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Featured Release Roundup: November 26, 2020

Solvent: Demo 2020 (self-released) Demo cassette from this furious band out of Seattle. I guess you would call this d-beat, but it’s not of the polished stadium crust variety. Rather than most modern d-beat bands, Solvent reminds me of Deathreat… they just sound like a fast, pissed, and noisy hardcore band steeped in the international classics. In certain parts I hear Bastard vibes off in the distance, but this is go for the throat stuff in the Shitlickers / Cimex mold, but not as stylized as most modern bands who go for that style. A ripper for sure.


Septic Yanks: S/T cassette (Stucco Label) Short demo from this band presumably out of Olympia Washington. At least that’s where the label, Stucco, is based. Stucco earned our attention by introducing us to Electric Chair and Suck Lords, and Septic Yanks appeals to a similar sensibility. However, whereas those two bands are all about speed, Septic Yanks are more primitive and more approachable. The playing is loose, but the grittiness balances out the Circle Jerks-y catchiness of the riffing. Nasty production wrapping around a nihilistic attitude and straightforward but effective songwriting makes me think of the best bands on an old Mystic Compilation, so if you researched every band on Party or Go Home or Copulation, you’re going to like Septic Yanks.


タイフーン (Taifun): Demo 2020 cassette (Desolate) Taifun comes from Germany and released this demo in 2020, but if you played it for me blind, I don’t think I could pick it out of a lineup of Japanese bands released on Blood Sucker or HG Fact in the late 90s or 00s. Perhaps unsurprisingly, given Taifun has at least one member of Burial (who did a pretty great Burning Spirits take of their own back in the aughts), they have this sound on lock. While the galloping beats and glass-gargling vocals that we all love in Japanese hardcore are very much in effect here, the sound is more rocked out and slicker than, say, Bastard or Death Side, instead reminding me of Paintbox, Forward’s first few records, or Rocky and the Sweden’s early stuff. I feel like this sound is out of fashion nowadays as people want stuff that’s more raging, but if you liked the Detractors tape that Desolate released a while back, this is a total no-brainer. And for those of us who still ride for this 90s iteration of the Japanese hardcore sound, this is as comforting as a sherpa blanket. Also of note, while the tape’s A side is all hardcore, side B is a 10-minute noise piece, and as 10-minute noise pieces go I thought it was pretty interesting.


Hekátē: Μέρες Οργής (Days of Wrath) 12” (La Vida Es Un Mus) Μέρες Οργής is the debut 12” from this band from Greece. While the keyboards and dark vibes will put them in the post-punk category for many people, to me they have more in common with the Damned or TSOL. In other words, Hekátē writes high-energy punk songs with a strong sense of melody and a dramatic flair, and as you might expect given that this is on La Vida Es Un Mus, they’re great at it. Hekátē bookends Μέρες Οργής with two atmospheric tracks without vocals, placing the more conventional songs in the middle. “Soapbox” has an anarcho brood, but its shouted vocals and early Fall-esque keyboards keep it well away from being on the nose. “Ψυχαναγκασμός,” the fastest and punkiest song on the record, is my hot track. While the core is a solid three-chord rock song that could have gone in many directions, the bright, new-wave synth line makes it a total earworm. Μέρες Οργής is compact but full of variety, a record you play repeatedly because you can’t get enough.


Pitbul: Demo 2020 cassette (self-released) Another ripping demo out of the Seattle area. While Solvent has a gritty, d-beat influenced style, Pitbul plays tight, start-and-stop hardcore with a heavy Negative Approach influence. It’s not totally retro 80s though. I hear a little of straight edge hardcore in the riffing style, which makes me think of bands like Dead Stop, Punch in the Face, Violent Minds, etc., who sounded like the logical product of the 20 years of hardcore that preceded them. If you’re into bands that fall into that space, I can’t recommend this one enough. 7 tracks, about 5 minutes, and zero bullshit.


Death Sentence: Death and Pure Destruction 7” (Bomb-All Records) The German label Bomb-All Records brings this underrated UK82 ripper back into print. There isn’t much in the way of frills for Death Sentence… their riffs are of the simple 3 chord variety, their drummer only knows how to do dunka dunka 1-2 beats, and the singer sounds like he’s auditioning for the Exploited. The two tracks on the a-side are rippers, lightning-fast UK82 punk in the vein of Ultra Violent or the better Exploited songs. The b-side slows things down for “Victims of War” and the record finishes with “Death Sentence,” whose endearingly sloppy playing and screaming guitar solo leave a strong impression. While it isn’t on the level of Ultra Violent or the Partisans, Death and Pure Destruction is a ripper that any fan of this style will love.


Mower: Grand Punk 7” (Audacious Madness Records) We last heard from Pittsburgh’s Mower when they released an LP on Splattered! Records, which was the perfect home for their Motorhead-inspired punk-and-roll. The first thing that stood out about Grand Punk was the artwork, a conceit so perfect I wonder why I haven’t seen it before. It looks awesome, though! And the Grand Funk reference is perfect for a band that plays dirty rock and roll. Unlike Overdose’s straightforward Motorhead worship, Mower has more of a party punk vibe a la Annihilation Time or Midnight, with classic rock riffs sped up and played with a loose, last-call swagger. And even though this a 7”, the four fully developed tracks will leave your ears pleasantly full.


Sudden Impact: Freaked Out 7” (Supreme Echo) Supreme Echo Records gives us another killer Canadian punk reissue, this time from Toronto’s Sudden Impact. I knew the band from their 1986 LP, No Rest from the Wicked, which is a record that never grabbed me. I skimmed through it after hearing Freaked Out and my opinion is still the same. No Rest from the Wicked is cool… it’s fast and I like the wild guitar solos, but the crossover feel is further from my wheelhouse and the songs never grabbed me. Freaked Out, though, is a different story. While it’s a little metallic, I wouldn’t call it crossover at all. It’s just ripping, early 80s USHC with great riffs, fast drumming, and snotty vocals. This recording reminds me of Direct Control, and by extension bands like DRI and Attitude Adjustment that had a similar tight, metallic punk sound. The recording is perfectly vintage—clear but miles away from overproduced—and with 10 tracks it feels longer than a lot of 12” EPs I’ve heard. As usual, Supreme Echo does it up on the packaging, including a 7”x7” booklet containing loads of pictures, flyers, ephemera, and a new interview with the band. Highly recommended for fans of vintage 80s North American hardcore.


Record of the Week: Astaron: S/T LP

Astaron: S/T 12” (Sealed Records) I hadn’t heard of Astaron before Sealed Records reissued this, their sole LP from 1988, but after a few weeks of listening I’m ready to put myself in the “superfan” category. Astaron was two Austrian women who looked cool as hell (with a preppy goth fashion sense that reminds me of Strawberry Switchblade) and sounded even cooler. Really, you need to hear Astaron’s LP to understand what it’s all about because it’s a singular record. Here and there I’m reminded of other things—like Siouxsie & the Banshees’ darkest yet quietest moments—but it never sounds like anything else. It’s minimal with a lot of open space but with percussion—often non-standard or unexpected percussion—at the center and synths and multitracked vocals creating a psychedelic swirl around it. It’s far from a standard formula, though. “St. John’s Fire” sounds like a 19th-century waltz and features something that sounds like an accordion, while the organ and marching band snare in “The Burning” remind me of “Demystification” by Zounds. “The Slurring” is one of the creepiest things I’ve heard in a long time, and “The Voice” sounds like an approximation of throat singing drenched in plate reverb. It’s a wild ride, but as with the Banshees or Rakta, somehow it hangs together and sounds like music rather than just aimless noise-making. If you crave music that both surprises and charms, I can’t recommend Astaron highly enough.

Featured Release Roundup: November 19, 2020

Smarts: Who Needs Smarts Anyway? 12” (Feel It) Smarts is a new Melbourne band featuring a bunch of familiar faces from other bands, and while their sound isn’t miles away from some of other bands (particularly Ausmuteants, whose singer / keyboardist Jake Roberts plays drums here), there’s something fresh and exciting about them. The label’s description drops the term “egg punk”—which, in 2020, is somewhere between a backhanded compliment and outright insult—but the tag makes sense given that Smarts’ angular rhythms, high-pitched vocals, and quirky sensibility sound like the Coneheads. However, the reference point I keep coming back to is Freedom of Choice era Devo, because that quirkiness and angularity is subservient to a great pop sensibility. Basically, these are great songs played fast and quirky. But that’s not the complete story with Smarts. There’s also the unique instrumentation, the way the saxophone, synth, guitar, and bass work together. The sax playing isn’t skronky or jazzy, but locked in with the guitar licks, doubling the same angular melodic lines. The way those instruments work together sounds natural, but also like nothing else I’ve heard before. I feel like my description isn’t coming together as well as Smarts’ music, which melds these disparate qualities into a seamless and original whole.


