MENTIRA

Not to be confused with MENTIRA or "Mentira" or MENTIRA or MENTIRA MENTIRA, Kansas City's MENTIRA take the most recent wave of mutant effect ridden so-called hardcore and....well, they make it hardcore again. Furious and chaotic but absolutely in control, MENTIRA slam through six bursts of noisy fury on this 2016 demo, a reminder of what it's supposed to be like to be scared and still be able to scare. Speaking of scary, these kids gonna be on the west coast in a few weeks, and the sweaty flesh will keep this shell in its (justifiably revered) place. Sonic power realized. 

MENTIRA

SHORT OF BREATH

Flagstaff, Arizona - early 2000s. RUINACRE were still gods, even if they had split. The Casebeer brothers did shows in a basement they had literally jackhammered out of the side of a mountain (and, interestingly, had the first web server business I had ever heard of, much less seen), and Matt had his own janitorial company. WHN? and LIFES HALT played the basement in 2001 (crossing paths with DEAD AND GONE, who had played there the night before), and ARTIMUS PYLE returned the following summer to play a small space downtown. That second gig was a stinker to be honest, but Matt's new band SHORT OF BREATH played, and.....holy shit. Kinda like west coast blasting PV shits, but there's an off the rails desert grind vibe present in every crevice of this recording and its an irreverence that suits the genre well. I'm pretty sure they only left us with these nine songs....so I suggest that you pay attention to these nine songs. 

SHORT OF BREATH

TRAPPED IN OKLAHOMA

Ross is amassing a serious future Killed By Oklahoma series, and hopefully this cassette is just the start. Presented with zero background information (just a list of bands - not even a track listing, you fukkr), I'll let myself believe that Trapped In Oklahoma is just a teaser for the (inevitable?) real thing that will someday grace my turntable. 30 minutes of seminal Oklahoma punk and hardcore from a couple of acts who have graced these pages in the past (DEATH PUPPY, FACE FIRST), plus crucial bangers from CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY, 151 BLACK BATS, VIOLENT CONSPIRACY, NO DIRECTION, NOTA and fucking HOSTAGES (can ANYONE get me a copy of that 12"? Please?That thing is light years ahead of its time). Most of the included material is extremely raw, but that's kinda the way it's supposed to sound - nothing polished in sight, just desperate music passed from hand to hand for 30 fucking years until some fool was smart enough to share it with the rest of us. Thanks, Ross. 

TRAPPED IN OKLAHOMA: INCOMPLETE COLLECTIONS 80-90

BARRED

I don't know how to exactly describe what this shit does to me, but this is what I want tough, meaty, mosh mandatory metalcore to sound like. This is what I want it to feel like. Just four tracks here from Filipinx rippers BARRED, but the churn is fierce as fuck and the devastation is constant. Break free b/w Break shit...on repeat. 

BARRED

ALLEGORY CHAPEL, LTD.

Brutally distorted industrial pulsations, monotony punctuated by vocals with an ominous SPIRITUALIZED sweetness lurking beneath the surface. There are moments - notably "Otaku Tsumoto Mizutani" - that wander down a dark alley of painful ambiance, just as there are moments of subtly soaring beauty....the entirety of Codex Demi-Monde is a journey. Without going into easily researchable details and pretending to know more that I actually do, Elden M. or ALLEGORY CHAPEL, LTD. has collaborations with BONE AWL, NOOTHGRUSH, AMBER ASYLUM and countless others under his belt, and has been in the game for most (all?) of the last three decades. The presented version is a 2014 reissue a self titled 1996(?) cassette release, and is well worth your time. 

