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What’s up Sorry Staters?

How’s everyone doing? I’m having a pretty nice start to my October. Many welcome distractions from all the fucked up craziness going on in the world. At least there are positive things to look forward to. Very excited for our friends in Golpe to return and play Raleigh in a couple weeks. Rigorous Institution plays here the day before as well. Hell yeah.

I’ve been trying my best to get into the October spirit like I always do. I began decorating the store with all kinds of spiders, webs, bats, skeletons, and pumpkins. Still more work to be done, but it’s looking pretty spoopy. So yeah, I’ve been watching a lot of movies. As I mentioned last week, there’s a local theater here in Raleigh that does cool screenings of horror movies in October. I’ve been seeing movies in the theater a lot lately, which is rad. But man, I went to go see the latest David Cronenberg movie The Shrouds the other day… do people like this movie? What a piece of shit. Sorry to be harsh. And that’s coming from someone who loves Cronenberg movies. I felt like the main actor reminded me of Tommy Wiseau in The Room. Superfluous, meandering shots of this half-naked old man, which evolved into what came across like an excuse for this guy to insist on these overindulgent, creepy, cringey love-making scenes with younger actresses. Stilted, bad dialogue. No plot point of the movie mattered or contributed to the ending. I sat there watching the credits being like, “What the fuck did I just watch?” Yikes.

Anyway, enough complaining about that. Last night I went to see Bride Of Re-Animator. While I’ve seen the original Re-Animator and its Lovecraftian sister movie From Beyond many times, it had been several years since I’d watched the sequel. It’s interesting that Re-Animator came out in 1985, and the concept wasn’t revisited until this film in 1990. Jeffrey Combs returns as the iconic Dr. Herbert West, leaning even more heavily into an exaggerated portrayal of the character with an awesome performance. His delivery on all of his quippy, deadpan one-liners is excellent. The whole theater would erupt with laughter in perfect timing for each of his beats; it was great.

The effects in the original Re-Animator are killer—undead walking, talking severed heads and all that. But Bride Of Re-Animator brings the fantastical, splatter-tastic gruesomeness to the next level. What I had forgotten is that all the gore effects in Bride were the work of Screaming Mad George. What a fuckin’ legend. I’m a huge fan. My initial exposure to Screaming Mad George’s special FX work was when I first saw the Nightmare On Elm Street sequels that he worked on. He’s worked on tons of big movies, but another sleeper one I’ll mention is his work on Society, just a gem of hilarious, yet sickening body horror. But when I was younger and watching his work in these 80s horror flicks, this was loooong before I made the connection to the punk world, which is that Screaming Mad George was the singer of late 70s NY punk legends The Mad. The spooning of the eyeball was a small hint of what was to come.

A brief explanation of the movie, for those unfamiliar: Dr. Herbert West and Dr. Dan Cain are performing experimental research in the basement of their home, a former mortuary. West is secretly stealing severed body parts from the hospital where they both work. With these severed body parts, West and Cain attempt to assemble a super-human of sorts, stitching these limbs together… the legs of a dancer, the face of a beautiful woman who died tragically young of cancer, and most importantly, the heart of Cain’s fiancée who passed away. They plan to use West’s same glowing re-animating agent from the first movie, but rather than reawaken the dead, they will use it to give life to a new creature altogether. Meanwhile, the severed head of the villainous Dr. Hill is accidentally re-animated and seeks vengeance! You know, that old thing we’ve seen time after time (*wink*wink, just kidding).

It’s a wild ride. The blending of the levity of humor alongside the gory gruesomeness strikes a perfect balance, and probably makes it easier for casual viewers to stomach. Screaming Mad George’s FX work on the zombie bride, as well as all the other severed limbs and creatures, is just incredible. A grotesque yet beautiful visual spectacle. And especially impressive knowing all the work is practical effects. I’m such a nerd for that kinda stuff. Not to mention that this screening was a 4K remastered print for the big screen. In theory, I might think I would have problems with the whole 4K thing, worrying it might look too digital or something. In fact, it still looked organic like the old movie, just crisper, clearer, and more vivid.

Anyway, that’s all I’ve got for this week. Tune in next week to read me blab about more spooky horror goodness. As always, thanks for reading.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

Sorry again for not getting a newsletter out last week. Running Sorry State is always a balancing act, and last week it felt like all the plates came crashing to the ground. I needed a few days to recover, but now I’m back to pushing the rock uphill. It’s bound to happen from time to time, and I appreciate everyone’s patience when it does.