Vex: Sanctuary 12” (Bomb-All Records) This is a reissue of the 1984 12” EP by this London band. Even if you’re not a deep anarcho punk head, you might recognize the band’s name or this release because Sacred Bones did their own reissue of Sanctuary a few years back. Sacred Bones’ version (which is out of print and sells for collector prices) added a few compilation tracks (and hence had the title Sanctuary (The Complete Discography)), but this version from Bomb-All is a straight reissue of the original 4-song 12”. While Vex gets described as an anarcho band, Killing Joke is the clearest influence on their sound. In fact, their song “It’s No Crime” bears more than a passing resemblance to Killing Joke’s “The Wait.” Whereas Amebix took Killing Joke’s mechanistic post-punk and made it heavier and meaner, Vex play things straight on Sanctuary, and if you’re a fan of Killing Joke’s first couple of records, it’s pretty certain you’ll like this EP. If you’re also a fan of the grittier sounds coming out of the underground at that same time, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll flip out over this record.


Patois Counselors: The Optimal Seat 12” (Ever/Never Records) Charlotte North Carolina’s Patois Counselors, one of the most buzzed-about bands in our state’s underground, are back with a second album! To paraphrase an apt quotation, this time around things are the same, but different. I remember my description of their first album on Ever/Never was one of the most out-there descriptions I’ve written for Sorry State. At the time I was reading this book that Gilles Deleuze wrote about the painter Francis Bacon (thanks Danny!), and Deleuze’s analysis of Bacon’s approach to painting reminded me of the ornate density of Patois Counselors’ music. That sensibility carries through to The Optimal Seat; like Proper Release, The Optimal Seat is musically and lyrically dense. I’m glad that Patois Counselors has found a home on Ever/Never Records, because that label specializes in music that exercises your brain muscles. As for what’s different, despite the density—or maybe complexity is a better word—there’s something that feels more elegant and confident about The Optimal Seat, like the band knows who they are and are leaning way into it. Even after just a week of listening, I’m confident this is a record that will share more of its rewards with you the longer it sits on your turntable. The Optimal Seat may be loud and bombastic like punk, but it expects more of you as a listener than most any other record you’d apply that term to.


Deseos Primitivos: S/T 12” (Going Underground) After a demo and a 7”, Going Underground Records brings us the debut LP from this California punk band. Deseos Primitivos’s sound is fast and tough, but also sophisticated and melodic. They sound like a California punk band through and through, from their surf-infected guitar licks to their anthemic choruses and great songcraft to the bubbly bass to the cool confidence of their playing. The production is lean and direct (I don’t even think the guitar is double-tracked), and if their songs were bad, there would be nowhere to hide… thankfully they are killer. I can name a ton of bands this record reminds me of—the Adolescents, the Avengers, the Brat, the Bags—but Deseos Primitivos isn’t trying to sound like those bands. They’re just playing no-frills, classic-sounding punk songs that all but force you to pogo and sing along.


Molchat Doma: Monument 12” (Sacred Bones) I imagine most people know the broad contours of Molchat Doma’s backstory by now, but in case you don’t, here’s the quick version. In 2018, their second album, Etazhi, blew up on YouTube, going viral and getting millions of plays, catapulting this group from Belarus to international renown. If you used YouTube to listen to any minimal synth or darkwave in 2018 or 2019, there’s a good chance YouTube played a Molchat Doma track when your video finished. I think our friend Carly—who did a month-long fill-in stint at Sorry State—was the first person to play Molchat Doma for me, and I liked it so much I ordered 30 copies of the LP from their German label, Detriti Records. They sold out immediately. I knew punks were talking about this band, but when I saw someone I didn’t know wearing their t-shirt at a goth night in Raleigh, I knew their reach was wider. Next thing I know they’re signed to Sacred Bones and planning a US tour, which they had to cancel because of COVID. Now Sacred Bones has released their follow-up album to sky-high expectations. I liked Etazhi, and I tried to approach Monument with as little baggage or expectation as possible. After listening to it 4 or 5 times, I think it’s awesome. The record starts with a track that sounds like Etazhi, and while the song was good, it worried me this would be a retread. However, Monument is a clear progression. The synth-heavy tracks lean more on the rhythmic pulses of dance music, reminding me of Boy Harsher. But at least half of the album doesn’t have this sound at all, instead using guitar as the main melodic instrument and highlighting melancholy vocal melodies. These songs sound like the Smiths, particularly tracks like “Still Ill” and “Hand in Glove” that are propulsive yet dark and melodic. Not only is Molchat Doma great at this style but also it serves as a great counterpoint to the more dance-oriented tracks while sounding natural alongside them. And, in case you thought they were going to sound too clean or pro, everything is still bathed in the same warm tape saturation as Etazhi. As a fan, you want a follow-up album to build upon the things you loved about the previous record without abandoning its strengths, and that’s what Molchat Doma has done with Monument.


Portray Heads: S/T 12” (Bitter Lake) While Bitter Lake has released a couple of punk records, this awesome compilation from Portray Heads returns to the label’s original focus on the Japanese electronic / post-punk underground. It’s also telling that this is a split label release with Minimal Wave, into whose discography this also fits very well. While they made these recordings in 1985 and 1986, it sounds like Portray Heads was experimenting with the same kinds of gadgets that groups like the Human League, D.A.F., Grauzone, and New Order were using a few years earlier. There are a few things that separate Portray Heads from the pack, though. The first is that their songs tend to be upbeat and fast-tempo, which along with the gritty sound, gives them a punkiness many synth groups lack. The second is the group’s unique sense of melody. It sounds like they use a lot of middle eastern scales, and if you have a taste for “Eastern” sounding new wave (like that killer Yugoslavian post-punk mix we carried a few weeks ago) or even Anatolian rock, give this a listen. I’ve liked everything Bitter Lake has released so far, but this one is noteworthy. Highly recommended.


Staff Picks: November 19, 2020

Staff Picks: Daniel

Public Image, Ltd: Live in Tokyo LP (1983, Elektra)

This week I priced a used copy of this record and realized I’d never heard it, so I threw it on. I remember flipping past this one in used bins all the time in the pre-vinyl resurgence era, but given that my interest in PiL more or less stops after Flowers of Romance, the 1983 date on it made me assume this wasn’t worth listening to. If I knew more about the album, I’d have been even more scared, as John Lydon is the only key member left from the group’s golden era, with guitarist Keith Levene and bassist Jah Wobble absent from this recording. My light research tells me that Rotten drafted some “rock guys” into the band in order to pull off this gig, and people seem to view Live in Tokyo as a weak and sloppy interpretation of the band’s classic material.

A few months ago I watched the film The Public Image Is Rotten, which was one of the best rock documentaries I’ve ever seen. Like the Radio Birdman documentary, it’s a “warts and all” affair in which no one comes off smelling of roses. I was in the dark about PiL’s history, and the film shed some light on the band’s tumultuous story, which is tied up with Rotten’s sense of alienation after the Sex Pistols’ messy breakup and strong senses of paranoia, alienation, and anger that seem to have been with him throughout his life. Those must have been at a high ebb around the time of this gig.

Coming to Live in Tokyo with very low expectations, I enjoyed it. As you might expect, the instrumentation differs vastly from the album versions of these tracks. Jah Wobble’s booming, dub-influenced bass is replaced with a plonky, Talking Heads-y tone that leaves more room for the other instruments. The guitarist keeps Keith Levene’s chiming sound, but makes his parts more conventional and legible. It’s also interesting to hear material from PiL’s fourth album mixed in with the classics, particularly “This Is Not a Love Song,” which sounds right at home alongside “Annalisa” and “Flowers of Romance.” It sounds like a PiL cover band, but given that production is such a big part of PiL’s studio albums, it’s interesting to hear these songs de-weirded. Maybe it’s because I’m puzzled by it, but I’ve returned to this record several times since I first thew it on.

