Half Japanese

I have neither sad story nor heroic epic to account for the lack of posts.  I've just been finding other things to do with my time.  To make up for said "lost" time, I offer a resurrected idea, the "grab bag o' splits."  Four splits had to be chosen from my teeming bins; the international theme was not enough to quell the chaos.  Japan would have to come to the rescue!  Each EP in the bag has one Japanese band featured-- beyond that, quality counts, style doesn't; obscurity is a plus.

This first split sees Norway's Angst wrestling with Idora for the last scrap of whale meat.  Figuratively speaking, I hope.  Both bands represent their respective countries as well as the time period (early '90's) smashingly-- Angst discharging an arctic blast of thrashed-out Norse-core with modern flourish, and Idora doing what their country has mastered for ages, but with an exceptionally scathing guitar sound.

If a bit of South American brutal primitivism is your thing, Venezuela's @patia No deliver it, Machetes in hand.  Their three tracks also appear on the collection LP they put out on Alerta Antifascista/Skuld, but here they are, in their original place of nativity, next to Japan's Jabara.  These guys are probably best known on this coast for the 12" they put out on Prank, and these two Death Side-esque rippers ended up on that one too.

It's Germany and Japan, reunited once again, this time not for world domination, but for intricately wrought ass-brutalization.  Deutschland's Atka provide the fractal grindcore geometry combined with repetitive autistic mind-melting guitar loops, while Swarrrm are up to their usual tricks, escaping the psych-ward long enough to smear their rambling manifesto in feces all over the infrastructure of our decaying civilization.  Ecocentric Records was having a hard time keeping their online store online, and I had a problem downloading my digital version, so my own rips are provided, and I hope you'll contact the label to get a real copy if you can.

  The last goody in the bag is a double creature feature of dirty, metallic sludge.  Hellchild's chugga-chunkiness has graced many a split, and here they are again, busting out Wesley Pipes with Tennessee's very own cannabis crematorium, Bongzilla.  H:G Fact never lets us down, even when the bands are not the label's usual fare.


Get all four splits in this bag.

Recently Re-upped: Mine "Tetanus" LP + Dawnbreed Split 7"

Coming Up: the fulfillment of a request!

Run with the Sheep, or Dance with the Banshee

If you weren't already a happy bastard today, the album art above should take care of that.  If that fails, give the music a shot.  Unless you're one who considers melody a ghastly scourge upon hardcore, these Eugene, Oregonians will surely free the closeted, illicitly-begotten child within all of you and stir your loins into such a tizzy you'll want to accost strangers, beget more and start the bastard baby boom!  But seriously, these bastards create a real threat in the way they coat pure subversion and defiance in a glorious subterfuge of sweet melody and driving rhythms, reinventing hardcore punk as something dangerous and new again.  We all now it's not actually new, but for a moment or two, while listening, I actually forget I'm a jaded fuck.  Fans of Burning Kitchen, Sado-Nation, Godless, and Harum Scarum should take special interest in Happy Bastards, and to spread the creed I'm offering two splits.

 The first is a 7" with the UK's Kismet HC, who bring together the best aspects of One By One, Ebola, and Disaffect, with a touch of Life...But How to Live it?  On this one, Kismet blast Happy Bastards away.  They're just way on top of their game, and HBs have hollow production and much less energy than they had on the next split (except for "Damn Nation" maybe).

This next split is an LP, and although both bands are from Eugene (not international, I know), the Happy Bastards tracks are just too incredibly good not to post.  These eight anthrax Jell-o shots go down so smooth and just rip you the hell apart.  I was an instant fan; no latency period required.  Side A is occupied by Human Certainty, a band who seemed young and full of ideas.  Like many bands of this nature, putting it all together yielded uneven results, although I do enjoy their music quite a bit (not so much their vocals).  Stylistically  HC could have come from Arizona, bringing to mind the metallic yet emotional fury of bands like  Absinthe or Jeremin.  

Happy Bastards splits with Kismet HC and Human Certainty

Recent Re-ups:

Def Master 7"

Sutek Conspiracy Discography

Seven Inches of Songs About...

