No/Breaks- No/Breaks demo review

No/Breaks- No/Breaks demo review

This is hill-bombing, Natty Ice-guzzling, Kools-smoking, J-rolling hardcore punk straight out of the 1980s, in spirit if not in reality.  This is the kind of demo tape you buy at the age of 17 and just listen to over and over and over again.  What this lacks in tunefulness and snappy catchiness, it more than makes up for in simplicity and pure energy.  Much like Pokemon or the first two Terminator movies, the replay value on this is about as high as one can get.  That is, unless you’re Snoop Dogg or Sublime, and then you’re probably not all that into hardcore punk.  High or not, this is the music of the bored, anxious, misanthropic Midwesterners with attitude problems and crappy jobs they don’t like.  Just how we like it.

-Aunty Social

Eyesore- demo tape review

Eyesore- demo tape review

What if Murphy’s Law and Infest met, had angry flippant sex, and birthed a child on a shitty motel room floor on 8 Mile and Woodward next door to a guy getting pissed on and a guy who just got kicked out of his house in a messy separation?  That’s Eyesore.  Sonically, like Extortion, lyrically a lot less serious, this band knows what the old adage “less is more” means.  Sixteen songs, eight minutes; this is for those who lack the attention span needed for good music.  I love that.

-Aunty Social

Tear Off//Clean Up- demo tape review

Tear Off/Clean Up- demo tape review

This is blue collar melodic hardcore punk with a heavy sing-a-long vibe a la 7 Seconds, Frank White, early Descendents, and the like.  It’s well put together, but doesn’t perfectly match up with the rhythms of the song, which is part of what gives it the soul that it has.  It’s clear, but not clean- hell, you could give this to a crusty in between their shitty Contravene discography CD, Disclose bootleg tape that they paid $100 for and it still sounds like shit, and a still unwrapped LP of Mischief Brew’s latest record, and it would fit in just fine.  These are some cool catchy guitar driven punk rock songs.  Buy a pint of R&R and a pack of Native Spirits for the complete TO/CU experience.

-Aunty Social

Prohibition- Demo 2015 review

Prohibition- Demo 2015 review

This is a decent demo- what one might expect is certainly delivered.  There a tinge of New Breed era NYHC, Keep Deep In Shit, the Reaper Records sound, and modern youth crew.  Take the cheesiness of Bold, the sounds of Disengage, and the singer of Plagued With Rage (or any skramz singer, take your pick), and you have Prohibition.  Beefy power chords, a steady stream of bass lines, pounding drums, and a set of vocals that are akin to Freddy Cricien fronting Agnostic Front in the late 80s- it sounds like your little brother who watches your band got up on stage and started singing.  Not bad, but it could be better.  As for the lyrics, let’s just say this IS a demo, and it’s all up from here.  Think early-era Madball, and how basic and simple those lyrics are- this is pretty much on that level.  Instrumentally on point, at least tone-wise (songs are okay- neither great nor terrible), weird but decent vocals, and lyrics that make you glad you aren’t fourteen anymore.

-Aunty Social

Detest- demo 2015 review

Detest- Demo 2015 review

This is pure death metal hardcore- equal parts Bolt Thrower and Disembodied, downtuned all the way through.  Vocals bark and grunt along with the crushing mid-tempo riffs and the crashing drums.  This goes back and forth between being a hardcore band with death metal riffs and a death metal band with hardcore breakdowns- ultimately, it doesn’t matter much, because it’s good either way.  Headbang or spinkick, this is for you.

-Aunty Social

The Gulags- demo tape review

The Gulags- demo tape review

Another one of the many bands consisting of a similar group of around 7-10 people (who have had or do have members of Scum, Payload of Atomic Warhead Nightmares, Marrow, Cloud Rat, Live to Kill, and Ishtar), this has a different element to it not present in the other ones.  Extremely raw and underproduced, there’s no question these guys are DIY.  This is fast and loud, but Madison’s lyrical input is a welcome difference here- it makes a band that would otherwise not stand out be worth a look.  A bit more production value would do them good- the songs are good enough for an EP, but it sounds like it was recorded live rather than in studio or tracked separately.  A demo is a demonstration- now that you’ve done that, engage and act.

-Aunty Social

Spiked Collar- demo tape review

Spiked Collar- demo tape review

This is raw and brutal but still has an independently tracked sound to it, which makes all the difference.  It sounds like a couple of current Texas hardcore punk bands, but a Detroit band instead.  This is what hardcore punk is supposed to sound like.  James’ vocals are rough yet decipherable, distant yet energetic, forceful yet not forced, snarly and mean but not in a bulldog-ish way.  Nick and Denis’ guitars are perfectly balanced between the raw and real and the well-produced and clean, where it’s neither painful to listen to nor too slick and overdone.  MANPUPPY’s bass follows with the guitar here- well blended, raw but not too much so.  Jake’s drums are tight but not so tight that it’s perfect; it is nigh-perfect in its imperfection.  With some badass hand-drawn artwork and a fresh perspective by the band members, these cuts make up my new favorite Detroit hardcore/punk band.  I cannot fucking wait to see more shows, cuz this demo is gonna last me a while.
James (the singer) told me about this band back in June of last year (2014) at the Trash Talk/Rzl Dzl show (a wild event in and of itself), and since he has always been on point in writing music, I was downright thrilled to hear it.  After a few months passed, I wondered what came of it, if it was just a pipe dream, dead in the water, or if it was progressing.  Then, in November, word was released, and my dream came true.  The waiting here was so very worth it.  Their first set at the Hard Stripes/Pure Disgust show at Refuge was so good, I almost yelled at them to play it again.  Hell, it was five minutes long anyways.  Cannot get enough of this.

