No Good At Goodbyes

There are some bands and styles of hardcore that just don't work for me. When I was going to a lot of shows, there were some bands that I did not like based on the crowd they drew. A lot of really hard and tough shit I just didn't hang with. I preferred high fives and stagedives over demonstrating my style. So when Triple B starting putting out records that seemed to fall more in line with that tough guy style, I stopped paying attention.

Gridiron was one of the bands that turned me off when I first saw their No Good At Goodbyes record in the Triple B store. Meh, the album cover was giving bad Agnostic Front vibes and I wasn't interested in checking them out. At the end of 2022(?) the guys on the 185 Miles South podcast were talking high praise for the band in their yearly recap, and so I finally broke down and checked them out, and to my surprise they weren't bad. They play hardcore mixed with a kind of hip hop swagger that reminds me of Biohazard... and I've never really liked that band... but here and now, I could appreciate the fun and ignorant (not derogatory) vibe that Gridiron brings.

After sitting with the songs on this record for a while, I finally decided that I did need to own this. No Good At Goodbyes is just such a fun time. Fuck the hard stance and tough attitude and lets just have a good time with this record. I've got friends in Pennsylvania, and they like sports things, so when I saw that Triple B was doing a pressing on "Eagles swirl" colored vinyl, I thought it would be a fun tribute to my PA pals and I grabbed copy. 250 pressed.

Belly Of The Beast

I really liked the first couple of Combust records. They have a great NYHC vibe in the vein of early Cro-Mags and Killing Time, and while I really liked those records when I bought them, I haven't really spent a lot of time with them over the past couple of years because I've been pulled to listen to other things. So I wasn't sure how a third Combust record was going to land with me, and I kind of expected to feel indifferent towards it.

I've slowly been getting back into a hardcore mindset this year, and the new Combust has been a big part of that. I didn't really expect much with Belly Of The Beast, but surprisingly it has been a bit of a catalyst that is reigniting my love of hardcore. I don't know what it was... but this record has a swagger that just hooked me and made me want more. It's hard. I has some groove. I just makes me want to move. I didn't even know that I needed this, but here we are.

The colored vinyl is your typical Triple B pattern with a few different colors all filtered through a 5th graders imagination of what looks good. Red and bone white on one side and a black splatter on the other. Limited to 300.

Green Crusade

There was so much great hardcore released in the late 2000's, and I imagine that a lot of it tends to be forgotten about and overlooked these days. That includes me too. Rarely do I spend much time in my playlist for those years, but looking back at the records in my collection... damn, there is some good stuff from that period that I need to revisit more often.

One of the recent triggers in digging through my late 2000's hardcore records was finding the record release version of It's Our War by Thought Crusade. This 7 inch was released in 2009 by Triple B, and man, I loved this record. I've lost track of it under the weight of all the music that has been released in the 15 years since then, but getting my hands on this record release version has been a great reminder. Fuck, it makes me excited to listen to hardcore.

Special handnumbered record release cover. Number 45 of 50. And the $3 pricetag on this record proves to me how overlooked this band is. I'm grateful for such a great price, but it is a shame how easily records like this get lost over time.

Restraining Order FYA

While I'm no longer buying every colored vinyl version for records that I like, I still have a hard time resisting a special cover. When I saw that Triple B was listing some leftover merch from the FYA Fest, I jumped to their webstore to see what was up.

While I was hoping to get the Gridiron album, that had quickly sold out, so instead I jumped on the latest Restraining Order record. I'm not sure what is happening with the cover, as the album is Locked In Time, while the FYA cover shows "Lost In Time". I don't know if that was intentional and I missed the meaning with the different title, but whatever, I'm still happy to own this limited version.

To be honest, this second LP from Restraining Order didn't excite me like their first, but this is still a good hardcore record. Buying this version has me listening to it on a regular basis recently, and appreciating it more these days.

Very happy to receive a low number for this one... 2 out of 50.

Black Radical Love

A couple of years ago, Triple B released a 7 inch from a band out of Boston by the name of Move... or Move BHC. That record come out in the fallout of dirty Trump politics and the height of the Black Lives Matter message. The songs were pissed off and in your face, and I was there for that level of anger and frustration. I don't think that I ever heard anyone else talk about this band, and I was starting to wonder if that 7 inch was going to be all that we saw from Move... so I was happy to see that Triple B was releasing an LP from them last year.

Move BHC very much identifies with BIPOC politics, and with Black Radical Love that is even more evident. The message is important and cannot be said often enough or loud enough, so I'm glad that bands like this exist and ask us to look at ourselves and challenge the powers that be... and musically this is good and hard as well.

