that ilk are usually not very good at all, really smelly, and have that 'spare some change/good vibes' Plan-It-X thing that really irritates me for no particularly good reason. But when bands of this sort do not really associate with punk, and are talented I tend to think they are quite good, though not anything that I would find myself listening to. So my issue is this- I think that The Wild do most certainly consider themselves 'punk' and are also quite good at what they do. It seems a discrepancy that should not exist in reality. So I'm left to feel as though I back what they do, they do what they do well, they have a catchy way of providing social commentary, but it is a style I do not really care for. (Asian Man)

WILD, THE/ RUN FOREVER split 7"
The Wild.. well, see above. Harmonica punk. Run Forever are more or less a rock band who happen to enjoy punk music from time to time. These are bands I think I appreciate more from looking at all the political literature they leave on their merch table as opposed to the actual music they play. And it's true. I saw this group at Fest for a bit and had a nice discussion with one of them about the vegan lit and Occupy Wall Street pamphlets they had at their table, as well as DIY run spaces and was completely disinterested in the music they played. Good intentions nonetheless. This particular split comes with a nice little zine that both bands created and has quite a bit about the importance of DIY spaces, and all ages venues. (Solidarity Recordings)

BIG SALE.

2011-11-26T09:21:00.000-08:00

OK, so I just set up a sale on the Hex site. 20% off your whole order with the code BIGSALE. Goes for 2 weeks. Get yourself something special. US customers only (I just can't afford to ship you foreigners stuff this cheap). Spread the word.
Also, orders over $30 get some free gifts as well!

http://www.hexrecords.bigcartel.com

FEST WEEKEND WRAP-UP!

2011-11-19T08:56:00.000-08:00

After much reflection, unwinding, photos scoured through, and piles of records listened to I have my annual Fest weekend wrap-up here for your reading pleasure. It's a long one. Enjoy.

THURSDAY 10.27.11
Flight to Jacksonville is at 6PM. Anxiety is butchering me in fear that Delta will cancel on me again (see Translate #6 for details on that mess), It's also sleeting outside. NYC flights next to my gate are already delayed. Surprisingly, they come through without a hitch and I roll into Atlanta before catching a connection to Jacksonville.
We touched down in Jax at midnight and I read, napped, and stared into the void which is this airport until about 5AM when Soul Control rolled up and got me.

FRIDAY 10.28.11
We got into Gainesville at about 7AM and I took a power nap at the hotel until about 9:30AM when I had to get over to the Holiday Inn to set up my table. The Kiss Of Death dudes forgot to bring my LPs that I shipped them. Shit. All I had were 7"s, zines, and CDs that I brought on my flight. This makes things slightly more complicated.
The line this year was crazy. Last year it felt like everything got wrapped up by around 4PM and all attendees had their tickets, and still some time to party before bands began. I bailed at 4:30 so I could eat before watching bands and there was still a line going down the stairs, outside, and down the block. It probably kept up til at least 6PM. Wild.
Beasts Of No Nation was the first of many bands that I ventured to see this evening. This is the band fronted by the singer/guitarist from Trial By Fire, as well as my man Kevin from Majority Rule who I hadn't seen in ages. They sounded just like Trial By Fire and it was good. Plenty of great between-song banter as well.
I tried to run over to the Double Down in time to catch Regents, but sadly missed them by mere seconds. I picked up a record to make up for it. Ex-Frodus, Sleepytime Trio, and Engine Down dudes? Yes please.
I decided to make my annual pilgrimage (AKA, down the street) to the Wayward Council to take stock of their cheap used stuff and found both Monorchid full lengths for $5 each. This year, they did not mock my purchases. Could their callous crusty exterior perhaps be chipping away into warm acceptance perhaps?
Next, Tigers Jaw. Hype band. They pretty much live up to it though. I waltzed in to 8 Seconds and they were jamming on a slow, plodding, and extremely epic, heartfelt sad song. It knocked me down, though the rest of the set I saw was more upbeat and poppy.
Bailed a little early to run back over to the Lab and see Cutman. They are a local G'ville band that never seems to leave town and I miss them every year at Fest. I shall not be denied this year, even if I can stay for only a few songs. And I'm glad I did. Heavy rock that will fuck you blind. Aluminum neck guitars are the shit and sound loud as fuck. Well done. Also, one of the better LPs I've picked up this year. Old Helmet, Jesus Lizard, and old Clutch fans will rejoice.

Could I power walk fast enough to get back to Double Down and see a minute of Magrudergrind? Yes I can. And in the space of a few seconds I could probably see about 4 songs. By this point the club was getting pretty packed and it was kind of hard to see so I didn't actually watch that much but I know it got wild.
Over to The Atlantic to see Senders. They are another local band that have yet to get as far North as I am so it is imperative I check them here. The Atlantic is one of the best mid-sized venues, so I'm always happy to see bands play here. Having heard an advance stream of the new Senders LP was a treat, and hearing these songs live was pretty great. The bass tone alone was enough to level a city block while the guitars both shimmered and pulverized- Torche style stoner pop tuned up an octave with a touch of Hum to go with it. Solid.
So why didn't I go see Kid Dynamite? Well, I saw them a few times when they were originally around so I didn't feel obligated to attend tonight, even though I was interested. The understandable cancellation of Lifetime still stung nonetheless. Plus, I'm not a huge fan of the Florida Theater because it's big, ugly sweaty, crowded, smokey, and the sound can suck depending on where you're standing. So I took the advice of a stranger and stuck around after Senders to watch Creepoid.
Their name alone was intriguing enough, and they ended up sounding like their namesake- eerie, weird, creepy, spooky, with sooth, harmonized vocals and a grungy stoner rock backbone. Right up my alley. Very impressive. Nice surprise.

Back to the Double Down to try and see Touche Amore. They're always pretty good, but at this point fatigue was starting to set in so I opted to listen to them from out on the clubs patio.
I did, however, step back into the club to catch the only 'mystery band' I'd see all weekend- the Sleepytime Trio reunion. I never saw them while they were around and their recordings don't exactly do them justice because goddamn did they kill it, as if someone had lit their asses on fire. Total, all-out chaos that was equal parts screamo spazz and Jehu worship.
Afterwards I took some time to actually chill out and chit-chat with some old friends from Louisville and DC, biding my time before Coliseum took the stage.
Here's a great thing about Fest: bands that normally don't have a big crowd will suddenly play to everyone nationwide who likes them, thus the opportunity for the type of crowd response you wish they always got suddenly ends up happening. And Coliseum got what I thought they deserved. And therefore, I got to stagedive a bunch. But in my years of coming to this thing I'd always feared getting doused with beer, and amazingly, it's never happened. That is, until the Coliseum stage dive where I had almost an entire cup poured on me. I guess I deserved it for landing on a bunch of people's heads.
Leaving Coliseum to try and see some of Hot Water Music I somehow got caught up in an Occupy Gainesville march and walked with them for a few blocks, lending my voice to the chants. Gotta support whenever, wherever possible I suppose. Though I have to wonder how long these folks would last in the bitter cold Northeast!

Anyways, the last time I saw Hot Water Music must have been at least 10 years ago, but I wasn't expecting too much since everything after "No Division" just doesn't really do it for me and I'm sure they would be playing plenty of stuff from those later records. I showed up and some other dudes were playing HWM songs. Was this a joke? Did I get to the wrong set? No, it was already the encore and the Bouncing Souls played/covered a few more HWM songs. Well, that's that then.
I was on the verge of passing out from exhaustion, but I felt obligated to go next door and catch a bit of the boys in Polar Bear Club do their thing. As always, their energy is beyond compare and they bring such a good vibe and attitude to what they do... but I was beat and needed food. So after about 4 songs it was time to break out.
My gang headed over to a CVS to grab some snacks at about 10 minutes to 2AM and the place turned into a bum rush right as I got in line at the cashier. You see, they stop selling beer at 2AM here and apparently, people had partying to do. The best part was the lady ahead of me moving incredibly slow while the boozehounds further back were anxiously counting the seconds. We decided to make the situation worse by building the tension with exclamations of, "C'mon, these people need their beer!", and so forth. It's as if the slow lady up front was engaging in a passive firestorm. Take note sxe warriors- this could potentially be a new tactic in the war against partying: Make 'em wait!

SATURDAY, 10.29.11
Started the day on a mellow note with a drive into town and wandering down to Karma Kream, which is probably the nicest spot in town to get food, in my opinion. They make their own vegan ice cream, brew a great cup of joe, and serve a killer tofurkey reuben. Plus, they're all really nice and helpful there. Thumbs way up.
After the grub I ventured across the street to The Lab to see Fellow Project. There are folks from Bridge and Tunnel and On the Might Of Princes in this group and it kind of sounds exactly like you'd expect based on that. It's a tried and true Long Island emo sort of sound that I found pleasing to the ear.
OK, now time for punk. Got myself over to 8 Seconds for Armalite. Never seen 'em, probably never will again. But I like their record so it was probably a good idea to see this very, very part time 'band' do their thing. Plus, all these dudes are quite the comedians individually so I was expecting some clever back and forth. They were sloppy, fun, and brought a great Dag Nasty/Dillinger 4 sort of vibe that I thoroughly enjoyed.

I had some time to kill so I checked out this pool hall where an impromptu record store had been set up and I found some gems. I'll just say, this is the last place I would have ever expected to find a Path Of Resistance LP. But there it was in this most un-edge of places. I was singing "die motherfuckers, we never want you back!" intermittently throughout the rest of the day.
On the complete opposite end of the spectrum I watched a few minutes of RVIVR purely out of curiosity to see what all the hubbub was about. Meh... it's mostly well done melodic punk. Maybe they're too preachy at their regular shows, but they seemed reserved here what with all the bouncers, crowd surfing, and so forth. Pretty 'safe space' huh?
I got to watch Steve-O play with Off With Their Heads. He really seemed to be having a lot of fun.
Next- Soul Control at The Lab. This is, I think, my favorite venue this year. You can get about 100-150 people in there. The stage is about 6" off the floor, and the vibe is great. Plus, it was the perfect size for every band that played it. So, since SC sort of got the shaft in terms of slot/venue last year, they got a pretty perfect fit on things this year. They sounded awesome and people really dug it and packed the room nicely. I'm sure they were stoked.
Bridge and Tunnel is always a good time. They are so passionate about what they do and they totally killed it once again this year over at 8 Seconds.
The rest of the 'mystery bands' slated to play at smaller venues really weren't my cup of tea, so instead I chose to get some $2 tempeh tacos at Flacos. Aside from the long-ass wait, it was totally worth the $4 I spent total.
From here there was enough time to get into the Theater to get the perfect spot for which to watch Paint It Black. Last year I was way in back so it was hard to discern exactly what was going on. So when they got on, everything was perfect and I was fist-pumping along to the jams, surrounded by like-minded Philly people fist-pumping even more. They opened the set with "Atticus Finch" for fucks sake, how's that for going for a riot right from the get-go?! Easily one of the best sets all weekend.
Afterwards I rolled out to see The Bomb. I like Naked Raygun and never saw them, and I admire Jeff Pezzeti's vocals quite a bit so this group will have to do. Aside from having the dullest name ever they brought it well and were quite energetic, though the vocals were a bit quiet. What was up with that dudes double-sided pants? He looked like an extra from a 1990 3rd Bass video or something. Thumbs up to the music, gasface for dress style.
Another local Gainesville band that will never come up my way was over at the Atlantic- Averkiou. I figured I ought to see it because I really dig their My Bloody Valentine dreamy rock style. But I gotta say, not only was the atmosphere in the Atlantic so thick with cigarette smoke at this point that I was nearly choking on it, but the band also did not appear to be having fun while playing. They played flawlessly, but they were not terribly exciting to watch. And to think, I missed Amateur Party for this who were no doubt ripping it up over at 1982. Oh well.

So, to lift the spirits I was compelled (as I always am) to see Lemuria. And, of course, they were great. I don't think I'd ever seen them jump around so much. And while last year provided many more stage dives (from me mostly), this year's barrier prevented that from occurring, and much of the energy was relegated to the stage.
Next, I quite literally ran to the back of the Theater and cool-guy'd it to the stage to see most of Ted Leo's set. I yelled out for "Biomusicology" and he said it was axe'd from the set. No! But it was made up for when, at the end, they pulled out "Stove By a Whale", which I figured they never played out anymore since it's such an atypical Pharmacists-type song, and damn heavy too. But it was great and I sang along to every word. What a great way to close out the night.
I skipped out on Against Me because I don't really like them. Sue me.
Late night root beers and bad TV followed. Do I know how to party or what?

SUNDAY 10.30.11
A thought occurred to me today, and it's not meant to be sexist, or chauvinistic, or pervy. It's more of a social psychology, or anthropological study, I don't know. Either way, during Fest about 5000 people descend on Gainesville from all over the world and wander the streets for an extended weekend. And in wandering these streets I notice there are countless attractive women. So I wonder, are these people always this attractive? Or is it a collective mindset of knowing they will be in a different place and attempting to look their best, or their coolest, or whatever? Do they normally look like shlubs back home because they have no one to impress there? I'd say the same question could be posed to guys, but it seems like every dude here forgot to shower for a few days, and forgot to shave for even more. But it appears as if most of the women here actually took the time to consider their appearance before leaving their hotels. So I'm not really sure what the deal is with this because, as a guy, I do not put much thought into my appearance most times. Is it wrong that I take notice of this? I spent about half my time over the weekend walking back and forth down these streets so I see a lot of people. I might add, somewhat off-topic, that in the typically male-dominated world of punk music I've never seen so many women playing in bands as I did this weekend. Up the ratio/punx.

Anyways, Sunday is always the slow day but things seemed active early on and I started it with some triple chocolate ice cream from Karma. Treat yourself!
Over at 1982 I went to see a band called Weatherbox. I never heard them, but they're named after a Mission Of Burma song, so they have that going for them. Well, they were ridiculously tight, and they lived up to the name with loud, mathy rock that was certainly inventive. But the vocals felt a little weird to me, like sort of too mainstream-y radio rock or something.
Most of the excitement was over at the Atlantic today and I hung around there quite a bit to see the likes of Weak Teeth, The Catalyst, and Pygmy Lush. The only real conflict today (and they were more than ever this year!) was Punch versus Restorations. But I figured I could see 10 minutes of Punch and that would be at least half their set before leaving. Well, it was worth every second as they totally upped the ante from last year (dressing up at Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and April O'Neil) by coming out as Ghostbusters, while the singer donned a full Slimer costume, throwing ectoplasm into the crowd. And, of course, the whole place turned into a riot zone. Fucking crazy.
Meanwhile, Restorations got an incredible reaction to a packed house at Looseys Pub. Goddamn, they sounded huge. What a great response to a (sort of) new band, who put out one hell of an amazing record this year. So happy for them.
So late that night (OK, midnight) the Soul Control dudes were headed back to Providence and I had no other means of getting my ass back up to Jacksonville by the next morning for my flight, so I opted to roll out with them once again. I got to the airport at 2AM for a flight almost 10 hours later. And that airport is no treat to spend the night in. Sleep comes to those who wait and I waited a long time and didn't really sleep.

I guess it wasn't the wildest of Fest weekends for me. No after shows this year for me (I actually don't think there were too many this year), or late night partying. As they say, punks not dead, it just goes to bed at a more reasonable hour, even if that's still not until 3 or 4 AM. But G'ville is truly always a great place to visit, where every local business seems to be run by cool people, totally support the Fest, punks run wild and the cops don't freak out. Where a bunch of drunks can put together three days of fun and keep things ridiculously organized. Where you can see an ambulance playing the Halloween theme music from its siren instead of... well... a siren (this really happened and it was beyond weird). Fest is good times regardless of what kind of music you like. Another thing I did not take stock of was whether or not anyone took me seriously all weekend based on the fact that I had a stupid moustache. Self-awareness overload. I felt compelled to explain myself whenever possible. If I talked to you, please bear in mind I don't usually look like this.

FEST RECORD REVIEWS!

2011-11-11T17:42:00.000-08:00

So, some people rack up how many beers they shotgunned, or how late into the night they spent partying when they go to Fest. I'm a nerd and I don't drink, so my priorities (aside from seeing bands) is getting my hands on some records while I'm down in Florida. I know I'm always going to find something good and I came away with the following stash this year. I'll feature more in-depth reviews of some of these later down the line (as well as a full-on Fest weekend review), but for now....

WEATHERBOX, "Follow the Rattle Of the Afghan Guitar" EP
Checked this band out based upon their name alone (a reference to Mission Of Burma). The similarities are mild, but in that same frame of mind I guess. Live they were really loud, really tight, and real good. The record is a little weak in the recording. Weird/annoying vocals, even weirder lyrics that I couldn't quite follow. The music is good- well thought out math rock with some mainstream tendencies. Not quite worth $10 for an LP, but worth $5 for the CD.

CREEPOID, "Yellow Life Giver" 7" and "Horse Heaven" LP
Best band I'd never heard of surprise this year. Live they were really weird, eerie, stoner-ish, and still kind of ethereal and poppy. Very True Widow-ish. I was quite impressed. The records have a bit more of a folksy side, melodic vocals, but still a bit of that heaviness that I was digging. The LP is the better of the two.

DAMNATION AD, "Misericordia" 10"
My CD copy went missing years ago so getting this on vinyl (marble grey at that!) was a bonus. These songs are ridiculously heavy from this 90's DC wrecking machine. The guitar screech that opens the record is one of the best sounds ever recorded I think. It's not "No More Dreams..." but it's pretty close. Some dude was selling this for $8 and I know no one else would have an interest in it. To hear Damnation AD is to be crushed under the weight of life itself.

SENDERS, "Lucidity/Lividity" LP
I discovered this band after last year's Fest and promptly ordered their 7", which was quite good. Hearing a stream of this LP before this year's Fest I knew I had to catch them this year. Live they had the heaviness of Neurosis, mixed with the spacey melody of Hum, and the vocal bellow of Torche. The opening track on here is easily up there as one of the best openers of the year. The rest of the LP is pretty good, but doesn't quite have the same kick. Still, worth your duckets.

PATH OF RESISTANCE, "Who Dares Wins" LP
Up to this point I've only had this record on cassette format and at $10 in a dude's used bin I figured I ought to get this or forever pose as a proud Syracuse edgeman. The irony that this most edge of records was being sold in a bar in the epicenter of the weekend's drunkest town in America speaks volumes. I'm surprised that everything in a 100 foot radius of this album didn't go up in flames once it entered city limits. Yes, it has that power. I'm pretty sure a crustie dissolved into dust as I walked past him with this record in hand. It's like opening the Ark Of the Covenant. "Die motherfuckers, we never want you back."

POLLUTION, "nasty.DNA" LP
Somehow lumped in the crop of current noisy punk bands associated with Youth Attack, Vinyl Rites, and so on Pollution offer something a bit different. I've had these songs for awhile now (as well as most of their recorded material), but no physical copy. So, time to rectify that on what I feel is their strongest stuff. This is the thickest record I've ever owned. It weighs like 12 pounds. The music is about the closest thing you'll find to a legit Deadguy heir apparent in 2011, with a good dose of Rorschach thrown in there as well... but a bit more raw. Love it.

THE MONORCHID, "Who Put Out the Fire" and "Let Them Eat..."
My annual visit to Wayward Council draws forth yet another purchase that is out of character for the typically crusty den of records and radicalism in the heart of G'ville. This time it was a pair of CDs that set me back five bucks apiece, and well worth it- the long departed DC spazzy punk of the one and only Monorchid. The pairing of Chris Thompson and Andy Coronodo began with Circus Lupus, continued with this, and moved on to Skull Kontrol. All three bands I'm a big fan of, all have a sort of refined Nation Of Ulysses feel with vocals of the bratty/smarty pants variety and a well-tuned skill of creating sinewy and snarky spazz punk nuggets of weirdness. "Who Put Out..." has a better recording, with its thick and deep bass tones while "Let Them Eat..." has an overall more memorable cache of songs. Both essential for 90's DC/Dischord enthusiasts (even though neither record 'officially' came out on Dischord)... ya know, people like me.

BRIDGE AND TUNNEL, "Rebuilding Year" LP
I have a soft spot for these New Yorkers, even though I do not typically find myself listening to bands of this sort. Yet they have always ripped it up live, play like their lives depended on it, and have something of importance to say within their songs. The new LP has an overall better recording, but a little quieter overall. Some of the songs have a heavier post-hardcore feel ("Outgrowing Pains" and "Drill Sergeant" come to mind), while "Gridlocked" may be one of their more straight-forward songs. Otherwise, expect what you've come to love- melodic back-and-forth male-female vocals, lots of noodling guitar leads, and a post-hardcore sort of backbone. Bummed I didn't get the bonus hardcore covers 7". Holla if you have one and want to part with it.

SOUL CONTROL, "Get Out Now" 7"
Peace out groovy post-hardcore stuff, hello Tad. Fast, heavy riff fest should be the title for this new 7" instead. It's almost like listening to a different band. Hooray for consistent re-invention. Just like Public Enemy says, 'the B-side wins', I'll take the second half of this record over the first in terms of quality jams.

SELF-DEFENSE FAMILY/FIRES split 7"
SDF (AKA End Of a Year) drop a new slow jam written as if they had Elvis Costello, Squeeze, and Fugazi all sharing influential head space in its creation. It's quite wonderful, but the recording is pretty subpar. They also offer a really weird spoken word track that is kind of interesting. Fires sound like a lost track from the "Don't Forget To Breathe" compilation from years ago. And there's nothing wrong with that.

REGENTS 7"
Dudes from Frodus, Sleepytime Trio, and Engine Down start a new band that sounds like dudes from Frodus, Sleepytime Trio, and Engine Down starting a band together. It's really exactly what you'd imagine. Pretty good spazz-tastic and somewhat technical Northern Virginia/DC punk. You know the style. I missed their set by mere seconds this year. Pissed.

CUTMAN, "Universal Laws" 12"
Finally, a full length from this Florida band (who never seem to travel anywhere outside their own state)... who sound nothing like they come from there. This is big burly mountain man rock of a Clutch-meets-Helmet variety sort of heaviness and I love it. They get that sound that can only be achieved with fancy aluminum neck guitars so it sounds loud as heck. Awesome hand cut silkscreened record covers to boot. Looks and sounds awesome.

BIG EYES, "Hard Life" 12"
A little underwhelming. Every single song seems to be about a boy who done her wrong, or disliking people in general. Garage rock with a Pat Benetar kick from this ex-Cheeky three piece that is catchy as all get out, but still kicking your face in the dirt. Pretty darn good, but it gets a little redundant after awhile.

MISSION OF BURMA, "Forget" 12"
Found an original pressing of this long-lost gem on red vinyl. I thought it was $5, but it was actually $15. It was still worth it. A collection of songs released after the group disbanded (before regrouping) that were never on any official records from this Boston post-punk foursome. Mostly bereft of their trademark mysterious tape loops, but the rest of what you know about Burma is in full effect, particularly their more abrasive side. A few of these songs ended up being re-recorded much later for "OnOffOn". Raw, loud, brash, awesome. Get into this band now if you never have you turds.

COLISEUM, "Parasites" 12" EP
Artwork by Rick Fork is enough reason to buy this, if anything, just to frame it on the wall. But listening to it doesn't hurt either. Louisville rockers continue their aggressive post-punk path with some odds and sods (one weird track and a re-recording of "Give Up and Drive"), as well as a handful of jammers you'd expect, post "House With a Curse" Coliseum style. Always a hell of a ride with these dudes. Love it.

ARMALITE, "Humungous" 7"
This band still exists? Yes, and I saw them and you didn't. Yemin, Atom (minus package), McKee, and Ziga- all names of Philly dudes who otherwise represent awesome regular bands get together once in a blue moon to lay down some pop punk songs that are really fun. Three new ones on here- goofy artwork, good linear notes, fun music, cool lyrics.

PUNCH, Flexi Your Head zine/flexi 7"
So you have to mail the back cover of the zine to get the flexi. I did that but haven't got the flexi back yet. Regardless, I know it's going to be covers by Punch- one of the rowdiest bands to ever play Fest. The zine is basically the members talking about some of their favorite songs they would like to cover (and probably do on the flexi). Live, they are not to be missed.

BEASTS OF NO NATION 7"
I was inclined to check these dudes out as my old buddy Kevin plays bass in this group. And to hear it was another fella from Trial By Fire writing songs together (as well as personnel from Darkest Hour and The Explosion) I figured it would be good. And it is! This band basically sounds like a slightly more metallic Trial By Fire- so that means fast, catchy punk anthems/melodic hardcore with scathing and involved socio-political lyrics.

ROSETTA/RESTORATIONS split 12" EP
Each band contributes one rather lengthy song. So is it worth the price of a 12"? Well, when one of the bands (Restorations) puts out one of your favorite LPs of the year, yeah, it's worth it. They follow up that LP with a pretty damn good song- a bit more on the spacey/stoner heavy tip while retaining their gruff melodicism on top of it. Rosetta confirms my belief that I would take seeing them live any day of the week rather than listening to their jammy space rock on record. Live, they're a completely different aggressive monster.

TRANSLATE #6 OUT NOW!

2011-11-03T21:21:00.000-07:00

Yup, so these were made. Yup, the cover is pretty weird. But I got to say, the insides came out pretty good... especially for not having drawn a full on comic in about 15 years.
Dig it:
This particular issue comes in the form of a comic book... all drawn and written by yours truly (so if it looks like shit excuse the fact that I haven't made a comic book since high school!). The grim nature of getting sick for an entire Winter and having little aid from medical professionals while still engaging in the typical fanfare of show going, traveling, and 'stagediving as medicine' to bring comfort to these ailing bones. Additionally, an ongoing subtext of a blunt refusal to ever puke... ever. No compromise, even in the face of armageddon. Sadness, humor, punk.
Weird cover with foldout place holder/pages pocket.
28 pages of hand-drawn wackiness

Get it HERE.

A PREVIEW OF TRANSLATE #6

2011-10-23T18:59:00.000-07:00

What have we been up to these last few weeks besides getting our impending revolution on? Drawing a zine, of course!
Yes, the new issue of TRANSLATE is almost in the can and the whole thing is illustrated! Not just parts this time. This issue is all comics of a personal nature about getting sick, and then getting better again. I'm quite pleased with it.
So.. as long as I finish up the last few details, I ought to have copies while at The Fest in Gainesville this coming weekend. Yay!
And for those not going, and want a copy, I'll have the ordering link up in the webstore soon enough.
In the meantime, here is an excerpt from this new issue:

OCTOBER REVIEWS, YOU TURKEYS

2011-10-15T20:47:00.000-07:00

OK, so check it out- life is getting busy on the non-label/blogging/reviews/whatever side of life. Why? Because October always has so much to offer in terms of fun and excitement. I'm trying to coordinate wedding plans, going to Fest in a couple weeks, and knee deep in some truly inspiring social change. So what the heck are you reading this stuff for? Go out and get yr mitts dirty!
And may I add a quick change to the reviews: from time to time I'm going to be adding some live show reviews. you can read a couple right now if you'd like. They're below with the rest of the record stuff.

FUCKED UP/WAAVES live, Buffalo, NY- 10.2.11
So I haven't seen Fucked Up in a good 3 years or so and I'm totally in love with the newest LP. So I figured I could forego my big brother's birthday (Does anyone really care when you turn 37? Perhaps a landmark achievement in the dark ages when it was notable that the black plague hadn't claimed you yet, but nowadays just another number) and go see one of my favorite punk bands tear it up just across the border from their native Canada. As an aside, this show was held in a really large venue. I saw both Public Enemy and Devo both sell this place out. So maybe I'm behind the times but did Fucked Up get exponentially larger since I last saw them? Judging by the eerie emptiness of the room apparently not. A last minute local-ish band opened and were OK. Nothing to write home about, but nothing to sneer at either. California hype band Waaves played next. I guess I ought to see what all the excitement is about. Well, it was cool for about three songs and then got incredibly redundant. Yes, surf rock-meets garage rock-meets punk, got it. They have a lot of bizarro hipster fans who promptly took off (clearly to find the next shitty trend before it happens) right after their set leaving an even emptier room for Fucked Up. By the way, Waaves bassist looks like a chubby Sammy Hager.. which might actually be a current Sammy Hager. I just thought that was worth pointing out as it was the most notable thing about their set.
OK, so Fucked Up get on and proceed to just light the place on fire, regardless of crowd size, blazing right through the entire A-side of "David Comes To Life". I have to admit, screaming along to "Under My Nose" and "The Other Shoe" made this whole awkward trip well worth it... the cruddy weather, the weird setting, the fucking $21 door price. Both those songs have been knocking me on my ass all year. Damien's awesome between song rants about old-school Buffalo punk and making a Mt. Rushmore of Buffalo featuring Doug Flutie and Scott Vogel were pretty hilarious. They knocked a couple out from "Chemistry.." and maybe only one or two songs from "Hidden World", as well as "I Hate Summer" to raucous enthusiasm. Even the older favorite "Baiting the Public" was brought out. They closed things out with "Police", which naturally drew some pretty wild crowd antics. I gotta hand it to them, even in a less than perfect atmosphere Fucked Up really knows how to kick out the jams and put a smile on my face.

