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Hello and thanks for reading. This week I wanted to write about the recent DEEF reissues on General Speech. I think it's safe to say DEEF is obscure as fuck. While they are obscure in my mind, they were credited as "the first Sapporo hardcore band" by Doll Magazine in 1982. Regardless, I'm guessing outside of Japan that some cult tape traders would be the only ones to know the band, until maybe the G-GAS reissue that General Speech did in 2015 where DEEF was mentioned. G-GAS was from Sapporo, just like DEEF. While they existed at the same time and have some similarities in sound, DEEF existed before G-GAS did. I learned from the Nou reissue that DEEF had begun as early as 1979. However, they were just school kids and far from a punk band in these early days. On the Nou LP reissue we can find DEEF's 1982 debut also entitled Nou, which was originally released on cassette, and is in fact hardcore. The A side of the LP also features their tracks from a hyper rare cassette entitled Nouten Records, which compiled tracks from three early and obscure Sapporo hardcore bands including 2.26 and PROBLEMS. To finish off the A side, General Speech unleashed 3 completely unreleased studio songs recorded in 1982! While the B side of the LP is totally unreleased recording as well, I think those 1982 studio tracks really set this LP off for me.

I knew virtually nothing about DEEF before these reissues. The only stuff I knew from them came from a bootleg of Real Control on cassette I have. Real Control originally came out in 1983, and I think it absolutely rules. When I heard General Speech was reissuing it I got super excited. I was actually under the impression this tape came out in 1984 until this reissue, and that makes DEEF even more significant in my mind. The B side of the LP features another unreleased session from 1983! With all this unreleased material and killer packaging, it is like a record nerd's wet dream. I feel lucky to have a label like General Speech here in the USA. He's reissuing killer shit from overseas, and he does it with a serious passion and knowledge about what he's dealing with. Inside these reissues I discovered things about Japanese punk history that I had no idea about. I learned that punk was essentially banned in Sapporo by the mid-'80s. It looks like the gigs would start at 1PM in the afternoon. They would also be private, and sometimes people would be seated. That is nuts! Each of these DEEF LPs comes with a foldout insert completely loaded up with color photos, flyers, and scans of the original jcards. These LPs are super well-done, and I think they deserve a place in every collection. I understand it can be overwhelming to have two LPs of obscure shit drop on you and it's hard to know where to start or digest. I mean, that's exactly what's happened to me with the other two General Speech reissues he dropped at the same time! Haha. I better check those out before it's too late. Alright I think that's all for the week. Thanks for reading and thanks for your support!

Hello, hello Sorry Staters. How’s it going? Good to be back with some words about stuff for the newsletter. I was a bit under the weather last week and couldn’t get it together in time to include a recommendation for you. My apologies. Not that there isn’t ever something cool in the store to talk about and I probably have one or two records lying around my apartment that I could tell you are good. I enjoy talking about records and nerding out over shit with friends and customers in the store and spinning them out at gigs but have always struggled to put thoughts on to paper. I really admire my colleagues here at Sorry State for their ability to write interesting pieces. I try. I watch Jeff here just tap tapping away at the keyboard and five minutes later he’s written a killer review on something and meanwhile I am staring at a white screen. LoL.

This week my listening has been all over the place. We had some big orders delivered recently packed full of interesting and cool records. Third Man Records continue to release good stuff for instance. We got some cool Jazz and Soul titles that they have and some new things too. I’m currently getting into Hotline TNT whose latest album, Cartwheel, they have released. I’m way late for this party so y’all are probably up on them already, but if you aren’t and 90s Shoegaze is your thing, then you might want to check ‘em out. They don’t hide the influences at all and go as far as referencing Teenage Fanclub on the record’s hype sticker. Yep, this is exactly what the record sounds like. Early Fannies mixed with other Creation Records bands, particularly My Bloody Valentine. Normally I stay away from newer bands when they are so obviously ripping a certain sound. I’m not into cosplay and civil war re-enactment either. However, I do have a soft spot for this genre and absolutely adore Teenage Fanclub, so Cartwheel hit the right notes for me. Certainly not reinventing the cartwheel, but there are some good tunes on the record.

What I really want to highlight this week though are a series of killer mixtapes that we got in from World Gone Mad. On actual tape. Very cool. Some of the titles I believe we stocked before, but there are a couple of new ones. I’ve stated many times before how much I love compilations, and a carefully curated mixtape is the best thing going for any music lover. These are all collections comprising rare and underground punk, darkwave, post punk and other alternative sounds from singles released mostly in the 1980s. Each one concentrates on a different part of the world and country. If you are hungry for music that you probably haven’t heard before or own on other compilations or as original singles, these tapes are for you my friend. Tons of great obscure tracks that outside of their own countries and within collector circles have rarely been heard.