Staff Picks: Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

I was thinking about this the other day: Over the course of 80s US hardcore releases, several bands have covered classic rock bands. Whether the intention was a genuine nod to the old rockers or to be totally tongue-in-cheek, I feel like a current band attempting this task now and doing it gracefully would be hard to pull off. Now, a few examples would be the Dicks’ version of “Purple Haze” by Jimi Hendrix, The FU’s doing “We’re An American Band” by Grand Funk (and I guess Verbal Abuse too for that matter…), Bl’ast doing “School’s Out” by Alice Cooper, and I’d even lump in JFA doing faithful interpretations of old 60s surf standards. But one cover that stands out to me is Naked Hippy’s take on a KISS tune.

I hate to overuse this term, but I feel like Naked Hippy is one of those bands that is pretty “underrated” -- or at least they don’t get talked about very often. Around the Sorry State camp, they’re definitely considered a gem in part because we always talk about how much we think they kinda sound like Direct Control. Not only musically, but for whatever reason, the singer’s voice does kinda sound like Brandon to me. Are the dudes in Direct Control KISS fans? I don’t know.

Naked Hippy, for the way they sound, seem kinda late to the game with their LP coming out in 1989. By this point, KISS had already been doing records with no makeup and amping up the 80s hair band cheese of the era. Still, Naked Hippy decided to take a crack at a rendition of “Do You Love Me” off the 1976 album Destroyer.

For sure, it definitely seems to be a big joke. Especially when you’re hearing that intro with vocals over just drums saying “you like my seven-inch leather heels” and know that Paul Stanley is genuinely talking about his actual wardrobe on stage. But then, you hear Naked Hippy doing this song, and you just know the dude who sang for the band is probably just a suburban dude in jeans and a t-shirt. What’s cool about this cover is that while they kinda start at a steady tempo like the original, they do the chorus at a ripping pace that just sounds like the killer hardcore you’d find on the rest of Naked Hippy’s record. I can’t help but think to myself “I don’t care if this mean to be a joke, it rips.” Then again, this is also coming from a dude who has a soft spot for KISS. Also, funny side note: knowing KISS and how intense they are about merchandising and copyright, the song is titled “Love Song” on the Naked Hippy record, I assume because they were genuinely worried about legal action!

Unfortunately, there’s not a link with just this song on youtube, so here’s the link to the whole LP with a time stamp. Hope I did it right: https://youtu.be/AwTjewwxVFQ?t=1125

The whole LP is worth checking out if you’re not familiar. ALSO, if there's any crucial silly hardcore covers of old rock songs that are super weird or that I wouldn't know about, definitely hit me up and let me know!

Thanks for reading!
-Jeff

Staff Picks: Dominic

Greetings everyone in Sorry State Land. I hope that you are all dong okay?

This week my recommendation for your listening pleasure is a little different but hopefully an enjoyable one. It’s a Word Jazz album from the master of the genre and someone who whether you know his name or not, you probably have heard his voice at some point. I am referring to the late Ken Nordine. His deep voice was behind countless commercials from the mid 1950’s onward and he released a bunch of records featuring his distinctive voice over a cool jazz backing. His weekly radio show Word Jazz was broadcast for several decades.

The particular record that I love and want to highlight is the following:

Ken Nordine: Colors. Philips. 1966


I first became aware of this record through a CD reissue that came out in the 1990s and then later via the Welsh group Super Furry Animals who sampled a snatch of one part of Orange.

Before the internet and online selling it was quite a tough record to score as an original and it took me until just last year to finally find a copy in a store-still my preferred way to find and buy records.

The album itself began originally as a commission from the Fuller Paint Company for a series of radio advertisements but due to the popularity of the spots the concept was expanded and a full album with 34 different colors and hues being rapped about by Nordine over a cool jazzy background similar in feel to some of the exotica records made by Martin Denny. It’s a fun listen and you can pick out your faves based on your color preferences etc. To me, his voice is quite soothing and reminds me of listening to radio late at night back in the day. I highly recommend picking up a copy if you see it but definitely take a listen on line. I’ll provide a link below.

https://youtu.be/GPrfn8WwLqA

 
Ken Nordine passed away last year aged 98 and for those interested I’ll post a link to a NY Times obituary.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/22/obituaries/ken-nordine-dead.html

Staff Picks: Usman

Macrofarge / Euthanasia split 7" (MCR-024)

I wanted to write about the Doom "collectors" boxset, but that was already sold-out even before last week's newsletter. It's kind of funny how often stuff sells out from the newsletter before it's even released, but the highlights of the week for us here still need to be talked about even if they sold too quick. I dunno, I guess it's a good thing that people are scooping up new releases all the time, but also means you gotta keep up to date on yer own to know whats all coming out and coming in. This isn't some massive label with a bottomless budget where we can afford to stock a million copies of everything, so there are definitely some titles you gotta race to get sometimes. Daniel prices everything really fair in my opinion, especially the used titles. Sorry State was my favorite record store for years before I got a job here. There were times we'd be on tour and I wouldn't even care to look at the local shop cos I was so spoiled to have SSR in my city haha. One of my all-time favorite record stores (in the States) is Extreme Noise in Minneapolis. Everyone working is a volunteer, and every title has such an exact mark-up that all the records prices end in some odd number of cents. That shit is like a science, a beautiful balance. Punks putting in work for the sake of it needing to be done without need for monetary compensation, its beautiful. Records need to be made and distributed. How else will our culture survive? Our anti-authoritarian and anti-capitalist principles are passed down through materialized goods. It seems weird to say something bought and sold could be anti-capitalist, but these are not "consumer goods." These are tools, tools that spread our ideologies of resistance and sometimes they can even network insurrectionary actions. I know not all punk bands are that political, but if you don't hate the fucking cops and prison system - what the fuck are you doing here? Like I said, records need to be distributed. Downloads are cool too, I guess. But nothing beats holding the record cover in one hand, while yer other hand is cranking that volume knob to maximum.

Anyway, I fucking love Macrofarge. I think they are an extremely "over-looked" band, and in my opinion everyone who doesn't know they exist should have the pleasure of checking them out. I remember the day I discovered them, it was through Disrupt. I was looking at the Smash Divisions EP cover, it's an illustration of three punks arm in arm while all of em are holding 40s (HELL YES). The one on the right side is wearing several patches, one of which was Macrofarge. I spotted two Swedish bands who I recognized and loved already, Crudity and Anti-Cimex, so I was really excited to check out Macrofarge. If I remember right, it was actually kind of difficult to find rips of their material at the time (it was before everything in the world was on Youtube), but I did end up finding some material on Soulseek. I played that shit for years before I could find any copies of their stuff for sale in the States. If you are patient you can find some compilations they appear on and the flexi I am writing about for fairly cheap, I just don't see them too often. I decided to write about Macrofarge cos to me their sound is somewhere between Doom and Bastard. Pummeling fast drumming with fairly straight-forward powerful guitar riffing, brought together with loud and semi-guttural vocals. Their Stop Your Nonsence demo has less of the Bastard vibe, while this flexi and their tracks on the I Will Take No Orders From Anyone!! compilation have this extra element of metallic insanity that reminds me a bit of Bastard. While I have the flexi pictured for this Staff Pick, I might enjoy their compilation tracks even more... It seems as though Macrofarge would only get better as time went on. I wish someone would release some type of compilation/discography of all their material. I would love to hear more stuff and learn some more about them. I don't have the new FLEX book yet, but maybe I will learn some new shit in there about the band! (p.s. We do have copies of the new volume on the way). I only have this 7" split and I Will Take No Orders From Anyone!!, but feel free to hit me up for a tape dub if you'd like. I have a few of those Doom boxsets for distro too (in.decay@yahoo.com). Thanks for reading, 'til next time...

Staff Picks: Rachel

GRAVEFACE MUSEUM PRESENTS- BEYOND HUMAN

These weekly staff picks have been getting me super nostalgic. I have stories attached to most of my vinyl collection and figuring out what to write about these past few weeks has brought back a ton of those memories. My first music industry related job was an internship for Graveface Records in Savannah, GA. I credit it to starting my record obsession.

The owner, Ryan, is probably the most hard working person I’ve ever witnessed and it made a huge impression on me. I helped pack Graveface releases surrounded by boxes and BOXES of shit. Record back stock, taxidermy, vintage halloween decorations, probably a lot of other weird stuff I couldn’t even imagine. Graveface Records was a small record store filled with oddities when I worked there. Although I haven’t been back in years, I see through social media that they’ve expanded their retail set up into what used to be the storage room I worked in, broadened their product line up to include anything a weirdo would ever want, and most impressively, Ryan Graveface continued the Graveface Records releases along with starting Terror Vision and having a constant stream of obscure horror movie soundtracks released on vinyl.