Last week I went out to Local 506 in Chapel Hill to check out Sacred Bones artist Anika play. I don’t think I’ve talked it in the newsletter at all (aside from maybe a brief mention in the new arrivals section), but Anika’s new album, Abyss, has been one of my most played records of the year so far. I spend so much time listening to contemporary hardcore punk that not much non-punk new music penetrates my orbit. Anika was on my radar, though, because Rich from ISS and Paranoid Maniac recommended her old band, Exploded View, to me at some point. I picked up one of Exploded View’s records in the clearance bin at Chaz’s Records in Durham a few years ago and spun it a lot, and when I read the description of Abyss and realized Anika was the singer, I gave it a spin. I liked Abyss right away and have kept returning to it all summer. Anika’s rich, deep vocals and evocative lyrics carry over from Exploded View, but there’s a kind of 90s alt-rock heaviness to the record that really does it for me. It’s like Nico singing for Dinosaur Jr or something. I urge you to check out Abyss if that sounds at all like it might be interesting to you.

The show was an interesting experience. Before the gig, I hit Mediterranean Deli, one of my favorite restaurants in Chapel Hill, which had been closed for several years after a fire destroyed their space. Med Deli is located right near the beloved (and sadly now-defunct) Chapel Hill venue the Nightlight, and I always used to joke that it was responsible for many a sluggish set from Raleigh punk bands who ate a big, nap-inducing meal there before the gig. The meal was everything I remembered and more, and I walked up the street to Local 506 in a great mood. I knew absolutely no one at the gig, which was kind of nice. I arrived just as the opening band was finishing, and rather than make a new friend, I passed the time between sets planning SSR’s staff meeting on my phone.

Anika’s set was excellent, though not entirely what I expected. She is based in the UK (I think), but the rest of her band wasn’t along for the trip. The ensemble for tonight was Anika on vocals, a guitarist whose name I didn’t catch playing all those reverb-drenched shoegaze-y parts, and one of Anika’s bandmates from Exploded View on drums. The bass and other effects came from a backing track, which had its pluses and minuses. On the plus side, the sound was absolutely incredible, and almost indistinguishable from the record… it felt like blasting Abyss on the best sound system in the world. But I got the impression that playing along to backing tracks kept the members’ performances on a tight leash… even subtle things about Anika’s performance, like the inflection of the words and the way she would periodically overload the mic, sounded eerily like the record. There were a few moments of spontaneity, though, like how Anika jumped into the crowd for the punky “Out of the Shadows,” and a couple of stripped-down tunes (including a Yoko Ono cover) without the backing track at the end of the set. Since I didn’t know anyone, I kind of bolted at the end of the set. Anika was posted up at the merch table chatting with people, and while I wanted to know why she speaks with an English accent but sings with a German accent, I was too shy to ask.

Anika’s set was the kickoff for a busy couple of weeks of shows in this area. I always say it’s feast or famine for shows in Raleigh, and we’re feasting right now. Sadly, I had to miss the Catharsis show at Kings on Friday, but it looked like it ruled. This Friday, Will from To Live a Lie Records is putting on Dry Socket and a bunch of other bands at RUMAH, then Rigorous Institution plays on Sunday at a new venue called Cannonball Music Hall, and then Golpe returns on Monday, which will also be my debut as the bassist for Starving Bomb. And then after that, maybe I’ll rest a bit.

Oh yeah, I’m supposed to choose a record as my staff pick, right? Let’s go with this 1980 compilation from New Zealand, which I’ve been listening to a lot lately. Its title is a bit confusing… I’ve seen it referred to as Four Stars, ****, and various combinations of the two. It originally came out on a label called Sausage Records, and it features a few tracks each from four bands: Life in the Fridge Exists, Wallsockets, Naked Spots Dance, and Beat Rhythm Fashion. For the first two bands, Four Stars was the only material they released; Naked Spots Dance managed an album in 1983, while Beat Rhythm Fashion released 3 singles before breaking up in 1982. All four bands sound like they could have been on the early Rough Trade roster, playing scrappy renditions of punk that had only recently acquired the “post-” prefix. That’s one of my favorite eras of music, and these groups have a similar vibe to the Raincoats, Swell Maps, the Slits, etc… arty weirdos who walked through punk’s door found more than just power chords and tired rock cliches.

One clear highlight is the opening track, “Have You Checked the Children,” by Life in the Fridge Exists. Full of angry young woman energy, the song rises above your typical DIY clatter with a particularly impassioned delivery and some clever wordplay. I love the line, “your sons and your daughters / are working in saunas,” which is exactly the kind of clever half-rhyme that makes me smile. Maybe saunas are stigmatized in New Zealand, but in my 21st-century American brain there doesn’t appear to be anything so bad about working at a sauna. The image, for me, pushes the song into the realm of the surreal, the singer getting all worked up about something that doesn’t seem like a big deal at all. I’m struggling to explain where the language’s power comes from, but it’s there for me.

