Suburban Daltonic

It is funny how I can overlook some records for years. I remember picking up the first Daltonic 7 inch around 1995 or so, and enjoying it. It was kind of basic, meat and potatoes hardcore, but I'm a sucker for those 90's bands, so it was something that I'd still spin from time to time. Over the years, I became aware that Daltonic had also released a 2nd 7 inch around that time in the 90's, but it has eluded me until now. Almost 30 years later, I'm finally hearing that record.

These four songs are in the same style as the first Daltonic record. While I'm sure that it isn't going to excite most people in 2023, I'm pretty stoked to finally dig into this all these years later. Any time that I discover a lost 90's nugget, it's a good day.

Only released on black vinyl for Al Quint's Suburban Voice label.

Death By Colored Vinyl

One more record from my haul at Wanna Hear It to close out this successful visit. I wasn't expecting to pick up as much as I did, and it was a surprise that I had to pump the brakes and keep my spending in check. Man, I could have bought so much more.

I'm generally not interested in reissues, but I've been itching to pick up both the Leprosy and Spiritual Healing records from Death for the last couple of years. Of course, I wanted original Combat pressings, but holy fuck, I wasn't expecting that they were $200 records. I mean, I've listened to both of those albums a lot in the past year, but I wasn't sure that I wanted to commit to that kind of price tag right now. My other option was one of the Relapse reissues that the label have been turning out for the past few years. Those reissues have seen some wild colored vinyl splatter pattern options, and as much I tend to hate that shit, I've strangely found myself attracted to these. I don't know what it is... maybe it is a case of "so bad that it's good"... but I wouldn't kick one out of bed for eating crackers. Seeing one of recent reissues for Spiritual Healing in the rack at Wanna Hear It, and seeing the $20 price tag, was too much temptation for me to resist. I had to have it.

"Custom butterfly with splatter" colored vinyl. Man, this whole album is just so sick. One of Death's best.

OMDB Farewell

After picking up a handful of 7 inches at Wanna Hear It, it was time to venture over to see if there was any action in the LP section. After a quick glance of the more expensive records that were on the wall (and was tempted to pick up that Sheer Terror album), I started to check to see if there was something available that was more in my price range for the day.

Over My Dead Body were a straight edge band out of Southern California in the early 2000's, and they were a pretty big deal for me at the time. I kind of forgot about them for a ten year stretch, but in 2021 I rediscovered them and had such a great time listening to those records that I immediately set out to collect some OMDB vinyl. I quickly grabbed a couple copies of their first album, but haven't made any other moves until I saw another record in the bins at Wanna Hear It.

When the band played their last show in 2004, they created 100 special Farewell Show covers to wrap around the Sink Or Swim album. Man, I love the look of red and black on white cover. Definitely my favorite find of the day.

The Discogs listing for this Farewell Show cover doesn't have any photo listed, and since I've never done a deep dive into the internet for it, I've never known what it looked like until I found this copy in the store... and that was super exciting for me. The first time that I saw the cover was when I was holding it in my hand. That doesn't happen very often these days. Initially, I was tempted to quickly load a picture to the Discogs listing, but the more that I think about it, the more I want to keep it a Discogs mystery.

Ships Sinking

Another post for records that I picked up at Wanna Hear It, and another band that I didn't pay much attention to when they were around and releasing records.

A couple of years ago I wanted to revisit records from that mid to late 2000 period. It had been a while since I'd spent any time with those bands and it was fun to dust off some of that stuff and take it for a spin again. Along the way, I came across the Sinking Ships track on the Generations comp from REV. I had never paid much attention to the band back in the day, but hearing that song put me in the mood to dig in deeper. I was immediately impressed with the Meridian 7 inch, and quickly picked up a copy on blue vinyl. The record was a cheap pickup, and I quickly found myself wanting more Sinking Ships records.

Despite wanting to add some Sinking Ships records to my collection over the past year and a half, it just hadn't happened for me yet. Walking into Wanna Hear It and seeing a bunch of their records available, I knew that now was the time to make my move... starting with the tour press of the Meridian 7 inch.

