Tuesday, July 31, 2012

REV Reissues: In My Eyes

Revelation has been reissuing a lot of vinyl lately, but the one that I'm probably most excited about is the recent pressing of the In My Eyes albums. They were one of the first bands that I set out to collect all their vinyl releases when I got into this record collecting game, and they remain one of my favorite bands of all time. Man, I wish they were playing the REV25 shows in New York.

The Difference Between was pressed on purple, with a new design for the record labels. Yeah, I don't really like the new labels that much. Sure they match the record cover nicely, but it looks like it belongs on a Metal record with the blood splatter look.

Nothing To Hide was pressed on green vinyl.

Sunday, July 29, 2012

REV Reissues: Youth Of Today

A year ago, Revelation Record reissued Youth of Today's Can't Close My Eyes record. The label has been reissuing out a bunch of vinyl lately, but I was surprised to see them do another pressing of this record so soon.

When REV posted that the new pressing on clear vinyl was available, I didn't place my order immediately. A couple of days later, I went to REVHQ to place my order and I was surprised to see it listed as Sold Out. Weird. That sold out pretty fast. Fuck it. I cancelled the rest of my order.

Thankfully, the clear vinyl was back up for sale a few days later. Phew. Crisis averted.

In addition to Can't Close My Eyes, REV also did represses for the other Youth of Today records...thankfully going back to the original cover designs.

We're Not In This Alone was pressed on white vinyl and the layout mirrors the original Caroline pressing.

Even the record labels follow the design of the original pressing. Nice touch.

For Break Down The Walls, Revelation move on from that hideous cover they used with the 1997 repress, but surprisingly they don't use the cover design from their 1988 vinyl pressing either. Instead they go for the original design that was used on the initial pressing from Wishing Well.

To make this one slightly controversial, they went with a dead match of the infamous red vinyl pressing. Of course with the Revelation name all over the cover and record label, no one is going to be fooled into thinking that this is a Wishing Well original.

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Assault On The Horisont

Yeah, Horisont are another Swedish band that were heavily inspired by 70's Hard Rock (see also Witchcraft and Graveyard). I really liked their 2009 debut, TvÄ Sidor Av Horisonten, and have been anxiously awaiting their follow up on Rise Above Records.

I downloaded the album, and it didn't grab me immediately (partially because I had no patience to listen to anything outside of 80's Hardcore at the time)...it didn't help that shipping is crazy expensive for overseas orders from Rise Above...so I held off on ordering. After sitting with the songs for a month or two, it was really starting to grow on me, and I finally place my order.

Rise Above usually does a special pressing, called the Die Hard edition, for most of their releases. This typically includes some kind of special packaging, or cool odds and ends that are included with the record. In most cases, they sell out very fast. I've always held off on buying any Die Hard editions because they cost more, and any order I place with Rise Above is already going to cost me a small fortune, so I usually pass. With the new Horisont LP, I figured that I'd finally spend the few extra pounds, and without really checking what was included with the Die Hard version, I grabbed one on black vinyl.

When I finally received my package, I started looking through the record to see what made it "Die Hard". I couldn't find anything that would have made it extra special. I checked online and found that it was supposed to come with a poster and a patch. Hey, where was mine? It wasn't as exciting as I'd hoped, but I still kind of wanted it. I emailed Rise Above and Jeremy wrote me right back apologizing. He promised to beat the guy that packaged the record and to send me the items that I missed out on. Over a month later, I still haven't received the poster and patch. That fucker better have received his beating.

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Promises Kept In Secret

Could Bridge Nine have made this any more confusing? For the fourth pressing of Champion's Promises Kept, Bridge Nine posted two different pieces of colored vinyl in their webstore, right along with three different colors for the Time Slips Away LP. B9 also posted a package deal that included one of each LP in the most rare color that was available. Pretty straight forward, right? I ordered all 5 different pressings, so I figured that I was good to go, and I passed on the package deal because I didn't need another Champion poster.

