Reviews

For review and radio play consideration:

Please send vinyl (preferred), CD, or cassette releases to MRR, PO Box 3852, Oakland, CA 94609, USA. Maximum Rocknroll wants to review everything that comes out in the world of underground punk rock, hardcore, garage, post-punk, thrash, etc.—no major labels or labels exclusively distributed by major-owned distributors, no reviews of test pressings or promo CDs without final artwork. Please include contact information and let us know where your band is from!

Heavy Breather Worser LP

Can you imagine a convergence of PINS OF LIGHT, CRIMINAL CODE and Hidden World-era FUCKED UP? Massive guitar-driven rock, gruff earnest vocals sharing space with ever-present guitar leads and I’m gonna call myself crazy here, but every so often that fool sounds like Rollins. I basically kept this one spinning off and on for a few hours, and I think my only complaint is that HEAVY BREATHER is essentially mono-tempo…but it’s a good-ass tempo. “Same Blood” is the go-to track, except that it ends just when I want it to drive that damn chorus into my brain for an hour. So I listen again.

Leper Frail Life 12″

This UmeÁ¥ group has arrived unannounced with a nine-track hardcore punk rip fest. While LEPER is more vocally burly and more adventurous with composition, they leave a TALK IS POISON-like impact on me. Most tracks remain around or under the minute-and-a-half mark, save for a couple like “ICBM” and “P&D” that take a little extra time to establish a mid-paced hook among what are otherwise mostly fast songs. Sung in English, with plenty of air-punching “oofs” and “aaaaghs,” plus top-notch gritty hardcore production and typewriter/high-contrast photo-style layout. Any longer and they’d be overstaying their welcome, but this is just the right dose. Surely they’ll be doing the Euro-fest circuit immediately.

More Kicks More Kicks LP

This three-piece from London delivers some solid power pop with a bubblegum sheen. You get a very polished and clean recording all the way through, which can feel a little clinical, but there’s a fair amount of fuzz here, as well as occasional vocal distortion. The bass comes through really strong, almost too heavily in the mix. Overall, I think the tracks are well-balanced and inspire singalongs on the first spin. Guitar is piercingly clear, though not as gritty as I’d like it to be. They sound like mod revival and more on the ’60s garage end of the power pop equation. Typically I’m into stuff with faster riffs when it comes to this genre, but I like it just fine. Though it’s not credited on the the liner notes, it sounds like there are keys on the track “She’s a Reaction,” and it’s a nice melody to fit in. My favorite song is “I’m on the Brink,” though I still do wish it was just a smidge faster. Cool band, good way to start off sunny days.

Möwer Möwer LP

MÖWER are loud, dirty MOTÖRHEAD worship from Pittsburgh. You can practically smell the live show through this record, and it reeks of cheap beer and day-old cigarette smoke. The grinding guitars and vocalist’s horrifying cackle on “Outlaw Heathens” let you know the kind of thrashy horror show you’re in for just after it’s too late to save yourself. This Japanese version of the band’s debut on Splattered Records is the definitive, must-have edition. For one, they up the artwork 1000% by adding Death riding a motorcycle and proudly declaring themselves “Motor Speed Punks from Hell,” in both Japanese and English. The two added live tracks are also the perfect enticement to grab this as soon as you find it. This is the kind of album you learn to sing along to if you want to develop that perfect “I live above a bar” snarl.

Notches New Kinda Love LP

Very ’90s-sounding indie rock. I loved this genre back then. I’m thinking SUPERCHUNK, ARCHERS OF LOAF, and even a little SAMIAM. New Kinda Love is this New Hampshire trio’s third LP. First time I’ve heard them. Dead Broke has become a pretty reliable label for us melodic guitar punk types. Great full-length.

Novotny TV Tod, Pest, Verwesung LP

This is a reissue of this German band’s 1996 album. Musically, it’s all over the place: kinda surf-y, rock’n’roll-y, twangy, mixed with ironic (?) crossover riffing. The vocals sound strained and intense: spitting lyrics that are critical, ironic, and “funny.” If you don’t understand German, this might be your new fave band, as they sound like CRAZY SPIRIT’s boring cousins that didn’t go to art school but are instead trapped in the most tedious of suit-and-tie office jobs. If you understand German, you’ll need to be a fan of humorous punk lyrics that rhyme.