So far I have listened to the Polish, Yugoslavian, South American, Japanese and Finnish ones. There’s one from Russia, Greece and Columbia that I still need to check out at the time of writing this. The Japanese one is a double tape and has a lot of great stuff on it. Its scope is the entirety of the 1980s and stops in 1991. I recognized a few names like OXZ and Inu, but most of the records were new to me. Working here with Usman has several perks, but one of them is that he knows his Finnish and Scandinavian punk better than anyone and so has hooked me up with some killer tapes himself. I’ll need to compare the World Gone Mad one with his.

So far I would say the Polish one has been my favorite overall, but there’s so much cool music spread across all of these that the Internationalists like me out there will probably want all of them.

There’s something very pleasing for me hearing somewhat familiar musical styles sung in a language I don’t speak. Often lyrics can get in the way of the emotion of a song, so when you don’t understand the words your brain can just concentrate on the music. Usually, you’ll be feeling the song in the way the artist intended, but sometimes you’ll make up your own meaning to the lyrics and interpret the song in a different way and individual to yourself. Or something like that. I guess the point is, don’t be afraid of stuff you don’t understand and know. There’s more to the world than just Los Angeles, New York or London. Obviously. As cool music lovers with refined tastes, you all knew that and don’t need me telling you, but if you fancy a trip around the planet without getting your passport out, these tapes are the perfect way to do it.

I’ll need to compare the track listings with other compilations like the Bloodstains series to see whether there is any overlap, but even if there is, these are mixtapes and not just straight forward compilations. Aaron at World Gone Mad, who I believe compiled all of these, has put a lot of effort into the track flow and sound quality. Just stick ‘em in the deck and press play. Old school. I wish I still had a tape player in my car to blast these on my commute.

My apologies for not giving you a deeper dive into all the tracks and telling you cool factoids about the artists. I’d be lying if I told you I knew much anyway. Like I said, almost all these tracks are new to me and are obscure even for much more seasoned collectors than myself. But don’t worry about it, take a chance. I’d say perhaps start with the Japanese one, the Polish one, and the Finnish one first and then if you are needing more go for the Yugo and South American next. We’ve got the Greek one running right now and it has some good stuff so far.

Gonna leave you there and make sure I don’t miss the deadline this week. Thanks for reading and as always, thanks for your support.

Cheers - Dom

I’ve been thinking about crossover a lot lately. A “genre delineation” you might say, and a meaning or concept that has been occupying my brain space for many different reasons as of late. Metal meets punk… Or punk meets metal? I guess you could lazily describe the sound in this way, but I feel like the term “crossover” references an explosive saturation of bands during a very particular moment in extreme music. During the mid-80’s, in the United States in particular, a flirtation crept to the surface between underground hardcore punk and the emergence of thrash metal. It’s wild to think about Metallica interviews appearing in DIY punk fanzines, likely around the time when Kill ‘Em All was still on an indie label, and well before Ride The Lightning brought the band over to Europe and they exploded in popularity. I do have a bit of North Carolina pride thinking about how Corrosion of Conformity was a prominent force during this era. Around the time Animosity was recorded, I think COC was practically fully embraced by the West Coast punk and metal scenes alike. I’ve personally drooled over tons of flyers from 1985 of gigs that COC played while in California, with like GBH and Metal Church on the same gig. Or at a venue like Ruthie’s Inn, a famous hub for hardcore/thrash metal crossover gigs, where COC played with Bl’ast! and Possessed on the same gig. Wild.

So, what is crossover really? Was it simply a moment when hardcore punk intermingled with heavy metal, and those bands incorporated elements of thrash as the once primitive hardcore musicians got better at their instruments? Sure. But as with all genre-defining terms, you can’t so easily confine every band into a box. For me, I like to think of crossover as maybe sonically resembling metal influence in the musicianship -- BUT also maintaining the politics and social awareness of punk. I mean mostly in the band’s attitude and in the lyrics, rather than singing about Satan or death and mutilation or whatever. I mean, yeah, beer-guzzling skids are gonna love it… also, the record’s gonna have insane, gnarly, bright and colorful Pushead cover art… And the record is gonna sound particularly fucking good while you’re watching a dude blasting a huge air out of a bowl while riding a Powell-Peralta Caballero board. It all goes together.

Now my point, if there’s one band that is emblematic of the balance between the over-the-top, dayglo splatter ridiculousness and radical social consciousness, then it’s Italy’s almighty Raw Power. Gah-deyum, I fuckin’ love Raw Power. And yeah, I know my opening salvo was all about punk and metal in the States, but I’m flying us all the way over to Italy for my staff pick. Certain friends of mine would probably argue that Raw Power isn’t really pure crossover. They definitely don’t sound like M.O.D. or some shit like that. But to me, they’re part of the conversation. If for nothing else, because of the presentation, the sound, and the era when Screams From The Gutter was released. Guilty by association, you might say.

