Episode 232: May 2024
Killer episode this week on the pod. Check it out here, here, or here and check the playlist here or here.
Before we get into it, I just want to mention that we hit our five year anniversary earlier this month and I want to thank everyone who has supported the podcast thus far. We ain’t going another five, that’s for sure. Extra special shoutout to the Patreons who are the ones who really keep this podcast (and blog?) alive. Respect!
Never forget…
Dan and I started the pod discussing if we consider ourselves music critics. You can tune in for that convo, but for the blog’s sake, I’ll leave you with some critiques of Dan and I. I didn’t keep track of where I specifically clipped these from, so don’t get at me. They’re all from Suburban Voice (yay!), HeartattaCk (meh), or MRR (boo!).
Faster and thrashier…like the FLOWER LEPERDS.
Pretty good, but not awesome. How dare ye, Kent? It’s rumored that after this review, Dan perfected an HR-esque backflip that he’d work into the set moving forward.
A listener wrote in and asked us a profound question: is Spazz the NOFX of Powerviolence? Hmmm. Both are one of the biggest bands of their subgenre. Both have huge sounding records, jokey lyrics, and most of the bands they influenced are trash. So yea, I’ll back this theory and send it off to you folks for more peer review.
While that’s sussing out, let me present you with my own question:
Is Charles Bronson the Guttermouth of Powerviolence?
Alright, onto the newer stuff…
En La Muerte Silencio EP, Extinction Burst
I absolutely love this thing. To my ears, it sounds like rough, pre-1984 hardcore. Maybe it’s the Suicidal Tendencies S/T LP mixed with Patterns of Force and a little Headcleaners. It’s a masterful record that packs so much into simple, short blasts of fury - capturing what made hardcore so special in the first place. It somehow sounds familiar, yet so unique to them, and comes off completely organic and not like they’re chasing a sound. Y’all got 9 1/2 minutes? Check it out.
Lost Legion Behind the Concrete Veil LP, Mendeku Diskak
Lost Legion might be the US answer to FrOi!/Cold Oi scene that we’ve been championing on the pod. This is a solid ass record of moody tunes tied together with catchy guitar hooks that could be played with one finger (aka the best kind). It’s at its best when the singer’s monotone, gruff vocals are juxtaposed with songs that are soaked in dark melody. Listen to “The Animals We Used To Be” and try to tell me that I’m wrong.
Burning Lord Arcane Demolition LP, Streets of Hate
I loved the Bill and Ted’s movies when I was a kid and sometimes I’d fantasize about George Carlin showing up and whisking me off to the place and era of my choice in a time traveling phone booth. Unlike Carlin’s booth, this record doesn’t offer endless possibilities, it’s just a one way trip to Cleveland, OH circa 1989-1991. Think the Integrity demo/7”, the Diehard LP, and the Ringworm demo.
They’re reaching towards metal, but still have a big toe in hardcore. It’s a beefy record, but it’s sequenced well - especially the first half. This sounds so much like a time and place to me but somehow avoids the pitfalls of bands who try to just ape Integrity for their entire sound. Maybe it’s because they were shooting for an earlier era than what other bands normally go for. Maybe the end result was just a happy accident and they were trying to sound like something completely different.
Regardless, this is a killer record that will most likely be making LP of the year shortlists for many. Most bands will never achieve that YOLO-fury that is “WCB” and still be able to make a killer track out of it. Oh, and “Never Again” reminds me of this classic. Hell yea.
We continued Dan’s journey through the Poison Idea catalog. This stop was the big daddy: Kings Of Punk - a true hardcore masterpiece. Get the repress here. Your collection sucks without this one in it.
I did a short Fun or Unfun Facts segment about Punk/HC songs that have harmonica.
What did we miss?
Joe Hardcore from Punishment and Shattered Realm joined me pod to talk the current state of Hardcore, the world of content creation, This Is Hardcore Fest, and more. I was on episode 54 of his podcast, so check that out here or here.
Exhibit A of The Hard Style
Have a killer week.
- ZN