Nowaves Good for Health Bad for Education LP

This is darkness in the right way. What I mean to say is that NOWAVES sound like they exist in a shroud and/or shrouded by smoke—sounds composed in the physical and metaphorical recesses, presentation that struggles to harness a primitive determination. NOWAVES will certainly appeal to goth revivalists with cuts like “Empty Sorrows” that focus on the synth and that ’80s dancefloor swing, but it’s all in the context of a record that mostly lands somewhere between EA80/GRAUZONE and WIPERS. Although the record is not overly layered, I notice something new every time I listen (WARREN ZEVON meets the CURE vibe on the title track, for example), which only encourages me to listen more.

偏執症者 (Paranoid) Complete Paranoid Discography 2012-2017 2xCD

A fuckload (i.e. 50) of tracks on two CDs, housed in a nice digipak with an info booklet. I’m a little confused about the whole thing, with what sounds like English lyrics but with song titles in Japanese by a Swedish band. I’m guessing it’s an aesthetic choice, but I might just be a poser who doesn’t know shit about fuck. As a discerning fan of some noisy D-beat or Mangel or whatever, I still gave most of it up to collect late ’70s/early ’80s punk 45s! There’s only so much storage space in an affordable Bay Area flat, you know? And that was before PARANOID really came on the scene, so I own zero of their records, which makes me the perfect review candidate. I did not listen from start to finish because I don’t have enough alcohol and painkillers on hand, but skipping around randomly reveals that PARANOID is a capable noisy D-beat band with very effective imagery, and the occasionally referential nod to DISCLOSE or DEATH SIDE or any number of other noisy or Japanese things. My highlights are the MISFITS cover and STREBERS cover that isn’t on here (“2 Skott”), cuz it proves we have influences in common besides bands that start with D. So yeah I’m a bastard, but if you are a completist or need all fifty PARANOID songs ever in one package, then your prayers are answered. Jokes aside, Black Konflik = top quality.

Partial Traces Low Definition LP

PARTIAL TRACES are a Minneapolis supergroup of sorts; members of the SOVIETTES, BANNER PILOT, OFF WITH THEIR HEADS, etc., who mostly previously played together in the band GATEWAY DISTRICT. The punk pedigree suggested by such a lineage is certainly present on Low Definition, but you have to listen for it. It’s mostly found in the tight arrangements and lack of extraneous fluff: musically, the album skews predominantly towards the indie rock end of the musical spectrum. Chiming, melodic guitars and washes of synth provide the stirring backdrop to songs rife with the melancholy of a life lived. Maybe it’s the Twin Cities connection, but I’m drawn to compare this band to the REPLACEMENTS. I’d bet money that this is probably the most mature-sounding record reviewed on Maximumrocknroll.com this month; make of that what you will.

Pobreza Mental Ya No Me Pertenezco EP

POBREZA MENTAL plays hardcore punk in the stumbling chaos vein of WRETCHED, CHEETAH CHROME MOTHERFUCKERS and Colombian bands such as IMAGEN and HP.HC, albeit not nearly as lo-fi and rudimentary as the two latter bands. The vocals shout to the point of breathless anger. The drums hiccup, pummel and degenerate into a crashing mass of cymbals. Every now and again stray guitar notes emerge from the claustrophobia to punctuate the rest of the wild sounds. Almost every song gradually builds from a mid-tempo creepy crawling rumble to an all-out glorious blast. The songs are about not belonging, the feeling of having nowhere to go as cities continue to gentrify and other depression and anxiety oriented fare. Ya No Me Pertenezco is an all-around perfect hardcore punk EP.

Potty Mouth SNAFU LP

POTTYMOUTH already had a very strong debut in 2013 with Hell Bent, but this album is such a massive improvement that the wait was fully worth it. The magic and chemistry they display here after taking their time to tour and yell at record labels has paid off in this cohesive magic disc released on bassist Ally Einbinder’s Get Better Records. Each menacing track clings to the next like a piece in a jigsaw puzzle. The transition between “Starry Eyes” and “Liar” sees vocalist Abby Weems dive into the deep end from a soothing, gentle crooner to a fully aggressive presence in a matter of seconds. The deliberate care taken into placing each track on this album has created a solid Jenga tower of tough ass punk that will stand tall for a long time.

Reclaim Break EP

Pretty damn good hardcore from California’s oft-neglected High Desert. These guys clearly know their NYHC as much as any other hardcore band in 2020, but they draw upon turn-of-the-millennium bands like CARRY ON and COUNT ME OUT too, especially on opening track “Bloom.” RECLAIM’s sadly terrible cover art will probably doom them to a localcore dungeon, but the tunes are pretty great. Recommended for ardent scene supporters and more discerning hardcore fans alike.