CODEX DEMI-MONDE

FRANTIC GLUTTONY

I don't know anything about background at all, except that this tape came to me in a batch that was primarily Japanese hardcore and Argentinian pop punk....so your guess is as good as mine (yes, I used The Google and I still came up with nothing). I think the early grunge parallels are unintentional and/or incidental - a product of shared influences rather than a common goal - just as the Gary Floyd-esque vocals are quite probably the result of a dude filled with soul and going wild more than a band trying to emulate some '80s American punks and the high energy melodic (but still filthy) "Teenage Spew" could be a track off the first FACE TO FACE 12" but still you kinda feel like these kids weren't at all familiar with SoCal bro punk. At its root, this tape is just off the rails punk rock 'n roll, with tons of energy, tons of tempo changes, and a heavy, deliberate rhythm (if not deliberately heavy) section, but when they unleash (as on "My Nose" about halfway through this banger) the results are pretty damned killer.

FRANTIC GLUTTONY

SISTEMA EN DECADENCIA

Piercing, raw, nasty....and fukkn fast. Even though the approach is pure high speed crasher/chaos punk, Melbourne's SISTEMA EN DECADENCIA share as much sonic common ground with fierce industrial/hard dance acts as with your average noise beat warriors. The snare fills in "Culpables" are like Mind....-era MINISTRY surrounded by swirling chaotic high end guitars while Carlos's vocals just sound manic and desperate, especially the repetition at the end of "Sin Religion." And all of this means that when they drop into their version of a galloping DBeat it sounds even more deadly. They rarely hold that pace for long - just a few bars of fist pounding fury before they fly off the handle again - resulting in a whirlwind of mania interrupted by a few brief moments that you can cling onto. But don't let go, because this 6 1/2 minute ride is fukkn wild. 

SISTEMA EN DECADENCIA

SOFT SPOT

Here's a dose of that flangy squirmy twenty teens midwestern punk delivered through a leftover aughts underground mysterious guy filter. Serious dues owed to Reatard hooks and classic blue album caliber song construction, but we all gotta pay someone, right? Perfection ain't free. 

DECEITFULNESS DEMO

BLACK IRON PRISON

Drums and vocals have rarely sounded so terrifying, and rarely have stringed instruments been rendered so forgettable. Organ removed from the corpse of THE ENDLESS BLOCKADE as rigor took hold, BLACK IRON PRISON present desperation with soul baring honesty - their exploration of presentation avenues is commendable, and the five minutes that result are essential. 

I will never forget. 

BLACK IRON PRISON

STRANDED IN CLEVELAND

The concept is simple: a side filled with bands associated with the Blow Blood label and a flip side of bands from Cleveland, Ohio. The raw punk offerings here are perhaps the highlight for me, but I confess that EEL and SCAB EATER sound even tougher with MASSES taking space between them. Represented Cleveland acts include WETBRAIN, RUBBER MATE, PARTY PLATES, SHORT ORDER, PRISON MOAN and a coupla others ("Shit In The Badlands" from PERVERTS AGAIN probably takes this side, but again it's the context of the track in these surroundings that really makes it work), while Blow Blood UNPEOPLE, CAUCASOID, GROTTO, VANILLA POPPERS and the three mentioned at the start of this missive. It's a cool idea for a comp -  the construstion and execution are fukkn great...and there are a lot of songs  here that make you want to break shit, so that's cool. Apparently compiled and distributed in some association with Distort fanzine, but that's mostly a guess.

STRANDED IN CLEVELAND

SKUMSTRIKE

Filthy, disgusting, face melting buzzsaw raw crust. Some days, I simply don't know what else you could possible want. Today is one of those days. Also, the SODOM cover is a bold and successful move. 

SKUMSTRIKE

THEIST

I got a nice package from an Indonesia a few months ago, and while it was packed with joy and doom, this THEIST tape was maybe the cream of the cop. Crushing doom/crust that approaches deadly status when it gets to speed, and searing vocals throughout to keep a black metal shroud lurking overhead. A borderline neocrust approach to be sure, but melody is only offered in the context of bleak and utter devestation, and the stoner/doom bits are just massive - check the breaks in "At The End Of The Maze" if you have any doubts. These kids are from Bandung....I was there once, and we had a fukkn amazing time. 

