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What’s up Sorry Staters?

What the fuck is happening? I feel like I was just writing for the newsletter yesterday. The course of my week just seemed to whizz by like one of those accelerated montage sequences in a movie, where I’m stuck in one spot but the color of the leaves is changing in front of my face. I’m at the store again with Dom and I’ve got an overwhelming sense of déjà vu. I feel like I need to commit more time to smelling the roses. But how can one do such a thing when life is so busy? By the time all you newsletter subscribers are reading this, it’ll be the week of Public Acid’s record release party. Strictly a listening party (*wink*wink), so bring your headphones. The following Saturday, we’ll be heading up to DC to play a sick gig with Destruct and Abism from New York, whom I’m very stoked to see live.

Also, I wasn’t sure when would be a good time to mention this, but Scarecrow is finally repressing our first 7”, Revenge. It’s been a long time comin’; our first EP has been outta print for a long time. Me n Usman got a whole bunch o’ covers to stamp haha. Scarecrow is playing with Physique in Richmond on February 23rd, and I’m hoping we’ll have a few copies for sale at that gig. I dunno, we’ll see.

Alright, let’s talk about this Violin record. For whatever reason, this seems to be a title on Iron Lung that isn’t garnering as much attention as the other last several titles released on the prolific hardcore punk label. Currently, even though we’ve had the record in stock for a few weeks, there’s no listing for this new EP on Discogs yet. Personally, I can understand why it maybe isn’t as attention-grabbing as other records on Iron Lung. Based on the band name and visual presentation alone, Violin might have been something I would normally glance over. I mean, just the name “Violin” led me to assume the band sounded like pretentious, artsy fartsy post-punk or something. Not that there’s anything wrong with that! I was dead wrong. Now, if any of my friends were to be like “what the fuck is up with this Violin band?” I would say, “Just buy it, dude. It RIPS.”

Let me stress this clearly, I was indeed surprised to discover that Violin is actually a hardcore band. Dropping the needle on this 7” totally caught me off guard. But before I get too entrenched in depths of rambling, let me talk about their first record before I dig into this new record: Violin’s previous LP was released on La Vida Es Un Mus back in 2022. Again, I can’t remember… maybe I gave it a quick listen? But I basically totally overlooked the record at the time. As far as I know, Violin is a project by just 2 dudes. On their initial release, I might describe Violin as what I often affectionately refer to as “weirdo hardcore,” or as Daniel describes in his write-up, “slightly left of center.” There are some quirky elements on the LP, while managing to still sound relatively heavy, which made me file them in a similar sonic category as a band like their UK peers Perspex Flesh.

On this new 7”, however, it feels like the boys in Violin made a conscious decision to strip down the sound, trim the fat, and bust out 4 songs of bare-bones, lean, mean, furious hardcore punk. I gotta say, I immediately prefer this 7” to their debut LP. I think taking a more direct approach to songwriting makes the band feel more explosive and powerful, and honestly, more memorable for that matter. For me, as much as I’m sure the visual aesthetic and presentation is an important element of the band’s “vision” or whatever, I think the artwork almost sells the record short. Violin’s propulsive take on hardcore is somehow air-tight in execution while also primitive and cavemanish. Harkening back to the tougher, meaner side of 80s US hardcore, there’s something about Violin that reminds me of Out Cold. In particular, the singer’s gruff, yet throaty, high-pitched voice reminds me a lot Kevin from the early Out Cold records. Only 4 songs, and every single one of them is fast. Not insanely fast, mind you… Iron Lung’s description deems Violin’s signature pace of 1-2-1-2 drumming as “violence tempo.” Which at first I was like, what the fuck does that mean? Then again, if I were to imagine this record as the soundtrack urging a pack of seething, rabid, frothing at the mouth degenerates to start raging, I understand exactly what it means.

Maybe due to the fact that this project is destined to be a raw, well-executed hardcore solo project sleeper hit not unlike Deaf Mutations, there was a part of me that wondered if Jonah from Career Suicide might be involved somehow. Come to find out that I fuckin’ called it, Jonah does in fact play drums in Violin. Daniel always talks about the concept of smart people making dumb music, and I think Violin falls into that category.