Sacred Paws Run Around the Sun LP

Scotland’s SACRED PAWS has been one of my favorite bands in the world since releasing their debut 12″ in 2015, and their 2016 LP Strike a Match is, in my humble estimate, among the very best records of the last decade. All this adds up to 2019’s Run Around the Sun being much-anticipated in my household, and I am happy to announce that it doesn’t disappoint. The SACRED PAWS formula remains firmly in place on this sophomore album: danceable post-punky pop music with joyful African highlife-inspired guitar parts and terrific vocal melodies and countermelodies. This album has a few surprises (horn parts!), and is a bit quieter than its predecessor, but is overall another masterful entry into both the SACRED PAWS and the Rachel Aggs (also of SHOPPING and TRASH KIT fame) discography.

Scarecrow Revenge EP

Swedish D-beat-inspired hardcore from Raleigh, NC? Yes, but SCARECROW carves out a niche of their own. The admirable TOTALITÄR-textured guitar/bass tone is achieved, and there’s a comparable intensity, but I’ll end that comparison there. The rhythmic punctuation and scathing rapid-fire vocal style elevate this EP to top-tier status. Lyrics avow all the damage we’ve inherited and what it looks like to cope with grim realities like children stolen from their loved ones and caged by the state, mental health struggles, the carelessly trashed planet, and the never-ending occupations fueled by American exceptionalism. Goddamn, shit is so fucked, but the rich language used here comes off more authentic and relatable (and frankly more inspirational) than typical “fuck society” tyrades. Long live the eight-song 45 RPM punk 7″. Definitely recommended.

Shotwell Dead Bats CD

I challenge you to find a San Francisco DIY institution more honest, more real, than SHOTWELL. Jimmy Shotwell has been a fixture and a presence for what feels like forever, and in SHOTWELL’s 25-year existence they have gone through countless iterations and incarnations while he somehow makes me feel like it’s 1996 every time I run into him. Musically, this is perhaps the strongest SHOTWELL release since the MIAMI split (which is—gulp—almost 20 years old). The ska parts are aggressive, the hooks are scraped off the streets, and the lyrical bite is as on-point as it’s ever been, weaving social, personal and political into one suffocating blanket. “Mystery Trip” is the choice cut, a painfully dark number that will be the most lighthearted number on the disc if you don’t look deeper. Rhythm section (currently Steve/GITS on drums and Fucko/STRYCHNINE, NAKED AGGRESSION on bass) is perfect, laying the foundation for a sonic journey through the sometimes filthy streets and often uncomfortable history of San Francisco.

Skiftande Enheter Snubblar Genom Drömmar 12″

The second LP of 2019 (!) from Sweden’s preeminent Messthetics appreciation society, which finds them mostly drifting away from ramshackle, DESPERATE BICYCLES-indebted minimalist punk in favor of jangly, paisley-patterned pop in the FELT/TELEVISION PERSONALITIES tradition—warbling organ with a somber psychedelic edge, sweetly off-kilter harmonies from guitarist Julius and drummer Elin, songs stretched ever-so slightly from the band’s previous tendencies toward sub-two-minute DIY bashers. There’s some occasional flashes of the SKIFTANDE ENHETER’s more raucous beginnings (the crashing “Iskall” or the sinister early FALL vibe of “Geni”), but the way that they’ve managed to effortlessly evolve from “this is a chord, this is another, this is a third, now form a band” bare-bones punk to C86-referencing crystalline pop within the span of a year (or less!) is really staggering.

Slow Crush Ease (Deluxe Edition) LP

This Belgian (but really from all over) quartet has taken shoegaze and somehow stripped the bullshit out of it. The thick, smothering blanket of guitars and drums stands no chance against the vocalist’s deep, penetrating bellows. She pulls herself out of the quicksand just to show you the glory in the danger. The A-side tracks are killer but were already released a few years ago on the previous edition of this release. The four newly added live tracks are the real reason to pick this up, and they demonstrate the massive growth the band has experienced in just a couple years. It’s like they found SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE and MINERAL and said, “nah, we can do it better.” SLOW CRUSH seems to always be touring the US and Europe, so you should hit them up and grab this.

Staflos Corporation Occupation CD

Weirdest release since the DREADEYE LP. Damaged drum machine hardcore clashing violently with computer chaos, tortured trap beats and made-in-the-closet four-track punk. There are a lot of things going on here, and then they drop a perfect no-fi freak punk banger like “Suddenly! Utterly! Crumbling!” and it puts all the other weirdness into a different context…even though I’m still not entirely sure what context—so I listen again.