The "Mars, Bitches" cover was made for the tour that Sinking Ships did with Shook Ones (another band that I have never paid any attention to). Red vinyl and numbered out of 100.

Picking up the tour press on red vinyl, I probably didn't need to also grab the red vinyl with the regular cover, but fuck it, I just wanted to buy more Sinking Ships records.

I also grabbed a copy of the Safe / Revenge 7 inch. I like that the hand stamped cover for mine is for "Ships Sinking".

This is a weird record. The packaging is boring as fuck, and the songs don't really sound like Sinking Ships. They sound like Sinking Ships playing cover songs. I'm sure there is a story in here somewhere, but this 7 inch just feels strange and out of place in the Sinking Ships catalog.

The last Sinking Ships record that I grabbed was the Out Of Touch / Bee Honda 7 inch. These two songs are great, and as the last release from the band, it sends them off on a high note. 250 pressed on blue vinyl and self released by the band on their Sinking Ships Records label.

Funny enough, when I took my records up to the counter to pay, the woman working there said that they had seen only one other customer that day, and that he had also bought a Sinking Ships record. I'm glad that Marcus also bought one that day to keep the Sinking Ships buying streak alive. Three for three!

Wanna Buy It

Early in December, I had the opportunity to meet up with Marcus for an afternoon down in Boston. After a great lunch at Veggie Galaxy, we were thinking about hitting up Armageddon Shop for some records, but when it was recommended that we check out Wanna Hear It, we decided to head over to that store instead.

I don't hold out a lot of hope when I go to record stores these days. Usually the selection is very thin for what I'm looking for, and if they do happen to have a record that I'm interested in, it is usually overpriced. None of these things were the case for my first trip to Wanna Hear It. I'm still thinking about records that I saw in that store that I wish that I'd picked up while I was there. I'm going to spread my record haul out over a handful of posts, so lets get things started with this one.

To be honest, I never paid much attention to The Suicide File. I was kind of out of touch with what was going on in hardcore in the early 2000's when the band was active. They were from Boston, and I would go to shows in Boston, so the fact that I never really picked up on them just shows how far removed I was from what was happening. In 2005, I did pick up the Some Mistakes You Never Stop Paying For comp, that collected the songs from their 7 inches and splits, and while I dug it, it didn't leave a lasting mark on me.

Last year, as I was diving in deep with some of those early 2000-era bands, I had a pretty solid stretch where I kept returning to those songs from The Suicide File. The hooks were finally in me, and they were in deep. Fuck, I was loving this stuff. I had wanted to pick up some vinyl from the band throughout 2022, but I'd never made it happen. When I saw the white vinyl for the Things Fall Apart 7 inch at Wanna Hear It, I knew that I was leaving that store with it.

Thickfreakness

The early part of the 2000's were a weird time for me musically. I'd kind of lost touch with the more underground side of hardcore, and was actively looking for different things to listen to. I was all over the place and spending a lot of time with bands like Slipknot, Linkin Park and Limp Bizkit... plus I was checking out a lot of hip hop as well as some blusey garage rock stuff like The White Stripes and The Black Keys. Strange days indeed. By the time we were hitting 2004/2005, I ended up shaking off most of that stuff and diving back into straight ahead hardcore again. Still, every once in a while, when I'm feeling a bit bored with everything and need something different, I'll dip back into what I was listening to during those weird years to shake things up.

When I was recently picking up the reissue of Seaweed's Actions And Indications, I noticed that the store also had a pink vinyl copy of Thickfreakness from The Black Keys. I hadn't really bothered with this band for well over ten years, but seeing this album in the store gave me the sudden urge to revisit them. Sure, I could have probably just queued them up on Spotify, but instead I decided to spend money on the vinyl. Makes perfect sense, right?

While this is listed as "pink vinyl" as a part of some campaign with other bands to raise money for cancer charities, I don't think they did a great job getting the color right. I mean, it matches the red from the cover perfectly, but as far as "pink" goes... not quite.