-Aunty Social

Spitback- Skate the Streets demo tape review

Spitback- Skate the Streets demo tape review

Mid-tempo hardcore a la Bridge Nine circa 2006 with basement quality production (this is a good thing- hardcore is not meant to sound overly slick).  What if the U.S. Bombs were a hardcore band?  What if the Faction or JFA grew up in the Midwest in the 2000s rather than the west coast in the 80s?  It’s a very fun band, the kind that would play a house destruction party in exchange for a 30 pack and a couple blunts- very punk rock attitude for a hardcore band.  It’s a hardcore band for everyone- crowd-killers, two-steppers, circle pitters, push pitters, posi-jumpers, all are welcome in Spitback’s music and at their shows, and none are out of place.  The music isn’t amazing, but it’s what you’d expect a hardcore demo to be.  These cats have the energy and the mentality; I think the songs are forthcoming.  Not a bad demo tape.

-Aunty Social

XNo MoreX- demo tape review

XNoMoreX- demo tape review

This Midwest XVXers play classic hardcore punk with a mix of youth crew and political 90s hardcore sensibilities never straying far from their steadfast beliefs in a better way of living, that being a sober, poison-free one.  Though the lyrics are pointed and invective and that sort of thing can be very valuable, the serious use of the term “bloodmouth” is rather cringe-inducing, similar to the way a band would ask you to “check them out on Myspace” or do a Minor Threat cover.  Despite that, it still provokes some thought and manages to bring the mosh.  It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it spins it just fine.

-Aunty Social

Krieg's Legion- demo review

Krieg’s Legion- demo review

One of the most old-school fusions of punk and metal I’ve heard in quite some time; this could have been a Plasmatics outtake minus Wendy O. on vocals or the Crumbsuckers on a 33- it’s familiar, but doesn’t sound quite like any other band one could readily identify.  It’s a mid-paced metal/punk rock fusion straight out of the late 70s, from the proto-hardcore sound to the indirect yet unabashed anti-authoritarian stance in their lyrics.  Also, in atypical fashion of bands from that era of music, this crew has two guitars and a distinct sound on one of them being a lead, making them only more interesting.  Though this is a very rough demo and some good engineering treatment would benefit the band, this is gnarly as fuck, especially for a first demo.  Check them out wherever AARP members apply.

-Aunty Social

GLUE- demo 7" review

GLUE- demo 7” review

This is everything you could want in a hardcore 45- a furious intro, a singer who sounds like he’s on drugs (notably here, the band’s namesake), catchy words, energetic riffs, a visually pleasing layout for the cover and insert, and a certain simplicity that causes one to immediately remember everything the band is about.  This is hardcore for the freaks by the freaks, as it always was, is, and always shall be (hopefully we weirdoes can survive a little longer in the modern era).  It’s the soundtrack to a nervous breakdown and the fits accompanying it- approach at will, and with caution, or eagerness, as the case may be.

-Aunty Social

Correction- demo tape review

Correction- demo tape review

This hits hard from start to finish- burly, fast, gruff straight edge hardcore punk from France.  This has both fast and slow parts, no weak parts or B-sides or anything to suggest that it is anything short of stellar.  Lyrics are straight to the point, vocals gruff grunts of boiling rage, the bass is very distinct and plays a large role in the band’s sound, the drums thump away, never to miss a beat, and the guitar seems tuned down a step or two, but not notably so, at least in the mix.  The hardest song on this tape is the self-titled one, but regardless, this is as close to a flawless demo as one can get for modern hardcore punk, all songs included.  If you can, grab this ASAP.

-Aunty Social

Payload of Atomic Warhead Nightmares- demo tape review

Payload of Atomic Warhead Nightmares- demo tape review

Feedback-laced, noise-drenched, d-beat drum beat filled punk rock.  Walking the line between homage-paying and creating unique sounds, P.A.W.N.’s sound is akin to the likes of Assrash, State of Fear, Disclose, and Confuse, but doesn’t blatantly rip off the music created by these bands.  The lyrics are what one might expect given the name of this band:  Nuclear holocaust, ruins of the aftermath of said occurrence, the ignorance of politicians and those who put them into office, etc.  You’ve heard this time and again, but it never ceases to be fun and at least somewhat informative.

-Aunty Social

Sold Short- 2013 demo review

Sold Short- 2013 demo review

While listening to this demo and simultaneously playing Dynasty Warriors, I had a revelation, a moment of odd enlightenment, if you will.  I was analyzing the music as I knocked away Chinaman after Chinaman, and one thing I noted in the songs was a metalcore breakdown and a youth crew breakdown, mixed of course between pretty stellar new age hardcore.  Upon coming to this realization, it truly hit me how fucking nerdy it was to differentiate between these two extremely similar kinds of breakdowns (the only real difference is the drum tempo, and in some cases, the guitar tone)- in the end, it’s fucking hardcore.  Is it any good?  Yes, it is.  It’s more along the lines of modern mid-tempo hardcore, and for that, it’s pretty stellar.  Well worth it for a demo.

-Aunty Social

Nuke Cult- Join or Don't demo review

Nuke Cult- Join or Don’t demo review

Like a darker version of The Freeze, Nuke Cult still rings of the nascent, adolescent anger of the hardcore of yesteryear.  However, something about the instruments seems… darker, more evil, more menacing than the likes of their influences.  The songs are driving, dingy compositions of a brain(s) filled with more caffeine than dopamine, more adderall than tetrahydrocannibol, and more pimple-faced frustration than stone-faced constipation.  It’s a cornerstone of a growing Kansas City hardcore scene that includes the likes of Spine, Night Moves, No Master, Vomit Assault, Kicked In, Dirty Work, and certainly more.  This is the weird punk that I love, and should get more credit than it does.  Get a 7” of this demo pressed ASAP, labels.

-Aunty Social