News

Hi Sorry State friends! Hope you are all doing well! We’ve been busy little technical bees at SSR headquarters with our transition to a whole new system and way of business life. I think the dust has settled and we’re in a good place. I’m sparing you the details, but I just want to say major hats off to Daniel for getting us here.

Now, in honor of our return to normalcy, I present to you my staff pick. I’ve been excited to write about this record since it first arrived, but we weren’t quite ready to launch yet. It’s the new Sorry State Records release by the Cleveland band, Knowso. Knowso has members of Perverts Again and Cloud Nothings. Although the band isn’t new, the record is. It’s called Pulsating Gore, and I loved it upon very first listen. And that’s partially because it’s one of those records that will evoke a strong opinion, good or bad, pretty much immediately. This one isn’t a grower. Being from northeast Ohio, I am always psyched to hear any new punk or punk-adjacent records out of Cleveland. You never know what you’re gonna get from a Cleveland band, but usually it has some vein of weirdness running through it. And I say that in the most endearing way possible. Knowso is weird, but it’s not too weird, but it’s weird enough to make it really difficult to draw comparisons. I guess you could file it under Devo-core, but I don’t even think that’s a great fit.

The best I can come up with is demented post-punk, although it feels like it transcends post-punk. It’s quirky, catchy, and creative, with lyrics that are sarcastic, funny, clever, and even intellectual at times. I love that shit. I love when you’re listening to music and something they say makes you stop and think. Or laugh. They have some really funny lines that make me wonder what the hell they were thinking when they wrote them. The lyrics on the closing track (Where Do You Fit?) is one of those songs. They say “where do you fit in the grid? What if I told you that the universe is knit? Where do you fit if the grid is a quilt? They only like the square! I wish they liked the circle but they only like the square!,” lamenting over and over that “they only like the square!”

The songs are bass driven with tight and simple repetitive drum beats, and steady and focused vocals that command your attention. The vocals are done in a spoken word style often assisted by other interesting voices and echoes to add dimension. Although I do think the dry delivery is symbolic of the dread and robotic repetition of life, as described in their songs. You can almost picture a cult with lifeless eyes chanting some of these lyrics in unison. It’s as if they are creating a picture of what they’re saying by how they’re saying it. Maybe I’m giving them too much credit by suggesting that they are taking us on some sort of philosophical journey, but it’s fun to read into things. It’s fun to come across music that makes you stop and think and zone out for a bit.

Anyway, the weird systematic vocals are accompanied by very sharp angular beats that are unexpectedly catchy. The tempo shifts are sudden and unpredictable. Even though you don’t see them coming, they happen at the perfect times. It’s as if they know exactly at what points you are questioning whether this is too weird for you, and they make sure to do something interesting to knock that question out of your head. The perfect example of this is on my favorite track, Do the Work. This song is so good. It starts out rather unassuming, and then the chorus hits and just becomes the best sound on the record. Heavy Hauler and Drink from the Lake are also standout tracks. They embody that catchy and culty sound in the best way.

The music is very tight and honed in and purpose-driven. And fun! Knowso is really refreshing. I can’t think of anyone who reminds me of this band. It is kind of an unusual release for Sorry State, but I think it’s so cool that we put out this record. Give it a shot! Thanks so much for reading! Until next time.

-Angela

Hello and thanks for reading. It’s been about a month since the last Sorry State newsletter. I’m sure Daniel explained a bit of the hell we have been dealing with here for the last month. Although there is still a lot to resolve and work through, it seems like we can see the light at the end of the tunnel now. While we have been dealing with hell here, there have been tons of great new releases in the last month, and I have been buying ‘em like crazy.

Before I get into the photo above, I wanted to mention some records we got in stock from Blown Out Media this week. I’ve been a fan of Sweden’s SVAVELDIOXID since their debut, which was nearly eight years ago now. If you’re not familiar with them, they play DISCHARGE type hardcore but with a super heavy, and somewhat polished, sound. While most bands who play “Swedish style” hardcore are usually influenced by TOTALITÄR with their catchy riffs and groovy breakdowns, there is absolutely nothing catchy about what SVAVELDIOXID has been doing the last eight years. The style they play developed in the early ‘90s I would say, and is not popular at all anymore. The most obvious and known comparison I would make would be to the pre-1997 DISFEAR. The drummer of SVAVELDIOXID, Robin, actually played drums on what I consider DISFEAR’s last good album, Everyday Slaughter. This album was finally reissued recently, and we have copies in stock now. That album is a 10/10 and has been dying for a reissue for years now. Anyway, I think the brand-new LP from SVAVELDIOXID, V​ä​rldsel​ä​nde, is one of their best yet. I specifically thought the production really stood out on this release. When I got the record, I discovered they recorded with Tomas Skogsberg at legendary Sunlight Studios. So sick!!! Check the LP out in the link I dropped above, and if you dig it, you can grab a copy here still.

