Episode 230: April 2024
Killer episode this week on the pod. Check it out here, here, or here and check out the playlist here or here.
Dan battled another challenger in 185 Trivia - this time it was another rematch with the man known simply as Clevo. Here were the questions for this month (the answer key is at the end of the post):
We talked the Side By Side show in Los Angeles and how it was way better than expected. Dan totally almost did a stagedive and can be seen singing along in the photo above. I attended a big ass Bad Religion concert the night before and wrote about it here. It was super strange seeing those shows back to back because if I hadn’t witnessed Bad Religion with 10,000 people the night before, I’d consider the Side By Side show a big ass show (500+ people).
Public Acid Deadly Struggle LP, Beach Impediment Records
Daniel from Sorry State Records made the hard sell on this band in their newsletter:
“The other night I was talking to a friend about how, when a band is on a hot streak, it’s important to recognize what’s happening so you can savor it. It’s a feeling I get once every few years, and often I’ll get into a band so heavily that they start to define that period of my life. Direct Control, Double Negative, and Government Warning were bands I felt that way about, and I feel that way about Public Acid right now.”
High praise given that those are three standout bands from the mid to late 2000s in the roots hardcore lane. And Daniel’s right - this is a monster of an album. For me, it’s a little out of my lane and probably more for the troo punx, but there are a handful of things that make this record resonate with me:
There’s a big moment in almost every song. When you listen to punk or hardcore that’s not 100% your lane, often times songs can run together making an album a tedious or boring listen. These songs have big moments that make them stand out from each other, whether it’s the moshes on “Ignorance,” the semi-speed-picking on the end sequence of “End of Pain,” or the sweet ass guitar solo on“Deadly Struggle.” These songs are all unique yet still completely blown out and punishing to even the most weathered ear.
The sequencing is spectacular. If you’re putting out more than 2 songs, you should care about the order you put your songs in on a record. If you’re doing a 12”, it really matters. A well sequenced record is like a perfect burrito. A poorly sequenced record is like this dude’s burrito. The songs on Deadly Struggle all flow nicely into one another and the sequencing was obviously well thought out, not just in whole, but both sides A and B separately as well.
Under 90 second blazers. A great LP has tentpole, standout tracks but it also has the glue songs that are the backbone vibe of the record. You’ve heard “all killer, no filler” of course. So for the songs that don’t have the big parts, Public Acid throws the ball right over the plate in sub-90 second d-beat blazers that really show off how tight the drumming on this thing is. In the history of hardcore, often these songs truly show how a classic band can just bring the heat. Think “Straight On” by 7 Seconds, “Sometimes” by Uniform Choice, or “Stand Up” by Minor Threat.
Left hand dancing ass riffs. These dudes refuse to be lazy. The left hand is constantly moving and they never over-milk a fast riff. Rip it and we’re on to the next. It kind of reminds me of this (well, minus the 67 minute part):
My one knock on this record, and it’s a big one, is I hate how buried the vocals are. It’s a common trope of the troo punx these days to bury or distort the vocals and it blows, especially when the front person has an awesome voice, like this dude.
It’s a trip because I’ve been trying to trace down the origin on this phenomenon. I’m 99% sure that it does not originate in 80s hardcore. It definitely doesn’t come from any of the notable A or B tier USHC bands. It doesn’t come from any of the notable 80s Japanese, Finnish, Swedish, UK or Italian bands. Maybe the Shitlickers 7” vocals are mixed a little low, but not enough for that to be the origin. So where does it come from?
I had a friend say they thought it probably came from people listening to that 2nd wave of black metal shit in the early 90s. That’s a decent theory I suppose. If that’s the case, get the fuck out of the forrest, ya LARPers, and crank your vocals a tad, eh?!
Collateral We Still Know EP, Scheme/Fortress Records
Goddamn, this record sounds good. Everything is bright and huge without sacrificing the energy. The bass tone is gnar, the snare is snappy, and the guitar sounds savage for E-standard tuning. There are moments on here where I think this is as good as modern roots hardcore gets, like the verses on “Mind Control” when both the vocals, drums, and the chord progressions are going full bore. You rarely get to hear that level of fury with a recording so clean and bright. And whaddayaknow - it sounds fucking sick. They’re harnessing both speed and power like most bands fail to do.
Stalag 13’s 12” In Control cost $7,000 to record in 1984. Just think about how insane that is. That’s like $20k today for a 9-song hardcore 12”.
So what came of it? What do you get when a hardcore band gets a good ass pro recording? An overproduced album devoid of any character? Fuck no - surprise, surprise - you get a stellar sounding hardcore record because the band ripped and the songs ruled. So many bands try to sound savage using studio tricks - how about just write a verse like “Mind Control” and let your songs do the talking? Nothing is going to save you in the lab if your shit doesn’t bring the heat and your band is sorry.
This EP is a serious level up from the demo sonically, but if I’m being honest, it does lose a little bit of YOLO spirit that the demo had, especially with their use of the scissor beat, or lack thereof here. That’s the risk in leveling up in your solidness as a band - you’re trading wildness for tightness. If someone thought the 2nd Sick of It LP was better than the 1st, I could totally see it. Same with if you liked the last Striking Distance 7” more than the first one. I like both eras of SOIA, Striking Distance, and Collateral - I do just wish they’d tuck in a smidge of the scissor beat to change things up on the fast parts.
Fun or Unfun Facts: Punk and Hardcore songs that mention El Salvador
Having songs about Reagan in the 80s was a hardcore punk trope for sure, but the venom was for good reason. Look no further than what went down in El Salvador. Being the nerds that we are over here, we put together a list of a bunch of hardcore & punk songs that mention El Salvador.
If you can’t see some parallels to things going on today, you’re blind.
I also got an email from a listener who said we needed to add “White Noise” by Toxic Reasons and “El Salvador Stomp” by Suburban Mutilation. If you have fun (or unfun) facts that we should release on the world, get at me.
Billy Vera was kind enough to join me on the podcast for a short interview, so shoutout to him and his manager, Danny - both cool ass dudes.
I wrote about Billy’s career here so check that out. He also corrected me on a couple things, like the 1983 LP he did for Mystic Records was actually recorded back in 1971. Check out this post I did on the early days of the Mystic Sound Studio as a companion piece. I think together they paint a pretty good picture of what Doug Moody and Mystic were like in that stretch. Billy also drops a pretty epic Ray Charles story too for the jazz heads out there. Where you at, dudes?
Tom Front joined us on the pod and chat 80’s clevo punk shows, the late 80s straight edge scene in that area, and more. Confront is on streaming now and they have a discography 12” coming out soon. Hell yea.
- ZN
