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Welcome again to my little corner of the internet where I get to talk about records that I am listening to on a week by week basis! Hopefully I have encouraged you to buy or listen to a record that you may not have heard of. I know this is something that I look forward to weekly, being able to read about what my co-workers are listening to as well. My week has been pretty basic most days. I fill the online orders that come in and then I work on listing a massive metal CD collection that we got in a few weeks ago. So much good stuff has already been listed and we really have barely begun to scratch the surface of this collection. To give you some perspective on it, I have only gone through almost 2 full boxes and we have 50+ more boxes that need to be listed. So needless to say we will have a ton of awesome metal and extreme music adjacent CDs being listed for a while if that is your thing.

On to my pick this week. I went back and forth with a couple of newer releases that have been on my radar for a while. King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard is not for everyone. Some people get turned off by the fact that they change their sound with every album. Spanning genres such as electronic, metal, folk and jazz funk. A lot of die hard fans have their favorite album out of the 26 studio albums that they have put out so far. Mine are the heavy and more psychedelic albums like Omnium Gatherum, Petro Dragonic... and Flying Microtonal Banana. The following this band has created in the states is something special. It almost feels like they are Australia’s answer to the Grateful Dead. People plan entire summers to follow them on tour in the United States. They even have parking lots sales before every show with folks making bootleg King Gizzard shirts, pins and stickers among so many other things. I will finally get to experience my first show at the end of month in Asheville. So if you are out there and you see me say hey!

The new KGLW album, Flight b741 is a snapshot back in time to older boogie rock, taking influence from bands like The Doobie Brothers, Little Feat or the Steve Miller Band. It’s classic dad rock but done with the King Gizzard twist. There are huge riffs and endless hooks on this album, which also features all members of the band on vocals at least once on the record, which is something new for them from the albums in the past. One of the big highlights for me was the amount of harmonica on this album. I am sucker for harmonica in my classic rock albums and Ambrose continuously just kills it every time. Overall, this album is a classic and will be a favorite of a lot of die hard fans. If you have never heard King Gizzard before, please go back and listen to the albums that I listed above. Until next week! Thanks for reading!

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone is having a nice week. If you live anywhere along the east coast, I’m sure you’ve been dealing with all this rain the last couple weeks, especially this past week with big Debby rolling through. I had the pleasure of waking up the other day and walking into my kitchen to be greeted by a water bubble forming on my wall due to a leak in my gutter. While it’s annoying to deal with, I know a lot of people had to deal with a lot worse with this storm than I did, so if that applies to you, you have my sympathy. This leads me to the record I’d like to talk about today: Whiskey Before Breakfast by the great Norman Blake. That title sounds more and more appealing the more problems that come my way. This album was released in 1977 on Rounder Records and features 14 acoustic tracks. When an album opens up with the lyrics “I got high, Lord I got in jail,” you know you’re off to a good start. This album also features a healthy amount of instrumental tracks such as Under the Double Eagle, Salt River, Arkansas Traveler and a couple more with some real nice pickin going down on them. Good thinking music. Me and Dom both share a love for the track Old Grey Mare, which, as you could maybe gather, is a song about an old grey mare. We’re usually big fans of any old bluegrass/folk song about an animal, train, or even the local paper boy (poor Jimmy Brown.) Anyway, this is a great album start to finish. Next time you need some good country picking in your life, why not turn to ol Norman Blake.

Hi Sorry State fam! Feels like I have been absent from class forever, but I guess I only missed one week. I went on vacation to Bermuda for a full week. I go to our local beaches every year for 4 nights typically, and it’s gotten kinda boring. So it was super extra amazing to go someplace special for a week, and it’s my favorite place I’ve ever been in terms of beauty and beaches and relaxation. I’ve been three times now, and the first time was literally 20 years ago. It’s only 3 hours away and is pretty much directly parallel to Charlotte. It’s a gorgeous, clean, quiet, friendly place with mind blowing beaches and coves where you can go way out in calm, crystal clear turquoise water and still be only four feet deep. And you can see lots of pretty, colorful fish just by looking down. No snorkel required.