Also, in stock from Blown Out Media is the debut LP from California’s ANGUISHED LIFE. Shroud of Death consists of ten perfectly formulated DISCHARGE-influenced tracks. The world is overly saturated in DISCHARGE clones, but every now and again I hear a band that hits the spot. While a novice can understand the DISCHARGE formula, it’s not so easy to truly master it. There are the obvious factors that lead to DISCHARGE type bands being boring; like the guitarist banana’s the entire time, the drummer doesn’t quite have D-beat mastered, or the vocalist doesn’t emulate the syncopated vocal patterns of Cal (which are key characteristics of DISCHARGE songs if you ask me.) But there are subtle things about the DISCHARGE formula that I think many overlook; like the way the bassist strums the riffs, and especially how they play fills. Do bassists call them fills on bass? I have no idea...Anyway, the bassist of ANGUISHED LIFE really masters the style, and I love the bass tone as well. You can check some songs from the LP out here.

Alongside those two new releases from Blown Out Media, we also grabbed this 2020 LP from New Jersey’s BURNING//WORLD. While this is predictably another DISCHARGE type band, they lean hard into DISCLOSE territory. The guitar tone is awesome, absolutely punishing. I really like the guitar leads as well. I think an unfortunate symptom of noisey bands is having a painfully digital guitar sound. Does that happen from using too many pedals? Or just a poor combination of pedals? I don’t know shit about pedals, but sometimes I can really get a laugh at the size of some people’s pedal boards. The idea of having enough pedals you need an entire board is also kind of funny to me. It’s like drummers who use a drum rack, or bands with three guitarists. It’s too excessive. (Ironically, there is this DISLCOSE video and the drummer totally has a drum rack, haha. Also, Kawakami has dreads in this video. If you didn’t know about that era of DISCLOSE then you need to check this video). Anyway, I had never heard of BURNING//WORLD, but the cover Peace Is No Reality instantly caught my eye and I’m glad I checked it out. You can check it out here.

Alright, let me get right into BASTARDS. I will try to keep this as brief and as organized as possible, but forgive me if my thoughts are a bit scattered. While my introduction to BASTARDS was when I picked up their EP reissue on Höhnie Records from a friend’s distro back in Indy upon their recommendation, I admittedly didn’t listen to them until years later. Even upon obsessing over the Killed By Finnish Hardcore boot, something about BASTARDS didn’t resonate with me. Maybe I was just being bombarded by too many bands on that compilation. Their first release I intentionally checked out was Siberian Hardcore (1984). This was their final release before reuniting in 2021 and releasing an EP in 2022. I didn’t really do much checking out when it came to Siberian Hardcore though, cos I thought the first track was sloppy as fuck and I moved onto something else. Haha. I’ve made this mistake often in the past, where I’m thinking the first song or two on a release kinda sucks and then I brush off the entire thing. These days I do my best to listen to the majority of a release (old or new) before I decide to quit. I can listen to music while I’m doing almost anything, so it seems silly to not take to the time to really check shit out. Anyway, I can’t remember who was going on about BASTARDS, but this time it was their first EP, Maailma Palaa Ja Kuolee (1982), the same EP I had picked up back in Indy. The tracks instantly grabbed my attention. As you can see from my photo, I lost it from there and I have their complete discography now. Having all those records already, I wasn’t even considering taking a box set home. Yeah, there is unreleased stuff of rehearsal recordings, but do I really need that? But of course, I am a Finnish hardcore fanatic...so the urge to bust open a copy grew quickly. I suspected Daniel would want to take one home, so I did what I do sometimes where I ask him if I can take his copy home before I decide if I want one for myself, haha. Daniel rules.

When I opened up the box set, I saw more shit I didn’t like. I say more shit cos I think the box set artwork is hilariously bad. The record covers themselves are actually just inner sleeves with the artwork printed on the front. Some of them were printed in color, but for some odd reason Siberian Hardcore is not. I hoped it would come with a booklet, in Svart tradition, and it certainly does! Alongside compiling the entire BASTARDS studio output, they also include a few discs of totally unreleased recordings. Naturally, this was the first stuff I checked out. It seemed cool, the sound isn’t the greatest as I suspected. I was at work when listening, so I didn’t have time to really check the booklet out at all, but that came later when I was home. After spending a few minutes reading, I slowly but surely went from thinking this release was whack, to having my mind blown left and right. It’s hard not to become disorganized when I talk about the release more, I think mainly because I find the booklet very exciting. There are also some very significant things when it comes to the records themselves, and it’s all explained in the booklet.

Inside the booklet you will find detailed information about each studio recording and where the tracks appeared. They also do a proper timeline of the BASTARDS, including their gigs, releases, line-up changes, and even formative gigs they went to that lead to the creation of the band. You’ll find tons of photos, complete lyrics, gig flyers, but most importantly there is a “history of the band.” I think this text was released before and is just now being translated for the first time to English, but it’s unclear to me exactly what has been translated. Regardless, this shit blew my fucking mind. Aside from reading some funny stories, I learned some information on their releases I had absolutely no idea about. It’s honestly too much to tell you about here, so I will just say two things that are the most significant to me.