Turns out there was an additional color pressing of Promises Kept. The problem is that Bridge Nine never indicated that there was a third color and that it was limited to this package deal. Why not mention this detail for those that are ordering? Was it some kind of secret, or was it just bad advertising?

After I learned about the green vinyl, I emailed Bridge Nine to confirm that it was still available. I wasn't thrilled about having to go back and place another order, but I was thankful that the package deal hadn't sold out. Hell, here we are two months after I placed my order, and the Champion package is still listed. Wow. I can't believe it hasn't sold out yet! Then again, maybe they could have marketed it better and mentioned the exclusive colored vinyl.

Since I had to order the package deal, that meant that I had to buy another copy of Time Slips Away on clear vinyl, and I now have a spare copy.

It had been a while since I'd take a group photo of my Champion collection, and with these newest additions, I figured I'd drag them all out for a picture.

For those of you at home keeping score, Promises Kept is currently beating The Things We Carry, 14 to 10.

Monday, July 23, 2012

Getting The Best Of Me

Since I tried to pick up the Beware 7 inch two hours after Back To Back put them up for pre-order, I was too late and missed out. Two hours! I'm still amazed at how fast Back To Back stuff sells out.

I had mixed feelings about picking this up on eBay recently. Should I be grateful for the chance to add this record to my collection...or do I call the seller out as a piece of shit for flipping it to eBay only months after Back To Back was originally selling them? Either way, this is one of my favorite records so far this year and I'm glad that I finally own this pressing.


Sunday, July 22, 2012

Bridge Nine Has Expired

I'd been hearing the name Expire thrown around for a couple of years now. Six Feet Under released a 7 inch last year, but for one reason or another I was never interested in checking it out. Even with Bridge Nine releasing the band's full length LP, I still couldn't be bothered.

Once I saw the album cover for Pendulum Swings, I found myself suddenly intrigued. There was something about the front cover that made me think, "Hey, maybe I'll give this band a chance.". I quickly found a download for the album, and after a couple of listens, I was on my way to the Bridge Nine store to pick up a copy.

Expire play in the vein of bands like Backtrack, Trapped Under Ice, and other bands that play the current style of no-bullshit Hardcore with a tough guy edge. This style doesn't always fully grab my attention, but Expire do a pretty solid job with this LP.

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Mob Mentality

Mob Mentality released a demo last year, and I seem to recall there was some buzz on the band. Featuring members of Lion of Judah, Mindset, and Desperate Measures, I'm pretty sure that Youngblood was going to release this 7 inch at one point. In the end, one of the guys from Give decided to release it on his own Thrash King label.

Musically this is very rough sounding Straight Edge Hardcore. Given the history of the players involved, I'm not overly impressed with it. It doesn't come across as very serious to me...sounding like the outcome of a few friends jamming Hardcore songs in their basement. Not bad...it just didn't blow me away like I had expected.

Like the production of this 7 inch, the packaging is very rough and maintains that look and feel of a demo.

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Possessed For Post Number 666

When I saw that I had post number 666 coming up, I knew that I needed to get a record that would be appropriate. I originally bought the Possessed album, Beyond The Gates, on cassette in '86 or '87, and then in '88 I bought the CD release on Combat that included the Eyes Of Horror EP. After having a conversation with Doug about the Beyond The Gates LP recently, I've been listening to this album a lot lately. I figured it was time to buy it again...this time on the format that I love the most...vinyl!

The packaging on this is excellent. It is hard to believe that a band was able to convince their record label to spend the extra money for this in the mid-80's.

The "gates" of the front cover open to reveal the wastelands of Hell.

The cover keeps folding out for a full six panel spread. Impressive.

Once I realized that I had post number 666 on the horizon, I didn't have much time to react. I quickly jumped on to eBay and started my search. While I would have preferred the Combat pressing, I was happy to settle for the UK pressing on Under One Flag.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

LOJ European Tour 2006

Has it really been almost 6 years since Lion of Judah released their Universal Peace LP? Wow, I've been doing this blog for a long time.