Something that makes Bermuda extra special is that the sand has a pink tint to it because of coral reef that has broken up and washed up on shore over many years. I’ve been to other tropical places like the Bahamas and Jamaica and the only similarity to Bermuda is there is pretty water there too. But it’s very different in just about every other way. Now, it’s not that cheap to eat or buy groceries, and there is no coffee culture. So getting an iced coffee was no easy feat, but it’s very easy and cheap to get around the island in very nice air conditioned buses. They still won’t lead you to iced coffee.

It was kind of a bitch because my passport expired and Bermuda is British territory, so you do need a passport. But damn, I’ve never been through such a laid back and chill customs process. Highly recommend. One drawback is there is not a single vinyl on the island. I looked. But like I said, I was ready to go home and get back to my normal life, my records, my cats, and my staff pick. Which I promise I am gonna get to right now.

I wrote about the band Pura Manía early this year when they put out their Extraños Casos De La Real EP. They took me by total surprise with their big anthemic energy and just overall great songs. The band is from Vancouver and Mexico City. So I went back in time to take a listen to their 2016 LP, Cerebros Punk, and it kicks ass. So much ass. All the elements that made their later music so good started on this album. So it turns out that they’ve never not been good. The riffs on this thing are a key component to making this record interesting and impressive and so damn likable. Hot damn, do they know how to write a good song. The songs are hooky and catchy with big energy, and woah-oh-oh’s that get the juices flowing. They sound like a hardcore band, but more musical, more experimental, with a dose of weirdness. They insert some weird bits here and there, mostly at the end of the songs, that could pass for sound effects but could just be them in between takes.

The music can go in so many directions because there is a lot of versatility in the riffs. Sometimes they sound a little bit dungeon punk, a little bit pub rock, even a little power pop, but they maintain a toughness throughout. The tough gritty vocals keep the music in the punk temperature range, but they have some fun and play around with other sounds at the same time.

My absolute favorite track is the album closer, Cerebros Punk. I absolutely love the lead riff on this one. So catchy and so versatile. Ranks high on the danceability meter, and balanced so well with the more raw vocals. It’s a banger and worthy of a few listens in a row. This may be one of my favorite tracks of the year. At first I wasn’t super keen on the backing vocals, but the more I listened they grew on me. That guitar riff is what makes it. It’s so catchy. The catchiest on the album. You could write so many punk or indie songs around that riff. You could speed it up or slow it down depending on the genre, and it would work.

Another great track is 1000 Años Despues del Hombre. There’s a great big intro that sets the tone for the rest of it. It has a darker feel to it. It’s full-on, fast and fun, with a killer repeating riff that leads you to its close. The high energy is perfectly maintained by the next track, Grandes Esperanzas. This speedy track delivers some strong woah-oh-oh’s. It’s the best two-song run on the album. And right around the corner is my favorite track that I’ve already talked, Cerebros Punk. After the few songs that precede it, they knock it out of the park with that one.

This is a great album! If we have any left, give it a go! You won’t be disappointed. And if you are, listen to it 2 or 3 more times to correct that.

Thanks so much for reading! Until next time..

-Angela

Hello and thanks for reading. Today I will be briefly writing about AVKSUM, yet another band who was under the influence of DISCHARGE during the early 80s in Sweden. The EP I am writing about today, Crucified By The System, came out in 1984. However, they had already released a demo cassette in 1982, making a mark in their small city of Kristinehamnm. SKÄMS was probably the most notable band from their city at the time, with their EP coming out in 1979. Micke Blomqvist of ASTA KASK recorded the AVKSUM demo at his studio Kloakens Alternativa Antistudio. I’ve mentioned Micke before, as he deserves so much credit… at his studio legendary bands like Nyx Negative, Crude SS, Asocial, Svart Parad, Anti-Cimex, Avskum, and Rövsvett all recorded. This demo has previously been reissued on Prank actually, but it looks like it needs to be put back in print again!

