Earth Girls- Wrong Side of History 7" review

Earth Girls- Wrong Side of History 7” review

This is high quality, fast paced garage-y punk rock with a big pop element to it- imagine the Ramones with a female singer (not that different a sound, honestly) and slightly less intense instrument volume.  This is catchy, melodic, well-written, well-recorded, jangly music with a “soft side of punk” vibe.  This could almost be pop punk if not for the fact that this is no doubt a record written from a chronological vision before pop and punk were ever fused together.  For anyone who understands where punk came from originally, sound-wise, or wants to.  Excellent.

Harm's Way- Rust LP review

Harm’s Way- Rust LP review

Imagine a cinematic sequence of a movie version of Streets of Rage:  Four guys surround you; one has a machete, one has a pipe, a third has a knife, and one more is unarmed.  The guy with the pipe swings at you, but you dodge it and hook him, knocking his featherweight ass out; he drops it and you pick it up.  You swing it up at the guy with the machete, who is coming at you, blade raised in the air.  You knock him back, stunning him briefly as he drops his weapon and the knife wielder lunges at you, the blade drawn and pointed right at your midsection.  You lean far backward, your assailant just missing his strike as you drop the pipe in your left hand.  With that same hand, you force your fingers into his throat and rip out his Adam’s apple, pitching up his knife as the two remaining assailants close in once again.  You swing the knife in the direction of the unarmed assassin, causing him to take a step back, while the Jason Voorhees wannabe gears up to slice you.  As he brings his blade down, you do a 180° spin with your right arm at shoulder level, with your own blade traveling in the direction of this armed assailant, who just misses you as the blade passes only three inches away from your back.  The knife swiftly enters into his neck; he almost instantly drops his weapon, clutching at his neck as you let go of your stolen knife.  Seeing that your one remaining adversary is right behind you and moving in, you let out a spinkick and do an about-face to confront your final enemy.  You pick up the machete from the ground and glare at your only remaining adversary, staring almost all the way through him as the urge to scream in anger rips through your body.  Your final assailant turns around and runs away in fear as your mouth open to bellow out all the rage that’s festered inside you all these years; finally, you unleash it…

You realize you’re the singer of Harm’s Way, an extremely heavy metallic hardcore band from Chicago, Illinois, and your assailants were members of Weekend Nachos, the last surviving member (the one who turned tail and ran, the turncoat bastard) being Snyder.  You realize that you have to finish vocals for your new record, and you get back to the studio to lay down the last few tracks.  Heavily influenced sound-wise by death and industrial metal, you lay down a similar albeit different style of vocal more akin to a hoarse version of Mike IX Williams from Eyehategod.  The records comes off as sounding as heavy, pissed, and full as ever, though the lyrics indicate you are a man of few words.  Just as it should be.  Truly a progression just as much as it no doubt a Harm’s Way album.

-Aunty Social

Spine/Repos split 7" review

Spine/Repos split 7” review

The same sides of a different coin, these tracks, this split, fucking rip.

On Spine’s side, there is more of a sociopathic late-80s NYHC feel to it (not New Breed Comp. style, though- more like the bands on The Way It Is).  The lyrical content is on point; one song is about a dystopian future complete with cannibalism, another about the problem of sexual assault at shows, one about the future already being written for you, and the fourth is about problems with dentists.  The final song is a cover of the Repos’ Kids Don’t Care (off their first 12”); these tracks are a simultaneous continuation and evolution of the songs laid down on their first EP.

On the Repos’ side, it’s clear the band has changed since their first incarnation (they broke up in 2008, members went on to form the Ropes a couple years later, and due to threats of litigation by a more commercially successful band also named the Ropes, that band folded, and thus the Repos were reborn).  The jagged, disjointed, angry, and puzzled sound still remains, however, and the charm of the first band also still exists.  Blurry in its blending/mixing of the instruments, the sound is one ugly mix of killer hardcore punk with rough enunciations of something resembling words.
The packaging is excellent, everything a split should be.  Same goes for the sounds- this record has reinvigorated my belief in the power of the split(s).

-Aunty Social

Crazy But Not Insane zine Issue #2 review

Crazy But Not Insane zine Issue #2 review

I must say, I really do hate Chicago.  I think it goes deeper than a sports rivalry, because I don’t hate Colorado, Wisconsin, or Cleveland at all.  But Chicago, much as I like some of the bands from there, I simply cannot bring myself to not despise it.  However, much as I do hold a negative vibe towards this city and the mentality it has, I found this ‘zine from that area to be quite the good read.

The interview with Tom of Violent Reaction is quite humbling; engaging and relatable, the way I like my journalism.  The show reviews are different; the fact that Gag did THREE shows in Chicago and not a damn one in Michigan is befuddling, but I suppose good friends are where you find them.  These are some radically different crowds of people, a different brand of weirdoes than I’m used to or will ever be used to, I feel; still, the faithful few cannot be disregarded, for they are a crazy bunch.  Fewer iPhones in 2014 should be a goal for us all- technology has not been a kind invention to grease the social pipelines that have become all but clogged with awkwardness and self-preclusion.