My copy of Four Stars is a bootleg that came out in 2020. The original is impossibly rare… only 250 copies pressed, and the Discogs median currently stands at $340 USD (one copy is currently for sale for $450). I could be wrong, but it appears the bootleg copy I have may come from the same source as two other semi-recent bootleg compilations: The Buntington Long Playing Record and Scaling Triangles (the latter of which we carried at Sorry State). All three titles have similar packaging and a similar MO, bringing a very obscure regional compilation back into print at a budget price. Everyone has an opinion on bootlegs, but I say god bless the folks responsible for these. Compilations are a logistical nightmare in the first place, and I can’t imagine what it would take to officially reissue a small regional compilation from 40 years ago… just contacting the bands would be a challenge, not to mention getting them all signed on for a reissue. A bootleg is a quick and dirty option, and since I don’t think there’s much money to be made in this enterprise, all can be forgiven in the name of spreading around some great art. I can’t help but wonder, though… if these three compilations are all part of the same series, are there others I’ve missed? Please let me know if there are!

Haram: ليش الجنة بيتبلش في الجهنم؟ Why Does Paradise Begin in Hell 12" (Toxic State Records) New York City hardcore punk band Haram returns with their first new recordings in six years. While Haram’s previous records have all been striking, this new album explodes into technicolor without leaving the heaviness or intensity of their previous work behind. If you’ve been following Haram since their inception, you’ll notice right away that this new album has more ambitious production than previous Haram records, not only capturing the the richest and most powerful tones we’ve heard from any of the band’s recordings, but also making space in the mix for each player’s contribution to shine and allowing the music to go places only hinted at on previous records. Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot of straightforward hardcore punk on ليش الجنة بيتبلش في الجهنم؟ Why Does Paradise Begin in Hell, and it is excellent. The album’s lead single, “Persecution – اضطهاد,” puts the band’s existing fans in their happy place with a hooky, mid-paced riff meant to get the pit agitated, ably set off by an arrangement that ebbs and flows eloquently. With a solid decade of experience, Haram attacks hardcore with the skill and precision of veterans, building their songs around infectious main riffs (see “Sinner – كافر” and “Secret – سر”) and arranging them to maximize their power and impact. But it’s the spaces where Haram departs from the hardcore playbook that really stand out. There’s a lot more lead guitar on ليش الجنة بيتبلش في الجهنم؟ Why Does Paradise Begin in Hell than on previous Haram records, and their guitarist has a unique style, avoiding both the pentatonic patterns and chromatic anarchy that typify hardcore lead playing in favor of melodies and lines that lean heavily on middle eastern modes and scales. These leads sometime get deployed as more or less traditional rock guitar solos (see “Sinner – كافر”), but they’re even cooler when they function as the song’s main instrumental hook, as in “The Last Night – ليل من اخر ليل.” And then there’s the drumming, which is also both creative and powerfully performed. I’m not sure I’ve paid much attention to Haram’s drums in the past, but they’re total fire here, largely avoiding fills in favor of repetitive, typically tom-centered beats that ride the line between propelling the songs and peppering them with interesting rhythmic syncopation. And then there are Nader’s vocals, which are the star of the show for most listeners, I’m sure. Arabic’s cadences and palette of sounds aren’t something you hear paired with hardcore punk every day, and they pull against these songs’ rhythms in exciting ways, with Nader’s performance soaked in passion and energy. I only wish I could read Arabic so I could understand the songs directly rather than through the English translations. As we expect from both Haram and Toxic State, the packaging is also exquisite, with a unique and evocative color scheme on the hand-screened LP jacket, a big poster, and an illustrated lyric booklet. If you love bands who take hardcore punk to new places while maintaining the intensity and directness that make the genre great, Haram’s new LP is one of 2015’s un-missable releases.

Hello fellow Sorry Staters! Not too much going on in my world, except the obvious that I seem to mention every week. It just seems to continue to get more daunting to process and think about the political climate of the world, so sometimes I just need to shut down, turn it off, and get off of social media for a little while to give my brain and anxiety a little break. They recently announced a festival with a handful of dates called Slide Away Festival. I mention it because I’m very excited that Hum is reforming after the drummer’s death to play these festival dates. Shows are happening in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. I will probably make the trip to New York to see them in Brooklyn with none other than the Swirlies supporting the show. I am very excited!

I have been having a bit of writer’s block when it comes to picking out a record and talking about it. So I just randomly picked a CD out of my collection this week, and it just so happened to be a record I am really fond of. Mainly because I looked up to this band member throughout all of my teenage years discovering punk for the first time and then later discovering what punk could be in my 40s. I pulled out the CD, The Evens—Get Evens. This is the second album out of the three that they have recorded so far. Looking back at older reviews of this album when it first came out, folks did not give it very good reviews, stating that it was lazy and not as groundbreaking as the first self-titled album. Once I revisited this record, I just could not agree with those statements. Yes, the first self-titled album is really really good, but the second one just shows them mature into their odd indie folk-rock sound. The guitars sounded like they had more depth, and Ian MacKaye’s wife, Amy Farina, the drummer in the band, sounded way tighter and more intentional in what she was playing. Together, it finally came into a really tight and cohesive project. Maybe folks like the first album better because of the lo-fi grittiness of the recording, which most of the time is what I prefer, but this album found them at their best musically.

