Tuesday, July 31, 2012

You can't win them all.




Record collecting isn't always peaches and cream. Sometimes you are going to get records that you anticipated liking or looked forward to, and once you put it on your turntable you realize that it's really just not working out. Not every post I put on this blog is going to be how this or that record is the best record ever to get put on wax, sometimes I just have to keep it real. I was really looking forwards to this Hounds of Hate demo. Everything seems to fall in line with something that I would like. I heard it was kind of Oi(ish) inspired 80's style hardcore, check. On a great record label (Katorga Works), check. Excellent artwork and layout all around, check. Approval on several other bloggers pages that I respect, check. Unfortunately once I heard it I was just not having it. It just seems like the band doesn't have passion on the recordings and the songs aren't put together very well. The singers voice isn't that bad either and the band has alot of potential, but it seems this band needs to really find their identity and what they're good at. For example on the song "The Evil That Men Do", it starts out with a slow brooding sounding Oi! style intro, but then suddenly it speeds up into a more 80's style sounding hardcore and all of a sudden it sounds sloppy and out of place, but then when it slows down again it suddenly sounds good again. The theme I've noticed on this is slow parts = sounds really good, fast parts = sounds not so good. My favorite song on this is by far "Born Alone" and its probably because it's mostly slow and displays the bands strengths. If hope Hounds of Hate finds their niche and improves for their next release. 





Here are two that I heard high praises about, High Life's "Self Abuse" and "Drink Yourself to Freedom" 7"s. I love some good drunk furious hardcore. This one seemed like all the stars were aligning for a nice piece of vinyl... I like the band name, the art work, it had good reviews and Cowabunga usually releases decent stuff. Unfortunately I just couldn't get into these at all. It is without a doubt fast and furious, but the vocals are really obnoxious and the songs are just a bit too sloppy for my taste. This would be more fun watching them play while being drunk at a house party, but I'll pass for listening to them on my record player.

Saturday, July 28, 2012

15 On Clear, Better Be Right!




That last Judge post kind of got me in the mood for a Floorpunch post. For a long time I had a real fucked up attitude towards reissues and collections. I was really only interested in collecting the originals. A few years ago when this came out I wasn't really interested. Even though I like Floorpunch, I didn't really want a new collection of all their stuff, so I stood by and watched all the limited colors disapear like a dumbass. By the time I kind of felt like getting it, the good limited colors were gone and it was down to an incredibly ugly "Vegas Gold" out of /599 and the clear out /1009. I have never really been a big fan of clear vinyl, to it is so boring, and the Vegas Gold was just so incredibly ugly. So again, I waited. By the time I picked this up earlier this month during their 4th of July sale, of course all that was left was the clear vinyl. Whatever, atleast I got 25% off on it, bringing this to $15.





The layout is pretty simple. Gatefold with some pretty cool flyers from past shows. What more can you say about Floorpunch that hasn't been said, one of the best 90's hardcore bands period. I have been learning my lesson lately though, when something comes out or a repress of some good old classic hardcore, I'm not going to keep sleeping on it. I usually end up paying four times as much for it on ebay, anyways.

Thursday, July 26, 2012

I'm blogging it down, these records I've got!



So here are my two copies of Judge's "Bringin' It Down", one of my favorite all time records and in my humble opinion the best straight edge hardcore record ever made. You know what, I don't really think that there is anything you could say to convince me that there is a better straight edge hardcore album than this. As you can see I have the original pressing with purple labels and a second or third pressing on red labels. I know this is probably pretty pitiful collection compared to most of your Judge collections with the green copies, orange copies and probably ever variation of poster color, but this will have to do. 





The sleeve on the right seems to be a bit more glossy and the purple seems to be darker. This is probably because they were printed at different places.





It's my understanding that the labels went from purple, to red, then back to purple. And that the colors on the poster went from yellow, to purple, then to black and white. The first pressing also came with a clear poly bag instead of a white dust sleeve. Due to the fact that my red copy came with a purple poster, I believe it to be a second pressing. If one of you Bringin' It Down aficionados would care to correct me then please go ahead. Revelation says there were only 3 pressings of this record (that's not including the most recent 2001 "final pressing" on orange), however I have heard of a ton of variations of poster colors with the record so I don't really know what the deal is but I believe Dobek's information is more accurate than Revs. 