Prank has also previously reissued Crucified By The System back in 2007. Before that, it had been bootlegged in the ‘90s. I am glad Prank put this back in print, cos I think this EP is absolutely essential when it comes to Swedish hardcore. AVSKUM brings a unique sound to hardcore early on, mixing super melodic and anthemic riffs with hardcore and d-beat drumming. It comes off as almost proto-stadium crust or something haha. Members had previously played in obscure punk bands DEAD CORRUPTION and ADRIAN CUBA. DEAD CORRUPTION had a very slight bit of a hardcore sound, somewhat reminiscent of super early ANTI-CIMEX or something, maybe more like DNA, actually. ADRIAN CUBA sounded much more like traditional ‘77 Svensk punk. Call me crazy, but I think this ‘77 style was super influential and apparent in the AVSKUM sound. This ADRIAN CUBA song was actually re-worked later as an AVSKUM song on their 1985 EP that never ended up coming out.

After AVSKUM released their debut 7", they hit the studio again in 1985 for another EP. They had written many notable labels to see if they’d be interested in the release, including Propaganda, MRR, and Clay Records. It was UK label Mortarhate Records who agreed to release the session as a 12" record. AVSKUM had sent them the tape and artwork, but in the end, nothing came of it and this material remained unreleased until a discography CD came out in the late ‘90s. I hate to sound so cliche, but this unreleased material is my favorite AVKSUM material. On this EP, they lean even more into their melodic tendencies, and I especially love that intro on “The End.” That is some weird shit to pull off. This discography compiled a ton of unreleased stuff that was recorded before that EP that also never came out. If you haven’t heard Crucified By The System (or their demo), you can find it on the discography of course.

AVSKUM remained a band until their breakup in 1988. It seems kinda crazy to have existed for all those years and just release on EP. I guess they got burned pretty bad by Mortarhate, so I can’t blame em. I read translations from the Crash-Mag zine where they explained trying to record once, and it resulted in the studio engineer getting into a huge argument with their producer, resulting in the producer leaving in anger, and everything falling to shit. I guess they didn’t have the best luck in the 80s. AVSKUM reformed again in the mid-90s and came back in full force. I think they had more or less the same line-up as before, but I didn’t look into that much. I think their later albums are excellent. It’s not like bands who reform and put out super boring or sterile D-beat records. AVSKUM’s later shit rips. I listen to it just as much as the 80s shit. Alright, I need to get back to work and I wrote all this shit super quick just a few hours before this newsletter is coming out. Thanks for reading me write not about much, but I hope it was an entertaining read on some level. Again, I think Crucified By The System is absolutely essential. If you don’t have a copy - grab one now!

What’s up, Sorry Staters? I hope you are all well. It’s been another week with plenty going on in the news and here on the East Coast of America we have had to deal with Hurricane/Tropical storm Debby that just passed through. We didn’t get hit too badly here in Raleigh, just lots of rain, but other parts of the state experienced tornado touchdowns and damage from the wind and rain. We certainly hope that any of you along the storm path were not affected badly.

I’ve been completely submerged in the Olympics again this week and have really loved watching the events and catching the great atmosphere in the crowds. Paris has done a fabulous job and there has been so much to cheer for and enjoy no matter where in the world you live. Being here Stateside, the coverage is obviously slanted towards Team USA, but I have been happy to see some medals going to Team Great Britain as well. I sadly didn’t get to any of the pre-season friendly games that Liverpool played over here. I know, not a real fan, but I at least got to watch them on TV. We won all our games too, and in front of record crowds. Only a fortnight away from the beginning of the English Premier League, so that’s exciting.

Anyway, with all this sport to watch, my listening time for music has been reduced significantly from normal. Thank goodness I work in a record store so that at least for the hours spent here I can get my fix. Even being here eight plus hours a day isn’t enough time to get through all the things I want to check out, whether it’s new stuff or old records. I do my best.

You would think that when someone works in a record store, they would be able to get their hands on any release that they wanted. That’s not always the case. A store can’t deal with every label and distributor out there, and when things must be imported from overseas, it sometimes makes it cost prohibitive. The point being that I have lots of records that I would like to get for myself and the store, but can’t always find for a decent price. Occasionally I’ll check our one stop major label distributor and see whether on the off chance they have random titles. Such was the case this week as I was able to order a copy of a record I had been keeping eyes out for, but hadn’t seen available for sale locally or from US sellers online. I’d like to make it my pick for this week and if you end up being curious and dig it and want one too, I am hoping that Sorry State can bring in a few copies for you guys. The record is a reissue of a 1992 album that only saw a cassette and CD release at the time, which finally got a vinyl release a few years back. I’m talking about the band Ffa Coffi Pawb and their album titled Hei Vidal.

