MARRÓN

Perfectly executed emotional hardcore from Southern California. Twinges of DC and early '90s San Diego dominate, though my pal Travis tells me he thinks they kinda sound like SWIZ. But people also tell me that band GIVE sounds like SWIZ and I think GIVE are really atrocious (nothing personal, just an awful band), so I'll continue my original train of thought. Guitar leads that drop 39 seconds into "Capital" are some of the coolest sounds on this blog...total simplicity, but it's about the meaning and the execution, both of which are absolutely on point here. They are playing Oakland pretty soon, but I'm leaving town for a bit so I'm going to miss the damn thing - hopefully my pal Travis can snag me some more jams, since there are only three songs on this demo. All of 'em are sick though, so I'll just keep it on repeat.

MARRÓN

NATIONSTATE

This one is just....I don't know. Fukk. So much power and so much noise and so...so fukkn insane. I snagged a 12" from Osaka's NATÏONSTATE when I was there in 2006, but didn't know about this cassette until a few months ago. Over the top insanity. Blown out Japanese noise/crust. Two studio tracks, two live numbers and 63 seconds of noise linking them all together. You know what to expect by now, and I can assure you that this is what you are looking for. Folks from NATÏONSTATE went on to LAST SENTENCE, in case that's the sort of thing that encourages you...but really you shouldn't need any encouragement today.

NATÏONSTATE

 Packaged with flyers and inserts and inside a screen printed box as well - this one is almost as good to look at and dive into as it is to listen to....almost....

TRAITRE

I know that all of you punks have scooped the RIXE single by now (and if you haven't, then you should), but there's another French Oi! band, slightly more under-the-radar, that you need to get hip to. You can thank me after you listen to this shit.

TRAITRE

TIME X

Screaming political straight edge (obviously) fastcore - this was the shit that turned me on my ear in the early '00s, and Portugal's TIME X were way ahead of the curve (and the pack) with this 2001 demo. Nine blasts of fierce and uncompromising hardcore played with maximum intensity. The excessive samples are also an indicator of the time, but here they make it clear where the band is coming from and provide welcome breathers instead of killing the flow. Listen early and listen often. 

LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT

RAODSIDE PICNIC

Another discount discovery, this mysterious double cassette seemed too interesting to pass up for a few dollars and, as usual, I made a good choice by purchasing a cheap mystery tape. Very mellow, sometimes to the point of being background music, but often disconcerting if you listen carefully (as you should, obviously), the sparseness of tracks like "Distant Drums Eating Henry" is as off putting as the piercing "Nest" and the terrifying "Swallowing Bees," and all of them will leave you on edge. Every aspect of Terminal Swan Songs seems calculated - sometimes the tracks are so casual that you can actually forget they are playing ("Sympathetic Orbits"), and sometimes they are so brilliant that you don't want them to stop ("The Man Who Invented Gold," as an example). There are more than two hours of sounds here, and I'm sure that many of you will move right along to the next hardcore gem, but (as usual) the adventurous will be rewarded with a truly interesting and eclectic collection of sounds...compositions that will both intrigue and engage. Also, in the last few years, this dude has cranked out a TON of shit, so if you like it then dig the fukk in.

TERMINAL SWAN SONGS

VOORHEES

I remember when I first heard this band, after everybody kept telling me they were the second coming of NEGATIVE APPROACH or some shit and I was just like....meh. But I can assure you that if I had heard this demo instead of whatever less than stellar vinyl release (I honestly don't remember which one it was) that I would have been frothing at the mouth like everyone else was, because this is bare bones USHC at its finest. Released in 1991 in a quantity of 50 (what the fuck?), these 15 songs are stripped of all the extras until nothing is left but pure punishment. It's not heavy, the riffs won't melt your face, it's not faster, it's not tighter....but it's fukkn right. I listened to to a few of the records after I pulled this bad boy out a few weeks ago, and I still think this is the best VOORHEES has ever sounded. This was reissued as a flexi sometime later in the '90s by Armed With Anger (because good luck getting one of the tapes), so you can own the physical manifestation of this magic if you're down to hunt. Or you can just jam mp3s on the bus tomorrow morning. Fukk man, this is so good. Blast "Death To The Pigs" into "H.C. Rules" every day going forward, and your life will seem a little more worth living. Trust me.

EVERYBODY'S GOOD AT SOMETHING....EXCEPT US

PILLAGE

I sat on this one for a while...those eyes on the cover just chilling on the shelf while I slogged through review shit or bargain bins scores or whatever other things happened to worm their way to the front of the line. Admittedly, the line can get pretty long at TEHQ, but I have no excuse whatsoever for this one. I kept saying to myself, "yeah, I know it's gonna be good, but this other stuff is a mystery so I'll check it out first." This is the wrong thing to do when there's a PILLAGE demo waiting for you. Just relentless and powerful and...fierce hardcore. They blast when they want, they break down into fast parts, eschewing the mosh completely aside from the odd intro, old fashioned more than old school, PILLAGE strip away all the pretense and use power. Ugh...this thing is a monster.

PILLAGE