The first pressing clearly says "Printed in Canada" while the later pressings were all blanked out with an ugly pink strip, because they weren't printed in Canada. So there you have it. And just for your viewing pleasure, check out these sweet little Judge documentary:




Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Society is Brainwashed






So I haven't posted a hip hop post in forever. I really haven't bought any new hip hop vinyl in forever for one big reason; they never make any limited vinyl and it is always way over priced. Why do hip hop labels feel the need to charge $20-25 plus for a new release that is just a million copies on black vinyl. If hip hop labels got with it and started doing limited releases on color and variations of covers, I think the hip hop community would get back into vinyl. I can only dream. Here is a copy that my boy Robbie got me for my birthday in 2008. It's a double LP on black vinyl, with a bonus live DVD at CBGB's. One thing that I love about Ill Bill is his appreciation for hardcore and metal. For you Slayer freaks out there, he has a song on here that is the full autobiography of Slayer in a rap song. This album isn't nearly as good as his classic "What's Wrong With Bill?" and some of the songs on this aren't very good, but it still has enough quality work on it to make the purchase worth it.





Here is an old single I've had forever too, got to love the name and artwork! Check out Ill Bill kick some SERIOUS knowledge with DJ Premier on the production for the best track from Hour of Reprisal below:



"If Jesus Christ was a person then who was Mithra, who was Krishna? Who was the first to be baptised, crucified and resurrected? Betrayed and made into a martyr for someone else's redemption. Old men start wars for young dudes to die in, Madison Avenue telling you what you should be buyin'. Religion and science always profess peace but in the end who invented the deadly war machine? SOCIETY IS BRAINWASHED."

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

THE BONUS ARMY, and how to run your label pt. 3

As I briefly discussed in my Plead the Fifth post, I put together a order with Arrest Records on 4th of July while they were having a sweet 25% off sale and was quite shocked at all the stuff that was included when I opened up the package. I felt lucky enough to get 25% off, but Arrest Records went above and beyond on this one!




I ordered Bonus Army's "Burn Your World" 7" which just came out. It comes on Black /100, Clear /100 and Orange /100. I decided to order just the two color versions and pass on the black, but to my surprise not only did they throw in a free copy on black, but also a free test press! I mean, how cool is that? Just for no damn reason at all, even when I already got 25% off my order!





Here's the front and back.






And the test press, hand numbered on the sleeve and record itself #8/30. 





And Bonus Army's "Negative Outlooks" 7" on yellow /150. I downloaded this recently and have been totally hooked on Bonus Army. I fucking love this release. I don't know why I avoided them for so long, I just really think they have a terrible band name and the corny cover art turned me off, but once I finally gave these guys a chance and really saw what they were about, I was blown away. It amazes me that these guys aren't as big or even bigger than a band like Rival Mob. I say this because Bonus Army sounds very similar to Rival Mob but with even harder vocals. This is without a doubt an excellent release, and I'm surprised it is even still in its first press!





Next up was the Rude Awakening 2011 Demo. I ordered the "Gray" /56 (not really sure which one that is...) and he threw in the "Mauve" /189 as well for free! He also threw in a free poster for their Awakening 7" which is out on Triple B for the vinyl version and Arrest Records for the CD version.




Also a free copy of "Late Nite Wars" 7" on red /289. I have yet to give this a spin so I can't speak to much on it.



Also a free copy of Hammer Bros 12" on Black Vinyl /370. I also haven't given this one a spin yet so I can't say a whole lot on it. Either way that is (4) free 7"s, one of which was a test press and (1) free LP!  Arrest Records has pretty much ensured a loyal life long customer after this order and with amazing bands like Factory Minds, Plead the Fifth and Bonus Army on their roster there is no reason that you shouldn't check them out too! 

Monday, July 23, 2012

Terrible band name, Not so terrible record




Here is a super slept on release by Atlanta's Bukkake Boys, another band riding that early 80's hardcore revival wave. These guys really don't get the credit they deserve, which is a damn shame because they are really great. They are a bit more fast and thrashy than most of the early 80's revival bands out right now though, they are more similar to Nazi Dust. I originally discovered these guys while looking through the recent Grave Mistake web store updates and headed over to Sorry State to realize they had a limited pressing on magenta vinyl /100! Luckily I was able to snag one, but I think they may be gone now. It's worth a shot. If you like your hardcore super fast and angry as fuck, then this will be worth checking out. 





Saturday, July 21, 2012

Poor Man's Boston Strangler...