Seaweed Actions

When I first discover an older band, I take my sweet time in digging into their back catalog. I don't want to rush it and be overloaded with every record that the band has released. I'm taking my time and savoring each one. When I first heard Seaweed at the end of 2013, I thought that Four was the only record that I was ever going to need to hear from the band. That album was so perfect, I was afraid to fuck around with anything else the band had released for fear of spoiling my high opinion. Marcus wasn't going to let me sit complacent too long, and a year later he mailed me a bunch of Seaweed records, including the Weak LP. Damn. That made two Seaweed albums that I loved. Around 2019, I finally decided that I'd check out Spanaway. Fuck me. I read somewhere that people that think that Four is the best Seaweed album haven't heard Spanaway, and that may be the truth because now I can't say which record I like more. Now here we are, nine years after first hearing Seaweed, and I'm finally giving the Actions And Indications album my first listen.

Last November, I was out for the day, driving to New Hampshire with my wife. We had just stopped to check out a thrift store along the way for some used books when I got a message from Marcus, giving me a heads up that there was a new reissue of Seaweed's fourth album, Actions And Indications, on colored vinyl. I'd been trying to get my hands on the green vinyl for Spanaway for a couple of years with no luck, and hearing this news from Marcus, I casually drifted to a different part of the store from my wife, and I quickly used my phone to place my order. Thank you technology.

Despite never hearing this album, I still didn't hesitate to order a copy. I've only listened to this record a couple of times, so it will take some time to get familiar with the songs (although the Warsaw cover was an immediate hit with me... although I only knew it because of the Swing Kids version and not the original by Joy Division). So while it might rank at the bottom of the four Seaweed albums, this is still a very good record and I'm looking forward to revisiting it over and over throughout 2023.

300 pressed on "reddish yellow" colored vinyl... or more commonly known as "orange". This reissue includes a song that wasn't on the original album (Everybody's Ok was on the Brazilian release), plus the download gives you three more unreleased songs. 15 new-to-me Seaweed songs.

Follow Through Crew

Follow Through were a straight edge hardcore band that were around at the height of the Youth Crew revival scene in the mid to late 90's. For me, the band doesn't get the recognition they deserve and their Taking It Back album is a straight up classic from that period.

I've had the white vinyl for this album on my Discogs want list for years, but it rarely comes around... and when it does pop up, it sells for next to nothing. There are only 97 on white vinyl, so I would expect the price to be up there a bit, but apparently there aren't very many of us interested in collecting Follow Through records these days. That's cool. It is nice to catch a break on Discogs every once in a while.

I bought the blue vinyl for this back before record collecting got so stupid, and I only paid $3 for it. This white vinyl cost me $15. I only need the red vinyl now, and while there were only 50 of them pressed, it seems a bit excessive to see copies on Discogs listed for around $75. Sure Discogs has only seen one copy sell, and it was for $100, but come on, someone has to list one for a reasonable price based on the interest for the band, right? Hopefully that happens and I can score one at some point.

12 Inches Of Faim

Faim have been around for a while, but I didn't bother checking them out until last year. I become obsessed with the band Power Alone, and in watching one of their live sets on YouTube, they acknowledged and gave thanks to the singer of Faim who was standing up front and watching them play. At that moment, I figured that maybe I should give Faim a shot as well.

Faim are harsh and aggressive as fuck. They aren't as easily digestible to me as Power Alone were. Kat's voice sounds extremely raw, pushed to the point of almost breaking and the music is so hard. Man, this shit is intense. The band is angry and bill themselves as Denver Political Hardcore, and I'm there for the music and the message.

The first Faim EP was reissued last year as a 12 inch, and I was digging the look of the newly designed cover, so I figured that I'd start there. 7 songs that clock in just over 12 minutes. This shit sounds so pissed off.

Nice looking screen printed b-side. 100 pressed on purple vinyl.

Thirty Five Year Plan

Music has always played a big part in my life, and I find myself getting wrapped up in different eras and styles at different times. My obsessions shift all over the place and constantly change, but there is one thing that will always hold true... one of the best feelings is that special charge I get when I pick up a record for one of those classic records from my teenage years. Nothing hits quite like that for me.