In sorting through the mess of split EPs I've got lying around me right now, I once again felt the need to choose a theme to make sense of it all.  I've arrived at an international theme, as in the next few splits will have bands from two different countries.  Having stated that, both 7"s tonight are linked by German melodic hardcore workhorses, Inner Conflict.  When I first heard this band's second LP, I wanted to dislike them due to their "processed" vocal sound and the fact that they played with a drum machine.  But the driving riffs and melodies were too much for my sanctimonious knees, and an inevitable collapse took place, followed by a surrender.  The usual adjectives-- energetic, catchy-- associated with bands of this style are ever so appropriate here.  This first installment sees the band paired up with a Finnish band whom I liked a great deal; then they recruited vocalist, Arja, and it morphed into a love affair!  Juggling Jugulars has got to be one of the most explosive and distinctive bands in Europe today, and they only seem to get better with each release.  This time around they treat us to four tracks so charged and ornery, you'll never get a chance to nail them to any one genre within the punk (dis)order.  Each band also covers a track from the other's back catalog, thus solidly rounding out an already rock hard piece of wax.

 Inner Conflict's Spanish friends on this next split hopefully need no introduction.  For me, Sin Dios have been an intermittent crutch, anchor, and a slap in the face for many years and will continue to be even though they are long deceased (as a band).  "El Poder Mundial" is sadly only two short jabs, displaying the band's fighting spirit even as it was sinking to its knees.  If you've heard the other splits and the last CD the band put out, the tracks are along those lines.  While I regard "Ingobernables" as Sin Dios' pinnacle, the material just afterward was still better than most punk or hardcore out there.  As mentioned above, Inner Conflict take side B honors with two of their best tracks.  "Down" follows the band's usually style, mixing faster hardcore tempos with slower, more anthemic moments.  But it's "Scene" that has stuck with me since first hearing their side.  It's easily their most fist-pumping, gritty anthem, holstering their melodic weapons, and reaching for the switchblade instead.  Both sides go by way too fast, but hopefully the other 7" will offset this disappointment.

Both splits here

Contact Twisted Chords to get hard copies!

Succeeding Where Celtic Frost Failed

Fast-forwarding 16 years from the last post, this split series continues with an outstanding pair-up from last year.  Side A is (I believe) the second outing from San Diego bros, Death Crisis.  From their name, you probably guessed one band members were in previously.  DC are hardcore for the fan of bullshit-free bands like Out Cold, but whose ADHD is lighter on the "AD" and heavy on the "H."  Tried, true, but still relevant themes of media brainwashing and apathy are strongly represented, as well as a new one: douches who bring their dogs to hardcore shows.  While I've never experienced this first hand, I can understand their irritation (but for the record: my dogs do/did like hardcore... still wouldn't bring them to shows though).  Death Crisis also have out a 7", and another split 7" with 80's San Diego D-beaters, Diatribe; a burgeoning website can be found here.

Side B brings perennial FE favorites, Same-Sex Dictator, in what might be their most primal form.  These two tracks were written and performed straight from the brain stem, and given the option of fight or flight, I'm thinking SS-D choose the former every time.  In describing the band's inimitable and incredible LP, Justin (drums) felt that his band was more caveman than the proggy descriptors I used.  If you've heard the "Descend to Syncope" tape then you know what he means, and on this outing the band has gone positively neolithic!  It's also possibly their most blackened offering, considering the faster speeds, atmosphere, and less-than-sparkling production values.  This time the lyrics take a blunt ivory implement to the skull of themes like system moochers ("I'm Not Paying for Your Failure") and the Orwellian/Kafka-esque world we drones inhabit ("Removed By Paperclips").  The split is still available in two formats, so I'm supplying my crappy vinyl rips for a limited time.  Yes, music is digitized, but real people are putting in real time and resources to make this all happen.  Please support them.

Buy the vinyl here
Death Crisis digital tracks here
SS-D digital tracks here (awesome Eyehategod and Joy Division bonus cover tracks available!)

Vinyl rips here.

To Show You How Much You Meant

I got delayed again, but this series of splits is happening for real this time.  The first two will be more deliberate; the others a bit more random, but no less awesome.  First off, the indestructible and unstoppable Despise You/Suppression split 7" is being reposted for two reasons: Roman requested it (dude, sorry for the delay... again) and because it's got be one of my top five powerviolence/grind records of all time.  Don't ask me about the other four-- it would take some hair-pulling deliberation to work that out.  This one requires no such ordeal.  When I first posted it a few years ago, I probably ripped it at a crap bit rate, so here it is again, with graphics and all.