I have the reissue of Harhaa on Assel records. It was originally released on cassette in 1983. Yeah, my record sounds like shit pretty much. It’s an old tape. Who knows what the source even was? It still sounded cool regardless, but at times the vocals do sound a bit “unnatural.” Haha… well inside the booklet they explain exactly why this is. At the studio session for this release, Masa, the drummer, had to use electronic drums. They explain he couldn’t play the drums quite fast enough on the electro-kit, so they sped up the tape after. Hilarious, haha. On the Harhaa tracks included in this box set, they actually restored them to their original speed. Man, they sound killer, way better quality than my previous reissue as well.

The second thing is in regard to the intro track to Siberian Hardcore. I took the time to explain myself brushing off the band cos of this track earlier, cos it was really funny to me when a Finnish friend told me the story of what happened during this recording session. I wasn’t sure if this was popular information or what, but it is now printed in this booklet. During the session, somehow the drum track was erased. Instead of allowing the band to re-record the track, the studio engineer re-recorded it instead. This is hilarious, and a great explanation as to why this intro song is significantly more sloppy than a typical BASTARDS song. I would be so pissed if someone tried to act like re-recording a drum track for me would be cool... I mean unless they crushed it, haha. Anyway, on the Siberian Hardcore LP included in this box set, they re-recorded the drum track to the intro song! What the fuck!!! It sounds so sick!! How the fuck did they do that?! Fuck.

Alright, I should wrap this up. Yes, I think by now all this stuff has been reissued (aside from the rehearsal stuff). I went into this thinking the box set would be pretty whack and had absolutely no intention of making it my staff pick, but my opinion was 100% changed after exploring it. I think the sound quality is great, and of course I love the booklet. The layout of the booklet is easy to follow, and the band’s discography is separated nicely across the six discs. It sucks that others can’t just check shit out like I can, so I wanted to give you my experience with it cos $99 is a lot of money. From another perspective, six LPs and a sick booklet is not bad at all for $99. If the LP packaging itself was more deluxe, then the price would have been certainly more. While the box set wasn’t exactly eye-catching, the amazing content definitely curbed my initial disappointment with the packaging. Don’t be fooled by the cover like I was, haha. Alright, thanks for reading, and thanks to everyone for your support.

Hey there everyone. Happy holidays to you. I hope you are doing well and thanks for reading our newsletter. There’s been a lot going on at Sorry State Industries of late, not least being a major change in the software we use to handle our inventory. Perhaps Daniel may have mentioned it, but either way it’s a big deal and as with any transition like this, it’s not without issue and headaches. However, we look confidently to the future, and by this time next year our operation will be very different and a lot more efficient. At least that’s the idea. So, we might be feeling stressed out here and there, but the result should mean more records for more people and that’s what it’s all about.

As we enter the holidays and gift-giving season, we are doing our best to have plenty of great records new and used available for you all. Not just at the store but on our on-line store and Discogs pages also. One advantage of our new system software is that we will be able to list and offer more used items a lot faster and easier. So, start looking out for those if you are an out-of-town Sorry Stater. Jeff made a good start last week by adding a bunch of cool Sunday leftovers to our webstore. These are the records that locals slept on for whatever reason. We’ll continue adding new used arrivals exclusive to the store each week, so there will always be a reason to visit in person. As always, we appreciate your support.

Talking of support, in addition to donating part of my salary to the Sorry State coffers each week, I do try to buy records from other shops in the area or from around the country. I consider all fellow record stores and their staff as brothers and sisters in the community, and if I can throw something their way and help keep the lights on then that’s a good thing. Last week I decided to pull the trigger on a newly released box set that I have had my eye on. It retailed for a little more than I could afford, but a copy popped up on Discogs that was almost half the price. Marked down due to corner dings on the box. I’m not fussy about that so much and jumped on it. What pray tell am I talking about? It’s the Blondie box set called Against The Odds 1974-1982 released by the fine folks at Numero Group.

I think it’s safe to say that everyone reading is familiar with the group Blondie and a deep dive into their career isn’t necessary, as fascinating as it is. Like any group or artist with an extensive career and large discography, however, there are always demos, rare B-sides, and unreleased recordings that accumulate. In Blondie’s case, most of these sat in Chris Stein’s garage at his Woodstock home for years. Work began on this box set several years ago and the release date was pushed back a couple of times, but finally earlier this year the set hit the market. To paraphrase several other reviewers, Numero Group have produced a fabulous set that is an example of how to do a box set right. It really is well put together and feels and looks like quality. There are several versions to choose from, however, and your wallet may dictate which one you go for. The super deluxe versions add the studio albums along with the rarities and unreleased recordings and give you a few little extras like a 7” and 10” record plus a discography booklet. As I felt no need to buy the studio albums, wanting just the bonus material, I went for the 4LP set that had (almost) all the songs and still had the fabulous hardcover coffee table sized book. The book really is beautiful with awesome photos, plenty of track information and what looks like an interesting set of liner notes. I haven’t read them yet.

A few folks have been griping that some tracks are missing that should have been included, the full-length disco mix of Atomic being one of them. Perhaps as some things had come out as CD bonus cuts on previously released reissues it was felt they could be left off? Not sure really. However, there are over fifty tracks to enjoy, including three dozen or so that have never seen the light of day on any official release. I was excited to get some of the Giorgio Moroder produced tracks. There are some cool instrumental versions that sound great. The early demos are fascinating. The early, reggae-pop take on Heart Of Glass is a highlight. As too is the Yuletide Throwdown, a bit of fun for Christmas that came out on a flexi 7”.