Violins? More like Vio-LENCE, am I right? If you haven’t even given this record a chance, I highly recommend you give it a listen. I’ll cut myself off there. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week (will probably be here before I know it),

-Jeff

Fy Fan: S/T 7” (Feral Ward Records, 2007)
Fy Fan: Åh Nej 7” (Adult Crash Records, 2009)
Fy Fan: Ingen Framtid... ...För Alltid 7” (No Way Records, 2011)

For no particular reason I can remember, Sweden’s Fy Fan has been on my playlist a lot lately. Fy Fan was from Malmö, Sweden, just across the bridge from Copenhagen, Denmark, and they put out these three 7”s between 2007 and 2011. The list of labels on these—Feral Ward, Adult Crash, and No Way—is pretty phenomenal. Those were easily three of my favorite labels at the time (Adult Crash still is LOL), and all of them cosigning Fy Fan indicates how good the band is. Their “members of” list is also gnarly, touching Herätys and Stress SS, among many others.

This almost certainly flew over my head when these records came out, but listening to them in 2024, I feel pretty certain the Headcleaners were a huge influence on Fy Fan. (They also cover Nisses Notter on their first EP.) I hear Headcleaners in Fy Fan’s scratchy guitar sounds, their willingness to switch between uglier, full-bore hardcore and (slightly) more tuneful parts, and their singer’s raspy yet (again, slightly) tuneful snarl. My favorite bands on Kick N Punch Records in the early 2000s shared some of those characteristics too, and even though Fy Fan was a few years later, it feels like that scene left its imprint on the band. It wouldn’t surprise me if they got some production tips from those bands, as all of Fy Fan’s records have great, vintage-sounding recordings. Åh Nej almost sounds like a recording from Inner Ear’s golden era.

Since I’ve been listening to Fy Fan again, I looked up what the band’s name means in English. It’s a Swedish phrase that doesn’t have a direct English translation. The approximation I liked best was “fucking hell,” since how phrase nonsensically throws together two profane words approximates (from what I understand) the grammatical collision that happens with the Swedish term “fy fan.” I don’t understand it fully (maybe I’ll ask my friends in Vidro next time I see them), but it’s worth a deep dive if you’re interested in language or Swedish culture beyond just punk.

So yeah, three EPs, all of them rippers. If you’re over the age of 35, you probably remember Fy Fan from the first time around. Dig out your copies if you still have ‘em… I think you’ll find they’ve aged nicely. And if you’re younger than that, my quick survey of the Discogs marketplace informs me these records, accounting for inflation, still qualify as dollar bin ragers.

Pura Manía: Extraños Casos De La Vida Real 7” (Roachleg Records) Here at Sorry State, we were huge fans of Pura Manía’s first three records: the two 7”s they released in 2014 and their 2017 album, Cerebros Punk. When I heard Pura Manía was returning with a new record, I was excited, but also a little nervous. The world has changed in the ten years since Pura Manía’s first records came out, and more bands are mashing up post-punk and anthemic street punk / oi!… Home Front, for instance, has become one of the biggest bands in the underground with a sound based on a similar set of influences. After listening to Extraños Casos De La Vida Real, though, I realize I shouldn’t have worried. While a few people may have caught up to where Pura Manía was in 2014, they’re still several steps ahead of everyone else. And besides, it was never about the sound, it was about the songs, and god damn fucking hell does Pura Manía have songs. At the center of all four songs on Extraños Casos De La Vida Real is a powerful central vocal melody, always anthemic and sing-along-able… these melodies are the reasons Pura Manía’s music is so often compared to classic oi! and Spanish punk, but unlike the bare-bones arrangements favored by oi! bands, Pura Manía builds these songs out into tracks that are like punk symphonies. Besides the central vocal hooks, each song also has several memorable lead guitar and bass lines, and you can tell they put a ton of thought into how all these parts work in concert… take, for instance, the way the lead guitar gracefully steps to the side as the tension-building pre-chorus leads into the chorus payoff in “El Viaje Al Interior Del Cuerpo,” setting up the pins perfectly so the vocalist can knock them down. These are masterpieces of punk songwriting, and I love that this time around Pura Manía is less shy about it, employing clearer, sharper production than their earlier releases and doing clever-ass shit like the musical callback to one of their older songs on the grandiose, later-Damned-esque instrumental intro. Extraños Casos De La Vida Real is just a great fucking record, a phenomenal piece of craftsmanship that seems determined not just to imitate, but to equal (and perhaps even best) the life-changing records that influenced it. This is the reason we are punks, folks, because our scene can produce bands and records like this.