A month or so back, I was obsessing over Lion of Judah vinyl. My LOJ collection is pretty small, with only 4 pieces of vinyl, and because I was listening to them a lot at the time, I was looking to expand. A quick eBay search turned up this Euro tour pressing. Now, I've never really paid a lot of attention to Lion of Judah vinyl...Hell, I didn't even remember that Powered did a pressing of this album...but this was the first time that I seen this limited tour cover. I'm a sucker for this kind of thing, an therefore I desperately wanted it.

I really like the look and feel of this special cover and lyric sheet. Limited to 300.


Monday, July 09, 2012

There's No Justice

Try as I might, I can't keep up with every band. Sometimes even the great ones fail to really get my attention for years. Such is the case with Justice. Something clicked with me recently, and now I can't get enough of this band. It doesn't matter which record it is, I'm loving it all. In fact, this week I've been frantically searching ebay for new Justice vinyl. Unfortunately, I've been coming up empty. Welcome to my new obsession.

Because I was a little slow on the draw, I'd never heard the first Justice record, Look Alive, until a couple years ago. Listening to it now, I'm wondering why it has taken me so long to finally buy a copy.

With the Breakout demo on the B side, this thing rules from start to finish.

Saturday, July 07, 2012

Good Riddance To A Power Trip

When I placed an order with REV a couple months back, I wasn't content with just the receiving their latest colored vinyl represses. No, I needed more. So to round out my order, I grabbed a couple of additional 7 inches.

From the mid to late 90's, Good Riddance was one of my favorite bands, and I played the shit out of A Comprehensive Guide To Moderne Rebellion. Since I was probably buying most of my vinyl through Ebullition Mailorder back in 1996, it's probably no surprise that I missed out on the Good Riddance split with Ill Repute. In fact, I'd never heard of this record until it was listed on REVHQ a couple months ago. Apparently the label recently discovered 60 copies of the vinyl laying around. They made a new limited cover for it and sold them off. Since it contained two unreleased songs that were demoed for the Comprehensive Guide LP, I figured that I'd check it out.

The songs aren't bad, but they do sound a little rough around the edges. Still, when I'm in the mood for some Good Riddance, they are welcome additions. I'd never heard Ill Repute, and while I won't be actively looking to listen to the two songs on this 7 inch, if they come up in a random 1996 playlist, I wouldn't skip them.

The other 7 inch that I picked up from REV was the new release from Power Trip. The band first caught my attention with their track on the America's Hardcore comp. I was digging their style of crossover Thrash, but after downloading their first 7 inch, I found that the songs didn't really stick in my head. I had high hopes for the new record, but it seems to be more of the same. I like it, and the riffs are killer, but it just doesn't seem too memorable to me. Maybe it will just take some repeated spins to sink in, because I find this to be comparable to the first Iron Age LP, and that took a good three years to grow on me.

The 7 inch has two new songs, and a cover of a Prong song. Prong? Holy shit, I haven't listened to that band in years. While I've never heard the song, Brainwave, that Power Trip cover here, this does make me want to pull out the Beg To Differ album that I own.

Thursday, July 05, 2012

Stranglah's Gonna Make You Pay

Boston Strangler's Primitive LP. In all my years of collecting records, I've never seen a new release that was more difficult to obtain. You couldn't buy the record directly from the label, Fun With Smack. If you wanted a copy, you had to either see the band live, or pick it up from an online distro. The only problem was that there wasn't a distro around that could keep it in stock for more than 20 seconds. With the record in such high demand, greedy kids started trying to flip the vinyl through eBay to desperate kids that wanted a copy. As badly as I wanted a copy, I refused to play the eBay game. Since the label had promised that more vinyl would be pressed, I chose to bide my time, and wait out the storm.

While I had downloaded the album back in January, it wasn't until May that I was finally able to place an order for a copy. When I was checking Facebook one day, I noticed that Painkiller Records had posted that they had some copies of the Boston Strangler LP available in their webstore. Within seconds, I had added the LP to my cart and checked out. A few hours later, it was once again sold out.

