No need for a punk history lesson here, instead we'll just get to the (leftover) meat of the matter as I finally get around to posting up again after the Turkey Day Madness (as it was around these parts anyways).
For your aural satiation today, I offer up a collection of the first four albums from one of L.A.'s earliest punk, er, "hardcore" bands. They remind me at times of a So-Cal version of the Dead Boys, but on different drugs, etc.
A classic bit of punk history here, grab it here... .
Mid-Eighties East Coast Hardcore on the (somewhat) emotional tip, yet packed w/ power chords & sing-alongs, etc. I always looked at Verbal Assault as "Judge-light" - that's not a bad thing, by any means. They always brought the power & the personal lyrics & all, just on a more melodic tip, I suppose. This record got much play in the form of a beat-up cassette played through an even more beat-up "ghetto blaster" during many a late-night "curb-crushing" session down at the "Friendship Shell" in my hometown of Bay City, MI back in 1988 or so.
It's still a great record, and a total mark of time for both me, personally, and for a sound that isn't so popular these days. You should have this in your collection.
In my mind, a classic Los Angeles hardcore record - one that does not get the love that, say, the Adolescents got...
Underrated as fuck, the twin-guitar attack here is ahead of its time, the bass player "laying right in the pocket" (the way bass should be played), etc. Now add some suburban angst (peer pressure, drugs, violence, depression, cops,) and it all adds up to the perfect formula for some classic 1980's first-generation American Hardcore (the good shit). None of this needs to be said though, honestly - let the music do the talking…
The pride of Milwaukee Hardcore, these guys need no introduction (at least around the L-RV)…
Here we have a promotional-only collection that spans their entire recorded output (although this one is lacking heavily in the early material department).
None the less, these guys were great all the way until the end - the flavor may have changed a bit over the years, but for myself (and many others), it's easy to say that they were a truly unique band that transcended the term "hardcore", yet were more hardcore than most when it came down to their approach to tone, melody, songwriting, etc. Dig.
Santa Rosa, CA's own Kings of Powerviolence make their second appearance here on the L-RV, and damn if they aren't overdue…
What can be said about a band that was at the forefront of the genre and kept their benchmark high from the get-go. These guys live the filth they spew - unlike today's "jockviolence" set. Every now & again they still rear their beautifully fucked-up heads, so never, ever, ever count them out.
No soap is gonna wash this off, you'll just have to live with it, kid...
(START OF RANT):
Plan?
What plan?
There never was a plan …
I certainly never thought I'd still be "writing a blog" about bands & records that I don't give a shit if anyone else besides myself fawns over.
My taste has only gotten more extreme (or worse if you ask some people), and my "photoshop skills" haven't broken any new ground - HA! - but I don't care - never have. What's the point?
In the end, I'm still having fun doing this. I have managed to crank out a post a week or so (almost / usually) so while I ain't so hella prolific in that department, I AM STILL FUCKIN' HERE .
I've outlasted quite a few - thought I'd pack it in a few times - but when I look around & see how many blogs I was buddies with over the years who have hung it up (for whatever reason), well then… that just gives me fuel to keep going!
The comments have waned over the years, but you really can't expect much from the internetz, honestly. This is my labor of love (not sure it's love, but it "is what it is"), and if you enjoy the ride that I provide, then let me know once in a while.
Thanks for listening, and hopefully you'll still be hanging in for whatever comes next.
(END OF RANT).
And now on to year six we go...
Squirrel Bait were "The Princes of Louisville, Kentucky" back in the halcyon days of the Mid-Eighties. A band of teenage bros who had chops for days, and wrote - for lack of better term - "post-hardcore" at a level way beyond their years (much like the chops they possessed.
While they only put out two short albums back in the day, those became the soundtrack to my skate-fueled "post-high school slacker life" that I had embarked on. Late nights & sweaty sessions grinding curbs all night on 10" x 30" decks w/ a boombox, a ratty cassette, some cold beers & a bag of dirt-weed. (That's all I needed anyways).
Here's a wonderfully fucking rare live recording of The 'Bait tearing it up in Minneapolis in 1986. Try to keep in mind that these guys were still in high school at the time. Makes you kind of feel like a chump, don't it? While I never cared for any of the other mega-bands that these fellas were involved with in the years to come, Squirrel Bait remains a VERY special band to me, and that won't change.
Guaranteed.
29 strong & still in your face, The Pride of Frederick, Maryland lays waste with its brick-to-the-face manner of unrelenting thrash/grind/violence.