Dirty Rotten Imbeciles were a pretty big influence on me in those days. I had discovered Dealing With It when I was 15 or 16, and while none of the other D.R.I. albums came close to matching that ferocity, each one was still vital and important to this teen metalhead and helped shape how I saw the world around me. I remember when I first saw Crossover in the record store. Information was pretty limited in those days, and typically when a new album would show up in the store, it was a surprise. At first glance, I needed to make sure this was the same D.R.I. band that I was familiar with... Dealing With It had 25 songs, but Crossover only had 12... plus, what was up with that slick looking front cover? Right out of the gate something felt different. Still, with song titles like Go Die and No Religion, it had to be the real deal, right?

While Crossover marks a big change from the first two D.R.I. albums... kind of like the change from the first Suicidal Tendencies record to Join The Army... of course I still fucking loved it. It was still fast, snotty and with a strong Us vs. Them fuck you attitude. 17 year old me loved this record, and 35 years later I was just as siked to finally pick up the vinyl for it.

Wicker Single

With their Eddie mascot and some killer artwork, Iron Maiden should have a winning formula when it comes to selling records... so it boggles my mind that they don't take full advantage of this when it comes to singles. Of the 14 singles that Maiden have released since reuniting with Dickinson, only about half of them have seen a vinyl pressing. Some albums like The Final Frontier and the latest, Senjitsu, don't have any of their singles available in the vinyl format. They create some great artwork, and then release the singles only digitally. Seems like such a missed opportunity.

Last summer I started looking at what I was missing for Maiden singles, especially those singles post-2000 since I'm only missing a small handful of them. The biggest hole was the band's first single that they released for the Brave New World album in 2000, The Wicker Man. Sure the only vinyl release was on 12 inch picture disc, so it was guaranteed to sound like shit, but that cover art is just too good to ignore.

Great looking record. Now I just need to get the Different World picture disc, and that sould complete my quest for the post-2000 singles.

Indecision And Change

Change is one of the more recent bands that I'm collecting multiple variants for. I think it has to do with the React Records connection, and I used to be a fiend for collecting that label and sometimes old habits are hard to break. I scooped up multiple copies of the original colored vinyl (although, I'm missing a couple Refuse pressings), and then when React did a second pressing, I had an internal debate if I needed that one as well (apparently, I did). Now, here we are, two years after the release of Closer Still, and Indecision Records delivers a new pressing. There are still copies of the original pressing on Discogs at decent prices, but I guess someone wanted to get some fresh colored vinyl into the market, and here we are. This is still a great album, but it would be nice to get some new Change material at some point.

The promo image that Indecision used to sell this latest pressing hooked me. The three colors of vinyl, while they didn't match the cover at all, looked nice as a set, so I bought each option. Of course, the mock up doesn't look like the finished product and the colors don't complement each other as much as I expected. That lime green is a bit jaring. Limited to 200.

Indecision changed up the packaging for the Change records, and applied the lyrics and photos from the original insert into a gatefold sleeve. 350 pressed on clear orange.

Finally, the more common version is clear vinyl. 450 pressed.

What really sold me on buying this set was that I already owned six copies, and I knew that three more would give me a nice even square at nine copies. I'm a sucker for symmetry.

Staring At Patterns Of 2022

Another year gone. Some major personal milestones as I made my first attempt at a 100 mile race (and bonked at 50 miles because the temps shot up over 90 degrees). Plus, I became a grandfather (which is still blowing my mind) and I'm excited for when he is older and I can be the first to introduce him to Black Sabbath's Heaven And Hell.

Time travels with such speed these days that I look back over the past 12 months and it is one big blur. I went into the year with a mission to really add to my New Wave Of British Heavy Metal collection, but soon my attention started to wander over to some late 80's thrash records and I really focused on that for about two seconds before I started to obsess over cheap and forgotten hardcore records from the earlyl 2000's. I was all over the fucking place, but one thing stayed constant and that was wave after wave of great hardcore records that were being released in 2022. Of the 170 records that I bought this year, 56 of them were new releases. I really wanted to catch up with some older classics, but hardcore was on fire and kept me chasing new shit.