That is all I have for this week folks! Just a reminder since you made it to the bottom of the newsletter (thank you!) we have been listing a HUGE grindcore collection we picked up a week or so ago, and ya’ll are eating it up. We are listing things daily, so please continue to check the webstore if that is your thing.

What’s up Sorry State readers? Happy October! I can’t wait for the weather to cool off and for some fall festivities to commence. I’ll probably end up writing a staff pick or two on a horror movie… who knows? This week though, I’ll be writing about a cool record I found in the store. Whenever I’m working the counter and it gets busy and I need to throw something on real quick, the world section is usually the first spot I’ll consult and just grab whatever is the coolest/most interesting-looking thing. We’ve gotten a ton of great stuff in recently, but one record I’ve particularly been enjoying a lot is this compilation by the Ethiopian jazz artist, Mulatu Astatke: New York - Addis – London. This double LP compiles tracks of his ranging from 1965-1975 and they’re all fantastic. Just very chill and relaxing tunes to throw on, but still interesting enough to keep you hooked and listening. There’s also some more upbeat, dance-y numbers on here too, like Asiyo Bellema. There’s a wide mix of influences on here honestly and all kinds of different styles, like some tracks with a Latin jazz influence or Afro-Cuban. I think you’d be hard-pressed to listen to this and not find a track on here that you love. I’m a big fan of the final track, Tezeta. It sounds like such a fitting final track and almost sounds like you’d hear it roll in the credits of some cool-ass old foreign movie or something. Check this one out for sure!

Hi and thanks for reading. I went and saw MASTER last night here in town. I was on the fence cos I don’t like going to metal shows. I don’t really even like metal; I think it’s corny shit. Of course, I love SEPULTURA. I also think SUFFOCATION’s Human Waste EP is a masterpiece. And, I do like every DARKTHRONE record I have ever heard. My friend got me into MASTER sometime during the pandemic. Their 1990 LP is excellent, if you ask me. I hoped they would play some tracks from it, and they sure did. Recently I discovered their unreleased demo from 1985, and that shit rips as well. The show was thirty bucks, another reason I didn’t wanna go. I lucked out and walked in with the right person though, cos the door guy let me in for free. So sick. At first, I thought the band was a bit too cheesy. The drummer would stand up often after songs. The guitarist would point the neck of his guitar at the crowd with his legs spread. He and the guitarist both would stick their tongues out and make mean metal faces. But after some time, I could see they were just having a good time. In between a few songs near the end, they would jam out on some silly riffs, and I could see their band dynamic was wholesome and not super serious. This was pleasant to see. The crowd was stiff. But still, I had to throw some beer cans at the band. I wasn’t sure how they’d take it, but who cares. The drummer gave me a tongue of affirmation though, hahah. One can landed on his little splash cymbal, and he loved it. After the gig was over, I saw what I thought were two people approaching the bassist/vocalist separately and asking him for the set list on his amp. He would just shake his head and turn his back to them. I waited a few minutes and then asked him if those guys had asked for the set list. He confirmed that happened, and then I asked him why he wouldn’t give it up. He said he didn’t wanna have to write a new one, haha. Well, I still asked him for the set list, politely. He turned me down at first, but I said I would even write him a new set list if I could keep the original. Not sure if it was the punishing or the charisma, but he surrendered it to me in the end. Score, hehe.

Alright, onward to my staff pick - LAMA!!! This record is essential for any record collection, easily. The Svart description nailed it perfectly, and you can read that in the product description on our website. I did a bit of LAMA nerding a few months ago when I wrote about the LAMA box set that Svart also did, so I really don’t have a lot to say today about their LP. If you still haven’t picked one of those box sets up for some odd reason, you seriously need one. Their LP was originally released on Johanna, just like all their EPs. The LP was released in 1982, after they did three of the four 7”s. It kinda sucks I can’t find the LP online anywhere streaming, but there is some sick live footage of them playing a track from the LP. If you haven’t heard this LP, just trust me that it’s good as I say and you need a copy, haha. This is the second time Svart has pressed it; the first time was back in 2011. Those actually became kinda hard to come by, so it’s great that Svart put it back in print! Oh yeah, if you don’t have that double-disc compilation that Stupido did a few years ago, maybe you haven’t heard these demo recordings from 1980! It’s mostly just the Totuus Löytyy Kaurapuurosta EP, however there is a song that I don’t think they ever recorded again, and it only appeared in that demo session. I saw the same youtube channel has a live recording of LAMA from 1981, and they play a good chunk of the LP songs. I know live recordings that are just audio with no video can be boring for some, but I think it was still cool listen—check it out! Alright, I think that’s all I have for today. Cheers and thanks for reading, and thanks for your support!