Who the hell are they you ask? What language is that? It’s Welsh, and the band features future members of Super Furry Animals and Gorgy’s Zygotic Mynci. Formed in the late 80s by teenage friends Gruff Rhys and Rhodrii Puw in Bethesda, Wales over a love of 70s Glam, Krautrock, Power-pop, and Shoegaze, the band would release a couple of cassette albums before Hei Vidal, but it was on this third where everything gelled. Gruff Rhys (Super Furry Animals main man) would say that they were influenced by all the B’s—Bolan, Bowie, Big Star and Badfinger—sounds of the 70s that SFA would perfectly blend a few years later with their debut on Creation. On Hei Vidal, they are almost there and the album now in retrospect serves as almost another SFA album. A pre-quill if you like. That title and their name especially are little inside jokes. Translated, their name says Everybody’s Coffee Beans but said phonetically in Welsh it reads as Fuck Off Everyone. Nice one. The album title is more clever word play and references Vidal Sassoon hair guru and Gore Vidal the TV pundit, both names in the news and popular culture at the time.

The album came out on Ankst, an independent Welsh label that would go on to release SFA’s first couple of singles. However, some funny business with a song publisher who apparently disappeared meant that the album remained out of print for years until a compilation CD in the early 00s gathered this and other Ffa Coffi Pawb tracks together. This 2021 pressing is its first time on vinyl. As I don’t listen to CDs that much (only in the car), I had not listened to this in years, and it was quite refreshing to hear it again and especially on wax. Clear vinyl no less.

Musically, it still stands up. Even if you are not a Furries fan or a Gruff solo follower like I am, I strongly believe that there is plenty for anyone to enjoy here. Regardless of whether you understand Welsh, these are great songs with mature levels of songwriting from the young fellows. The playing is also accomplished and shows clear signs of the great stuff to come later when Gruff and the rest of SFA hit their stride. Two perfect examples of songs that sound like fully formed Furries tunes are Dilyn Fy Nhrwyn and Colli’r Goriad. Gruff’s unmistakable vocals and harmonies along with the glam sounding guitar make it very clear who you are listening to. Assuming, of course, that you are familiar with SFA and their music. If you aren’t, I can only advise you start checking them out. As anyone who reads our newsletter regularly knows, I am a fan and will gladly talk anyone’s ear off about how great Super Furries are and what a generational talent Gruff Rhys is. A Welsh national treasure who deserves an MBE or something from the King for all his contributions to music and culture. At the very least, a plaque on his house saying Gruff Rhys lives(d) here.

You can click here to listen to the record and check back with us next weekend if you liked it, as we should have a copy or two. Thanks everyone.

Cheers - Dom

What’s up Sorry Staters?

It’s been a crazy last week or so. Raleigh catching the edge of that hurricane has made for some terrible weather for several days straight. My phone was buzzing with flash flood warnings left and right. One morning when I woke up, after the storm had been particularly bad overnight, there was standing water in my apartment. Crazy shit. Hey, what’re you gonna do? But over the weekend as I was writing this, everything cleared up, the sun was shining, and the store seemed like it was slammed busy! People be havin’ that cabin fever, I suppose.

Public Acid had to unexpectedly cancel and didn’t end up playing Armor’s record release show this past Saturday. After making this decision, I unfortunately decided to stay in Raleigh and missed the gig. I’ve been seeing clips and photos of the Invertebrates set, and it looks like my homies tore it the fuck up. Gave me a dose of F.O.M.O. for sure. At the time this newsletter comes out, I would imagine the Argh/No Knock gig on August 12th in Raleigh will be taking place in real time—possibly as you’re reading! Wish I could use this platform to announce ahead of time that The Losers from San Francisco were added to the gig last-minute! Hoping it ends up being a killer gig. 3 ripping touring bands? Hell yeah.