Recently, Sorry State stocked a new reissue of Screams From The Gutter, and it seems like we haven’t really been selling many of them. My gut reaction is what’s wrong with yall? But I do feel like we’ve had several other reissues of this Raw Power record released on several different labels as well. I don’t wanna call Raw Power a “cheap date” or anything, but I don’t really understand why it’s been so easy for reissue labels to get the official license or publishing of this classic in order to keep re-releasing it. I would like to think it’s because these labels understand this record is such a colossal ripper that it needs to keep being in print! I remember Back On Black did a reissue a few years back. This most recent reissue that Sorry State is stocking is on the prolific FOAD label. I gotta say, because the cover art on this record is so iconic, the reissue had better do the image of that melting mutant emerging from the sewers justice!! Compared to previous reissues, FOAD’s treatment of the cover art looks much better – less dull, super vibrant colors. I might even say the palette uses more of a hot pink in exchange for the more subdued purple on my original Toxic Shock copy. Tangent warning: Speaking of Toxic Shock, there is a Raw Power and COC connection. I think Screams is Toxic Shock catalog #3. Then Toxic Shock #4 is the 80s repress of Eye For An Eye, which came out right after COC initially released it on their own No Core, which surely got their record a ton more distribution. Very cool. Funny enough, the Toxic Shock catalog insert pictured below was the inspiration for my recent design of the Sorry State ad for Deletär and Fugitive Bubble ;)

Okay, here’s the thing about Raw Power… They’re kinda ridiculous – and I mean that with the utmost love and affection. Compared to their first album You Are The Victim, the band’s iconic 2nd LP definitely opted for a more metallic sounding production. Big riffs, gratuitous hesher guitar leads, gratuitous and relentless double kick. And you know what? Raw Power may lack subtlety, but every time I listen to this record, I revert back to the neanderthal, over-caffeinated, sketchy, Beavis and Butthead-esque teenage impulse of going, “SO RAD!!” The band has 2 lead vocalists that alternate. The predominant singer’s voice sounds exhilarated and out of breath the entire time. The other dude sounds like a shrieking banshee. Now, as far as the lyrics, they are definitely confrontational and political. I personally can’t speak to the oppressive political climate of 1980’s Italy. And surely there’s a bit of language barrier, as I assume that English is not these guys’ first language. All that said, and trying to be polite, I would describe the lyrics as not the most “poetic” I guess? Pretty blunt. A little boneheaded? Haha. The first song, “State Oppression,” an all-time classic, is like a battle cry. The energy gets you all riled up like, “FUCK YEAH! Fuck the powers that be!! STATE OPPRESSION!!” Then you actually read the lyrics and you’re like wait… what are we talking about exactly? That one lyric, “The bastards, the motherfuckers, they’re everywhere!” And you’re scratching your head kinda going… “Uh… I guess? Oh, I mean, YEEEAAAHHH THEY ARE BASTARDS!!” I think they use the word “bastard” in like every single song. Some other lyrics are like, “Politicans, you are shit. Politicians, you are crap. Politicans, you sons of bitches,” I could go on and on. Pure genius. Another classic off this record, “Police” rallies for action: “Police, police… don’t worry, attack them in the streets! Officers, officers… Kill them, and be proud men.” The “don’t worry” gets me laughing every time haha. It’s like yeah, duh, obviously. But as much as these lyrics read as absurd and outrageous, there’s still something about the attitude behind them that gets me clenching my fists and all fired up. What really gets me is the intro to the song “Army”. It’s starts with a lone guitar riff and then the bass and drums stop and start hitting on these punches… But the singer keeps repeating in a declarative manner: “ALRIGHT!”, almost like he’s addressing the listener before the whole band launches the attack like, “You ready to rip, motherfucker? CHARGE!!” Then it’s non-stop double kick drum mayhem. Fuck yeah.

Wow, somehow that ended up being the longest staff pick I’ve written in a long time. Just speaks to how much I wanna get across my love for Raw Power, I guess. Much like Raw Power’s lyrics, forgive if my analysis was more passionate than it was studious. Thanks for indulging me.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

My staff pick for this week is a playlist of 80s Finnish punk and hardcore I made for the 185 Miles South podcast. I wrote an entire staff pick about 185 Miles South last year, a little after I first started listening. You can read the whole thing if you want, but the short version is that while my tastes don’t line up with theirs 100% of the time, I absolutely love the hosts’ thoughtful and considered approach to music as well as their dedication to following and promoting contemporary hardcore punk. The podcast is very well produced and every episode is a great listen from beginning to end. Occasionally their enthusiasm even turns me on to something cool I never would have checked out otherwise (you’ll see Scarab pop up on our website pretty soon). If you’re a podcast person, you should definitely have this show in your feed.

Zack from 185 and I have chatted a little bit over email, and a while back he asked if I knew anyone who would want to talk about international hardcore punk for the podcast. I not-so-humbly suggested myself, and the first installment aired on this week’s episode (check their site to links to listen on your platform of choice). Zack asked me to make a 5 band, 10-song playlist of 80s Finnish hardcore punk. I approached the playlist much like I do my year-end list each year. I created a shortlist of bands off the top of my head, then I did a bunch of research to make sure I didn’t miss anything obvious. This left me with a list of 6 bands: Kaaos, Terveet Kadet, Riistetyt, Rattus, Lama, and Appendix. I stressed for a long time about which one I should drop. Terveet Kadet is probably my least favorite of that bunch, but they are such an important and well-known band that it didn’t feel right to give them the boot. Eventually I thought of a cheat to let through all six bands, by taking one song from each side of the Kaaos / Cadgers split (in case you don’t know / remember, Cadgers changed their name to Riistetyt shortly after releasing this record) and counting that as one band. That meant I couldn’t use any tracks from Kaaos and Riistetyt’s excellent later records, but at least all my favorites got to come to the party.