What’s up Sorry State readers, I hope everyone has had a better past week than I have. Between getting covid last week, being in the midst of moving out of my apartment, and dealing with money hungry property managers, it’s been a stressful time. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel though, so I just gotta keep on keepin on. Some people may listen to angry/aggressive stuff when they’re stressed out. It’s therapeutic. There’s definitely a time and a place for that for me, but more often than not I find myself listening to happier music in these times, and what’s a better way to escape than listening to a compilation of various female French singers of the 60s? I picked this up this past December at Goner Records when I was visiting my family in Memphis. This one caught my eye while I was flipping through records and picked it up on a whim and it exceeded all expectations. Something about listening to songs in a language you don’t understand gives you more room to think/daydream while listening to them. Dominic has also taught me the power of compilations being the perfect way to discover new artists to fall in love with, and this one has definitely opened up some new doors for me. The packaging is great on this, featuring a gatefold cover that opens up to pictures and bios of all the artists featured throughout the album, which is always interesting to read about. The record itself is a nice 180 gram “blonde” vinyl. Colored vinyl has never been a big deal for me, but I appreciate a nice unique color. Listening to this record makes me feel like I’ve been transported to a 1960s atomic cocktail lounge in France and I’m wearing some real funky shit. My favorite tracks on here are:

France Gall—Laisser Tomber Les Filles

Anna Karina—Roller Girl

Annie Philippe—C’Est La Mode

I’ve really enjoyed diving into the rest of the discographies of these artists and Dom also pointed out to me when I brought this into the store to listen to that the label that released this compilation, Ace International, has a bunch of other really amazing compilation albums of similar things, so I’ve been checking out a lot of those as well. Definitely check these out cause there’s something there for everyone. I’m just ready to be moved into my new place and get my record player set back up and have a return to normalcy. Onwards and Upwards.

Hey hey Sorry State fam! How are you? I’m doing ok! Ever buy something extremely expensive off your Discogs want list at like 12 or 1 in the morning? And then wake up and you don’t remember that for at least 2 or 3 hours? That happened to me today. A mixture of excitement and panic washed over me as I was chugging an iced caramel latte. But I think I made the right choice. I made an offer to the same seller on the same record a couple months ago at least, and was denied. Fast forward to last night, and Jeff notified me (thanks again dude!) it was on IG (same seller). But for a price that ended up being the same as my original offer. So after we ironed out some kinks, that baby was all mine. I don’t want to jinx it, so I will share the mystery piece with ya’ll soon. So let’s talk about a record that didn’t take me on an emotional rollercoaster.

The new album by Australian band Bad Dreems (stylized as Bad//Dreems) called Hoo Ha! is my pick this week. The cover intrigues me every time I pull one to pack for an order, so this time I went a step further and checked out the lyric insert. A lot of words. Couldn’t be a hardcore record. Anyway, I tossed it on and right away I liked it.

The album belongs somewhere under the broad umbrella of alternative rock. Does anyone say alternative rock anymore? I know the band doesn’t like the pub rock description they’ve been given in the past, but sorry, pub rock does come to mind by the second song. Politically-based, with art rock and punk influences, it’s snotty, has a sense of humor, and something I don’t normally listen to.

But like it or not, there are songs on this album that remind me so much of the Idles album, Ultra Mono. Especially the second song on the record, Mansfield 6.0. Holy Idles. But so very catchy. The first side of the record is like Idles and Stiff Richards had a snotty kid who Midnight Oil babysits sometimes. It’s their song No Island that’s giving Midnight Oil for me. Not just in their delivery, but the heavier lyrics.

The closing track on the first side, Southern Heat, is one of my favorites. Black Monday and See You Tomorrow (the latter reminds me of Amyl and the Sniffers and Public Image Limited) are also standout tracks for me. All super catchy, fast tempo songs. There are a lot of tempo shifts and style changes on this record.

Speaking of style changes, the song Collapse is a departure from their other tracks. The melody in the first half of the song drove me crazy because it reminded me so strongly of an 80s pop or new wave song I couldn’t pinpoint. So I’ve just settled on the Police song, Don’t Stand So Close to Me (if the Police wrote it in the late 60s). And then it drifts off to something else. Bear with me here. This album takes you everywhere, but I will say the first side is a bit more streamlined and the second side is more experimental and arty. They’re able to pull off different styles pretty well. Parts of their songs have reminded me of at least six different bands.

I’m not crazy about their ballad (Godless). Mostly because I like to keep the energy going and if something is doing the trick, I don’t want to switch gears. And no one ever says “yeah that was cool, but you know what’s missing? More slow songs.” But the song also surprised me by how much it sounded like Jesus Don’t Want me for a Sunbeam (minus the vocals), so it has redeeming qualities.