GOD EQUALS GENOCIDE / LIBYANS split 7"
This is my first time hearing Libyans and right off the bat I wasn't crazy about it. Yet once they got to the second song I was a little more into it. Three songs here that go by really quick. Their style is a hyperactive punk rock with female vocals and strange bursts of melodic craziness and some rather inspirational politicized lyrics. It kind of reminds me of that rather short-lived Boston band Convulsions, except faster. God Equals Genocide is kind of like genocide on my ears. They're like a way crappier version of Libyans. I'll admit, some parts are a bit catchy, but overall it's like that style of hobo anarcho-punk that involves a broken acoustic guitar, some dude hitting a can for rhythm, a bad vocalist, and a dog somewhere in the mix. And I really can't stand stuff like that. So yeah, take that style, plug it in, and garage it up a bit. I suppose that's kind of a step in quality? But I still don't really care for this. (Shock To the System/Dirt Cult Records)

GREY AREA/ GO RYDELL split 7"
So apparently Grey Area is a band again and this is their first new material in about 10 years. They sound exactly the same as they did back when too. It's alright, not really my bag, but for dudes who do the really melodic fast punk thing, and actually sing for real they do it well. No half-assing, auto-tuning, radio rock posing as punk, they have it down legit. It's like Token Entry, but a bit more safe. Go Rydell is on the flip and I hope they have a solid mailing address for Dan Yemin because they're going to start having to send him royalty checks for all the Kid Dynamite bits they're ripping from him. Everything about this (even down to the clever song titles) has the KD stamp all over it, just not as good. To some people that will be fine, to me it's a little too close to plagiarism for my tastes. (Black Numbers)

LUTHER, "Siblings and Sevens" LP
I'm not sure why I thought this (because I knew I would be wrong), but the cover of this record is really simple and kind of weird and makes it look like this could be some scathing noise rock terror unit, worthy of inclusion in the ranks of AmRep or Reptilian Records roster. Sadly, this is not the case. I'm also not quite sure why this band has the 't' in their name lowercase, almost crucifix-like? Again, it looks kind of cool, but then when you actually hear the music I honestly wonder if they are a Christian rock band or something because this is pretty middle of the road rock music. You could stretch for a punk background and say they sound a bit like the Replacements, but all in all, it's rock. That's it. No fancy subgenres or anything. The next to last song has an almost Pixies guitar tone to it, which is kind of nice. Other than that I really have nothing else to say about this record. Oh yeah, it's only 7 songs so I'm not quite sure if would be an LP or more of an EP? (Black Numbers)

PUNCH, "How Nothing Lasts" 7"
I'll take what I can out of Punch. They hit the East Coast maybe once a year (and never anywhere close to home anymore)and they're a whole lot of fun to see live. So I'm just imagining how apeshit people are going when they hear the seven new songs they crammed onto this little 7". Amazingly, there are a couple songs on here that nearly break the two minute mark. Yes, a few tracks here bust out near youth crew parts, but who cares when blast beat powerviolence attack-core ninja kicks you in the throat the rest of the time. Lyrically things are still written rather subpar, though the subject matter is always cool and the scathing, screeching vocals fit perfect with the music. They are definitely one of the best parts of this group and make the music that much more fierce. I'm digging the lead off track and the awesome fake stops in "The Chase" the best on this record. Get fast suckas. (Deathwish/ Discos Huelga)

RESIST CONTROL, "Dissipation" 7"
Something is very different between this Buffalo bands demo and this record. They're basically a grindcore band now. When you can squeeze 11 songs onto a seven inch it ought to raise some flags. Thankfully the vocals are decipherable and clearly cut from the hardcore cloth. Meanwhile, the bass drum is compressed as much as humanly possible to have that weak clicky sound and definitely emerging from more of a death metal sort of background. I'm not sure if that's what the band has intended, but to these ears it's kind of a mixed bag. This sort of reminds me of that old Relapse band Benumb. Does that mean anything to you? Probably not. (Shock To the System/ Feral Kid Records)

SOKIA PISTE, "Oire" 7"
This band is from Finland. I don't know what their name means, and I also have no clue what their lyrics are about because it's all in Finnish. That being said, the music sounds pretty killer. It's raw and dirty punk hardcore, with a pretty unique tone to the guitars. For some reason I'm reminded of really old Nirvana stuff when it comes to the way this was recorded and the tones they get. Musically, it's a bit more fierce with vocals that range from screamed to kind of singing. Three jams to kick you in the face. (Peterwalkee Records)

THOU, live- Syracuse, 10.4.11
Louisiana's Thou are one of the more intriguing sludge bands I've heard in the last year or two. Generally, I'm quite hit or miss with bands of this nature because they can simply drone/feedback forever and it can get boring. Thou definitely write slow songs, often recalling the dirty nastiness of groups like Eyehategod. but I finally figured out who they remind me of the most and that is Canada's long lost doom merchants Ire. I fucking loved Ire near the end. Long involved sludgy doom that had some important shit to say in their songs, wrapped around well thought-out riffs and throat-ripping vocals... as well as frequent Nirvana covers... played really slow. Thou are a lot like that and I was stoked to see them come to my town and play on a Tuesday night to a good crowd in a tiny room. Local vegan warriors Hunger Pains opened and filthied up the room (and nearly set off fire alarms with some fireworks thrown into the crowd). Black Throat Wind came next. Since downsizing to a single drummer the material they've written- long, involved, melodic, jammy, but still something all their own- has been pretty good. The older songs, that were written with a second drummer, don't sound as powerful as they did and I think they need to flesh them out a bit more or drop them altogether. I'd rather they kept them, personally. I like those songs. Finally, Thou came on and immediately knocked me the fuck over with how low and heavy their tones are. Seismic shifts in the floorboards gave way from gigantic riffs. Most of the songs they played were from splits and other hard-to-find records (and not their full lengths), minus "They Stretch Out Their Hands"- with its insanely awesome Crowbar type riff carrying the first section of the song- from their debut "Peasant". Whatever the case, it was all awesome, and all heavy. Sadly, no Nirvana covers though.

SO... NOT ENOUGH CONTENT?

2011-09-29T21:20:00.000-07:00

A friend had recently mentioned that this blog hasn't had much new stuff to offer on it aside from record reviews and I suppose he is correct. Yet, seeing as this exists to supply info about the label and associated projects I don't typically make it a point editorialize on here. Perhaps I ought to more often? Or would that just further a 'cranky old man' status I'm guilty of having?

If it's label news you want I do not have much to offer as of right now. Most of the label bands are keeping it quiet lately with occasional shows here and there. Next to no orders are coming in because everyone seems to see fit to steal whatever I release with no regard to the large sums of money I apparently like to simply set on fire might be another news item I suppose. I probably cannot afford to keep doing this much longer based upon this 'finance recording for band so everyone can simply steal it from you' model so... yeah, that's what you get.

Perhaps it makes no difference because people are going to make music regardless of whether there are labels around to release it or not. And if artists are tenacious enough they will figure out a way to get it out to people and manage to sustain themselves regardless of who is/isn't footing the bill. So yeah, labels can be pretty pointless in some regards.

But on the other hand there is quite a thrill in discovering music, especially when made by friends, that knocks your socks off, and having the means to push it out there for more people to discover. Finding meaning and inspiration in the songs, how they were recorded, the minutia of the gear used, tones achieved, words spoken, and how it is all crafted makes it worthwhile. Creating art to go with it, and putting it all together as a physical document of something I find to be important will never get tiring for me. But it's that disconnect between what I think is important, what I think everyone else ought to find important, and what the majority of people actually give a shit about are very different things. And most people feel that plopping down $10 for music they only half enjoy on a physical format they do not understand would be better spent in a movie theater on a Friday night.

How can I argue with that? I mean, I can easily argue that, but it really just boils down to personal opinion. And my opinion is that most movies suck and if I could finally find a copy of Quicksand, "Slip" on vinyl I'd take that over most any movie any day of the week. And that's just me.

So with that it appears that the masses have spoken. They want everything for free. But guess what- you can't have it for free because the things I do and the groups that have recorded music for me to release on their behalf has tremendous value. It's worth something and I refuse to belittle that work because some jerk off with a shitty little blog (and probably more popular than this one) decides that they're entitled to give away anything and everything without so much as asking permission, or a polite request. And that's where I know I'm going to lose because people are going to do it anyway. They're all still turds in my mind. So I will probably do a few more releases I fully believe in, and by the time they're finished there will be six people left on Earth who remember what a 'record' is.

In the meantime I'd say that if you claim that music saved your life, or is your life, or is of great importance to you than walk the fucking walk and give some goddamn respect back to it- go see the bands that appreciate your support, put a few bucks into struggling artists pockets by picking up a record or whatever. Love is a two way street.

And if you do care to support what I do than pick up something I've put a lot of love into. You can get my records from these places: Deathwish, RevHQ, Robotic Empire, In Vinyl we Trust, Vinyl Junkie, No Idea, Ebullition, MVD/See Of Sound, and, of course, direct.

Jumping back to the subject of love, and segueing into the personal, I'll be getting married next year to the love of my life. Amongst the general disaster that was my summer there were a couple of gems of light in the grimey filth that surrounded them. The first was a great garden harvest that kept my belly healthy and full. The other was getting engaged. So it's official and I'm pretty excited about what lies ahead. On the downside, I did have my wallet stolen, my car unexpectedly shit out, and one of my foster cats suddenly and tragically died. but the positives were like 12 Bane records rolled into one. Gotta have that PMA right?

And for the immediate future I want to start a band again. Of course, the vocalist position is a mindless vacancy where deciding 'what to sound like' is basically out my hands completely, seeing as I have next to no musical talent to back it up. Still, if you love Jehu, Deadguy, Jesus Lizard, and KARP and somehow still manage to be vegan straightedge and over the age of 25 (all 3 of you... myself included) get in touch because it gets harder and harder to want to attempt this shit with other humans and actually feel OK about life.
Fnally, Halloween weekend-ish I will once again be soaking up rays at the Fest in Gainesville. Be there or be a turd. I'll be hawking wares. Get at me and get something. I'll be the only person there not drinking, but still having fun.

IT'S A FIRE..... sale!

2011-09-04T09:37:00.001-07:00

It's time to do another sale here at Hex HQ (AKA, my attic). Call it a Labor Day sale, I don't care. I call it, 'get some records on the cheap'.

Here's the deal:
1.) Go to the webstore (http://www.hexrecords.bigcartel.com)
2.) Buy some stuff
3.) At checkout enter code 'GETBENT'
4.) Get 10% off your entire order, plus free shit with every order
5.) Repeat.

We'll have this happening for the next week (expires on 9/12).

*And go see the final NIGHT OWLS shows (9/4- Syracuse, 9/9- Ithaca, NY, 9/10- NYC)

REVIEWS FOR AUGUST (a little late, but hey...)

2011-08-30T18:15:00.000-07:00

Computer problems, car problems, life problems, you name it, it's been a wild last couple months. And some good stuff too. Nevertheless, it has not left much time to do this stuff. So let me finally get it out of the way and present some toilet-laptop reading material.

AMPERE, "Like Shadows"
I put this on to check it out and before I could formulate any real thoughts about it the whole thing was over... even though there's 15 songs on here. I'm pretty sure the record was over within 12 minutes. A couple more listens and it still does nothing for me. I never got Ampere and I still don't. I mean, in one sense, yeah, I get it. Ultra spastic, hectic, Ebullition/early Level Plane/Witching Hour styled screamy hardcore. But not a lick of it makes any musical sense whatsoever. People go absolutely apeshit over this band when they play and flock to their merch table to pick up whatever scrap of music they can get their paws on. That makes no sense to me. The lyrics are pretty good and come in a neat little booklet, but everything else here is a foreign language to me. What they stand for in terms of how they carry themselves as a band is great. But this band cannot write a song. (No Idea Records)

ENGINEER, "Crooked Voices"
It only took a year and a half to get this out but it was worth the wait. When Engineer first started playing some of these songs out live I must admit to being slightly confused by the difference in sound. And just like any good record those songs took awhile to sink in and do their thing. but once I began getting the gist of this new material I was quite happy with how things came out. Engineer has always been known for creating songs that build up, take you down different paths before hitting their mark, and being well-written. But they also have had no qualms about beating the piss out of you for a solid half hour straight with sonic onslaughts. "Crooked Voices" aims to continue that beating, but with some sort of mediation upon why you're getting the piss beat out of you. A good dose of clean guitar, piano, and slide guitar regularly show up on this album and it's refreshing to see Engineer try some new things. Sure, the style of songwriting remains the same. It's just the way they dish it out that has some new twists and for that I'm exceptionally stoked on this record. "Shape Shifting", "Scavenger", and "The Starving Artist" are probably my favorite tracks on the whole thing. Get it and get floored. (Black Market Activities)

HALF HEARTED HERO, "Running Water" 12"
The best thing going for this EP is the wonderful package it came in. For something that is just an EP it looks really special, definitely a lot of care, hands-on crafting, and attention to detail make the record look top notch. The music, on the other hand, is just not anything I'd ever listen to and enjoy. I can sometimes get into bands that play really fast melodic hardcore, which this group does well. The techy melodic flourishes and noodling get on my nerves, but I know that really gets some people off. The nail in the coffin is the ultra-clean (auto-tuned?) pop vocals on top of it all. The guy could be singing about stringing up vivisectors by their ballsacks in the town square and I'd still feel miserable just listening to vocals like these. Again, some people hear stuff like this and fall in love. I just get annoyed and turn it off. (Animal Style Records)

GHOST ROBOT NINJA BEAR, s/t CD
The newest project from Oscar, who helmed NYC band Nakatomi Plaza for what seemed like eons comes across in a similar fashion, but with some marked differences. You can tell the dude is still strongly influenced by J. Robbins bands like Jawbox and Burning Airlines, insofar as a very direct rocking attitude, but adding some twists and turns that think outside the norm. Also, Oscar's voice seems to have dropped an octave and the dude could seriously start belting out hardcore if he wanted to at this point. But on some levels this kind of just feels like a standard rock record and that sort of dulls the whole affair. Not to say it's bad, it just doesn't move me. There are two covers on here by bands no one has ever heard and the first of the two, "Last Time We Talked" is awesome- very power pop influenced in the best way possible, while the next track, "Pilots" is the strongest song on the album. It has fucktons of energy, post-hardcore raging, and great riffs. I like that one the best. Overall, decent. But I'll tell ya, as a former promoter I'd never want to put this bands name on a flyer... it's just really ridiculous. (self-released)

GREAT FALLS, s/t CD
Ugliest damn band around, and I don't mean old-man balding hardcore style with weird tattoos. I mean this music is just ugly as all get out. As the musical output of vocalist/guitarist Demian Johnston has progressed over the years (Nineironspitfire, Kiss It Goodbye, Playing Enemy) things have just gotten meaner, weirder, and nastier. Paired with longtime Playing Enemy bassist/head-smasher Shane Mehling, a familiar sound comes into play here as well which is discordant and twisted, gnarled and thick off-timed hardcore. Plenty of groups claim stuff like Rorschach and Deadguy as influences, but this is really where the end result shines brightest (or bleakest, however you want to take it). Many of these songs appeared on older recordings whey just had a drum machine, but they now have an actual human behind the traps and he helps flesh out these sludgy and frantic schizoid songs: Opener "Read Silver" and "Untitled Woman" blast through pissed off hardcore as gross and fucked up as it comes. "Hundreds Of Child Soldiers" and "All Clean Necks" drag things out to slow, off-timed spirals of noise disaster and almost tribal dirges, desperate and depressed groaning from guitars. Eight songs total on here and self-released from the band. I suggest checking it out if you really want something mean, noisy, heavy, and ugly. I sure like it a lot. (Dead Accents)

LEYLINES, s/t CDEP
It's hard for me to believe that I really like this band. Typically, music of this variety is impressive insofar as the band's musical talent, but fails to keep my interest. Yet Leylines just, for one reason or another, does it for me. The music is of the noodly-emo variety and culls references from groups such as the technicality of Native or Damiera, the rough melody of Bridge and Tunnel, and the effects trickery of Minus the Bear. It all makes for cool songs that don't go too overboard on their own nerdy indulgences, and appreciates just rocking out every now and again. If anyone heard their demo, basically those songs have been re-recorded with four new ones as well. And it comes in a nice little package as well so do yourself a favor and pick it up. (self-released)

RESTORATIONS, s/t LP
Yes indeed. I was so-so about their EP, but this full length is where it's at. I can tell this is where they were looking to be before and now hit it square between the eyes with this record. Dave and John from Philly's Jena Berlin front this new band that is, in some ways, much more reserved than the post-hardcore JB dished out. But in many other ways it expands on a whole host of other sounds that balance Americana with post-punk and subtle hints of post-hardcore. I know, genre labels abound, but whatever, this just kicks ass. John has a really great, gritty and soulful voice that carries many of these songs. And the playful and bouncy riffing on "Neighborhood Song" gives the rhythm section here a chance to inject some energy in that arena, while "Broken Vacuum" has all members firing with enthusiasm and the sing-along line "Nails to the bone" repeated over and over. All in all, I'm really impressed with how this came out and glad I had the chance to check it out. Please tell me "Sideways House" is a reference to The State skit of the same name. (Tiny Engines)

SEAWEED, "Service Deck"/"The Weight" 7"
Who is/was Seaweed? For those of us into our 30's and not hopped up on goofballs like so many young twerps these days, Seaweed is/was a punk band out of Seattle. They released a bunch of records and then unceremoniously split up about 10 years ago. Over the past 2 or 3 years they have occasionally played some shows, but this is the first new material in many, many moons. So now you see why I use the 'is/was' thing when describing them. So they're sort of a band I guess. Nevertheless, their brand of punk was always pretty cool. It wasn't the strict 3-chord bangers typical of snotty punk. It often infused a sense of melody common to the SoCal sect of Fat Wreck/Epitaph bands, not to mention some of the, dare I say, Seattle sound of the early 90's (cough-grunge-cough). But not in a Soundgarden sort of way or anything. It's just a Northwest vibe, if that means anything at all. So yeah, I like this band and their approach to punk. That brings us to this new 2 song 7" and it's good to know the band basically has not missed a beat. It really does hold up to their previous material, maybe a little cleaner, but overall fits in well with stuff up to, and including, "Spanaway" (which is the last thing I have from them). The packaging is friggin' great too. (No Idea Records)

THOU, "The Archer and the Owle" LP
It seems every time I turn around Thou has released another album. Get prolific much? Plus, everything they do is quality. But a lot of it does sound quite the same. I suppose that's not a bad thing when you really like what they do in the first place. So this, their 12th record this year (probably) you get 5 new crushing sludge epics and another random Nirvana song slowed down to a syrupy pace (and yet instantly recognizable) spanning 40 minutes. To some (myself included) that length of time, divided by number of songs, usually has me ready to fall asleep. But Thou keeps their massive sludge experiments interesting, rocking, and most of all, heavy as Marty McFly's opinion of time travel. It's like Eyehategod with extra brains and just as much spite, and some cool, twisted melody to top it all off. They probably gave this away for free online already anyway, but the vinyl looks pretty cool and I think they even made a run of cassettes for this release if you're into 80's technology. (Robotic Empire)

NIGHT OWLS- LAST SHOWS, NEW DEAL!

2011-07-09T11:09:00.000-07:00

So, the most excellent NIGHT OWLS ahttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifre splitting up. Those outside the Central NY area may not be too familiar with them as they were never the touring sort of band. But they released some killer music (including an EP on Hex Records).
If you want a good description check this review
Nevertheless, members are moving away and doing other sorts of adult things so they are leaving us and are playing a few shows before they go. Here's what they are:

Sat. July 9th- Syracuse
Lost Horizon w/ Bridge Under Fire, Scarlet Ending, Dead Friends, more

Sat. July 23rd- Syracuse
Westcott Community Center w/ Ed Gein, Gods & Queens, Defeatist, Veloz

Sun. August 28th- Syracuse
Badlands w/ Whiskey, Ghost Ship, Highlites

NYC-Philly weekend in Sept. (details forthcoming)

And since they are splitting we thought we'd offer a deal!
From now until the final gig, get their CDEP for $1 (yup, a buck) if you get anything else from the webstore. Buy anything from us and get the Night Owls CD for $1. Nice!
Get it HERE

And in other news, I suppose it would be prudent to mention a couple other raging upstate NY gigs that you ought to check out. Those would be the OAK & BONE and LIKE WOLVES record release shows!

Sunday, July 24th
Westcott Community Center (826 Euclid Ave.), Syracuse, NY
6PM. $7

OAK & BONE
LIKE WOLVES
BLACK THROAT WIND
WHITE PICKET FENCE
STRANGERS
event page

Friday, July 29th
The Bug Jar (219 Monroe Ave.), Rochester, NY
8PM. price TBA

LIKE WOLVES
OAK & BONE
TOTAL BABES
+more
event page

HOT SUMMER REVIEWS... YEAH!

2011-06-30T20:44:00.000-07:00

I feel like each year is like the Star Trek movies when it comes to good music- every other one is awesome. Last year wasn't so hot. 2009 was awesome. "Wrath Of Khan" was great, "Search For Spock" was meh. And 2011 is proving to be one bad ass year for good music, as far as I'm concerned.
Aside from some stuff I released that I'm very pleased about other bands, both old and new to my ears, are dropping kick ass records that are keeping my ears happy and overwhelmed.
So bear witness to quite a few reviews this time around. I know it's lengthy, but there's a lot of stuff coming at me I need to report on.

BLACK GOD 7”
This is the perfect kind of punk-hardcore seven inch- 6 songs, all short and fast, and interesting enough so it doesn’t all run together. Consisting of Ryan and Rob from Black Cross (and I suppose Nick too, since he played on the last record) this essentially picks up where they left off. There is that raw feel that was present on the early stuff (when they were Black Widows), as well as a bit more of the jagged melody present on “Severance Pays”. Opener “Fundamental Headwalker” blasts off with an awesome sing-along chorus, while the two strongest tracks come at the end of the B-side: “This Life” (I love when a song tells a good story, partially referencing other bands) and “Reach” (the most off-kilter of the six songs, prominently featuring Nick Thineman’s patented dirty low-end and another excellent sing-along chorus). “I am a hand grenade of love” indeed. Great stuff here. (No Idea)

GODS AND QUEENS, “Untitled III (EP 2)” 7”
Four more songs of Jaime Getz complaining on wax about how life is so tough. “Oh, I play in a band and I get to go to Europe three times a year, but it’s sooooo pointless!” Boo-hoo weiner baby. I kid, of course. Still, the three new songs (and one bitchin’ cover of “Which Way To Go” by the Big Boys) on this 7” are the most straightforward and direct songs this Philly group has offered to date. The bass is way up front and has that super sludgy KARP feel to it while the guitars ease off some of the more shoegaze style present on previous records in favor of a bit more mid-tempo rocking. Lyrically, there’s no mysteries hidden between the lines- jaded recollections of how lives are ruined by playing in a band instead of taking the ‘normal’ life route. I get it. While I’m definitely digging this a lot I think I prefer the previous LPs more. They sound bigger, more desperate, and that giant wall of sound that didn’t quite come through on this, but almost. Still one of my favorite bands currently out there. (Sons Of Vesta)

HELMS ALEE, “Weatherhead”
One of my favorite current bands returns on their second full length even weirder than they were on the excellent (and somewhat overlooked) “Night Terror”. Plus, this one is just loaded with a lot of tracks. It will certainly take the listener a few spins to really navigate all the twists and turns Helms Alee take on this record. But each and every one of them is rewarding- the creeping melodic strangeness that recalls the best moments of Unwounds “Leaves Turn Inside You” to the face-crushing heaviness of tracks like “Pretty As Pie” and the closer riff killing in “Mad Mouth”, even to the more up-tempo rocking in “Speed Sk8r”. Once again, both the mountain man roar of guitarist Ben Verellen, mingled with the soft coo of bassist Dana and drummer Hozji makes the vocal delivery yet another cool aspect of this amazing band. But between the weird melodies, the gigantic riffs, off-time rhythms, and far-from-direct approach I can see how the layperson might not be immediately drawn to this. Of course, that’s part of why I dig this group so much. Please, do yourself a favor and get this immediately. (Hydrahead)

LIGHTS AT SEA, “Palace Walls”
This band is about 5 years late to the game on the whole instrumental Isis-Tides thing, and I’m not sure if they were aware of the 10,000 other bands that also tried this style and failed miserably at it (and who also, like any musical fad, were gone after about 6 months). It’s just one of those things where about 5 bands did it really well and the rest were just really boring. And I gotta be honest- this band is just boring. (Barrett Records)

LKN/KNIFE THE SYMPHONY split
OK, the LKN stuff is just so awful I just can’t find the words to describe it. It basically sounds like a person brainstorming song ideas, or free jamming with a tape recorder. Yuck. And you get six songs of it.
Knife the Symphony gets three songs on the B-side of awesome heavy rock. There is a strong late 90’s Dischord/Touch and Go vibe to their style and a good deal of post-hardcore so you know I am down. The first song is more direct and just beats you around with thick bass plodding, lots of yelling, and jangling guitars. The second song is pretty long with a mid-tempo thing happening that busts into this extended chill part with a prominent Young Widows-style bass tone bringing the whole thing back into focus. They close out their side with a cover of fIREHOSE’s, “On Your Knees”, all stop-start bass riffing, followed by a Sonic Youth styled wall of guitar noise. Get this one for the B-side, forget the A-side. (Phratry Records)

MALA IN SE s/t
Things start off with pretty blasting spastic noisecore, the likes of which bring to mind early majority Rule or Page 99. It’s a good way to get things rolling. But eventually it sort of moves into kind of redundant late 90’s style metalcore. I’m not sure how that switch happened, and if this were 12 years ago I’d probably think this was the greatest thing since skateboards got double tails. In some parts I’m quite impressed and dig this band’s style- even recalling moments of Euro noisemongers like Breach and Lack. But the more metallic elements feel somewhat dated and tacky. Keep it noisy and messy, it suits this band better. (Phratry Records)

MEN, THE, “...Leave Home”
Friends and enemies alike rave on and on about this band, and how they’re the next big thing out of NYC. So I checked out their last record and thought it kind of sucked. I gave them a second chance with a 7” they recently released because it had a cover of Devo’s “Gates Of Steel” (my favorite Devo song) and they did a pretty rowdy, loose and noisy version of it. But I still wasn’t quite sold. Their recordings are way too into that really terrible, don’t-give-a-shit garbage can style that has some air of ‘listen to how punk and noisy we sound’, but really just sounds like shit that so many bands seem to think is really cool lately. I don’t get it. So it wasn’t until I finally saw them, and saw how much they actually have their shit together in the live setting, and was totally blown away. And thankfully, this record definitely does justice to sounding loud, abrasive, and noisy, but having the right amount of clarity so that you can tell what’s happening in all the noise and see how awesome this band really is. The Men mix up equal parts gigantic walls of guitar shoegaze type melodic noise, rawkus garage punk, and full on rocking to make for one hell of a great record. Opener, “If You Leave...” opens things with big riffs and a bit of slide guitar that falls into a massive melodic, atmospheric singing bit. Next is “Lotus” and a re-recording of “Think” that both rock the fuck out your speakers. They experiment with some doom and dungeon style evil on “L.A.D.O.C.H.” which I can basically skip. The B-side has the best track on the record, and probably the most concise idea of what this band does (aside from occasional tracks that go on pretty long), “Bataille”, and it’s a great rocking song as well. Another weird experiment, the drum-machine propelled “Night Landing” closes things out and could be a Trans Am out take if I didn’t know better. Either way, it’s good to see the sound this band has been working on finally realized in the best way possible on this LP. Damn good stuff. (Sacred Bones)