Record collecting was fun in 2022, but looking back at my list there were very few heavy hitters on there. The game has gotten stupid expensive, even for the most common shit, and I played things very conservatively this year. Each big record that I'd look at, I'd sweat the price and think it was too expensive, and I'd back off. I failed to add another AC/DC Australian first press to the collection, which was a huge disappointment, and I barely fucked around with my Top Wants list, but I still had a good time. Here are some of the records that I was pretty excited to pick up.

Typically I only do my Top 5 new pickups for the year, but I'm trying a new format for this end of the year recap. I'm a sucker for a clean look, and going with a Top 9 square made the most sense to me as I was pulling this post together, so my apologies if this gets a bit obnoxious.

1. Alert 'Demo 08' test press - It might seem ridiculous to be so excited over a demo 7 inch for a long forgotten straight edge band that probably didn't leave much of an impact in the hardcore scene, but if you know me at all, you know that I hold tight to those insignificant bands that most people have either left in their rearview mirror or have never cared about. I was fucking stoked to score this test press.

2. Caught In A Crowd 'You've Lost' record release - Yo, coming in hot on my favorite pickups is another Massachusetts straight edge band. Hand numbered and getting 1/50 was very cool. I listened to a lot of CIAC this year.

3. Fire & Ice 'Not Of This Earth' United Blood cover - Holy shit. I was so happy to pick up this one. I've had this on my Want List for about nine years, and it was the last record I needed to complete this collection. This album still makes me move.

4. Avail 'Front Porch Stories' on red - This is a record that I've always wanted, but never made it much of a priority. When Marcus was selling some records for a friend, and I saw this on the list, I figured now was a good time to drop some money and grab it. Once it arrived, and I saw how great that red vinyl looks, I'm glad that I jumped on it. An underrated Avail classic that I was happy to rediscover with this purchase.

5. Atrophy 'Socialized Hate' original press - As I was obsessing over late 80's thrash, I listened to both Socialized Hate and Violent By Nature from Atrophy a lot. Violent By Nature is a bit harder to come by, so I was happy to snatch up the band's first album for relatively cheap.

6. Endeavor 'Crazier Than A Shithouse Rat' on grey - During a mid-90's obsession earlier this year, I rediscovered the first album from Endeavor. It proved to be a bit more difficult to find a copy than I expected, but as soon as one was available on Discogs, I pounced.

7. Pegboy 'Strong Intention' - I really wanted a copy of this record when I discovered it last year, but it wasn't as easy to track down as I expected. I love this record so much and can't believe that I was over 30 years late in discovering it. When Marcus was selling off his friend's collection and let me know that he had some Pegboy records available, I was happy to finally grab a copy.

8. Warzone 'Open Your Eyes' Caroline press - I suppose that I should include this Warzone record on my list. It was the only record that I was able to cross off my Top Wants list for the year. A classic for sure.

9. Rigor Mortis 'Freaks' US Metal Blade pressing - That first Rigor Mortis album continues to elude me. Each year I tell myself that this is year that I finally grab one, and each year I fail. I've kind of obsessed over that first album for a few years, but I'd totally forgotten about their follow up EP, Freaks. Buying this copy reminded me just how great this record is... and that cover art work is amazing.

1. Method Of Doubt - Staring At Patterns

2. Bent Blue - Where Do Ripples Go?

3. Almighty Watching - Doubtless

4. Berthold City - When Words Are Not Enough

5. Statement Of Pride - A Fire Inside / Summer '22 Promo

6. Bitter Branches - Your Neighbors Are Failures

7. Mindforce - New Lords

8. Abstain - Infirm Of Purpose

9. Moral Law - The Looming End

I'm not sure if my new graphic works for showing the ranking, so I've listed it as well. I don't know, maybe I should just use an image of the album cover instead of a vinyl photo. Oh well. Like I mentioned earlier, there were a lot of great hardcore releases this year. I really wrestled with this Top 9, and it was tough to cut some records from it. One thing was certain, and that was that the Method Of Doubt record was going to be my number one. Sure it might have been released digitally at the end of 2021, but fuck it... my list, my rules... I'm including it here. Bent Blue made a solid number two though. I discovered their 2020 demo earlier this year, and along with the new EP, I listened to that band a lot. The surprise of the year was the new Bitter Branches. I enjoyed the first record alright, but this new one hooked me quick... plus "have you tried jogging?" is now my go-to response for any complaint or problem that someone has. Other records may seem like odd choices, and while I felt the need to include Spite House, Praise or Combust here, in the end I did a gut check and just enjoyed some of the ones listed here more.

