So was the Koro 7" sped up or nah?
Next week we roll out round one of our 1st wave USHC 7” tournament. I wanted to pontificate on a first round matchup and the controversy surrounding one of the records.
In the first round D.R.I. was matched up with Koro in kinda an ironic clash. In 1983, D.R.I. was considered by many to be the fastest band in the world. Here they’re paired up with Koro from Knoxville, TN—another blistering fast hardcore band…or were they? Some folks still think there should be an asterisk put on Koro’s speed.
I believe this stems from two things:
At the beginning of the first song of their 7”, there’s an altered voice in the background that sounds like it gets more and more high in the register as the song speeds up. I don’t know if people would’ve thought twice about that, except…
Sorry State Records released a CD in 2006 that contained a remastered version of their 7” and some folks think the newer version didn’t sound as fast.
James Greene Jr. interviewed Koro guitarist, Dave Teague, for The Hard Times in 2020 and addressed the speed issue.
In 2006, Sorry State Records released Speed Kills, a platter of alternate Koro recordings (“That was done without everybody’s consent,” Teague reveals, “but everything’s patched up now”). The name Speed Kills and the album’s more lethargic pace only added to the debate regarding EP. Teague admits he’s asked regularly if Koro altered the speed of their debut. He’s quick to point out that people thought the same thing about both the Circle Jerks and the Dickies, the latter of whom Teague wound up joining after Koro. Asked point blank if EP was sped up, Teague leaves a healthy pause of either dramatic license or genuine annoyance before answering.
“No.”
This firm denial will probably do little to quell amateur detectives and conspiracy theorists who want to prove what they hear beyond a shadow of a doubt. And there are, of course, zealous Koro fans who don’t care one way or the other. And why should they, or anyone? Hypothetically speaking, is a punk rock band speeding up their tapes much different from Beck slowing down and distorting his vocals so they sound like they’re dripping out of a Mrs. Butterworth bottle? It’s aesthetics over authenticity, which isn’t necessarily high crime in art. We’re tackling a moot point anyway — Dave Teague says the rumor is just that. We take him at his word.
I mean, a follow up would’ve been nice but oh well.
I put a 7” version (top) of “Acid Casualty” and the remastered version that was on the 2006 Sorry State release (bottom) into Audacity to line up the audio files. It doesn’t seem like anything is sped up to my eyes. You can see it’s mastered louder and the fade comes later on the newer version, but the songs seem to line up.
Here’s the same thing for “Government.”
There are two extra snare clicks in the new version, otherwise the songs line up.
Compare those to a song off Bad Brains Rock For Light, an album that we know for a fact was sped up on the 1991 reissue. The original 1983 version is on top and the ‘91 reissue is on the bottom:
Same thing for the title track:
It’s easy to see that the remastered Rock For Light tunes have been sped up.
On the 2006 Koro CD on Sorry State, there are also alternate versions of some of Koro’s 7” songs from different session that were recorded for a previously unreleased LP called Speed Kills. These versions are definitely slower and the dude’s voice is lower. That’s a big win for the it’s sped up camp, but voices can change from session to session for a myriad of reasons, especially when you’re just yelling for an hour or so on a random ass day. Also, the 7” was recorded after the LP session so presumably the band was tighter, better at their instruments and playing these tunes in general. After all, these were teenagers whose skills were improving rapidly. This happened in my high school hardcore band—our drummer’s skills more than doubled between 7”s (not my bass playing, though).
The 2006 Sorry State version of the 7” tunes are definitely louder and clearer, which makes sense since they were digitally remastered over two decades after the original was released. I’m leaning “not sped up” but I’ve been fooled before!
What do you think?
Original:
2006 version:
Next week…our FIRST WAVE USHC 7” TOURNAMENT. LFG!!
If you enjoy the podcast or this blog, here are the ways you can support:
Spread the word
Like/rate/review the podcast wherever you listen to it
Become a Patreon. The patreons have been keeping this project a live for almost seven years.
Become a paid member on Substack. I get it. You’re loyal to Substack and Patreon feels OnlyFans-adjacent. Supporting on here also gets you access to all the archives (anything over a month old).
Recurring payment-adverse? There’s always this.
Thanks for the support!
I play in a band called SUBVERSIVE INTENT. Jam the demo here, here, or here. 12” coming soon on the mighty Rebirth Records.
- ZN