Normally, I would be put of by another Triple B colored vinyl abomination, but with this record I think it works. It was supposed to be some kind pink A side with a white B side and a neon green splatter, but maybe it tried to do too much because the neon green appears to have been lost in the mix compared to the mock up in the Triple B store. Whatever. 350 pressed.

Endless Torment

It has been a couple of years since we've heard from Dead Heat, so it was cool to see a new EP drop from them last year.

If you are familiar with the band, you know exactly what you are going to get with Endless Torment. Dead Heat nail that crossover thrash sound that I absolutely love. Think bands like Suicidal, Excel and Crumbsuckers... they just play that style perfectly, and I will eat it up every time. There are only five songs here, but at 18 minutes it is kind of the perfect length. Get in, rip it up, and leave 'em wanting more. Great stuff.

Maybe it is because the cover art is so over the top, but I kind of like the look of this obnoxious splatter pattern and screened b-side. 250 pressed.

Restrained In Time

The last Restraining Order album was a fast favorite. That thing was catchy as fuck, and it got to a point where I had to deliberately set it aside and not listen to it so that I didn't overplay that shit. So yeah, when their latest, Locked In Time, went up for preorder, I didn't hesitate to quickly grab a copy.

This new Restraining Order album wasn't the instant fave like the first one. There isn't any great change in style or sound, but it feels similar to when Boston Strangler released their Fire album. It is good and has some really fun songs, but compared to the first? Come on. Still, while it might not rate at the top of my list this year, I can see myself pulling this out in a couple of years and asking myself what my problem was. Restraining Order have to be one of the hardest working bands in hardcore and I hope they keep things rolling through next year.

I can't remember if I was late to the preorders and missed out on the limited colors, or if I just didn't give a fuck and picked one that I thought might be the least offensive to look at. This is the common pressing of the 3 color black/white/yellow smash and it doesn't look terrible. Limited to 524.

Against Myself

I didn't spend a lot of time listening to new hardcore records this year, but there have been a few new releases that I was really looking forward to. I've already posted about As Friends Rust and Magnitude, and to complete my Big 3 for 2023, Vantage Point comes rolling in at the end of the year with Against Myself.

I've really enjoyed Vantage Point since hearing their first demo back in 2016/2017. They play a straight forward style of hardcore that will hit me in the chest every single time. Even at this age, I'm a sucker for it. I don't even know what to say about it anymore. Either you get it or you don't. This shit has moved me since I first discovered the hardcore scene around 1990, and even during a year where my musical tastes have been all over the map, this brand of hardcore will forever grab me by the throat. The Vantage Point 7 inch from the end of 2019 was great, and this full length, clocking in just over 17 minutes, gives me exactly what I want from the band.

165 pressed on some kind of nasty puke looking colored vinyl.

Magnitude Renewed

Magnitude play a brand of 90's straight edge hardcore that I will love for fucking ever. Thank chunky metallic sound in the vein of One King Down is just so perfect to my ears, and I will fall for it every time. Their last album, To Whatever Fateful End, was so good that I ended up buying three copies of it just because Triple B would reissue it with a different colored cover. I didn't go full stupid, but I still dipped my toes in it.

There was never any doubt that I was going to buy and love their latest record, Of Days Renewed, and it delivered on all fronts. As soon as the opening song kicks off with a "Deliverance!" and then the chugging riff... fuck me, I was dead on the floor it was so good. I must have played that opening six seconds over and over twenty times in a row because it was just so fun.

I know that Triple B love those shitty splatter patterns, but what am I gonna do? I still need one in my collection. 200 pressed on an obnoxious clear vinyl with orange blob and purple splatter.

New Mindforce Lords

Mindforce have consistently delivered since I discovered them with their The Future Of... 7 inch back in 2017. It seems like they have dropped something new just about every year since then, which is pretty impressive for a hardcore band, and that productivity has kept the band at the center of my attention. It seems that most years, I'm trying to figure out where they are going to fall within my Top 10 list, and this year is no exception.

Initially, my reaction to New Lords was a bit tepid. With my first couple of casual listens, it became backgroung noise and I was just thinking "Yeah, no surprise... it sounds like Mindforce." Once I really sat down with the record, and really paid attention, that's when the record started to hit me a bit harder. No doubt this is a great record, but time will tell if they reach the level set with Excalibur or The Future Of. It is a solid history to live up to.

There were 50 different exclusive pressings for New Lords and I imagine that they all look terrible. The ultra clear & neon green pinwheel with neon orange splatter is a mouthful.