Hey there everyone, what’s up?

Thanks for checking in with us. I missed the newsletter last week as I visited Norfolk, Virginia to attend the Johnny Marr gig. He was over here stateside with his band making a whistle-stop tour of a few cities before heading back for a more extensive European tour. It was fantastic seeing him again. A true legend and the nicest and coolest guitar slinger around. The show gave me a chance to catch up with some old friends and provided a welcome break from all the madness happening here in America currently. Shout out to local band Community Witch, who supported and got the crowd warmed up. Nice one.

Talking of good shows, I didn’t get a chance to mention the fun time we all had seeing Modem from Finland the other week. Despite a less than sold-out crowd, they gave us the full Monty. We were entertained to say the least. Kudos to their support Clear Channel from Washington D.C., who were ace. If you like ESG-like funky bass lines and Go-Go influences in your pop music, then check these guys out. We still have a couple of their records for sale. Check them out.

I’ll be listening to and watching more live music this weekend as I return to Shakori Hills for the first time since the pandemic. It’s a small bespoke festival that takes place twice a year here in North Carolina and always has good vibes. Musically, it’s billed as grassroots and dance. The lineups have everything from bluegrass to Afrobeat, and I always end up hearing something cool that I wasn’t aware of or expecting. My local DJ buddies and I will be at the Vinyl Lounge tent all weekend spinning records before, between and after bands play. It’s always a good hang and laugh. I haven’t camped in a while, so hope I can remember all my boy scout knots. LoL.

Here at the store, we have been processing several cool collections. Lots of different styles of music to cover a lot of different tastes. One I was pricing had some cool jazz records that are on the floor currently. A few heavy hitters and a lot of nice clean represses of some classics. One that I have in my personal collection is a record by Larry Young called Larry Young’s Fuel. It’s a cool, funky jazz fusion record from 1975 and recommended listening.

Larry Young left the world prematurely, aged just 37, dying from pneumonia. I’ve had that and just made sure I got my vaccine the other week. It’s no joke. The Fuel album came out in 1975 and was released on the Arista label, his new label after a one-album deal at Perception and an almost decade-long residency at Blue Note. His Unity album on Blue Note from 1966 with Joe Henderson is considered a classic and a signpost recording for progressive jazz. Not quite free jazz, but moving in that direction. The Coltrane influence is apparent. Young was an organist primarily, although he played piano too. His style was initially influenced by Jimmy Smith, but he soon developed a unique style and sound of his own. Either as a leader or sideman, his name is on some of the best records that Blue Note released during the sixties. He even turns up on a recording with Jimi Hendrix that surfaced after the guitar hero passed. His contributions to Miles Davis’s Bitches Brew cannot be underestimated, nor can his work with Tony Williams Lifetime. His jazz credentials are firmly established.

At Arista, Young cut two albums. The follow-up to Fuel came out the following year in 1976 and was titled Spaceball. I like that one too. The pair of records could be described as prog-jazz, jazz-fusion, jazz-funk or space-funk. The tags are all accurate. Obviously, Spaceball would fit the last category. Interestingly, the first album is credited to Larry Young, whereas the second artist’s name is Larry Young’s Fuel. I imagine after the first album he considered the group a project and so Spaceball was credited to the group and not him singularly. Maybe? There is a third album, called The Magician, that has a lot of the same musicians and producers, which was recorded in New York but only released in Germany in 1977. He sadly passed the following year.

On these records, Larry Young not only plays the organ and piano but incorporates Moog synths and Fender Rhodes electric keyboards into his repertoire. There are also vocals on the records, making them more soulful, and the rhythm section is definitely funky. Spaceball even has a guest appearance from guitar ace Larry Coryell, who was in the midst of making his own funky fusion records with his group Eleventh House. Another name that might be recognizable is that of Julius Brockington. He was a keyboardist also and an arranger and released a couple of cool soul-jazz records on the Today label a few years prior. Today was a sister label to Perception and part owned by producer Terry Philips, who exec-produced the Larry Young’s Fuel albums. Connect the dots.

These records might not please jazz purists, taking on as they do a very commercial approach much different to his earlier work, but to the modern ear, I think they hold up very well. A big part of that might be the vocals from Laura Logan, who has been described as giving the record a similar vibe to the ones being made by Betty Davis. The production style is much more modern sounding too, and proved tempting for hip-hop producers to sample. The drum and keyboard sounds are both tight and futuristic, yet based on a solid foundation of soul and funk from the past. It’s a shame that Larry had to leave us so early, as based on these outings he was far from over as a musician and artist.