1. Satan - Earth Infernal

2. Ghost - Impera

3. Midnight - Let There Be Witchery

4. Savage Master - Those Who Hunt At Night

5. Sumerlands - Dreamkiller

6. Clutch - Sunrise On Slaughter Beach

7. Saxon - Carpe Diem

8. Voivod - Synchro Anarchy

9. Early Moods - Early Moods

How about some metal? Satan continue to release amazing records. Everything they have released since thier reunion in 2013 has easily landed near the top of my favorite metal albums for the year, and Earth Infernal was no exception. Lots of surprises from bands that I already was familiar with. Ghost, Midnight, Saxon and Voivod all delivered records that were much better than I was expecting. Early Moods was a last minute addition, and I haven't even received the vinyl for it yet. I checked them out last week when I saw them on someone's Top 10 list, and was floored by their doomy Candlemass sound. I'm not sure how I'll feel after sitting with the record, but for now, they ended up bumping Vio-lence or Municipal Waste from this number 9 spot.

One last thing that I wanted to capture here was something that I picked up from Marcus last year... what I was listening to outside of the new 2022 releases. As I bounce between hardcore and metal, and become obsessed with different eras, I'm always interested to see what rises to the top. I contemplated writing about each one, but instead I'll keep it quick. I definitely listened to that Power Alone record more than anything this past year (yes, even more than the new Method Of Doubt). It is probably one of my favorite records from the past five years, and someone needs to sell me a white vinyl copy at a reasonable price. The Coolside and Blangk 7 inches were great finds this year that I returned to again and again. I was kind of surprised to see Bloodlust Revenge this high on my list, but I guess I did follow up Ecostrike spins with some One King Down, so it makes sense. Lastly, the Atrophy and Forbidden records saw a lot of playing time, and one of my biggest disappointments of the year is that I wasn't able to find a nice copy of Violent By Nature or Twisted Into Form for a decent price and pick them up.

Phew. Sorry for all the words. I know that was a lot, but if you are still hanging on and reading this blog, thanks for playing along.

Metallica Vinyl Club #7

Metallica recently announced that their fourth release in their Vinyl Club subscription would not be come out until sometime in early 2023. Vinyl production delays have just made things too unstable for the band to continue with any confidence with the subscription. It was sad news, as I really liked the surprise of what the band was going to release... plus everything was such great quality. It was a real treat. Oh well, as things wind down, I did receive the third release for 2022.

Metallica does seem to love fucking around with acoustic renditions for their songs. They already gave us the acoustic Blackened 2020 record in the Vinyl Club earlier this year, and this time around they drop four songs on us from their set at the Bridge School Benefit in 1997. I've always enjoyed the acoustic Metallica sets, in fact I purchased the official bootleg CD of their Musicares Benefit from 2014 so that I could own their amazing covers of When A Blind Man Cries and Diary Of A Madman in a physical format, so I was hoping for something cool an unique with this Bridge School set as well.

As enjoyable as this record is, it doesn't really offer anything super new. Sure it is kind of cool to have live versions of Low Man's Lyric and Poor Twisted Me, but they were already close enough to the acoustic format, so these versions aren't a great stretch of the imagination. Fade To Black is kind of a metal ballad, so even that song doesn't really push any boundaries... and then The Four Horsemen is a bit different, but the band kind of lose the thread of the song near the end and it just kind of collapses in on itself. I think that this performance was Metallica's first foray into the acoustic set, so they were playing things a bit conservatively (although their cover of Helpless from this set sounds good, and it would have been cool to see it included here). Still, this is a nice fit in the Metallica's Vinyl Club.