The Despise You/Suppression split 7" (Slap-a-Ham Records, 1996)

Recent Re-up:

Never Healed/Violent Minds split 7"

Punk Rock Died at 8th and Gilman

Dark, dark days lie behind me, but the light is coming back up ahead.  This time it will bring a slew of splits, and things will once again be noisy around here.  We start with a band mean enough to steal your Christmas, but it's more likely they'll just lace your candy canes with something extra special.  Grinch was some grungy, stonery, post-hardcore rock whose line-up consisted of members of Christ on Parade, Machinehead, Crimpshrine, etc., and whose touring crew at various times consisted of Aesop (Ludicra, Fuckboyz, Agalloch), Tim Crow (Zygote, Smartpils, etc.) and Spider (Amebix).  It's tough to nail their sound, and to keep the mystery mysterious, they don't sound like any of the bands above.  They produced two full lengths prior to this split LP, "Eden" and "The Blacking Factory."

Lost Goat continue the trip, but with more noise and effects to thicken the ethery haze left by Grinch.  LG can't be accused of following formulas from track to track, as each one has its singular way about it, while still showing off the band's gift for rocked-out, yet off-kilter riffs, leathery vocals, and that well-documented creepiness hinted at by the cover  "art."  Lost Goat might be an acquired taste for some of you, but if you awaken in the night with strange dreams and cravings, the band has three full lengths, a 7" on Alternative Tentacles, and a split 7," which I may have to post soon.

Grinch/Lost Goat Split LP (Probe and Misanthropic Records, 1998)

Recent Re-Up- Saturation 12"

Under Midnights and 10,000 Tombs

There are no fewer than six bands with the name Memento Mori, so let me start by establishing that this is the one that did a split with Kylesa way back when.  This Memento Mori hung back in the trenches along the fringes of warring musical worlds, following mainly the protocols of that excruciatingly personal hardcore come to fruition in the nineties, but donning an impenetrable veneer forged in the fires of speed metal, melodic death metal, and early Celtic Frost.  The twelve tracks on their posthumously released CD shows an even more artful melding of those styles than some members' previous band (Sutek Conspiracy tracks have been re-upped here), and were gleaned from MM's 12", split mentioned above, and unreleased recordings. In Memento Mori's case, I think it's more than appropriate to mention that the vocalist later joined Scrotum Grinder and is currently the screamer in No Statik, and that the guitarist is/was in Saros.

Memento Mori Discography CD (Hyperrealist Records, 2004...320 kbps)

Recently Re-upped- No Comment discography!

Coming soon (I promise!)- Re-ripped Despise You/Suppression split 7"

Swallow This

The end of our last century brought the hardcore world platitudes-a-plenty, from the personal to the sweepingly apocalyptic. But there was always an overpowering, undermining presence, seeping out now and again from the barrio cracks, and snapping us out of our self-righteous daze.  Spearheading this force was Martin and Lengua Armada Discos.  Both names have become inseparable from the names Crudos and Limp Wrist, but this post will focus on one of the less celebrated bastard children of the franchise, Tragatelo. I'd like to think it was celebrated less only because of its brief existence.  As Ricardo pointed out, the band was formed by Martin and Lina (of Subsistencia) among other hardworking musicians active in the late '90's.  Lina takes most of the vocal duties, and the band backs her bansheefied screams with the same raw and elemental drive that immortalized some of Crudos's finest work. New fangled designs will come, dazzle, and eventually succumb to obsolescence or else collapse under the weight of their own convolutions.  But the LA Discos workshop hammered out simple ones, made of the most solid stuff, and which aren't likely to wear out for some time yet.

 The twelve inch below comprises the band's tiny discography, collecting their side of the split demo (with Kontraattaque) and some unreleased tracks.

¡Tragatelo!

Recently Re-upped:

The "El Guapo Comp."

