Master Of Box Sets

I started collecting the Metallica deluxe box sets when they released them for Kill 'Em All and Ride The Lightning back in 2016. Thankfully they gave us some time to catch our breath before rolling out the third one in the set...Master Of Puppets.

These deluxe box sets do not come cheap, and it takes a serious commitment to plan on chasing them. When it was announced that Master Of Puppets was getting the deluxe treatment, I couldn't help but inwardly groan. Fuck. I'm having a good time spending money on old records through Discogs and eBay. I don't know if I really want to shift my focus over to this beast.

When release day rolled around, I was surprised that it didn't show up at my local record store. It seemed as though it was sold out before it hit the shelf, and the store didn't seem to have any available. Suddenly, my interest in getting my hands on one of these increased. I mean, I obviously needed one to keep the collection going, but now I was starting to panic on how difficult it might be to find one, and I went from "I'll pick one up at some point" to "I need this right fucking now".

I hate shopping at my local Newbury Comics, but when I saw one on the shelf there...and it happened to be a 20% sale on all vinyl...I didn't hesitate to buy it.

This box set is massive. High quality and stuffed with all kinds of cool shit for the Metalli-nerd.

We obviously start things off with a vinyl pressing of the album...the Damage Inc print is a nice touch.

I love the early Metallica live stuff...back when the band was still hungry and raw...so the exclusive double live vinyl that is included in the box set is one of the high points of this packaging.

So many cool extras...live shows, interviews, demos, and Jason Newstead's auditions. Pretty wild to hear the original version of Welcome Home (Sanitarium), which included a portion that was later pulled out and used for Orion. Even the folder with copies of handwritten lyrics just adds to the level of detail that went into this box set.

Finally, there is the hardcover book that is full off old photos, magazine articles, and reflections from those that were there at the time of Master Of Puppets. Hella cool all around.

Preorder Powertrip

When I was picking up the Mental and Lion Of Judah records from an overseas Discogs seller, I couldn't resist the temptation to add just one more record to my cart before checking out.

Nothing Done have been one of my favorites from the mid to late 00's. High energy Hardcore that never fails to get me moving. Since discovering them back in 2007, I've slowly been adding their different pressings to the collection, and adding a record here and there. I've been off my Nothing Done game for a number of years, but while I was on Discogs wasting money, I found this pressing of their Powertrip LP that I was missing, and I scooped it up.

Limited cover for preorders that wraps around the original packaging. Numbered and limited to 60.

This is now my fourth copy of the album, alongside the second pressing on blue vinyl, the UK tour pressing, and the record release cover. I love how each of the limited covers is limited to 60...because I like uniformity like that.

In Like A Lion...

A few years ago, I got burnt the fuck out on collecting multiple pressings. It felt like things were getting out of control, and the thrill of the chase turned into a pain in the ass when labels were pressing new releases on 5 different colors, and dropping reissues left and right. I stepped away from that madness, and instead focused my attention on picking up those classic records that I never owned on vinyl in the first place.

I shed that feeling where I felt an obligation to buy everything that a label was releasing, and instead of spending $50 to buy every pressing of a new album, I was content with one copy. It was liberating.

Out of the blue, recently, I started listening to some records from 2005 that I hadn't thought about in years. Suddenly, that old feeling was back, and I started thinking about how great it would be to own more pressings for those albums that I already owned. Fuck that level headed thinking of locking it down and focusing on finally adding that Articles Of Faith album to the collection...let's get loose.

After grabbing a copy of Planet Mental on white vinyl, I had to check to see what else that seller had to offer. Part of my 2005 obsession included multiple spins of the first Lion Of Judah 7 inch...so when I saw that the seller also had a copy of the Soul Power (Plus Four) 12 inch, I quickly added it to the cart as well.

I remember when this 12 inch was originally released. I was spending lots of time on the Bridge Nine messageboard at the time, and when I saw the announcement that some Euro label was releasing Soul Power, along with the songs from the demo, on a 12 inch for Lion Of Judah's Euro tour, I really wanted one. But what was some kid from The States supposed to do? I didn't want to deal with overseas shipping, and prices just seemed to high for my tastes at the time, so I never got my hands on one.

