Monday, December 16, 2013

Raw Life



To the delight of merch flippers everywhere, recently Lockin' Out repressed The Rival Mob's "Raw Life". I got the black version out of /800 and there was also a yellow vinyl version out of /200. I'm not sure how long it took for the yellow to sell out, because I find out about this weeks after it came out. I'm sure it didn't take long for it to be gone though. This is the first copy I've ever owned of this release, and I'm glad to get a copy without having to pay through my ass on the bay. Maybe this will drive down the price of the first pressing so I can finally score one. Great stuff though, what else would you expect from the Mob???

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

No Rest, No Peace



Here is Alpha & Omega's latest release on Bridge 9, "No Rest, No Peace". I caught them live with Backtrack earlier this year and was really impressed by how awesome they are live. This release is way more metal than it is hardcore, and as you know I'm not much of a metal guy. This is a good solid release, but I probably won't be putting it on repeat too often. Not to say that it's not a good release, but metal just isn't my thing. However, whenever A&O come around my area I'll try to make it, they are one of the better current live bands out there. This release came on really hideous half clear red, half pink with black splatter out of /300, and some very demonic cover art.

Monday, December 9, 2013

Bishops Green



Here is Vancouver, Canada's Oi! heavy hitters Bishops Green. This is some really good quality Oi! music that is better than 90% of all the other Oi! out there. I wouldn't put it in that elite "Top Tier Oi!" category but these guys are damn good. One thing I really like about this release is that it is darker and gloomier than most Oi! I've heard. Don't expect just boring sing alongs about drinking and fighting on this, because Bishops Green definitely takes a more serious approach and it just works. I'll be on the lookout for more from these guys. Check out "Tumbling Down" below:



Friday, December 6, 2013

I Want The Moon



Leatherface, where have I been all these years? It wasn't until earlier this year that I finally gave Leatherface a chance and I have been seriously hooked ever since. The similarities in the vocals from this to one of my all time favorite bands, the Beltones, is remarkable. For that reason alone I fell in love with this on first listen. Isn't it amazing how you can miss out on classics for years (in this case, decades)? As I get older and my musical tastes expand, I start to appreciate new stuff. If I had heard this a few years back, I may have said this wasn't hard enough for me or some ig'nant ass bullshit. Now I can appreciate this in it's fully glory.

The lyrics on this record are outstanding and really poetic. I haven't fully been able to grasp the brilliance of some of them and it may take me a long time to really get what he's trying to say, but it's apparent that the words have much deeper meanings than your average punk rock record ("Springtime" anyone?). This is not an original press on Roughneck Records, but a recent "fan club" release on black vinyl. If you haven't checked this album out yet give it a try, you won't be disappointed.


Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Coke Bust - Confined



For those of you that know Coke Bust, you know what to expect with this release. They have stayed true to form with their usual style of only the most brutal of fast straight edge hardcore. The big difference with this release is the recordings sound more refined than their last releases. This doesn't take away any of the rawness for me, and I think this may be my favorite Coke Bust release yet. Usually I don't get too far into this ultra fast stuff, but these guys are damn good.

This copy is the red vinyl from Grave Mistake out of /200. After viewing Utopia Banished I saw that they also pressed a record release out of /200. That seems an awfully big number for a record release copy. Grave Mistake also has copies on red still available so if you're thinking about it, don't sleep! Grave Mistake has quietly had one of the most solid years of any label, and with vinyl treatments from 86 Mentality and Striking Distance coming in 2014, it looks like there's no stopping them anytime soon.




The release comes with a huge poster (record placed for reference). Home run on the packaging and design.