Stank Voor Dank Where Seagulls Dare 10″

You’ve for sure seen these knuckleheads around if you’ve spent any time in the past twenty years or so at shows, skateparks, or the local dives of Frisco. Boasting prime members of the TEXAS THIEVES, HIGH AND TIGHT, and FRACAS, among others, you get exactly what you’d expect here, and more. It’s hardcore skate rock with a tinge of Oi! and a heavy leaning on early BAD RELIGION and Nardcore like ILL REPUTE. You could totally imagine this blasting out of the old Jak’s house in the Lower Haight on a Tuesday afternoon. Foz’s vocals are seriously on point here, and the song titles, while tongue in cheek, lyrically express some thought out social and political commentary. Go figure. There’s more than Pabst and shots going on with these fellas. Of course there’s also some wonderful no-brain-cells-required party anthems like “Blackout Drinking” and “Evel” to round out your last call at Benders. I’d probably lose the meth vs. cocaine argument with these barflys, but oh well. Buy the guys a shot on me.

The Uncommitted The Uncommitted LP

The UNCOMMITTED is a solo project of Tim Freeborn, the former singer of Ontario’s SONS OF ISHMAEL, who released one of my favorite EPs of biting juvenile thrash with 1985’s Hayseed Hardcore. Freeborn, now an English professor, improbably weaves lap steel solos into fourteen minutes of otherwise fairly straightforward hardcore, which begins to make sense when you consider his labelmates on Richmond’s Never Met A Stranger label/art imprint—all folk and bluegrass. Freeborn’s voice has deepened significantly over the years, as has his vocabulary—the lyric sheet is a jumble of old-timey esoterica, like a misanthropic McSweeney’s Mad Lib. It comes off a little silly, but self-consciously and playfully so. (I like to play a game when I hear a particularly obscure word in a hardcore song. Does it appear on any other hardcore song in existence? I’m willing to bet many of these words don’t. That itself doesn’t get you anywhere except alongside SHELTER, whose use of “gormandize” in “Civilized Man” is one of a kind as far as I can tell.) Anyway, the UNCOMMITTED has nothing to do with SHELTER, and Freeborn rips through a cover of “Nothing” by the FUGS to reinforce that he’s a proud part of an oddball lineage. It’s a cool and curious record. I probably wouldn’t have sought it out, but I’m glad it found me.

Universum Heavy Metal Gefahr LP

This is really fucking great and totally not punk at all. Featuring member(s) of German punk band PISSE (not Piss) and some other Berlin bands I’m not familiar with. Not sure if this is a parody, tribute, or what, but the album and title track is “Heavy Metal Danger” and, by all means, that is what you get here. Totally channeling early ACCEPT (you know, the band with the five-foot growling German lawn gnome in bondage gear singer) and also going into some proggish territory of Taken By Force-era SCORPIONS and early-ish UFO when they first went metal. Raging wind-in-your-hair, blazing-down-the-Autobahn heavy metal insanity—not for wimps. There’s a few post-punker moments and baselines on songs like “Nightcrawling Boneheads,” but this is 99% not for shorthairs. Put up signs of the horns here.

The UV Race Made in China LP

Scratchy feedback and a FALL-esque bass line reintroduce the UV RACE to the world. I’ve missed their off-kilter psych drone punk songs and Marcus’s takedowns of the boring, absurd world we’re all forced to live in. Whose brain isn’t insane from the inane at this point? No one I want to know. Made in China is a great collection of songs that contains the clever lyrics and the well-thought-out variety of instrumentation I’ve come to expect from the UV RACE—bits of saxophone, keyboard, acoustic guitar, harmonica, and assorted vocal effects accent minimal, repetitive punk riffs. The songwriting and recording remain simple and perfectly ragged, still showing elements of the CLEAN, SWELL MAPS and as fore-mentioned the FALL. When Racism came out, I balked at buying it because it’s incredibly rare that a punk band puts out multiple good full-lengths and the UV RACE had already released two great ones. When I finally picked it up and realized it was their best record yet, I felt pretty damn stupid, and Made in China continues to grow on me and challenge my notion that punk bands are lucky to put out more than one good LP (since EPs are the best format for punk, anyway). The UV still know.

Vacancy Last Rites EP

Upbeat, driving melodic punk rock here—tuneful hardcore that in a more innocent time may have been called emo. The guitars churn and glisten like early JAWBREAKER or RITES OF SPRING atop surging bass and drums. The interplay between all three instruments really stands out, while the dark, introspective lyrics are reflected in the vocals, which are laced with a tortured drama that reminds me of Andrea Zollo of AREA 51/DEATH WISH KIDS. Deftly cramming six tasty little numbers on a bright green 45 RPM seven-incher; wonder what VACANCY will get up to next?