Screaming at the Wind- Receive No Replies

Greetings from after the blogapocalypse.    The bustling marketplace of free music exchange has quickly taken on the eerie quiet of an Anasazi cliff dwelling. Transmissions have been weak and infrequent, as has motivation. Impulses to post come but then go before I can see a rip through to completion.  I'm fighting through this as much as I can, but surrender may be imminent.  Until I quit these ruins for good, I have at least a few posts I'd like to unload on you (a few sneak peaks are listed below).  For one, I've been wanting some decent rips of the two Abc Weapons records, and I figured why not share with all (three) of you.  When I first posted about these Aussies, I used some stolen rips.  But the ones below are homemade and hopefully of at least passable quality.  In case you haven't heard, The Weapons were a project with Schifosi/Pre-Pisschrist members and played that good ol' dark crusty hardcore made famous by Tragedy, and honed and refined by bands like The Holy Mountain, Muga, Jeniger, Ambulance, etc.  Like these bands, Abc Weapons kept their guitars tuned for maximum despair-induction, used only semi-melodic guitar leads, and avoided the pitfalls that make some neo-crust bands a bit irritating (screamy vocals, dramatic guitar dissonance...).  The "Process of Decay" 12" is one of the finer examples of this style, while the "Bitter End" 7" has enough shining moments and riveting blast-beats to make up for its slightly less stellar songwriting.  You can hear some samples from the unreleased "Excessum" 12" at the band's myspace page, and you can pick up the vinyl pieces posted below here and there about the web.

Abc Weapons- "Process of Decay" 12" and "Bitter End" 7" (Endless Blockades and Global Warning Records respectively).

Upcoming posts: Tragatelo 12", Memento Mori discography, Lost Goat, any requests?



Recent Re-ups:
Zygote- "89-91" LP
Acursed/Bonds of Trust Split 7"

In Piss We Crust

No type of noise has such an equal chance of being either super boring or super powerful as d-beat hardcore.  These days, I'm generally steered away from terms like raw punk, d-beat, kang, mangel, crasher crust, etc. due to the plague of overabundance.  But, there will always be bands than shine through the grey blur of two tone covers, and catch my waning attention.  Pisschrist is easily the shiniest for me.  These former members of Schifosi, Abc Weapons, and Far Left Limit mastered this style to such a degree I wouldn't be surprised if a hundred bands come out in the next decade with names starting with Piss-. With the small hope that you all don't already have all the band's splits, I've ripped them for whomever's interested.  The band assembled an impressive, international army of rawness to take the b-sides, enough to charge you hair without adhesives for a month at least.

Pisschrist (Australia) split 7"s with Appäratus (Malaysia), Framtid (Japan), and Kvoteringen (Sweden) (on Yellow Dog, H:G Fact, and Endless Blockades Records respectively)






Recent Re-ups:

Multi-Facet/Sheephead split 7"
Tonka 7" plus Tonka and Unherd related comps

I Should've Been Kissing You

It has been entirely too long since the last emotive French band was posted.  This attempt at making things right is brought to you by Kiss The Bottle, a short-lived project comprised of members of Finger Print, Amanda Woodward, Daymare...the list goes on.  Amanda Woodward is the most recognizable reference point, but with only one guitar, KTB's sound is a bit more raw and bare, but the vocals are the identical outraged shouting AW fans have come to appreciate.  Beyond that, expect less of the quiet picking and more of the buoyant mid-paced, emotive rock-core these musicians mastered previously.  The rips of the 9" are my own (320) and the demo CD-R was provided by the band and Stonehenge Records.

Kiss The Bottle 9" and CD-R

Recent Re-ups Requests:

Hard To Swallow- "Protected By the Ejaculation of Serpents" LP (re-ripped!)
Enewetak "Deadbird" 7"
Axiom/Church of Nihil/Autonomia Split LP
Whipped- "Agitator" LP
The Shivering partial discography

I've once again got some time on my hands, and no money with which to skip town.  Keep up the re-up requests, and let me know if you're looking for anything else.