Over 12 years later, the dream finally comes true...and for under $10.

Fear Of A White Planet

When Planet Mental was released back in 2005, I had just started to get into record collecting. I remember being pretty stoked to get an "Earth Sucks" record release pressing at their show, but being new to the game, I hadn't really gotten hooked on the concept of collecting multiple pressings...so the one copy was all I needed. As the years went by, I'd entertain the idea of going back to pick up some other copies of the Mental LP, but it just never happened.

It had been a long time since I'd spent any time with those mid-00's Hardcore records, but when I recently started dusting off some of those old records, I was hooked pretty quick, and that shit was getting multiple spins. It was exciting to go back and revisit that era that I'd been neglecting for the last few years...and soon I was checking Discogs to see if there was any vinyl that was available for a quick and easy purchase.

Since I already owned an original US pressing with the blue cover for Planet Mental, I was itching to pick up the red cover that was pressed for the Mental's Euro tour. I found a white vinyl pressing available, and I was good to go!

Good Reddance

A few weeks back, I picked up a reissue of Ballads From The Revolution on colored vinyl. I absolutely loved the look of that vinyl, and it got me wondering if Fat Wreck had recently reissued any of the other Good Riddance records.

I started looking around and was pleasantly surprised to find that Symptoms Of A Leveling Spirit got the colored vinyl reissue treatment in 2017 as well. While I was originally hesitant to start chasing reissues...because of some strange allegiance to only purchasing original pressings...once I'd started down that road with Ballads From The Revolution, there was no holding back after that, and there was no internal struggle over grabbing another Good Riddance reissue. Again, that vinyl looks great!

Good Riddance were five albums in when they released Symptoms Of A Leveling Spirit and they were still putting out some great Hardcore Punk records. They might have been one of the few Fat Wreck bands that I cared about, but Good Riddance were one of my absolute favorites during the late 90's/early 00's, and it feels great to start putting their vinyl into my collection.

Boys Just Want To Have Fun

When I'm listening to music, I tend to narrow in on specific years or eras. Mostly my attention falls into the category of Metal and Hardcore for the 70's, 80's and 90's...and occasionally I'll get caught up listening to newer shit...and I can be perfectly content to spend weeks just listening to records from that chosen era over and over and over again. There is one period in Hardcore that I tend to overlook these days...those bands from the 00's.

I was recently doing one of those Record A Day challenges on Instagram, and the topic of "All Time Favorite Record" came up. Typically, for this category, I will fall back on something from Ronnie James Dio, but I wanted to mix it up this time around. I was tossing some different ideas around in my head, and then I remembered the Lights Out LP taking the top spot on my Last.fm account (which provides stats on all the music you listen to and capture with their site). Thinking about this album got me thinking about some mid-00's Hardcore records. Before I knew it, I was down the rabbit hole, and I woke up from a record shopping stupor with a stack of Recent Purchases on my account, and a wife that was upset about the number of boxes that were being delivered to the house.

One of the bands that I'd forgotten about over the past few years was One Up. While I was digging through old music and memories from the mid-00's, I came across songs from the It's Time To Believe album from One Up. I only owned it on CD, so I headed to Discogs to find out the deal on the vinyl pressing. Wait. What?!? That was only released on CD? How the fuck is that possible? I mean this was released by Dead By 23, who were kind of known for releasing multiple vinyl pressings, so how did this only see a CD release. Shit is whack.

So while I was trying to figure out what the deal was with It's Time To Believe, I happened to see a vinyl pressing of their demo for cheap. Man, that special cover for Posi Numbers pressing. Pretty much just boys fun. Hilarious.

If you happen to think that the front cover is gay, you might want to stay away from the b-side label. Again...just dudes having a laugh.

Hand numbered and limited to 75.

Propagandhi Victory

Propagandhi is one of those bands that I really loved in the mid to late 90's, but then I lost all interest in as we moved into the 00's. I only gave Failed States (2012) and Supporting Caste (2009) a handful of spins before shelving them, and I never even bothered with Potemkin City Limits (2005).