SKULL DEFEKTS, THE, “Peer Amid”
The idea of this record intrigued me a lot more than the actual execution. This is a Swedish band that has been around for a bit and got Dan Higgs to do all the vocals on this new record. And if you know anything about Dan Higgs.. well, it’s always something interesting. A friend whose musical opinion I trust brought their name up and I asked what it sounded like and he said it was like a more rocked-out, garage-y Lungfish... which is definitely interesting to me. So I picked it up. So yeah, it is pretty rocking, very garage rock, very psych rock, and Dan Higgs is definitely singing on here. But he doesn’t sound as animated as his more well known work with Lungfish. In fact, much of the time on this record he just doesn’t sound all that interested and it sort of brings the vibe of the whole record down. I guess it’s alright, but I think I was expecting quite a bit more. (Thrill Jockey)

THEY COME IN WAVES/ GREAT REVERSALS, split 7”
Two Michigan area bands (that also share members) activate their power rings and join forces to celebrate 90’s style hardcore in two different ways. Great Reversals has a very Bane-meets-’94 style New Age Records thing happening. It’s kind of slower, chunky hardcore, but with some twists and turns too to keep it interesting. They address life and religion in a thought-out and philosophical way that merits some reading. TCIW gets the B-side and goes for more of that late 90s screamo thing of longer songs still heavy on the hardcore, but quite a bit of melodic noodling. Actually, there’s no real way I can describe this band without it sounding cheesy. But I’ll just say they do a bastardized style the right way and do it well, giving some hope to the sub genre thankfully! They also packaged this thing up really nice, so check it out if you get the chance. (self-released)

TRAP THEM, “Darker Handcraft”
Hot damn. This is probably the best thing Trap Them has done to date. I really dug their debut LP quite a bit. I thought “Seance Prime” relied a bit too heavily on the mid-tempo Entombed worship and not enough on speed. “Seizures...” was really good and has some great tracks on it, but also a few forgettable ones as well. But every song on here is a ripper. No doubt about it. Armed with an inhuman speed freak (and not in the drug sense as I think it may be a naturally occurring substance in his bloodstream) for a drummer plenty of these tracks just fly right by, totally unrelenting with their heavy Converge-meets-Entombed sort of grind-crust-metal-punk hybrid. It’s fucking great. Not too long ago I saw Trap Them on tour with Converge and the lineup was fucking awesome. And it’s tough to say, but Trap Them were the best band of the night. They just had everything on perfectly, one song into the next, blasting the shit out of anyone and anything in their path. And that’s how this record sounds. Totally unrelentless and pulverizing in every sense of the word. (Prosthetic)

“THE VEGAN REVOLUTION... WITH ZOMBIES”, by Dave Agranoff
I have to say, I was very skeptical to read this. in fact, I almost didn’t want to. It was part because this book has a rather silly title, and the author (in my many years of having known him) can be quite over-the-top about whatever he throws himself into to the point where it’s overwhelming just to hear him talk about it. But once I started in on this I realized this is every humorous thing Dave has ever postulated, every bad sci-fi reference, every corny hardcore-related pun, and a plot so crazy that the only solid reference point I would recommend when reading this is to think of any purposefully bad 80’s horror flick and apply it to the situation in this book. Which leads me to what this book is about. The setting: Portland, Oregon. The scenario: the FDA has approved ‘stress-free meat’, which is a chemical injected into factory farm animals to dull the pain centers of their brains so they don’t find discomfort in the terrible conditions they are forced to endure. Our main characters, living in the progressive, but hipster-infested, portland have just decided to go vegan, right before this ‘stress-free’ meat hits the mass market. yet once it hits anyone who eats meat/dairy begins turning into a brainless, rotting zombie and the only people left are the vegans. From there the Earth Crisis references spew forth as justice is served with the splattering of zombies heads, all the while every activist sub-genre is not only brought up, but also with a fair amount of fun-poking, ridicule, and so forth. Freegans are not safe. They too become zombies. Honestly, by the end I thought this book was hilarious. Take it with a grain of salt, remember your bad horror flicks, and listen to hardcore. It will be a fun read I assure you. (Deadite Press)

WHY THE WIRES, “Telegraph Flats”
Already dropping a second LP, Ithaca’s Why the Wires continue on their path of exceptional indie weirdness, meets punk urgency... with saxophone and accordion. I can’t help but compare this band, at times, to the late, great Sweep the Leg Johnny. Yes, both bands have math rock tendencies (Sweep had it in spades actually) and great textural use of saxophone. But the vocals for both groups are really similar as well- slightly raspy, somber yet commanding, soulful yet a bit cold. I can’t say I’m too into the accordion when it’s brought into play. It’s just not my thing. But these songs go from hectic and upbeat rockers, to melancholy and relaxed. It’s a bit of a mixed bag, but it works pretty well and is, if anything, an interesting listen. (Habit Forming/ Angry Mom)

THEY'RE HEEERRREEEE......

2011-06-20T20:54:00.000-07:00

* cue Poltergeist music.... no, wait... cue, AWESOMENESS! But yeah, the face-melting sounds here will conjure images from said creepy film. Feast your peepers at what rolled in today:

Orders ought to start shipping before the end of the week.
If you're still dumb and haven't picked these records up go HERE

NEW RECORDS ALMOST READY!

2011-06-10T10:48:00.000-07:00

So, take a look at what showed up today:

Just waiting on the actual vinyl to show up and then we will start sending out orders.

And if you didn't get them yet my only question to you is, 'what's your problem?'

BUY HERE

NEW REVIEWS!

2011-06-06T18:39:00.000-07:00

So it has been awhile since you all saw of these huh?
Well, sorry if it took awhile, but I've had this little pre-order thing going on for a couple records I'm releasing. maybe you heard about it? Or saw about 500 facebook posts in regards to it? No matter, it's not a big deal (no, really, it is).
And then I got a bit sidetracked when I took off for Maine for a couple days and saw this band:

That's Mission Of Burma playing a pretty small place and they were great. I like them a lot. So yeah, now that that stuff is out of the way, here's some reviews for you.

DAMAGES, “Unrequited” 7”
When a band is described as ‘90’s Touch and Go style’ there is a good chance I will probably be into it. But to see that said band is releasing a record on the exceptionally posi youth crew React label I must admit that I’m a bit confused. No matter really. This group released a great initial 7”, “Scars”, basically on their own and has now followed it up with another two-song slab of wax continuing that same sound. And yes, it’s true that there is a degree of what many would identify as noise rock of the AmRep and Touch and Go variety. That basically equates to a really up front and thick bass sound with the guitars a bit more in the background playing some frantic and feedback-encrusted riffing, while hoarse and strained vocals carry over it all. Somehow, it all stays pretty catchy and rocks quite thoroughly. I think I liked the songs a bit more from “Scars”, but the quality and recording of this new 7” is a bit better. Heck, I’d say just get both and let this band do some damage of it’s own on your eardrums. See what I did there? (React)

“DIY ALBUM ART: PAPER BAGS AND OFFICE SUPPLIES”, by J. Namdev Hardisty
This really takes nerdy record collection shit to a whole new level for me. I’m not quite sure why I splurged on this book (it’s rather pricey for what it is, but then again, there is a level of handmade craftsmanship to this that a lot of work obviously went into constructing), but it’s cool to look at nonetheless. This book collects pictures of records made, mostly, in the early-to-mid nineties, by extremely crafty do-it-yourself’ers. There is some current stuff in there as well. These are the records that came packaged in silkscreened manilla envelopes, sewn patchwork sleeves, rubber stamped center labels, saddle-stitched insert booklets, and so forth. Many may not know this, but these DIY experiments in handcrafted packaging were commonplace in the 90’s and made for some very interesting records that also happened to deliver in terms of quality of band as well. Photos accompany explanations of everything from the initial Crudos releases to the Indian Summer chipboard covers, up to the screened plastic sleeves on Breather Resist’s “Full Of Tongues” 7”, and basically every weird record that Bloodlink (Chokehold, Impetus Inter, Frail, Groundwork) and Gravity (Angelhair, UOA, Unwound, Huggy Bear) ever released. Not only is it cool to see what people could do with their art, but also provides a link to some incredible music being made by some very creative and crafty people then and now. Some of these records showcased were certainly inspirations for some of the records I’ve put out over the years in terms of packaging. (Mark Batty Publisher)

LIEUTENANT, s/t LP
I should be able to write this review as quickly as this 13 song LP flies by. At barely 8 minutes per side this project band out of Buffalo, NY steamrolls through minute-long ragers of vitriolic hardcore. All these dues play in a multitude of bands around the Buffalo area, so it’s pointless to say who’s in what, especially since this was recorded some time ago and I think they may have only played a few songs. So this is basically a limited run posthumous release in a way. They did go all out though with a cool hand-painted chipboard package that has a neat silkscreen design over it. While the B-side (as well as the A-side’s “Instrumental” closer) offer a bit more in the way of hooks and melody coupled with the chaos to help this group stand out a bit more it’s the vocals that supply distinction... mostly because you’ll either love or hate them. Part Youth Of Today growls, part crow-cawing scream it’s a mixed bag. I’m not sure if I care for it, but they certainly do fit the wild nature of these short and fast songs. (Art Of the Underground/ Peterwalkee Records/ Warm Bath)

NOT SORRY, “Our Choices” 7”
The second seven inch from the Northwest Wyld Punx contingent. I’m not going to lie- there isn’t a whole lot that separates Not Sorry from tons of other youth crew/’88-inspired bands, and I am not the man to point out the subtle nuances between this band and others similar in sound of this style of hardcore. Still, I do enjoy what Not Sorry do, and they do it well. They play really fast and they actually have something relevant to say in their lyrics. Placing a strong emphasis on consumerism/over-consumption and it’s effects on the world and those living upon it this is a message I can applaud. With a style that can sometimes feel incredibly watered down it’s good to know bands like Not Sorry have something worthwhile to contribute... even if they do print ‘BUST!’ in their lyric sheet! Review bust! (React)

PRAYERS FOR ATHEISTS, “New Hymns For An Old War”
Here is a band that tours a lot, regularly plays to minimal crowds, survives (somehow) off of nothing, creates music that is not exactly the most popular thing going these days, and sings songs of political protest that often times is yelled at the most blank and apathetic text-messaging-while-standing-in-the-front-row entitled brats. And yet I have never seen a band with more positivity and genuine belief in what they do and what they stand for. It’s straight up awesome and inspirational. And it’s a good thing these songs on their full length are pretty damn good too because it makes me all the more psyched to write about it. For those not in the know, PFA started with national slam poet champ Jared Paul coming up with raspy and gravely verses expounding on social justice causes, environmentalism, and more set to the tune of rock music that mixed three-chord punk and some of the more rhythmic ideas of Rage Against the Machine and released on indie hip-hop label Strange Famous (Sage Francis, etc). Yes, most would call it rap rock, and that term is blasphemy to many. But the execution of the vocal delivery was so well-written, and the music incredibly catchy that any silly genre title just didn’t quite measure up. So that was the first EP. Now the band has self-released a full length, and has shifted gears (mostly) to really catchy anthemic punk songs. The lyrical prose is still just as strong as ever, but the band seems to have found it’s niche, whether it’s in the amazing face-ripping barn burner anthem “Guns Up”, or the could-have-been-a-Minor Threat B-side “Bouncers and Cops”, to the slower and more melodic “May 1st, 1886” there is a bit of variety on the record. Most of these songs have a very fun vibe, like “Keep Left” or the hometown rally cry of “Hope City Sky”, which I think is great. If you’re going to make serious music about serious subjects at least broach it with a sense of positivity and in such a way that is fresh. PFA have done an awesome job of both and this is why this is going to be one of my favorite things to listen to all year. (Prayers For Atheists)

REJOUISSANCE, "Scrudding Wounds" EP
Rather than going the physical release route Syracuse/Brooklyn group Rejouissance decided to showcase their three latest songs via digital-only “format”. It’s a good testing ground as they have re-tooled their style once again and this is the first batch of stuff they came up with in this formation. But it does make me wish I weren’t listening to this on a computer, and instead full blast on a turntable because these are some solid jams. Having started as a mostly acoustic project, they added a couple members and upp’ed the rock. Now they have added a third guitarist to the lineup and moved further into a heavy rock vibe. Yet the additional personnel hasn’t transformed the band into some steamroller of heavy metal destruction. They retain their gravely grizzled rock sound, noodley intricate melodies, and a bit of post-hardcore stop-start rhythms. It’s just laid on more thick now. And I like that. The strongest track of the bunch is “Stutterer”, a colossus of stop-start chugs interspersed with a serpentine melody winding through it. here’s hoping this lineup produces some more songs of this quality. (Rejouissance)

TIME UNDER EARTH demo
As simple as it may be to lump any instrumental band that plays rather long songs and has an affinity for metal into the NeurIsis glut of bands (that has seemingly dropped off- thankfully- since Isis called it a day). but the debut from Syracuse’s Time Under Earth is not so easy to classify into those simple parameters. They do share similar qualities- heavy and well thought-out long songs, various samples and limited- yet tasteful- use of synths. But they definitely have their own thing going on. Maybe it’s in the way this was recorded, which aims more for an analog kind of warmth, and not some over-processed musical clubbing to the skull. Also, various subgenres creep in and out, almost unnoticed, as they weave themselves into the songs. I like that they are a heavy band, but make it all sound even and not over-the-top in any way. Metalheads can enjoy, middle-of-the-road rock fans can rejoice, prog fans can take notes and analyze. Of the three songs, though, I like the third one best because, well, it is the heaviest of them all. (Time Under Earth)

YOUNG WIDOWS, “In and Out Of Youth and Lightness”
A lot of people appreciate their favorite bands growing with each release, but not too much because then they change too much. The resulting feelings of confusion and abandonment are common. Young Widows are one of those bands that never takes baby steps with their development from release to release, they grow by leaps and bounds. And somehow I’m definitely OK with that. It hasn’t always resulted in brilliance. I think between the end of Breather Resist and “Settle Down City” they were still figuring things out. Then “Old Wounds” came out and blew me the fuck away and solidified Young Widows as their own band- an unstoppable juggernaut of hefty rhythm and smart, angular guitar work. And now we have “In and Out...”, which once again shows the band taking a big leap into new territory. I’ll admit, it’s taken some time to grow on me. It’s overall a very slow, dark, and (at times) rather minimalist record. But between the jangly, effects-heavy guitar work of Evan Patterson, his dry crooning drawl, bassist Nick Thineman’s two-ton bass (quite possibly the best tone in underground rock), and drummer Jeremy McMonigle’s deft understanding of making the simple sound complex you know it is still Young Widows. This time around they put a lot of focus on a simple riff and building a whole song around it. Call it the Lungfish school of riffing, but YW have their sights on something a bit different- building vocal melodies, or the entire mood of a song around a simple beat and beat the shit out of it. “Lean On the Ghost” and “In and Out Of Lightness” pull this off wonderfully, while single “Future Heart” is the sole really upbeat track more or less. I will say I enjoy the meaty pounding of their last LP more, but “In and Out..” hits me pretty good in a different way. Give it some time, it will grow on you too. (Temporary Residence)

OAK & BONE/ LIKE WOLVES LP PRE-ORDERS UP!

2011-05-22T17:12:00.000-07:00

Pre-orders are now up for both the LIKE WOLVES and OAK & BONE records.

http://www.hexrecords.bigcartel.com

There's also a bunch of new and old stuff added to the webstore to check out.

Additionally, there are a number of pre-order package deals I have going on with extra records for a cheap price, the BIG DAY IN (Ithaca) DVD, and more!

The debut LP from Syracuse crust/stoner metal warlords. Fans of Kyuss, KARP, and Eyehategod take note. These jams will wreck yr skull.

Debut LP from Rochester punk killers. Fast jams, nods to both the Louisville scene and Jehu/Hot Snakes riff mastery.

* Both records come with download coupons for those challenged by archaic music technology. The future is then.

And check this deal out too:

Get both LPs, as well as a 3rd LP from any other 12" Hex has released/co-released (The Helm, No Idols, Achilles, Ed Gein, Prize Country). Gotta clear some space on the shelves, so get something extra for cheap.

And if you still haven't hear new songs from both bands check here:
http://www.likewolves.bandcamp.com
http://soundcloud.com/oakandbone/poison-snow

http://www.hexrecords.bigcartel.com

OAK & BONE- NEW SONG AND RECORD COVER

2011-05-01T16:26:00.000-07:00

OK, so it's about damn time, right?
Above you will see the cover artwork for the new OAK & BONE full length LP. Looks nice, doesn't it? Looks weird, huh? Yeah.
The official release date for this (and the LIKE WOLVES LP)is July 12th, but providing all goes smoothly I ought to have them ready to sell by mid-June.
I'll be setting up a pre-order as soon as the test presses come in and are approved.
In the meantime, prepare your neck for maximum bangover with this new track, "Poison Snow":
CHECK THE NEW TRACK HERE

THE HITCHED: GRIM HONEYMOON

2011-04-27T18:55:00.000-07:00

That headline is courtesy of Jeffry Poso, The Helm drummer and smooth dude extraordinaire. So as you can see from the photo, my man Bob Swift (he's the one on the right) got married. He's the tall glass of water that shouts for that band The Helm that three of you are familiar with and whose records I put out.
It seems lately that I'm putting up more posts of people whom I've released records for getting hitched than actual announcements about records I'm releasing. And I'm OK with that. This label has always been about helping my friends out and doing cool things with/for them, and weddings are also cool things (especially when they last!) so it's fitting that I post about it I think.
So with that I just wanted to give a hearty congratulations and was stoked to be a part of the shindig, and also spend some quality time in the Northwest!

2011-04-14T20:00:00.000-07:00

Yo! So I'm super busy with a million things and I wanted to try and get them into a concise little paragraph for you all while I have the time.
OK, first and foremost- I'll be gone all next week in the great town of Seattle. Why? Because the one and only Bob Swift (from The Helm) is getting married, by gum. Congrats to him! Yours truly is in the wedding party so it will no doubt be limos and many vegan cheese platters, right? So that means no updates for a bit.
Second- the OAK & BONE lp is done. yup, mastering went down last night and it's ready to be sent to press. Expect a new jam to be posted online once I return. I don't think the internet can handle the heaviness.
Third- LIKE WOLVES lp will also be going to press right about now as well. Sit tight.

So that means, finally, pre-orders and stuff will be happening soon. I'm thinking of some wacky package deals for this one, so keep checking back. I'll probably get pre-orders going around mid-May.
The official release dates for both records are July 12th, but mailorder will more than likely go out a few weeks ahead of that.

So that's that.
To stave you off til then, here's a bunch of reviews of records and stuff I've checked as of late.

BRIDGE UNDER FIRE, “The Night Court Sessions” ep
Local dudes make good with this new band that sprang up out of nowhere. I have to say, it really has a strong Hot Water Music vibe to it. I mean really a very similar vibe. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with that, they do it well. Ya know the drill- gruff and melodic punk, but leaning more on an overall ‘rock’ vibe more than anything, and plenty of goofy song titles to go around (take, for example, “Midnight In the Olive Garden Of Good and Evil”). It’s melodic, fun, hits hard, and in the right spot. I can get down with that. (Bridge Under Fire)

JESUIT, discography
This came out awesome. Jesuit were easily one of the meanest bands around on stage- constantly belittling their audience with between-song shit talk, punishing their ears with horrid squalls of noise, not giving a rat’s ass if people liked them or not, and let’s not forget doing something musically that wasn’t too common at the time. I certainly was a fan and got to see them on many occasions. But I will definitely admit that they made me quite uncomfortable on a few occasions, what with all the berating and all. I eventually came to find they were awesome dudes when not on stage, which doesn’t really matter since we’re talking about the band here. So yeah, while not prolific (this discography has the two seven inches, a couple comp tracks, a Black Sabbath cover, and a few demo songs) Jesuit dealt a threatening whallop to late 90’s hardcore that was equal parts Eyehategod feedback-noise-sludge worship, bad ass blunt force hammering, and a dash of powerviolence. Their original recordings didn’t always get the justice they dealt out live, so Kurt Ballou came in to remaster this stuff and it sounds great. A kick ass package with all new artwork and a ton of stories and photos about the band round it out. Seriously, get this. Your ears will cry for help but your reptile brain will thank you. (Magic Bullet)

LALLY, JOE, “Why Should I Get Used To It?”
Admittedly, this is the first time I’ve heard Joe Lally’s solo material. This is already his third record. The dude stays productive, that’s for sure. As the bassist for Fugazi Joe laid down some of the best bass lines in all of punk music. He never got too showy, he always played what the song called for, but he was so present in all of their music as the component that got butts moving. I totally dig his style. So as a solo musician it appears he is writing most everything, but does have a couple people backing him to make it a full band. Musically, he does keep it fairly simple, even though these feel like full songs. There is a weird, sort of eerie vibe going on through many of these tracks, but I can’t quite explain how. I’m reminded of another rather short-lived Dischord band from not too long ago when listening to this called Antelope simply because both bands do a great deal with simplicity in the songs and make them sound quite full. There is also this sort of post-punk, new wave kind of thing happening here and there akin to fellow DC group Trans Am, minus synth. It’s hard to describe what’s going here, which is good because it means it’s original. Nevertheless, I like it and you ought to give it a shot as well. (Dischord)

THE MEN, “Think” b/w “Gates Of Steel” 7”
I really don’t get this new trend of bands purposefully recording themselves to sound like absolute shit. You know how easy and cheap it is to record these days and sound at least halfway decent? The days of setting up a boombox in a practice room, pressing record, and hoping for the best really are over. And there’s this crop of bands springing up that seem to completely miss the boat on this. And they’re mostly good bands too! The Men, for example, are doing some cool things. Imagine My Bloody Valentine as a raging punk band. That’s kind of what’s happening here. I can only imagine live them blowing my goddamn ears out. This short 7” focuses more on the raging style and not so much the huge walls of noise they have displayed on other records. Oh, and they cover one of my favorite Devo songs ever too. But yeah, the whole affair sounds like it was recorded at a basement show or something... gotta work on that. (Karmic Swamp Records)

MIXTAPES, “A Short Collection Of Short Songs” 7”
Fuck, this band is just too happy. Seriously, I’m all for good moods. But punk (no matter how shallow this group flecks at the surface at that term) should have some degree of grit to them. This has absolutely no grit. It’s just happy pop music, happy girl vocals, happy little piano parts, and taking up a happy little corner at Gainesville Fest for people who just want to sit in the sun... ok, that doesn’t sound half bad. but it’s really just not for me at all. (Animal Style Records)

MONSTERS, by Ken Dahl
So I was in NYC for a show and it turns out the MOCCA festival was also happening. I’d been trying to hit this thing up for a few years now and miss it every year. But I dropped my plan of going to a museum and hit this up instead. What is it? Well, just basically the East Coast version of San Diego Comic Con, but for strictly indie comics only... which is, essentially, all I read these days. While there I noticed the newest book from Ken Dahl, and the man himself selling it. I was a big fan of his previous collection, which Microcosm released, and this new book is one big story, instead of many random ones. Ken not only has a quirky illustration style, but a great sense of humor and storytelling. I can only describe it as being grim depression that somehow is very hilarious as well. he typically mixes the ultra-personal and embarrassing to the point that it becomes quite funny. So this book deals with a long spell in which he thought he had herpes- all the terrible social encounters that came with it, the stigma of having it, and the resulting sad state of a personal life that left the dude pretty desperate for some time. Yeah, sounds strange and bleak... which it is. but it really comes off as a great and funny story. I thoroughly dig this and the dudes work. Check it out for shits and giggles (Secret Acres)

OBITS, “Moody, Standard, and Poor”
I’ve been waiting for this one basically since their first full length came out. I was so impressed with what these Brooklyn cats were doing, being a long time fan of basically anything Rick Froberg dips his creative pen into. “I Blame You”, the first LP, was an excellent collection of tunes. This new one... well... basically keeps things moving. I wouldn’t really say there is any serious development, just more Obits songs. That may sound bad, but when you already write great songs how can you really improve on them? This continues in the garage-y, but refined style they’re known for, along with Rick’s very distinctive voice and guitar work which falls somewhere between the loose punk-leaning style of his previous outfit Hot Snakes, and something classic rock sounding... like CCR. And I dig the shit out of that. Some of the standout here include the catchy melody of “No Fly List”, the quick urgency of “Killer”, and the hook in “I Want Results”. Once again, Froberg handles all art duties with a beautiful cover, but the interior is lacking a bit, it’s super simple design makes me wish for another bizarre pen and ink illustration he is well known for. (Sub Pop)

TIN HORN PRAYER, “Get Busy Dying”
Plan-It-X rejects? Ghost Mice-This Bike Is a Pipe Cleaner-Bat Shit- trainhopper punx? I have no idea. It’s somewhere along that blurred line of hippie crust panhandler and legitimate Americana type campfire songs. I can’t say it’s really my thing at all, but dudes with banjo, mandolin, harmonica, and your other regular rock band set up get down with some rock n’ twang. I’m thinking a bit of Scouts Honor, a a dash of Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band, and the aforementioned Plan-It-X stuff by gruff fellows drinking whiskey by a fire. Not too bad of a debut, but not my cup of tea. (Bermuda Mohawk Productions)

NEW LIKE WOLVES SONG POSTED!

2011-03-24T22:11:00.001-07:00

LIKE WOLVES have posted a new song from the upcoming full length LP that will be coming out this Summer. Get excited spuds. This will be a ripper. This track only hints at the rest of the awesomeness that lies ahead.
Oh yeah, the picture above is the cover art for the LP. So you get that too. Stare at it and feed off the vibes.
OK, now listen to the song HERE.

ACHILLES VIDEO FROM 10.23.10 ROCHESTER SHOW

2011-03-23T11:16:00.000-07:00

Here's a link to a great video of ACHILLES playing in Rochester last Fall. It's a full set and includes a NEW SONG that they will be recording when they have the time/the stars align just right.
In the meantime, follow the link and enjoy the set.
ACHILLES IN ROCHESTER

(S)MARCH REVIEWS

2011-03-17T16:15:00.000-07:00

I'd typically say, "lousy Smarch weather" about this month, in typical Homer Simpson speak, but I have to admit it's actually been pretty nice out (knock on wood). So one ought to have a good zine to read while sitting on the porch, or good Spring jams to enjoy while riding your bike.
Of course, now that I say this we'll probably get some unholy blizzard trifecta across the Northeast. So I'll just shut up now and let you read these reviews.