After I decided on the bands, I listened through all the records to choose the tracks I thought would be the best mix tape bangers. A few, like Lama’s “Paskaa” and Appendix’s “Huora,” I knew had to go on there. For the others, I had ideas about which eras of the bands I wanted to touch. For Rattus, I wanted one raw track from Rajoitettu Ydinsota (recently reissued by Usman on his label Makitie 8) and another from Uskonto On Vaara, and I knew that I wanted one song from Terveet Kadet’s first two EPs and another from Ääretön Joulu. The latter EP is a real favorite and it was tough to choose just one song. Eventually I settled on a track list and listened to it a bunch to make sure I was happy with it. Since most of this stuff isn’t on streaming services, Zack made a YouTube playlist that you can listen to here.

When we recorded the segment for the show, for some reason I didn’t think about the fact that we’d be talking about the particular songs I chose… for some reason I thought we’d be talking more about the bands and Finnish hardcore in general. Fortunately I had listened to the tracks a bunch as part of the process of making the tape, but I wish I was a little more prepared to talk about the nuts and bolts of each song. All in all, though, I think it went pretty well. At the very least I don’t think I completely embarrassed myself. To borrow a phase from Zack, if you disagree, don’t get at me.

In addition to the episode, Zack also featured the playlist in his 185 Miles South Substack, and if you look at that he pulled a ton of pictures, reviews, and other ephemera about Finnish punk from old issues of Maximumrocknroll. It’s definitely worth a look.

I’m not sure when we’ll record it or when it’ll air, but the next installment will be on 80s Italian hardcore. I’ve only just started on that mix. I have my list of 5 bands and I’ve started listening to everything and choosing tracks. Wretched is already giving me trouble. My first thought was that I should include one track from one of their ultra raw first couple of records and another from La Tua Morte Non Aspetta, but when I listened through their discography, I felt like the song “Finirà Mai?” has to be on there, but that song kind of walks the line between their earlier, more hectic stuff and the gloomier later records. I guess stay tuned to see how I navigate that and any other roadblocks I encounter.

Whats up Sorry State readers, I hope everyone has had a nice week. It finally feels like spring has arrived here in NC, though we’ll see if we get hit with another cold blast. This past week I returned from my road trip across the South East which was a bunch of fun. I got to listen to a whole lot of bluegrass, see most of my family, and show my girlfriend around where I grew up. When we were in Memphis for a couple days, we decided to drive down to Oxford, MS for the day just to hang out in town and walk around. If you don’t know, Ole Miss is located right in Oxford and the town basically revolves around the school. This is pretty much the southern-preppy capital so it’s a little funny, but the town also has a long and interesting history on its own, including being the home of William Faulkner, a southern author whose stories often took place in the fictional Mississippi county Yoknapatawpha. You can even still visit his house and walk around the property and see where he’d sit and write and draw inspiration from. Like a true old southern town, the town square is the most central part of town where everything is: shops, restaurants, bars and a big ol court house right in the middle for good measure. Hidden in this bustling square though, right up some stairs to the side of a building, I came across a record store. End of All Music was the name of the shop and I was absolutely blown away by it. Right away you could tell this shop was run by people who really loved and cared about music. A vast collection of all genres of music, used and new, and organized very well so it was easy to find what you’re looking for. I was fully expecting a run of the mill record store located in this preppy college town’s square and was happily surprised. I could’ve stayed in there for hours flipping through everything but my mom and girlfriend didn’t come down to Oxford to watch me shop for records all day, so it was kept to a brief visit. When I’m in a situation like this, out of state in a great record store, I like to get something totally out of left field. Maybe I’ll like it, maybe I won’t, but I’ll always remember when and where I got it. I came across this record, Hypnotic Guitar of John Ondolo, released on Mississippi Records (very fitting). I like being hypnotized by a guitar and I knew I would never listen to this unless I just bought it, so I decided to go with that. John Ondolo was a guitarist, singer, songwriter and filmmaker from Tanzania, which is pretty impressive. The songs on here are nothing crazy, just rhythmic guitar with some vocals, a flute, and percussion. It’s not something I’d necessarily be dying to get, but I’m glad I bought it. Sometimes, especially I feel the longer you’ve been collecting, you can fall into certain buying patterns. You have a long list of stuff you wanna get by certain artists, and sometimes it can be hard to stray from that, but I think it’s important sometimes to pick something up that you’ve never seen or heard of in your life and say “this looks cool, I’m gonna get this.” You may not always hit a home run, but it’s important to expand your musical horizons and try a little bit of everything. And who knows you might just find your new favorite thing. If I didn’t get this record, I probably could’ve gone my whole life without hearing any music that came out of Tanzania, so I’m glad I decided to pick this up. It’s kinda sounding like I’m saying I don’t like this record, but I’m too stubborn to admit it, which is far from the truth. It’s just not a record I’m gonna be listening to everyday but there’s some songs on here I really enjoy like Haukutoka Mbinguni. However, I know one day I’ll have a musical itch in my head and wanna hear something and I’ll be flipping through my records going “no….no…..no….no” and then I’ll come across this record and throw it on and the memories will come flooding back in and l’ll smile.