The Toronto scene report is quite accurate and informative; the bands mentioned are all pretty good, even though Column of Heaven has sadly fallen out of favor with me now.  Short, detailed, and to the point, all I can ask for out of a scene report.  The playlist, like any other (including ones I pick out myself) is a mix of good and bad- I genuinely do not like Tom Petty, the Grease soundtrack, Blood For Blood, or the Pixies.

The photos are excellent, though I think they may benefit from an increased level of contrast (i.e. less black background, it makes the photos difficult to see).  Good work for a dying art, I had a good read with this.

The one-page zine for Issue 1¼ was a great, if not a bit sad, read.  It was only sad because I don’t really have the social energy to do this shit with others.  Still, this zine makes an excellent point, in that road trips are one of the most fun parts of hardcore.  Do it up, as you kids like to say.  As for the Not Dead Yet issue, I like it, but it brings me to wonder the most strange of questions:  Why is everyone so obsessed with people who wear fedoras?  I don’t give a shit, but is there some reason this shit matters?  Wear a mariachi hat, a Gilligan’s Island hat, a trucker hat, who gives a shit?  It’s only for covering up your inevitably god-awful haircuts anyways.  N.D.Y. is a fantastic festival, hopefully I am able to find my way there some day.

Cheers.

-Aunty Social

Assault USA- demo tape review

Assault USA- demo tape review

This demo is pure hardcore; no metal, no punk, no screamo, no other influences to speak of.  Given that, it’s very short and simple, and the songs are different in terms of quality, but “Painful” is particularly good- it sounds vaguely evil, but on a relatable level, as opposed to the illusions and nightmares of some lyricists/vocalists.  Packaging is good, though this tape was recorded over something else (I can’t figure out what it is this time) and given what I heard after waiting for maybe five minutes, it’s better that way.  I can’t say I’m impressed, but I will say that it is, above all, simple, as though it didn’t need to be excellent, which it of course doesn’t always have to be.  Sometimes, the most enjoyable things in life are not complicated or require intellectual prowess to appreciate. Sometimes, things are just cool, you like them, and it doesn’t require any more explanation than that.  This demo is one such thing.

-Aunty Social

Bored Youth- Ghost, Scars, and Dreams sampler review

Bored Youth- Ghost, Scars, and Dreams sampler review

This is just two songs off of a whole album, so this is just a small taste of what the whole band has to offer.  First things first:  This was among the first bands in the Detroit area to play juvenile, fast, angry 80s hardcore.  Though not around for very long, the band still left its mark on the scene and was an integral part of the book Why Be Something That You’re Not by Tony Rettman.  After time passed and the members grew up, their tastes changed and they eventually decided to resurrect the band, albeit in a very different way.

This version of the band is in no way similar in any way to the old version of the band other than in members and in name- this sound is better produced and bears not one bit of resemblance to the shitty old punk rock sound the band had before.  Judging it on music alone, it’s sort of radio rock/indie rock style with a retrospective look on one’s life as a punk rocker in their teens; it’s kinda catchy and fun, a band one would expect to see at PJ’s Lager House or the Garden Bowl.  I do object to this being named as the same band from the 80s, but aside from that, it’s good.  Not great, but good.

-Aunty Social

The Ropes- s/t EP review

The Ropes- s/t EP review

This is a lightning fast old-school hardcore punk EP.  Lyrics are pretty simple, but still manage to get the mind rolling; it’s a mixture of introspection and good old self-loathing (or loathing in general).  “Valium Cocoon” and “Heads Will Roll” are the two best tracks, but all the songs on here are rough, aggressive, dark hardcore punk where one can’t go wrong.  The vocal style is almost unique, being gruff and low-pitch, but not brutal- it’s delivered at a punk rock pace, and it’s still uncompromising enough to make one want to fight somebody, at least verbally if not physically.  This is very simple music, but it is deeper than the surface value, if one wishes to look deeper at it.  If not, this is still stellar 80s hardcore punk- loud and angry, but not so much young and snotty.

-Aunty Social

Bald Pig- demo tape review

Bald Pig- demo tape review

Very rough, cacophonous-sounding fast hardcore punk with a higher-pitched, clearer-sounding singer.  This demo does not last very long at all- four minutes or so, tops.  The lyrics are not the usual sort of hardcore fare, which I can appreciate.  “We’re All Racist” is the most indicative of this- very interesting.  Undoubtedly a throwback to an old Agnostic Front song and communicating a strong “victim’s revenge” sort of vibe, “Victimizer in Pain”, this is one of the faster songs on the tape.  “M.A.D.” is the only slow song on here, a much more mid-tempo beat, but still a crusher.  Definitely a demo, but it’s so short that it’s almost impossible to waste one’s time listening to it.  Can ya dig it?  I can.

-Aunty Social