ALL TEETH, “Young Love” EP
While this is a pretty decent showing of modern hardcore of the more stereotypical Bridge 9 variety (think the speed and urgency of American Nightmare as well as the thoughtful and more involved melodic approach of Verse) there are a couple things that kind of irk me about this record. The first, and most obvious, are the downright crappy guitar sounds on this. Did these dudes bring practice amps to the recording? Are these Gorilla combos? They just sound so buzzy and cheap. It’s really a distraction that can be quite annoying. Secondly, it appears as if there are guest vocals on every single song here. While that’s not necessarily a bad thing really, I just think it’s a little weird when a band has a guest vocalist on every track. Maybe it’s because I feel a band ought to be representing themselves on a recording and not other people who aren’t in the band. That’s just me and I shouldn’t gripe about that, I just find it peculiar. Nevertheless, for those who like genuine newer hardcore this ought to do it for you. (Panic Records)

ANARCHIST BIKE RALLY: CONFIDENTIAL MAD LIBS
This is an interesting read- the entirety of this zine is a collection of Freedom Of Information Act-obtained police documents detailing how the Portland PD infiltrated meetings of Critical Mass bike rally, and then raided their monthly rides with unnecessary police presence. While at the beginning it appears to be totally nefarious, as well as a waste of taxpayer money. By the end it basically seems like routine police accompaniment of the ride to make sure people followed traffic laws. Big deal. Still, the fact that the police planted undercover officers at meetings, as well as in the rides in order to disrupt them is silly. And the instances where blatant police abuse is documented and ignored, shines a much-needed light on police brutality that ought to be dealt with. What I find most disconcerting is the budget outlines that show the police department somehow justifying spending upwards of $5000 on officers just for a Critical Mass ride that draws about 150 riders. That’s just stupid. While I don’t really think having a couple officers accompany a ride is necessarily a bad thing, it’s the crazy over-reaction to the idea of Critical Mass that is just plain stupid. These collected documents show how overboard some of it got.
The almost afterthought of the author presenting some of these documents as Mad Libs is kind of a moot point as it is only done a handful of times and doesn’t really add anything interesting to the whole thing. Additionally, there doesn’t seem to be much of a conclusion to this story. Maybe some closure would be nice. (Cantankerous Titles)

BOOK BINDERY, THE, by Sarah Royal
You ever think working in a book bindery would be at all prestigious? Like, you get to make the fancy bound books that sit on library shelves, while that high school dropout friend of yours is stuck as a copy jockey for the late night shift at Kinkos? think again. This is the story of one person’s time spent working at a book binding company is one of Chicago’s less desirable industrial-wasteland neighborhoods. The staff of the business are a motley crew of scuzzy characters, cast into some go-nowhere lot in life. The job itself may as well be copy jockey, as cheap coffee fuels the day and dulls the ache of countless paper cuts, while there is no end to the weirdoes and scumbags who come and go. Everything from the authors bus route, to the strange drug fronts that pose as pizza shops in this almost uninhabited neighborhood, and the naked guy that lives in his car outside the business are all under the microscope here. For anyone that has worked a weird crappy job (which is probably everyone), and the nuances that go with it, this is a pretty fun read. (Microcosm)

FIGGS, THE, “Sucking In Stereo” LP
I believe this is a band that split up some time ago and didn’t ever really get their just due. So Matt over at Peterwalkee Records is releasing this record to shed some light on this otherwise forgotten group. And I’m personally glad he did. It’s the perfect remedy for when you have an itch for catchy power pop. For some reason I’m reminded of 80’s stuff like Split Enz, but with a bit more garage rock swagger. Yet it has that real strong power pop, with the slightest hint of punk recklessness to it. So, yes, color me interested. And it all comes wrapped up in a simple, yet slick package. (Peterwalkee Records)

MONUMENT, “Goes Canoeing” LP
I caught this band in DC back in the Fall while on tour and it was nice to see a band you’d never heard of lay down an impressive set. That is always a fun part of tour- discovering new bands amongst the sea of ugly go-nowhere locals that comprise most shows. So here was Monument, kicking it in DC, and people ate it right up. In this setting they sounded a heck of a lot like Braid to me, and they did it very well. This new LP alludes to something a bit different though. There is certainly that late 90’s Midwest emo vibe present, though they mix it up with a number of different elements- a few Minus the Bear style guitar effects, some of that noodly Algernon type stuff I don’t particularly care for, and a bit of noisy skronk every now and again. It’s a varied package, but with a rather consistent backbone. It makes for a fun listen, so I can dig on it. (Tiny Engines)

PINS AND NEEDLES #3
I really liked the first couple issues of this zine when it came out. Basically, if you’re a hardcore dude in your 30s and you’re starting to do all that adult stuff, and still keep your interest in punk, you’ll get what’s going on here. It’s a mixture of the fun of hardcore and the dumb adult shit you somehow find interesting now that you’re an adult. That’s the gist of the zine anyway. But in this third issue I’m not really feeling it as much. The stories don’t have as much character to them, and start to get a bit redundant as well. What is admirable is the authors decision to quit his steady career-style job in favor of starting his own dog walking business. That’s taking a risk, and it’s always cool to see people follow their heart instead of leading with their wallet. Additionally, there is some info on the band The _Network, including the story included with their “Bishop Kent Manning” record, which I have to admit is just dumb. I know the record is based on a story one of them wrote, but I don’t think it’s very well written at all. And as a bonus, when you get the zine there is a download code for The _Network’s cover of Deadguys “Pins and Needles”... which they do alright. It’s no Keith Huckins and Tim Singer, but then again, no one really is. (Pins and Needles zine)

RUN WITH THE HUNTED, s/t
Not a bad record by any means. A bunch of young, gnarly dudes getting excited on hardcore and playing the shit out of it... how can I diss on that? They do a pretty good job too- very heavy-handed, but not lowest common denominator stupid. They keep it basic enough to just go nuts and smash anything around you, yet interesting enough to know that they actually care about what they’re writing too. Personally, I’m reminded a lot of the Hope Conspiracy with a little more metal in there. Super energetic and heavy, not too shabby. Cover art is total john Baizley/Baroness worship. (Panic)

SADDEST LANDSCAPE, THE, “You Will Not Survive”
I never quite got this subgenre, and furthermore, I don’t get why it is kind of coming back. It’s bands that play a kind of epic emo style, like Funeral Diner or La Dispute. It’s just not my bag. I don’t necessarily think this band is bad or anything, but then again, the music doesn’t really go anywhere either. It’s just these bursts of frantic emotion that would probably be pretty bad ass if they were literally bursts that lasted a minute. But instead, it all feels kind of long-winded and drawn out, and in the end, no matter how many times I listen to it, I’m left not remembering much of anything about this band. (Panic)

WHIRL, “Distressor” cassette
This is a pretty new band out of California that is such a direct rip on My Bloody Valentine that they ought to send Kevin Shields royalties. Not that I mind, because I’m sure the younger generation doesn’t have much knowledge of them, and it’s good to see that new bands have a respect for great music. If you have no clue what I’m talking about this group emphasizes huge walls of shimmering guitar noise and melody, all with spacey and atmospheric tones, and soothing female vocals. They really nail it on this, seven songs of huge guitars, blasting beautiful noisiness, and somehow really pretty the whole time. My favorite jam here is “Child”. (Whirl)

NEW NIGHT OWLS EP FOR FREE!

2011-03-01T10:07:00.000-08:00

The folks in NIGHT OWLS recently stopped by good 'ol Moresound Recording Studio in Syracuse to record a new EP. Additionally, they decided to give it away for free. Yes, you internet scoundrels and your unsettling sense of personal entitlement to everything, you don't have to pay if you do not want to.
The band states that a physical form of this recording will arise at some point for us old school types, but that is neither here nor there at the moment.
In the meantime, head over to their Bandcamp page to check it out. It's awesome.

LIKE WOLVES RECORDING UPDATE!

2011-02-22T20:32:00.001-08:00

Yo! LIKE WOLVES is wrapping up the recording of their debut full length LP. Thankfully, I happen to live down the street from the fabulous Moresound Studio where this jam is going down so I've had the good fortune to sneak in and catch some of the sounds being laid down. Check the above pictures for evidence that they were actually there keeping busy.
I can say that this is a giant leap forward for these dudes in every sense of the word. And that's easy for me to say because I really wasn't wild about their first 7". This is like honest to (insert deity) good songwriting, mixed with wild, manic energy. The whole thing has been recorded live, so it has a great vibe to it. Recording wraps up real soon and then it's off to the presses.
Expect an official release date in June.

In the mean time, catch the dudes live at these following dates:
March 10th
Badlands - Syracuse, NY
Fuck The Facts (As part of their 10 year anniversary tour)
Oak & Bone (Playing a slew of new songs from their upcoming LP)
Like Wolves (Rochester's best)
Ebony Sorrow (Syracuse Black Metal)

Show starts @ 7pm
$8
(http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=173661626013661)
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March 11th
Generic Insight Fest - Day 1
Party Xpo - Brooklyn, NY

Iron Chic
Slingshot Dakota
Soul Control
Mayflower
Like Wolves
Oak & Bone
and many more

(http://www.songkick.com/festivals/170771-generic-insight-fest-2-day-1/id/8020776-generic-insight-fest-2-day-1-2011)
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March 12th
Democracy Center - Boston, MA

Deep Sleep (MD)
Like Wolves (NY)
Soul Control (RI)
Ancient Filth
+Very Special Guest TBA
Doors - 7PM
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March 18th
Sugar City - Buffalo, NY

Black Breath
Like Wolves
Bestower
Strangers

6PM

And as an extra little update OAK AND BONE have nailed down their recording details. They too will be hitting up Moresound for their LP debut from March 25-28. With any luck their record will be out the same exact time as LIKE WOLVES. Word up.

NEW REVIEWS!

2011-02-18T09:20:00.000-08:00

Yo suckas! It is a rare, nice day here and rather than blow it on loading up all these reviews I'm going to... wait, I am loading up these reviews. OK, I'm going to make it quick and enjoy a 50 degree day before it turns back into planet Hoth. Read and enjoy.

CARPENTER, “Sea To Sky”
I can’t be too cold-hearted with this band. It may be hardcore dudes playing a style that is the furthest thing from punk. But at least they’re not fronting like it is. Essentially, this sounds like a Gin Blossoms record or something. There is nothing separating this from any number of middle-of-the-road radio rock bands, though it’s not overly-polished crap. At least they appear to have their hearts and ethics in the right place. The music, on the other hand, does not appeal to me whatsoever. (Gold Stock Records)

KITTY LITTLE/ SCIENTIFIC MAPS split 7”
Buffalo/Albany band Kitty Little rears it’s head every so often to deliver some more sugary-sweet tunes, play a few shows, and then go into hibernation for another six months. It’s just good to know they still exist. On this split they once again turn on the Superchunk worship, but simplify it just a bit to their own blend of rock goodness. Scientific Maps, on the flip side, has another vibe going on that is more on the true indie side of things. Simple tunes accentuated by trumpet leads and female vocals. For some reason I am reminded of stuff off the final offering from DCs The Most Secret Method, “Get Lovely”, as well as other DC bands like Routineers. But I imagine that means absolutely nothing to 99.9% of you reading this. Just think indie style, horns, soothing vocals, and a bit of late 90’s Dischord style rock. I’m very into this. The download has an extra song from each band. The SM extra is in line with the two on the physical copy. The KL extra jam might be the oddest offering from them ever- slow, noisy, creepy, and talking of kissing ghosts. I love it. (Peterwalkee Records)

LEYLINES demo
A very nice introduction from a new Syracuse band, done up quite well. Typically, I’m not a big fan of really noodly, tapping technical stuff like this. But they do a good job of it and the players in this group are quite talented. That is none more evident on the first track, which alternates between the aforementioned delicate tapping parts to a more solidified chorus with some harmonious vocal accompaniment. The second track is a bit more straight-forward rock style. The last track loses me a bit, and is back to that more techy-tapping thing again. Overall, it is a very good start for this new group. I’m actually surprised I dig it as much as I do. (leylines.bandcamp.com)

MOUTHEATER, “Colonial” 12”
Here’s a band that I finally got around to checking out and man, was I floored! I immediately picked up as much of their output as I could find (as in, I paid for their records, you all should try it some day). This is exactly what I look for when I want a band that can make everything feel ugly and kick ass at the same time. This stuff is like heir apparent to the Unsane, it’s in the exact same vein and a worthy successor, should they ever keel over and die. So, onto the newest offering from Virginia’s Moutheater- this 4 song 12”. While 4 songs on a 12” might seem unnecessary it fits well as a couple of the songs break the five minute mark and the whole deal is on 45 rpm (sound quality geeks will understand). The A-side has two barn burners, more up tempo piss and vinegar rants. The B-side, which I like better, focuses more on slower material. While I have enjoyed everything Moutheater up to this point, I think they excel with the slower songs they write. Creepy guitar lines twist around the meaty low end and eventually blow up in a frenzy of mean spirited nastiness. This was even more apparent on their previous full length, “Ornament” (particularly on the track “Inept”), which I prefer over this record. but it’s still a damn good record. There is also a slight discrepancy over the recording between these two records, “Colonial” sounding a bit thinner than “Ornament”. I’m not sure what it is. All I can think of is maybe whoever mastered it played it a little safe for vinyl’s sake maybe? I’m not sure. Either way, get yourself something from Moutheater like now. It will be worth it to hate a little longer. This isn’t a bad place to start. (Last Anthem Records)

NEON BASTARD, “Meikhaus”
Fucking off the wall crazy blast rock from some Australian goons. How else to describe this? Older Daughters with a sense of musical clarity? Converge further unhinged, blasting jams in their garage? Whatever it is, it’s all good. Their modus operandi seems shrouded in confusion and random imagery, strange song titles, and indiscernible lyrics shouting about who knows what. Musically it just rages with punk fervor, metallic dexterity, and throwing more than a few nods in the direction of both Sabbath riffs and noise rock nihilism. There’s plenty of fast whiplash that quickly degenerates into riff-fest bangovers. I guess what gets me most is the odd recording quality of this. It sort of has that purposeful ‘sounds kinda like ass’ thing that actually works in it’s favor to make it raw and dirty. I really dig this slab and good to see Robotic Empire releasing a record that will have long time fans of the label reminded of why they liked stuff from this imprint in the first place. (Robotic Empire)

SCAM Anthology, by Iggy Scam
Yo! The zine that truly lives up to it’s name, this is the original punk zine about scamming on the Man. This enormous book covers the first four sloppy, hand-written (mostly) installments of the legendary Scam zine. While having always known of it’s existence I never got around to reading it. But now that I have its a fun adventure read. This is basically where Evasion got it’s entire blueprint, except Scam is way more into public drunkeness and FYP instead of vegan straight edge and Earth Crisis. But Scam started the left-hand scam, the receipt scam, the squatting in a college library, and just about anything else involving criminal mischief based around a fun story of living free and clear. While most of this takes place in mid-90s Miami and starts as juvenile tales of fucking shit up it does progress over time to more clever and varied stories- squatting different places, setting up free public shows, Miami culture, train hopping across the country, short interviews with bands, and other things that seem a little more innocent and wild in our youth... before cell phones and GPS made everything accessible and familiar at the press of a button. It felt a little more brazen and wild then, to discover things and fail at them, only to try again and half-ass it. It might not always work, but it makes for a great story. And that’s what’s in here- a lot of fun great stories. Even if a lot of them revolved around getting wasted, which doesn’t pertain to me, it’s still a fun read. And believe me, this thing is mammoth. It will take forever to read. (Microcosm)

TO HELL AND BACK, “Will We Be Torn Apart” 12”
I dig the cosmic trip going on with the cover art. It’s an invitation to music that shakes and swaggers with equal parts Thin Lizzy and Tight Bros. From Way Back When kept in mind. In other words, it’s a balls out rock record. To their credit I admire the frame of mind these dudes were in when they created this stuff, but it’s missing some of the excitement and energy of those raucous rockers. They play things a little close to the vest and planned out, whereas their clear inspirations let everything go and went for the throat with reckless abandon. This is certainly not cock rock, nor is it dumb party rock. I think an apt name to what they strive to do here is ‘bitchin’ rock’. They need to loosen up a bit first and let shit fly wherever it may. (Peterwalkee Records)

TRANSIT, “Keep This To Yourself”
They got some slick-ass packaging happening with this release, and it’s clever too. The whole mailed packages thing is a nice touch. As for the music on here Transit really aren’t my bag. I give them credit for some of the things they do to separate themselves from the bloated pack of pop rock bands posing as punk bands. Transit toss in some good post-hardcore rhythms, a few unexpected quick transitions, various flourishes of melodies mixed with fancy guitar effects, but really turn me off with the whole broken heart white boy off-key singing. Very few bands of this ilk pull it off with any degree of potency. Transit, sadly, are not one of them. As a band they certainly do work hard and can play the shit out of their instruments. And they even have some original moments. But overall, I can’t get behind this style. If I could give them a good comparison it would be The Movielife butting heads with Native. I know some people will drool over that. But it’s not really working for me. (Run For Cover Records)

ZINESTERS GUIDE TO NYC, by Ayun Halliday
Another thoroughly exhaustive guide to a big city, written up by various zinester types and their recommendations on everything from food, to sightseeing, to where to go for yoga, and little nooks in parks you might not have thought of. Being from NY myself I have made frequent trips to the big city many, many times and thought I knew quite a bit about things to check out. Yet this guide offers pretty much everything one could want to see minus the trappings of the obvious tourist dead ends like Times Square. Big whoop. You see it once and that’s enough. It does not, however, skip over the museums, which should be a necessary stop on any NYC trip (even though they will cost you). About a million other things are broken down into categories from every kind of food you could want to bookstores, food carts, coffee shops, yearly events of every race, culture, club, and random organization. In a city where everything seems to be happening all the time this does a pretty good job of covering the bases of what there is to do for the person looking to diverge from the well-worn path of the common tourist and see some additional neat stuff. Works well if you happen to be a resident in the city too. (Microcosm Publishing)

NEW OAK AND BONE/LIKE WOLVES JAMS!

2011-02-05T14:14:00.000-08:00

Hi! So, you might have heard that both OAK AND BONE and LIKE WOLVES will be hitting the studio real soon to record their debut LPs. Well, if you didn't now you do.
So to give a taste of what's in store we thought it would be nice to share some videos of them playing some new jams. Well, OK, the LW stuff isn't new, new. But if you are unfamiliar with them it's a good introduction of what to expect.
If you've caught either band live in the last few months you've probably heard some of these songs. These videos are from when both bands played Ithaca's annual Big Day In Fest in December. Well documented, and a hoot of a good time.
Here's OAK AND BONE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ptdi8l0i8s

And here's LIKE WOLVES:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDzpYyRajRk

NEW REVIEWS FOR JANUARY

2011-01-16T09:29:00.001-08:00

Well, well, well, so reviews return! It's been some time, I know. What with all the holiday hoopla, and post-holiday 'shotgun-in-mouth' blues (or is it the other way around?), there just seems to be no time to do all this stuff. Either way, while the entire civilized world remains buried under what appears to be a new ice age, you may as well get up to speed with what's on record/book shelves lately and read this stuff.

1994, “Fukyrhed” 12”
My first listen of this made me want to throw this LP at oncoming traffic. Super noodly Capn’ Jazz type bands infuriate me. Upon second listen I found some respectable points to this EP- mostly really impressive drumming. Yeah, it’s kind of over the top in a not that great sort of way. But when this dude finds the pocket he sure can beat the shit out of it. But yeah, techy, noodly whineypants stuff... overall, no thanks. (Inkblot, Square Of Opposition)

AFTERTHEFALL, “Eradication”
This band sounds so much like Propaghandi it’s not even funny. OK, maybe less guitar solos, but still a dead ringer for the Canadian political punk powerhouse. And I’ll be honest, I have never really been into Propaghandi, or any of the more fast, politically-oriented melodic punk bands. It’s simply not my thing. I’m down with their politics, and I dig the Black Flag-inspired artwork, and for this style this is done well. But it’s not what I listen to. These dudes have been at it for quite some time so it is nice to see them get some recognition. The respect is there, but my taste is not. (Mightier Than Sword)

ANTILLECTUAL, “Start From Scratch”
Much like the record I just reviewed before this Antillectual play very fast and very melodic singing political punk. Again, this sort of thing is what I have admiration for on a lyrical front, but everything else is just not my bag. This could be on the radio for how clean and polished it sounds, and honestly, I dislike it quite a bit. That’s not some pink purist frame of mind, it’s really just because I don’t like music like this. SoCal Fat Wreck fans and AFI types will probably dig this. but not I. (Shield Recordings, Square Of Opposition)

CASTING CURSES, 'Cold All Over Again" 7"
C.C. is a sort of on-again, off-again group from different parts of New York that have already made a number of recordings in the last few years. Their sound has progressively become more and more of a sort of late 90's post-hardcore direction, yet it overall remains grounded in chunky hardcore chugging. The flourishes of various guitar effects and melodies shake it up and make for an overall fun listen. The artwork on this release is incredible. (Panic Records)

FISHERKING, “Forget It” CDEP
So what I cannot fathom for the life of me is how the press release for this record was stating that they think this record sounds like Jesus Lizard or AmRep bands. Were they listening to the same band I was? Did I get the wrong CD? There is absolutely NOTHING here that sounds anything like that. The first half of this EP is bland and generic melodic hardcore. Nothing bad, but also nothing that stands out from the norm. The last couple songs have more of a late 80’s NYHC crossover vibe going on that seems a bit more adventurous and mean. While those songs are also not terribly original they have a nice little bite to them. So that’s what you get here. I’m not sure what that press stuff was all about. (Bermuda Mohawk Productions)

LEMURIA, “Pebble”
Godamn. They just know how to get it right. This LP is fucking great. First thing this year to kick my butt. Moving even farther away from a pop-punk tag Lemuria just wrote a bunch of good songs. I think I dig the A-side more , but the B-side has got those super catchy lines like, “I could always do a little better” and “The man who is half of me”. I’m going to be humming this stuff all year. But the A-side has “Wise people”, perhaps the best track on here with it’s slightly-off and rumbling groove throughout... and those awesome bells in the chorus. It’s a great little touch. “Pleaser” and “Ribcage” are a bit more expansive, lengthy for Lemuria songs and they get a great vibe going. The guitar tone on here (courtesy of J. Robbins exceptionally capable recording skills) is fucking top notch. It’s grittier and a bit meatier than on past Lemuria records, but has this wonderfully warm and crisp feel to it. It seriously makes a big difference in setting the mood of the record and these songs. Main vocalist Sheena Ozella has also taken some new twists with her already playful and delicate voice, hitting some of those high notes in new ways, while drummer Alex Kerns takes a somewhat more upbeat tone with his vocals (side-stepping the more somber tone he has had in the past). This is really a great step forward for the group and I totally dig it 100% (Bridge 9)

LITERATURE, “Cincinnati” 7”
Even though silkscreened this record has a pretty ugly cover and it made me not want to listen to it. But I’m glad I did because I really dig the two short songs on this record. They really could have thrown down a couple more, but hey, I suppose that’s what keeps people coming back for more. Anyways, this is total retro garage pop with playful female vocals and jangly guitars. A little Velocity Girl, a bit of Shonen Knife, but basically just retro garage rock that’s clean as a whistle. The title track is the jam. (Voice Academy/ Square Of Opposition)

NINE GALLONS #2, by Susie Cagle
This here is a short comic-zine about one person’s involvement with Food Not Bombs in the SF/Bay Area. There’s the typical cast of the underappriciated activist, the misunderstood ideologues, the flakey mouth breathers, the burnt out overachievers, bewildered public, and pesky relatives all whom anyone involved at all in any sort of cause will know very well. Susie’s stories here are all too familiar, but are communicated simply and quite well about some of the outside influences and distractions to being involved in Food Not Bombs. (Microcosm Publishing)

PARAMEDIC/ SPRAYNARD split 7”
A playful record cover/artwork gives way to two PA bands that have a similar kind of playful energy to their music. Both bands have a similar vibe going- scrappy and rocking emo style music (think 1995, not 2010), very rough around the edges and hearts worn clearly on sleeves. Paramedic, I think, is my preference of the two simply because the female vocals add a dash of variety, while Spraynards side - though decent- is a little more typical of this fare. Worth checking though simply because 4 songs on a 7” is a deal no matter what. (Square Of Opposition)

PISSED JEANS, “Your Life Is Worth...” 7”
Yup. You get what you pay for. And either you’re going to check into this band and get the completely stupid humor or you’re going to hate them and wonder why they’re so stupid. But that’s the catch.. they’re actually awesome! A record cover that took no more than two minutes to make, a lead off track called “Sam Kinison Woman” and linear notes that list Leslie Neilson as band member only because the accompanying live photo has his image on a screen behind the band. I can’t really explain it, maybe they really are just dumb, but it somehow makes me smile. The music remains great- dirty as shit rocking punk, taking equal cues from Flipper and Jesus Lizard, and blending it up into some weird stew. The B-side is a repetitive drone with all sorts of weird glitches and mistakes while vocalist Matt Korvette talks about his love of the Flyers, pie, and a good sunrise over, and over, and over. Again, funny in an annoying sort of way. Maybe it’s because they really do kick ass on the musical front I can appreciate Pissed Jeans for their odd brand of humor/annoyance, making it all so great. After all, they are one of the best bands I’ve heard in years. But if you have never heard them I’d start with one of the full lengths first. (Sub Pop)

RESTORATIONS, “Strange Behavior” 12”
I was such a big fan of Jena Berlin, which is two members of this bands former group, that I was anticipating hearing this new group. While it’s clearly not the same group at all what remains are the gravely and soulful vocals of frontman Jon Louden. I’ve always admired his voice, which takes a style similar to Polar Bear Club, but with a bit less happy-go-lucky and a bit more Soul Man (C. Thomas Howell version only because Jon is actually white). Musically it feels a lot more settled than Jena Berlin and has a lot more in common with groups like Lucero, and perhaps a dash of Casket Lottery in it’s sound. Then again, there are only 4 songs on this LP, so as an EP it’s a little hard to tell exactly where they will go just yet, but it’s a decent start. (Paper and Plastick)

ANNUAL END OF THE YEAR LISTS!

2010-12-28T16:22:00.000-08:00

It's a dumb tradition here, but one we maintain nonetheless where those associated with this label in one way or another get to beef about their favorite stuff from this year.
I enjoy knowing what other people were digging, especially those whose opinions I value. So I always get a kick out of seeing what's on the lists.
Personally, I thought 2010 was a great year. Just overall. Saw a lot of great bands, heard some great music, went a lot of fun places, spent a ton of time in my garden, went to a lot of weddings (strangely enough), and there were no disasters. It was a good year to just be doing what I do, and that's all I can ask. So let's just hope next year goes as swimmingly!

OK, enough babble, here's some lists from a few people I dig.

JEFFREY POSO, Uno world champion, The Helm

1. Getting married.
2. The Helm/Owen Hart Summer tour
3. Kylesa- Spiral Shadow.
5. Cursed -John Peel 7".
6. My October bike crash.
7. My November bike crash (not as bad).
8. Inception.
9. Rope Swings all Summer long.
10. Recording the new Throne of Bone full length.
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SEAN DOODY, Self Defense Family Man, End Of a Year

I’m awful at keeping up with current music, underground or otherwise. There are some current tracks I’ve dug (“The Weekenders” by the Hold Steady; “I Can Change” by LCD Soundsystem; “Ready to Start” by the Arcade Fire) and some I haven’t (“Barricade” by Interpol is so bad that it makes me wonder why I liked their first two LPs), but I haven’t checked out any of those full albums yet. So instead, I’ve listed my Top 10 new experiences, new discoveries, or what-have-you of 2010:

1. Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, Rattlesnakes. On the recommendation of Patrick Kindlon, I found this album, the Commotions’ 1984 debut, at the library and uploaded it to my iTunes last March. Cole’s lyrics sound like he was born to be a literature professor at a New England liberal arts school; indeed, he now lives in the Pioneer Valley, writing, recording, and playing lots of golf. Ultra-cool Eighties British indie, with a distinct soul influence and a singer who has impeccable taste in books, clothes, and everything else.

2. Taking care of myself, i.e., eating vegan again and quitting smoking. This is simple: I realized I was turning into a cartoon slob from a Replacements video. Quitting smoking was easy, actually, once I realized that I hate being around other people who are smoking. And I’ve felt much healthier and lost weight once I stopped inhaling every Hungarian street sausage or slice of sketchy pizza I could find, just because I hadn’t had it before and it was cheap. Yeah, I haven’t had the mumps either; doesn’t mean I want to give it a go.

3. Reevaluating my record collection. Goodbye, later Gang of Four records. Goodbye, mod revival bands that “sound like the Jam,” except that they can’t come close. Goodbye, every hardcore record I hung onto out of nostalgia and nothing else. Hello, more Talking Heads and Julian Cope and Belle & Sebastian and Pixies records. We’re going to get along great.

4. Dramamine, self-titled LP. End of a Year played with this band in Münster, Germany, on our European tour last spring. Live, they just sounded like any one of the rash of Wipers-influenced bands that have cropped up over the past several years. Feh. On record, though, Dramamine are much more than that. Sure, the Wipers are in the mix, but so are Fugazi, the Jesus Lizard, and – crucially – a strong sense of how to put their influences together to build something new and distinct. Check out Dramamine at the Sabotage Records website and definitely pick up their LP if you can find it.