When I looked up this band, I found a music review of one of their earlier records that said the band can go from sounding like AC/DC to Nirvana, making the point that the band seemed to have widened their musical influences, which were originally Joy Division and all the big art rock bands (e.g. Wipers, Television, Wire). So I felt more validated in my difficulty with describing what the record is like, haha.

Overall, I like many of the songs on this record and I’m glad I gave it a spin. I didn’t know what to expect, but it has depth and some really catchy songs. Give it a try! Thank you for reading and until we meet again..

-Angela

Hi and thanks for reading. This week I am going to write about RATTUS: Rajoitettu Ydinsota EP. This EP was originally released on Poko Rekords in 1982, and it’s back in print in Finland for the first time since! I think it’s significant that this record came out in 1982, but I find it even more impressive that this was already the fourth record for RATTUS. I feel like this is the EP that everyone associates with RATTUS, but maybe I am wrong. I know the record that probably gets the nerds going is their first 7" cos it is hyper rare, haha. Their first two records are not really hardcore, but ‘77 punk. This early RATTUS punk sound fits in well with the Poko Rekords catalog. When thinking about Finnish hardcore, the first labels I think of are Propaganda and P. Tuotanto. Rock-O-Rama also comes to mind, but they were just a German label who was licensing releases from Propaganda. I know a handful of other smaller labels that released hardcore bands; otherwise most of the records I can think of were self-released. The earliest Finnish labels I can think of are Poko Rekords and Johanna. Both labels began in the late 70s and released some pretty essential stuff when it comes to Finnish punk and hardcore. Well, mostly punk really, and not so much hardcore.

Poko released a fair amount of good bands, including one of my all-time favorite ‘77 bands, KOLLAA KESTÄÄ. They also released a lot of weird shit, like rock-a-billy and electronic bands. I was just thinking about it, and I think RATTUS is probably the most hardcore shit they ever released, haha. KOHU-63 would be another banger on Poko that comes to mind, but again this stuff doesn’t hit quite like Rajoitettu Ydinsota. Don’t get me wrong, I really like KOHU-63 a lot and I consider them hardcore. I am just saying the sound isn’t like full-blown DISCHARGE-type hardcore. It’s like LAMA (who was on Johanna); they are definitely hardcore, but they formed early on and played through the evolution of punk into hardcore. TERVEET KÄDET I think is another example, with their evolution into hardcore being obvious on their third 7”, Ääretön Joulu, which was also released in 1982 on Poko Rekords. Damn, I never realized TK’s Ääretön Joulu was released so close to Rajoitettu Ydinsota EP. If anyone is counting, RATTUS had recorded for that EP in December ‘81, while TK didn’t record until spring of ‘82. Alright anyway, RATTUS released their previous record in 1981 on Poko Rekords as well, Rattus On Rautaa. While the band was already under the influence of DISHCARGE when Rattus On Rautaa was recorded, the sound did not translate so well. I think this is an excellent record, but if they were going for DISCHARGE, they still needed to go a bit further. I guess they really made sure to get the point across by putting a huge atomic cloud on the cover of Rajoitettu Ydinsota, and entitling it “Limited Nuclear War.” RATTUS kept it up into the later ‘80s releasing records on a handful of different labels, including two more 12"s on Poko Rekords. I have never actually heard their 1988 7", but I really enjoy every single release RATTUS from the ‘80s.

So, Poko Rekords was started by this guy Epe Helenius 1977. However, Epe had already owned a record store in Tampere since 1972 called Epe’s Music Shop. This shop expanded to a chain of stores over the years, and he also started a label for distributing bands from overseas called Poko International. He manufactured and/or distributed classics like DEAD KENNEDYS, PARTISANS, EXPLOITED, and BLITZ. He even handled distribution for a few METALLICA LPs, crazy. It’s a bit unclear to me how things worked, but things got rough and Epe had several different companies behind Poko to keep it afloat through the 90s. Poko Rekords was originally founded under Unitor Oy, but Unitor Oy went bankrupt in 1993. At the end of the 80s, he went into business with a friend, but that friend was bought out in 1991 by a company called PolyGram (who later becomes Universal). He did not want to go into business with PolyGram, so he bought back the shares his friend once had. In the end, it resulted in the bankruptcy of Unitor Oy. Luckily, he had already started a new company called Shoeling Oy in 1992, so he used this company to buy the old master catalogue to Unitor Oy that he lost in the bankruptcy. Then he changed the name of Shoeling Oy to Poko Rekords Oy. Haha, after wrapping my head around that, it is pretty genius... Eventually in 2001, Epe sold Poko Rekords Oy to EMI. I’m not sure how it worked, but Poko Rekords still functioned as a label regardless of what happened with EMI until 2009. And then finally in 2013, Universal bought EMI. What a story.