If mid 1970s funk and fusion is your thing and you haven’t listened to Fuel and Spaceball, I would highly recommend you do. We have a copy of Fuel here at the store for anyone interested. Great thing too, not expensive. Another cool record that punches above its weight. Check it out here. Don’t forget to Turn Off The Lights.

Cheers - Dom

What’s up Sorry State fiends and ghouls?

Wow, October 1st already? I must say, this is my favorite time of the year. Seems just as of the last couple days, all of a sudden there’s a bit of a chill in the air. Around my neighborhood, I’m already seeing people adorn their lawns with cheesy decorations, whether I casually encounter skeleton legs sticking out of someone’s garden, people pumping up their collection of giant monster inflatables, or something as simple as just a couple pumpkins plopped out in the grass. As corny as I know it can be, I always try to make a concerted effort to get excited about “spooky season,” as it were. I haven’t been feeling as energetic or motivated about… well, really anything lately. But hopefully some fun Halloween-related activities will reveal themselves in the next couple weeks and I’ll force myself to have rad and eventful October.

The major thing I get excited about once October comes around is binging a bunch of horror movies. Just down the street from me, one of our local movie theaters the Alamo Drafthouse here in Raleigh often hosts a bunch of cool specialty screenings of October-appropriate flicks. There are certain things I don’t like about how Alamo conducts business, like how you’re required to reserve your seat in advance, they’re strict about making too much noise during the movie, blah blah… But I’m sure I’ll try to catch a few movies at the theater over the course of this month. But beyond going out and seeing movies in theaters, I love building excitement and making an excuse to reach for a bunch of my VHS tapes. Because the first day of the month falls on our usual newsletter day, I potentially have 5 opportunities to talk about movies as my staff pick rather than records. Aren’t you excited, Sorry State readers? Mwahahahaha.

The other night, basically functioning as my early dose building anticipation for spooky season, I revisited the movie Popcorn. Since I was just talking about wanting to go see movies at the Alamo, I thought Popcorn would be a cool choice because a majority of the movie is set inside a movie theater! For those unfamiliar, this movie was originally released in 1991, and is basically a slasher, but with a really creative backdrop for the killer. The tone of the movie rides a fine line between actual scares, but also dark humor and clever pop culture references. There’s some serious laugh-out-loud moments.

The plot of Popcorn surrounds a group of film students who decide to rent out an old theater and host a triple-feature horror film festival. Now hold up—let me see if I can verbalize this in a way that makes sense… what I think is so awesome about Popcorn is that the 3 movies shown at the theater (the movies inside the movie) at first glance appear like they could be old black & white 50s horror classics. In actuality, all 3 films are completely fictional and created specifically for Popcorn. They’re basically parodies, clever spoofs of actual films that seem familiar, but are basically riffs on the genre. This is also several years before Scream, which was famous for referencing horror clichés within the movie. I think it’s brilliant that the filmmakers actually had to go out and film and create fully realized concepts for fictional movies that seem convincing while functioning as background for the actual plot.

Another big aspect so cleverly utilized in Popcorn, which is also referential to classic horror movies, is the use of in-theater gimmicks to sell the movie to the audience. This was a big pop culture moment for late 50s/early 60s horror. For example, the first movie of the triple-feature is Mosquito, which is a riff on giant insect movies from the 1950s, and this movie is shown in 3D, so you see all the audience members wearing 3D glasses. Also, the film students rig a giant animatronic mosquito to fly across the audience inside the theater whenever the mosquito on screen attacks. The second movie is called Attack of the Amazing Electrified Man. The audience doesn’t realize that their seats are rigged with a “buzzer” that shocks them when someone gets electrocuted on screen, which is a reference to a 50s movie called The Tingler. Then finally, the third fictional film is called The Stench, which they (for no reason) decide to make into a dubbed movie, fashioned after imported Japanese films like Godzilla or whatever. Its accompanying gimmick, pouring repulsive gas into the audience, is an obvious variation of Smell-O-Vision, the gimmick used in a 1960s movie called Scent of Mystery.

I wanted to get all that information written down, just because I think it’s interesting, but I really don’t wanna spoil the movie if you haven’t seen it. Just know that the killer utilizes the screams of the audience in the theater environment and all the accompanying “gimmicks” from each film to achieve some rather creative kills while the “audience” within theater remains completely unaware or assumes it’s part of the show. There’s some other weird film-related side plot that I won’t get into. But yeah, I fucking love this movie. Quick side note: what’s pretty funny is that Popcorn came out in 1991. But I guess before this, there was never actually a giant killer mosquito movie? Then in 1994, a movie called Mosquito was released… which, you must assume that someone saw Popcorn and thought, “Damn, that’s actually not a bad idea!” Hahaha.

Anyway, prepare for future blabbing about movies over the next several weeks. Tonight, I’m going to see The Shrouds, which is the new David Cronenberg movie. I’m stoked.