5. Swans, My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky. Michael Gira is older than my parents and has been playing in bands longer than I’ve been alive, yet he still has a constant desire to make music he hasn’t made before. And I appreciate his approach towards reviving the Swans name: he felt that what he was writing would be better as a Swans album than as a solo album or Angels of Light, so he put together a Swans lineup and that was that. I hope to be as driven a musician as Gira when I’m his age.

6. My new Rickenbacker 4003 bass. I’ve never bought an instrument new before, and I’m thrilled with this one.

7. Being employed again. I appreciate the paycheck, but more than that, my current job has finally solidified the fact that I need to move out of Albany and never move back.

8. Rediscovering my enjoyment of music and writing. Two things that I had felt burnt out on for years, frankly, because I’ve been expecting too much out of them, both as an experience and as something I make. Psyching myself out of enjoying anything is a really bad look, and I’m glad to get away from it.

9. Unknown band whose album I heard on the U-Albany radio station the other week. I have no idea who it was, just that it sounded like the Swell Maps or some other jerky Seventies post-punk band tried to write Damaged. The results were fascinating. I called the station to find out what it was, but no one picked up.

10. Ke$ha, Animal. Yes, it’s beer-and-lifestyle music. It’s not the beer I’d drink, and it’s definitely not my lifestyle, but I can take a peek at both from a distance without having to clean up the puke afterwards. Yes, I’m serious about this.
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RYAN HEX, pick pocket, label person

Here’s a combination of favorite records, as well as best shows since there weren’t enough ‘favorite records’ that stuck to make a top 10, but there were a heckuva lot of great shows.

1.) 108, “18.61”
2.) BLACK BREATH, “Heavy Breathing”
3.) END OF A YEAR, “You Are Beneath Me”
4.) TORCHE, “Song For Singles”
5.) COLISEUM, “House With a Curse”
6.) BLACK THROAT WIND demo
7.) MAYFLOWER, “Second Best Sunsets”

Shows:
2.18- Mission Of Burma @ First Unitarian Church, Philly (intimate atmosphere, killer set, great new record)
3.27- Rollins @ Westcott Theater, Syracuse (finally got to meet the man)
6.11- Shaun Luu Horrorfest day 1 w/ End Of a Year, Mandate Of Heaven, Like Wolves, Mistletoe @ Westcott Community Center, Syracuse (Best MoH set in ages, hilarious EOAY set, Like Wolves letting me sing “Merchandise” with them)
6.22- Tortoise @ Bug Jar, Rochester (been waiting about 15 years to see this band and on a microscopic-sized stage no less)
7.7- Devo @ Town Ballroom, Buffalo (small-ish venue, great vibe, so much dancing)
8.11- Public Enemy @ Town Ballroom, Buffalo (again, smaller venue, excellent set of mostly their best two records and I’ve been waiting 20 years to see them)
9.7- Unsane, Keelhaul, Surroundings @ Ottobar, Baltimore (loudest, most punishing Unsane set I’d ever seen. My ears were numb afterwards)
10.3- Achilles/ Another Breath @ Bug Jar, Rochester (one of the wildest reactions I’ve seen in years for Achilles. So much fun)
10.28-11.2- Soul Control tour/Gainesville Fest (best vibe, and hanging out with great dudes)
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WESTON CZERKIES, Founder www.Westonsucks.com, Oak and Bone

1) Nina Worf Wolfpaw DeVoe Czerkies....the kitten.
2) New Syracuse DIY show space!
3) Merchandise LP
4) Burning Love - Songs For Burning Lovers LP
5) White Walls - new tape and live performances
6) Eyehategod live @ Maryland Deathfest
7) Iggy & the Stooges live @ All Tomorrow's Parties (for free!)
8) Oak & Bone disaster tour. It had its moments.
9) birth of Hunger Pains. vVv.
10) Girls Nite in Glen Spey with KDV, DP, SOB
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RORY VAN GROL, Achilles Van Grol Control

- Another Breath - A God Complex
- Dangers - Messy Isn't It
- Torche- Songs for Singles
- Fang Island - Day of the Great Leap
- Black Angels - Phosphene Dream
- Rochester, NY , including me moving home and The Owl House (owlhouserochester.com), and Like Wolves Live
- RVIVR - Dirty Water EP
- Coliseum - House With A Curse
- Black Breath- Heavy Breathing
- The Body - All the Waters Turn To Blood 2XLP
-----------------

ROB ANTONUCCI, Achilles, “Proctor”

Terror - Keepers of the Faith
Black Label Society - Order of the Black
Against Me - White Crosses
The Damned Things - Ironclast
Katy Perry - Teenage Dream
Soilwork - The Panic Broadcast
Sleigh Bells - Treats
Holy Grail - Crisis in Utopia
The March - Demo (7")
The Curl and Drag - Demo

TRANSLATE #5 NOW AVAILABLE!

2010-12-20T22:14:00.000-08:00

TRANSLATE strikes back! The brand-spankin' new issue that is a big, fat 76 1/2 size pages of nothing but interviews... but with who? Absolute nobodies, that's who. This time around I chose to simply interview almost 20 of my closest friends, ask them about life, growing up, how we met, and all the simple joys in life, as well as the tough times. Stupid kid memories, terrible high school classes, making our way across the country, having children, marriage, adult stuff, and maybe a little music because... well, it's inevitable. Maybe you know some of these folks, but you probably don't. So take a walk in my shoes and see what all the hub-bub is about.
Get it HERE
On a personal note, I've had the idea to do a zine like this for about 5 years now. It's not terribly original, but it sure is rare. I just couldn't wrap my head around how I was going to execute it because how weird is it to ask your friends about things you already knew? So once I did construct a framework idea of how to carry this thing out, and come up with a list of potential interview candidates, I dove right into it. The whole project was completed within one month and somehow I came up with almost 20 interviews and 76 pages. I had to cut a couple out even, as it just got a little out of control and my goal was to be done by Christmas. Well, here we are. So check it out, won't you?

LIKE WOLVES JOIN HEX RECORDS

2010-12-09T21:21:00.000-08:00

It's been a little quiet on the blog front lately, but it's mostly because I've been putting a shitload of work in on the new issue of TRANSLATE, which I think will be a really cool one. Aside from that, a lot of snow has been getting shoveled... also, quite time consuming.
On the news front though, I'd like to announce that I'll be releasing the next LIKE WOLVES recording. They'll be putting out a long player on Hex come summer 2011. Recording will take place late in the Winter. Color me stoked, not only because of a long-standing love affair between Rochester and Syracuse peoples, but because there is a consistent wealth of good bands that come from this area, and good dudes in those bands.
Along with that release, OAK AND BONE will be readying their first full length release for the same time. The riffs are getting riffier, and the smoke is getting thicker. This thing will melt your stereo when it is finished, this I do believe.
OK, that is all for now. Coffee and transcribing interviews from now 'til Christmas.

FEST PART 2- REVIEWS OF STUFF!

2010-11-22T18:21:00.000-08:00

I always put some scratch aside to pick up some records and stuff while I'm at Fest because I know it's a veritble buyers market for the new and the obscure, rife with people and distros around every corner looking to hawk their stuff. This year was no exception and I was happy to spread a little love around to the bands both familiar and new that I enjoyed, as well as seek out those hidden gems in the back of some cardboard bin. (* not reviewed on this list: the bootleg Nation Of Ulysses shirt I scored, holla!)

1.6 BAND, “Broke Up”
Who? Yeah, I know. This is one of those bands that were very influential in their time, but mostly to other bands and then pretty much disappeared off the map. They reformed recently and dropped a seven inch that is just as good as the material on this early 90’s discography of their 7”s and long players on one shiny plastic CD. Wildly talented and technical for a hardcore band in the early 90s, but still rooted in the melodic and catchy vibe of Dischord bands like Dag Nasty. 1.6 Band had this really cool sound that has been hard for bands to match since. For music nerds get a load of the jazzy and complicated drum parts, the off-time tech-y riffs, and noodly bass parts. For the rest of you, notice how it does not get mired in how technical it is and check the balance of spazzy aggression and melodic punk. A million bands of this nature followed, but none quite the same. $3 at a record store. Take that.

BIG EYES 7”
Heck yes. Awesome debut 7” from the guitarist/vocalist of Cheeky. The approach is sort of garage rock with a sort of 60’s vibe on the melody, but most certainly punk rock. I don’t know why I want to use this as a descriptor, but I’m also getting a little Joan Jett and the Blackhearts feel here too. Whatever. Four songs of catchy garage rock punk, good melodies, sneering yet sweet vocals. I dig it.

BURNING LOVE demo 7”
Most of these songs made it on the full length, but there’s also a Battalion Of Saints cover on here. I kind of like the recording on this better than the full length, and maybe that’s because it is a bit more rough around the edges, giving these already hostile jams a bit more of a gnarly sound. Turbonegro-meets-Entombed style riff worship and loads of solos. Get into it or don’t.

DEAD MECHANICAL, “Addict Rhythms”
I’d been meaning to get this record since the Summer but couldn’t find it anywhere. Luckily, one of the guys who released it happened to have a table right next to me so I just had to get it. Once again, DM made a great collection of songs here. While the rest of the album is stellar, the re-recording of “Sidewalk” from one of their 7”s is still my favorite tune of theirs pretty much ever. A close second is “Pictures In the Hall”. a departure from their typical vibe, mostly due to the somber vocal quality that lends an awesome feel to this great song. The rest of the record is a collection of melodic pop punk rock with bratty and snarled vocals, yet somehow has something more complicated lying beneath... like they listen to a lot of The Police or something. It’s not your typical three chord pop punk record and I love that about them.

DEEP SLEEP, “Turn Me Off” 12”
It seems that a bunch of bands were planning on having Fest as a record release show of some kind and instead just had a test press version available, which is the case here. ot that I mind or anything, as Deep Sleep had their first 12” (I’m guessing that it might have been possible to fit it all on a 7”) in test press form, complete with silkscreened cover art (made out of turning Government Warning sleeves inside out). Either way, I’d seen this band move from standard fare fast hardcore to something that was still fast, but played around with a good deal of melody and I may have made a Wipers comparison in the past. That was wrong. If anything, Deep Sleep has a love affair with all things Descendants and Adolescents, especially on “Be With You”, the opener on side B, as ultra quick and fun as it is. Short record, fast songs, good band. I enjoy.

GIVE, “Boots Of Faith” 7”
I wasn’t super impressed with their 12”, but really liked how wild they were live. This 7” definitely improves upon bringing that live vibe to wax and results in their best song to date, “Boots Of Faith”. It has an excellent melodic quality that just further brings to mind the often made comparison of Swiz to this DC group. The B-side is decent as well, but not nearly as awesome as the A-side. I figure now I ought to check out the React 7” they just dropped as well.

HUNCHBACK, “Pray For Scars”
This was in the free bin at the No Idea record sale/BBQ. Ooof, I can see why. All over the map with no real direction and a lot of bad songwriting. I just can’t figure this one out. It’s pretty bad. Sometimes noisy, weird, and experimental works. Other times, like this, it just fails miserably.

THE JESUS LIZARD, “Head”
This is the only Jesus Lizard recording that I don’t have a physical copy of. So when I was finished setting up my distro table, well before the masses were actually allowed to enter the room, I checked a few of the early offerings from other people. I noticed a guy selling an original vinyl pressing of this and instantly asked what he wanted for it. Five bucks later I was rushing back to my table to secure it like some gem, afraid others would see it and try to scam it off of me. Just like basically everything else this band did this is nearly flawless. I mean, how ridiculous is “Killer McHahn”? Or the winding, serpentine thwack over the head of “Seven Vs. Eight”? God damn, I love this band.

LIQUID LIMBS, “Dichotomy” 7”
Two more songs of face-melting sludge rock from this Florida duo. They definitely don’t get the attention I feel they deserve, but that’s just me. I have described them before as Torche-meets-Big Business- meets King Crimson, and I still stand by that description. Yet these two songs have way more of a Melvins feel to them (which I guess isn’t a stretch from some of the other comparisons) due to the way heavier focus on thick riffs and wild snarled singing going on. I want another full length. Right now, soon, please. Thanks.

OLEHOLE/ TIGON split 7”
I traded one of my records for this based mostly on the cover. I don’t know who Tigon are supposed to be on their side, but Olehole is dressed up as the Furies from The Warriors on their side. Very nice. As far as music goes the Olehole stuff is a little more straight-forward rocking than their EP they dropped a couple years back. A little less on the post-hardcore tip and a bit more in the ‘let’s just rock’ style. Tigon is a bit harder to pin down as they toss in equal parts sort of sludgy rock and more noodly guitar work. It’s pretty decent overall.

PUNCH, “Push/Pull” 12”
Easily one of the best sets at Fest, this new record is just as wild and vitriolic as the live performance they deliver. Punch, for the uninitiated, is a incredibly fast and pissed hardcore band from the Bay Area that mixes parts traditional hardcore and powerviolence blast beats. Their singer has a high pitched piercing scream that some seem to find irritable. Personally, I think her voice is rad and just adds even more anger to the already raucous music. As far as any improvements made from their previous full length there really are none. Essentially it is just more of what you would expect. That certainly isn’t a bad thing, especially given how fast everything flies by. Lyrically it seems a little more personal, a bit less issue-oriented, and somewhat more straightforward lacking those small flourishes of humor I noticed on the last record. The opening track, “Stay Afloat” is probably the best track, especially with the absolutely mind-fucking swirl of drums going on.

TOUCHE AMORE, “To the Beat Of a Dead Horse”
Yeah, yeah, yeah, everyone knows who they are and I know this was released awhile ago. But to date, I have only had a shitty burn of it so it was time to get the real thing, because I actually like physical copies of music I enjoy from bands I like. I wasn’t completely sold on this band early on, but live they are a monster and really deliver like no one’s business. Plus, as far as bands that have a sort of mid-90’s screamo vibe thing happening TA really takes it in a cool direction with their own little twists and turns. Definitely one of the best live bands around right now if you want fun and excitement.
-----------------

I also ought to make note that there were a number of bands that I didn't bother to check out until after I had returned home and now I'm kicking myself for not going to see them play. As an act of contrition I have since ordered some records from them. I, also, urge you to check these bands out: Senders, Grids, Averkiou, and Worry Ship

"DO YOU NEED HELP... PARTYING?" A FEST 9/ TOUR REPORT

2010-11-09T15:52:00.000-08:00

Most everything was in place for Fest this year a few weeks before actually leaving. I had a press pass set so no worries about a ticket. I had paid for a vendor table to hawk my wares. Friends from NYC reserved a hotel room and I’d arranged to kick in for it. Now I just had to figure out how I was going to get there. I could drive down, but knew no one else from Upstate going that wasn’t already in a band touring down. I could fly there, but then have to deal with lugging all my records around.
The solution presented itself when the Soul Control dudes let me roadie for them on their short (AKA ‘mega’) tour to and from the Fest. Their singer lives in Rochester and would have to get to Providence anyway to start tour and I’m on the way. Sounds perfect. Let’s get weird.

DAY 1
“So what time are we leaving?”
“When I get out of work”
Sounds vague enough. Little did I know this would be around 1AM. An overnight drive through the rain to Providence and arriving to town just in time to see the sun rise. We caught a two hour power nap at a friends empty apartment before going to the Soul Control practice space to load up and get on the road. There was the option of bringing swords with us and I wish we had brought them, if anything, just for kicks.

So let me just say that New Jersey is the biggest shithole in the USA, forever and always. Every show I’ve ever seen or played here has been a lot of fun, but the state itself can go to hell. Fortunately, we were not playing here. The population here somehow exist by traveling endlessly in one direction. There is nowhere to turn around, anywhere.
I saw a store in some random Jersey toxic breeding humanity trench called “Teens and Cribs”. I cringe at the thought of what they actually sell.

Approximately $1000 in tolls later we arrived in DC proper. Toll Control ought to be the name of this band.
The show was temporarily at the Corpse Fortress. Every band I’ve known that has played here has had a good time but warned of the stench of this dive. They weren’t lying. As we loaded in all I could think of was how every inch of my being crawled at the thought of putting my head down to sleep anywhere in this putrid mold hive. Good lord, try some Fabreeze once in awhile.
As luck would have it we were told that the show would be moved to Hole In the Sky instead. This proved to be a far better situation as there were actual people at this show, and bands that seemed fairly fun- Monument (very Braid-esque) and Algernon Cadwallder (not my favorite group, but quite a bit better than the last time I saw them). Not exactly a bill catering to the SC dudes, but a nice change of pace for them I’m sure.

This venue is very comfy and kick ass. Working as a collective model, but having an actual plan, as well as nice accommodations, Hole In the Sky gets a big thumbs up for doing things right.
The night concluded with food and the best rest I’d had in days. Even though I was awoken in the middle of the night with a phrase that would become legendary throughout the weekend, and repeated ad nauseum to randos everywhere- “Do you need help... partying?”, Eric’s plea to the other residents here who were clearly partying fine on their own on the other side of the wall.

DAY 2
Jim brought coffee and a coffee maker on tour and nothing was more welcoming this morning than hot coffee, a snack, and enjoying it all on the roof of this place as the sun spread it’s warmth across DC.
Before leaving town we did the only logical thing left to do and got Soul Veg. I ate every last speck of food on my plate. A rare, and potentially dangerous feat to attempt at Soul Veg as their portions come close to ‘mammoth’.
Additionally, a new term came to be: butt sunglasses. I’ll leave that to your own personal interpretation.
Somewhere on the 7 hour drive to Greensboro, NC we stopped in Henderson for gas. A veritable cesspool of human garbage rife with filthy strip malls and residents that speak a dialect barely recognized as the bastardized, thrice-over inbred version of the Kings English rule this concrete land. I wonder what exactly goes on behind the closed curtains at Brothers Internet Cafe? Do people even use Internet Cafes anymore?

Legit Biz is a legit venue. Another case of DIY dudes doing DIY things the right, and awesome, way. The lineup: stellar. The turn out: so-so. But between SC, Oak and Bone, and Burning Love it was more than enough entertainment for all of us, crowd or no crowd.

The post-show plan was a three-way caravan between all three bands straight to Florida. But Oak and Bone must have lost the memo and peeled out before we could leave. So to make up for this we did our best to weird out and intimidate Burning Love’s drummer for no good reason whatsoever.

DAY 3/ FEST DAY 1
Attempts at sleep were shoddy at best and I was awoken at 6AM for driving duty from somewhere South Carolina to Gainesville.
We arrived at around 10AM and I promptly began to load all my shit indoors and set up shop for registration/tabling. There was good company around me except for the unruly and drunk English fella who basically loitered my neighbors table the entire day. Just as a note, distro people HATE it when you unnecessarily block their table. Please, stop doing that.

Soon, my hotel posse found me. I’d known Nate and Sarah for some time now and I was introduced to our other weekend roommate, Erica. Seemed like a solid group of party people.
The Oak and Bone dudes soon followed. Since they were not actually playing Fest, but instead just loitering all weekend they took it upon themselves to essentially run the pool party. They pretty much took complete ownership of the “do you need help... partying” phrase as soon as I told them it and ran headfirst with it. Never have I seen dudes make the most out of a dull situation.
Having a distro table at registration is pretty awesome because you eventually see everyone you want to see all weekend at some point in this one room because they all have to pass through it. I passed my old pal Murray who I hadn’t seen in years. He may be the only other person alive with a “purity and control” braille tattoo. This counts for a lot.

After registration was over I packed things up at my room, checked out some pool partying, and then headed over to Wayward Council because they always have cheap records. I got myself a bootleg Nation Of Ulysses shirt as well as the 1.6 Band discography. The crust monger behind the counter asked me if “I was sure” I wanted to buy that. Yes. Yes, I do you elitist scum farmer. I know it’s easy to displace your inner frustration of complicating your hippie anarcho ideals by selling wares in a capitalist set up by insulting your customers musical tastes, but I promise I won’t tell anyone that you’re furthering consumerism! Really, I’ll keep it a secret, OK?
Onto better things, Burning Love once again totally ripped Fest a new one with one hell of a set and a great way to open the weekend for me. They closed with a cover of “Jack the Ripper” that made most every band that weekend sound like little wiener babies.
Next, I took about ten steps next door to The Venue to see Hard Skin. I’ve only heard stories about this band and that’s it. I was curious to see the real thing. Basically, they are all old grizzled anarcho punks from the UK who make the catchiest Oi music ever and simply make fun of themselves and insult others. Any band that spends about 5 minutes insulting the audience, other bands, and Gainesville before even playing a note gets a thumbs up from me. I don’t think I’ve ever seen more beer cans hurled at a group at one time in my life.
Back to 8 Seconds for the Kylesa/ Torche/ High On Fire triumvirate of heavy. I was already pretty beat at this point and the indoor smoking just made it worse. Kylesa had this great projector thing going their whole set of the spiral shadow cover art and it got pretty trippy in there. Torche can really do no wrong and brought the place to it’s knees. I wanted to rage for the whole High On Fire set because they sounded incredible. But after three songs I was toast.

Seriously, this smoke is fucking destroying my will to live. Florida really needs to get out of the 20th century and establish some no indoor smoking laws. Goddamnit. Just swallow your cigarette for chrissakes and get the job done quicker.

Back at the hotel I caught up with my Fest-mates and attempted to make Ramen noodles in a coffee maker with mixed results. In fact, it was mostly just a big mess with minimal food obtained in the end.

DAY 4/ FEST DAY 2
Morning dawned with a fresh approach to life after getting some of the best seven hours of sleep ever. A dip in the pool made things all that much better and I started to truly feel as if I were on vacation. Ah.... hotel life.
Breakfast followed with a walk over to Karma Kream for coffee and a bagel. Typically I will not pay for a bagel when Dunkin Donuts gives them out for free back home, unbeknownst to them. Well, when in Rome, pay for things I suppose. It was worth it too.

Back to the business of seeing bands. After a quick visit to 1982 to catch a few songs by the stellar Big Eyes it was over to The Atlantic for a long day. Oh, what is this? A line for Touche Amore? Ha! Multi-pass, thank you once again. Yeah, hate all you want, I worked for this thing and I’m going to use it as much as I can. Nevertheless, Touché Amore is a band that just gets better each time I see them. So much intensity, crowd interaction, and passion for their music.
I took a side step and checked out Arms Aloft at Rum Runners for a bit. Musically, not much separates them from other high-intensity pop punk bands, but they have really solid gear and that goes a long way in terms of how good they sound. Gear nerd style, what’s up?
Back to Atlantic to take in a set by Comadre. I’ve seen this band many times and while I really have little interest in their actual music they are always an awesome band to watch because of their energy, the always frantic crowd response, and the fact that they’re all rad dudes.
Deep Sleep followed soon and their Descendants/ Adolescents vibe was a grand thing to see. And while I detest indoor smoking (did I already mention this?) the one and only exception to this all weekend was watching their bass player wildly beat the bejeezus out of his instrument while puffing a smoke down to the filter. One and only exception.

At this point a break was needed and I just relaxed for awhile, snacking on some snacks and waiting for Mayflowers set to begin over at Rum Runners. Once there it was great to see basically all the Upstate NY people at one place and we had ourselves a little hang time prior to the set. Mayflower ended up getting a great response and I was really happy for them. When they broke into “I’m a hack of all trades, master of none” from “The World Needs Ditch Diggers” I couldn’t help but launch myself atop the crowd and scream at the top of my lungs. That song seems to sum up my life situation perfectly these days.

I hung around for awhile to see Former Thieves who were good. Although after the high from the last set they just weren’t as good. It’s not their fault that Mayflower were so much fun, I still like Former Thieves just fine.
A hop, skip, and jump over to The Venue to see, for once, a formal Paint It Black set. I’d missed them in ‘08 but caught their infamous U-Haul ‘set’. This time they had a stage and reliable electricity to power their jams, and the absence of any cops on horses. Their set was equal parts the energy of the music and what Dan says between songs, and those nuggets of wisdom were pure gold.
I bailed a little early on their set so I could try and see a bit of the Bridge and Tunnel all covers set, just to see how that was playing out. When I got there all my hotel roomies were there jamming as well. The vibe was so killer and we locked arms, and raised fists, and shouted along to “Rise Above” and “D.E.A.D Ramones” before all leaving for the Atlantic for the last few sets of the night.
Over there Hour Of the Wolf had just started and I wasn’t about to miss their particular brand of madness. Earlier in the day their guitarist had made note of how bitchin’ my Rocket From the Crypt shirt was (he was correct) and we discussed the finer points of how they were the world’s greatest rock n’ roll band for a good twenty minutes or so. This automatically makes HotW ten times better than they already are to me. They obliged with a killer set, sans nakedness, blood, and trash cans. But it was still wild and Lance’s between-song verbal screeds and off-putting psychotic humor makes things all the more enjoyable.
Before the end of the night I must have received another ten compliments on my shirt. Shit, I’ve been wearing this all day, where you turkeys been?

So, as an aside, during HotW set there was a line wrapped around the block (multi-pass) awaiting a ‘surprise’ set by Off With Their Heads. Now, I’m not a huge OWTH fan. I like them, but not enough to wait in line for an hour or more. After HotW ended and OWTH (got that?) was to begin the room almost emptied out and it seemed like they weren’t letting anyone in. Seeing as I was no super fan or anything I thought people more deserving ought to be seeing this and I made mention of it to the door guy that the room was empty. Apparently, he did not realize this and soon started letting some people in. It was the least I could do to alleve my pangs of guilt. Later on I discovered that apparently the fire marshall had been watching the Atlantic like a hawk and that was why they were being extra careful about letting people in all night.

OK, enough about that. How about fuckin’ Punch. I missed them when they canceled their East Coast tour this Summer, skipped Rain Fest in the Spring, and I wasn’t about to miss them again. Their singer, Meghan, came onto the stage in a yellow jump suit and it seemed rather odd until she introduced herself as April O’Neil and talked about the Foot Clan taking over the Fest. The rest of band got in stage in full Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle garb and started tossing cardboard throwing stars at the crowd, and then laid waste to the whole freakin’ building. Fucking stoked. Halfway through their set, in true TMNT fashion, they took a pizza break and gave the crowd some slices. Easily one of the top 5 sets all weekend. Raging hardcore, plus cheeseless pizza, plus some childhood obsession, equals great times.

Some wild after shows were again planned, but once more the sleep wall hit me like a ton of bricks and it was time to mosey back to my quarters. As we all sauntered back packs of roving pre-Halloween scantily-clad college girls flaunted what I guess passed as ‘costumes’. Yet amongst it all one lone girl had made an elaborate giraffe costume and it was so bad ass that we had to get a picture with her.

DAY 5/ FEST DAY 3
Sunday is always a late starting day. People sleep off hangovers, and in my case I was sleeping off a crucial bang over, AKA metal neck.
I ventured out fairly early to obtain breakfast and made the poor decision to use up that remaining hummus I’d left out for three days. Thus began a bout of the ‘itis’ that stuck with me for the next couple of days. Not long after eating it struck while I was getting ready to go for a swim. I was able to put it aside for awhile as I enjoyed the water but it snuck up again while trying to catch The Sidekicks solo set and I had to leave. See, in my case, I refuse to throw up and have held that oath for 10 years now. Next to centipedes nothing is more revolting to me than puking. I’d rather put a gun in my mouth than willfully puke. Instead, I usually walk it off, and it usually works, but not always. See, I’m on a deadline here. If I can’t get down for Lemuria in about an hour I’ll probably have to start killing people or something.

Success. The ‘itis’ has been suppressed because the power of Lemuria got me dancing and shaking my butt. Multiple stage dives, sing-alongs, and joyous dancing with random people I never met got me thrilled. I mean seriously, if you can’t have fun during Lemuria you probably have no soul anyway. So since I’m typically Mr. No Fun (over 30, vegan straight edge... yup, no fun guy) I made it my job for those thirty minutes to be the life of the party. I think it went quite well if you ask me. I did not require any help... partying.
After Lemuria I had to make a stop back at the hotel. Walking back I was riding such a wave of awesomeness that not even the shitty crust folk punk being played by some filthy degenerates across the street could deter my mood. I planned on giving their grime-ladden hippie filth a little rock walk in support as I approached. That is, until one of their scum brothers sprawled out in the middle of the street puked all over the place and harshed everyone’s buzz. Of course, this led me to re-visit my ‘itis’ and potentially join him in a hurl fest but my blood oath to never throw up kicked in and I passed the stench posse with little to no fanfare, nor respect for that matter.