To Whatever Alternate Cover (Part III)

I was afraid that this was going to happen. When Triple B did the third pressing of Magnitude's To Whatever Fateful End album, and they changed the cover art from blue to green, I was worried that this theme might continue. Sure enough, with the recent fourth pressing, they change the cover art to purple, and of course I felt compelled to buy one.

I don't know why I felt the need to buy another copy of this record. I have no plans to build any kind of respectable collection for Magnitude, but now I have three copies of this album, so I obviously have no idea what I'm fucking doing. And you know what? If Triple B does a fifth pressing and changes the cover to some kind of red hue, I'll probably buy that too.

Cool looking purple in clear colored vinyl. 200 pressed.

Man, this is such a great record. Magnitude really nail that mid-90's chunky straight edge sound. Hard to believe that this album is already coming up on three years old.

Restraining Warfare

It has been a couple of years since Restraining Order released their album, This World Is Too Much. Man, that album title turned out to be a bit prophetic. When I saw the band live at the end of 2019, they had me pretty amped up to get out for more hardcore shows...and then Covid came through and burned everything to the ground. Hardcore shows have been back for a little while now, but I'm still not feeling too confident about getting out and seeing bands live with kids jumping all over each other. I'll continue to sit them out for a bit longer. Still, Restraining Order have been hitting the road quite a bit as it seems that the band is always heading out for some quick tour. Fuck, I really want to see them again. In the meantime, though, at least the band dropped a couple of new songs on a split 7 inch with a band named Warfare.

Apparently Warfare features Sam from Triple B on vocals, and his label released a 12 inch from the band a few years ago. For one reason or another, I ignored it at the time, but the songs here on this split have made me see how dumb I was to let that first Warfare record get by me. These two songs are great, and I'm definitely going to need more from them.

Obviously, the two Restraining Order songs here are great. Fuck. This band is so good. This split 7 inch was hyped as "the return of fast hardcore", and it delivers on that promise. My only complaint is that it is way too short, clocking in around four and a half minutes total. Give me more.

Haunting Gasp

I wasn't paying attention when Triple B released the Final Gasp 12 inch over this past summer. The label had released a string of a few records that I just wasn't feeling, so I didn't even bother with this one. Doug set me straight though, and after he reached out to recommend them, I jumped on Spotify to see what he was going on about.

Final Gasp have some serious Samhain worship going on. Hell, even the photos from the lyric sheet insert show the band performing live covered in blood. The music and image are spot on and this 16 minute EP is like finding some lost songs from the November-Coming-Fire recording session. I'm not a giant Samhain fan, but this record leaves me impressed.

I avoided the more limited splatter pressing and instead when with the purple and red swirl. 350 pressed.

Dead Heat At War

I was a little late to the Dead Heat party, but when I discovered their Certain Death album at the end of 2020 they became one of my favorite finds for the year. I love that old school crossover sound, and Dead Heat nail that style. When it was announced that Triple B was going to be releasing the band's new album, I was excited to check it out.

I can't keep up with the Triple B preorders and their midnight drops don't help, so of course I missed out on the more limited pressing for the World At War album, but that's okay because the red inside yellow vinyl looks better (even if it looks nothing like the mock up that Triple B was posting on Instagram).

Initially, I was a bit disappointed with this new record. I'm not sure why, but it seemed to fall a bit flat compared to the first album. I've been spinning it a bit more recently, and it is clicking much better with me now. This is some solid crossover that still maintains that Suicidal vibe they had on the first album, but also isn't afraid to try new things.

Dead Heat With Mindforce

The Mindforce / Dead Heat split was originally released as a 7 inch back in 2018. I was unaware of the record when it was released and it took a year or so before it popped up on my radar. I wasn't familiar with Dead Heat at the time, and wasn't feeling their side of the split when I first heard it, so I ignored the entire record. It took me until 2020 to finally recognize how good Dead Heat were, but by that time the split 7 inch with Mindforce was dropping on Discogs for over $40. I wasn't paying that price for a newer record that was only pressed on black vinyl, so I figured that I'd wait until the hype died down and the price was more reasonable.

When Triple B announced that they were doing a reissue of the Mindforce and Dead Heat split, I figured that this beat waiting around for the original 7 inch to show up at a decent price. The reissue moves up to the 12 inch format and gives us a different look with the cover art. I dig it.

I like the look of the red and black split colored vinyl, so I'll happily take this one over the shitty looking splatter option. 500 pressed.

While I was picking up the split with Dead Heat, I figured that I might as well grab the new pressing of Excalibur. The 5th pressing changes things up again for the cover, and goes with a nice looking white and blue colorway. The vinyl on the other hand looks bland. It was supposed to be a tan and blue mix, and the mockup looked good...the actual record on the other hand misses the mark.