Thanks to Universal, there were licensing fees out the ass on this EP. They claim 50% goes to RATTUS, but that is bullshit of course. This RATTUS reissue was originally intended to be a co-release with my label Mäkitie 8, but due to the complicated licensing agreements it was best to keep it as a solo release from Finnish Hardcore. Regardless, I feel honored to play a role in the distribution of this legendary Finnish record over here in USA. Naturally, I wanted to make our copies special somehow, so each one comes with a bonus offset printed sleeve and proper screen-printed sticker. Sami from Finnish Hardcore included a brief history of the band, as well as a bunch of unreleased photos Vote Vasko took during the recording session!

Unfortunately, when I got the shipment I discovered a large percentage of the records were warped . Since the EPs cost so much money after licensing and shipping, I felt like I had to test each copy. I would be bummed if I paid $12 and got a wobbly ass 7" record from a label. So, my partner and I set up two turntables in the living room and tested all 300 copies on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, haha. It sucks so many were warped. It also almost sucks more cos they are warped but still totally playable—it’s just not pretty to look at. As a result, we’ve got some of these wobbly limited versions for sale via Sorry State. If that type of thing is too much, we’ve got the guaranteed-flat black vinyl version in stock as well, haha. I know this EP has been pressed a few times before, but I think it rips and deserves a place in every single record collection. Alright that’s all, I should go now. Thanks for reading and thanks for your support!!

What’s up everyone? How was your week? Hopefully good. Another rollercoaster one for me which saw me crying into my cornflakes in despair over my life one minute and then crying with joy the next as the Reds notched up another impressive victory. Wild mood swings for sure, which demand vastly different soundtracks.

Here in the store, I have been enjoying listening to some of the hip-hop albums and 12”s we recently bought. There are still lots more good titles to snag if that’s your bag and you are local. Besides the hip-hop 12”s, check out some of the disco singles we have too. I love a 12” single personally. They seem to be somewhat under appreciated by the wider record buying public, but I always found them great value for money and an indispensable DJ tool. You typically get at least two versions of the main tune, maybe a non-LP B-side and the best part, an instrumental version. Particularly for hip-hop, I often find myself loving the beat but not liking the rap. Language and use of certain words being the prime reason. Often with 12”s you’ll also get a clean or radio mix included, especially if it’s a promo. With prices on albums ever climbing, a closer look at whether there is a 12” single might be an option and a way to get some of the music you are looking for. I used to suggest to people on a budget to look for a cassette version of records that were getting expensive, but even that doesn’t seem to be much of a help these days. Prices on in demand albums are high for tapes too. We scored a small collection of cool things recently and there were some good tapes in amongst them, including a Beastie Boys Paul’s Boutique which we played in the store yesterday. Sounded great too.

We had a bunch of cool things come in the last week or two. Some have already sold out, so I don’t want to talk about them here but if we restock this Cumbia compilation called Sonido Tumi Vol. II ever again, then join me on grabbing a copy. We got in just a few and Jeff and I were digging listening to it in the store. We had the first volume a while back and as of now, just like that first volume, the track listing on the second is a mystery. I believe someone at Mississippi Records is behind compiling these comps. I understand the mystery and under the counter nature of things, but it would be kind of cool knowing who the artists were and what the song titles are.

I’ve been digging the 45 from London’s Violin that is out on Iron Lung. Good sounding HC. We have an album from them on La Vida Es Un Mus and I believe the “group” is essentially a one-man band with a drummer. Good tunes and well recorded and still currently in stock if you fancy checking it out.

It’s no secret that I am a big Jimi Hendrix fan and never need an excuse to listen to his music. We recently bought a collection that had a lot of Jimi and have sold a good amount of them already. In amongst the sealed copies of Electric Ladyland girls cover albums were quite a few of those quasi-legit live records and studio outtakes. After his death, until his family finally got control of his estate, it was the wild west as far as Hendrix records were concerned. So many different versions of the same thing with different covers and varying quality. During his lifetime, Jimi recorded constantly. Whether it was in the studio or at home or live on stage, there was tape running. Before he became famous in his own right, he played as sideman for several top R&B and soul artists, including the Isley Brothers.