Back at the hotel I had to grab a box of records and head over to The Atlantic to do merch stuff for Soul Control and see bands I wanted to see anyway. I rather dreaded the idea of walking all the way back to the show carrying a big box of records until I noticed a shuttle bus in the parking lot. I inquired at the front desk about getting rides to places and they happily stated that if you were a guest they would drive you anywhere in town your little heart desired. Well hot corn, I think I’ll take advantage of this!
I grabbed some snacks, records, prepared my now tamed stomach, and headed downstairs to where my chariot awaited. Here at Hex Records we ride in class.

I got there in time to see City Of Ships and met with the SC dudes to set stuff up properly.
Liquid Limbs followed soon, and just like their set two years ago they had a small crowd. It’s too bad because that band is fucking unreal good. Equal parts Big Business, Torche, The Melvins, and King Crimson as performed by only two dudes they slayed my face repeatedly. Get your hands on their 12” or 7” immediately, care of Sound Study recordings. It will be worth it.
I helped the SC dudes load the rest of their gear in afterwards and when they weren’t looking I snuck in a little surprise for their set. All week they had a pot leaf decorated snuggie in their van that some other group had left and it served as a fine blanket on those overnight drives. But this evening it would serve a different purpose. Oh yes, it would.
Before taking off for a quick minute to try and witness a bit of what would undoubtedly be a wild Municipal Waste set I saw a few songs from SLCs overlooked and over-rocked Loom. Good stuff.
So, at the Venue- enough cigarette smoke to choke a horse? Check. Unnecessary pre-set mosh by drunk idiots? Check. Drunk crusties who somehow scrounged up enough change to get in smelling up the place? Maybe, my sense of smell had been annihilated by the smoke. MW entered with intros for each member who were dressed up as some cloaked doom dude, a nun, a juggalo, and Dee Snider respectively. That’s really all I needed to see to be honest because the rest went exactly as I would have expected it to.

OK, back to see the SC set. Thankfully, they had a respectable sized crowd that were quite responsive despite having to go against some stiff competition at other venues. I snuck off for a minute mid-set to put on the weed snuggie, tied tightly at the waist so I didn’t trip and executed some surprise mosh/stagedive action as the weed wizard in order to initiate full room enjoyment of the set. This was shortly followed with a leapfrog stagedive over Rorys head, it being only the second time in my life I’d been able to attempt such a feat. Needless to say, I was quite proud of myself and it was a fitting conclusion to a most excellent weekend. By set’s end, no one here needed help partying.

So instead of packing up and getting on the road since we had to be in Virginia the next day the SC dudes decided to play an after show in a dead end street, complete with a forest behind it, with Touché Amore and Defeater. They managed to kick out two songs (one of which was “School” by Nirvana) before Rory slipped and knocked over most of the drums, thus pre-emptively ending their set. The ensuing confusion was actually kind of funny to witness.
OK, so are we driving now? Nope. Let’s get a few hours of sleep and leave at 7AM instead. Fun.

DAY 6
It was still dark when the van rolled up and I sank into it as we began to head back North.
At some rest stop somewhere in the South, while waiting to use the single stall restroom Eric heard the following Deliverance-styled out take uttered between a son and Father: “Paw, you take a shit while I piss” . He proceeded to use the ladies room instead where their Mother had just exited leaving behind an enormous mound of shit in the toilet.
We stopped at a Dennys in South Carolina somewhere. The menu here has about twice the amount of items as it does in the North. This menu seriously needs it’s own index it’s so big. Things that probably should never be combined, nor consumed, by humans are proudly displayed in this encyclopedia of bad ideas. How to make a grilled cheese better? Let’s put mozzarella sticks and buffalo wings in there too! My arteries hardened just thinking about it. I opted for coffee and potatoes. This set in another bout of the ‘itis’ though and I had to take a walk outdoors to relieve it and reconsider my previous theory that my cure for this was stage diving. I mean, it worked during Lemuria. It was entirely plausible that any debilitating disease could be cured with a healthy dose of stage diving honestly. Common cold? Stage dive. Cancer of the stomach? More stage dives. It’s medically sound, or so I thought. This bout had me aching all the way up to Harrisonburg, where the show was that night.
The band played somewhere that looked like a metal dungeon, or part time goth club, downstairs from an upscale Ethiopian cafe. Certainly an odd combination, but it resulted in a free platter of Ethiopian food for us. I once again forced the ‘itis’ aside because 1) Ethiopian food rules, and 2) how often does one get a free platter of it?
A band called Mirror Cage played this evening. Their name instantly conjures up images of glam dudes looking to ‘make it’ as they wait for that Atlantic A&R guy to show up to one of the umpteenth local dive bar gigs they play and sign them, finally. Instead, they turned out to be cool dudes, very talented, and extremely metal. We dubbed their brand of music ‘long metal’ as there really isn’t a metal band around that plays for no less than 40 minutes.

DAY 7
Back in Providence in time to flop on same empty apartment couch and sleep through the afternoon. This is how I spent a good portion of my birthday and I was happy with it.
But the evening proved to be more birthday style I guess because, seeing as Rory has worked essentially every cool job there is in this town, I was hooked up with free Nice Slice Pizza and a pound of coffee from New Harvest, whose roastery happened to be in the same building the last show of ‘tour’ was in this night.
It was a big show with Howl, Trap Them, and Every Time I Die, with SC opening things up to a very receptive audience.
I hadn’t seen ETID in a couple years live and they were expectedly wild. Within the first couple songs someone threw a trash can on stage and they seemed completely unfazed by it, as if it happens every night... which it probably does. Either way, great dudes, great band. They even gave me a little birthday shout out. How kind!
Of the few people I know in this town I think I saw all of them, and Providence opened it’s arms to me and I graciously accepted a big, fat burly hug from her. It was a good birthday and a nice way to end a very fun and exhaustive tour. Now just one more overnight drive back home to get back to real life.

OAK AND BONE FALL TOUR

2010-10-20T20:15:00.000-07:00

OK jerks, put down your crack pipes and pay attention. The mighty OAK AND BONE are leaving this week for a three week tour of the East Coast/Midwest.
They're playing some pretty neat shows along the way and then crashing The Fest in Gainesville, in which they will attempt to budge their way into whatever house show happens to be going down.
As an added bonus, Hex Records will be representing at The Fest as well. We will have a table at registration on Friday and basically be the only non drunk dude raging all weekend. Look for the bald head, short beard, and coffee-fueled fiend all up in your shit.

Anyways, below are the OAK AND BONE tour dates. Check their blog here for more details on each show.

10/21 Syracuse, NY @ Spark Art Gallery w/ Black Throat Wind, more
10/22 Bethlehem, PA @ Secret Art Space w/ Ladder Devils
10/23 Philadelphia, PA @ Danger Danger Gallery w/ Towers, Snowing, more
10/24 New Brunswick, NJ @ TBA
10/25 Washington, DC @ Hole In the Sky
10/26 Morgantown, WV @ 123 Pleasant St. w/ Ancient Shores
10/27 Harrisonburg, VA @ Crayola House w/ Earthling
10/28 Greensboro, NC @ Legitimate Business w/ Soul Control
11/1 Tampa, FL @ Unit 19
11/2 Pensacola, FL @ Sluggos
11/3 Mobile, AL @ TBA
11/4 Birmingham, AL @ The Firehouse w/ Hostage Calm, Transit, Afficionado
11/5 Nashville, TN @ Little Hamilton Collective w/ Imbroglio
11/6 Somerset, KY @ Kingbee Ground Sound w/ Highgate
11/7 Cincinnati, OH @ TBA w/ White Walls
11/8 Cleveland, OH @ Now That's Class

REVIEW TIME!

2010-10-14T17:39:00.000-07:00

Howdy! This will probably be the last batch of reviews before Gainesville Fest... which I'll be doing a thorough report upon getting back. Oh yeah, and the last batch before my birthday, which is all the more reason to send me things. I mean, you only turn 33 once right? So let's get on that.
Also, don't forget about the CD sale in the webstore. A couple weeks left on that. Get 'em here

BLACK THROAT WIND demo
This is probably the best demo I’ll hear all year. Here we have a group that is a project band of sorts for a few people who keep themselves pretty busy with a wide variety of other Syracuse bands, yet unite to do something that sounds like it would be way too over-the-top, much too complicated, and with a serious issue of too many cooks in the kitchen. Still, it comes together flawlessly and sounds awesome. I really can’t describe what these guys do aside from write fairly lengthy and epic songs. They employ the use of keyboards, two drummers, and some other neat effects, but they can hardly be said to go the Mogwai, or Explosions In the Sky, or shoegaze route that other ‘epic’ bands go. They just jam the fuck out of some great riffs, sounding very inspiring, uplifting, fun, yet thoughtful. And then they dive into a heady riff, all the while the vocals, nasally stream of conscious yelping and almost Americana at times, deliver stories of growing up and moving on. It’s simply great stuff by some dudes who all are exceptionally creative in their respective primary bands. So getting them all in the same room to hash out these huge songs is a treat that could go horribly wrong in most instances, due to butting of heads and egos, yet results in the best possible outcome one could hope for. (myspace.com/blackthroatwind)

EBONY SORROW demo
This Syracuse band debuted a few years ago and then fizzled out for awhile. Now they have returned and have recorded a few more songs. They describe themselves as a black metal band, but it’s really only on the final track where it sounds like a straight black metal band. The other two tracks lean more towards an old school death metal vibe with some thrash and the occasional mid-tempo metalcore (and I mean that in a good way) tendencies. Yet, with a song title like “Defile the lamb Of Christ” one is inclined to believe that this thing comes packaged in a goat’s hide, rancid blood dripping from the CD. It doesn’t though, and that’s OK with me. And unlike many black metal bands this doesn’t sound like it was recorded in a dumpster, yet I’d suggest that the leads could use some polishing. (myspace.com/ebonysorrow)

GODS AND QUEENS ep 2 12”
The second untitled EP from Philly’s Gods and Queens also continues their trend of not titling their songs. But that’s not terribly important. What is, though, is that we get a handful of songs from one of my current favorite bands to kick my ass. There is a somewhat more reserved tone overall on this one, part of it is the addition of some more leads on the guitars (making for less of a ‘wall-of-sound’ approach), part of it is the recording. Unlike their first EP, which was like an homage to the huge sounds of My Bloody Valentine this EP explores a bit more in terms of melody, but still retaining the familiar character of their previous stuff. I’m way into it, obviously. This also has a lyric sheet that doesn’t quite correspond to the songs, but seems to tell a narrative of sorts. Who knows, maybe these songs all have a similar lyrical theme. Regardless, I enjoy listening to it, making up my own meaning to it all, and getting destroyed by sonic beauty. This also is a one-sided record with a screened b-side. It came out on a Euro label so it’s been a little tough finding it in the States, even though the band are giving it away for free on their site. (Sons Of Vesta)

HENRY AND GLEN FOREVER
This is easily the weirdest, wildest, and funniest thing to come out since... I dunno... comedy? The premise is page after page of single panel comics drawn by a few different artists regarding an idea that Henry Rollins and Glen Danzig are ‘domestic partners’. Their neighbors are 80’s rock icons Hall and Oates, who are also Satanists. You see their journal entries, you see them argue, they get cuddly with a movie at home, Hall and Oates try to kill their cat. Ya know, the basic stuff. I have no idea how this idea came to fruition, I just want to see a part two already. (Igloo Tornado)

PINS AND NEEDLES zine #1, 2
How could I not be interested in a zine that is named after one of my favorite Deadguy songs ever? And like Deadguy there is a lot of frustration within these pages about basic growing up, work-related bullshit. On the other hand, it takes a more mature spin by digressing upon the small details. The little things about hitting thirty, sort of settling down, not quite understanding hardcore in this day and age, and attempting to keep a piece of that youth and excitement about punk after you’ve pretty much seen it all. I can relate in many ways, which is why reading these zines was interesting to me. There’s not really much other than writing in here so don’t expect a lot of pictures or reviews or interviews. Some of this is very funny too, in a ‘Punk Kid Walks Into a Bar...’ (it’s another great 90’s zine) sort of way. (pinsandneedleszine@gmail.com)

SHUT UP AND LOVE THE RAIN, by Robnoxious
The author of this has been a regular contributor to many well known zines over the years and in here he strikes out on his own to discuss his upbringing, as well as current, issues dealing with sexual identity. It’s always a bit odd for me to read these types of publications simply because I’ve always been a pretty plain ‘ol straight white male. So I’m about as average as they come. Yet reading them is always a window into a pretty uncommon and somewhat foreign lifestyle for me and hearing about how others live can be interesting, if not educational. Nevertheless, the author discusses growing up experimenting with both males and females, identifying as queer, but retaining a bi attitude towards relations... actually, it gets pretty confusing. Additionally, the author also has an in-depth conversation with his parents where his father (already in his 60’s) comes out as transgender, and is undergoing a sex change slowly but surely. Yup, it gets that confusing and weird. Through it all though, the author takes a very simplistic and humanistic approach to his relationships with significant others and his family. Yup, it’s a strange read, but hey, here we are! (Microcosm)

SHOPPERS tape #2
I was pretty excited about the first tape from this Syracuse three-piece simply because, in this town, you don’t ever get to hear a band that sounds like this. That made me pleased. And on tape #2 they continue this style of very noisy, very angular noise punk in the vein of early Sonic Youth and Huggy Bear, on a crash course with some almost no wave early 80’s NYC punk, all within the context of recording on a $100 budget. So yeah, it sounds pretty trashy, but I’m sure that’s the point. Yet, each of the three songs on here basically rolls right into the next one as if they were all just one big song about 9 minutes in length. While I dig this band and what they’re doing I sort of prefer the short blasts of weird melody, raw punk, and sung/yelled vocals contained within a single song. It gets a little challenging when it sounds like one big song. I need space! (Drugged Conscience)

V/A, “LOSE LOSE LOSE” 12”
Three bands dropping two songs each across 12 inches of wax, who all fit the bill for the modern version of loud noise rock. And if you know me, you know I’m a sucker for that stuff. These are the bands that grew up on Botch, Unsane, and the entire AmRep catalog and are now making their own noise for the 21st century. Fight Amp is probably the most familiar of the triad, having already released two full lengths and a slew of splits over the years, and probably the heir apparent to the Unsane school of filthy, grating noise rock genre. Their two jams hardly disappoint and are a good raging slab of the stuff I dig. Kowloon Walled City rep from the West Coast and have a more dirgy low-end thing going, slow in tempo, bass vibes that could cause unexpected bowel movements, yet with a keen sense of melody and tone that shows that while these dudes are older and don’t tour much they have a wisdom that informs the listener that they know exactly what they want out of their sound. These songs follow in the vibe that their somewhat recent, and most excellent, EP/full length, “Gambling On the Richter Scale” did, yet at a slightly slower pace overall. Finally, we have Ladder Devils, the new project from Tim and Matt from The Minor Times, as well as a former member of their other older band Inkling. Their two songs here are quite different from one another, though you can recognize the familiar song writing style of the members though they aim to get a little more rocking and less mathy. Imagine them continuing on the route they were headed with the final MT full length and polish things up a bit. It shows promise and I’m naturally interested to see where they take it. This record has a small pressing and comes in a silkscreened package with cool art and clear vinyl. Fancy shmancy all around. (Brutal Panda)

V/A, “NOT DEAD YET”
This is a compilation of Syracuse alternative/indie bands from the early 80s up to some more current bands. It leaves a substantial amount of bands out, so I’m guessing it’s sort of based upon favoritism, or at least bands that were of personal relevance to the curator of this comp. What a lot of people don’t know is that Syracuse has had a pretty good history of excellent indie bands over the last couple of decades. Then again, many of these bands don’t or didn’t tour much at all so it’s no wonder no one knows about them. Nevertheless, some of the groups represented here are the Pixies-influenced Flashing Astonishers, the sloppy proto-hardcore punk of 80’s band Milton’s Disciples, the New Wave sounds of 70s/80s group The Trend, down to the Clutch-styled bar rock of Thunderosa. While many of these bands are familiar to me, if by nothing but name, others are completely off my radar, having fallen through the cracks of time in this town. All in all, 15 tracks of history are on this thing, and I’m thinking a volume 2 is in order to further document the scene here past and present. (zippypops@yahoo.com)

XEROGRAPHY DEBT #27
The nicest thing about this zine each issue is probably the cover. It’s very well-illustrated and interesting, always. The contents, though, don’t do much for me. Basically, this is a zine that is about reviewing and discussing other zines. The concept is nothing new and it’s perfectly fine to dedicate a zine to other zines. Heck, maybe you would find out about some reads you hadn’t otherwise known about. Where this zine tends to frost my ass though is how out of the dozen or so contributors each gets to discuss a handful of their favorite zines of late, yet each contributor tends to talk about the same zines over and over, as well as give verbal pats on the back to their fellow contributors who also make zines. It’s like reading the same review 12 times over, through the course of 70 or so pages. How is that not redundant and annoying? (davida@leekinginc.com)

ROCKTOBER CD SALE!

2010-10-02T22:13:00.001-07:00

I know CDs are going the way of the dinosaur. But ya know what? I still like them. I still play them often. And, of course, you can too. On the cheap. All month every CD from the catalog is $5. And if you get two of them it's $8
The deal is for anyone worldwide (the only catch being those outside the US have to throw a couple bucks towards shipping, but it's still a deal). Americans- no shipping.
Yup.
Get on that and make my attic shelf space reappear!

Webstore linkage here

ACHILLES THIS SUNDAY- 10.3.10

2010-09-29T21:19:00.000-07:00

In what I'm guessing will be the last show they play this year (who knows though), ACHILLES will lay waste to their hometown of Rochester, NY.
after that they'll take some time to write and record some new songs destined for release before the end of the next millenium, or probably some time in 2011.
Here's the info:

Sunday, October 3 · 6:00pm-11:00pm
The Bug Jar
219 Monroe Ave.
Rochester, NY

Doors: 6 PM
Cost: $7

Achilles (http://www.myspace.com/achillesband)
Another Breath (http://www.myspace.com/anotherbreath)
Like Wolves (http://www.myspace.com/likewolves666)
The Curl and Drag (First show - members of Achilles, How We Are, Dasha, Like Wolves, Pistol Buckets - http://www.myspace.com/thecurlanddragband)

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/eve ... 654&ref=mf

IT'S A SHOW(S) REVIEW!

2010-09-12T14:46:00.000-07:00

I don't do show reviews that often, but when I do it's because there was something really, really kick ass about it. And for some reason, there have been a lot of kick-ass shows this year.
So why the beginning of a holiday weekend sucked so much ass on a ridiculous level is beyond me, but it probably had something to do with a karmic balancing act to counter the unfuckwithable amount of ass-kicking that occurred in the second half. Things have to even out somehow I guess.
The ever posi and enthusiastic Motion rolled up to my house and we got on our way to Philly in the early afternoon. We got to town with plenty of time to kill, and a number of dudes I hadn't seen in a long time were already present, so some catching up was had. We needed some food soon though and some guy (Jamie Getz, nobody special) directed us to a Mexican joint a few blocks away. I realized I'd been to this place before (La Cantina) and things got comfortable quick. They soon got a little more comfortable when, in the distance, I could see a tidal wave of people coming down the hill. I quickly recognized this as a critical mass bike ride, probably about 2000 people deep. Yet something was off. As they drew closer I realized most of them were nude, or close to it.
Apparently it was the annual naked bike ride, and we just happened to be in the right place at the right time to see it. How fortunate for us. So yeah, I took pictures.

Upon returning to the show things had just began and Zann, from Germany, was getting pretty spastic on the little stage in this packed tight room. I quickly spotted the majority of the dudes from Minor Times/Inkling hanging around and was excited to see them all as it had also been some time since we all caught up.
OK, enough of the schmoozy talk.
Now, don't get me wrong. I love Young Widows. But I've seen them a lot, and while it's always a pleasure, my main reason for coming here was to see Helms Alee. I mean, they barely ever leave the West Coast and I live on the East Coast and, well, who knows when I'll ever be able to see them. So I had to do this trip you see. And as I expected they just killed it. So goddamn loud, but everything sounded just right. I naturally wanted to hear more off of "Night Terror" but they brought out around 4 or 5 new songs I'd never heard. The structures were a little hard to grasp, but by the next night of hearing them it all made sense and I'm looking forward to hearing them on record. Honestly, if you don't have their record you need to get it now. Like, stop reading and get it from these people.
If you need more info their singer/guitarist Ben was in Harkonen and that familiar Northwest KARP/Melvins vibe is there, but with a great melody that brings to mind parts of Sonic Youth and Unwound. Additionally, both ladies in the rhythm section provide vocals as well to round it out and work as a team to deliver some of the hardest-hitting, loudest playing, jams I've heard in years. They also play in a cool band called Lozen if you're so inclined to look into their music too.

After my perma-grin had faded ever-so-slightly when they finished I noticed my pal Scott had called. He's an ex-Syracuse dude living here and I figured he had received my e-mail about me being down here. In fact, a friend of his had randomly called my number on his phone and he had no clue I was here. I quickly informed him to get his ass to kung Fu Necktie to see Young Widows. He complied.
YW ripped it up, of course, and the new jams sound tight. A couple were familiar ones I'd heard a few months back, others were new to my ears. All I know is that band knows exactly how they want to sound and do it splendidly every time I see them.
Between the rest of the evening and the next afternoon Scott insisted on taking us out to places to eat various sandwiches. How can I see no to that? We were also introduced to the solo album by hip-hop artist Dee Dee King (AKA Dee Dee Ramone), and his song "Funky Man". Let's just say the rest of the trip we were saying "well all-right" every chance we got.

A surprisingly traffic-free drive to NYC got us there way early for the show, which had already been pushed back an hour from the posted calendar time so we basically wandered around SoHo for a few hours.
The regular NYC crew was absent tonight as they were either out seeing Sleep, or they were really asleep. I'd never really seen a show at Cake Shop, though I'd wandered around it a couple times. It really is terribly small and sweaty down there. But it sort of made both Helms Alee and Young Widows sets that much more bad ass (with the exception of the really tall guy behind me during YW that kept hand-banging directly into my shoulder).

Regardless, we took way too long to say our goodbyes, probably because the weekend was so great that I didn't want it to end. It was a long drive home, but by 5AM I was in bed, and totally fucked up by throwing off my body clock and too much coffee had taken it's toll. Well worth it though.

MAH-WIGE....

2010-09-08T22:44:00.001-07:00

So a little over a week ago our good buddy, and long time Hex Records supporter Aaron Jenkins got married to his wonderful lady Taisa. You probably know Aaron as the bassist for Ed Gein (yeah, his beard is shorter these days). Isn't that a great pic? And yes, he is contemplating a life of marriage and mortgage with a root beer in hand. The festivities were held at a kids camp and instead of dancing and drinking there was canoeing and archery. Seriously, most unique reception ever.
Anyway, congrats are in order for these two!

ACHILLES SHOWS THIS WEEKEND, SEPTEMBER TOO

2010-08-24T15:24:00.000-07:00

It's a rare occasion, and one worth celebrating when the dudes in ACHILLES get a moment to put aside their other priorities and play a couple shows.
And it just so happens they're doing two this weekend, as well as a major rager in NYC in September!
Here's the info. Make sure to be there!

Friday August 27th 7pm
Mohawk Place, Buffalo, NY

The return of ACHILLES...
(http://www.myspace.com/achilles)
with
Make Do and Mend (http://www.myspace.com/makedoandmend)
All Teeth (http://www.myspace.com/allteeth666)
and just added...DEFEATER (http://www.myspace.com/defeater)

$10
16+ w.ID
Tickets available at all Ticketmaster locations, Ticketmaster.com, or at the door.

ACHILLES (Hospice is still better than whatever you're listening to right now)
MAKE DO AND MEND (CT pop punkish awesome. I heard they broke into marineland)
DEFEATER (Bridge 9. They rock. And they care about shit.)
ALL TEETH (Fast Hardcore. Good. Myspace.com/allteeth666)
BRAVER DAYS (Formerly ROAD TO RECOVERY. Myspace.com/braverdays)

August 28th. 10 bux. Doors at 7.
Westcott Community Center (826 Euclid Ave., Syracuse)

Saturday, Sept. 25th
NYC, NY
A benefit for the Jake Stults Foundation

featuring:
RUINER
ATTICA! ATTICA!
ANOTHER BREATH
ACHILLES
SUCH GOLD
MAYFLOWER

ALL AGES
NO ALCOHOL

Notes:

*Advance tickets are limited to 150 only. There will be walk-ups available at the door, but buying in advance is encouraged if you want to guarantee entry, especially if you're traveling.

*Tickets are $10, plus an extra $1 to cover PayPal's service fee.

*Tickets are WILL-CALL ONLY. Physical tickets will not be available or shipped to you.

REVIEWS BY A CRANKY BASTARD

2010-08-21T20:32:00.000-07:00

Suffer my reviews all ye who submit music for scrutiny.
Honestly, I'm not sure why it worked out this way, but I just got heaps of more indie-leaning music this time around. Not much in the 'hard' category. Oh well, it matters not to me, even though I honestly don't care too much for a lot of this stuff. Anyways, you have nothing better to do than to read this for the next five minutes....