Primitive is easily the best album to be released this year. Influenced by the early 80's Boston Hardcore scene, it doesn't get any better than this.


Tuesday, July 03, 2012

Striving For A Gypsy

When Six Feet Under put up pre-orders for the new Gypsy LP, I couldn't give a shit. I thought that their track on the Striving Higher comp sucked, and the comparisons to Jawbreaker and Dinosaur Jr were enough to discourage me from checking them out any further. When Marcus posted about Gypsy's new LP, Giants Despair, and stated that he had listened to the album five times in one day...it was enough to get me to reconsider my hardcore stance on avoiding them.

I checked the youtube link that Marcus had posted for the song Stuck, and it interested me enough so I downloaded the entire album. I soon found myself listening to it a couple of times a day, and in the context of this album, I was even digging the Gypsy song from the Striving Higher comp. I knew that I needed a copy of Giants Despair on vinyl.

Six Feet Under still had the lavender vinyl, limited to 208, in stock. I really shouldn't have spent any more money on records that month, but I got nervous that the lavender vinyl would sell out if I hesitated...plus I was pretty stoked on the album, so I quickly ordered it.

I honestly don't know what it is about this record...it probably won't end up on my top 10 list for the year, but yet I am still somehow in love with this album. I love the album cover, the colored vinyl, the songs...can't get enough right now, and I need to track down the band's first 7 inch.

While the Gypsy song from the Striving Higher comp didn't immediately interest me, the LP did serve to turn me on to a couple of bands that I'd never heard before. The Mongoloids were one of those bands. I'd heard the name tossed around for the past few years, but I'd never considered checking them out. As much as I question the necessity of compilations these days, Striving Higher seems to have paid off in this case.

This Mongoloids 7 inch is a blast. Sometime soon, I'm going to have to check out some of their other stuff.

Another band that Striving Higher introduced me to was As We Let Go. I vaguely remember pre-orders going up for this 7 inch back in 2009...I may have given the preview track from SFU a listen, or I may have just ignored them because they were from Japan...sure it might be prejudice, but I can't think of any Japanese hardcore bands that have interested me. Either way, it was my loss because this record is really good...the track from Striving Higher kind of reminded me of an old early 90's band called Ipecac, but this 7 inch has a strong Cruel Hand vibe to it.

200 pressed on blue.

As a bonus with my order, Six Feet Under threw in a free copy of the Eshas 7 inch. I'd never heard of this, and was interested to check it out when I saw that Rob Fish was the singer.

Unfortunately Rob Fish hasn't been in a band that I've cared about since Ressurection. This record didn't come with a download code, but seeing how I'll probably never listen to this again, I guess it was no loss. Too bad, because the packaging on this is top notch.

Monday, July 02, 2012

Think Twice

Back in the early 90's, there was a band out of Italy named Think Twice. They put out an LP on Crucial Response, and I managed to catch them live when they played in Boston during some kind of Suburban Voice showcase with Kingpin, Said & Done, and Third Degree. I liked 'em, so when I heard that Anger Battery was releasing a 7 inch this year from a new UK band with the same name, I was hesitant to check them out. I'm not a big fan of having different bands loaded to my ipod with the same name. It makes things messy...and I'm not a fan of messy. Funny enough, for everyone of those bands that played the SV showcase, there ended up being another Hardcore band that would come along years later with the same name.

Still, because of the strength of Anger Battery's recent records...Rearranged, Iron Curtain, Times Together...I've found that I need to check out anything they release. The Deficit Youth 7 inch should not be overlooked...blasting through 6 songs in under six minutes, including a great Beyond cover. I'm so glad that I didn't hesitate, and that I grabbed this one when I did.

There were 100 pressed on clear vinyl, 50 of them were going to be used for pre-orders and only 25 were stamped and numbered. The remainder when to the band for their UK tour. Clear vinyl also comes with colored dust sleeve that ties in with the colors from the record cover. Nice touch!

Number 24 of 25.

200 pressed on black?