One artist that he played with was Curtis Knight, and it was with him that several studio recordings, known as the PPX sessions, were recorded by producer Ed Chalpin in late 1965 and early 1966. It was the legal repercussions of signing a deal with Chalpin before moving to England that resulted in The Band Of Gypsys album being recorded and given to Capital Records as settlement for that earlier contract. Jimi and the group with Curtis Knight, called The Lovelights and later to switched to The Squires, were also captured on tape playing live in Hackensack, New Jersey at a club called George’s Club 20 at the end of December 1965 and in January 1966. Just a few months before Chas Chandler saw him and whisked Jimi off to London, England and stardom. These live recordings have appeared in many forms over the years with different covers and track listings and more recently were given a redux by Hendrix’s main recording engineer Eddie Kramer for Experience Hendrix’s sub-label Dagger Records. It’s cool getting the performances properly packaged with correct liner note details etc. Kramer cleaned up the sound a little and removed audience noise, some of which were dubbed after the fact, and the studio postproduction that Chalpin did at the time.

In among the albums we bought in the collection was a German version of the George’s Club 20 tapes and to my ears it sounds great despite all its technical limitations and “crappy” sound. The show itself is killer and may or may not have been recorded on Boxing Day (December 26th) 1965, depending on which source of information you take. The set is Blues and R&B numbers. Great versions of Driving South by Albert Collins, I’m A Man by Bo Diddley, and Killin’ Floor by Howlin’ Wolf. Jimi is already the star of the show and throws in a lot of his party tricks, playing with his teeth, behind his head and delivering blistering solos. The second side finishes up with covers of Ray Charles’s What’d I Say and Bright Lights, Big City by Jimmy Reed. Like most bands playing club gigs like this at the time, their sets would be mostly covers of current hits and classics. Curtis Knight sings most of the tunes, but Jimi (or Jimmy as he was still known as then) can be heard joking and providing backup vocals. It’s easy to see why Chas Chandler and everyone else for that matter were so blown away by Jimi. His playing, looks and personality were unmistakable and so unique.

When the remastered version of the George’s Club 20 tapes was released a few years back, I wrongly assumed that I had all these recordings already and didn’t need them. Even some reviewers seemed less than enthusiastic and talked about the sound quality etc. Sure, the quality isn’t studio level and there are better sounding live recordings out there, but as a document of his pre-fame era, this stuff still kicks ass. If you are a fan, you should check them out. Here’s a link to hear Driving South. Then if you liked what you heard and you see one of these records titled Early Hendrix or Live In New Jersey in your record store, you’ll know what you are getting. I’ll be on the lookout for the Dagger Records version now as I want the songs left off my single disc version and to hear them without the overdubs. Plus, the superior packaging with photos and liner notes.

As we celebrate African American History month this February, there’s plenty of great music to get inspired by and to enjoy, but for a taste of a typical Friday or Saturday night, mid 1960s, in a club there’s probably not a better example than these recordings.

Thanks for reading. Cheers and see you next time.

-Dom

R.I.P. Wayne Kramer

What’s up Sorry Staters?

As I’m finishing up writing this, I’m gearing up to make the drive I’ve made soooo many times in my life, a good 2.5 hours on I-95 up to Richmond. It’ll be the first full Public Acid practice we’ve had in what feels like a very long time. I’m feeling stoked as we’re gearing up for our record release party in a couple weeks. That said, forgive me if my intro is a little brisk this week! Here’s my staff pick, a record I was excitedly anticipating:

It’s always weird when I put some energy out into the universe, and I’m rewarded with a totally coincidental reward in return. I revisited the matched pair of singles by Pura Manía from way back in 2014 a few months ago. These 2 7”s, La Estafa Musical and Música Para Gente Fea, were basically released back to back, and I remember them being a huge favorite amongst the crew here at Sorry State whenever we first stocked them. It had been years since the last time I listened to Pura Manía, and I just remember thinking, “Goddamn, these records are STILL so killer.” I even talked about them on Analog Attack’s podcast What Are You Listening To? back in November. And then, like a message delivered by angels descending from the heavens, I found out through the grapevine that Pura Manía had a new EP coming out on Roach Leg. What are the chances? 10 years later, I guess they decided it’s finally time. I didn’t even know how bad I wanted a new record from them until I found out it was happening.

