See You In Hell

When we started 2022, I was all excited about chasing a bunch of New Wave Of British Heavy Metal records during the year. I had big plans. I wanted to cross off some heavy hitters from Samson, Satan, and Witchfinder General. I wanted Iron Maiden and Venom singles. I should know better. I have terrible focus, and it wasn't long before I'd lost immediate interest in buying NWOBHM records and I found obsessions with different eras of hardcore. I managed to pick up a few NWOBHM records, but it wasn't as fruitful as I'd imagined back in January. Anyway, as we were closing in on the end of the year, I felt the need to make one more big move before hammering in the last nail in the NWOBHM Chase Of 2022 coffin.

In August of 2022, the singer for Grim Reaper, Steve Grimmett passed away unexpectedly. I had caught Grim Reaper for a show on their US tour in 2018, and Steve was just happy to be on the road and playing those old songs. He hung out after their set to talk with fans and let them get photos. Class act. With his recent passing, it just felt like it was finally time for me to grab the original UK Ebony pressing of the first Grim Reaper album, See You In Hell.

For an album that is nearly 40 years old, this copy that I'd picked up was in great shape. Is there any better feeling than receiving an old record, opening the box and seeing that it still looks brand new? This record doesn't command a high price tag, but it is still a stone cold NWOBHM classic for me. There were a lot of those bands that I didn't discover until many years later, but I had this See You In Hell cassette when I was 13 or 14 and I rocked the shit out of it. Makes me feel good to finally have this in my collection, next to the original pressing of the second Grim Reaper album, Fear No Evil. Now I just need Rock You To Hell to complete the trifecta.

Live At The Country Club

I'm generally not too interested in live recordings from hardcore bands. They are rarely around long enough for a setlist interesting and varied enough to warrant a live recording, so I typically avoid them. When I saw that Indecision was releasing a live Insted album, I was tempted to just ignore it... then I remembered that I own three copies of the Live At CBGB's that was released in 2005, after the quick run of Insted reunion shows, and I figured that I might as well grab this album that was recorded back in '89.

Insted had a song on the No Control At The Country Club live 7 inch from Nemesis back in 1990. This new live Insted album is their entire set from that night. I've never owned a copy of that live Nemesis 7 inch, and have never really been too fussed about owning one. For some reason, now that I have this live Insted record, I kind of want the 7 inch with songs from Carry Nation, Visual Discrimination and Bad Religion as well.

I really like the album cover for this, and it is a big part of why I felt compelled to buy it, but there is nothing else for packaging here. Considering that this live set is now over 30 years old, it would have been really nice to get some writing from the band on memories from the night and what not. Still, this is a great sounding, high energy live set, and I'm glad to own it... even if I never listen to it again.

Ace Of Whitespades

When I first discovered Midnight 10 years ago, I immediately loved that Venom-worship thing that they were doing. While the foundation of Midnight's sound has stayed consistent, they seem to have come out from that Venom shadow and have become their own thing. Still, the man behind the band, Athenar, wears his influences on his sleeve, and when he wanted to do some songs in the vein of Motorhead, he pulled together Whitespade to deliver that sound.

Whitespade is designed to be a straight up tribute to those Bronze-era Motorhead records. Musically, I think they come close to hitting the mark as the guitar and rhythm section drive each song forward at a pace very similar to what Motorhead was doing, but vocally Athenar has too much in common with Cronos/Venom to be confused with Lemmy.

All three members from Motorhead's classic period have passed away, and the 10 songs on this Whitespade album pays honor to those legends. This record keeps their spirit alive.

While not in the realm of the greats like Bomber or Ace Of Spades, this Whitespade album still delivers the goods.

Straight Edge Pride

You'll never see me get tired of straight edge hardcore. I'll never get to the point where it leaves me bored because I've heard it before. If new bands keep showing up and writing new songs, I'm there for it. Forever. When I saw Statement Of Pride show up as a recommended band on Spotify, I figured that I'd check them out.