“Beyond Human” is a compilation of bands based in Savannah, GA singing about serial killers. Because, including everything I mentioned, Ryan has one of the most impressive true crime collections I’ve ever seen. He made this record to help raise money for the, now open, Graveface Museum. I’m convinced Ryan never sleeps because he now ALSO has this museum right in the tourist-y area of Savannah showcasing his insane collection. It also includes a retro horror-themed pinball arcade. You ever want to play pinball, buy a raccoon skull, and see the biggest John Wayne Gacey painting collection in the south? Graveface is the place.

This write up turned into a love letter to Graveface instead of talking about how freaking awesome the compilation is (because it is). That’s okay. I’ll talk about music next week, I promise.

Record of the Week: Lebenden Toten: Synaptic Noise Dissociation LP

Lebenden Toten: Synaptic Noise Dissociation 12” (Iron Lung Records) The live LP is not a typical move in the punk playbook, which makes it appropriate that Lebenden Toten, who routinely stretches boundaries and expectations, has made such a great one here. If you haven’t heard Portland’s Lebenden Toten, then I envy the time you’ll get to spend going through their dense but rewarding discography. Lebenden Toten started off as a great band who could summon the delicate balance of power and wildness that made Confuse so great, but throughout their long tenure as a band (according to Discogs, their first releases came back in 2003!) they’ve continued to push at the edges of that sound. Whereas noise and feedback was once a blunt instrument aimed straight at your skull, these days their recordings are just as intense, but rich with dense psychedelic textures that feel, if not composed, then certainly artsy and elegant. It’s very much like a Jackson Pollock painting, where a sophisticated sense of design shines through what seems, on the surface, like the embodiment of chaos. As for Synaptic Noise Dissociation, I can see why the band and the label released this on vinyl, because it is blazing. And while the energy level is through the roof, the catchiness of the songwriting and the artistry of this band’s approach to noise never take a back seat. Another brilliant record from one of modern punk’s greatest bands.

Featured Release Roundup: November 12, 2020

The Mentally Ill: Gacy’s Place: Complete Starbeat Sessions 12” (Almost Ready Records) The Mentally Ill’s “Gacy’s Place” is one of the all-time great Killed by Death tracks, and by extension one of the all-time classic punk songs; in fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if some people call it the ultimate KBD track. This LP expands the original 3-song EP to 8 tracks, bringing together all the tracks from the recording session. “Gacy’s Place” kicks things off, and it sounds as great as ever. It’s where everything that makes KBD punk comes together perfectly: anti-social lyrics (“they’re fucking your kids!”), primitive production, punk swagger, and a dash of Residents-esque esoteric weirdness. Wrap all that up in one of the greatest bass lines ever, and you have a song that everyone should know. Alternative Tentacles had already released the other tracks on this LP back in 2004 on a collection called Gacy’s Place: The Undiscovered Corpses (along with two other studio sessions), but I wasn’t very familiar with them. While there’s nothing as perfect as “Gacy’s Place,” those elements I mentioned above all feature in different mixtures on those other tracks, and I wouldn’t call any of them weak. While this isn’t necessary if you have the Alternative Tentacles release, it’s a great pickup for any KBD fan, from the dabbler to the full-on fanatic.


Geza X: Practicing Mice / Me No Wanna Be 7” (No Matrix) Those of you who have dug deep into LA punk should be familiar with Geza X. While, as a performer, he never achieved the fame of the Germs or the Dead Kennedys, he was a key player in the scene who played in a ton of the classic LA punk bands and produced a huge portion of that scene’s studio recordings. In fact, he produced early recordings by both of the aforementioned bands. I remember I picked up Geza X’s LP, You Goddamn Kids!, in the late 90s because it looked interesting and punk, but it confounded by teenage brain that was looking for more stuff that sounded like the Adolescents and the Circle Jerks. While Geza X’s music has a lot of punk’s energy (which is unsurprising given how talented he was at capturing that energy on tape), there are also elements of silliness and satire. The titles of the two tracks on this single, “Practicing Mice” and “Me No Wanna Be,” say quite a lot. While some people might not like the “wacky” elements like the lyrics and Geza’s high-pitched voice, if you’re a fan of the weirder, Zappa / Residents-informed end of the KBD spectrum, this will be right up your alley. The production is also interesting, with a very processed sound to the guitar. Geza X’s other production jobs are straightforward; I wonder if he felt more daring with this home-recorded material. Besides the music, you also get some interesting liner notes from Geza himself in which he recounts several wild and hilarious stories from the Masque days.


Speed Plans: Field of Vision cassette (Kill Enemy Records) Latest cassette from this Pittsburgh hardcore band, and to me it sounds like a throwback to the late 2000s and early 2010s when No Way Records ruled the scene. In particular, Speed Plans reminds me of bands like Cardiac Arrest, Wasted Time, Citizens Patrol, and Reprobates. Like those bands, Speed Plans foregrounds their early 80s USHC influences, but aren’t afraid to bring in catchy mid-paced parts or slightly melodic lead guitar licks. I would imagine they like the Adolescents just as much as they like the Negative Approach EP or Victim in Pain, even if the latter two influences are more prominent in their music. I think what makes this sound like “No Way era” hardcore to me is the lack of d-beat influence. The tradition of Discharge-inspired bands permeated the hardcore of the 2010s, but you won’t find any of it here. Thus, what was old is now new again, and it sounds as great as it always did.


Necro Heads: demo cassette (Kill Enemy Records) This debut tape from Pittsburgh’s Necro Heads came out alongside the latest Speed Plans tape, and the two of them together are quite the pair of rippers. Where Speed Plans bring in a little of that west coast catchiness to their USHC sound, Necro Heads is looser, more aggro, and more brutal. While it’s appropriate to cite the same USHC touchstones, the grittiness and ugliness pulls this more toward dark shit like Siege and Septic Death. You get six short and fast rippers, then the last track, “Opt Out,” descends into your classic hardcore dirge with noisy, feedback-drenched improvisational guitar wailing as the band dissolves into a writhing mess a la “Damaged I.” Good shit.


Staff Picks: November 12, 2020

Staff Picks: Daniel

Radioactivity: “The Last” (from their self-titled record, Dirtnap Records 2013)

If you read last week’s newsletter or keep a close eye on our social media, you might know that my friend and bandmate Osamu Sueyoshi passed away. This past week I helped choose some music for his memorial service. I needed about five minutes of music to go along with a photo slideshow. We knew we wanted a No Love song, and we ended up choosing “Dear Mrs. Nelson” from our demo because that’s the only No Love song for which Osamu wrote the words and the music. Osamu wrote the lyrics when he noticed the host of Mystery Science Theatre 3000 (one of his favorite shows) was wearing a wedding band, so he wrote a love song about missing your wife while stranded with a bunch of robots watching movies. It’s pretty clever. No Love had long since disowned our demo-era material (we even turned off the tracks on our bandcamp page) because the band changed a lot after that period, moving away from pop-punk and more toward the punky, song-oriented hardcore where we ended up. I was a little nervous bout revisiting that material, but it surprised me how good it sounded. Osamu was a brilliant musician, and he wrote a perfect little pop song with a guitar hook at the beginning and a key change in the bridge. I even thought the recording sounded pretty good. It’s one of the last things I recorded myself, because by then other people like Jeff had gotten way better at recording than I was ever going to be.

Aside from the No Love song, I needed another track to fill up the five minutes, and I knew immediately that it was going to be “The Last” by Radioactivity. Radioactivity was an important band for No Love. We were all huge fans of the Marked Men, and when this record came out we were all playing it a lot. “The Last” is one of the standout tracks, and I remember whenever Radioactivity would come up, Osamu would just say “The Last” and look down and shake his head, like it astonished him that a song could be that good. Further, some of No Love’s last out of town shows were with Radioactivity and Night Birds, and that little weekend tour was hugely important to all of us (eternal thanks to Brian from Night Birds for inviting us!). I listened to a bunch of other potential songs, but doing so only made it clear how perfect “The Last” was. My partner Jet, who put together the slideshow, would burst into tears every time it played, which definitely slowed down the editing process.

Listening to “The Last” so much last week made me realize that I close myself off to letting music move me on an emotional level, which is strange because that’s the most important part of music for so many other people. I listen to so much music for Sorry State that I’ve developed this habit of checking something out, giving it enough attention to understand it on some level and slot it into (or outside or in between) a category, and then moving onto the next thing. When I listen to things over and over, it’s usually because the music is more complex or unfamiliar to me in a way that makes understanding it on that intellectual level more challenging.