The Vertigos This Is Decontrol EP

From the look and name of this record, I expected to hear something generic in the Motörcharge family from this Japanese band, but was pleasantly surprised to hear manic and trashy garage punk with more in common with the KIDS or TEENGENERATE than any dime-a-dozen post-millennial DISCHARGE worship. The song “This Is Decontrol” is catchy as hell and sounds more like an argument against DISCHARGE than a tribute—as if these women are saying “listen up punks, that’s not decontrol, this is decontrol.” More important than any genre distinctions, though, is how much the riffs on this record stand out from the current pack of in-one-ear-out-the-other punk—the songs on this (red vinyl) 7″ are extremely memorable! Highly recommended!

Vital Idles Break A EP

A 21st century revision of the Sound of Young Scotland heralded by fellow Glaswegians Postcard Records in the early ’80s—alternately shambling and spiky ripped-up art-punk informed by sharp pop smarts, with Jessica Higgins’s perfectly unpolished and expressive vocals giving a freewheeling edge to the band’s minimalist musical framework. The guitar slashes and needles but is never overly caustic, the melodies are just wobbly and weird enough to keep them from being overly twee, and the band’s tendencies toward angular tension are tempered by detours into more light-hearted jangle. There’s some pretty clear parallels to the heyday of Rough Trade-affiliated post-punk throughout the EP, from the tumbling, punked-up rush of “Careful Extracts” that would have perfectly suited KLEENEX or the PETTICOATS, to the sneaky YOUNG MARBLE GIANTS-ish bass line weaving through the more meditative and icy “Break A,” and in true UK DIY fashion, I think that the 7″ format is absolutely the ideal means for VITAL IDLES to present their off-kilter vision to the world—efficient, compact, contained.

V/A Behind This Wall EP

A 7″ comp from the Mojave Desert in Cali. Bands included on this are RECLAIM, NOBLES BONES, MARRÁ”N, COUNTY FAIR, and CEL DAMAGE. Pretty much a hardcore collection that stays away from generic thrash. A good start for a lesser-known scene.

Rip It Up Morbid Laws LP

Not sure how a record released in France this past summer so instantly reminds me of mid-80s Chicago punk…but it does. And not even in a way that I can quantify or really explain, it’s just something about how it hits me. It’s catchy, but the teeth bite you hard and sink in—vocals are gruff and urgent while the whole recording swings even while it rocks, like NAKED RAYGUN and LES THUGS collaborating. Good shit.

Sierpien Торжество (Triumph) cassette

Driving, mid-tempo dark punk recorded in 2015, almost like a missing link between ARMIA and the non-hardcore SIEKIERA record, but SIERPIEN are Russian and not Polish. The more you listen to this, the more their stripped down sound sinks in, and it’s nice to see that their recent material is even better.

Insect Terror / Grossel Split 12″ EP

Here’s a double shot of raw grindcore that hits like a jackhammer to that metal plate in your skull. Germany’s INSECT TERROR is pure fucking mince annihilation. Eight songs in like four minutes. Vomitus vocals. All fast, all blast. You know the vibes. It’s the same general idea from France’s GROSSEL, except a little more feedback, and a little more noise. They also have a few songs that are over a minute long. Fuck music forever!

Total Annihilation …On the Chains of Doom CD

Totally ripping ’80s thrash metal worship out of Switzerland. This recalls a time when death metal, still unnamed, was rearing its ugly, decomposing devil head into an ugly decomposing society. While there are nods to METALLICA and SLAYER and the like, they are more akin to bands like POSSESSED, and KREATOR. This however has far fewer epic, shreddy solos than any of those bands. There are a few, just not that many. It must be said that this album is not punk in any way, but if you’re an old school extreme metal freak, then give this one a spin.

Mick’s Jaguar Fame and Fortune LP

Bar rock’n’punk from NYC, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Definitely more on the rock side than punk. I guess they started out as a STONES cover band, but you can also hear a lot of classic New York swagger, the likes of MANITOBA’S WILD KINGDOM and the SIC FUCKS on this. Going back to a long-gone time in the late ’90s where glam-y, sleazy rock’n’roll was a thing, and rents were cheap(er). You could easily see them on a bill with STISISM and SUICIDE KING at the Continental. “The Real Boss” and “Call the Guy” are the bomb (note my dated ’90s slang). Buy it!