Speaking of ripping bands, I think I’m late to the conversation on this Malakili band. I knew that they’re from Portland. Sorry State has stocked a couple tapes from them over the last couple years, and we just got in the band’s debut LP released on Black Water a couple weeks ago. I’ll be honest, I never really gave those previous tapes a proper listen. Maybe the band’s name threw me off? But I saw the cover art on this new LP: a skeleton in his bedroom surrounded by empty beer cans… I thought to myself, “This is relevant to my interests.” And man, I don’t know what I expected, but I threw this thing on and to my surprise, this record is just straight up, go-for-the-throat, ripping hardcore!

At first, just because of the style of hardcore that Malakili plays, I wondered if this band possibly featured folks from the Brain Squeeze/Alienator crew, but upon further research it doesn’t look like it. The guitar playing stands out to me immediately. Furious riffing that makes me think of Swedish käng influence straight out of the modern hardcore landscape of the Herätys/Infernöh/Larma variety. But I think to simply describe Malakili as a “d-beat” band would be somewhat of a misnomer. There’s a definite US hardcore flavor in the mixture of ingredients. The guitar sound is pretty clean, like the guitar is plugged straight into the front of a cranked Marshall. The singer’s voice is kinda high-pitched and more snotty and snarling, definitely NOT a deep, burly growl. The vocals are double tracked too, which gives it this seasick, off-kilter feel when the singer kinda gets in and outta time with himself.

But because of these stylistic factors that stand out to me, I think Malakili has more in common with a band like The Hell, or maybe even another contemporary example like The Massacred? Also, though, the band’s blend of snotty US hardcore and käng riffing, along with this perception of disorderly nastiness reminds me a lot of Gas Rag. Malakili surely has slightly more polite lyrics than Gas Rag, but you get what I’m sayin’ maybe? I think of them sounding more aligned with bands of this ilk than they do bands going for straight Discharge influence. Perhaps due to their environment, I do hear a bit of early-era Poison Idea creeping its way into the band’s style. There is a Poison Idea poster hung up on the skeleton’s bedroom wall after all, haha. There’s a couple mid-paced stomper tracks that sound way more like “Pure Hate” than they do “Protest And Survive”. You pickin’ up what I’m puttin’ down?

Anyway, if you were like me and sleeping on Malakili for whatever reason, I would definitely recommend giving this record a shot. A sleeper ripper in its own right.

That’s all I’ve got this week. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

The Alley Cats: Escape from the Planet Earth 12" (MCA, 1983)

If you watched the recent episode of What Are You Listening To? when Jeff and I were guests a few weeks ago, you already know how I came by this record. It was one of our fellow guest Dave Brown's picks (he of Sewercide Records, whose most recent release from Cell Deth we just got in stock), and when I said that I'd had my eye out for a copy, Dave generously offered to send me the spare copy he had in his "to sell" box. Dave is a stand-up guy and he followed through on his promise (dutifully ignoring my attempts to give him money), and it arrived the other day. Unsurprisingly, since Dave has incredible taste, it totally kills.

While I've had both of the Alley Cats' singles for years (including their classic "Nothing Means Nothing Anymore" on Dangerhouse), I'd never investigated either of their full-lengths, Escape from the Planet Earth or its predecessor from 1981, Nightmare City. Someone had mentioned Nightmare City to me in the months leading up to the episode (I swear it was Jeff, but maybe I'm wrong), so I'd been on the lookout for both albums, but Nightmare City still hasn't come my way. I'm sure I could dial up these records and check them out online, but I like to let my desire percolate for a while. Plus, when you're really anticipating hearing something, diving straight in with the full physical release almost always provides the best first impression.

Speaking of first impressions, not much about Escape from the Planet Earth indicates that it would be as good as it is. Four years on from their first single, this album found the band moving from the indie label Time Coast to the major MCA. It took me several listens to even notice the album was on MCA, though, because it looks and sounds so much like an indie release. The black-and-white cover with simple typography (the back cover looks a little slicker) and the bare-bones recording are more in line with something I'd expect from a self-released record, but in this case I think it's a good thing the Alley Cats didn't get the full major label red carpet treatment, because that might have ruined what is otherwise an excellent album.