However, “The Last” isn’t like that at all. It’s pure emotion and it hits me right in the gut every time. It’s so evocative that I don’t have time to think about the chord structure or how it fits in with the history of Texas punk or garage-punk or pop-punk. I just hear it and feel it. And now that I will forever associate that song with Osamu, its emotional resonance only grows stronger. More than just a piece of music, it’s like a celestial ringtone that I can use to call him any time I want.

Staff Picks: Jeff

What’s up Sorry Staters?

As I sit down to write this staff pick on a dreary and rainy morning, it seems only fitting that I decide to write about cold synthesizer music. I didn’t know anything about this band Portray Heads at all before these reissues arrived at the store. I decided to throw the record on because I feel like Bitter Lake is always reliable for reissuing great stuff. Unsurprisingly, this Portray Heads record is no exception.

Now, I would never claim to be an expert on minimal synth or electronic music in general, but there is a small faction of my taste I take a stroll down every once in a while that is dedicated to this type of music. I tend to gravitate toward more gothy or darkwave stuff like Nagamatzu… the sparser and colder the instrumentation, the better. But by comparison, I wouldn’t only describe Portray Heads as more up-tempo, but some of the programmed synth parts are frantic and anxiety-inducing. The intensity is only heightened by the group's ability to structure melodies in order to create an eerie and creepy atmosphere, all the while being super danceable and catchy. A lot of the synth melodies remind me of movie scores that have a sense of suspense and drama, almost like the score to Phantom of the Opera, but sped up while on club drugs.  

Just about every song on this double LP rules -- every song has its own vibe and earworm hook. While reading more about the band in Bitter Lake’s description, Portray Heads was very short-lived from 1984 to 1986 and only released 2 7” singles. This compilation of all their recorded material includes two demos that were apparently recorded by the band in the 80s. These recordings were not only unreleased, but totally unheard prior to contacting the band’s founder in attempting to organize this reissue. The unreleased tracks are not only on par with the band’s other material, but some of the songs from these sessions I personally think are the band’s most poppy and memorable output. This track for instance is less dark than most of the other songs, and sounds somewhere between New Order and Solid Space maybe?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3muDYy49o0

Anyway, super cool listen from a band I’d never heard of before. Do yourself a favor and check it out!

Thanks for reading,
-Jeff

Staff Picks: Dominic

Hey, what’s up everybody? What a flippin’ week that was. 2020 is not letting up. To be honest it has been hard to concentrate on anything. Even my nightly ritual of watching Jeopardy was saddened by the news of Alex Trebek passing away. We’ll miss you Uncle Alex. You all should Google the tribute that former contestant and champion Jacqueline Fuchs wrote (You may know her by her stage name, Jackie Fox from the Runaways) where she talks about her experience on the show and how much of a beautiful person Alex was.

This week I have been struggling to even play a record. It takes me forever to decide what to play. To counteract that I usually plug in to some online streams from some of my favorite radio shows from around the world and let someone else be the DJ. One station that I listen to every week is The Face Radio from Brooklyn. My friend Kurtis Powers hosts his show The Rendezvous each Sunday and over the years he has built up a whole network of great shows from different DJ’s hosting from around the US and the UK and as far away as Australia. The emphasis is on Mod, Soul, Jazz and Funk but the scope is getting broader all the time with new shows being added. If yours truly could get his shit together he might be on there too. This week on The Rendezvous, Kurtis played an interview he did with Soul legend Eddie Floyd. The interview was assisted by author Tony Fletcher who has just released a book on Floyd called Knock! Knock! Knock! On Wood: My Life In Soul. Anyone interested in soul music and particularly Memphis and Stax Records should seek out a copy. Please visit thefaceradio.com and check them out and your local book emporium for the book.

Listening to the interview did inspire me to pull out Eddie Floyd’s I’ve Never Found A Girl album from 1968. This is an album chocked full of love songs and heartbreak and capitalized on the hit single of the same name albeit with the (To Love Me Like You Do) added. The record opens with a strong cover of the Sam Cooke song Bring It On Home To Me and next tune Never Give You Up is an early Gamble & Huff penned song. Musically the Stax sound is in full effect on this one. Steve Cropper produced and co-wrote a lot of the other songs. I don’t need to go into how great Stax Records was as a label but hopefully you have at least one record in your collection featuring that iconic yellow label with the snapping fingers. If not, get on it.

Among the many other highlights on this album surely must be the song Hobo which is a great up tempo groover and perhaps not quite up there with Knock On Wood and Big Bird but could have been a single. Backing throughout features Booker T. and the Memphis Horns plus of course Steve Cropper who adds plenty of tasty guitar licks. Lovers of Southern Soul will find a lot to like in the song I’m Just The Kind Of Fool which simmers with quiet intensity and is likened to James Carrs’s Dark End Of The Street by one review I read and I would tend to agree.

Overall this is a really good record and generally underrated. Perhaps not a classic and considered “essential” but an enjoyable listen all the same and if you enjoy the classic sixties Memphis Soul Sound you’ll be happy. Pick it up if you see it. I’ll leave a link to a couple of tracks for you to investigate.
 
Until next time, thanks for reading and take care- Dom



Staff Picks: Rachel

THE SCAM- EVERYTHING ENDS IN ROT

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve listened to this record. I (maybe illegally) downloaded it in high school and have distinct memories of putting this short album on repeat for hours. Something about it resonated with me.

As my music taste matured, my love for this album has only grown. You can just FEEL the attitude and energy the band must’ve had while recording. I don’t listen to much hardcore, so my frame of reference is slim but at the time I discovered this record, I’d never heard anything like it or seen an album cover quite like that. The riffs are catchy, the production quality isn’t great, and the vocals are weird as fuck. I honestly don’t think I’ve heard anything like this album since.

Everything Ends in Rot takes all of the aspects from hardcore, punk, thrash (maybe more?) that I like and smashed them together in 11 minutes. I think that’s why this album has been a constant in my rotation since I was 15; growing up I tried on a lot of different identities but always came back to the same mainstays.

Besides the hundreds of listens I’ve given this record, I felt I had to make it a staff pick because it was the first album I got at Sorry State back in 2017. I was getting back into record collecting after getting a job at [redacted] record store and looked up pressings of this album on a whim. The only hit I got was an eBay listing of a 2017 repress from Antitodo out of Spain…of course it was Sorry State’s account. I literally set an alarm on my phone so I’d remember giving the store a call when they opened and went down there as soon as I could. I probably freaked Jeff out because I was so excited, but whatever, I don’t think he remembers. If you’re local and had the misfortune of visiting me at my other record store job, I’m so sorry for subjecting you to this album at least three times in a row before begrudgingly putting on something else.

Record of the Week: Morwan: Zola-Zemya LP

Morwan: Zola-Zemya 12” (Feel It) Zola-Zemya is the debut LP from this project out of Kiev, Ukraine, a locale we don’t hear from too often around here. While it’s on Feel It Records, it’s not like any of their previous releases. Feel It puts out some of the most forward-thinking music in the punk underground these days, but this stands out even on their eclectic roster. There is some inspiration from the post-punk era, but Morwan is about as far from a retread or a soundalike as you can get (or, at least, if there are older bands that sound like this, then I haven’t heard them). When I first listened, the elements that stuck out to me were the “eastern” sounding melodies and traditional Arabic instrumentation. I’ve listened to a lot of psychedelic and jazz music that explores these types of sounds, but I’ve never heard an artist who melded them with driving and atmospheric post-punk in this way, and I found it immediately captivating. As I’ve continued to listen, this record only seems more unique and enigmatic. It’s like nothing I’ve ever heard, but it has just enough of the music I already know and love to make me feel at home. The production is also warm and raw, more like a strong DIY release than something that’s shooting for wider accessibility. This is so unique that I’m a long way from understanding it—much less describing it—but I can say that if you crave bands that excite you with their originality and innovation, this is a must buy.

Featured Release Roundup: November 5, 2020

Milk: Bricks 7” (Hysteria Records) Bricks is the first US release from this hardcore band out of Nagoya, Japan. I first heard about Milk when they played Damaged City Fest. Suddenly everyone was talking about this band from Japan that sounded like Minor Threat and had an impossible to find LP. I checked them out and their LP was super rad, but not being able to find a physical copy meant that it never sunk in that hard. However, I’ve been listening to Bricks a ton and loving it. The first thing you’ll see mentioned when someone is talking about Milk is the guitar sound… it’s not distorted at all; it’s thin and scratchy and (on Bricks even more so than the LP) it has a claustrophobic, direct-in-the-board sound. Amde Petersen’s Arme is another band I see compared to Milk, and that’s a pretty spot on comparison. The riffs are simple but catchy, and the playing has a looseness that makes Bricks sound explosive and alive. If your tastes tend toward classic, punky-sounding US hardcore, it’s hard to see why this wouldn’t do it for you. Killer.