This pressing includes the Man Of Peace flexi, this time on white plastic.

This is the third copy of this record that I now own. I still love this record, so I have no problem owning multiple copies.

Not Done With You

Triple B recently moved their warehouse, and to avoid having to inventory and move some stock, they decided to throw in some free records with each order. I know that this was an opportunity for the label to unload some stuff that no one cares about anymore, but I was just hoping to not get some hot garbage and possibly receive something interesting. As expected, I didn't care about most of it, but I was happy to find the Stick Together album included when my order arrived.

While I remember enjoying this 12 inch when it was released six years ago, it didn't stick with me and I haven't really listened to it since then. Thankfully Triple B sent me this second pressing on brown/orange vinyl as a reminder because I'm getting a charge out of listening to it today.

I honestly didn't even know that Triple B did a second pressing of this record, and I guess in hindsight they probably didn't need to do one. Oh well, it at least put the band back on my radar and reminded me how great they were.

Metal Command

When I was at the Vantage Point record release show in early 2020, I picked up a flyer for an upcoming gig. One of the bands listed was High Command, and since I'd seen their name around recently I figured that I'd download their latest album on Southern Lord to see if it was something I'd be interested in going to see live. The album was pretty good but I never did get down to Massachusetts for that show, and after one listen I moved on to other obsessions and never returned to the band.

When Triple B announced earlier this year that they were going to be releasing a new High Command 7 inch, I figured that maybe it was time for me to check them out again. They definitely fit in with some of the newer metal/crossover bands like Power Trip and Enforced...and they make me think of Black Breath as well. I liked what I heard, so I didn't hesitate to buy the latest 7 inch. I'm really digging this, and I'm obviously going to have to revisit that Beyond The Wall Of Desolation album.

These two songs were originally released by Southern Lord as a digital release, but I don't fuck around with that, so I'm glad that Triple B released this record...even if the vinyl looks gross.

Move BHC

Triple B had a great run of records back in 2019, and it really revived my love of new hardcore bands. Since then I keep going back to the Triple B well looking for that same thrill, but for the past year they haven't delivered too much that interested me. Not sure if they are "going Bridge Nine" on us, but what was once a label that had me looking forward to what discovery they would serve up, now just leaves me feeling confused. Their preorders still seem to sell out within hours, so apparently they still have an audience...it just isn't me. Triple B still delivered the Ecostrike album and Mindforce EP last year, so the label isn't a total loss... and because of that, I still will check out their new releases in hopes that I'll find something cool.

When I first saw the announcement for the Move 7 inch, I was expecting something similar to Anxious, but I soon discovered that this record is not that style. Move have no soft edges and they wield thier progressive politics like a fucking sword. This is raw and angry shit, and when I'm feeling pissed off at the madness of the world, Move deliver exactly what I want.

Given how quickly Triple B sells out of their most limited pressings, I was kind of surprised that I was able to get my order in for the purple vinyl. Limited to 100.

Paint By Numbers

Triple B must know my weakness for alternate covers. I try to avoid buying multiple copies of records, but reissues with artwork variations are sometimes too tempting to resist.

I really liked the One Step Closer 12 inch from last year. I've seen them play live a few times, and each time, they left me feeling excited about hardcore. Now that I think about it, One Step Closer is probably the band that I've seen live more than any other over the past few years... it wasn't planned, but they just happened to be on the bill for the few hardcore shows I made it out to.

For the fourth pressing, Triple B changed the cover to a paint-by-numbers variation. I think it is a cool and different...although since I've seen this One Step Closer cover, I guess that Chubby and the Gang did the same kind of thing with their recent reissue. Not sure who had the idea first.

I love the colorway for this pressing. 200 pressed for this tri-stripe color.

I already had the original blue cover, and the tan variant, so I obviously needed this latest cover as well. Looking forward to the new album later this year!

To Whatever Alternate Cover

While I don't many moves to collect multiple colored vinyl pressings these days, I do seem to be a sucker for pressings that use an alternate cover.

I absolutely love the Magnitude album that Triple B released back in 2019. It really draws from the 90's straight edge hardcore sound, and I can't get enough of that shit. I already owned a first pressing of the To Whatever Fateful End record, and I thought that it would be enough for me...but when Triple B dropped the third press this year, swapping out the blue cover with green, goddamn, they certainly had my attention. While I wasn't originally a fan of the front cover art because I thought it looked too "metalcore", I've really grown to love it, and the new green coloring looks fucking great. I managed to go a couple of months of repeatedly adding it to my cart and then deleting it before I finally just said "fuck it" and I bought the damn thing.

500 pressed on the green and white colored vinyl with the green cover.