THEIST

THE BILLS

Nothing fancy here, just some addictive swinging midwestern punk rock. A solid groove throughout, with downright sassy vocals and laid back bass driven grooves that focus on the rhythm as much as the riff while the guitar casually jangles its way along. It's a really simple formula, and it totally works....so well that it almost takes a minute to realize how damn good it is. "Looking For You" is the track - the drum fills sound like they were overdubbed two weeks after the rest of the demo was recorded, and in just 47 seconds THE BILLS leave us an under the radar classic. 

THE BILLS

FUNDAMENTAL

6 FUCKIN' BLASTS....the title say it all. Los Angeles noize mongers FUNDAMENTAL with yet another dose of amphetamine pogo chaos. In just a hair under ten minutes, these mutants rip and tear and smash their way through blast after blast of classic rudimentary noise punk. If this ain't perfection, then I guess I need to go back to PIG DNA class. 

6 FUCKIN' BLASTS

NEGATIVE STANDARDS

During their existence, I feel like NEGATIVE STANDARDS were an absolute force that grew and grew, but always exerted itself (or, in this case, themselves) mysteriously. They toured heavily, if not relentlessly, and their live shows set in front of a wall of televisions were always an intense spectacle. But there was never any hype either from them or surrounding them....they just always were. As if simply because Al and Will had been in ACTS OF SEDITION together it felt like NEGATIVE STANDARDS had just always been there. They were acknowledged, even revered, and they worked their asses off...and then they stopped. A demo, two LPs and a formidable split with WHITEHORSE - then they closed the lid. 2015's Fetters was their final recording, a massive collection of raging crust and black metal riffs and noise/samples and colossal sludge, with Will's voice urging everything ever faster. I confess that I'm almost glad that they were a moment...because it was a really good moment.

 FETTERS

Speaking of good moments, I watched Will get married to his partner of ten years last night, and it was fukkn beautiful. 

SCAB EATER

Not since I popped in the SICKOIDS demo near the turn of the decade have I been so instantly floored. Melbourne's SCAB EATER make the modern hype sounds work...without making them seem like modern hype sounds. Allow me to explain (I mean, that's why you're here, right?) - that recycled flanged out '80s hardcore guitar (think DIE KREUZEN), that high energy stompy stomp, the dark vibes, all of the ingredients for a by-the-numbers modern sensation, except that SCAB EATER have fukkn fire. That guitar is joined by a second axe that just stabs the mix repeatedly, tearing holes in any kind of convention and exposing pure rage and power while the vocals are high, fervid and demanding. When everything else drops out you start to notice the ferocity of the low end (and once you do, you can't not notice it) and the assault is complete.....ugh, my friends, SCAB EATER is fukkn deadly. "Blind//Bellicose" gets my money for the choice cut, though it doesn't hurt that it's followed up by the low rumble and screaming gymnastics that make up the start of "Crimes Against The Soil." Thankfully I don't really have to choose here - clocking in at exactly 600 seconds, Mind Trench is streamlined for repeat listens and receives highest accolades from TEHQ. 

MIND TRENCH

BELIEVER/LAW

I enthusiastically endorse these songs. Both of them. 

CONTRITION

PARENTAL ADVISORY

This fukkr is even more deadly in hindsight as I go back to listen.....there's something eternally refreshing about bands who just GO! with no apologies. There version of a breakdown is the weird quiet blast beat at the end of "Neutrinos," and the riffs throughout will make you cock your head to the side like "what did I just hear?" the same way that a lot of us felt the first time the German metalcore of the same era fell into our ears. The ARMAGEDDOM cover is a nice touch for context, even though most of the writing here is over-steeped in the best parts of '90s DIY hc/grind. There are only four tracks here, but I recommend everything that you can get your hands on. 

PARENTAL ADVISORY

GAS STATION OF LOVE

I guess things don't always have to be hard. And I think sometimes that freedom results in good things and good times. While there might not be anything here that rivals "Spacepussy" from the 2015 split with TAPE MONSTER, our friend/s still manage to offer up a solid six tracks of genuinely weird sounds, a blues rock shuffle, and some legitimately engrossing and/or post dancefloor industrial sounds - "Terry F'n Funk" could be a chopped & screwed CLOCK DVA number, while the title track harkens Monte Cazazza, and all from the hands of an incredibly prolific noise dealer from Texas.