Second Layer: World of Rubber 12” (Radiation) World of Rubber is the lone album from this short-lived UK minimal synth / cold wave duo whose members, Adrian Borland and Graham Bailey, were the guitarist / vocalist and bassist for the great post-punk band the Sound. The Sound grew more polished and pop-oriented over the course of their run (their later records are good, but have a U2 style of polish), so as you might expect Second Layer is even rawer than the earliest material by the Sound. While Borland’s voice is instantly recognizable, World of Rubber has little of the dramatic rock flair that’s a big part of the Sound’s Jeopardy. While I’m sure some fans of the Sound will miss the big riffs and big choruses, I think Borland’s songwriting is just as powerful in this context. Instead of anthems, Second Layer has a brooding, monochromatic style that reminds me of the Cure circa Faith or Seventeen Seconds or Closer-era Joy Division, that quality accentuated by a rather primitive-sounding drum machine. If you’re a fan of minimal synth groups like Solid Space or the Units, this has a very similar aesthetic, but its power is amplified by a world-class singer and songwriter. A very cool obscurity for deep post-punk heads.


Disfear: Soul Scars 12” (Havoc Records) Havoc Records reissues a record that is perfect for them, Disfear’s 1995 full-length Soul Scars. Truth be told, I haven’t spent much time with Disfear. By the time I was digging into international crust and d-beat in the 2000s, Disfear was putting out records like Misanthropic Generation and Live the Storm, and the computer-generated graphics and the fact that those records were on Relapse turned me off… I mean, who can blame me for passing over Disfear when I was just hearing bands like Shitlickers and Disarm for the first time? I bet even the members of Disfear themselves would acknowledge that I took the right path. I did see Disfear live once, in Philadelphia with Warhead and Forward. I’ve seen both Japanese bands many times, but this set was the best I ever saw either of them… which may have something to do with the enormous amount of speed my friends gifted the bands before the gig. Disfear was good that night, but you can’t beat two legends of Japanese hardcore in a chemically enhanced state. So, it’s 2020 now and my good friend Usman rides hard for Disfear, so I checked out Soul Scars and it turns out that it rips! While too many bands over the years have taken this bulldozer crust sound into directions that are too polished and/or metallic for my tastes, Soul Scars is a hardcore record through and through… if you fuck with Totalitär and don’t like “The Ultimate Disaster” or “The Price of Ignorance” you might need to consult your ear doctor. It’s too bad I wasn’t cool enough to be into this the first time around, but it’s never too late to turn over a new leaf.


Various: Yugoslavian Post-punk/New Wave mixtape cassette (World Gone Mad)  Yugoslavian Post-punk/New Wave mixtape is the latest in a series of incredible international mix tapes that Aaron from World Gone Mad Records has been releasing over the past few years. If you’ve gotten any of the other genres, then you already know the deal: 90 minutes of obscure tracks you’ve never heard, professionally duplicated with strong sound. I had heard of one band on this compilation, which I’m proud of because usually it’s zero. If you’re fanatical about hearing obscure international music in this vein, this is an easy decision. However, even if you aren’t looking up every single band on here to find more material, this is a great tape that you can throw on and just let it run, like you should be able to do with any great mix tape. The compilers construe the terms “new wave” and “post-punk” broadly here, encompassing everything from minimal synth and straight up punk to music that sounds like mainstream 80s pop from the US and UK. One of my favorite things about these mixes is how these groups integrate their own musical heritage with what’s happening in the Anglophone world, and there are countless different approaches to that across these 90 minutes. Like I said, these tapes have been awesome, and this one is no exception.

No streaming link, sorry!

Vicio: S/T 7” (Emma Navajas) This is a vinyl reissue of a demo tape from Texas’s Vicio, originally released in the year 2000. While clueless white people like myself were freaking out over “Y2K thrash” and chasing down Tear It Up pressing variants, these Texans were channeling the unhinged spirit of early Italian hardcore, blasting out these eight tracks of primitive punk. Sometimes the drummer drifts away from the beat and the bass and guitar are out of tune with one another, but the riffs are killer and the band is playing like it’s the last time they’ll ever touch instruments in their lives. I don’t know if the members of Vicio were familiar with bands like Wretched and Negazione, but they captured something on tape that evokes the same feeling as those bands. Major props to the folks who brought this recording back into circulation… you’ve done the world a service.


Second Attack: Lies and Myths 7” (Puke N Vomit) Puke N Vomit digs up this total punk obscurity. According to the liner notes, these two songs originally came out in a tiny, self-released edition of 250, but almost all of those copies were thrown away after the record failed to find distribution. I think Second Attack had a few things working against them. The first was that they were a one-person project. While the insert has a flyer showing Second Attack as support on some Conflict gigs, I can’t imagine it was easy for a project like this to get noticed in the pre-internet era. The second issue is that they recorded this in 1989 and the record presumably came out shortly thereafter, meaning this was WAY late to the party. This record sounds like a long lost treasure from the No Future Records catalog, but it’s being released at the same time as Nirvana’s Bleach. Thankfully, today’s punks can hear it because this is a solid single. The sound is primitive punk a la Red Alert or the 4 Skins, nothing more and nothing less. You could slip these tracks onto a new pressing of the Oi! compilations and I guarantee no one would bat an eye, so if that’s your style, don’t let the date on this one deter you.


Staff Picks: November 5, 2020

Staff Picks: Daniel

Various: Michigan Brand Nuggets 12” (Belvedere Records)

I picked up this double LP compilation a few weeks ago, and it’s been in constant rotation ever since. Having discovered Bob Seger’s early work a few months ago, one big thing that drew me to this record was the note on the cover that says “fortified with 7 very rare Bob Seger songs.” While I tracked down a copy of the Bob Seger System’s Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man album, I was still lacking many of his killer early singles on vinyl and Michigan Brand Nuggets fills several gaps. I’m stoked to have tracks like “East Side Story” and “Heavy Music Part 2” on vinyl, but this record offers way more than that.

Besides Bob Seger, Michigan Nuggets also features rare tracks by the MC5, Question Mark and the Mysterians, and the Amboy Dukes (but not the Stooges, despite Iggy being on the cover). What you get here are the tracks you’d be most interested in if you’re a fan of Nuggets style garage rock, and every track is a scorcher. The biggest revelation to me was the rare single versions of tracks by the MC5. This version of “Looking at You” from their 1968 single on A-Square Records is the rawest, most blown-out recording on this entire record, and it just shreds. The guitars are cascading sheets of noise, reminding me of the very best Les Rallizes Denudes recordings I’ve heard. The MC5’s debut single, “I Can Only Give You Everything,” also appears here, and it’s a song most anyone into 60s music will know, but the MC5 imbue it with their raw power here. Hearing these tracks has also led me to spend time with the MC5’s Babes in Arms record (originally released on ROIR), which showcases this side of the band much better than any of their actual albums.

As befitting a record with the Nuggets brand name, this double LP is full of obscure tracks from groups I’ve never heard. Detroit’s rock scene is legendary so it’s unsurprising there are so many killer deep cuts, but one thing that sticks out to me as a common thread is the influence of Motown on these rock bands. Great bass lines and raw, soulful vocals are all over this record, and it makes plain how integral the whole Motown scene was to the emerging heavy rock scene that would ultimately birth punk.

While the collection peters out at the end of side four with a couple of Bob Seger’s novelty records that aren’t my cup of tea, on the whole it plays like a killer mix tape. Further, the detailed liner notes offer context and anecdotes about every single track. If you’re itching to pick this one up, it looks like there are many copies available on Discogs for prices that aren’t terrible. Or if, like me, you happen across it in a used bin, it’s worth grabbing as it’s a cut well above your bog-standard comp of 60s obscurities.

Staff Picks: Jeff

While I personally think that Italy produced some of the best hardcore bands during the 1980s, Link Lärm is one of those bands that I had little-to-no awareness of. But man, after hearing this LP entitled Troppo Presto... ...O Troppo Tardi? that compiles the band’s only 2 recording sessions, I gotta say this band is right up my alley. The A-side of the record I believe contains the band’s contribution to Sutura Eterna, an Italian punk compilation released in 1986, but I think some of the tracks are previously unreleased from that same recording session. The B-side, much rawer in production, is the band’s 1984 demo tape. While both recording sessions have their charm, this LP is worth it for the 7 songs on the A-side alone.