Nuestra Tierra Anahuac

Amid the abysmal mire of gloom, doom, and nihilism that marks our current era of crusty hardcore comes a light, once again not from the coming epoch, but from the previous one.  Among other things, nineties political bands still had some fight left in them, and no shortage of hope.  I love revisiting these bands, not just for nostalgia, but under the pretext that we might come full circle again in the near future, that the collapse we are anticipating will be a transformation, not a terminus.  All of this is encompassed beautifully in Subsistencia's only release, the "Nuestra Tierra Anahuac" CD.  Much like their Scottish contemporaries, Sedition, Subsistencia draw their vision from an atavistic connection to the land of their/our ancestors, in this case, to Meso-America (Aztecs, mainly).  Musically they're not far off from the last comparison, although their aggressive tracks remind me more of Disaffect (along with the spirit and occasional ska/reggae tendency of Sin Dios).  In between the pounding and thrashing there are softer passages with undistorted guitars and flute, which add an individual character to the band, and make for an epic listening experience.  I also appreciate how the dual vocals are shouted loudly and clearly, making it forgivable that no lyrics are provided in the insert.  Grounded in the past as they might seem, the band is very much about their present (mid/late nineties) and our future (present?), showing a strong concern for the place occupied by developing nations in the global era, and their ensuing struggle.  Passe as this all may seem to the cynics among us, I anticipate that bands like Subsistencia will one day again be considered visionary, a feeling I'm already inclined toward.

Subsistencia - "Nuestra Tierra Anahuac" (Xicano Records and Film, 1998)

Recently Re-uploaded:

"400 Day Headache" Comp
Ivich Records and comp appearances
Enewetak rarities
Hybride
Sea Shepherd 7"

Your Cheatin' Heart Will Tell on You

The sonic offenses that comprise Hanging Rotten's discography make an ideal score to the bipolar summer we've been having at this latitude.  The fruitful indecision that makes "Your Cheatin' Heart" both an unsung grind and sludge classic, seems to also lead us through disparate narratives of this summer's battles with nature: hurricanes and flash floods on side A; endless, lethargic days of oppressive heat on side B.  As mentioned before, HR was formed from members of Seven Foot Spleen, and the guitar sound proves it (although this time around they have production that makes your head feel like it's caving in).  To get the full experience, I'm including two other releases from the band: a CD they put out in Malaysia, and a split 7" with German grinders, Verge On Reason.  There are overlaps between all three, but I figured I should put it all out there anyway.

** Note: The last few posts have been re-upped at zippyshare.  If you want old rips re-upped, just let me know.  A few people have already gotten in touch about that... see below.

Hanging Rotten Releases.

Recent re-up requests:
Zorn
H-100s

  Saké

The Fire That Conspires Against Us

Let me start by saying that blogging morale has been at an all time low.  An anticipated pay cut should spark some serious austerity measures here at FE headquarters, and the first budget casualty is, of course, vinyl purchases.  Then there's mediafire, which rages McCarthy-like in its pursuit to erroneously shut down the very users who bring the site its traffic.  My account was suspended after receiving a couple of demerits (school discipline terms both intentional and inadvertent), the offending straw being a Damnable Excite Zombies/Amen split that was somehow mistaken for a Dragonball Z© file!  I'm not going to fight it. Nor am I going to let this dampen my spirits any further.  I'm returning to 4-Shared, and while it makes you wait for your download, at least there aren't those ridiculous pop-ups giving zippyshare a shot at handling downloads.  The last few posts have been re-upped.  If there is/are any tunes you missed out on, contact me through comments or e-mail, and I'll re-up it/them for you. I'll keep the rest of this post upbeat, as I have good news, and yes, some freebies.

First, a generous lad, Ryan, offered high-quality CD rips of all three Institute releases, and being no fool, I took him up on it.  All three are available for download below, and he even included graphics.  I was also stoked to hear that Ryan has joined the ranks of us bloggers with an outlet specializing in hardcore/punk bands which employ cello and/or violin.  I've already discovered some kick-ass bands, and revisited some old favorites.  Make sure you head over and say hey, and maybe drop some requests.

Blog -- Crust With Strings

Institute CD Rips:

"Two Shadows"

"The Piano Player"

"13 Planets"

On to a request of our own: an anonymous blog buddy was looking for former Distraught rockers, Sangre de los Puercos, and I'm sorry I delayed this long (rough month).  While I like the overall noise SDLP make, and love their lyrics, something about the drums or drum production leaves me cold.  I don't know, maybe you'll like them more.  I do, however, have no objection to yet another related band, Endless Nightmare.  They're much more my speed, in that all out thrash attack of the vague Japanese and/or American variety.  Both Sangre 7"s and the Endless Nightmare 7" are in the link below.