Hi Sorry State fam! As I write this I am sick as a dog, so I hope you are doing better than I am! And no, Daniel doesn’t have me chained up to my computer against my will, demanding I get my staff pick done this week. I had this week’s pick just about done anyway so I insisted. Ok let’s get into it!

Four years since Public Acid dropped the Condemnation EP, the new LP was welcomed with open and super stoked arms. Im gonna piggyback (i.e. copy) what Daniel said about Public Acid being one of the greatest things going right now in hardcore punk. There is something that’s not that easy to articulate about their unique flair. But everyone seems to get it and maybe without even realizing it. Daniel brought up their Sorry State Fest performance and I have to do the same to drive this point home. When Public Acid took the stage there was an energy shift. It wasn’t that they brought energy to an otherwise energy-free room. Thats not it at all. The whole fest was fucking killer. But they brought something different that everyone seemed to feel and react to in a similar manner. Basically, everyone went nuts for it.

So you can imagine how exciting it was to learn a new album would be dropping. I slapped it on as soon as I could, and one word came to mind. Dynamic. It is out of this world dynamic. There is nothing predictable about it. When you think they’re gonna go left, they go right. When you think they’re gonna stop, they go faster. They have perfected the art of primitive, mean and nasty vocals and chaotic yet technically tight, creative, and savvy instrumentals. It’s full of razor sharp riffs upon riffs upon riffs. And no duds.

The manner in which they execute the dual guitar format is masterful. Just listen to the songs Ignorance and End of Pain for a frame of reference. When I said the album was dynamic, the first song that came to mind was Ignorance. It has an absolutely infectious metal intro that sets the tone for the rest of the song. It lets you rock out for a little bit and then grabs you by the throat for a chaotic tempo shift. It’s gotta be my favorite track on the album. It’s full of eyebrow raising moments in the best way.

Deadly Struggle is everything hardcore punk should be and more. The recipe for this album was pulled together flawlessly. It’s furious but focused. It’s arty and innovative, but it’s true to the foundation that inspired it. The tempo and style changes are thrilling and unpredictable. Just listen to the song Deadly Struggle and you will know what I mean. Another killer track.

Public Acid sees each and every song through from start to finish. No such thing as a lazy outro on this record. They just keep getting better and better. Mature but not buttoned up. It’s truly impressive. There is no denying how good everyone in the band is at their craft. But the hard part, and the part they have mastered, is the special energy they have as a band. If you’ve seen them play live, you know that the special energy is magnified ten-fold.

Do yourself a huge favor and pick up the new Public Acid record. No hardcore collection is complete without it. And once again, thanks for reading! Until next time.

-Angela

Hi and thanks for reading. My boy Merm was the only person to reply to anything I said in the last newsletter. Which is sick cos I love Merm, but really? No one else had shit to say about who first wrote a song called "ACAB?” Also, I understand the MALINHEADS shit is a bit obscure, but I really was hoping to get something on it. Oh well. Maybe it's cos I came off like too much of a poser with my lack of knowledge on German hardcore. Or maybe everyone is preoccupied by the complete shit state of the world. I find it hard to clear my head in general these days, so trying to clear my head and write about a record doesn't come so easily. I never thought I would live through a global pandemic, followed by a literal, blatant genocide. I never imagined after WWII that something like this could happen. I don't mean the ill-intentions of the State of Israel, of course imperialist nations always have bad intentions. What I mean is how not one single country has stepped in to stop this. In reality, all the other countries will look to places like the USA and UK, and for good reason. Well not really a good reason, but because we have pummeled the living shit out of every place on Earth and that is why we are a "super power" country or whatever the fuck politicians like to call it. You would think we would use our super power to stop Israel, or even just cut the funding of U.S. tax dollars to Israel, but I guess I am naive to expect anything less from the U.S. government. I'm sure everyone reading this is on the same page with me, and I feel so helpless most of the time. I don't want to take the time here to remind you of the current state of world though, so I will move onto records.