Initially, Link Lärm stands out to me as being pretty melodic. There are moments where the wonky guitar work, mixed with the quirky, angular rhythms of the drums and the tuneful vocals, almost reminds me of Articles of Faith, particularly a track of theirs like “I’ve Got Mine”. Link Lärm does launch into some totally ripping fast parts, and while they are intense and chaotic, maybe they are a tad more calculated and less off the rails than say... Wretched. The big highlight and stand-out track for me is “Senatore.” It really showcases the charisma and personality of the vocalist. This track makes me imagine that at a live gig this dude would be quite the character. It’s a more mid-paced song, and when it launches into the big chorus with gang vocal type chants, it makes me want to scream along like I know the words and I don’t even know any Italian! Link Lärm has such a cool blend of off-kilter melodicism and raging intensity. So glad I got to discover this band through this reissue.

No Plan Records released this platter in super limited quantities, only 200 copies on black vinyl worldwide. We only got a handful, but I think there’s still a few of these collection LPs available from Sorry State. Gitchu one, punk.

Thanks for reading,
-Jeff

Staff Picks: Eric

Bad Breeding: Exiled 12" (Iron Lung Records)

I feel like I’m always a little behind the curve when it comes new music. We had this record in the store last year for so long and I listened to it once or twice but I guess it never did it for me. Daniel praised it and it was generally liked by everyone in the shop, but here I am over a year later in my room jamming this record and I’m kicking myself for not seeing the light sooner.

Let the record show that I did see them play in Raleigh last year and they were hands down the best set I had seen all year, but I still had this idea in my head that it wasn’t the same on wax.

The phrase that comes to mind as I listen is: controlled chaos. Sonically it just keeps pounding and making sudden, unexpected changes but it never falls apart. I’m having a hard time finding something to compare it to. It’s blazing fast, but also a bit experimental and droney at times. It takes influence from Anarcho punk and other extreme English punk groups but Bad Breeding are their own monster.

The lyrical content and artistic message is nothing short of sophisticated political attack. From class/wealth inequality to war to the police, Bad Breeding takes on these topics in a way that isn’t played out or contrived. I’d argue Bad Breeding is one of the most unique, genuine and awe inspiring bands in the landscape of contemporary hardcore punk. Do yourself a favor and give it a spin.

Staff Picks: Dominic

Hello friends. As I write this week’s newsletter inclusion, the election here in America is still undecided and a closer race than it should be. It will likely be decided by the time you are reading this. I didn’t get to vote as I am still not a citizen of the United States. I do get to pay taxes though. The irony there is not lost on me. Taxes without representation was something that caused some tea to be dumped in to a harbor some years ago wasn’t it? Anyway, I will hopefully be a citizen for the mid-terms. The last time I voted in an election was in Britain back in the 80’s and my only time. I was at college and in the Student Union, not quite a character from The Young Ones but certainly becoming more politically aware as a young adult. Years previously as a kid I found a lot of “news” from records and would take cues from songs or the artists I liked. I can honestly say that my love of music definitely shaped who I am as a person and what I believe in.

There are tons of names I could list that have influenced me over the years. Growing up in the 70’s and early 80’s I was exposed to a lot of different music styles and youth cultures. Things were pretty tribal back then but it was the Two-Tone movement that seemed to be the most vital and on point politically and socially to my young developing mind. I wasn’t even a skin or rude boy but more a rockabilly back then and realizing that strict codes of tribal divide weren’t for me and that if the music was this good it didn’t matter what cult you came from. The Two-Tone groups balanced politics with pop music superbly and none more so than The Specials. They were just the best. I am sure you don’t need me to tell you that.

So, for this week my pick is their 1981 single Ghost Town and it’s flip Why? Both of these songs touched me from the very first time I heard them and still hold their worth forty years later. In this current culture of cruelty, the lyrics to Why? seem just as apt now as they did back then. The tune also featured on a Record Store Day special 10 inch as a dub track recently which ear-wormed me and had me reaching for my Specials records. Ghost Town is still the sleeper protest song it always has been. Various writers have gone into the power and beauty of this classic over the years and the many layers of reference and meaning contained within. Definitely search the internet for some of these essays where they get into more depth if you are interested. Released in a time of recession and riots, this was the group's last single before breaking up and reforming as the Special AKA and was written by founding member Jerry Dammers. It stayed in the charts for weeks and was number one for three of them. Helped along by a video that featured the band driving around empty streets in a Vauxhall Cresta. Classic. The tune sounds just as fresh today.

It was the B-side track Why? that I was looking for the other day, as its words were echoing around my mind. I pulled out my 12” single version and remembered that in addition to having the tracks Why? and Friday Night Saturday Morning, another classic observation on British life along the lines of That’s Entertainment by The Jam, it had the extended version of Ghost Town on it. Brilliant. I’ll leave links to all three tracks so that you can refresh your memories and enjoy them. Do please pay attention to some of the lyrics. It’s sad that we are still fighting Nazis in 2020 but hopefully the right step was taken on Tuesday. “The people getting angry”

Good luck everyone. Until next week, ta-ra – Dom





Staff Picks: Usman

Mess - Get Into A Mess (1986) King's World Records

This record is insane. The intro gets me excited every time, no matter what I am doing. That scream at the beginning... it's perfect. Its weird how good (but awesome) this EP is yet you can still find copies for like $12 if you're patient. I remember the first time I heard it, the intro had me hooked right in and I was hoping so much I would love what followed cos with an intro like that you can really go any direction after. The flexi is 4 tracks total, and when I listen to it I never want it to be over. The songs are written in this really dynamic way, a way that compels me to listen so closely to whats happening. The songs have a general sense of urgency, but the drummer keeps everything locked right in. The songs are anthemic as fuck, kind of reminiscent of The Stalin. A lot of the riffs bounce around in the catchiest way but with no cheese, if you know what I mean. When the vocalist is singing, its rampant and nonstop - I think this element reminds me a lot of The Stalin, too. The vocals carry the songs a lot, along with the drums playing right on top of the beat. The B side starts with He That's Down Need Fear No Fall. The song has a slow trudgey beginning that goes into these fucked up guitar leads that are followed by a series of punches, but man the punches are carrying so much motion behind them it makes me want to fucking explode. I don't know how they do it. That's what I meant by dynamic song writing. Often times when a band write songs that have lots of tempo changes it throws me off too much, but Mess manages to incorporate different tempos into one song, while maintaining an overall driving feeling. Interesting note on this song; every digital rip i've heard, and every copy i've heard (which is 3 different discs, I think) has a weird scratch sound in the same exact place. So either the master tape had some type of deterioration or something, or there was a pressing defect.

King's World Records was based in Fukuoka, Japan. They have released material from many bands since 1986. Some of my favorites include Swankys/Gai, Kuro, and Confuse. Their debut release was a flexi-disc from Swanky's, Rock 'N Roll History Fuck Off, who were also from the same city as King's World Records. This EP is pretty cool, the guitar tone sounds pretty similar to the guitar on the Mess flexi to me, but I did always prefer Gai releases over the Swanky's. I believe Get Into A Mess was the following release on King's World Records (according to the catalogue number) but i'm not positive. I'm also not sure where Mess was from but I do know the recording session on this flexi was in Fukuoka as well. The two releases that followed were recorded in Tokyo, which is pretty far from Fukuoka.

I heard first heard Mess on their ±9 CD. My friend Osamu gave the CD to me. That's why I decided to write about Mess today. Osamu was a cool ass dude. He could be pretty quiet but when I got to know him we would nerd out together about records, namely Japanese records. He was Japanese. I don't think he ever lived there but I know he would visit every now and again. He shared a lot of cool flyers, zines, records, etc with me that he had collected from his visits. I always appreciated his generosity and just genuine common interest, and I did my best to share with others what he would share with me. It's a painful shame that he is no longer with us. He will be desperately missed in the Raleigh scene. It's so sad he is gone. He was an excellent musician, and visual artist even. He played bass in No Love, Daniel's band. I'm sure he played in other bands before I moved here that I just don't know about. He was a nerd like I said, and I know enjoyed making "fan fiction" of bands he enjoyed. It deeply warmed my heart the night he showed up to my house with "fan fiction" he created for my old band Drugcharge. It looked so fucking cool too..I used the art on some tour tapes. The last time we spoke I had just got a copy of The Stalin's Stop Jap, and I was sending him photos - mainly of the insert with the lyrics to the song Stop Jap itself. I had always wondered that they meant by the phrase, cos to me that word is slur. Some punks use that word to describe Japanese HC, I cannot understand why they can't simply say the entire word. Have they forgotten Hiroshima? Nagasaki? The Great Tokyo Airhead of March 1945? How about the fucking Japanese interment camps in the United States??? Anyway, the song... he told me told me the lyrics were "very contextual to the times, and seems to be anti-nationalism." I think he asked his dad to translate them, who I have never met. So maybe they used the word in response to the slur being developed? Or, in Japan maybe they have had a different relationship with this word since before the Americans used it as a slur during World War II. He wrote me back a few hours later saying he was blasting The Stalin and writing Tam (ADK Records, G-Zet, Stalin) conspiracy fiction, haha. I wish I could read it. That was the last time we spoke. Rest in peace, my friend.