Despite not having very much interest in Propagandhi, I still stepped up to check out the video for Failed Imagineer from their new album last year. Damn, that song was great, and suddenly I was very interested to check out more.

I stole a download of Victory Lap, listened to it once or twice, and like the last couple of Propagandhi, I kind of shrugged my shoulders and moved on.

I was recently going through my 2017 playlist, and came across that new Propagandhi album. I gave it a spin, and before I knew it, my stats showed that it was my most listened to Propagandhi album from the past twelve years. I just kept going back to it...over and over...and eventually it became obvious that I was going to need to finally pick up the vinyl.

I Believe In Getting The Bastard

Last Summer I was on a huge New Model Army kick, and then band pretty much dominated my playlist when I would go out for a run. There was just something about those songs that kept me fired up while I was ticking off miles on the roads. My NMA record collection was pretty weak, yet I had trouble pulling the trigger on any vinyl that I was checking out on Discogs. I ended up throwing the band's first full length album, Vengeance, into my Discogs Want List, and then I pretty much just ignored it as I moved on to other obsessions.

Discogs has a great system of notifying you when a record on your Want List is available, and after seeing notifications continually pop up for Vengeance, I was getting sick of seeing the reminders. A $10 copy of the UK first pressing popped up recently from a US seller, and I knew it was time to finally cross this one off the list.

This record is so damn good. Let's queue up Running In The Rain, lace up the shoes, and hit the road for a few miles.

Give Me Some Space

There are basically two camps when it comes to Turnstile. Those that love what the band is doing, and those that hate them with every fiber of their being. To be honest, I was expecting that with their new album, Time & Space, that they were going to lose a step. I loved the band since I heard first heard their Pressure To Succeed record back in 2011, but I didn't expect much from the band with a new record seven years later.

I listened to their video single for the song Moon, and my first impression was not a favorable one. The song was different than what I expected, and seemed to lack that intense groove that I associated with Turnstile. It seemed to cement my preconceived notion that this new Turnstile album was going to be a dud. But even with those expectations as low as they could get, on a moment of impulse, I still preordered a copy of the vinyl when they were available. I figured that if I hated it as much as I thought that I was going to, I could just flip it on Discogs to recoup my loss.

Well, I couldn't have been more wrong, because this new record is fucking great. Turnstile push the boundaries of their sound...they continue to grow and yet still sound completely vital. Even my initial impression of the song Moon has done a 180 degree turn in the context of the album. I know that it is cool for us older guys to be all jaded and shit on this album, but I'm absolutely loving it.

For once, Turnstile don't release a record with some shitty cover art. This thing looks great, and the packaging is top notch. 400 pressed on orange vinyl.

You Stupid Asshole

I was excited to start 2018 off by making a good run at some New Wave Of British Heavy Metal records. My daily playlists were restricted to that period of 1977 through 1980, and I was discovering all kinds of treasures that I'd never heard before. I was buying some big time records and having a good time...and then I got sidetracked with some early 80's hardcore punk. I was trying to focus on some undiscovered NWOBHM stuff from 1980, but shit like Agent Orange, Circle Jerks, Black Flag, and The Angry Samoans kept pulling me in for repeat listens instead.

Despite having just dropped a lot of money on a couple of big time NWOBHM records, and should have been scaling back my spending, I couldn't resist the call to extend the spending spree with an expensive punk record.

I've had my sights set on an original pressing of the first Angry Samoans record, Inside My Brain, for a long time now. It has been so long, that this year I finally added it to my Top Ten Wants For 2018 list on the sidebar of this blog...just as a constant reminder to finally get the job done. Mission accomplished.

I love the first two records from The Angry Samoans. They are loud, snotty, and over the top. As someone that considers himself rather PC, you would think that this stuff wouldn't be a good fit, but I'm giving them a free pass. Hey, it was the 80's, and we weren't too sensitive to that shit like we are today. If it were a newer band, some of these lyrics would not fly. Still, I'm careful not to blast this one when the kids are around.

As a cool extra with this copy, the seller had included a couple of promo sheets, and some old interviews.