Ruleta Rusa

Behold one of the best releases of the year... San Francisco Mexican punk rockers Ruleta Rusa debut LP "Aqui No Es". Ruleta Rusa is from San Francisco and their vocalist used to sing for Peligro Social, another great band. I have seen the name on fliers but sadly I haven't caught these guys live yet. I stumbled on this in the Sorry State webstore and quickly grabbed it once I read the description. This is the mail order edition on red vinyl with an obi strip, limited to /163 and still available. Even though I don't speak Spanish, I think Spanish and punk rock go together perfectly. All the music on this and the vocals are excellent. I just wish I knew what the fuck they were saying... Can't wait to catch these dudes live when they play out here again. Don't sleep on a chance to get this on limited vinyl. 

Check out Ruleta Rusa live above.

The Rough Kids

I bought this release by Los Angeles' "The Rough Kids" as an afterthought basically with one of my recent orders. The band name and description caught my attention so I said why not, throw that bad boy in there. To my surprise, this release has turned out to be arguably my most listened to release of the year so far. I am totally addicted and hooked on it. Sometimes I just need to mix it up a little after all the hardcore and rap, and this is a breathe of fresh air for me. It is snooty '77 style punk that is catchy as fuck. The vocals are great, the music is great and some of the guitar licks will kick your ass. But why take my word for it, you can download the whole album for free from their bandcamp!

I highly recommend you go download this, I don't think anyone will be disappointed no matter what style of music you're into. I am not to sure when this came out or the pressing info on it, if someone wants to clarify please do. 

Sickoids - No Home

Recently Grave Mistake and Sorry State did a split release for the Sickoids "No Home" EP. Essentially a big ass 7", 6 raging songs of USHC. I can't really put my finger on the Sickoids for a comparison, but I will tell you this... right here you have yourself an incredible release! Sickoids are really doing it big and have a refreshing, unique sound. The vocals are great on this, and the music is fast and raw while sounding crisp and tight at the same time. 

This release looks great on clear and comes with a hand numbered obi strip out of /338. Some copies are apparently still available at Sorry State, so if you end up picking up their other excellent Manipulation release then pick this up as well (and the Rough Kids release is excellent too, which I'll do a review for soon). With those two recent release, Sorry State really has it going on right now. 

Manipulation - S/T

I made a blind order recently from Sorry State Records when the put up pre orders for this 12" by Manipulation from Chicago. With a hand numbered Obi strip and limited beautiful orange marble vinyl, it didn't take much for me to pull the trigger on this. Even though I could have downloaded this for free from Sorry State's bandcamp, I just went ahead and ordered it and I'm happy I did. Manipulation plays stripped down USHC foaming at the mouth with anger and frustration. This is an excellent release. If you were smart you'd pick one up while the orange vinyl is still available! I didn't enjoy this that much on the first listen, but I put it on my phone to play in my car for a few days and now I'm hooked. The vocals had to grow on me after a few listens, but I am digging this shit for sure. It has a surprisingly fresh and new sound to it that I haven't heard in many recent hardcore releases.

The cover is kind of odd for this. I can't really tell what it is, it just appears to be a picture of someone wearing some sort of hood. The obi strip is a little bit strange as well. The simple, unique look seems to represent the music well though.

Hand numbered out of /225. The orange vinyl on this looks really incredible. I always have a major soft spot in my heart for some nice marble vinyl. Don't sleep on this release!

MORE BUKKAKE!

Here are one of those underrated thrashy hardcore bands with a weird name... The Bukkake Boys. I was able to pick up this white pressing of their 7" on ebay for dirt cheap, which is limited to /200 copies. This is another nice 7" but not quite as good as their 12" that came out later. Their singers voice is a bit more high pitched on this release. I'm glad to have both of these Sorry State releases on limited color vinyl though. Be very, very careful searching "Bukkake Boys" in google though. The police might show up at your house and accuse you of gay underage porn or something, because some very weird shit comes up. I gave up finding much info about this band after one search. I like the nod to the Descendants with the "Kabuki Guys" label on the B-Side though. Another solid Sorry State release.

Can America Survive?

Going through my old photos, I was surprised I hadn't posted this one yet. Kansas City's own Dark Ages come through in a big way on this LP. One of my more listened to LP's in the past few months, this thing is way too slept on. I have said it before and I have said it again, if Dark Ages were from Boston or New York, this thing would be super hyped. Since they are from the Midwest, they aren't getting any love. That's a damn shame because this thing rips. It's incredibly dark and depressing and has a very unique sound. With straight hardcore rippers like "More Aggression" to long drawn out 5 minute post punk depression fests like "Easier to Die", this album is a chameleon that just seems to blend perfectly with whatever it does.

Sorry State Records did a good job with the packaging on this. Simple, yet cool album art and layout and it comes with a huge poster. This apparently came on /150 on purple vinyl which I'd love to track down. If you get a chance pick this up!

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.