BARS OF GOLD, “Of Gold” 12”
So the press release on this jammer says a couple cats from that Bear Vs. Shark band are in this new band. Fair enough. That group got pretty interesting towards the end, so it’s nice to know their same penchant for playing things a bit different shows up here as well. And it certainly is an odd vibe going on here. I can’t decide if it works or not yet, but that’s part of the fun of trying something new, and I get the feeling this group is having fun figuring it out for themselves. What you get is this rather odd mix of rugged Americana rock, a dash of post hardcore, and some rather funky organs. It’s like Scouts Honor colliding with later-era At the Drive In, and cut with just a bit of Modest Mouse. That seems a little strange, but hey, I get the impression these aren’t any regular joes behind the music either. (Friction Records)

BURNING LOVE, “Songs For Burning Lovers”
I’ve been quite interested to see what this band was all about since I’m a big fan of Chris Colohan, particularly because he tends to align himself with good bands. It’s been a winning streak thus far, why should I miss out on this new project? Well, this is, in fact, a bit of a departure from the frighteningly loud and metal-tinged raging hardcore those familiar are used to. Burning Love has a far more ballsy rock vibe to it and is right in line with groups such as Turbonegro, Hellacopters, and the Stooges... of course, with Chris’ well worn hardcore scream right up front. And while the music is fun, it’s a weird mix that is confusing me. The vocals are way in front and the rest of the record is really quiet. Is it just me? I have to crank the bass on my record player just to get some balls out of this recording as it is one of the quieter sounding records I’ve picked up in the last few years. I’m not saying it’s like soft rock or anything, it’s just a strangely quiet mix... and for some reason the B side sounds a lot better (maybe I just like songs on that side better?) than the A side. Repeated listens give the same effect. I dunno... weird. Either way, fans of old Colohan bands (Cursed, Left For Dead) might have their reservations. People who like exceptionally rowdy and raucous punk rock n’ roll will more than likely be happy. Just make sure to turn it up loud to get the full effect. (Deranged Records)

CASTAVET, “The Echo and the Light” 12”
This whole section of reviews this month seems to be dominated by the more indie end of the punk spectrum, and I don’t know why, it just ended up that way. And Castavet are another of those bands. They’re taking a route that is often populated by groups that can either make it work alright, or come off as an absolute trainwreck. Thankfully, Castavet seem to know a thing or two regarding a little key ingredient called ‘songwriting’, so they’re in the clear for me. And while it’s not something I’ll find myself singing along to any time soon I give them credit for at least knowing how to do what they do quite well. And what exactly is that, you ask? They’ve chosen a style that combines lots of intricate and complicated guitar melodies (cough-noodling-cough) with some more epic, and sort of driving, shoegaze sections all under that umbrella of ‘we like to play basements’ looseness to it all. Older groups like Casket Lottery come to mind ever so slightly, but newer ones like Balance and Composure, Moving Mountains, and Native are a bit more on point. (Tiny Engines)

EFFORT, THE, “Wartime Citizens”
I’ve seen these dudes a few times now and while sincerity may go pretty far in a lot of situations I can’t say I’m feeling this too much as a record. I know these dudes are pretty young, and I’m always down to support a band that endorses a veg straight edge ethic, but I think they still have some growing to do as a band. There seems to be a heavy influence from groups like Verse, from the (at times) slow melodic hardcore vibe of the music, to the intensely personal yet overtly political nature of the lyrics. It seems like the band is still trying to get their identity totally established, and sometimes the vocals/lyrics are a bit too much to take. They tend to be taking too much space away from the music, often absurdly vicious in awkward spots, and occasionally embarrassingly strange to read. I feel like I’m really dissing the shit out of this band, but I’m just trying to point out some things that sound off here. I’m honestly stoked every time I hear about a band that actually has ethics and talks about something interesting, rather than vapid, pointless music. At least The Effort makes an.... well, ya know, effort. (Panic Records)

FRONTIER(S), “The Plains” 7”
If cost weren’t an issue I’d make every one of the records I release look like this gem. This is one sweet-looking record for a band almost equally as sweet. Frontier(s) is the new Louisville-based band fronted by Chris Hidgeon, formerly of Elliott and Falling Forward. I know it’s kind of corny to describe a band based upon it’s members past affiliations. But in this case it is fitting because Chris has one of the most distinctive voices around and his soaring melodic pipes are in full swing here, though a bit more on the gruff side of his earlier recorded efforts. Musically, it recalls some of that Elliott vide- somewhat atmospheric and ethereal sounds atop a fairly straightforward indie rock sound. There’s only two songs here, but it’s a strong debut and I guess the full length has just dropped? Color me interested, especially if they make every record look this sharp. Well worth checking out. (No Sleep Records)

GIT SOME, “Loose Control”
This wins the award for ballsiest-sounding record recorded at the lowest possible volume. I’m not sure what’s happening here, but even at a ridiculously loud volume this thing sounds tame. Yet I know this band is anything but, as I watched them tear the shit out of a local watering hole last fall, blasting full bore, Black Flag style. Either way, the second long player from these Chicago (with a couple ex-Planes Mistaken For Stars Denver transplants) wastoids slams the senses with 13 tracks of some noisey-ass Cows-meets-Jesus Lizard-skronk punk. The band sounds absolutely filthy, but not in a sludge metal way. It’s more of a ‘crazy bum in the alley’ kind of way that would drunkenly lunge at you with a rusty shiv before staggering off to pass out in a dumpster. The vocals are loud and howling at all times it seems, and they sometimes get in the way of the riffing, but I feel like the overall effect is to attack the sense non-stop for 25 minutes and leave you wondering what just happened. It would work a lot better if this were a bit of a bigger recording, but otherwise it gets the job done. (Alternative Tentacles)

GREAT EXPLAINER, THE, “The Way Things Swell” 10”
Ten inch records cost a lot of money to press. They’re an odd size, you can’t get as much material on them, and they cost as much as regular 12” records to buy usually. That’s why you don’t see them much. This band not only made a 10” for their debut, but also made it one-sided with four songs. I guess they could have as easily pressed a 2-sided 7” and saved a few clams in the process. But who am I to say where a band puts their money, it’s still a nice looking record. Nevertheless, upon my first listen to this record I have a few thoughts, these being, ‘sounds like your typical melodic Gainesville punk meets some of the more thoughtful and intricate parts of a group like Bridge and Tunnel’, and ‘the male-female vocal tradeoffs add a nice diversion from your standard strained throat gruff male standby of this style’. That last thought I have to nix because nowhere in the linear notes is there a female listed in this band. I guess one of these guys just has himself a nice lady-like voice. And that’s what you get with The Great Explainer. I implore you to check them out for yourself. (Chunksaah Records)

HOLY MESS, THE, “Benefit Sesh” 7”
Not really enough here to get a sense of whether this band is worth their salt. The A-side song is your sort of typical Gainesville gruff punk sound. The B-side has a little more promise as it has some fun melodies, good lyrics, and a little more of it’s own style. With any hope they develop that B-side style a bit as there are already way more than enough bands flying the gruff punk flag. (Evil Weevil Records)

HOSTAGE CALM, s/t
What the heck happened here? Is it me or did Hostage Calm actually sound like a completely different band on their last full length? I understand a band growing and coming into their own, but this is like a complete makeover. And that’s fine by me, I wasn’t obsessed with what they were doing before so it’s interesting to see them trying new things. Yet I can’t even begin to describe the myriad sounds they’re working for here. It mostly works, but I think they still have a ways to go before solidifying an identity. This is like the ‘try everything new we possibly can stage’. Some songs have a very solid melodic punk/indie feel to them. It sort of reminds me of some of the stuff off of “Building” by Sensefield (an amazing record if you’ve never heard it), while other times they’re messing with some world percussion stuff akin to David Byrne, and other times it’s simply unabashed pop love aiming for a Beach Boys vibe. Yeah, a pretty mixed bag if you ask me. Like I said, it’s cool for what it is, but familiar listeners will probably be taken a back. (Run For Cover Records)

IMADETHISMISTAKE, “Bow and Quiver”
Something is terribly askew here. I feel like this band has something neat to offer, with it’s mix of rather low-fi indie punk, occasional bursts of rock action, a violin, piano, and saxophone popping up every now and again. All that sounds quite nice. Heck, the back up vocals- a mixture of gang sing alongs, and solo female accompaniment sound real nice too. But whoever is doing the main vocals here is really sullying this entire record to the point where it’s extremely difficult to listen to. His voice is just loud and annoying, often misses the rhythm of the song, and even comes off as kind of rapping sometimes. It’s just bad. Everything else about this group is a good listen. But the vocalist just ruins it. And I feel double bad because I think this guy bought a Lemuria record off of me and it was mailed to the wrong address so he had to wait forever for it to get to the right place. And now I’m dishing smack on his band. I’m just a jerk. (Bermuda Mohawk Productions)

WE WERE SKELETONS, s/t
This is one of those records that I put on and it flew by and all I could think was, ‘what just happened?’. And not in a good way. Just because a band can write a zillion noodly parts does not mean that they ought to be randomly drawn from a hat and thrown together and called a song. In fact, I’m not sure I would consider any of these tracks ‘songs’. They’re just tons of parts. Myriad noodly screamo parts, heavy bashing part, overly-complicated part that can’t get it’s timing straight, and so on, so on. This somehow falls into an indie/screamo sort of category, but turn up the distortion and you’d have bad math-metal. Yuck. (Top Shelf Records)

WHY THE WIRES, “Lost Lighthouses” 12”
I’m having a hard time describing this record as I can’t really pin it down to any one thing, and I suppose that’s good. Bands that don’t really lend themselves to easy descriptions are the ones that tend to be pretty interesting. For Ithaca’s Why the Wires, ‘interesting’ is indeed a good descriptor. And I’ll attempt to get a bit more descriptive from there though. The overall vibe is one of relatively moody indie rock, complimented on most songs by either accordion, saxophone, violin, or combinations thereof. These instruments provide more in the way of mood and texture, rather than any sort of lead, which is usually left up to the standard guitar, bass, drums arrangement, as well as a rather distinctive voice that holds sway over these songs and often gives them their moody feel, what with his rather raspy, throaty tenor. I dig it and, at times, am reminded of some of the mid-to-late 90’s Chicago indie/ emo sound of the Southern Records roster. It’s pretty neat stuff for sure and comes in a really nice-looking jacket, limited to only 300 copies. (Habit Forming Records)

VINYL COLLECTIVE

2010-08-17T09:33:00.000-07:00

Howdy!
Go and check out the cool dudes over at Vinyl Collective. They have a regular running feature called 'collector of the day' and it's a neat little window into different people and their record collections.
I'm up on today's edition and I get to dish on what records I nerd out on, what I think of variants and collector scum, and K-Mart, amongst other things.

PS- the intro mentions some of the stuff I've released but I've never released anything for Like Wolves (I distro it, but that's all).

Here's the link:
http://www.vinylcollective.com

INCONSEQUENTIAL UPDATES

2010-08-15T19:08:00.000-07:00

Sorry to have been a bit incommunicado over the last few weeks, but I've been on the road a bit and haven't had... well, I haven't had anything noteworthy to relate.

But, to keep this thing fresh I may as well just mention a couple things that have some sort of distant relation to this label, and a couple things that are a little closer to home with the label.

First off, within the last week I've traveled a ways to see two different shows, featuring two bands that are a big reason why I have the musical taste that I do, the politics I find important, and contribute to how I operate my label in some ways.
On August 7th I went to Baltimore to see the motherfucking UNSANE (all caps necessary). It's the first time in probably 8 or 9 years that I've gotten to see them live and they are just as, if not more, crushing, mean, violent, and loud than ever. My goddamn ears were straight up numb after wards and I wouldn't have it any other way. I first got into them back in high school when "Total Destruction" came out because I heard they sounded kind of like Helmet. Well, that turned out to not exactly be the case, but based upon the name of their record and it's gory cover art it was good enough for me. Every album after that just got better and better. And when I witnessed the handful of people who showed to this gig that were in some way associated with bands I've released records for, or toured with bands on my label, all coming down as fans (a large nod turned towards Mr. and Mrs. Leo!) it felt like home. Furthermore, when Joe from Surroundings (who opened the show, and we're pretty righteous in their own way) informed me that much of the music I've released over the years was a big factor in how his band came to be that also made me feel all warm and fuzzy. Small world.

On the way back from Baltimore I made sure to stop by good 'ol Bethlehem, PA to see the dudes in OAK AND BONE on their weekend tour with Shoppers completely lay waste, again, to this little town. It's always worth it to travel just about anywhere to see these dudes play. Bethlehem just happens to be a good destination not only because of the great little scene they got going there and the nice people who make it up, but they also have the amazing desert fortress known as Vegan Treats. Get into it.

Finally, a few days later I made it up to Buffalo with a few kindred souls to see the one and only PUBLIC ENEMY. Yes, thee Public Enemy- Chuck D, Giff, Flav. Let's just take a moment to consider that I got into this band when I was 12. I'm 32 now. I have been waiting over 20 years to see them. I thought I might be disappointed since these dudes are hitting 50 and age might slow them down. Nope. I can only hope to have a fraction of the energy they have on the stage when I'm that old.
Now, to also put this in perspective, when I was 12 and hearing P.E. I was extremely impressionable. And the things they did with their music, their politics, their whole vibe, was unreal. I truly believe the commotion they caused in the mainstream was a straight up culture shift. See, when you read books about the 60's and the anti-war movement, and how it was tied in to the music of the era, well, I feel like PE will have had just as big an impact on American culture when people look back on late 80s/early 90s history. It's crazy the sort of fear they inspired in white America when they were at their peak. You really had to have been there. They were just relentless and seeing them the other night it was still there.

So now, I think I have now seen every one of my all-time favorite bands ever and can put that list to bed.
I just wanted to jot this stuff down, even though it's not really 'label news' or anything. But it's pretty important to me and partially, in some weird way, why I do this stuff.
-----------------

OK, here's some label news: OAK AND BONE are looking to do another Northeast weekend around Sept. 22-25. Get in touch if you want to hook something up.
More importantly, they will be doing another East Coast tour from approx. Oct. 24th -Nov.10th I believe. Definitely get them in your town. You shant be disappointed.

SHOWS THAT BANDS ARE PERFORMING AT

2010-07-24T20:34:00.000-07:00

Stop sweating. August is going to be a banger for rad bands on Hex. Rare treats and special sweets. Rot your teeth and pump your fist. I'm going to be a show-going freak in the next few weeks.

ACHILLES will be playing a few very special shows in the next month or two, which is rare since they are only able to play a handful of shows a year. Between members commitments in POLAR BEAR CLUB and SOUL CONTROL, as well as parenthood, it's pretty tough for the guys to get together. But when they do it tends to be one of the best live sets you'll see.
Friday, August 27th @ Mohawk Place, Buffalo, NY w/ Make Do and Mend
Saturday, August 28th @ Westcott Community Center, Syracuse, NY w/ Make Do and Mend
Saturday, September 25th @ Party Expo 929 Broadway, New York, NY w/ Ruiner, Another Breath, Mayflower, and more

OAK AND BONE will be doing some weekend action with locals SHOPPERS as well before doing some Fall tour action. It's a cruel Summer.
Thurs., July 29th @ Half Penny Pub, Syracuse w/ APM
Fri., August 6th @ Hole In the Sky, Washington DC w/ Shoppers
Sat., August 7th @ .... somewhere else? w/ Shoppers
Sun., August 8th @ St. Bernards, Bethlehem, PA w/ Shoppers
Mon., August 9th @ Westcott Community Center, Syracuse, NY w/ Engineer, Native, Former Thieves

Additionally, while not a show, it's event worth noting as it pertains to special dude who has been a big part of Hex Records. I'd like to extend a giant congrats to Aaron Jenkins from Ed Gein who will be getting hitched come August 28th. I know, I know, show conflict with Achilles in Syracuse but what are you going to do? It's not like they're going to blast "Bathed In Orange" while they come down the isle, ya know?

REVIEW JAMS

2010-07-17T09:03:00.001-07:00

I've been slacking in the reviews department! I have a mess of stuff to get some scribbling done about, but I've been so busy pimping the big ass sale I still have going on that I plum forgot about review stuff. So bear with me while I catch up. Below are some goods. Check 'em out. Or don't. I just like to write about them.

“AL BURIAN GOES TO HELL” by Al Burian
Being a big Al Burian fan I was immediately excited to see this in the mail stack, very unexpectedly at that. All is the author behind the infrequently published Burn Collector zine, quite possibly my favorite (semi) regular zine out there. This particular one-off is a comic book done in his simplistic, yet fitting, style based around “Dantes Inferno” and comparing it to Al’s regular and mundane activities of being a shiftless shoplifting bum at a dead-end job and the ever-encroaching feeling that he isn’t going to amount to jack shit in this meaningless life. Sounds depressing right? Thankfully, Al’s cynical and somewhat endearing sense of humor shines through to make this a fun read overall. At times you really want to hate him for taking the world for granted, complaining about it, and generally being a bum. On the other hand, it’s just a comic and ought to read with a degree of levity, which I tend to do with all of Al’s material that I have checked out over the years. (Migrane/Microcosm)

BALANCE AND COMPOSURE/TIGERS JAW split
Each band drops four new jams making for basically a full length of material. Balance and Composure are a lot better on this split than on their debut LP and I’m glad to hear that they’ve become a bit more rough around the edges while still maintaining a strong melodic backbone. Elements of Small Brown Bike and Polar Bear Club are evident, the vocals have that gruff melodicism that teeters very close to being too clean and annoying at times. Yet overall, it moves relatively slow, with some nice ebbs and flows and breaks into some great swells of loud guitar and crashing drums. I dig. Tigers Jaw wrap up the record with their four songs of poppy, synth/organ-accentuated rock. They seem to be kind of the hype band right now and I can see why a lot of people like them. From what I understand they have a female vocalist, but she only seems to do back-up’s on this recording, which is kind of shame as I feel the music would stand out more if she were to be more up front, or at least alternate with the male lead (who has that sort of low register like Alex from Lemuria). Musically, these quick songs could be a poor man’s Paramore with more heart, I’m not really sure. I’m not trying to be insulting with that either. It’s just that this is indie rock that could easily blow up mainstream style. It’s a nice listen regardless and I’m picking up what they’re laying down, so to speak. (No Sleep/Run For Cover)

CHOOSE DEATH #4
I dig the writing in this zine. As far as content it is truly your local zine featuring local bands, tour diaries, and the like. But it’s the comical and quick-witted way in which it is written that makes me look forward to each issue... even if it only takes me all of 15 minutes to read it cover to cover. The boys in Mayflower are interviewed, as is the now-defunct Syracuse/Florida connection of Eating Machine. Plus, you get a hilarious tour diary from White Guilt’s East Coast jaunt. It’s well worth a couple bucks for some cheap yucks. Plus, now that Josh has a newfound interest in all things Jim Goad I can only see this thing getting more ridiculous. (Barbarossa Records)

COLISEUM, “House With a Curse”
So I hear the first song off this record a good month before it is released and am confused by it’s very ‘rock’ vibe. I kind of dismiss it and yet somehow find myself humming it over and over for the next few weeks. Then I get the whole album and again, am confused by this change in direction for the Louisville trio. Gone are the full-speed ahead ragers fans are used to, and in their place is an overall slower affair. I wasn’t upset in the least, but I certainly was taken aback by some of the musical avenues they chose to explore here. Plus, I knew long time fans who were expecting a certain sound would be sorely disappointed. They haven’t all out abandoned their sound, of course. These are passionate and raging songs. Ryan Patterson has a very distinct voice that continues to shine through, and the catchy anthemic choruses are still present. That sense of melody amongst all the chaos is amplified and you can tell that many of these songs are much more thought through in their creation. Bassist Mike Pascal delivers not only a sweet tone but some very nice complementary lines to Patterson’s riffs on tracks such as “Crime and the City”, “Lost In Gronigen” and “Statuary” (my current favorite track on the record with it’s absolutely wall-shattering stop-start thick slabs of riff meat closing the track out). I think the only thing that feels a bit odd to me is I caught a small Young Widows vibe off of a couple tracks- that thick and catchy bass under a flurry of unique guitar effects present especially on “Perimeter Man”. While it shouldn’t surprise some, seeing as the Patterson brothers have been in more than one band together and have similar musical backgrounds and influences I don’t want to make it seem as if they are aping one another since their respective bands are typically considered quite different. But I can’t help but notice this small similarity here and there. Regardless, the more I listen to this the more it gets under my skin and I could really care less what they are ‘supposed to do’ in terms of fan expectations. This will do just fine. (Temporary Residence)

END OF A YEAR, “You Are Beneath Me”
This is easily one of my favorite bands going today, and part of that is because they are simply an unclassifiable group that strides the line somewhere between indie rock, old school ‘emo’, and all out punk. Musically, it takes an odd turn down loose and melodic indie rock with a penchant for the occasional odd time signature, near constant catchy riffs, and an often driving push that keeps one listening intently. Then you throw vocalist Pat Kindlon in the mix and you get this added weirdness of a guy with a raspy and bizarre inflection to his voice spouting off some of the best lyrics around about divorce, being broke, and one of the best closing lines of any album ever (“Your arms wouldn’t reach around my balls”). The words lie somewhere between intellectual asshole, outright hilarity, and quirky anthemic sing-along. So, yes, it’s a mixed bag that will confuse many, but I like a challenge. And, in all honesty, the hardest part about getting into this band really, is trying to come up with some quick subgenre categorization to describe them. And it’s not going to happen. It boils down to just good and melodic rock with an oddball vocalist. That’s as simple as I can make it. And on, “You Are Beneath Me” they come up with some of the best material they’ve written yet. They try some new sounds on songs like “Eric Hall” and the instrumental “Sara Hayden”, as well as the hilarious sound-check style rock and spoken word on opener “Composite Character”. Of course, they also stick to what is a bit more familiar territory on tracks like “Bo Diaz” and “Charles Ewert”. My advice is just check this out regardless of what you like because it is just a damn good record and you need to hear it. (Deathwish Inc.)

“FIREBRANDS”, by the Just Seeds Collective
Just Seeds is an art group that I found out about at the height of my interest in stenciling. While that interest in making them has waned considerably in the last couple years I still thoroughly enjoy looking at them. Regardless, Just Seeds had a website showcasing a lot of politically-oriented stencils. But they have branched out quite a bit to include other artists who work in a number of mediums, but tend to consolidate things under a unifying theme of screenprinting their art which is always motivated around radical politics and social issues. This book not only showcases much of their art, but also discusses their subject matter. In this case, every page has a portrait of an important figure in social justice causes with an accompanying short biography of them on the next page. While this is hardly an original idea it should be noted that many of the people they choose to discuss are lesser known, though equally important, figures from various struggles. Big Bill Haywood, Emma Goldman, Angela Davis, and Sitting Bull may sound familiar. But try looking up Grace Lee Boggs, or Justin Dart Jr., or even even Yuri Kochiyama (I actually met her once!). While a little more history about each of these people would be nice I also know how to look people up and get a bigger picture of their impact and this book introduced me to some of these folks whom I will be checking into. Oh, and the art isn’t half bad either. (Microcosm)

“IF IT AIN’T CHEAP IT AIN’T PUNK” DVD
Oh good lord, a documentary about Plan-It-X Records and their big annual fest thing. OK, for starters, my dislike for Plan-It-X has been quite vocal for some time now, but I must plead ignorance in making broad, sweeping generalizations regarding their bands and fanbase. Well, maybe I’m not too far off because watching this thing you get a pretty good idea of what sort of kids are into this stuff. Musically, I really just don’t like folk punk one iota. I simply don’t like it. At all. That music does nothing but annoy me. Yet, it is true that not every band under the Plan-It-X banner plays this way. Take Halo Fauna for example. They’re a pretty bad ass band that certainly sounds more akin to upbeat, mid-90’s emo like Braid. Or Latterman, who were a rowdy punk band (loosely associated with the label). But by and large, the dopey, off-key acoustic Woody Guthrie wannabe, cum-bay-ya feel-good sappiness simply turns me off. And yet, I see how they operate this label, which is VERY admirable. I see how this fest is one big fundraiser for a number of wonderful charities, which is also admirable. I can certainly appreciate the way that giving workshops on just about every topic there is, in addition to the music is a great thing to do that is sadly missing from big music events (and used to be fixture at big events such as this years ago). So in some ways Plan-It-X definitely knows what’s up and does their thing in a truly righteous way. But if I showed up there I’d probably want to punch out every train-hopping, panhandling, drunk-as-a-skunk suburbanite dropout who tried to play me a shitty song in exchange for a free sandwich or money for their beer/ elixir of life. On the other end of the spectrum, I’d also like to tar and feather the hordes of pseudo tough guy mesh short, sideways hat wearing poseurs who think they’re hard-as-nails because they can spin kick higher than anyone else when Madball shows up to town. Simply said, there’s lots of people I don’t like. So I’m sure Plan-It-X also has a fan base of well-rounded and intelligent people amongst their ranks as well. But I still don’t like the music. (Cantankerous Titles)

LEATHERFACE, “The Stormy Petrel”
I saw Leatherface about 10 years ago and that was also about the last time I listened to one of their records so you’ll forgive me if I can’t remember jack shit about what they sounded like then. All I remember was that I wasn’t terribly impressed and I’ll try and chalk that up to a bit of youthful naiveté. Now, having a been a band for a bazillion years and releasing a thousand records Leatherface strike back with “The Stormy Petrel”. They’ve often been known as the band that Hot Water Music got their sound from and I can see that in a small way (but I’ve always thought HWM was a direct rip of Mike Hirsch’s excellent late 80’s/early 90’s band Fuel- look them up), but to me, Leatherface have a lot more in common with the likes of The Replacements and Husker Du. It’s that sort of punk that young kids hear and say, ‘this ain’t punk! This is indie rock!’ or some shit. But old dudes state, ‘Hey! It’s the best we could do back then!’ and some other ridiculous bull. Either way, this is something I appreciate moreso than something I’m going to listen to a lot. There certainly are some catchy riffing, and a careful, delicate approach to the way these songs are crafted. Frankie Stubbs raspy whisper of a voice and oddball rhyming sets of lyrics may be my favorite part since a lot of it sort of comes out of left field. So if that sounds like the Leatherface you know and love, by all means check it out. I know my memory doesn’t serve me a better comparative description. (No Idea)

MAYFLOWER, “Second Best Sunsets” LP
Hell fuckin’ yeah. I know these dudes worked long and hard to make this full length and it pays off in spades. “Second Best Sunsets” is the debut from these Syracuse area (Oswego if you want to get exact) punk rockers and it’s pretty much a non-stop blast of catchy and anthemic punk rock from start to finish. Sure, they sound quite a lot like Dillinger 4 and Off With Their Heads, but so what. They’ve done it really well and I’ve been spinning this consistently since I first heard it. With a nice combination of subject matter ranging from being down in the dumps and working dead end shit jobs, to strong political and environmental convictions Mayflower do so in a way that is extremely catchy and often lyrically inventive. And while it switches week to week, I think my current favorite tune is “The World Needs Ditch Diggers”, with it’s chorus of “I’m a hack of all trades, master of none!” Ah, truer words in my life have never been spoken. Easily one of my favorite records this year. (Kiss Of Death)

HEX RECORDS BIG ASS SUMMER SALE AND MORE!

2010-07-09T13:51:00.000-07:00

OK, so there's a lot happening in the Hex camp this month. So let's do some bullet-point style housekeeping and propagandizing. Here we go....

MVD SALE

Our distributor, MVD, is doing a sale on ALL Hex Records titles throughout the month of July. Every last one! Everything (and I mean every physical title they have in stock) is marked down 40%. Yup. So whether you have a store, distro, or just like cheap music, now is the time to get a lot of stuff for a bargain.

Here's the link for that: MVD sale

WEBSTORE/ LP SALE

On the homefront, we’re trying to clear out some much needed storage space so we’re doing a special 2 for 1 deal on all 12” records.. Two LPs for the price of one. This is quite a deal considering most of our 12” releases are pretty fancy-schmancy- gatefold packages, colored vinyl, etc. But because of that, and the cost, this offer is only good in the U.S. So take your pick- Ed Gein, Achilles, The Helm, Prize Country...
Follow the link and choose, but choose wisely! Hex sale

LEMURIA- SECOND PRESSING

The second pressing of the “Ozzy” 7” from LEMURIA is now in! If you missed out the first time you can get it now. A slightly different package holds this jammer together and two different vinyl colors (yellow and white) make up the new pressing. Two songs on the vinyl, plus an extra track on the download card. Catch them on tour all summer and look out for their next full length on Bridge 9, being recorded this month with J. Robbins.

Get the 7” HERE

OTHER NEW STORE ITEMS:

We have a couple other new things in the webstore to check out:

OAK & BONE/ LIKE WOLVES split 7”- Two of Upstate NYs best bands on one record. Courtesy of Barbarossa Records

TRANSLATE #4- Zine jammer. Color cover, hand-made stuff, comics, travel, punk, death, cheap. Worth your couple clams.

THE HELM WEST COAST/ NORTHWEST TOUR

This is starting, basically, now. Sorry I didn't get this up earlier, but I didn't receive all the tour info until just the other day.

July 9th- Portland, OR @ Brick Shithouse
July 10th- Oakland, CA @ 924 Gilman
July 11th- Reno, NV @ The HQ
July 12th- Salt Lake City @ Worshipping the Space Jesus
July 13th- Denver, CO @ Blast O Mat
July 14th- Boise, ID @ Secret space
July 15th- Spokane, WA @ Cretin Hop

LEMURIA, "OZZY" REPRESS NOW IN!

2010-07-01T08:59:00.001-07:00

So everything is in with the second pressing of "Ozzy", the bitchin' 7" from Buffalo's LEMURIA (you may have heard of them, they tour a lot). Everything came in a bit earlier than I expected, so orders will start going out IMMEDIATELY rather than after the holiday weekend.
Awesome right?
This pressing has a slightly scaled down packaging, but it's a little different and still looks really cool (cue the picture up top). Additionally, the pressing is split into two colors of equal amounts- yellow and white.
So there ya have it.

Be on the lookout in the next couple of weeks for some great summer sales from us as well. Our prices will be... insane.

Order the LEMURIA 7" here

IT'S TIME FOR REVIEWS!

2010-06-06T22:19:00.001-07:00

It has been far too long since I've posted some of these up. But to be completely honest, new stuff that I have been interested in writing about has been somewhat few and far between and primarily procured by mine own hand rather than some publicist sending to me. Nevertheless, here's what keeps me up this Sunday night/Monday morning, and that you can freshen your coffee to. And seeing as I am such a great writer (cough) try and keep score of how many times I use the term 'bad ass'. No thesaurus for this guy, no way.