It almost can’t be expressed how much of an influence Blondie had on me as a kid in the 70s. My dad was a social worker and specialized in helping troubled kids. One day he came back with a box of records that had belonged to a lad he had to take to Borstal. Among them was the debut Blondie album. This seven-year-old kid was hooked from the get-go. The band looked cool, sounded cool, was pop but rock ‘n roll too. I was still a bit too young to understand some of the sexual references, but already had New York City on my radar as the epicenter of cool. After London, obviously. It wasn’t much longer after getting that first album that their second, Plastic Letters came into my life. Specially ordered from my small local record shop. That one with the cover of the band posing against the NYC cop car primed me for my visit with my parents later in the year to America, where I made my first visit to New York. Again, still too young to be checking out the music scene, I never-the-less thought it was very cool to be in the city where Blondie lived.

The next few years saw the band explode and take over the world. The album Parallel Lines was huge and the soundtrack of 1978 through 1979, with the smash hit Heart Of Glass being the centerpiece of the album. The albums Eat To The Beat and Autoamerican continued the success and were both chock full of hits. Some accused the band of selling out and being too pop. Rubbish. So what if the song Call Me was featured in a Richard Gere movie? It’s a great tune with fabulous Giorgio Moroder production. I always enjoy hearing the instrumental version of that one.

Against The Odds rounds out with the album The Hunter from 1982. Perhaps not their best compared to the previous ones, but after a solid five plus years it was almost natural that things would come to an end. The pop music landscape had changed dramatically as the late 1970s gave way to the 1980s. Nothing lasts forever and the original group came to a halt after that 1982 album. Debbie Harry continued releasing music as a solo artist throughout the rest of the 1980s and 1990s, leading up to a Blondie reformation at the end of the decade.

I never need an excuse to listen to any of those first five albums and the accompanying singles, so it has been great that John Scott here at the store likes to play them, too. He was the one that was playing some of the outtakes and alternate versions of their music from the internet that first made me aware of the existence of this box. So, cheers to him for that. When we first looked it up, it seemed that it was a bit pricey initially for my blood, but like I said I was able to score a copy for a good price and I would highly recommend any of you who are fans to keep an eye out for one yourselves. It’s so worth it and a perfect Christmas present. I’m so glad I treated myself. Treat yourself.

Okay, that’s all from me for now. Cheers to you all and have a great holiday period. Enjoy listening to music and we’ll see you here next time.

-Dom

What’s up Sorry Staters?

Things have felt kinda hectic around SSR HQ lately. As for me, I just can’t believe we’re right smack dab in the middle of the holiday season. December really crept up on me this year. I’ve already seen some people posting online about their “best of 2023” lists, and I’m like: “WTF?? ALREADY???” I’m not even close to feeling prepared to even think about that yet. I’m still trying to figure out where the last few months have gone. It’s a weird feeling, being unprepared for the coming new year. Whatever.

I’m writing my addition to the newsletter late this round. I’m sitting behind the counter at the store and it’s raining. Another quiet, dreary ass Sunday. But at least there’s a new Tiikeri release! Damn, have I written in the newsletter about every Tiikeri record since we’ve started stocking them here at Sorry State? Whoopsie. I don’t know what it is, man. Especially around this time of year when it starts getting colder, I just gravitate toward listening to easily digestible jams that put me in a good mood. I mean even right now, I’m listening to the first Kim Wilde record as I’m opening the store! (a new wave banger top to bottom, but that’s for another newsletter). But Tiikeri has definitely fallen into that “puts me in a good mood” rotation as of late.

Now, even though I’m a fan, one of the criticisms I’ve made about Tiikeri’s sonic brand of punk and style of songwriting is that they could easily fall into the “way too pop punk for me” category. Have they finally reached a new stratosphere with this new batch of tunes? I guess it’s a weird move to have a “staff recommendation” and kick it off with a judgement. I’m just curious to see if other fans of Tiikeri agree with me. I mean, tell me I’m wrong: When I was listening to the 2nd track “Punk Rock – Hitti!!!” they do this one chord change where I found myself scratching my head. Then, they repeat this same motif a few times in a row at the end of the song… Then, it instantly clicked. I blurted out loud, “FUUUUCK, it’s Green Day.” The way they do the ending sounds just like “Basket Case.” (Chubb, you readin?) It can’t be a coincidence. They did that on purpose. It honestly made me chuckle. These Finns with pop songwriting chops know exactly what they’re doing. 70’s KBD MY ASS!! Nah, I’m just kidding. The songs are still really good and have that enthusiastic, uplifting peculiarity that keeps me interested.