A Fire Inside and Summer '22 were both cassette releases for Statement of Pride, but thankfully Crimewave Records combined the two of them and gave them a vinyl release. Man, this shit is so good. When I first heard these songs, I thought they really reminded me of some other band but I was having trouble putting my finger on it. At the end of the A Fire Inside EP they do a cover song of Cataract from Strain... yeah, I think that is who they remind me of. Plus they drop some Outspoken lyrics into one of their songs, and in 2022, I find that to be so fucking cool. My heart still beats!

It was recently announced that Youngblood will be releasing an EP from Statement Of Pride soon, so I'm stoked for that.

Sumerkiller

I had a quick love affair with the first Sumerlands album. When it was released in 2016, I thought it was a killer record... but by the time we were moving through 2017, I'd left it in my rearview mirror. It is kind of funny how quickly I forgot about that record. When I heard that Sumerlands was releasing a new album in 2022, I dusted off that first record and once again, I'm blown away with how good it is. Maybe this time it will stick.

The latest Sumerlands record finds the band with a new singer, adding Brendan Radigan from Magic Circle, Stone Dagger, Battle Ruins, The Rival Mob, etc. While I generally find myself disappointed when a band changes singers, I was feeling pretty good about Brendan stepping in with Sumerlands. This is some great traditional heavy metal and it gets better each time I listen to it.

I was pretty excited when I was placing the order for the Dreamkiller record. Typically I try to pick up the best looking colored vinyl, but as I was in the Relapse store, I just wanted the most limited pressing available. Gold and violet with splatter is what I ended up with, and strangely I'm not concerned with how shitty it looks.

First 500 orders got a couple of Sumerlands guitar picks.

Down To Green Vinyl

I picked up a few Down To Nothing records last year. I've always liked the band, but over the past 6 or 7 years I'd kind of pushed them aside to make way for newer hardcore bands. When I picked up those DTN records in 2021 on a whim, it reminded me just how great that band was. I found myself listening to them a lot, and I wanted more of their records in my collection.

While I've picked up multiple copies of both The Most and Life On The James, I didn't own a single vinyl copy of the first Down To Nothing album, Save It For The Birds. Of course when this album was originally released in 2003, I was only buying CDs, so it has taken me nearly 20 years to finally pick up the vinyl for this. Prices for this records have been pretty steady over the last 10 years, and surprisingly haven't made a ridiculous jump, so I was able to snag this for a decent price.

I didn't think too much of this Down To Nothing record when it was first released. I really didn't start to appreciate the band until The Most, and with that record they quickly became one of my favorites at the time. Still, I definitely grew to enjoy Save It For The Birds and I'm glad to finally have this one in the collection.

Wicked Mystik

Say what you will about Spotify, but sometimes their algorithm works some fucking magic. Over the summer, I was listening to the new album from Savage Master, and when the album was done, Spotify threw a song at me from a band named Mystik. I'd never heard of the band before, but the song Nightmares immediately had my attention.

Mystik are a traditional heavy metal band from Sweden. The singer is female (in fact, 3/4 of the band are female), so the fact that Spotify includes them in the Savage Master playlist isn't really surprising... what did shock me was that Mystik released their record back in 2019, and I'm only hearing about them now. Man, this record is so strong. Great old school heavy metal from start to finish. I really hope that we hear more from this band.

Only available on black vinyl, and limited to 666.

Free LSD

Somehow, eight years have passed since OFF! released their Wasted Years album. It kind blew my mind when I realized that much time had passed as I was getting ready to write up this post. I mean, I know that we lost a couple years into the Covid black hole, but still, eight years?! Fucking hell. Feels more like three or four years, tops!

I really liked that Wasted Years record... in fact, in my Top 10 for 2014, I ranked it as number one at the time. When I heard that OFF! were releasing a new album this year, I was obviously going to jump on it.

I figured that OFF! were fairly predictable. Their other albums didn't deviate too much from the core OFF! sound, so I thought that I knew what to expect with Free LSD. I was wrong. This new album is... ummm... different. Keith Morris is still the singer, so their sound hasn't drastically changed, but musically, there is a lot of stoner, fuzzed out guitar, that I wasn't expecting. It is like the band crossed over into Fu Manchu territory a bit, and I'm not sure how I feel about that. I definitely like this album, but initially I found the change a bit jarring, highlighted by the little "free jazz" interludes sprinkled throughout the record. I kind of want this album to sound like the other OFF! albums, but who knows, over time I may come to appreciate that Free LSD is a bit different.