LEARNING CURVE

NIDSTANG

The freedom to create alone, to realize your vision in a void, unhindered by outside influences....it is powerful. I can imagine that the pull of solitude has played a key role in countless important works over hundreds of years, and I am pleased to see this method entering the world of independent music more and more. The "artist" in this instance is Olympia "band" NIDSTANG, and the creation is a brutally harsh and chaotic black metal release. Blackened speed punk and a jackhammer's subtlety, after the 100+ second introduction to "Castrum Doloris" there is nothing but fear and pain seeping out of this shell. No one to talk you out of it, no one to help you realize that there's another way...even a better way. So you just do it...and you do it loudly. 

ANGSTLOCH

TRUTHDEALER

 

I was trying to edit this tape last night, but I was distracted by a professional sports contest and is it really my fault that these fukkrs make it hard to discern which track is "Self Taught: Lesson Two" and which song is "Crooning >/= Small Dick"? No, it's not my fault. these fukkrs need to enunciate and help the rest of us out, but they chose not to (back in 2006), so you get a .zip file with some rrrrripping hardcore tracks mostly titled "truth" and if you listen properly you will not care two shits what any of the songs might be called. Because fukkn mutant hardcore rules, and sometimes you get distracted by sports and shit. TRUTHDEALER was a Milwaukee band who dealt in powerful blasts of knuckle dragging weirdo hardcore, like if some weed obsessed power violence dudes suddenly discovered BIG BOYS and then were like "Yo - who's BAD MUTHA GOOSE?!?!" Exactly - it's weird. And it's awesome. And song titles are for squares and/or Bears. 

THE LIESWATTER ALBUM

Some of the people involved in this band may or may not have been involved in a band who may or may not have played basement shows in Milwaukee while Green Bay Packers game broadcasts took a break for halftime...that's either weird or epic. Or both. Probably both. 

WHIZBANG

CFD played with these mutants in Sacramento in 2007ish, and it still ranks as one of the most fun sets I've ever seen. Only other time I saw them was with SUICIDE BOMB and a shitty Euro band...and that set also makes the list. Fast, snotty, hopelessly hook-filled punk...I like this the same way I like a few SCREECHING WEASEL tracks (except I don't have to hide my affinity for WHIZBANG). I like this the same fun b/w party way I like OiL!, but there are Reatard level chops and SPITS level wit in here too...it's that good. I like this the same way I even admit that RAMONES have some pretty essential tracks (I still contend they are over rated). All influences displayed plainly on "I Love SPAZZ," by far the poppiest ditty on the tape, about Lori (future-RAD, SICK BURN) going to see her "favorite band tonight." Celebrate the next nine minutes of your day, and celebrate loudly. 

BAD IDEA

HEINIKENT

While I can't really put my finger on what makes this different, I can surely figure out why HEINEKENT is good. Pure chaos in sonic form, these Swedes take raw and brutal hardcore and fill the cracks with sample laden dual vocal grind and make even the mosh stomps sound like pure neanderthal madness (take "Dynofet & Snuskig," for example). Maybe it's noteworthy simply because tracks like "Fyllcell" really just sound like they should be Scandicrust bangers but HEINEKENT simply can't reign themselves in (though "Supa Ner En Zombie" is textbook, and the lead is so perfect that it makes me wonder if it's actually just a pisstake). It's noisy, it often lacks cohesion, sometimes the high vocals are a little much....and then "Ambitioner Ska Bestraffas" drops and you hear those weird fukkn trade offs and you realize that maybe the problem is that you are not quite enough. 

GRISNAR VIDARE

Perhaps after spending the next 25 minutes blasting 25 tracks of true freak crust you will want more HENEKENT. I would say that is likely. Find true freak crusters here.