Mock Execution Reality Attack EP

Pissed off raw punk from the streets of Chicago by way, at least in part, of Singapore! Anchored by Thalib (of such Singapore luminaries as VAARALLINEN, SNÄGGLETOOTH, CHARGED C.B.H. and DAILY RITUAL), MOCK EXECUTION are another excellent addition to his already brilliant resume. The heart of the sound is early Finnish hardcore with all the quirks of tempo and delivery that entails, but there isn’t a slavish devotion to one particular band or even the style as a whole. Short, frantic solos are scattered throughout, a particular highlight being the one that ends “Protest Is A Way of Life” while mostly-barked vocals are augmented by group choruses. The recording is just right, a little boom-y and raw—perfect ’80s vintage sound that is especially appropriate for the closing KAAOS cover. Silk-screened covers and a very cut-and-paste aesthetic complete the package. Killer.

Altar De Fey The Insatiable Desire… For More LP

Flawless deathrock that so closely mirrors the premier bands of the early ’80s, you’d think that this was a DISCLOSE-like tribune to CHRISTIAN DEATH. While that would be awesome, the truth is even better: they’re actually original gangsters! While their first recordings didn’t emerge until the 21st century, the original lineup of the band gigged around San Francisco between ’83 and ’85, and even this, their second album contains songs written during that period. While there are touches of gothic influence present in the aesthetic, the instrumentation, eschews the synth ’n’ sax overkill of full-blown goth in favor of a leaner, more punk-oriented style. Founding guitarist Kent Cates is the centerpiece of the band, with the songs being built around his elaborate, often oddly-tuned compositions, supplemented by vocalist Jake Hout whose singing echos Rozz Williams’ sleazy charm. A couple tracks linger for a hair or two too long, but to be fair that kind of comes with the style. In pretty much every other aspect, this is as good as it gets when it comes to deathrock, past or present. Hell, even the cover art is so vintage that just looking at it makes you smell like cloves and patchouli for days.

Antimob II LP

First off, this is one of the most beautiful long-playing records I have ever seen in my life. Housed in a case-bound hardcover book-style sleeve, the cover and interior art consists of breathtaking, evocative photos taken by the band and a photographer comrade during a trip to the island of Gyaros, a traditional place of exile which most recently housed a prison for leftists and other opponents of a series of right-wing governments, culminating in the Junta (or “Regime of the Colonels”) between 1948 and 1974. These images are centered on the now-abandoned prison, starting with sweeping vistas of the structure and its bleak surroundings and becoming increasingly more granular as they focus on the interior, ending on images of individual details, haunting shots of the now-impotent rubble and rusted barbed wire that once caged human beings. Packaging also includes a gorgeous booklet, postcards, and huge poster, all printed with the highest quality materials. The amount of care and thought that went in to the presentation of this album is absolutely staggering and that’s just the impression the record makes before you put it on the turntable! The album itself, several years in the making, shows an equal amount of care and craftsmanship. Their 2012 self-titled LP was a blinder, a sweeping album that flirted with epi-crust without falling into the cliches and patterns that label suggests. The core of that sound remains, but there are many more spices in the stew this time around. The low-end is very MOTÖRHEAD, with a filthy bass tone and hard-hitting, understated, and precise drumming worthy of the Philthy Animal himself. Japanese-style massive group choruses collide with raw NYHC breakdowns that bleed into rousing melodic solos that never become self-indulgent. Listening to this album very much recalls listening to the first TRAGEDY LP in 2000, it is so impactful and so tight and fully realized. I have never wanted to be able to read Greek more than I do looking at the lyrics and longing to grasp the full meaning behind these songs, but the passion and intensity are very clearly communicated, and I completely understand that this is a record by and for Greeks about a time and a place that shaped their modern lives. While this album was technically released very late last year, I have no hesitation in saying this is the first truly great punk record of the 2020s.