Staff Picks: Rachel

YOUTH AGAINST DRUGS- DAN MCCURDY

Ayyyy I’m Rachel and I just started working for Sorry State! I’ve been a customer and fan for a while and am stoked to join the team. I love a good, rare record in pristine condition like the rest of y’all, but what REALLY gets me excited about digging through bins is finding that weird oddball shit that tells you what the world was like when the record was pressed.

I was re-cataloging my collection and I had completely forgotten I picked this up on a trip to Dallas a while ago. Youth Against Drugs, by Dan McCurdy is from 1971 and I had never put it on my turntable until last week. I honestly had to listen to it like three times because I kept laughing. I love over the top anti drug advertising. And this is some of the most over the top music and dialog I’ve heard.

This album is the PERFECT relic of anti-hippie, terrified-of-free-love, ‘straight’ (as the record puts it) propaganda. Dramatic music, absurd descriptions of inebriation, and of course culminating in interviews with *gasp* actual drug users, this release uses every trick in the book to scare parents. Some of my favorite bits include McCurdy talking about ‘incense filled rooms’ and ‘running naked in the street’ as indications of drug use in kids.

Looking at it from a 2020 perspective, as someone who has been in the cannabis adjacent and cannabis industry since college, and with the context of the current election, I thought this record would be a great first foray into my collection of oddities. I’m not sure I can recommend this, both because I don’t want to get Daniel in trouble and because I haven’t found a recording of this online….but roll up some of the devil’s lettuce and give this piece a listen!

I look forward to sharing some of my weirder records and probably rambling way too long about some of the metal releases in my collection!

Record of the Week: Ninth Circle: Awake Horrors 7"

Ninth Circle: Awake Horrors 7” (self-released) Awake Horrors is the debut 7” from this band out of Texas, and it’s an under the radar ripper. When I checked out Ninth Circle my first impression was that they sounded like M.A.N.-era G.I.S.M. fused with the catchy, goth’d out metal of Devil Master. I still think this description works, and if you’re a fan of Devil Master or Zorn, check this out right away. My favorite parts of the record, though, are when Ninth Circle stretches out into a longer instrumental passage, which they do often with their intros and outros. These parts sound more metal than the more G.I.S.M.-y parts with vocals, and the leads are melodic and memorable without sounding cheesy at all… some parts even have a neoclassical touch a la Mercyful Fate. It’s rare that a band can sound this ripping and gritty while still being so catchy.

Featured Release Roundup: October 29, 2020

Kaleidoscope: Decolonization 7” (D4MT Labs) At Sorry State we’ve sung Kaleidoscope’s praises for several years now. Every record they release satisfies and surprises us, and Decolonization is no different. Three of these five tracks ply Kaleidoscope’s usual trade of hardcore punk elevated by intricate rhythms and brilliant guitar work, and they’re as ripping and memorable as anything the band has put out so far. However, as with “Scorched Earth” on their 2017 EP on D4MT Labs, there are a couple of outliers. I’ve always sensed a Hendrix quality to Kaleidoscope guitarist Shiva’s playing, and on “Girmitiya,” they lean into the slinky, sexy (!!!) vibe of Hendrix’s more sensual songs, with a stretched-out, lazy groove and breathy vocals that sound like nothing any other punk bands on my radar are doing. Then there’s the closing track, “One Drop // Blood Quantum,” which starts off with fast hardcore but transitions into a gripping breakdown to end the record. It’s crazy that a record this good is par for the course, but such is the case with Kaleidoscope.


Rolex: S/T 7” (11pm Records) For the past few years, California’s Rolex has been releasing a series of short, two-song cassettes titled R, O, L, E, and X. Now 11PM Records helps to wrap up that project by compiling all 10 of those songs (in new, re-recorded versions) on this 7”. The only thing I didn’t love about the previous cassette versions (all of which we carried at SSR ) is that they were so short, so it’s funny that this makes or a rather long 7”. The re-recordings sound great, and the music is even stronger for having more of it. Rolex’s sound is bent and quirky, as aggressive as your standard fast hardcore band, but with a hyper-developed sense of rhythm that they show off with numerous time changes. The result reminds me of bands like early Meat Puppets, Nasa Space Universe, or Das Drip, all of whom play(ed) lightning fast but dense and sophisticated music. Rolex isn’t confrontationally weird, though; there’s more than enough catchy, old-school California punk to make these songs more than just calisthenics for your ears. Highly recommended.


Staring Problem: Eclipse 12” (Modern Tapes) Debut LP from this Chicago band that released their first cassette way back in 2010. It’s clear that Staring Problem takes a lot of influence from the Cure circa Seventeen Seconds and Faith—they even cover “M” from Seventeen Seconds on Eclipse—but they give us their own spin on the sound. On Eclipse’s first few tracks Staring Problem takes that gloomy Cure aesthetic and gives it a punky jolt, upping the tempo and putting emphasis on the bright, sing-song-y vocals. The singer reminds me of Cassie from Vivian Girls, and if you’re a fan of that band’s dreamy, upbeat punk-pop, you should give Staring Problem a listen. Ditto if you’re into another semi-recent, Cure-influenced group, Siamese Twins, who are a little more on the nose than Staring Problem but in the same vein. I like bands in this style who emphasize pop melodies over atmosphere, and Eclipse is right in that sweet spot.


Overdose: Two Wheels and Gone 12” (Splattered! Records) A while back New York’s Overdose came to Raleigh and laid waste to the Bunker with their Motorhead-inspired metal-punk sound, and ever since I’ve been waiting for more than a two-song single to listen to. The wait is over! Two Wheels and Gone is everything you want it to be… raw, undiluted, Motorhead-inspired rock-and-roll. While there’s barely a moment here that Overdose doesn’t model on Motörhead’s style, something about Two Wheels and Gone avoids the cosplay-ish quality that bands inspired by another band can fall into. It’s easy for a band like this to devolve into a party-metal cartoon, but Overdose keeps it raw and real with raw production, lyrics about motorcycles, and more riffs than you’ll care to count. This is music made to play as you hurl a half-empty bottle of Jack Daniels at a cop car.


Final Slum War:  Agora Fudeu! 12” (Rawmantic Disasters) This d-beat / crust band from Barcelona has been around for a decade now, but  Agora Fudeu! is their first stand-alone 12” They appeared on a split 12” with Brazil’s Besthöven, and their straightforward sound resembles that band’s reverent take on classic d-beat. Final Slum War sports some cool metallic riffs and a lot of stops and starts that keep things interesting, but I could see a dabbler in the genre dismissing this as generic. However, if you go way deep with this stuff, Final Slum War will get you revved up.


Kansan Uutiset: Suomi Orgasmin Partaalla 12” (Höhnie) Suomi Orgasmin Partaalla collects this classic Finnish hardcore band’s 1983 Beautiful Dreams album on one disc along with demo tracks on a bonus one-sided disc. Kansan Uutiset intrigued me before I ever heard them thanks to the cool cover artwork (that mohawk!), and when I tracked their music down, it didn’t disappoint. Like their Finnish contemporaries in Riistetyt and Destrucktions, Kansan Uutiset is all intensity with a blazing, minimal sound that doesn’t let up (well, until the questionable Stooges cover and the surf instrumental that end the album). One thing I always liked about Kansan Uutiset is that their riffs and drumming have more of a US hardcore feel. The riffs are straightforward, with minimal but insistent drumming that makes me think of Dischord bands like SOA or Youth Brigade, albeit with a singer more in the Wattie from Exploited / “rabid barker” mode. While Kansan Uutiset doesn’t offer much in the way of frills, if you like your hardcore ripping and to the point, Suomi Orgasmin Partaalla is a great pickup.