You can definitely hear the Alley Cats' years of maturity on Escape from the Planet Earth. While even their first single featured tight and agile playing, Escape from the Planet Earth is the sound of a band that really knows how to play together. There’s plenty of barn-burning punk, but many of the songs on this album have rhythmically quirky, new wave-ish grooves the band executes with power and precision. The trio sounds totally locked in, a feeling that's amplified by the clear but unvarnished production. I hear very few overdubs on the album, just the sound of three musicians perfectly in sync. Even on the less straightforward songs, the band lays into it like they're gakked up on a pile of cheap powders. The drummer in particular is wailing, and the super dry recording with the drums right up front in the mix makes the performance hit that much harder. And when they hit you with a full-on rocker like the closer, "Just an Alley Cat," they're unstoppable.

Thanks again to Dave for turning me onto the gem and getting it into my hands. If anyone out there reading happens upon a copy—the going rate seems to be about $20—I highly recommend picking this up. There aren't too many early 80s punk LPs where original copies give you this much bang for your buck.

Muro: Nueva Dogma 12" (Fuerza Ingobernable Discos) Bogota, Colombia’s Muro returns with their long-awaited 3rd album, Nueva Dogma. I think everyone who encounters Muro, whether it’s live or through their recordings, agrees they are a special band. The most striking aspect of their music for me remains the passion and intensity they capture on their recordings. As thousands of lackluster albums across the history of recorded music prove, even a great band can have trouble capturing their energy on tape, but that has never been an issue for Muro, whose electricity transmits even through the very raw recordings they favor. Nueva Dogma continues that pattern, but while the presentation is primitive, the songs themselves are anything but. Sure, there are plenty of short, frantic riffs that will tickle the fancy of anyone who knows the rewards of exploring the 80s international hardcore canon, but Nueva Dogma is also a notably musically progressive record, with Muro exploring a wide range of riffs, styles, grooves, and textures across its ten songs. In particular, the lead guitarist brings a lot to Nueva Dogma, which is spiced with a thrilling mix of catchy, sometimes quite melodic licks. While the grimy presentation and chaotic performance disguise it, some of these tracks would probably even qualify as melodic hardcore, at least on the level of the musical composition. That griminess of presentation is an important part of Muro’s trip they don’t want you to miss, though. As you may have noticed, Nueva Dogma’s music is nowhere to be found online. Instead, in order to hear this remarkable record, you need to access the punk DIY network that has propagated this self-made artifact across the world. With multiple inserts, a ton of cool illustrations, and packaging handmade in the band’s home country of Colombia, Muro’s effort to bring something of their world into the homes of everyone who buys Nueva Dogma makes for an engrossing experience that elevates what would have been, under any circumstances, a truly noteworthy hardcore punk record.

Another week, another pick! Thanks again for reading week by week and supporting Sorry State records! It’s August, and it’s hot as hell. Who else can’t wait for the fall? Here at Sorry State we have been pushing out so many new releases for you all grab and thus keep us very busy here at the mail order half of Sorry State. It was really hard picking a record to talk about this week seeing how so much great stuff has come out recently. Beach Impediment has been putting out some great records like the Sikm: Now I Must Comply 12” and the Disarm: Existence Demo 1985 12”. For my pick this week I went with a super highly anticipated album for me, Philadelphia’s Poison Ruin: Confrere 12” on Relapse Records.

Poison Ruin’s Confrere is seven tracks of dark and melodic dungeon punk. This album screams of all the best of multiple genres. From the cheesy power metal guitar solos to the overall lo-fi feeling of a poorly produced black metal album and just enough snottiness in the vocals to be considered punk. The lyrical content touches on death, despair, and revenge. Just those 3 words alone can give you a visual of a real life Dungeons and Dragons campaign playing out. Knights fighting orcs to avenge their king. Sounds fun right!?

This album is a step up coming off the release of 2023’s Harvest. The catchy melodies and overall polishing of the bass and guitar tones progress this record into higher standards than Harvest. If I had to say anything bad about this album, it’s that I was surprised it was only seven tracks and not the eleven tracks that Harvest was. Also, if you are into dungeon synth and Poison Ruin, checking out their side project Shadow Knell: S/T 12” is a must. These are the two records you need to take to your next DnD or LARP session to get you pumped up.

