MORE THAN JUST WAX (Pt. 4 - Pressure Point)

Here is one of the pieces of vinyl that I've owned the longest, and some of my most cherished pieces. When I was a kid, Sacramento's Pressure Point were my heroes. Their music really meant everything to me and they helped shape my life. I think I saw them for the first time when I was 12 years old, and being so inspired by their music and Mike's stage presence. I remember talking all kinds of shit in between songs (as he still does) to get people all pumped up. It was definitely more than alot of the punk music I was getting into at the time that didn't have a great deal to say. This split with United Blood was always one of my favorites with the original "Boots n booze" and a "Police on my back" cover. It's amazing to me that Pressure Point is still around like 20 years later, and still tearing it up.

United Blood's side is classic in it's own right. The song "Crossfire" will always be a Bay Area classic. Their singer Orlando was quite the character. I remember him always wearing these little dark glasses with tiny lenses and being super loud and boisterous. He was really loud and boisterous, and if someone was watching a band up front he would go up and start grabbing you and shaking you around and shit if he was into the band. And I also remember him doing alot of pirate impressions. Does anyone know what happened to him? I know he also played sang for Intrepid AAF who ruled as well.

My versions on black and I don't really know if they had any other pressings. Cold Front Records 1998... Wow. Haven't heard from them in a while.

Love the Big Chuck artwork. I was tripping on the "Big Chuck MHS 97" signature. 

We also have the Pressure Point and The Randumbs split that came out in 1999. This is also considered an Oi! classic and a must own. The Randumbs were an awesome band that I don't think fully got their due because they were playing with so many other awesome bands at the time. There was alot of competition with that late 90's TKO Records crowd. 

Pressure Point's "Chaos" cover was definitely the star of the show on this.

Also on black vinyl, and I don't know the pressing info on it either. All I know is that I have played the fuck out of that Chaos cover over the years, haha. I had to put it on to make sure it still plays. Posting stuff like this really makes me reminiscent and reminds me of a time in my life that is gone and will never come back. Yeah, I still get to relive that same feeling that first got me into this music all the time with all the new bands carrying it on and even the old ones that are still playing. However, I still miss the "Good old days" and everything that came with it... especially the music.

One Voice Fest Press

A few months back me and my best friend made the drive up to Sacramento to go to One Voice Fest. A bunch of great bands played that day, but we especially made the drive because the Cro-Mags played the first day. Pressure Point, one of my all time favorites also played and they did a limited cover for the festival. I have posted about this record before, and over the last year I have put a stupid amount of spins on this thing. It was release in 2007, but over the last year it has really become one of my favorites. Pressure Point is one of those top tier Oi! bands that you just can't fuck with.

I got number #24/40. I love the Gadsen snake on the back. Also as a side note, the dude that did the cover art is a tattoo artist from Washington DC that also played in Set to Explode. 

I also picked up this Written Off and Out Crowd split. I own a regular copy of this record, but I can't seem to find it in my posts? I guess I never blogged about it (yet). At the festival the guy that runs Six Feet Under was there and I said what's up to him. I didn't realize he used to play in the Boils, and I had met him in 2003 when my old band played with the Boils at a house party in the Santa Cruz mountains. Small world indeed.

This was #23/40 and on clear vinyl. I was looking at my regular press of this release which is on white vinyl. I don't know the pressing info as far as the colors go, if you do know please leave a comment. 

Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death

Here is the "Resist and Riot" LP by Sacramento Oi! legends Pressure Point. This may be their latest release (don't quote me on that!) and it came out in 2007. Their early releases like "Youth on the Street", "Life's Blood" and "Cross to Bear" are widely considered to be some of the best American Oi! releases ever, and it took me a while to really get into this release. This is by far Pressure Point's most experimental musically and lyrically of any of their other stuff. 

For a long time, I could care less about politics. But over the past few years, I have been waking up to alot of things and alot of these lyrics couldn't be any more dead on about some of the shit that is going on today. This may be my favorite Pressure Point release now, as for the last few months I've been listening to it non stop. I am posting this close to 4th of July because this is some truly patriotic American Oi! Not "ignorant patriotic" like alot of Oi, but these lyrics are much more critical of the government and encouraging people to find out what the fuck is going on. They're talking about the government spying on you and drones and shit flying around all the way back in '07, quite prophetic if you ask me. Give me liberty or give me death, motherfucker. Out of /103 on green and yellow swirl vinyl. 

Ha, well look at that. It's the back of my head (I believe that was at Death or Glory Fest 2006?). 

"Give me Liberty" by Pressure Point is the perfect song for 4th of July...

 

But "Rise Up" is surely my favorite track on this LP.