‘Til next week,

-Jeff

I’m running way behind on the newsletter, so I’ll try to keep things relatively brief this week. That shouldn’t be hard, as I know more or less nothing about my pick for this week:

Agitate Power: Noise Distraction 7” flexi (self-released, 1990)

According to Discogs, Agitate Power formed in Tokyo in 1987, and this 1990 flexi is very much of its time, featuring six blazing hardcore tunes and an instrumental intro (charmingly titled “Intoro”). I’d describe Agitate Power’s sound as skate thrash, and if the photos on the inside of the sleeve are any indication, they had the look to match. While there were strong connections to other scenes, this vein of skate thrash seemed like a very Japanese phenomenon, branching off from the established hardcore scene over the second half of the 80s. The music was still hardcore, but more hyperactive and less groove-oriented than earlier iterations of Japanese hardcore, with bands employing super fast paddle beats that segued into mid-paced mosh parts at semi-regular intervals. Anthemic choruses with gang vocals were another very prominent feature of the style. As for the fashion, spikes and studs were out, as many bands grew their hair long and adopted skate culture’s streetwear aesthetic… shorts, neon colors, hi-tops, bandanas, etc. Bands like Heresy, Ripcord, and Lärm were doing something similar in Europe, but as is often the case, the Japanese iteration of this sound and style turned everything up to eleven.

While I don’t know much about the people who were part of this scene or how it operated, I imagine its popularity was tied, at least somewhat, to the band S.O.B., who’s 1986 7” Leave Me Alone and 1987 mini-album Don’t Be Swindle got a lot of attention both internationally and within Japan when they were released. S.O.B. weren’t really skate thrash, but they were super fast and their colorfully illustrated album artwork looked like it came from the design crew behind Zorlac Skateboards. As skate thrash coalesced into a distinct strain of Japanese hardcore, some groups that had been around for a while—among them Deadless Muss, Rose Rose, and Outo—started to resemble the new thrash bands in their sound and aesthetic, while a new crop of younger bands put down skateboards and picked up guitars and drumsticks. For whatever reason, this style isn’t very fashionable nowadays, so a lot of these records (especially ones by lesser-known bands) can be found cheap… the Discogs median on this Agitate Power flexi currently stands at $8.50 USD.

I’ve had this flexi on my want list for a couple years (a reasonably priced copy from a US seller prompted me to pull the trigger), but since it arrived, it seems like Japanese skate thrash keeps popping up in my world. Yesterday Usman posted the first edition of Hardcore Knockouts for some time, and the records he chose were two of my favorite late 80s Japanese records, the Chicken Bowels 7” (which I wrote about as my staff pick a few years ago when I finally found a copy) and the Half Years 7”. Half Years was the short-lived band formed by guitarist Zigyaku after he left Gudon and before he formed Bastard (and after that, Judgement)… Zigyaku also produced the Chicken Bowels 7” (and, if my ears aren’t mistaken, contributed some wicked guitar leads). We were talking last night, and I guess Usman doesn’t consider either Chicken Bowels or Half Years skate thrash, but that might be because he likes those bands and he thinks skate thrash sucks. (The market agrees with him… while I mentioned cheap skate thrash records above, Chicken Bowels and Half Years will set you back a pretty penny if you can find them.) I think both bands definitely have elements of the style, though, and if the singer’s shorts on Half Years’ Discogs profile image aren’t a smoking gun, then I don’t know what is.

I’ve also been thinking about Japanese skate thrash thanks to the big grindcore / fastcore / hardcore collection that I mentioned last week. I’ve been listing 7”s from that collection to the used section of our website most every day, and there’s a lot of what I’d classify as skate thrash in there, though mostly from the late 90s and 2000s. While that late 80s / early 90s thing seemed like mostly a Japanese phenomenon, the sound and aesthetic eventually migrated east, leaving a big impact on the “bandana thrash” bands of the early 2000s. I have a feeling that the OG Japanese bands were a big influence on American groups like What Happens Next?, Life’s Halt, Scholastic Deth, and Gordon Solie Motherfuckers. One key labels from that scene was 625 Thrashcore, who has carried the torch for this brand of skate thrash longer and further than anyone. Alongside his other focus on west coast power violence, Max from 625 continues to release small-run records by Japanese thrash bands to this day.

There’s a whole world of this stuff out there, but sadly I’m not the person to guide you through it (at least not yet). This Agitate Power flexi definitely punches above its Discogs median, though, so pick it up if you have the opportunity. It’s also on the meaner / tougher end of the skate thrash spectrum, so it might be a good entry point if you’re still in the process of acquiring a taste for this unique style. Also, shout out to my friend Markku for introducing me to this record and Judd from Sex/Vid, who was the US seller I bought my copy from. I first traded records with Judd nearly 30 years ago, so it’s a trip to see his return address on a package in 2025.