Nice packaging as usual with the Vinyl Club releases. Great looking cover and some writing from Lars about the show. Typically, there is an extra insert of some kind, but this time around, the band decided to forgo the cost of a special bonus item and make a donation to the Bridge School.

Decline Of New Age Records

A few years ago, it was brought to my attention that New Age Records had been releasing some great records that I'd completely missed the boat on. I had a blast diving into bands like Drug Control and The Dividing Line, but there were some that fell a bit flat for me. Decline was one of the bands and their 7 inch did not hold my interest at the time. The band were straight edge, and I definitely wanted to like them, but the songs from that 7 inch just didn't do anything for me. Five years after the release of that 7 inch, Decline are back with another record.

After reading the No Echo interview with Decline, and hearing them echo the same sentiments that I've been feeling the last few years in regards to racist MAGA bullshit, I knew that I was going to have to check out the new song that they released as a preview for the album. Compared to that 7 inch from 2017, the Broken album sounds like a completely different band to me. Where the 7 inch was raw and rough, this new record really reminds me of the Joe Nelson era of Ignite, or The Killing Flame. There is a nice polished youth crew revival feel to this whole record, except with some pissed off and political lyrics. I'm quite surprised with just how great this album is.

I didn't bother messing around with the 77 pressing and those small labels. Nah, that's okay. I'll just stick with the tri-color pressing. Limited to 115. Nice looking screen print on the b-side!

Bl'asting Concept

I'd never heard of Blasting Concept until Marcus did a post about thier first album last year. With his comparisons to the second Annihilation Time record, and the look of that album cover with some kind of skeleton wizard on a chopper, I immediately knew that I needed to check it out.

This record is such a... ahem... blast. I was surprised to find that this thing was released in 2010, because if pressed, I would have guessed it came out of the 80's alongside Bl'ast and those late era Black Flag albums... except that Blasting Concept incorporate some wild riffs and have a more snotty attitude to their songs. Man, this record is such a fun time.

I've been on the hunt for this piece of vinyl since discovering it from Marcus, but I was avoiding the overpriced sellers on Discogs. The wait finally paid off when a nice cheap copy popped up and I jumped on it. These days, it is a rare good feeling when you find a record listed for a decent price.

Orange Vis

High Vis became a big deal in 2022. Sure some brits were talking about this band back in 2020, but it didn't sound like something that I'd be interested in at the time, so I didn't bother. This year the band released a new album and were suddenly everywhere. There was so much hype that I couldn't resist and figured that I had to see what all the fuss was about.

I knew this High Vis record wasn't going to be straight forward hardcore, but I didn't really know what I was getting into. This record starts off with a bang, and if we were only talking about the first three songs, this would rank very high on my list. Talk For Hours, 0151, and Out Cold are just so fucking good, and it was at that point during my first listen on Spotify that I rushed out to buy a copy of the record. The rest of the album is good, but it never comes near the level of excitement that I felt at the beginning. I can appreciate what High Vis is doing, and it makes for a nice refreshing listen, but I'm still not sure how much I'll be pulling out this record for a spin. I mean, I like it, but it feels like it needs a boost of energy, especially at the end of the album. Those first three songs though... fuck... so good.

600 pressed on orange vinyl.

Struck Gold

When I picked up the Struck Nerve album from Youngblood last year, it was the first that I'd heard of the band. That record grew on me quite a bit, to the point where I found myself thinking it was a good idea to own multiple copies. Recently, I became aware that the band had also released a 7 inch back in 2018. It was on WAR Records, and it must have been before I was paying attention to that label, because I totally missed out on it. When I was buying one of the newer records from WAR, I noticed that they still had a couple of copies of that Struck Nerve 7 inch still in their store. I figured that it was a good time to grab one.

This is such a cool record, and it totally give me vibes of Desperate Measures, or maybe a bit of Mental (especially with that "real recognizes real" line from one of the songs). I think that this was originally a demo, so it isn't surprising that the songs are a bit more rough and raw compared to the Youngblood record, but I'm definitely glad that I picked this up.

Gold vinyl limited to 100.

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.