Disclose Nightmare or Reality 12″

To be honest, the typically blunt and honest liner notes by Kawakami are pretty much the best review of this record available, but I’ll do my best to give a preview. Everyone knows (or should know) that DISCLOSE is that Japanese band that wrote songs in the style of DISCHARGE, but beneath the surface the story of DISCLOSE is an intriguing one, featuring constant evolution and innovation spanning dozens of releases. While early DISCLOSE was very much in the service of DISCHARGE, there were obvious influences from a range of post-DISCHARGE hardcore bands, most notably Scandinavian masters like DISCARD and SHITLICKERS. The early and mid-’90s material is often blown-out to the point of being challenging to listen to (viz. the first EP, or the tracks on the Meaningful Consolidation compilation). As time progressed, the band moved away from that more chaotic approach in favor of a more stripped-down and coherent sound, with the The Aspects of War and 4 Track EPs serving as trial runs for this, DISCLOSE’s attempt at producing their answer to Why?. The years and years of obsessive listening, study, research, practice, and attention to detail paid off in spades here, producing ten tracks (of course, guess which other record had 10) of pure DISCHARGE-fueled D-beat insanity, albeit with soloing that skews a little more towards ’CIMEX than Bones. It’s foolish to offer up apologies or explanations for Kawakami and DISCLOSE, either for the concept or the execution when it’s easy enough to say that there’s nothing one fucking amazing band taking inspiration from another fucking amazing band. True connoisseurs can argue for hours about which period of DISCLOSE was the best, but I don’t think any would handwave this record or its importance as a turning point in their body of work. As usual, La Vida Es Un Mus has given this reissue deluxe treatment, with the art fully reproduced in a heavy duty glossy jacket and inner sleeve, and a great sounding mastering job on thick vinyl.

Protocol Bloodsport 12″

Ugly, blown-out primitive hardcore played with knuckles bloodied from both punching and being dragged on the ground. Hints of contemporaries like WARTHOG (the punchy, driving attack, the super-mean vocals) and URCHIN (the occasional massive, vicious breakdown) appear, though this is more raw than either band’s output recording-wise and it includes interesting ambient-ish electronica elements courtesy of the brilliantly-named INTERNET GF. The fadeout ending of the record-closing “Divinity” has a genuine creep factor that dovetails nicely with the opening synth drone, demonstrating the band’s adept incorporation of the electronic elements. Witty, nihilistic lyrics only amplify the band’s bleak presentation, as does the crude, thematically perfect artwork. Only 300 copies available on appropriately blood-colored vinyl, definitely recommended.

Polo Pepo y Sociedad Corrupta San Felipe Es Punk / Es Delito Ser Punk 7″

By some standards, Polo Pepo’s two-song 1988 7″ is little more than a historical oddity. It barely made an impression on the global punk and hardcore scenes on its release, and its crude mid-tempo songs don’t fit in particularly well with the vicious political thrash of most Mexican hardcore of its era. Yet to me, this record—not to mention this loving reissue—is a minor miracle. The A-side track, “San Felipe Es Punk” is a truly magical (and utterly raw) ode to the modest and evidently punk as fuck Mexican neighborhood that Polo Pepo called home. It’s a rudimentary song with a simple message but it’s one I’ve listened to hundreds of times (and put on almost as many mix tapes) since I first heard it. It’s hard to find a more honest tribute to underground culture or to punk rock anywhere. There might be those who listen to this and just don’t get it, but to me this record captures the essence of what I love about DIY punk.

Absolut 2019 Demonstration EP

Double kicking, mad-blasting metal-charged käng punk from Toronto. ABSOLUT have melded their sound from an ASOCIAL or SVART PARAD delivery to more of a GISM, BOMBRAID, HAWKWIND experience. And this EP rips raw and flourishes with wild technicality. More breakdowns, more crude hissing metallic tones, less of what you’d expect from this originally hyper-echoed D-beat band.

Autarch The Light Escaping LP

Dark, gloomy transcendent crust with galloping beats and minimal vocals spate fourth with pithy apprehension. I appreciate the concentrated pace of the lyrics here, accented with harsh screeching backing vocals set back in the mix. The basic formula is epic neo-crust, but AUTARCH stand out with hypnotic fluidity. The songs are like a lucid fairy tale. This is no generic sketch. Acoustic moments and bow string instrumentation contrast powerful blasts with a soothing nature. Like warm storm waves on cold sharp rocks. AUTARCH deliver a heavy LP that is hardcore punk, and will probably be filed under metal based on the celestial aesthetics and song titles alone. The album doesn’t demand attention, but they have mine.

Dekonstrukt Dekonstrukt 10″

What if TANGERINE DREAM played crust songs? DECONSTRUKT have concocted oceanic and hypnotic, anthemic bangers that hastily move into the chorus. Each track ends with harsh conviction. Abruptly composed attacks with long landscapes of melodic bridges threading through the more intense moments. Minimal strained and screaming vocals over thin reverberated guitars harken to both ’80s post-punk and ’90s blackened crust.