I can't remember if we had the new PUBLIC ACID record in stock when I was writing my staff pick last week, but I wanted to mention it this week. To me, it's obvious that everyone and their mother should buy this LP—and I am sure you all have. This is an excellent follow-up to their Condemnation EP, and the packaging is absolutely beautiful (as always). What really makes this LP special is it's the first record that Jeff appears on since he joined the band! Although I think he played on the Beat Sessions cassette that came out last year. I've been seeing this band (or a version of it) for about a decade now, so it's kind of easy for me to take them for granted. The band has evolved a ton since they first started. I talked about their evolution a bit when their Condemnation EP was released. I think I fuck up some details but it's like 95% accurate. And like I mentioned, the band has evolved past this when adding Jeff to the equation. Proud feels like a weird word to use, but I think that is how I feel about this band. This crew of people has been tirelessly putting all their effort forth for years with a number of great bands, and it feels like they are finally getting the recognition they deserve. I also wanted to mention this debut cassette from BLISTERING NOISE. This band is from Tokyo, and I knew nothing other than that and this tape was recorded at Noise Room. Naturally, I want to check out anything recorded at Noise Room, so I did. I had to listen to this physical cassette, cos there was no streaming online I could find. So I wanted to let anyone know who was on the fence about the cassette, it rips.

I had briefly mentioned this record last week, but I've finally had a chance to spend a good amount of time with the new NIGHTFEEDER 7". I find NIGHTFEEDER to be a particularly interesting band cos they always do something that tests my taste on each release, but their foundation is so damn solid that I am always eager to hear what's next. To be honest, I don't like it when bands challenge me as a listener. I know that's boring. However, I seriously appreciate it when a band challenges my ears, and then it grows on me, resulting in me looking forward to these parts I once questioned. I love that. I'm sure there are people who specifically seek this when checking out bands, but I just don't look for this experience when listening to music. So NIGHTFEEDER begins this EP with a "longer" mid-tempo song. The song itself is entitled Disgustor, like the EP. Over half of the song is slow and has a kinda droney sound or something. The last minute of the song they pick up the pace (just a bit), with some pulled-back DISCHARGE drumming accompanied by another dissonant, but slightly catchy riff. On the B-side you can find two certified rippers in true NIGHTFEEDER fashion that you want to play on repeat. I guess the A side of the record took me some time to digest. The riffs are not particularly memorable, and it's the only track featured on the A side. After talking with Daniel about the track, he explained his interpretation of the song. He said he didn't think the song was really about the riffs at all, but about the overall energy or atmosphere the band establishes. He explained how it all seemed to build into the chorus, where the lyrics are the real focus; "I am disgustor, hear my name." I probably didn't explain that very well, but after letting this soak in it really started to grow on me. It felt like the band was going for a more classic approach or something; 7" cut at 45rpm featuring one slower song on the A side that focuses on the chorus, followed by two bangers on the B side. The formula reminds me that of like a PARTISANS or DEMOB 7". NIGHTFEEDER really lays into the "horror" aspects of the band with this EP. While I think elements of horror can come off so cheesy, I think they still pull it off. I really like the artwork and packaging on this EP especially. They made a limited screen-printed version, but the artwork for the regular version is just as sick!! The spots of color and layout is excellent. It looks so cool that I would consider buying it without knowing who the band was. I think there are bands who are not very good, and rely on a gimmick of sorts to attract listeners. While NIGHTFEEDER has some artistic elements with their presentation, I don't think they rely on this to attract listeners cos their music actually rips. Alright then, I think that about sums it up for this week. Thanks for reading. Thank you to everyone for your support!

What’s up Sorry Staters?

The month of March has begun. Kinda hard to believe. Even with our additional Leap Year day, February still felt too short. Pretty soon, it’s gonna start getting warmer, the flowers will be blooming, and a thick layer of pollen will obscure my windshield. I had kind of a weird weekend, honestly. Hopefully, in the next few days I’ll be able to avoid bullshit and soak up some vitamin D. Anyway, no more needless exposition as I tend to do. Let’s talk about records:

If there’s any record that captures the feeling of absorbing sunshine with a cloud of doom and gloom looming overhead, then it’s this Bloodstains LP. It feels kinda silly to write about this record for my staff pick. Only because there was so much anticipation surrounding its release, and Sorry State’s copies sold out so quickly. But whatever, I can’t help it. I really like this record and wanna give Bloodstains some attention, even if the allure of this record is a bit obvious.

I read one description of this record as, “Orange County punks playing Orange County punk the right way.” There is something about Bloodstains where it feels like nothing is beyond the pale. I know I’ve chatted with the singer Cesar about records on social media, and he seems to be an expert and historian on all things southern California punk. This record is almost like an exercise in synthesizing the elements of early 80s OC punk into its purest form. In a way, I respect that. Especially because I can’t really think of any other band in recent memory that has attempted to achieve this sound and totally nail it with authenticity. First impressions when dropping the needle, the opening instrumental “The Last Rites” kicks in and I just remember thinking how great the production sounded. Super clear, sharp, and punchy. Glassy, organic and bright guitar sounds. Once the intro track finishes, Bloodstains launch right into “Public Hanging,” and once the guitar player starts doing those octaves, it’s like okay… Agnew has entered the building. Maybe I’m projecting, but there is something about early punk from Los Angeles and Orange County that sounds more “produced” and glossy than other 80s punk and hardcore. Like something seems more musician-oriented and professional than the raw 4-track, shoot from the hip records that might have emerged out of the Midwest or East Coast.

