THE CLAY from Japan, are metal influenced HC/Punk perfection!!! Their first and only 7" ep from 1984 "The Middle East Combat Area" is beyond classic, hard to find and around 100€!!! Limited to 333 copies, with all original artwork plus a bonus sticker not on original press!!!
Our take: Carefully-executed reissue of this killer 1984 Japanese hardcore EP. I believe this comes from the same source as the recent reissues from Crow and Ghoul and it is executed with a similar degree of care and exactness, and we the record-buying public are all the better for it. Middle East Combat Area is a really interesting record because I feel like it sits at the intersection of several very distinctive sounds of Japanese punk and hardcore. In particular, I hear influences from the early ADK Records sound (bands like Aburadako, G-Zet, and Masturbation), a touch of the 80s Japanese crust sound of bands like Crow, and some parts--like the furious riff from the first track, "The Demilitarized Neutrality" and the epic soloing in the title track--seem to hint at the yet-to-develop Burning Spirits / Selfish Records sound. The Clay also remind me of bands like Chicken Bowels or the early Gudon stuff in that they sound so distinctly Japanese... they're so tied to their time and place in history that it's difficult to imagine anyone ever really reviving this sound. Suffice to say, if you love Japanese hardcore and you haven't heard this record, you're in for a real treat.
Our take: Carefully-executed reissue of this killer 1984 Japanese hardcore EP. I believe this comes from the same source as the recent reissues from Crow and Ghoul and it is executed with a similar degree of care and exactness, and we the record-buying public are all the better for it. Middle East Combat Area is a really interesting record because I feel like it sits at the intersection of several very distinctive sounds of Japanese punk and hardcore. In particular, I hear influences from the early ADK Records sound (bands like Aburadako, G-Zet, and Masturbation), a touch of the 80s Japanese crust sound of bands like Crow, and some parts--like the furious riff from the first track, "The Demilitarized Neutrality" and the epic soloing in the title track--seem to hint at the yet-to-develop Burning Spirits / Selfish Records sound. The Clay also remind me of bands like Chicken Bowels or the early Gudon stuff in that they sound so distinctly Japanese... they're so tied to their time and place in history that it's difficult to imagine anyone ever really reviving this sound. Suffice to say, if you love Japanese hardcore and you haven't heard this record, you're in for a real treat.