First of all, this new record Extraños Casos De La Vida Real does not disappoint. I remember before I even had the chance to listen to it, Daniel described it as sounding pretty much just like their old stuff. Which I was like, if it does happen to be the case that they didn’t change much at all, then that’s cool with me! But now, having listened to it, I think Daniel might have undersold it for me a little bit. When you first drop the needle on the A side, it opens with an introduction of dramatic, atmospheric piano that reprises the guitar melody from the opening track on their LP, Cerebros Punk. I think making a callback to one of the band’s previous melodies that is immediately recognizable was super clever. Like a soothing blanket of familiarity. But then, like an unexpected, startling jump-scare, the band launches into the first track “El Viaje Al Interiro Del Cuerpo,” which kicks off with this Rezillos-esque walking bass line. What struck me right off the bat is that the production sounds much less like a raw, 4-track recording, unlike their previous releases. They make some buck wild, off the wall choices with the FX, dude. Experimental ideas, that perhaps with other bands, I’d think to myself “This is whack.” I mean, the bass is loud in the mix and drenched in chorus, which I would already expect for that New Age-era Blitz sound I assume they’re influenced by. But holy shit, on the intro to the 2nd track “El Mundo Al Revés”… it sounds like drums have like a crazy phaser effect on them. The drums do this heavy, pounding fill and then the super reverbed out choir of lads comes in. “Whoa oh oh ooooh oh oh.” Reading this, you might not get it, but this gang of burly dudes repeats this refrain for basically the whole song. It’s pretty cool haha.

They also do a cover by The Screamers… ahem, excuse me, “Los Screamers.” “122 Hours of Fear,” or “122 Horas De Miedo” in this case, is such a fitting cover for Pura Manía to choose. They totally nail the creepy intro. Then there’s that big break where the vocals cue the band to kick back in. I’m used to the original version, so hearing a Screamers tune sang in Spanish makes it sound totally rad and fresh to the ears. Pura Manía does have that kinda Oi! thing going on, but like I find with a lot of Latino punk, a bit of death rock creeps its way into the vibe of the sound. And somehow, early LA punk seems right at home for Pura Manía as well. Dom even commented, “Sounds like the bass player was listening to The Cure a lot before they made this record.” Haha. Side note: Funny enough, there was a short-lived band from Raleigh called Crete who covered this same Screamers tune. Brought a smile to my face thinking about both Crete and Pura Manía having good taste, each band bringing their own style to the table covering the Screamers.

I don’t know man, I guess you could argue this new record sounds similar to their previous material. I think in terms of musical style, sure, maybe they haven’t deviated drastically. Personally, I think that’s an indicator of a band’s signature sound more-so than they’re rehashing. In many ways, I think Extraños Casos De La Vida Real is an adventurous, yet refined enhancement of the Pura Manía we were already familiar with. It just feels more ambitious, more anthemic, heavier, denser. The band always had catchy guitar leads, but on the last track “Las Locas Aventuras De Horacio Gómez,” there’s like a proper, real deal Rikk Agnew style guitar SOLO. The musicianship and approach to constructing to this record just about makes me feel envious. I don’t know if “matured” is the right way to describe this new record. Let’s face it, the artwork is still a bottle of booze with a label that reads “punk” pasted onto it, which is pouring all over the band’s logo. It reminds of movies like Repo Man where the cans in the fridge just say “BEER” on them haha. This cartoonish, almost absurdist imagery on all the band’s records with goofy, borderline dumb pop art aesthetic is so attractive to me. It’s like… punk as all hell, dude. Staring at cartoon brains with sunglasses and Rat Fink lookin’ critters while the band is bangin’ out these killer, musically sophisticated, over the top but still raw and hooky classic sounding punk tunes? YUH, it fuckin’ rules.

Anyway, I’ll quit gushing. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

Screeching Weasel: Snappy Answers for Stupid Questions 7” (Selfless Records, 1992)

This week I completed a 25-year journey. It was kind of a stupid journey, and I can’t say I’m proud to have completed it, but it’s done. And hence I shall memorialize it here. I have obtained the last Screeching Weasel record on my want list.

Likely the oldest item on my want list, Snappy Answers for Stupid Questions has been on the list as long as I can remember it existing. I loved Screeching Weasel when I was a teenager, and when I got online in the late 90s, I learned they had a bulging discography of 7”s. I knew most of the songs on these 7”s from the Kill the Musicians compilation, but the original artifacts intrigued me. I guess not much has changed.

One of the first purchases I can remember making via the internet is when Ben Weasel auctioned off a bunch of out of print vinyl on the Screeching Weasel website. If I remember correctly, the site was called Weasel Manor, and a fan actually made it, but Ben Weasel—newly online himself, I’m sure—quickly sniffed it out and took an active role. (Eventually and predictably, there was drama.) This is before I’d ever heard of eBay, and I’d never took part in an auction of any sort. I emailed my bids to Ben Weasel himself from my new Virginia Commonwealth University email address, which I accessed via the lab in my dorm because I didn’t own a computer. I was stoked to win dead stock copies of both Punkhouse and Radio Blast, both of which had been out of print for several years. I went to the post office to buy a money order, mailed it out, and some weeks later I got my 7”s, new and crisp and not looking anything like five-plus years old. It was magical.