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone had a nice week. The day I’ve been waiting for has finally arrived (well a few weeks ago now), Billy Strings has released live music on vinyl. Woohoo! Aptly titled Live Vol. 1, I knew it had to be imminent, but I was excited when this was officially announced back in May and time has flown by since then and here we are. I always tell people Billy’s albums are great, but the live experience is where it’s at. No song is ever the same twice and the energy at a show can be electric and I’ve found that’s translated pretty well to this record. The record consists of all original music, except for one cover, which happens to be one of my favorites. Reuben’s Train is a traditional song that originated in the southern region of Appalachia in the late 1800s (the history for a lot of these old traditional songs can be a little shoddy.) This particular live version comes from the show at the famous Ryman Auditorium in Nashville this past February 25th, which I was lucky enough to be in attendance. He starts off with his own original Fire Line, which leads directly into this ripping Reuben’s Train, all in all clocking in at about 19 minutes. The mother church was rocking during this and I remember how clear you could hear the bass thumping in there; you could feel it shaking the pews under you. It’s so amazing to see someone performing a song that’s probably 150+ years old, and taking it to new levels and having a whole venue packed out singing along and dancing to it. I remember getting into the Grateful Dead and discovering the live stuff and listening to shows and thinking to myself “damn that would be so cool to actually be at one of these shows that’s now a live album and get to experience it again” and now I’ve been given that with this performance. I can’t wait to dust off this record when I’m old and gray and throw it on and have the memories come rushing back. Here’s to hoping I’m at some of the shows when Vol. 2 is recorded!

(The picture above was taken at the aforementioned performance of Reuben’s Train at the Ryman)

Hello and thanks for reading.

I think Sweden took more influence from DISCHARGE than anywhere else in the world during the 1980s. Obviously, DISCHARGE was ground-breaking when it came to punk across the globe, but bands who took influence from them usually had their own twist on things. It seems the significance of DISCHARGE was even more evident in Sweden, with DISCHARGE-type hardcore bands forming as early as 1981. I have no idea who the first DISCHARGE worship band was in Sweden. SKITSLICKERS or ANTI-CIMEX, right? But I guess that also brings another silly, pointless, nerd question to the table; can one qualify as a DIS-band if there is no DIS in name? I think that question is up for debate.

DISTRUST is one of the earliest bands I can think of who might fit this category. However, I don’t think they really mastered the DISCHARGE sound. I am not super familiar with all their material though, so I won’t speculate too much. DISARM is a band that comes to mind quickly. Their first EP was released in 1984, followed by another in 1986. I think both of these records are exemplary when it comes Swedish hardcore in general, but they are great examples of a Swedish band taking such a massive influence from DISCHARGE. They also released material before they had the name DISARM, as TOTAL ARMSVETT. The style was significantly different, though. I’m sure they knew who DISCHARGE was in their early days, but I wonder what changed between the tapes and the first EP. I really love DISARM, but this is some of my absolute favorite Swedish shit, next to shit like TATUERADE SNUTKUKAR and NYX NEGATIV. None of these bands are really DISCHARGE worship by any means, though.

So then there is DISACCORD, a favorite of mine. DISACCORD, like many other amazing Swedish bands, never had a proper record. They released a tape in 1985 and appeared on a few compilations. I think this tape might be the first of its kind, in the sense of total DISCHARGE worship. I know SVART PARAD had already released a tape of pummeling DISCHARGE-type hardcore with gruff vocals, and shit I mean, CRUDE SS and AVSKUM were certainly already around before SVART PARAD; but to me DISACCORD pushed it to the next level. The music is a bit more brutal, the artwork is totally that of DISCHARGE, and of course their band name begins with DIS. The thing about “D-beat” and DIS-bands though, is this term is much more of a 90s phenomenon. I don’t think there were any bands in the ‘80s self-identifying as “D-beat.” I was trying to think of the first use of the word, and the earliest use I can think of is either from Jan Jutila or Kawakami. I’d love for someone to tell me their thoughts on this.

