The Battle For Seattle

Here's another excellent Brandon pick from two unstoppable Seattle bands. Decrepit should need no introduction, and surely, just listening to their take on crusty hardcore is the best way for newcomers to get acquainted. The incessant, rapid-fire vocals are easily the band's greatest virtue. They released a 7" and a self-titled CD that I know of, both of which are/are probably completely awesome. Phalanx also released a self-titled LP/CD, and then called it quits, leaving this split 7" as the only other artifact of their existence. Their sound will inevitably be cornered as Americanized Scandi-crust galore, with bad cop/badder cop vocals. I remember liking their LP more than I like these tracks, and from what I can tell both Aborted Society and No Options records are sold out of it. Being a low profile band, it should be easy to find a copy in one of your favorite distros (the Phalanx tracks below were tacked onto the CD version).

Decrepit/Phalanx Split