A lot of the colored vinyl looks great for this album, but I went with the "electric blue" option.

When I bought this blue vinyl pressing, it was listed as the "deluxe glow-in-the-dark gatefold edition with blotter lyric sheet", and I thought it was something that was unique to this colored vinyl version. Nope. All seven different colored vinyl options have the same packaging... plus the glow-in-the-dark piece is on the inside gatefold, which is kind of pointless.

Free Saxon

I've been buying new Saxon albums since the band released Call To Arms in 2011. At the time, I was really only familiar with their classic records from the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal era, but that new record really hooked me at the time and put me on notice that Saxon was still going strong. The band has released a few new records since then, and I've rushed out to grab the vinyl for each one. When I heard that they were releasing their 24th album this year with Carpe Diem, I found myself struggling to show much interest. Maybe it was because I really only wanted to listen to hardcore, but after one quick listen of the new album, I just shrugged my shoulders and set it aside.

Every month or so through the Spring, I would give Carpe Diem a spin on Spotify. It was okay, but I still wasn't hooking me. I stayed away from it all Summer, and was starting to resign myself to the fact that I just didn't need to buy the record. Like the new Scorpions album, I figured that it was good for a couple of listens, but it wasn't something that I needed clogging up my shelves. On a whim, as we moved into the Fall season, I queued up the record in Spotify again. I was surprised with what I heard. The record was better than I remembered, and I found the songs having a much stronger impact on me. Saxon continue to release solid traditional heavy metal... they do what they do, and they do it well. I'm glad that this finally clicked with me, because I'm really liking this album.

When I went to buy a copy, I wanted the red vinyl pressing. I found a seller on Discogs that was selling one at a decent price, and I grabbed it. It seems that I've been burned a few times over the past year with sellers not listing records for the correct colored vinyl, and I was disappointed to get fucked on it again with this Saxon record. I usually don't bother complaining for bands that I'm not collecting, and I'll typically just take the record I'm sent and be okay with it. Since this is the third or fourth time that I've had this happen to me, I fired off a message to the seller to let him know his mistake. I wasn't really expecting much, but was pleasantly surprised when he issued me a full refund and told me to keep the record. Good deal.

Different Points Of View

New Years Eve weekend, 1993 going into 1994, was the New Bedford Fest. Three days of hardcore bands, and it was pretty amazing. Strife, Snapcase and Earth Crisis all played the first day and my friend set up his video camera at the back of the gym to record most of the sets that day. I still have the VHS tape from that recording, even though the quality is as bad as you would expect. I discovered a few new bands that weekend, and picked up records from merch tables. One of those records was a 7 inch from Point Of View. I've had that record in my collection for close to 30 years, and only recently discovered a couple of different covers that were made... so of course I was going to need them.

Point Of View were a hardcore band out of New Jersey, and only released this one 7 inch in 1992 (although they also had a song on the Spirit Of Solitude comp along with Ashes, Framework and Policy of 3). The band definitely fit that early 90's hardcore sound.

When I was picking up that House Of Suffering record that I'd recently discovered, I found that the seller also had the Point Of View 7 inch with the "temporary cover". I didn't think that I needed multiple copies of this record, but discovering this alternate cover set me straight on that.

As I was discovering the temporary cover, I also found out about another cover variant. Yeah, I can't refuse more early 90's hardcore records. Just give them all to me.

While the other versions of the Point Of View 7 inch have been from Faded Image Records (that was run by Pat, the guitar player, and this record was their only release), this third cover was from Reflection Records (which released stuff from Framework, Counterpunch, and Green Rage).

Not a single piece of colored vinyl, but I've got all three covers that were made for this thing. Which one looks the best?