Shit, I’ve blabbed on about Tiikeri for so long that I failed to even mention that this is a split 7”! The band on the flip-side of the record is called Vänsuut. Musically, this band sharing a platter with Tiikeri is a match made in heaven. Very fitting combo. But Vänsuut is maybe a little rougher around the edges. Their songs are certainly still super tuneful, but maybe a little more out of tune, a little more raw, and just generally less squeaky clean than their buddies on the other side of the record. For me though, I find the Vänsuut side very refreshing after the sweetness of Tiikeri. I’m not sure I prefer Vänsuut side exactly, but now I feel like I’ve got a new band to seek out other releases by. And actually, they might be even more authentically vintage KBD sounding than Tiikeri, if I do say so myself. Funny enough, even though they’re certainly trying to emulate early Finnish punk like Ratsia or something, it was a big surprise to find out that they’re Japanese! Pretty cool. Good work fellas.

Anyway, I’ll wrap it up. Not sure if Daniel will want us to an “end of 2023” roundup in the upcoming newsletter (or the one after?), but I need to start reviewing what records I even remember listening to this year. Hoping to jam some Tiikeri and Vänsuut and keep the spirits positive while having a nice holiday. Hope all of you readers do the same. Cheers.

As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

Mary Gabriel: Madonna: A Rebel Life book (2023, Little, Brown and Company)

Smithereens (1982, Susan Seidelman)

One downside of reading most books digitally these days is that the format erases some of the distinctions between short and long books. Usually, this is a good thing. I always hated reading a book so thick I couldn’t hold it up with one hand, but my ebook reader is the same weight no matter what I’m reading. Also, when you’re buying a book, you have to look into the metadata to notice whether you’re picking up a pamphlet or a tome, and sometimes I don’t think about doing that. That’s what happened with the book I’m reading now. The book I just finished was pretty heady and dense (William Egginton’s The Rigor of Angels, which drew parallels between the lives and work of philosopher Immanuel Kant, physicist Werner Heisenberg, and writer Jorge Luis Borges), so I wanted something lighter. I chose this recently-published biography of Madonna by Mary Gabriel, which weighs in at about 900 pages. I guess I’ll be reading it for a minute.

The length of Madonna: A Rebel Life is kind of nice, really, because it allows Gabriel to go into the kind of detail I want from a biography. I’ve only made it up to the final years of the 80s so far, but Gabriel does a really great job of immersing you in the settings that shaped Madonna’s early life: her childhood in suburban Michigan, the cocoon of late 80s LA, and most of all the deeply troubled artistic playground that was late 70s / early 80s New York. Obviously, being super into punk, that’s a time and place that I’m interested in. Whenever I see movies made or set in that period of New York, they always suck me right in. I wonder if, had I been of age at that time, would I have been drawn to it enough to move there? I certainly would have loved all the art that was happening, but I can’t imagine how exhausting it must have been to live in such a tough, uncompromising environment.

Having read so much about the punk scene, it’s nice that Gabriel’s biography focuses largely on a different corner of that world. That corner certainly abutted the punk world, and figures like Jean-Michel Basquiat, Richard Hell, Fab 5 Freddy, and Madonna drift between them (Madonna briefly played drums for a band that played at CBGB). However, in Madonna’s New York of that period, the gay dance clubs like Paradise Garage and the modern dance scene figure more prominently. Gabriel’s book pulls you into that world and gives you a taste of how it operated.

In addition to detail, another luxury afforded the very long book is the ability to digress. One digression in Gabriel’s book that interested me was about the work of director Susan Seidelman, who made Desperately Seeking Susan, the 1985 film starring Madonna and Rosanna Arquette. In contextualizing Seidelman’s work, Gabriel also mentioned her feature-length directorial debut, 1982’s Smithereens. Gabriel mentioned the film was set in the New York punk scene and featured a number of scenesters as actors and extras, including Richard Hell as one of the main characters. I looked it up, found where I could stream it, and checked it out.

As soon as the film started, I was pulled in. It has that distinctive color palette of New York movies of the period and plenty of establishing shots of a city with pockets of decadence sprouting up in a vast landscape of decay and neglect. As for the plot, IMBD summarizes it as “a talent-challenged girl tries to promote herself to stardom in New York’s waning punk music world,” which isn’t exactly right. There’s no indication of whether the lead character Wren has any talent or not… she never sings or plays because none of the other characters have any interest in whether she has talent or not. And there isn’t really as much punk as I’d hoped there would be either. The Feelies song “The Boy with the Perpetual Nervousness” serves as a kind of theme song, there are a lot of cool punk fashions, a couple of scene shot at the Peppermint Lounge, and of course Hell plays a punk musician for a group called the Smithereens, but that’s about it. The movie isn’t really about punk, because the character Wren isn’t really in the punk world… she’s basically a poseur trying to gain entree.

What stuck with me more than the punk content was the sexual politics of Smithereens. Every man in this film, to a person, is a total fucking creep, and Wren barely has a moment on-screen when she isn’t the object of a man’s sexual interest, with these situations taking on a threatening, violent air more often than not. Richard Hell’s character is an obvious creep using her for what he can get, but even the apparently wholesome young portrait artist from Montana makes physical advances Wren clearly has no interest in. In the film’s enigmatic closing scene, a defeated Wren walks, dead-eyed and defeated, along the highway, apparently toward the Holland Tunnel and her childhood home in New Jersey, where she’d vowed several times over the course of the film she’d never go. As she walks, a creep slows down his car to proposition her, refusing to acknowledge her complete lack of interest in him.