Here is the Boston Strangler before they were Boston Strangler... also known as Anxiety. Here is their "Pathetic" EP on Social Napalm Records. This band has the same vocalist as the Strangler and are very, very similar. The main difference is, well, this recording sounds like shit. The vocals have way too much reverb and it sounds like he's singing in a tiny shower stall. The drums sound thin and annoying, almost like they're playing on garbage cans or something. If you can see past this, this is actually an excellent EP. These songs deserve a re recording, because I feel like the songs themselves could hang with the "Primitive" LP. What a shame that the recording was executed so poorly. The layout and cover art/insert are just as raw as the recordings sound. This is not in any sort of cardboard jacket, it's just pressed on a thin ass piece of paper. 





To remedy the fact that the "jacket" is just a thin ass piece of paper, I used this Shai Halud cardboard that Rev keeps sending me like 10 of every time I order from them as packing material. I put the record itself in the Shai Hulud sleeve, and then the Anxiety paper sleeve over it and right into a polybag. There you go, that's how my Anxiety LP will be stored for eternity. If you like Boston Strangler, then this is still worth a shot since it's the same singer and similar sound, I just wish these guys would re record all these tracks. 

Thursday, July 19, 2012

I got so much repress on my mind, Refuse to Lose...





When I heard that Six Feet Under was repressing Cold World's "No Omega" I was all over that shit with the pre order. The pressing info is /100 on orange, black and white splatter and /300 on orange marble. Both copies are surprisingly still available, so I would head over to the SFU store if you want one of the limited /100 copies! I am really shocked these are not long gone yet. It seems that Cold World vinyl seems to be getting cheaper and cheaper, and that's kind of sad because Cold World fucking rules. I've always been a huge Cold World fan, especially since they reference so many hip hop lyrics in their songs. My favorite hip hop reference is when they shout out "Big L Rest In Peace!" on "Low Places". Big L is my favorite rapper of all time and when my friend showed me that lyric years ago when this first came out, I was forever hooked on Cold World. As Jake already mentioned, the orange splatter copy is really one of the best looking vinyls I have ever seen. What a perfect blend of colors for this release.

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

MINDSET - Deluxe LP





Wow, I've been incredibly busy lately and have hardly been able to do any posts. Bummer. But it's about time to get right back to it, so here is Mindset's new "Deluxe" Double LP that just came out on React! I am glad I pre ordered this because it was /500 Black, /300 White, and this was the most limited pre order of /200 red Deluxe double LP and it sold out long before they even started shipping pre orders. After this came out, it was revealed that the band had a pressing out of /100 on Gold also with a Mindset stamp on the inner sleeve. Mindset is one of the hotter bands in hardcore right now, bringing their Youth of Today inspired youth crew straight edge style right into 2012 with a vengeance. I'm down with that. 





The Deluxe LP version comes on 2LP's of different colors, very cool! I absolutely love the dark red and black swirl, it really looks fantastic. The 2nd LP consists of their "Mindset LIVE" LP, which is the copy on brilliant looking firetruck red. The first LP Consists of their "Time and Pressure" and "Real Power" 7"s combined onto one record. The booklet is pretty cool giving a little history on the band so far. The hype is very deserving for this band because they really got it going on right now, so I can't wait to get my hands on their full length. 

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Anti-Heros and underage tattoos






GMM Records recently released Anti-Heros 1999 (and final album) "Underneath the Underground" for the first time ever on vinyl. Anti-Heros, in my opinion, is the best Oi! band EVER. Yeah I said it. I was so psyched when I heard about this that I didn't hesitate to order the package deal from Victory for both copies and a T-Shirt. Although this record is not even close to their classics "That's Right!" and "Don't Tread On Me", this is still a solid album. It's surprising that this was never released on vinyl so I'm glad they got around to it. This release is /100 on yellow and /400 on white, pretty limited for such a heavy hitter Oi! group. I've actually been giving this album more listens on the ipod lately since I heard about it being repressed, and it has really grown on me in a big way. It's just that when you're so obsessed with their first two albums for a majority of your life, it's hard to accept anything else. So like I said, this really is one of my favorite bands ever and here is some proof.....




That's right baby, my first tattoo I ever got was on my thigh in order to hide it from my mom. I remember taking showers and always putting shorts on after before walking out of the bathroom. Eventually my mom jammed me up about it and wanted to know what I was hiding. When she saw it she was had an "I don't care" attitude about it, and so I didn't either and started getting more underage tattoos. Regardless, the Anti-Heros popped my tattoo cherry so if they are reading this then send me a test press to show your appreciation.