Electrified Waste

Electrified Brain is the seventh album from Municipal Waste. I was obviously going to buy it, but seven albums in, I wasn't sure if Municipal Waste was still going to be interesting. I mean, while I have liked all the other MW records, I find that I don't really return to them that often. Still, when preorders when up, I was there adding the record to my cart.

The record surprised me. I don't think it is any different from the other Municipal Waste alubms, but there is something about Electrified Brain that grabbed me from the start. This record rips and is a lot of fun to listen to. Maybe it is because I haven't discovered any newer bands that are playing straight forward thrash, but this album feels fresh to my ears.

I'm liking the look of that blue marbled vinyl.

Bent Blue Ripples

Earlier this year, I was introduced to Bent Blue when WAR Records pressed an expanded version of their 2020 demo, Between Your And You're to vinyl. That record grew on me quick with their infectious DC Revolution Summer sound, and when I heard that the band was going to be releasing a new record soon, I was very much looking forward to what they would deliver next.

Look... I loved that first Bent Blue record so much, but I was afraid that the new one was going to lose a bit of that magic. I mean it had been a couple of years since Between Your And You're was recorded, and I was worried that Where Do Ripples Go? wasn't going to be able to live up to it. Thankfully, that is not the case, and this new record is a perfect extension to the one that came before... and once again the lyrics take this to another level. I'm not going to get caught up in buying multiple copies like I did with the Method Of Doubt record, but if the vinyl options looked nice, I would be tempted with this one.

The screen printed b-side is limited to only 100. Given how terrible a lot of the WAR Records vinyl looks, I think this one is actually pretty nice.

House Of Katon

In the early 90's, I picked up a 7 inch from a band called House Of Suffering. I was still relatively new to hardcore, but I was familiar with Amenity with the This Is Our Struggle 7 inch, and since House Of Suffering had a couple of Amenity members, I took a chance and stuffed some cash in an envelope to order a copy of that record. Musically, that House Of Suffering 7 inch was kind of similar to what I knew from Amenity, but the rap style vocals were completely unexpected. The record felt really unique, and I liked it, but over the years I kind of forgot all about it.

Here we are, 30 years later, and I'm just discovering that House Of Suffering had a second 7 inch that was released in 1992. Not only did I recently uncover that record, but I also just learned that Katon De Pena was their singer. Katon, of course, sings for the underground thrash band Hirax since 1985, so it kind of blew my mind to find out that he also sang in this relatively unknown early 90's hardcore band. Knowing this, I definitly needed to hear that second House Of Suffering 7 inch.

The Wired / Youth 7 inch is such a great early 90's hardcore record. The rap style vocals are gone, and Katon does more singing on these two songs. His voice fits the music perfectly, and I can't get over how much I'm loving this thing. I absolutely needed to get this 7 inch and the yellow vinyl was a must. Thankfully I was able to quickly scoop one from Discogs at a decent price.

Pink Guns Poolside

All Guns Poolside, from Redemption 87, was originally released back in 1998 only on CD. I was only buying CDs at the time, so it was no problem for me at the time to have that format as the only option. Blackout is finally giving it a vinyl release, and since it is 2022, there has to be eight different colors through various exclusive stores. None of that matters to me, and I'm not going to sweat trying to get more limited versions on some nasty looking color... fuck that, I'm just going to grab the one that I think might look best, and when given the option, I've got to go with pink vinyl.

While I've always liked All Guns Poolside, it is an uneven album. The first side is definitely the strongest here with a bunch of new songs which are still a blast to listen to today. Then, over on the flipside we get some cover songs and a few demo recordings, which are kind of cool, I guess, but always just left me wishing there was more newer Redemption 87 songs instead. Still, after 24 years, it is cool to finally have this on vinyl.

This was listed as "opaque neon pink" in the Blackout store, but this definitely looks more translucent, which I think is a better look here. 300 pressed.

Wall Breaker

When I was picking up a record from a Discogs seller recently, I was surprised when they sent me a message asking if I was the one that did the One Thing That Still Holds True blog. I'm not sure how he made the connection, but I'm assuming there aren't a bunch of Mike's from Maine obsessively buying hardcore records. It was kind of funny to be recognized by a record order. We exchanged a couple of messages, and he mentioned that he was going to throw in a free 7 inch based on what I was buying.