108, “18.61”
This may or may not be the last thing 108 records (though we’ve heard that one before... amirite?), so I wanted to see where it was all going, and how well it held up to... well, essentially everything else they’ve ever done. Upon my first listen I was amazed at how quickly it flew by. Is this an EP? Did nine songs really just happen? Yes they did. A few more listens separated things a bit more for me, and then getting into the lyrical meat formally sealed it for me, proving this to easily be one of the better records 108 has done. I like that it’s a little short. “A New Beat...” was a great full length, but after a year of non-stop listens I felt like there were almost too many songs and a couple of them felt like filler. This is just right. Faithful fans will recognize the killer driving chops that Vic writes, mixed nicely with the chunky, feedback encrusted bass sloughing Triv contributes. Additionally, I may have to fact check this, but much of the lyrical fare seems to have been penned by vocalist Rob Fish, as opposed to the usual share that Vic DiCara adds. It’s just the way it is written and the subject matter that seems different. I’m not sure if I like it better or not, though I think I prefer the way that Vic writes lyrics. This is pretty bad-ass though, especially on “Relentless Masters”, the chunky riff-dominated track that is my personal favorite on this. Closer, “Early Funeral” is the odd track out, but it shouldn’t come as a total surprise to 108 fans. An entirely acoustic song with sung vocals is a great ode to death and dying, and a cool way to close things out. If this ends up being the band’s final release (they have alluded to continuing on in a different fashion) I’ll be totally satisfied.. well, except desperately wanting to see these songs played live and freaking the fuck out to them. (Deathwish Inc)

AUSTERITY PROGRAM, THE, “Backsliders and Apostles Will Burn” CDEP
Big Black worship, no other way around it. Two dudes, a lot of analog equipment, and a drum machine that is definitely NOT trying to disguise itself as real drums. Angular riffs, stop/start blasts of wired noise, and slurred vocals are the bulk of these four new tracks from one of NYC’s more obscure outfits. I feel as if the idea here is a good one, but it doesn’t totally deliver. There’s something lacking (and no, it’s not a living, breathing person behind a drum kit) that I can’t quite put my finger on. It’s more in the actual songs and how they’re lacking some excitement of some sort. I suppose I’m referring to their other releases, in which the songs were a bit shorter overall, a little more direct. Each of these songs average near the five minute mark and it feels a bit too long to keep my attention up for the sort of thing they’re doing. Of course, if you’re an Albini fanatic, and enjoy examining music under a fine lens to dissect all the nuts and bolts of gear and studio nerdery, you will more than likely enjoy what The Austerity Program has cooked up in their lab (AKA, their backyard shed). (Hydrahead)

BLACK BREATH, “Heavy Breathing”
I do not claim to be a true metalhead by any measure, but damn if this isn’t one hell of an awesome metal record. From what I can tell, Black Breath are riding a hype wave and I say good for them as I feel they are deserving of the excitement surrounding them. What I find almost amusing is that the two guitarists here both come from youth crew-ish type bands and are now in this full-on metal mode and not half-assing it (as many HC dudes seem to do when they make attempts at playing metal). Getting that same deep and dirty tone I’ve heard (most recently) on Trap Them records... and what a great bad-ass sound it is... there is something both heavy as shit and really catchy all at once. The majority of this record lies somewhere between the thrashing speed of East Bay metal, like old Exodus, and the heavy gallop of Entombed’s mastery of the riff. My favorite tracks on this full length are the lightning fast “Escape From Death”, followed by the chuggy fist-swinger, “I Am Beyond” and it’s much-too-long (albeit necessary just to prove how bad ass it is) extended ending. It almost brings to mind the closing riff of Damnation AD’s “The Hangman”. Yes indeed, if you are like me and only dabble in heavy metal, this is a great record that basically anyone who is a fan of any sort of fast and heavy music can surely appreciate. As Andy Bernard would say, “(they) nailed it”. (Southern Lord)

COWARDS demo
The set up for this new Syracuse band is vocalist, drummer, and dude who plays guitar through guitar and bass cabs. It’s really loud, sludgy, slow, and heavy and I can get down with this sound. If it makes any difference their guitarist also plays in Architect and you can hear those super dense, grooving bottom-heavy riffs, which I like. Yet there is also an element of that Crowbar sludginess and screeching feedback made lovable by Eyehategod, so take that as you will. Lyrically, one song called “Don’t Feed the Animals” about not giving bums change and another called “Over the Line”, regarding those abusing government hand outs. Yes, Colin hates bums. In all seriousness, the hate isn’t from some right wing conservative tightwad angle, but more of a Travis Bickle/Walter Kovacs- ‘society will pay’ kind of vibe. Yup. So, as Jeffrey Lebowski would say- the other Jeffrey Lebowski- ‘get a job, sir!’ (http://www.myspace.com/wearecowards)

HARVEY MILK, “A Small Turn Of Human Kindness”
I’ll never quite understand what made this band the cool hipster hype band to like because they’re really a hard pill to swallow. I remember first hearing them several years back when the now slumbering Escape Artist Records re-issued one of their records and I thought I had it playing at the wrong speed seeing as how low and slurred the vocals were. Of course, this would have been impossible since it was a CD. So, yeah, I remembered pretty much hating it. A few years later, and a bit more mature, I can appreciate this band laying down a sweet riff, or throwing some really off-kilter parts to their songs, but I still can’t get over those vocals. It’s literally like listening to a record meant for 45 on 33. So on this, their newest full length, it appears the Athens, GA sludge rockers are going for a general theme here. Just about every song flows into the next one without a pause, and takes that ultra slow and mean approach to things. They get a really great, truly sinister bass sound here, coupled with an almost bluesy feel (with some wonderful organ accompaniment, particularly on the how track 4, “I Alone Got Up and Left” ) and the whole affair feels really, really depressing. If you take the vocals out of it it really reminds me of NYC doom-mavens Bloody Panda, but I suppose that is sort of moot reference point. Either way, for me the jury is out on my feelings on this. I can appreciate how well it is crafted, but this isn’t something I want to just break out and hang with very often. (Hydrahead)

LIGHTEN UP, “Absolutely Not”
Not too shabby- a quick jolt through fast and fun hardcore that bears a strong resemblance to earlier Paint It Black stuff, what with some of the unexpected twists and turns, stops and starts it presents within these dozen stingers. I can only imagine their shows being nothing but fun. And if they’re not, and these are boring dudes, well then, nertz to them. I’ll just keep imagining the fun side if I may, thanks. (Jump Start Records / Ass Card Records)

LIKE WOLVES/ OAK & BONE split 7”
Without question, two of the Central New York areas most engaging bands share seven inches of wax and give you, the listener, something you need, whether you know it yet or not. Rochester’s Like Wolves lay down two songs that are easily the best stuff they’ve written to date. The band consistently improves upon their songwriting skills with each release, focusing on cohesive songs that still feel really loose and wild, but honing in on those catchy parts. I know I’ve said it before, but Black Cross worship tenfold and I don’t mind that a bit. “New Circles” is my new favorite song of theirs and I like the quick nod to At the Drive-In right at the beginning.
Oak and Bone flesh out the B-side with two songs that the faithful will recognize from their live sets as of late. “Dirt” is a straight crusher, immediately starting off with a mean-ass riff that just gets meaner as the song goes on. “Acid Coffin” is the flip side to that, showing the more jamming, psychedelic persona of the group- guitar effects fucking with your sense of balance throughout before settling on a driving and catchy riff. The only downside to their side is a recording that does no justice to how bad-ass these songs are. The vocals, while strong, are way too high in the mix and everything else feels buried and compressed. It’s just not the recording these dudes need. But you’ll still get the idea of what’s happening and make it all the more impressive when you finally see them live. (Barbarossa Records)

SNACK TRUCK, “Spacial Findings 1-7”
I’m a bit conflicted by this record. From the start it gets carried away into Hella-style ridiculous over doing it for the sake of over doing it and I was pretty turned off. But then they got a bit more restrained for most of the other songs and add some really nice-sounding synth and keys to these all-instrumental songs. Thankfully, this is a band that makes good use of keyboard to add a lot of dynamics and a refreshing sound to a subgenre that can get pretty tired pretty quick. Noodley instrumental bands are rarely my thing for more than one song, so there were many instances on this recording where I was happy to see a band doing something different, whether it was the aforementioned nice use use of keys, or focusing on a good riff to carry a song. The occasional ventures into overly-complicated territory proved to be considerably less than what I had initially assumed they would be, so that was nice. Though one final, quick gripe- is there really ever any point in the last 6 minutes or so of a bands record to be some experimental noise and feedback remix that sounds like a broken computer game? Is this really ever necessary? I didn’t think so. Otherwise, a nice little change of pace from my usual listening selections. (Rorschach Records)

WHITE GUILT tape #2
There are bands that go for a particular sound, but try to pretend that they’re something else when it’s as plain as day as to who they are aping and that kind of annoys me. I thought early on that locals White Guilt might have fallen into that category. But with a little time and a few new songs I really don’t give a shit what they think they’re doing, or not doing, because regardless of what sort of influences fall into their songwriting this just kills. More or less, I’m just hearing all out rage and chaotic skull-bashing in these new songs. So I’m pretty much done wondering what sort of band they may want to be and am just going with my initial reaction to this, which is pleasantly surprised. Vocals with insane reverb/delay on every song speak of thinning out the human race, amongst other things, and most of the songs are tied together through feedback. A slow and repetitive bassline opens “Human Flood II”, and slowly builds into a frenzied chugging before bursting forth with harsh noise, and the repeated chorus of “he never wanted us” over and over. It’s sort of the odd song out here, as the rest of these five songs are pretty damn fast overall, but it’s my favorite. In fact, the whole tape is good so if you enjoy really messy, fast, and raging hardcore with a bit of a weird side (-ahem- the vocals) I’d suggest giving this a try. (Drugged Conscience)

TOURS!

2010-05-26T13:33:00.001-07:00

Some bands are on tour right now that we like.
Here's the dates:

END OF A YEAR
05/25: Tijuana, MX @ Bar 1979
05/26: Canoga Park, CA @ Cobalt Cafe
05/27: Ojai, CA @ Ojai Womens Club
05/28: Berkeley, CA @ 924 Gilman
05/29: Tacoma, WA @ Rainfest @ The Viaduct
05/30: Tacoma, WA @ Rainfest @ The Viaduct
06/02: Kansas City, MO @ Scion Lab
06/03: Omaha, NE @ Ghost House
06/04: Minneapolis, MN @ Eclipse Records
06/05: Bay City, MI @ Snuggly Mug
06/06: Cleveland, OH @ Tower 2012
06/07: Kingston, PA @ Black Lodge
06/09: Brooklyn, NY @ Party Expo
06/10: Amityville, NY @ Long Island Fest 2010 At Broadway
06/11: Syracuse, NY @ Westcott Center
06/12: Burlington, VT @ 242 Main
06/13: Albany, NY @ Valentines

ENGINEER
May 26 - Rochester, NY @ Monty's Krown w/ Ken Mode
May 27 - Toronto, ON @ Sneaky Dees w/ Ken Mode, Buried Inside, & Titan (431 College Street)
May 28 - Brooklyn, NY @ Union Pool w/ Ken Mode (484 Union Ave)
May 29 - Philadelphia, PA @ Broad Street Ministries w/ Ken Mode (315 South Broad Street)
May 30 - Richmond, VA @ The Triple w/ Ken Mode (3306 W. Broad Street)
May 31 - Greensboro, NC @ Legitimate Business w/ Ken Mode & Low Sky (1317 Grove Street)
June 1 - Morgantown, WV @ 123 Pleasant St w/ Anchient Shores & Passage Between
June 2 - Western MD @ TBA w/ Anchient Shores & Passage Between
June 3 - Baltimore, MD @ Charm City Art Space w/ Anchient Shores & Passage Between
June 4 - Doylestown, PA @ a church w/ Passage Between & Rosetta

TRANSLATE ZINE #4 NOW AVAILABLE!

2010-05-22T22:14:00.000-07:00

Lots of cutting and pasting and drawing and photoshopping and writing and so forth have cumulated in a new issue of Translate zine, the print organ of the Hex empire (which, basically, offers little to no propaganda about Hex Records at all). Personally, I think it came out pretty cool.
The fourth installment of zine nerdom packed into 32 pages and wrapped in a fancy-shmancy color cover. The upsides of cross-country travel in the name of punk rock and over-the-hill show going interspersed with the gut-churning lows of becoming a grumpy old bastard consumed with morality and death. Plane flights, stage dives, a last will and testament and, coincidentally enough, an interview with Brooklyn post-punkers Obits. Storytelling and cheap comics. Deal.

Get it in the webstore

HOWDY, BOREDOM.

2010-05-18T22:21:00.001-07:00

I think I'll start re-creating some Hex Records covers here and there with funny stuff instead. Let's take, for instance, a recent excursion in my kitchen in which a pizza stone resembled a very well-known record cover that I released. Well, here you go...
ED GEIN, "It's a Shame That a Pizza Can Be Torn Apart By Something As Simple As a Bunch Of Toothpicks"

Check back soon for more fun shit.

NEW OAK & BONE SPLIT 7"!!!

2010-05-10T22:11:00.000-07:00

So check it: OAK & BONE have a new split 7" (with the mighty LIKE WOLVES) dropping imminently on the extra-squishy Barbarossa Records. Get yourself an extra face because this will rock the first one off.
The Boners drop two new jams, as do the Wolfs (that's right). We at Hex wholeheartedly endorse this event or product and will more than likely be carrying a few of these in the webstore when the time arrives. Expected date for this to come out is around the end of May. But feel free to pre-order it now from Barbarossa here

OAK AND BONE LIVE VIDEO!

2010-05-08T09:41:00.000-07:00

So a couple weeks ago OAK AND BONE played a killer house show with the equally awesome Urchins Of the Night. Some live video was caught of "Momentum" (the closer on the 7"), along with the gargantuan outro that you'll probably catch them do if you ever see them live.
So check it out one time if you will. Follow the link:
Blasting your face off

OUT-OF-PRINT TITLES NOW UP FOR DOWNLOAD!

2010-04-23T08:42:00.000-07:00

So, I got to thinking, Hex Records doesn't repress most of it's titles once they're gone, only a few. And I know there are a bunch of people who have missed out on some of our releases who may never be able to track them down.
Well, I'm taking care of this issue. We have 4 of our out-of-print titles now up for digital download through the normal well-known channels:
ED GEIN 3-song CD
CURSED, "Hell Comes Home"/"Search and Destroy" 7"
SPARK LIGHTS THE FRICTION, "Cocaine Honeymoon" CDEP
THE HELM debut 7"

So, if you don't have them, and haven't already tracked them down through the interwebs for free, they're now available through digital music outlets. Enjoy!

Spark Lights the Friction
iTunes - http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/cocaine-honeymoon/id365737266
Emusic - http://www.emusic.com/artist/Spark-Lights-the-Friction-MP3-Download/12095139.html

Ed Gein
iTunes - http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/ed-gein-ep/id365561788
Emusic - http://www.emusic.com/artist/Ed-Gein-MP3-Download/11606957.html

Cursed
iTunes - http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/hell-comes-home-single/id365563143
Emusic - http://www.emusic.com/artist/Cursed-MP3-Download/11606994.html

The Helm
iTunes - http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-helm/id365565770
Emusic - http://www.emusic.com/artist/The-Helm-MP3-Download/11625617.html

HOW ABOUT SOME NEW REVIEWS...

2010-04-17T09:16:00.001-07:00

It's been awhile, so what better way to spend a smidgen of your rainy, dreary Saturday than with some music reviews? Plenty of good, and unexpected, stuff this time around. Read on.....

ARMS ALOFT, “Comfort At Any Cost” CDEP
I never heard this band before, just the name, and based upon that I thought they sounded like they would be silly. Sure. When people talk about pop punk this is what they ought to be talking about. This pp punk actually has a pair of balls (4 pairs in fact based upon the number of people in this group) that come with it, unlike the over-produced bullshit with fake breakdowns and auto-tuned vocals. That is not pop-punk. That is garbage. Make no mistake. This cranks amps, and fights you in the parking lot afterwards, and still somehow pulls off crazy hook-filled melodies. The singer yells off-key, but sort of sings too and he probably would be in key if it didn’t sound like he was ripping his own heart out. It’s great to hear a band that has passion in their playing and spirit in their spit lyrics and doesn’t really give a fuck if they play well or not (they do). It all comes off in a great recording that blasts right through you. This collects two separate seven inches on one CD so you may have heard some of this stuff before. Like I said, I haven’t and now I’m glad I did. Good stuff. (Gilead Media)

BALACLAVA, “Shame” 7”
I was hoping this would be about the desert and my moth started watering... and then I realized it was Balaclava and not Baklava. I should have known better that this was vinyl and not a confectionary pastry. Regardless, it’s a musical treat! Does that work? It’s like these dudes figured out the formula for Tragedy songs and then tuned down an extra step so that all the low end on this (drums and bass) sounds like a fat dude busting ass all over you through the speakers. At times it sounds pretty bad ass, at other times it’s a little overwhelming. In total though, it’s not a bad ride. The packaging on this is ridiculous. It’s like they had two ideas for a record cover and couldn’t decide one over the other so they did both because it seems like there are two separate record covers here. I ain’t complaining. (Forcefield Records)

CLOAK/DAGGER, “Don’t Need A” 7”
I missed out on their newest full length, but I suppose this 7” has one of those full length songs on here and then two new songs. I like that these dudes are going for an even more striped down approach lately, operating on a kind of Wipers-in-warp-speed mode here. Short, catchy songs, loose and clean guitar work played really fast, and still kicking your ass all around town. The only thing that’s kind of bugging me here is an obvious Hot Snakes/Rick Forberg worship between their choice of musical style and artwork that is taking some obvious cues. Sure, Hot Snakes already loved The Wipers so who’s copying who right? And I like all of the above already so what’s the matter with another group tipping their hat to some great bands and musicians? I honestly don’t know because I already like all sorts of bands that rp from other bands. I guess I just wish it wasn’t all so obvious. Be at least a little mysterious guys! (Grave Mistake Records)

GET RAD, “I Can Always Live”
There’s all these things I want to address with this record so where to begin? OK, for starters, the cover is “Thriller” as a stencil (a nicely done one at that) with the band’s logo skull instead of Michael Jackson’s head. Good start. I’m always a fan of fucking with people right off the bat. Musically, the band is called Get Rad. They better fucking deliver on a name like that. And, thankfully, they start off really good with some really fast and wild hardcore. Good. From there it slows down at times, which they probably should avoid. But I can see how a band doesn’t want to do the exact same thing from song to song. Their sound has little snippits of old Sick Of It All and Bane in parts, but usually just goes for the fast and loose approach and is generally made for stage dives and high fives without a care in the world. It’s fun stuff for sure and I can tell these kids are about having a good time without half-assing it on the music front either. (Gilead Media/Hyperrealist)

GOVERNMENT WARNING, “Executed” 7”
Man, this whole record could have fit on one side of a seven inch! This quick blast of hardcore takes a sort of more polished approach to what I felt was a really raw and vicious sound on their “Paranoid Mess” 12”. To me, the recording has that almost clean and well-produced Bad Brains feel to it... but that might just be because this group plays so goddamn fast and has unique vocals that really stand out. That’s just my impressions though of course. I dig the song about humans who ought not breed so much continuing to do so. Methinks this band should watch a little movie called “Idiocracy” if they haven’t already. There’s a surprise Battalion Of Saints cover at the end too. (Grave Mistake Records/ No Way Records)

LOGIC PROBLEM, “No Center” 7”
Holy fuck, where the hell did this come out from? What just happened? Is this over already? Where am I? Who is this band? Four songs ram into you and then take off like a hit and run. The whole thing is confusing from the layout (lyrics scrawled on the front cover and then in a random manner on the insert) to the crazy music inside. I mean, yeah, all it is is super fast hardcore punk. But there’s qualities to their blend of punk and hardcore that just sound so weird- the guitars sound so incredibly bright here it’s like Kevin Shields from My Bloody Valentine started playing at light speed while their singer just went apeshit and they called it a day with the recording engineer just standing around wondering what to do with what just got laid to tape. OK, so my description sounds like a mess. But believe me, this is what punk should be- totally knocking you out of your seat, bum-rush style, and then getting out before you know what even happened. I can appreciate that. (Grave Mistake Records)

MEDICATIONS, “Completely Removed”
This one has been a long time coming. Medications were one of the best new bands coming out of the Dischord stable when they first touched down. Boasting former members of both Faraquet and Smart Went Crazy their sound was essentially exactly what one would imagine from these groups- the best mixture of wildly complex drumming and noodly guitar work and incredibly melodic and catchy all at once. Great stuff. Then their drummer left and the band figured out how to keep it going. It took a couple years, but now we have “Completely Removed”, which both feels new and very familiar at the same time. The soothing vocals of Chad Molter and Devin Ocampo lay down a strong base for which to work their clever instrumentation around, using tricky little riffs to draw one in and then riding it out until the song is done and you’re waiting for the next track to kick in. Gone, for the most part, is the insane drum work that made their previous records so impressive (from the standpoint of prog music geeks). It’s definitely a sad thing to see it go, but in place are more simple rhythms that allow the songs to breathe a bit more. This also lets the members toss in some more world influences and whatever else they have to offer, all of which certainly has the distinct sound they have been known for. It’s a nice turn for them, regardless of it being somewhat less bombastic than previous efforts. I dig. (Dischord)

SUMMER PEOPLE, “Good Problems”
This band has a lot of members and some rotate in and out and it’s easy to see that because the debut album from this group is all over the map. And somehow, it all works wonderfully. They go from howling wild folk stomp, to drawn-out melancholy, sort of Sunny Day Real Estate-inspired ballads, and rough-strewn rockers as well. They can sing, they can howl, they dive deep into serene waters and come up with songs that are lush with melody and dabble in experimentation. It’s very refreshing to see a group that is clearly doing whatever they feel like doing right there and then and making it work. The only time things don’t always seem to fit is when they break out bongos in a couple songs. They sound really cool, and they’re a fun, unexpected addition. But at times they feel a little forced. There’s also a long improvised song on here that I think a lot of people will just skip right over due to it’s longevity and meandering nature. But I’m really digging it and the only way I can think of describing it is that it sounds like something off the first Tortoise record. Again, really cool stuff and very beautiful music, a wonderful surprise. (Red Leader Records)

WAYWARD, THE, “Alzheimers” 7”
These Virginia noisemongers have been at this for awhile now and I’m honestly surprised they are able to keep it going in the scene that often doesn’t particularly understand what they do. While previous efforts sound like The Jesus Lizard covering Rush (yeah, I liked it) this is a bit more restrained. They deliver one shorter faster song and one mid-paced jam that definitely recall their trademark sound- noodly guitar and yelping from the school of Albini, but a little more restrained than what I remember. The B-side is a cover of The Birthday Partys, “Friend Catcher”. Admittedly I’ve heard very little of The Birthday Party, only a couple songs here and there. But this cover is great, simple and dominating. Cool. (Forcefield Records)

WONDER YEARS, THE, “The Upsides”
Here’s a band that obviously has good intentions insofar as being a DIY band, touring their ass off, working hard for peanuts, and are genuinely nice people (they even went out of their way to tell me how much they loved the Minor Times!). But I hate this sort of music with a passion. I just cannot understand how bands of this sort somehow align themselves with punk or hardcore? Sure, their ethics are in place, fair enough. But let’s be honest- this is radio rock played kind of fast. That’s all it is. Sung vocals really high in the mix, crystal clear production, yadda yadda yadda. It’s pop music made for teens. Lyrically they tell a good story- descriptive anecdotes regarding touring, sleeping in strange towns, being down in the dumps, and an obsession with Arrested Development. I can get behind all that. But as far as the music goes... let’s just call a spade a spade, shall we? (No Sleep Records)

YOUNG LIVERS, “Of Misery and Toil”
It’s really easy to peg bands from Gainesville as having that Hot Water Music/No Idea Records sound. It’s so easy because many times it’s true. So I love it when a band from there can take some of those more obvious influences and make something new and excellent out of them. Young Livers are such a band that can play with the speed and ferocity of hardcore, and still bring in these crazy melodies to their gruff (and usually sloppy drunk) punk rock. Furthermore, I might add that of this style these dudes are one of the tightest live acts you’ll see. How they manage to increase how well they play together by how much more blitzed they can get is some sort of violation of human nature. I don’t get it. Regardless, it works for them and they deliver on their second full length. This record seems to give a little more attention to the vocals, adding considerably more melody in place of their usual downpour of catchy leads common in so many of their songs. Of course, those are present as well. I just feel like they gave their voices a little more emphasis this time around, adding it to the overall feel of catchy, hard melodic punk hardcore. As an aside, the layout for this is pretty cool. It opens up in a weird way that when you see the inside it looks like the cover from that one Tragedy 7”. Just sayin’. (No Idea Records)

GET IT QUICK- FREE STUFF!!!!

2010-04-02T16:11:00.001-07:00

That's right. For a VERY short time get a FREE Hex Records Coffee mug when you order both the new PRIZE COUNTRY and THE HELM records (LP or CD, your choice!) for our fine distributor MVD (and their accompanying direct sales site www.seeofsound.com)
I won't be doing this through my own site, you have to get it from seeofsound
Get it HERE

PRIZE COUNTRY WEST COAST TOUR!

2010-03-28T17:28:00.000-07:00

For much of the month of April our boys in PRIZE COUNTRY will be taking their post-hardcore rock to dives all across the West Coast in hopes of exploding as many people's heads as possible. Please join them in the revelry and bring a helmet.
Here's the dates/info:
April 2nd- Plan B- Portland, OR
April 8th- Tonic Lounge- Reno, NV
April 9th- Kilby Court- Salt Lake City, UT
April 10th- Burt's Tiki Lounge- Salt Lake City, UT
April 11th- Boomers- Las Vegas, NV
April 12th- Rouge Bar- Scottsdale, AZ
April 13th- Mountain Bar- Los Angeles, CA
April 14th- Tin Can Ale House- San Diego, CA
April 15th- Ruby Room- San Diego, CA
April 16th- Muddy Waters- Santa Barbara, CA
April 17th- Billy O's- Ventura, CA
April 18th- Lounge Underground- Monterrey, CA
April 19th- Blue Lagoon- Santa Cruz, CA
April 20th- Help? SF?
April 21st- Blue Lamp- Sacramento, CA
April 22nd- Bombays- Redding, CA
April 23rd- Little Red Lion- Eureka, CA

And if you haven't picked up their latest full length, "With Love" I can only ask "what's your problem?" get it in the webstore now.
Or, of course, at various retailers in the real and online multiverse (download, www.seeofsound.com)

TRANSLATE #4 PREVIEW!

2010-03-24T15:10:00.000-07:00

Howdy! So there's been a lull in the last few weeks of me working on this but it's simply because I'm waiting on interviews. Basically everything else is ready to go and there's going to be some cool nerdy stuff for nerds like me to nerd out over regarding paper type I'll be using for the next TRANSLATE. I'm nerdy-excited about it. For real.
Below are a couple sample pages that I've finished to check out. I'm hoping (fingers cross) to have this at some point next month.

OAK & BONE APRIL DATES

2010-03-20T09:23:00.000-07:00

So, what was intended to be a week or so of some Springtime touring has been paired down to 4 out of town shows for the mighty OAK AND BONE. Don't sleep. See these dudes, and be on the look out in the next couple of months for a split 7" with Rochester's LIKE WOLVES to come out on Barbarossa Records.

Friday, April 9th - Buffalo
6pm
The Last Stand
99 Custer St.
Buffalo, NY 14214
w/
VESSEL
WHITE WHALE

Saturday, April 10th
tentatively: The Creeper House
431 Stinaff Ave.
Kent, OH
w/
SEA SKULLS
and whoever

Sunday, April 11th
7pm
The Hungry House
2966 W McMicken Ave
Cincinnati, Ohio 45220
w/
WHITE WALLS
+ 1 TBA

Monday, April 12th
6pm
Edinboro University: Loveland Hall
Edinboro, PA
w/
BITER
+1 TBA

HERE AT LAST, HERE AT LAST!

2010-03-04T08:54:00.000-08:00

Thank God almighty, they're here at last!"
That's the famous quote right? No? OK, well scratch it.
After months of waiting the END OF A YEAR, "More Songs About Transportation and Intercourse" 7"s are FINALLY in!
I'm packaging them up today and I'll be sending as many of the pre-orders as possible out Friday. Anything I don't get to will go out by Monday.
Whew! What a relief!