Definitely a band that should have garnered more attention all along - the material on this mysterious CD-R "release" I downloaded many moons ago from the always awesome RAW GRIND CHAOS CORE blog always satisfies, and over the years they have honed their sound into something MUCH more than just well-crafted "tuff-guy" NYHC.
A swell cup of coffee in the A.M. if there ever was one...
Offered up today for your internet leeching consumption is a collection of (studio) outtakes from Samhain's "Magnum Opus" album, November Coming Fire.
The mix is loud, unbalanced, and awesome.
Honestly? I'm always a fan of the rough mix / demo stuff more often than not, and this one is far more fun for me to listen to than the final product.
Fuzzy/overdriven chorus guitarage, plodding "soggy" drums, buried keyboard melodies, lots of howls & shit like that… no spray-on hair or cat litter shopping frenzies yet…
Chaotic hardcore fuckery. A ton of melody floating in a cesspool of electronic catharsis. Fat hooks, jarring rhythms, abrasive vocal caterwaul. The heaviness of the load - the load being something like a giant piece of shit-flavored cake drizzled with a Robitussin-and-Adderall frosting / glaze-type of icky goodness.
Just put it in your ear / mouth already, willya?
Been quite a while since I last listened to this…
Bought this when it came out - out of print now, really Dischord? - and damn if it ain't a psychedelic weirdo hippie record that is PUNK as FUCK.
The lineup of this band just looks so wrong that it is absolutely right. The perfect melding of a bunch of dudes who don't fit the rules of the "School of Punk" (as far appearances & musical styles go), and this is why their material is (still to this day) is so unique.
This is a band you'll either love or hate, but in my honest opinion, Fred Smith is one of the most unsung hardcore guitarists ever. Imagine him in a band w/ the other Fred Smith (MC5) - crushing.
Light up, lights down, rock out, etc.
Back before Jesus Christ Allin became "The Highest (heroin) Power" who threw shit on everyone, Kevin Michael Allin was worshipping at the altar of Stiv Bators & that ain't no bad thing!
This here - the first album from back in 1980 - is chock full of snotty pop-punk. I usually (always) hate that kind of shit, but GG was over the top lyrically from the beginning.
While you either loved him or hated him, there is absolutely NO ONE who even comes close to the "violent rock 'n roll madman furious-style" that GG lived. Sadly, he never fulfilled his plan of "taking myself out onstage -and a few others as well". Heroin, alcoholism, various addictions, incarceration, & metal-state deterioration turned him into a pathetic mess in the end. Honestly though - I miss the fuckin' dude - used to be every week for me back in the day that folks were talking about what GG did at his last show, etc.
Not much to say here - it's fuckin' FEAR!!!
They've been featured here possibly more than any other band; this recording has good sound as well as a tight set of hits - FEAR in their heyday, if you will - AND YOU WILL…
"UNREST IS RIGHT"…
Probably one of the three hardest records I've ever tried to describe would be "Sea of Unrtest" by San Francisco's own Toiling Midgets. At some points, it oozes some of the most blissful melody ever, but then the turn-around comes and you find yourself alone, desolate, naked, cold, ugly, and trembling in fear - yet it feels incredibly RIGHT - and the stark solace becomes your (best) frienemy.
Huh?
There's about a thousand fucking shitty bands that owe this band a paycheck or two, and while they'll never get the credit they deserve, I can rest assured knowing that I've done my part to help you fill in the blanks of (lost & under-appreciated) S.F. punk/hardcore/rock history.
Oh, and by the way, if you need a stiff drink or a cold beer, stop by the Lucky 13 bar in the Castro / S.F. - Craig (guiarist) pours the drinks there a few days a week. I'll see you there.
You can buy me a shot of Hornitos, bitch.
Sometimes I don't want to share the goods, bro. I'm sorry. Every now and then though, there comes a record that just defies genre by creating the perfect brew of all things good about all things punk / metal, etc.
Serious stoner jams - but not in that "Stoner Rock" cliche' kind-of-way. The "heaviness of the load" runs DEEP here, son. If there was ever a record that could GET you high w/o you actually being high, here it is.
Unsung WestBayKoalition / Doomryderz ATTACK!!!
"You better axe somebody…
Such a good band. The sound of urgency. Arguably Buffalo, NY's best HC band ever.
Here's a fantastic-sounding set of furious powerviolence done the way that only these dudes could do it. There's even an interview at the end.
Fuck the clones - so many new-school PV bands could learn a thing or two about how it's done from the way these guys did it...
Enjoy - (all four of you that come by to download and actually comment)...