Geiger Counter Nuclear EP

I am so happy to be assigned this vicious EP, that I’ve been spinning personally a lot late last year. What can I say about this dank crust release? This is up there with the stench-dragging psychedelic brutality of HORRENDOUS 3D, EXTREME NOISE TERROR, DISRUPT, the more upbeat aspects of MISERY, with riffs advanced as DESPITE. GIEGER COUNTER truly embrace the origins of late ’80s/early ’90s crust when it may have even been called “grindcore.” HIATUS, DOOM, and DETESTATION come to mind—the Nuclear EP resonates with sonic destruction, yet with slightly more metal virtuosity than all these said examples. Crust fans: do not fear this word “metal.” Tasty, tasty, bits of shrapnel, right here.

Jack Acid Gutless / Lo-Hi 12″

“Turn down for what?!” JACK ACID play GREEN JELLÖ-style SLAYER-ish rap that reminds me of SLIPKNOT or BILLIE EILISH. I do not know much about either, but if you’re into AGATHOCLES, BAD RELIGION, and you think you might be coming “down with the sickness,” this two-track psychedelic slab of disconformity is for you.

Krake Streitkultur LP

Aus Deutschland, KRAKE play sorely-produced raw hardcore punk nodding to ’90s-era breakdowns and sinister maelstrom interludes of metallic radiance. Short blasts and enigmatic, vicious riffs and scathing vocals seethe through in German. Tracks like “Fries ScheiÁŸe” pack a fucking wallop. I really like how pulled-in KRAKE keep their songs. A few hooks on guitar, a break, an even more dismal break, some fade out, then over. KRAKE are not fucking around. Songs max out at three minutes, but seem to have all the elements of a solid hardcore song, with some ballad moments and even more battle moments.

Dewityourself Dewityourself LP

It’s an interesting idea. Niels de Wit, who has been playing in bands and putting out records for four decades, picks out fourteen songs that he wrote from over the years, and rerecords them. The songs encompass stuff done by hardcore bands like GEPÁ˜PEL as well as alternative pop rock like JOHAN. The thing is that he makes most of them sound like the power pop/punk of his more recent bands. Even some of those hardcore songs are given a catchy, upbeat touch. On its own, it feels a little dated, like a ’90s pop-punk version of ELVIS COSTELLO. It might be more interesting to those familiar with his previous work.

Facility Men It’s Fun to Disappear LP

Twelve songs of WIPERS-style punk, or you could call it hardcore garage music. It’s mostly up-tempo, with vocals that sound like they are yelling at you in particular, and guitars that lean a little too heavily on classic rock’n’roll riffs (and solos). A couple songs in and it starts to sound a little stale. It’s unfortunate that you have to get halfway through the second side for the record to be broken up by the mid-tempo, not so yell-y “Morning Business” that will have you bobbing your head in no time. More of that please.

Leopardo Is It An Easy Life? LP

Psychedelic rock from Switzerland in the vein of the VELVET UNDERGROUND. The songs are generally on the upbeat side of things, but not necessarily poppy. They’re a little weird, a little off-kilter, the vocals run toward the TINY TIM side of things. Head noddable, yes but not exactly danceable. The two best songs on here are the ones that don’t really fit. “Happiness” is a slow, sparse, ambient, folkish thing that reminds me of a song by one of the Kilgour brothers. It’s followed by the catchy as hell, “I Wanna Tame You,” a pop gem. I’d listen to those two songs over and over.

Sonic Warhead Bleed Runner cassette

Demented raw punk stompers from Indonesia. SONIC WARHEAD embody that “everything is about to fucking die!” energy that so many bands try so desperately to conjure. The sound is honest, urgent, powerful, and the tracks are light years beyond sick. Everything sounds weird, sounds off; in other words, it all sounds perfect. This is the second offering from SONIC WARHEAD—guitarist Dovandri sadly passed away after these tracks were recorded, but there are more offerings in the future. Rest (and live on) in Power, and thanks for the riffs.

Swan Wash Swan Wash cassette

Brooding goth with an underlying ferocity that exposes punk roots—at least I hope that’s what I’m hearing. If you deconstruct, some of the tracks tweak components of outlying commercial genres and present them as Faith or Juju-derived darkness, and it totally works. If simple, stripped-down, murky dirges with Pearl Thompson guitar melodies floating in the aether are your cup of chamomile, then Indiana’s SWAN WASH have got you in their sights.

Tap Water Straight from the Tap cassette

I swear that before I looked at the internet, I thought “These freaks sound like they’re from Buffalo.” Turns out, these freaks are from Buffalo. Total tripped-out post-punk, but in the truest sense of the term, like “this is what happens after punk.” Like TRAGIC MULATTO with ska parts (and also with a trombone, like not just as an accent instrument, but like a full-time trombone), TAP WATER are the genuine article.