Destruct / Svaveldioxid: Split 7” (Prescription / Children of the Grave Records) France’s Children of the Grave Records teams up with Prescription (Sorry State staffer Usman’s label) to bring us this split 7” between two of modern d-beat’s heavyweight bands. You probably already know Destruct if you follow Sorry State—we named both of their LPs Record of the Week when they came out—but hopefully you’ve also been paying attention to Sweden’s Svaveldioxid, who have released a whole slew of excellent records over the past decade. The two bands are well matched for a split 7”, both playing metallic d-beat that perfectly balances traditionalist and progressive impulses. That being said, these are some of the leanest and meanest Destruct tracks to date, their two originals here built on spare riffing that leaves the focus on the rhythm section’s jackhammer battering. Svaveldioxid’s rhythms also stick to the genre’s core points of inspiration, but they make room for some death metal nods in the guitar work and unexpected moments like the cool bass melody in “Stillbilder.” Alongside their two originals, each band covers one of the other’s songs, but you’d hardly know they were cover songs if the sleeve didn’t point it out. The bands don’t sound worlds apart in the first place, but each really puts their own stamp on their respective version. Both sides of the split sound phenomenal, too, with Destruct recording with Lance at Minimum Wage Studios (who did that recent Ultimate Disaster LP that sounds so great) and Svaveldioxid at the legendary Sunlight Studios. I also have to call out the beautifully detail-oriented packaging on the physical release, which not only includes some excellent new Wombat illustrations, but also employs thoughtful choices of paper stock and printing methods to build a package that feels distinctive, yet consistent with each band’s well-established aesthetic. It’s easy for a split 7” on a couple of small labels to get lost in the shuffle, but if you’re a d-beat fanatic, you’d be loony to miss out on this.

Hello fellow Sorry Staters! What a wild fucking time we are living in right now. Why can’t all the reasonable, kind-hearted people just be blasted off into space to start a new colony on Mars or something?! I hope everyone continues to make the best of this horrible timeline. Therapy has been doing wonders for me to get past it all, but damn does it still feel heavy.

Black metal has always been a genre that has kinda been adjacent to punk for me. I have always been intrigued by it and have always thought it was so daunting trying to figure out where to start, but like everything else I just jumped in with what was being talked about the most. This has never really steered me wrong, but this past week I have been going down a hole consuming a lot of raw black metal and dungeon synth… well mostly dungeon synth. I can’t help but love something I can just have on in the background while doing mundane chores around the house while imagining that I’m on my way to fight some big-ass dragon like I’m a character in Skyrim.

Old Nick is one of those raw black metal / dungeon synth acts that when you first hear it, you can’t help but scratch your head and wonder if they are being serious or not. Old Nick released their first album in 2020 and have released plenty more in the five years they have been together. Some sound completely the same, and some that take on a whole new meaning to raw black metal and dungeon synth. Often using lo-fi dancey type beats at the beginning of songs to using a melodica and a mandolin in most others. In the album Crisp Winter Dawn Of My Night Moon, the track Haunted Broom comes out of the gate with a thumping synth that sounds like some evil dream sequence. It’s a great EP from start to finish, and everything in their catalog is totally worth checking out.

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone has had a nice last couple of weeks. I can’t believe it’s already the end of September. It’s said all the time, but this year really is flying by fast. I’m excited for fall and cooler weather though, and of course getting in the Halloween spirit once October rolls along. Since the last newsletter, I got to attend two amazing shows. The first was on the 11th, when I saw the Billy Strings trio tour in Boone with my girlfriend. It was such a great show full of Doc Watson tunes, from where it all started. Also, it was nice cause it was a seated show in a small theater, so it was a nice intimate vibe. My girlfriend graduated from App State there in Boone, so we made a nice weekend trip out of it and hung out there and did some hiking and chilling around town. Boone is a great place to visit if you’ve never been before, and all the surrounding towns too. The other show was Stereolab this past Sunday at the Haw River Ballroom in Saxapahaw, a little less than an hour from Raleigh. I love this venue, and it was so sick to get to see them there. They put on a really great show and played a healthy mix of stuff from their new album and older material. I’m so happy I got to see them live. I highly recommend going if you have the slightest inclination to. It looks like their tour is going around the US for the next month, so check out if they’re coming anywhere near you. I gotta give props to their merch table too, cause they had good stuff for not outrageous prices, and the shirt that I got is surprisingly very high quality. They also had a tour-exclusive 7” that I picked up with two new songs. Well, the B-side, Flashes In The Afternoon, is actually just an instrumental version of a track from their new album. The A-side, Cloud Land, is a catchy, classic Stereolab tune. You could tell me it was recorded 30 years ago and I’d believe you. They still got it. Go check this tour out!