So, I am slowly getting to my staff pick here with DISCARD. DISCARD was yet another Swedish band who never had a proper record. In fact, they never even had a proper tape. They had two different recording sessions, and this stuff was only circulated amongst friends and fanatics. Most notably, in 1986, they had two songs appear on Really Fast Volume 3. It wasn’t until 1990 that DISCARD finally had a record released, which was a “reissue” of one of their 80s recording sessions. A small Swedish label called Jesus Kudd Records released this debut on 7" format and it was entitled Death From Above. Soon after, Finn Records repressed the record in Sweden. And then later, German label Rødel Records reissued it. It was put back in print most recently in 2015 by Czech label Insane Society Records. I am not sure if they just repressed it or if we got some dead stock, but we have some copies in stock now. The original pressings of this record were notably very nice, with cardstock textured sleeves. I think Insane Society did a great job on their packaging, with some nice screen printing in silver ink on black paper. As you can see in my picture up there, I have every version of this absolutely essential record. Although there is a rare version of the first pressing that I do not have, where it exists on green vinyl...

Now the thing is, DISCARD was never a real band in the first place. I read inside the Stockholm’s Mangel reissue that they played one gig, though. DISCARD was essentially just a recording project with members of MOB 47 and Per from AGONI on vocals. I have always associated DISCARD with AGONI and CRUDITY, but this is cos of the legendary Stockholm’s Mangel compilation. This compilation originally came out in 1986 on cassette format. But DISCARD was not actually on the tape. It was not until 2000 when the tape was reissued on LP and CD, and the track list was expanded to include some more projects from Stockholm who existed at the time, including DISCARD. I am pretty sure the recording session on Stockholm’s Mangel is the same session where the tracks on Death From Above came from, but the 7" is missing some tracks.

So, DISCARD first recorded six tracks in 1985. In 1986 they recorded those same six songs again, alongside five more new tracks. I think the only difference between the two sessions is who plays the guitar solos. The sound of them is very similar; sometimes it’s hard for me to tell them apart until it comes to the solo, haha. I could be totally wrong about which songs they recorded when, but I read Åke from MOB 47 recorded both sessions at his legendary Bowlingstudion. Regardless of just being a side project, these songs never get old to me. DISCARD seriously sticks out in the midst of literally every single DIS-band who has ever existed. There is no one who quite got the sound as brutal as this, while still maintaining such a stripped-down style. I think the vocals are arguably more powerful than Jonsson of ANTI-CIMEX. The lyrical content and artwork are all total DISCHARGE, and they even ripped off the DISCHARGE font for their own logo.

They might have been the first band to rip off DISCHARGE’s logo for a record. I am not really sure, but I can’t think of anyone who did it before. But like I said, their first record didn’t come out until 1990, and they did not have any artwork initially, so this complete DIS-phenomena did not happen in 1985 or 1986 when they were recording. If not for that initial pressing in 1990, who knows how the DIS-world would have formed differently. DISCARD had such a massive influence on bands like DISCLOSE and DOOM, who themselves have influenced an immeasurable number of bands. There is a certain rawness that comes with DISCARD’s stripped-down sound that is just absolutely perfect, like that of DISCHARGE. I’m sure there are plenty of readers who think this record is just as essential as I do, but I know there are tons of people out there who have seen the name DISCARD but just pass it over as just another shitty DIS-clone band. If you happen to be one of these people, I’d check them out cos it’ll likely blow your mind.

A note before I go: There were a lot of Swedish bands influenced by DISCHARGE and I only named a few. It would be silly to talk about Swedish DISCHARGE worship and not mention ABSURD, so I am doing it now. Their one and only EP was recorded in 1982 and released in 1983. The artwork is super iconic, and totally that of DISCHARGE. They took a great influence from DISCHARGE, and they especially loved SKITSLICKERS. They even recorded at the same studio where GBG 1982 was recorded. Their EP really is excellent, but it took some time to grow on me when I first heard it. I guess it just was not quite what I expected based on the context, and they maybe fall a bit short with intensity compared to other bands at the time. I think that probably has to do with what was going on in the studio, though. Before I start blabbing about some other shit, I wanted to also mention Lasse (vocalist of SKITSLICKERS) oddly enough said he never had a DISCHARGE record and was never really a big fan... haha. Alright that’s all. Thanks for reading and thanks for your support.