I can’t remember when I composed my first want list, but there were a bunch of Screeching Weasel records on it. This is many, many years before Discogs, so I’m not even sure how I knew what was out there. Maybe Weasel Manor had a discography section, or maybe I was just trying to get all the original records whose tracks were compiled on Kill the Musicians. Over the years, I learned about other Screeching Weasel records and chose not to add them to my want list. There was the 1987 split 7” with the Ozzfish Experience, which was to be Screeching Weasel’s debut record, but the pressing plant went out of business after making only two test pressings, though sleeves were printed and circulate among fans. There was also a sleeveless, promo-only split 7” with Moving Targets that held little appeal for me. In 2000, the band released the double-disc compilation Thank You Very Little, which rounded up all the compilation tracks, outtakes, and other detritus that didn’t make it onto Kill the Musicians. I remember being really disappointed when I listened to Thank You Very Little, and if Kill the Musicians was an argument that I needed to pay attention to 7”s because they contained many of the band’s best songs, Thank You Very Little indicated that, at a certain depth, it’s best to just stop digging because what you find won’t be that exciting.

I’m not sure why Snappy Answers stuck around on my want list so long. Certainly if I had come across a copy in a store, I would have bought it, but I saw many copies pop up on Discogs over the years and didn’t pull the trigger. While Snappy Answers wasn’t compiled on Kill the Musicians, I knew the songs well because a friend had taped them for me in high school. Said friend told me the songs were recorded at the King’s Head Inn, the long-running punk club in Norfolk that my bus route passed every day on the way to school (which sadly closed before I got to see a show there). In reality, the songs are from a set performed live in the studio at WFMU in New Jersey.

Anyway, the other day a reasonably priced copy of Snappy Answers popped up from a US seller, and they even had another record from my want list in stock for a similarly reasonable price. So I bought it. Honestly, I haven’t even listened to the record yet. It’s just sitting on my coffee table, vexing me. I’m sure I’ll listen to it, but what I really want to do is slide it in next to the other Screeching Weasel 7”s in my collection.

As you can probably tell, my feelings about all this are conflicted. I guess I should feel some sense of satisfaction or accomplishment from crossing a 25-year-old item off my to-do list, but I’m having trouble mustering any feelings that resemble that. Maybe it’s that my feelings on Screeching Weasel are so conflicted. I still listen to their peak-era records from time to time and enjoy them, but it’s difficult to really ride for them given everything that has transpired since the days when I first started listening to them.

Actually, after taking the photo for this staff pick, I realized I might have to do a little more work on my Screeching Weasel collection. I was surprised I have 1999’s Emo, which I think is a pretty crappy album. I guess I have it because I pre-ordered it (I also still have the autographed poster that came with the pre-order), but I remember being so disappointed with that record after how killer Major Label Debut was. And I don’t have a copy of 1998’s Television City Dream. I like that album OK, but it’s not nearly as good as Bark Like a Dog. I should probably own it, though, right? And while I like the fact that my Screeching Weasel collection doesn’t touch the 21st century, I know there are some people who ride for Teen Punks in Heat. After that, though, I'm out.

Physique: Overcome by Pain 7” (Iron Lung Records) Physique quickly follow-up their killer recent LP, Again (which we named Record of the Week less than half a year ago), with six more scorchers. Physique is a veteran band and the years they’ve spent honing their sound shine through on Overcome by Pain. It’s such a brutal, powerful record. Physique has always paid a lot of attention to sculpting their sound; while their music sounds noisy and chaotic on the surface, it’s more of an intricately woven quilt than a haphazard jumble of tones. The sound they get here is beastly, with a crushing low end you feel in your gut when you blast it at the appropriate volume. Physique has only grown more adept at wielding their sound, too. As Usman pointed out in his staff pick, the playing is precise, with subtle rhythmic shifts and accents that are the mark of a great band. Just listen to the way the rhythm changes subtly halfway through “We Do What We Must…” so sick. As for the songs, while riffs tend toward the simple and brutal, they cohere as dynamic, thrilling songs. There are even a few curveballs, like the wild, over-the-top punches in the middle of “As Tradition Dictates,” my favorite moment on the record. If you’re one of the ignorant souls who dismiss Physique as unoriginal because they aren’t shy about nodding toward their influences, you must not be listening, because the power and vitality here are impossible to deny.