I’m too soft for the New York of 2023, much less 1982. But to be a young woman in that time and place… I can’t even imagine the kind of resolve and toughness it would have taken to exist in that world day in and day out. I guess that’s why so many women who came from that world—Madonna included—were so extraordinary. They would have had to be, just to exist.

Quarantine: Exile 12” (Damage United Records) One of my favorite contemporary hardcore bands, Philadelphia’s Quarantine, returns with their second 12”. Quarantine emerged as such a fully formed beast that it shouldn’t be surprising that not much has changed between Agony and Exile. Quarantine’s music is still firmly rooted in blistering 80s hardcore like Negative Approach, Agnostic Front, and Jerry’s Kids, but played by musicians much more seasoned and technically capable than the ones who made those early 80s records. Quarantine takes the unpredictable lunges of Victim in Pain and hones them to samurai blade sharpness, the sound anchored by virtuoso drummer Chris Ulsh, whose playing has a downright supernatural combination of deftness and power. The main difference I hear between Exile and its predecessor is that, this time around, there are fewer of the psychedelic-sounding, United Mutation-esque lead guitar parts I loved on Agony, with the guitars joining the rhythm section in their single-minded pursuit of relentlessness. Jock also remains a larger-than-life frontperson on Exile, his bark creeping in and out of legibility, rendering his bleak lyrics even darker and stranger. The between-song instrumental interludes also return, ranging from maximalist industrial to a creepy and minimal electro-acoustic-style piece. If Agony and Exile are the first two installments in an Out Cold-style discography that keeps going and going with no letup, that would be fine by me.

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone is having a nice week. I’m still thinking about the 10th anniversary fest, so I figured I’d write about a record by a band that I was really excited about seeing that weekend, 100% Complete and Total Motherfuckers by Delco MF’s. This 12” is a collection of the first two 7”s released by the band over the past year and it totally rips. I was kicking myself because I remember getting the 7”s into the store and never listening to them really, and then when I heard they would be playing that weekend, I went back and checked them out and was blown away. By that point, though, we had been long sold out of both of them. Luckily for me though, they dropped this very convenient 12” record compiling both of them. With 11 songs clocking in at 11 minutes, this thing is non-stop ripping from start to finish. After listening to this a bunch, I was excited to see them live and they did not disappoint, delivering an amazing set at the late show at the Pour House. No beer can was safe from being launched through the air during this performance. The record does a great job of capturing the same energy they had during a live performance, and it’s one you find yourself flipping back to side A when it’s over to do it all again. Definitely check this one out if you haven’t already. Favorite track is March Of The MF’s.

Hi Sorry State readers! I hope all is well with you! No complaints or exciting news to report on my end. Things have been pretty tame, pretty chill. Went to the Languid show the other night in Raleigh, which was fun. Scarecrow played as well as two new local bands: Overbite and Fucking War! It was the first show for both bands, but it was Overbite’s first show ever. They are probably around 17-18 years old and they did great! Each one is talented at their craft. It’s super exciting to see the youth forming bands and having the guts to play in front of a crowd, let alone in front of seasoned punks. If you are young or not so young and you play an instrument or want to start playing one, do it! It’s never too early or too late! I really dug Fucking War! They’re a super group of sorts, so it was no surprise that they sounded great. I really liked their style, and they had some kick ass riffs and some good ole’ rock and roll moments. I’m really excited to see Powerplant coming up on Sunday. I’ve liked them for a little while now, especially their EPs. They are a really cool and creative synth-punk band and I’ve heard they sound great live.

My staff pick changed directions this week. I had something totally different in mind, but when I walked in to work the other day, Daniel was blasting something that immediately caught my attention, and I felt more inspired by it than what I was going to write about. It’s the second release from the Canadian band Headcheese called Expired, brought to us by Neon Taste. I had never heard their first record, so this is my first introduction to Headcheese. Frankly, the name grosses me out, but after listening to the record several times, it is very fitting and just makes sense. It doesn’t sound anything like I thought it would, and it was a pleasant surprise.

The album contains 12 really short songs, but they make the most of every second. The first time I threw it on, I played it three times back to back! Super high energy, catchy, fun, likable type shit that makes you want to break things. It’s really hooky hardcore, and I love that shit. It’s really catchy, but has aggressive, growly vocals. Almost animalistic. These guys are wound up, and the music makes me kind of anxious. It’s frantic, agitated, and it comes at you hard and fast, and with a sense of humor. I can’t help but quote part of Neon Taste’s description of the band that says, “Headcheese are pieces of shit. The worst band I’ve ever worked with. What makes them so insufferable is what is also the best part about them. They sound like what they are.” If I didn’t already know the record kicked ass, I would still be intrigued by the label’s kind words. Headcheese even wrote a song called Neon Taste to close out the record, and it’s about the label owner. It has some hilarious lines but, “watch out don’t be a sucker, he’ll rip you off and try to kiss your girlfriend” is pretty good. They also take shots at loss prevention officers, special forces, and incels. I haven’t heard anyone quite like them in recent times, but they kind of sound kind of like a mash up of Void, Woodstock ‘99, and Yambag, and that is not bad company to be in.