I don’t know what it is about punk from California. Even though punks are right by sunny beaches and their brand of hardcore tends to be more melodic and song-based, there’s still an unexplainable veil of darkness. When I think of Agent Orange or The Adolescents, and of course the death rock stylings of TSOL… It doesn’t necessarily have to with the production, but there’s an intangible, hazy fog of moodiness that creeps its way into the sound. I will say that if Bloodstains nails anything with their love letter to SoCal punk, they absolutely capture this intangibly dark atmosphere. If there’s any song that is like Bloodstains giving us a TSOL moment, then it’s the intro to the first song on side B, “When Men Were Men” with its ominous, satanic ritual by candlelight style arpeggiated guitar. They revisit their song “Anti-Social”, which also appeared on their demo as well as the 7” single from last year. Hey, I mean if the band think it’s their hit, then I don’t blame ‘em for including it once again.

It’s funny though, I remember riding with Daniel up to Richmond for a gig that Scarecrow was playing. On that car ride, Daniel played the Bloodstains record off of his phone, and that was the first time I listened to the record all the way through. As we were listening to the first few songs, I remember saying to Daniel, “Man, the only thing this record is missing is some Adolescents-style ‘ah-ah’ backup vocals.” Funny enough, right at the end the last couple songs “Suburban Suicide” and “Stray Bullets” scratch that itch. “Stray Bullets” is the final cut off of the record, and probably favorite. The chanted refrain, “Stray bullets! Stray bullets!” followed by the lead vocal, “in the sky-eye-eeeeyyye…” is standout moment for me.

What can I say? The boys in Bloodstains made a record that’s close to home for them, but it’s also right up my alley. Enough with all treble noise cranked on your EQ pedal. I want more Agnew guitar influence in my punk. Hopefully Bloodstains will repress this LP since clearly people are hungry for it. Anyway, that’s all I’ve got.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

Paul Drummond: 13th Floor Elevators: A Visual History book (Anthology Editions, 2020)

It’s been a while since I shared what I was reading, and this seemed like a good time as I spent the weekend plowing through this 2020 book on 60s Texas psych rockers the 13th Floor Elevators. Shout out to my mom who, when I failed to give her any gift ideas this year, plucked this from a years-old Christmas list I don’t even remember making.

The author of this book, Paul Drummond, also wrote the definitive biography of the 13th Floor Elevators, Eye Mind. I haven’t seen or read that book, but I’ve seen more than one person use the word “exhaustive” to describe it, so I assume it’s long and richly detailed. This book functions well as a biography on its own and there’s a good deal of text besides the pictures, telling the band’s and its members’ stories in a satisfying level of detail, but its main purpose is to document and share the group’s visual record in photographs, vintage show posters, ticket stubs, media coverage, advertisements for gigs and records, and any and every other place where the Elevators left their mark. As a piece of scholarship, it is a phenomenal achievement. There’s so much to see in this book, and it’s executed with the seriousness and attention to detail of an exhibition catalog from a world-class museum. Even familiar images from the Elevators’ records and their most famous gig posters come alive here, as they’re photographed like fine art rather than the flattened, amateurishly retouched versions you typically encounter on the internet. They certainly could have gotten away with less painstaking work, but I’m so glad they put in the extra effort, because this book really transports you into the Elevators’ world.

A few things strike me about that world. The first is the contrast between the world the Elevators presented in their music and artwork and what is documented in the book’s many photographs. As one of the first rock groups (if not the first) to fully embrace psychedelia, they helped to define the imagery associated with that sound, with its bright, saturated colors and its swirling and organic, art nouveau-influenced illustration and lettering styles. But when you see the photographs of the band in their environs, it all looks so dusty, dingy, and earthy. They didn’t live in a psychedelic wonderland; they lived in Texas in the 1960s. In many photographs of the band (particularly in their later years as their hair and beards grew), it looks like they could be a country rock group, as their world looks more like the faux-pioneer aesthetic adopted by bands like the Eagles and the Band. The Elevators weren’t reflecting their world; they were building a utopian alternate reality, one they sought to access through their music and the drugs they used. The other thing that strikes me—and this is an insight I owe to Drummond—is is how crudely executed much of the Elevators’ imagery was, which is part of what gives it its charm, particularly for someone like me raised on DIY punk. One fanzine review reproduced in the book complains about the artwork for Psychedelic Sounds, noting its chintzy feel and that the colors look more Christmas-y than psychedelic. Later in the book, Drummond notes that Easter Everywhere looks like a self-produced album from a hippie cult. The Elevators’ amateurish, exploitative record label International Artists gets most of the blame for the shoddy execution, but it also seems like a function of how early the Elevators were to all this. There wasn’t a rulebook or a template; they were making their own.