Here

A long time ago, I did a post on the innovative and aggro hardcore band, Lesser of Two.  Well, a while back, they contacted me about how they posted some of their material for download.  Members are also in the amazing progressive metal band, Embers who are doing exciting things, and doing them often.  Check out both bands below.

Lesser of Two

Embers

Boredom and Disease

One of my top genres for summertime listening is good ol' dirty sludge.  Maybe it's the way it syncs with the pace of life; maybe it's my increased alcohol consumption.  In any case, NC's Seven Foot Spleen seemed right to post, but then again, I think anytime is a good time for them.  While the guitar tuneage and much of the pacing reeks of sludge, SFS are not locked into one mode, and like some of the best moments from Eyehategod and Mange, they often floor it to hardcore speeds.  Whether born from indecisiveness or a love for fusion and variety, the four tracks on the  "Boredom and Disease" 7" take the boredom right out of the title.  This genre and tempo crossover would continue in some members' next band, Hanging Rotten, which will be the subject of a future post.  Crusties, grinders, and hardcore kids alike should dig these guys, and for extra poops, I'm throwing in the band's split with Aussie hardcore madmen, Gacy's Place.

Download Seven Foot Spleen "Boredom and Disease" 7" (Fuck Inane Records, 1996) & the Seven Foot Spleen/Gacy's Place Split 7" (Spiral Objective Records, 1997)

Unsavory Secret Cloaked in Mystery

With tracks as long and complex as the life cycle of its namesake, Hellgrammite amble, trod, and ravage through mindscapes... well, unsavory, secret, and mysterious.  And, not unlike the fungus of the opening track's title, each of the four compositions on the "II" cassette are like deadly spores infecting the listener's brain, splitting sword-like through the cranium, revealing the tangled bramble-patch of the mind's sense of pleasure, euphoria, pain, and fear.  Black metal, doom, prog... these are all comfortable reference points, but like all art/music, it's not just what is present that matters, but the spaces between.  Whether those spaces take the form of bass-heavy drones, or echoey psychedelia, the violent times are all the more confusing and thrilling by contrast.  Hellgrammite is brought to you by one half of Same-Sex Dictator, and members of Forest Friends and ...Wind Swept Planes... The "II" tape is (possibly) available from End Theory Records, or contact the band.

Hellgrammite "II" Cassette (digital rips... 320)

** Special thanks to Justin for hooking up the tape and the WAV files (and for the awesome drumming)!

Vicious Pleasures

Since I don't go to shows much anymore, grabbing random demos and getting pleasantly blown away has replaced the excitement of discovering bands the more preferred way (live).  Although places like bandcamp remove some of the mystique of the demo experience, at least the bands are getting more exposure (and bloggers get to spotlight certain bands to like-minded people... hey, maybe this blog isn't completely useless after all).  So on to the spotlight band, Vicious Pleasures, fired from that musical birth machine of Portland, Oregon.  By now we know that location doesn't necessarily mean much in this case, except for the higher potential for quality.  Therefore I'll describe VP as playing modern peace punk which reminds me of the slower-paced material from Signal Lost, minus the noodle-y guitar leads.  A formula like this leaves the vocalist exposed and vulnerable, and only one with charisma like Sara can hold things together.  Her pipes and style will appeal to fans of that gutsy, rock-crossover approach put on the map by bands like Icon Gallery, Godless, and, yes, Signal Lost.  The five-track demo is not only promising, it's a great listen and has excellent sound quality for a first outing.  So that you enjoy an almost authentic demo experience, I ripped my tape copy, but you can get a free digital download from the band.

Vicious Pleasures- demo tape

Bandcamp - Free download available

Alternate cover art:

Los Pobres, Ladrones, Y Muertos

This one's not a tape, but it was at some point.  Generacion Suicida's demo is the kind of punk that could be the soundtrack to my entire summer, evoking sweaty, beery garage practices, broken up by hours of blissful idleness under the smog-enshrouded Southern California sun.  The strategy here is to appear loose and untrained, but really I think these guys are quite calculated in their artful use of rawness and simplicity.  SG bring that post-1980's LA sound, mastered by Scandinavians like The Vicious and Gorilla Angreb, back to LA with an authenticity not only of place, but of style and emotion.  I've heard the band is great to see live as well, and you can listen to a live-on-the-radio set here. The demo tape was apparently released in two sets of 50, and the 7" version posted here in one pressing of 307.