Anyway, if you like your hardcore fast and dirty, and a little different, this is the record for you! Thanks so much for reading and being so cool to us in general. Have a great week, listen to your music as loud as possible, and have fun! Until next time!

-Angela

Hello and thanks for reading. I’ve been away from work for like three weeks. After the Sorry State ten-year anniversary gigs, I drove GOLPE and ELECTRIC CHAIR on their tour together. In the week since I’ve been back, SCARECROW has already played two gigs. Of course, I am returning with a ton of work waiting for me, and being exhausted while I’m trying to get back at it is not so ideal. Anyway, as usual, we have a ton of killer new titles in stock. I’ve probably missed out on some stuff while I was away, but I was able to grab a handful of cool shit in the last few days. One of the records I was excited to return home to is this TOŽIBABE discography, and I wanted to write briefly about it. To me, TOŽIBABE is a band that doesn’t really need an introduction. I don’t know many bands that existed from Yugoslavia, but TOŽIBABE is at the top of that list alongside U.B.R. If you don’t happen to be familiar with hardcore/punk from this region and time, I would suggest checking out this killer compilation that came out in 1985 that features bands from Ljubljana. This was the first appearance of TOŽIBABE on vinyl. Most of the other bands on this compilation never had another proper vinyl release. Following this LP, TOŽIBABE released their debut 7”, Dežuje. That compilation and this EP have both had official reissues, and they also have both been bootlegged, which is why I don’t think the band needs much of an introduction. Aside from existing in Yugoslavia, the band consisted of all women. Existing as a punk in Yugoslavia was probably already hard enough. I can’t imagine what it was like existing as a punk woman. Women still don’t get enough space in the scene in 2023, so I think it is very significant they were all women playing punk in the 80s. Oddly enough, we actually have two different TOŽIBABE compilations in stock right now. I chose to buy this one cos the tracklist is more extensive. This LP compiles all the tracks I already knew, plus a bunch of shit I didn’t even know existed! As a result, I also learned about this sick VHS that came out in 1985. If you haven’t seen this, check it out immediately—super sick. Anyway, it seems the label took great care in sourcing the material and the packaging is nice. They are based in Atlanta, and they don’t really seem to focus on punk, but they are more about anything D.I.Y. or underground. Alright, my brain is pretty fried, and I am super tired, so I am going to have to call it here. Thanks to everyone for reading, and thanks for your support. ‘Til next week.

What’s going on? Cheers to you for reading our newsletter. We appreciate it and always hope that you find something new and/or cool to you.

As I write this week, it is with a sore arm after getting my Covid booster and flu shot. Hopefully I don’t get knocked down like I did with the previous booster. So far so good, although the symptoms probably won’t kick in until tomorrow. I’m sure I’ll be okay.

With the newsletter coming out on Monday now and our submission deadline on Thursday, we are somewhat writing for the future for our staff picks, particularly if we have anything topical to talk about. Often the holiday or occasion has passed by the time you guys get to read and that is going to be the case this week with my pick. This coming Sunday marks the high point of the Diwali or Divali (each is correct) festival that is celebrated throughout India and the world. The Festival Of Lights is primarily a Hindu religious festival, but variations are celebrated by other faiths. If you are from India or live in a community with folks from that part of the world, you will be more than familiar with Diwali and have seen the lights and decorations that go up and most likely attended a typical feast of food that is served in people’s homes. I was raised with different faith and traditions, but have always tried to appreciate and respect those of other cultures. Certainly not as a cultural tourist, yuk, but as someone who wants to be a world citizen. On our radio show Worldy, Matt and I have dedicated past shows to the festival by playing some of our favorite Bollywood soundtracks and sitar-based music. We plan to do something similar this week.

Rather timely, one of our customers recently sold us some records and amongst them were a few Bollywood soundtrack LPs. Not all were great, and the condition was less than stellar, but I did find a couple that had some cool sounds on them. The pick of the bunch, though, was the soundtrack to the 1981 film Armaan with music composed by the legendary Bappi Lahiri. To even the casual fan of Bollywood and Indian music, he is almost a household name. Entering the industry in the early 1970s, he soon became one of the most prodigious producers and artists in Bollywood, earning himself the nickname The Disco King due to his extensive use of synthesizers and incorporating the current en vogue western disco sounds into his music scores.

Bappi Lahiri was so popular that in the 1980s even the Guinness Book Of World Records acknowledged him for, up to then, having scored over 180 songs for 33 different films. He was quite the character, and was famous not only for his music but also his appearance, always looking flash and wearing lots of gold.

Almost all the music he scored for films was for nightclub scenes and dance numbers. Not too many slow ballads in his repertoire, although there are a couple on the Armaan soundtrack. He was also a singer himself and is often the featured vocalist on many of the songs he wrote for the movies. I haven’t seen this film, but the cover art definitely caught my eye and told me that there might be something cool on here. Two girls dressed sexily, dancing together superimposed over an image of what looks like a desolate snow-covered mountain. That probably makes sense if you have seen the film.