I've known about the band Wall Breaker for years, but made no moves to check them out. I was aware that the singer, Ken, was working on a book that covers the early 2000's thrashcore bands... plus he was straight edge... and you would have thought that this would have had me rushing to check out his band, but I was still a bit hesitant. Getting this record for free certainly helped to get me to pay attention to them.

Given the musical influence that Ken comes from, I probably shouldn't have been as surprised as I was by this 7 inch. This thing is really good! Wall Breaker's sound definitely fits in with that early 2000's thrashy style, except they aren't quite as rough and raw. It definitely has me interested to check what else the band has been up to.

Kill Emo

Autumn were a hardcore band out of the mid-90's, and like a lot of bands from that period they were blending styles and pushing boundaries to be different from your standard hardcore band. I had picked up their Wire Hangers 7 inch back in the day, and while I enjoyed it, it still got buried under a bunch of other records that I was listening to and I never paid it much attention at the time.

When I heard that Hellminded was releasing a retrospective of the band, I thought it was a bit of an odd choice. Autumn didn't seem to be making that much of an impact in 1995/1996, so I figured that they would be all but forgotten about in 2022. Digging into some info on the band, I discovered that in addition to the Wire Hangers 7 inch, Autumn also released a couple of other EPs in the 90's (including a CD only release on Revelation's imprint label, Crisis). I dusted off the Wire Hangers record for a spin, and I was surprised with how much I enjoyed revisiting those songs. Classic mid-90's shit. I was especially interested to check out the Autumn stuff I'd never heard before, and I threw some money at Hellminded for the record.

I don't really pay much attention to Hellminded, but I liked the way they handled the One Up discography, and they did a fantastic job with this Autumn record as well. The songs sound great, the vinyl looks nice, and the insert with the history of the band and writing from the members makes for a nice package.

Did I need a test pressing of the Autumn retrospective? No. Did I buy one simply for the Kill 'Em All / Chung King mash up cover? Yes.

Test pressing is numbered and limited to 30.

Measure Inside

Over the years, I've had a few friends that have turned me on to bands that I may not have checked out if it wasn't for their influence. I'm confident that without Marcus blogging about Seaweed, and singing such high praise for the band, I would have never bothered to give them a chance. The band was around back in the early 90's, just when I was diving into the hardcore punk scene, but somehow they never made it onto my radar. I'm assuming that it was because of the Sub Pop label, which I never bothered with, and if this band had dropped a record on Gern Blandsten alongside a band like Garden Variety, I would have been all over it. Instead, I never even heard the name Seaweed until I saw Marcus posting about them some 20 years later.

In addition to turning me on to the band, Marcus also put together a package of Seaweed 7 inches as well as a copy of the Weak LP, and shipped it to me about 8 years ago. A long time has passed since that box of records arrived, and I've recently been itching to pick up more Seaweed vinyl. Ideally, I'd like to get my hands on the green vinyl for the Spanaway album, but since that doesn't come up very often, and when it does, it is for a crazy price, I figured that I'd dive back in on the Seaweed singles collection that Marcus got me started on. I found a copy of the Measure 7 inch on clear for cheap, and I grabbed it. I was happy with the purchase, and thought that I was done chasing Seaweed vinyl for a while. I was wrong.

After I picked up the clear vinyl for the Measure 7 inch, I found myself back reading old Seaweed posts from Marcus and noticed that he had multiple copies of the record on orange vinyl. I didn't need different shades of orange like he did, but I did like how the color vinyl looked with the cover. One more trip back to Discogs and that was sorted.

Apparently I'm collecting multiple copies of Seaweed records now.

I wasn't planning on spending a lot of money on Seaweed 7 inches, but with two copies of Measure in my hands, the record collecting mania hit me, and before I knew what was happening, I'd found and paid for a copy of the band's first 7 inch, Inside.

While this one cost more than the Measure 7 inch, the price wasn't out of this world. Considering it was Seaweed's first record, and on colored vinyl, I was happy to add it to the collection, no matter the price.