If you don’t know the Elevators’ story, it’s conveyed with fascinating detail here. Based in Texas, the group didn’t have the benefit of San Francisco’s liberal multiculturalism. The police viewed the Elevators as leaders of an insurgent group trying to corrupt Texas’s youth, and they made it their mission to stamp out the Elevators before the movement could take hold. They were aided by draconian drug laws that could put you away for decades for possession of marijuana and a culture where police brutality and corruption were the norm. Thanks to a drug bust early in their career, the band couldn’t leave Texas without written permission from their parole officers. Members were incarcerated repeatedly, with guitarist Stacy Sutherland serving multiple stints in prison and vocalist Roky Erickson notoriously shuffled into Texas’s brutal asylum system, where electroshock therapy and primitive pharmacological treatments certainly helped to shatter a mind already fragile from years of daily LSD use. It’s a sad story, and it makes you wonder what the Elevators could have done if they didn’t face such an uphill climb.

But the struggles, the missed opportunities, and the shoddy execution are much of what made the 13th Floor Elevators the 13th Floor Elevators. Despite his devotion to studying and documenting the band, Drummond is clear-eyed about their shortcomings, particularly in terms of their recorded output. This only makes this book more valuable, as there is no succinct document of the Elevators at their peak (despite how obviously brilliant and influential their recordings were). Instead, we have to triangulate from the available data, imagining what it would have been like to experience one of those magical nights when the sound, the vibe, the high, the environment, the company, and everything else came together perfectly.

Cosey Mueller: Irrational Habits 12” (Static Age Musik) Originally presented as a self-released cassette, Static Age Music does the world a favor and commits this brilliant new full-length from Berlin’s Cosey Mueller to vinyl. Static Age has brought us a bunch of great contemporary German electronic music lately, and Irrational Habits fits that trend. The songs feel like dance music because they’re built around primitive boom-bap rhythms, crisp, powerful, and placed right at the front of the mix. On first listen, you might think the best thing about Irrational Habits is the seedy, Berlin night club vibe it lays down, but there’s more to it than that. It’s not pop music per se, but Cosey has a way with a hook. A lot of those hooks appear as guitar riffs, which stand out because they contrast so sharply with the rest of the music. The rhythms and synth textures are cold, dry, and mechanical, but the guitar lines are drenched in Jesus and Mary Chain-esque reverb and played junkie-cool, sagging way behind the beat like Thunders after a particularly potent dose. That move is executed most memorably on the highlight “Tu Mir Was,” but it’s all over the record. The vocals, while understated and often drenched in effects, also provide highlights, like in the aforementioned “Tu Mir Was,” but also in “Dog Salon,” which has a B-52’s-ish surreality I like. The propulsive EBM-ish foundation keeps me edging the volume knob ever higher when I listen to Irrational Habits, but the pop peaks really push it to the next level.

Hi Sorry State fam! How is everyone doing? Good, good. Things are pretty chill on my end. I’m just out for a walk on this gloomy, kind of chilly day. I’m stalling because I have a shit load of cleaning I need to do! But at least I have some new records to listen to! Such as my staff pick!

It’s Pura Manía’s new EP called Extraños Casos de La Vida Real. That’s a mouthful. Right when I slapped this on the turntable it kicked my ass and woke me right up! “Oh I’m gonna like this”, I said to myself. To be honest I probably said it out loud. I talk to myself a lot. Probably an abnormal amount. Anyway, I’ve packed several orders with this record so it seems to be popular!

These guys have been silent for a while after putting out their last LP in 2017 (Cerebros Punk). The band has members from Canada and Mexico, which likely presents some challenges, but that’s just a wild guess. What matters is this EP right here. A symbol of global punk unity, this is a three way split release by Japan’s Discos Peligrosos, NYC’s Roachleg Records, and Mexico’s CV Recs.

In a word, this record is electric. It’s the equivalent to the “boom” emoji. You know the one. The orange pointy cartoonish symbol in comic books with words like boom! bang! zing! zang! Don’t mind me, I drank a Celsius a minute ago. Shout out to the limited edition flavor, Mandarin Marshmellow. It’s my favorite.

Back to the record. It’s four songs, hovering around 13 minutes or so. A lotta bang for your buck! It’s a really catchy, high-energy, sing-a-long type of record. You’ll get the point about 10 seconds in with the opener, El Viaje al Interior del Cuerpo. That song is about as anthemic as it gets. I love me some woah-oh-oh moments as I find them to be really unifying and positive. With that said, I don’t speak Spanish, so for all I know they’re singing about kicking babies, and here I am calling it feel good music. But regardless, I feel good when I hear it.

Seriously though, the band has fearlessly mastered a more musical style of oi! punk on this EP, with some really standout guitar and bass parts. The guitar parts make me think of Blitz. Particularly on their cover of the Screamers song, 122 Hours of Fear (i.e 100 Horas de Miedo). Admittedly, I’ve never heard the original, but the cover is a ripper! I think the band has a late 70’s California punk sound, combining elements of different sub-genres of punk. It’s eclectic but it feels fresh and exciting.

This is a really likable record so I’m confident that anyone who likes high-energy anthemic punk will dig it. Thanks for reading and until next time!

-Angela