Generacion Suicida demo 7"

No Hay Futuro

The posts this week(end) are the result of me finally locating my box of recently purchased demos and other cassettes, some of which I've been wanting to post, some I haven't really had a chance to absorb yet.  The Criaturas demo falls more into the former category, as the band's 7" and LP have been giving my turn table quite the workout of late.  While the band shares members and a visual style with Deskonocidos (another recent obsession), they don't come across as dark as their cousin band.  Criaturas perhaps share something in common with another Austin band, Sacred Shock, in that they draw from an array of impressive punk/hardcore influences, but what results is something better than merely the sum of these.  The standout quality on this outing is the sense of Cold War-era paranoia, conjured by the frantic pace of the drumming and fits of noise from the guitars, and given staying power by the way Dru sustains her shrill wails and cries.  Some exciting things have been happening in Austin, and although a lot of those "things" share members, I hope other musicians will be inspired and take up arms.

Criaturas demo

You can get wav files of the tracks here.

The band's 7" can still be found here.

The LP is available in many places, but was released by Trabuc Records, Spain.

Are You Bonescratch?

The month of May almost beat this blog(ger) to death, and June has thus far been a time of recovery.  The rest of this and next month should be much more productive, but as usual, no promises.  For this comeback post I have a handful of releases from a displaced spirit, or a response perhaps to an Ebullition/Old Glory/Gravity Records catalog sent in a bottle across the Pacific.  Bonescratch is one of the few proofs that that style of hardcore crept its way to Japan before the end of the decade that spawned it.  If you're thinking Merel, Angel Hair, Assfactor 4, and End of the Line, then we are speaking the same language.  If not, prepare your ears for their first sputtered morphemes from the lexicon of nineties entropy: frustration and angst in both form and content, followed to their logical end-- complete dissolution.  To my knowledge, the folder linked below has all of band's releases, minus comp. appearances.

Bonescratch 
"Last Words Gone" 12" (Bloodsucker Records, 1998)
Sawpit/Bonescratch split 7" (Vernacular Records, 1998)
Bonescratch/In/humanity split 7" (H:G Fact, 199?)
"Diaglam" CD (H:G Fact, 1996)

Atolls and Serial Killers Part II

The time has come to rehash the surliest and burliest metallic hardcore of the nineties.  Two factors prompted this (yet another) Enewetak post: a request for a re-up, and a long ago kick-down of some rarities, compliments of a mysterious stranger.  The first link below includes re-rips of the band's "Easyrider Sessions Vol. 1" 7" and 8 previously unposted tracks including a Guns n' Roses cover and another recording of "Deadbird" among other raw and nasty numbers.  Dirty sludge twists around chunky mosh in this JG Ballard-like collision of tissue and metal that always sends me reeling.

Enewetak- "Easyrider Sessions Vol. 1" and rarities

It has come to my attention that the Enewetak/Unruh split 7" link died, so here is a refresher:

Here

Masquerading in a Failing World

Here we have another situation where a commenter has helped me with my procrastination problem.  I've been sitting on this Calloused post for months now, and with all of the Minneapolitan madness of recent posts, now is the perfect time.  As mentioned previously, Minneapolis has produced an enviable number of great crusty hardcore bands, many of which escape notice outside of that area.  Calloused may unfortunately be one of these bands. They wowed me on their now classic split LP with Shitlist, and as with any band this uncompromising, their other releases are no let down.  Posted today are the band's final 7" and "The Masquerade" 12" (the tracks from this one I believe also appeared on the CD version of the Shitlist split). Calloused is of interest to any hardcore nut who can appreciate the musical benefits of repetitive cranial trauma, but also welcome a touch of sadness thrown in for complexity and a sense of tragic resolution.

Calloused - "Still Failing World "7" (Sin Fronteras, 2003) and "The Masquerade" 12" (Fired Up!, 2002)