On listening to the record, the first track, Ramba Ho-Ho-Ho, Samba Ho-Ho-Ho is the money cut. A cool mash up of Donna Summer’s I Feel Love and Euro disco hitmakers The Gibson Brothers’ If You Should Go. The latter tune I had to look up and listen to, as someone on Discogs had mentioned it. They were right. Anyway, it’s a fun tune and should go down well mixed in with other similar sounds. On side two, the record begins with another fun cut called Mere Jaesi Haseena, which features some interesting synth sounds and percussion. Unfortunately, this copy has a couple of skips at the beginning of the song, although it does play through. Oddly, for a producer who preferred mostly upbeat productions, the rest of the record is more in the slower ballad territory.

So, not an amazing record and probably not the best example of Bollywood soundtracks or the work of the producer, but a fun find and worth it for the cover and the first songs on each side. Chosen with the topicality in mind. Thanks for reading and happy Diwali to you.

See you next time. Cheers - Dom

What’s up Sorry Staters?

Here I am at the end of the week, and it just seems like a lot has been going on. What else is new? Like last week, and into the weekend, it just seems like there was a show every other day. I might’ve talked about this last week, but I was in Richmond on Halloween night where Public Acid played with Electric Chair, Golpe, and Zorn. Then, Zorn played Raleigh the following Thursday. And then, I went back to Richmond that Saturday on the 4th where Scarecrow played with Languid. AND THEN, Languid played again in Raleigh again this past Monday on the 6th. Oof, I’m feeling pretty gigs-hausted at this point. It was cool to go kick it and drink some bevvies with Mike from NY and the Canadians, along with the homie Eric and the Hardy Boys, after the gig on Monday. Seeing that crew of people at our classy local watering hole, The Ugly Monkey, was something to behold. We got a little bit toasty and likely too rowdy for the regulars.

This newsletter will go out after the show happens live, but I’m once again going to appear on the Analog Attack show on YouTube. This round I’ll be joined by my dude Mateo from Warthog, so I’m stoked for that. Hopefully I’ll eloquently discuss some cool records and use more of my vocabulary than just “dude” and “killer”. Check it out here if you care to do so.

Speaking of YouTube, the other day I went down a video rabbit hole and stumbled across a playlist of a bunch of 80s goth and death rock stuff I’d never heard before. There were some obvious choices of course, like Siouxsie, Sisters of Mercy, Bauhaus, etc. But for example, I had never heard that band Voo-doo Church, a Los Angeles death rock band from the early 80s who seems like they’d fit right in on a bill with 45 Grave and Christian Death. Looks like their EP from 1982 fetches a hefty price tag these days. Dammit, now it’s in my wantlist. I had also never really checked out Super Heroines, even though we stock their reissues here at Sorry State. It’s funny, Super Heroines’ first 2 LPs came out on Bemisbrain, which was Jimmy Bemis from Modern Warfare’s label. An odd fit, I would say. Muy interesante. On this same playlist, there was also this cool live clip of Paralisis Permanente doing their track “Quiero Ser Santa.” They look so awesome.

As I continued to binge videos, there seemed to be a healthy balance of US and European stuff. I was amazed to see how many of these bands from this era had music videos, even if the band’s records were relatively obscure. I definitely had to wade through some tracks that, for my money, kinda sucked ass. Not sure where exactly I fall on the goth spectrum, but I guess maybe I’m more of a casual creature of the night.

One band I’ve always liked in this vein though is Skeletal Family. One of my favorite tracks by them is their banger single “Promised Land”, but I had no idea there was a music video! The video for this song is kinda goofy. Seems like it was filmed pretty low budget, where we see the band miming along to the track, playing their instruments outside in a field by a windy hillside. Vocalist Anne Marie Hurst comes across rather disinterested being filmed on camera. She has this super funny and awkward posture as she kind of reluctantly mouths along to the words and aimlessly gazes around, never really making eye contact with the camera. At one point, she makes eye contact with the bass player and starts cracking up. Her vibe is clearly like, “what the fuck are we doing?”

Interestingly enough, we recently stocked these reissues from Radiation that’s a Skeletal Family compilation. The record is titled Eternal: Singles 1982-1984. The only record I own by Skeletal Family is their LP Futile Combat from 1985. I’ll be honest, most of the band’s earlier material I wasn’t super familiar with. It might be that for some goth/death rock aficionados that songs like “Trees” or “The Night” are defining songs of the Skeletal Family’s catalog. But for me, it’s almost like as this compilation continues to play, the songs just get better as you delve later into the band’s discography. Maybe that’s a generalization, but I feel like as you get more into the mid-80s era, the songs just get more tuneful and catchy. Less brooding, perhaps, but that’s cool with me. Songs off of the Recollect 12” EP are great, like “Waiting Here” or “She Cries Alone”. But my question is, you cover their releases from 1982 to 1984… Why stop there?? Kinda funny that the record I’m most familiar with came out literally the year after the stretch of what they decided to include on this compilation. I dunno man, they probably could’ve left off their cover of the Batman theme to make room for “Promised Land,” but maybe that’s just me talking. Still though, I feel like this LP is a good glimpse of this underappreciated 80s goth/death rock/post-punk/whatever-the-fuck band.

Anyway, I’ll leave it at that. If you need me, I’ll be drinking blood red wine by candlelight in the dark. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff