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LIMITED READERSHIP issue #2 out now - MILK MUSIC, CONDOMINIUM, SPIKE IN VAIN, POLLUTION 14 Dec 2011 4:01 PM (13 years ago)

BUY THE NASA SPACE UNIVERSE LP 20 Jul 2011 5:54 AM (13 years ago)

http://shogunrecordings.pagesperso-orange.fr/

That is all.

Reality 86'd - Black Flag documentary 11 May 2011 1:15 PM (13 years ago)

Rare post just to share this. Been wanting to see this for years.

EDIT: Video is gone, real gone.

REALITY 86'D LINK

MOB RULES - THE DONOR LP out now 7 Nov 2010 12:08 PM (14 years ago)

MOB RULES - THE DONOR LP is out now.

Best British hardcore record in years.

Download 'White Bar' here, or listen to 2 more songs here.

Order now from Zandor Records: teamxzandor at yahoo dot co dot uk

Single copies postpaid £10 UK / £12 Europe / £15 World

Ltd red vinyl and regular black vinyl available.

BLACK FLAG UNRELEASED INSTRUMENTAL SONG ON VIDEO 26 May 2010 1:45 PM (14 years ago)

Greetings 10 Dec 2009 12:51 PM (15 years ago)

I might start posting more often with new content, let's see how things go. It's been a busy year, writing on here just fell to the wayside...

Anyway, here's some thoughts on 2009, the year in which we all got a bit older and a bit fatter.

RECORDS

2009 wasn't too bad. I'm not sure if this all came out this year, but I've really enjoyed:

SEX VID - Communal Living 12".
VEE DEE - Public Mental Health System 2xLP (probably my favourite album of '09).
HOMOSTUPIDS - The Load LP.
FLYIN' TRICHECOS 7" and the Cuts And Cigarette Burns 7" comp they're on.
CRUDE - Just Go Go Ahead 7".
PAINTBOX - Trip, Trance and Travelling 2xLP.
DRY ROT taster 7" for LP, which I can't wait for.
OBLITERATION 2nd 7".
SLICES 7"s.
DESTINO FINAL LP.
NASA SPACE UNIVERSE 7".
DINOSAUR JR - Farm 2xLP.
EXTORTION - Terminal Cancer 7".
LOW THREAT PROFILE 7" (finally!)
FY FAN latest 7".

As for records not from '09, since I know everyone loves dull inpenetrable lists here's what I've spent the last half a year listening to a lot of:

LAUGHING HYENAS - You Can't Pray A Lie LP, loads of CRUNKY KIDS, BGK - Nothing Can Go Wrogn LP, POISON IDEA's entire discography, SONIC YOUTH - Evol LP, BATTALION OF SAINTS - Second Coming LP, INMATES - s/t 7". WOLFDOWNERS - Wolf It Down LP, SACCHARINE TRUST discography, SWA - XCIII LP, MINUTEMEN - Punch Line LP, What Makes A Man Start Fires? LP, Buzz Or Howl Under The Influence of Heat 12", & the Paranoid Time 7", WASTE MANAGEMENT: Get Your Mind Right 7", BUZZCOCKS - Singles Going Steady LP, REBEL TRUTH s/t 7", BREATHING FIRE - Years of Lead LP, INSANE YOUTH 7"s, GROUNDHOGS - Split LP, CAPTAIN BEYOND s/t LP, DARVOCETS discography, loads of BLACK FLAG naturally, MAU MAUS - Society's Rejects 7", early BLITZ 7"s, loads of SAINT VITUS, STOOGES - Funhouse 2xLP version with great outtakes, PERE UBU - Modern Dance LP, NO PEACE? 7", loads of DISCHARGE, loads of MAN IS THE BASTARD & NEANDERTHAL, CROW - Bloody Tear LP, loads of DINOSAUR JR, loads of NICO, CALE and REED solo stuff, FUNKADELIC various LPs, RUDIMENTARY PENI - Death Church LP and Archaic 10" especially, FIT FOR ABUSE - Mindless Violence 7", MOSS ICON - Lyburnum LP, WIRE - Chairs Missing LP, HUNCHES: Yes. No. Shut It LP, THE FIX discography, MEAT PUPPETS - In A Car 7", THE SAINTS: Eternally Yours LP, MOTORHEAD - various LPs including the underrated Just Another Day LP, ENGLISH DOGS - To The Ends of The Earth 12", THE SCAM - It All Ends in Rot 7", MIND ERASER - Glacial Reign LP, MOUNTAIN - Nantucket Sleighride LP, 13TH FLOOR ELEVATORS both LPs, THE DICTATORS - Go Girl Crazy LP, STIFF LITTLE FINGERS - Inflammable Material LP, RUINERS - Blank Your Life 7", THE BYRDS early singles and Notorious Byrd Brothers LP, BLASTING CONCEPT II comp LP, THRASH TIL DEATH comp LP, early to mid period HAWKWIND, DRY ROT 7"s, FRANK ZAPPA - Hot Rats LP, LIFE'S BLOOD - Defiance 7" atleast once a week...etc etc etc.

It's also been a year for giving much of the mid-to-late period SST discography a listen with fresh ears, discovering some real gems while still recognising that some music is best left behind (Zoogz Rift!)

SHOWS

I saw ANNIHILATION TIME on their last European tour. I missed them the last couple of times, for various economic and distance related reasons, so was glad to finally get the chance to see all the classics from the 'II' LP played live (their best record undoubtedly). Plus they covered TED NUGENT (was it Stranglehold or Stormtroopin'? I forget! It takes some balls to cover any song of that record and cover it well. AT succeeded though.)

I saw a band I thought I'd never get the chance to see twice this year - DINOSAUR JR. They were everything I'd hoped they would be, pretty amazing. They also did 'Chunks'.

I broke my MOTORHEAD hymen too, having seen them last month with THE DAMNED (who were also great) and GIRLSCHOOL (who were embarrassing, despite the early singles being great). MOTORHEAD predictably dominated and my ears hurt for days. The audience was an incredible mix too, a cesspool of the lowest rungs of humanity, MOTORHEAD lifers.

Not a real new post... 30 May 2009 3:32 AM (15 years ago)

Just a note to tell everyone to check out the new BRAIN KILLER 7" on Deranged and the new DESTINO FINAL (previously INVASIÓN) LP on La Vida Es Un Mus Discos.

AMERICAN CHEESEBURGER interview... 24 Feb 2009 4:39 PM (16 years ago)

Here is an interview I did a few months ago with the US band AMERICAN CHEESEBURGER. They sent their answers in the post, hand-written and all, and it's taken my a good while to get round to typing them up. I apologise. If you haven't heard AC, check out their 'Modern Advice' 7", great stuff. The 9 Shocks comparison gives you some idea of what to expect. Meat and potatoes energetic hardcore punk.

Answering the questions are James (singer), Jason (drums) and Steve (guitar). Photos stolen from their myspace.

As a sidenote, the interview was originally sent just to Jason the drummer, hence the last question solely being about drumming.

1. When did American Cheeseburger form? Are you all from the Georgia area? What was the scene like at the time you started playing?

James: We started in 2006. Only Jason is from Georgia. When we started playing, there weren't many fast bands. And there still aren't.

Steve: We started in 2006, we're from all over the place. Athens is a twee-pop orientated town, so it's not like there were any other bands doing the same thing as us in town. Every now and again another hardcore band would pop us, play, and then dissolve.

Jason: 2006. We have been playing about 2 years. No we are from all over, Georgia, Connecticut, Ohio and North Carolina.

2. When you started out what bands were key influences? Was there any band you were emulating or wanted to sound like, or did you just play and it came out how it sounded?

Jason: We have a million influences not all punk or hardcore, we just knew we wanted to play fast!

Jason and I started jamming out on pretty much anything. Classic rock tunes, Negative FX etc. My influences have been Japanese hardcore, some of the old Huntington Beach bands, old fast shit. We really just wanted to start a fun, fast band and not worry about what we were going to sound like.

James: I don't think we had any key influences except wanting to play fast. As we wrote songs, we noticed elements of Japanese hardcore and older Cleveland hardcore. We have never emulated any band.

3. Does being from the South alienate you perhaps from more 'active' scenes, on the coasts? (I am being presumptive there, since I have no idea what it's like in Georgia!)

Steve: It's never been an issue.

Jason: No, we tour constantly, so we are with it, we bring lots of awesome bands to Georgia. It rules, I hate overcrowded "scenes".

James: We aren't alienated because we tour so much. We don't play in town often, and when we do, it's usually with a band from somewhere else.

4. Do you think the internet has aided the growth of good hardcore bands or impeded it? With the downloadability of old bands, and the knowledge easily accessible at the touch of a button, do you think the imagination has gone? A band can just choose a band and say "yes let's play like this"... Ofcourse there's a reverse side to that, which is that more people get into good bands who may have been forgotten.

Steve: Exchange of information is how we learn.

Jason: I think the internet is weird but helpful. Yes, you don't have to work for it like in the old days but it makes things like touring a lot easier.

James: You seem to have answered the question for yourself. In my opinion the internet has helped hardcore bands tour successfuly AND i have seen a lot of worthless bands emerge from everywhere and attempt to gain publicity through myspace etc...

5. Where did the name AMERICAN CHEESEBURGER come from?

Jason: I thought up "cheeseburger" and James added "American" because we heard of another cheesburger. I was sick of every name like "Death System", "Bush Sucks" etc.

James: Jason was sick of all of the long-sinded band names emerging at the time. "As my sun Sets Dying" and shit like that. He said the next band he was in would be called Cheeseburger. Simplicity. We found out that there was some shitty band from New York called Cheeseburger, so I told Jason we should be audacious and call it American Cheeseburger. The epitome of stupidity.

6. When did you first get into hardcore? Can you remember the first band you EVER heard described as 'hardcore', and what was your first show?

Steve: I first got into hardcore around 15. I guess the Bad Brains were the first band I'd ever heard of refered to as hardcore. My first show was seeing the Ramones, and then a month later I saw Bikini Kill at a club in Connecticut called Studio 158.

Jason: When I was 12. 1986, I ordered Warzone, Final Conflict and Crucifucks from sk8 mags. My first show was in '88, I saw C.O.C., Wwwax, and Final Offering. It was great.

James: I saw the Ramones when I was 15. They are still the loudest band I've ever seen, I got bruises on my ribcage. Fought skinheads. That was hardcore.

8. What did your family/parents think? Also, was it via the metal route or punk route?

Steve: My parents hated punk to begin with, but one I started dying my hair and shit they REALLY didn't like it. I started out listening to death metal, and this girl on my street let me borrow the "apathy? never" compilation and "never mind the bollocks". I got into it.

Jason: My mom didn't like it but my dad was supportive, he took me to shows, the punk route for sure.

James: My parent's didn't like it. I was a metalhead before I was a punk.

9. List everything AC has released so far, and what's coming up...

Jason: We have a demo 7" on Tsunami, Modern Advice 7" on Rockbottom, split 7" with Canadian Rifle on Rockbottom and upcoming split LP with Religious As Fuck.

10. You recently toured, correct? How far did you go? How did the scene vary from city to city (or town to town)?

Jason: We went as far as Toronto. The whole thing was great in my opinion, one bad show ain't bad.

11. What was the worst thing to happen on tour (van breakdown, prostitute death, band fights etc?)

Steve: A few tours ago we wree on our way to play in Memphis and our van broke down in Mississippi. It was doing some scary shit. We ended up staying in this motel advertising "love tubs". The motel was attached to a dance club and all these eh "white boys" were hanging out outside of our room being creeps. We had to miss the show and cancel the Nashville date and drive all the way home in a vehicle that was falling apart.

Jason: Wost thing in 6 or 7 tours is missing 2 shows due to the van. Not bad.

12. Are you at all influenced by old Georgia bands, like NEON CHRIST or DDT? Are there any older folks around who saw any of those bands or were around in the earlier scene?

Jason: Yes, I love Neon Christ. I am older and saw their hybrid band with C.O.C. members called Final Offering. I saw the Neon Christ reunion. I was bummed.

13. Are you into classic Italian hardcore? Early NEGAZIONE, DECLINO, CHEETAH CHROME MOTHERFUCKERS etc? If so, what do you love about it? (personally I feel those bands are among the best. High in energy, manic vocally and completely twisted riffing)...

Steve: Me and Jason love the Indigesti, Wretched is really cool too. I like Cheetah Chrome Motherfuckers and Eu's Arse also, they're pretty off the wall, energy wise.

Jason: Of course, Negazione, Indigesti, Raw Power, it's all essential!

James: You have answered your question again. All of those bands rule.

14. What are some of your favourite current hardcore bands going right now? Do you have a 'brother band' of sorts, who you play with a lot?

Steve: I dig: Godfodder, We Need To Talk, Double Negative, Iron Lung, Brutal Knights. Van Halen is our brother band.

Jason: Double Negative, Brutal Knights, Religious As Fuck, Iron Lung, Sex Vid, Conversions, Straightjacket Nation, Chronic Seizure, there are a lot of good ones.

15. You've often been compared to 9 SHOCKS TERROR - are you into those Clevo bands? PUNCTURE WOUND!

Steve: I love the H-100s, Cider, Darvocets etc and Jason Griffin is an honorary Clevelander, having played drums for 9 Shocks.

Jason: Yes my old badn Goat Shanty played with Puncture Wound. We love playing CLeveland. I actually played drums for a month long tour in 2001 with 9 Shocks. Wedge was getting married so I drove up and learned the set and filled in. Tour was great and so are those guys.

James: Yes.

16. Name your favourite Japanese hardcore bands ever, and explain why.

Steve: 1. GISM - Randy Uchida is godlike. 2. Systematic Death - You can't stop that shit. 3. Asbestos - the vocals are silly, like GISM, but they rule.

Jason: Lip Cream, Gauze.

James: Systematic Death, Jellyroll Rockheads.

17. Can we expect more saxaphone on the next records?

Steve: The Oboe is barely breathing.

Jason: No, I wish I liked it.

James: Yes. Steve just bought a sax.

DEATH SENTENCE: Death And Pure Distruction EP (1982) upload... 18 Feb 2009 5:14 PM (16 years ago)

Here's the first post for awhile, and a salute to much neglected early British hardcore.


The original MRR review of this 7" said:

An interracial punk band that currently sounds too much like the EXPLOITED for its own good. DEATH SENTENCE are fast, loud, and a little rough around the edges, so they could come on strong if they develop more of an individual style - Jeff Bale.

While this does sound quite like the good Exploited singles, there's a heavy dose of Discharge to this. Overall it's an archetype UK82 record, leaning more towards the speed and aesthetics (WAAAAR) of the Clay Records bands than the Oi! influenced sound of contemporaries. It's primitive and simple, which is part of its appeal. Just look at that front cover - you can judge right then if you'll like this record or not.

The mid-paced song 'Victims Of War' reminds me of the Disorder classic 'Victimized', or Discharge's 'Aint No Feeble Bastard'. I'm a big fan of these early 80s UK dirgey and repetitive anthems, 'State Violence State Control' being the ultimate example. They obviously had a huge influence on the emerging Boston bands, who nearly all included a Discharge-esque dirge on their records.

I know very little about this band other than that they were on the same label as similar bands External Menace and Uproar, and were apparently from Leeds. If anyone knows any more (bands that followed for example), leave a comment.

Also, I wonder if the mis-spelling in the title was an 'accident', or rather a reference to their blatant worship at the church of Discharge. If the latter, it would surely be one of the earliest examples of a conscious Dis prefix (run into the ground by a million D-beat bands).

Download here.

DYS live at Love Hall, Philly '83 MP3 upload... 4 Jan 2009 12:48 PM (16 years ago)

YD-I interview (new)... 3 Dec 2008 3:18 PM (16 years ago)

I recently interviewed YD-I, the great and intense hardcore band who put out the classic 'A Place In The Sun' 7" in 1983, and are currently active again. Such a primal sounding band, just watch the video at the bottom to hear just how brutal they were live compared to many of their contemporaries, a guitar led wall of noise. OUT FOR BLOOD!

As a sidenote, listen to Corrosion Of Conformity - Animosity.

Q 1. How and why did YD-I form? Were you all friends?

A. Neil (Jackal) vocals and Brian (Rev Big B) guitar formed Philly's first HardCore band,"The Legion of Decency"which quickly self destructed. Brian then moved to New Jersey where he played guitar in other bands for a while. Neil hooked up with Howard, drums, fresh out of "Pure Hell", Mike Cole on guitar and Chuck on bass. This was the original "Y-Di".Chuck soon left and Brian came back to Philly and took over on bass. This was the main line up through most of the 80's. Eventually,other projects became more important and the band split. About 5 years ago Neil, Brian (now on guitar) and Howard were convinced to do a one shot reunion with Chris Frascella on bass. The show was killer and the band was approached by management to keep going. Mike now lives in Arizona but has input in all we do. We bounce between 3 bass now, Chris Angelino, Chris F, and the sexy Joi Lacour.

Q 2. What was the scene in Pennsyvania like around the time YD-I started playing?

A. The scene in Philly was second to none. All the west coast bands came through (Black Flag, Circle Jerks, DK's etc) and we all became friends. We became tight with most DC and NY bands as well. Harley from NY, Tesco V, and Sab from Iron Cross continue to be good friends.



Q 3. How did you all get into hardcore punk in the first place? What was it that appealed? Can you remember the first band you heard described as 'hardcore'?

A. We were all into and continue to be into old school punk as well as HEAVY heavy metal like Motorhead and Venom. We loved hardcore because it was so over the fuckin' top but especially because it was OUR SCENE. WE MADE IT! RIGHT HERE IN THE GOOD OL USA. We didn't follow anybody else's rules and there weren't any rules to follow. We all just had the same ideas.The first bands were Black Flag,The Circle Jerks,and the Germs!

Q 4. What did your parents/families think of you getting into hardcore? How differently do you think it was seen, to be a punk, in the early 80s compared to today? Did you constantly get hassled?

A. Our families didn't give a shit. Were we hassled? No fucking way! Normal people would cross the street to keep away from us. Back then we all wore spurs on our boots so they could hear us coming a block away. Today nothings new. It's all been seen before. Nobody's shocked, nobody even notices.

Q 5. Was there a defining band of the time you all admired, or were impressed with? What bands were intense and ALWAYS put on a good show?

A. Black Flag, Minor Threat, Iron Cross, GBH, Discharge, Y-Di , the MeatMen, Flipper, Negative Approach etc. We were all always intense. We were all hardcore but we all had a little something special that made us a little different. Most of us were zipping at the time as well. The only bad shows were when someones van broke down and they didn't show up.

Q 6. In sound YDI had more in common with the more aggressive bands from DC and Boston or the Midwest, than other more melodic Philly bands. Did you often play with out-of-town bands, and did bands like SSD, Minor Threat, Negative Approach etc influence you? Also, were any of the band straight-edge?

A. See the other answer for most of that. I don't think we were influenced by other bands but a similar train of thought and playing style did make us sound more like many of the DC bands especially. We were all friends and always playing together so maybe something was in the food... No, nobody in Y-Di was straight edge. In fact we lost a drummer Eric (played drums on the Black Dust LP) to drugs. RIP bro.


Q 8. YD-I had/have 2 members who are black. Did you ever come across much ignorance or racism within the scene? Is the song CATEGORIZED addressing this?

A. Yeah, 2 blacks/American Indians and the Rev. Big B who is a Jew. No, we never saw any racism from anyone but we always give each other shit. But we are a tight motherfucking family. Categorized is more of a finacial/social status thing.

Q 9. You appear on the GET OFF MY BACK Philly comp LP, the regions version of 'Flex Your Head' or 'This Is Boston Not LA'... Can you say a bit about who put this out, and the other bands?

A: I don't really remember much about it other then we all hated the cover.

Q 10. What about Blood Bubble Records?

A: It's our own little unsuccessfull label. Yeah, other then music we're very much into horror movies! Especially Neil.

Q 11. While many dismissed the 'Black Dust' LP as being heavy metal, with fresh ears today it is a lot more punk than people give it credit for. What's your take on this? Were you trying to branch out?

A: At the time we were a little bummed. It was like "they just don't get it". Did we care? NO! Did it sell? YES! So we guess there were enough people out there who liked it. Do I see it on E-Bay? YES! People still ask for it and they got it on the "OUT FOR BLOOD"CD. We weren't trying to "branch out" as such. We still played and still do play the old stuff. It's just that when we got together to write songs that's what came out. There is still alot of KILLER SHIT we recorded but never released that you all might see very soon (hint hint). Psycho Bitch, Six White Horses, and Dirty Dog Day for those who might know.

Q 12. Do you have any funny stories regarding YDI, like an incident at a show? Also, of what show do you have the fondest memories?

A. There are tons of funny/scary stories that are all good but maybe best kept to ourselves. Lots of great memories as well but the one that comes to mind the quickest was only a few months back when Sab from Iron Cross jumped on stage with us to sing their killer song, Crucified. THAT was the shit brother!

Q 13. Why did you decide to start playing shows again, and how has it been so far?

A. See the above answer for why we got back together. It's been a blast so far and we'll keep doing as long as it's fun. Nothing blows our minds more then looking into a crowd and seeing the REALLY YOUNG KIDS singing along. The fact that they know the words tingles our balls.

Q 14. Were you approached about the YD-I footage being included on the American Hardcore movie? Did you see/like the film in the end?

A. Yes we were approached. I guess mainly because they were good enough to ask if they could use the footage as well as pay us. Of course we saw it and we loved it. We were honoured to be part of it. Our hats go off to those guys, GREAT JOB!

Q 15. Where do you think early 80s American hardcore punk fits in to the history of music, and are you proud of what YD-I achieved?

A. We are very proud of what we, the other bands, promoters, and everyone who contributed did. I think it's a huge part of music history. Has there been anything new that's better? Green Day and their likes can blow me. The only good stuff today is the new kids and their idea of what hardcore means to them. The rest is crap.

Q 16. How did you feel when Brutal Truth covered 'I Killed My Family'? Does it ever surprise you that there's still constant interest in YD-I?

A. Yeah, it's cool they did it. But did they give us writing credit? Did they give us a cut of the money they made? Ask them for those anwers. I don't mean to sound like it's about the money cause it's not (Rev.Big B is a Jew though). But in these times we all gotta eat and if we deserve to be paid we should be. Yes, it always surprises us that people still want to see us and listen to our music.

Q 17. Do you have a nice record collection that would pay off all your debts if you were to sell it on Ebay?

A. I don't have any debts right now so I'll hold on them for now. Yeah,I bought everything back then and I've saved it all!

Q 18. How important do you see having some kind of message, whether it be political or social or whatever, to playing in a hardcore band? Where did YDI fit in with the whole MRR peace punk scene versus the more apolitical tougher hardcore bands?

A. Except for a few songs we were not very political. We NEVER preached. We were more about survival and fighting back. Because we are usually armed and dangerous peace is not for us. We don't believe in fighting other peoples battles though. If you're a friend, we'll help you out but learn to take care of yourself! But because we're nuts we love to have fun as well. If you want to party with us, cool. If you want to fuck with us, don't. We've been at this a long time,it's what we do.

Q 19. Any last words?

A. For a bunch of old fucks we're alright aren't we?

CRO-MAGS 1984 demo songs... 4 Nov 2008 7:02 PM (16 years ago)

Here's a treat, 2 previously unreleased 1984 CRO-MAGS demo songs released as bonus tracks on the remastered CD of 'Age Of Quarrel':

1. You'd Be The Death Of Me.
2. Hard Times (early version).

There's 3 demo songs on the CD, but I didn't want to upload them all since I have no idea if this CD has even officially been released yet. Anyway, if anyone has any info (i.e. the line-up on this demo, when the CD is being released properly etc) please leave a comment.

Note how the riff 1 minute 23 seconds in on 'You'd Be The Death Of Me' was later re-used in the song 'Face The Facts'.

BILL BONDSMEN interview... 4 Nov 2008 5:20 PM (16 years ago)

A nice surprise for me was picking up the 'Swallowed By The World' LP by the Midwestern hardcore band BILL BONDSMEN earlier this year. I hadn't heard much by them before but this is a really good record: high energy classic Midwest style hardcore punk, taking cues from LP-era NEGATIVE APPROACH, POISON IDEA and NECROS (check out the guitar intro to 'Answer Me'), with a keen straight up rock n roll sensibility too. The fact that they did a (great) split 7" with OUT COLD should tell you something about what this band is all about. Anyway I interviewed them via email a little while ago, without realising Dan from Mad At The World Records had done a good one on his blog! Oh well, enjoy it anyway.

Q 1. Why did Bill Bondsmen start, and what bands had any of you been in previously (if you want to answer that question...)? Also, where did the name come from?

Tony : First show was Mother's Day 2004 with Nick Chunks on the drums. Supporting Damage Deposit if I recall right... I was in a grind/power violence band that went on for a while, recorded a pretty well recieved demo and then shit the bed. I think someone else already addressed who Bill Bonds is. If not, just google him or watch him on Youtube. Bill Bonds + Bail Bondsmen (dude who pays to get you out of jail til your court date) = Bill Bondsmen.

Mark: I don't mind talking about other bands I've been in. There's not much to talk about because this band is the only one that actually released anything, except my first band when i was 13- The Clown Butchers "Eat Shit and Die" tape, limited to 25 copies.

Q 2. How does it feel being from Detroit, not only the home of classic hardcore (Negative Approach, Angry Red Planet etc) but of classic music in general (Stooges, MC5 etc)...Have most of these bands influenced Bill Bondsmen in some form or another?

T : Ummm... I dunno what to say to that really. I mean, Detroit is a whole different state of mind really. All the things you've heard are probably true. I guess I feel stoked on it because when you tell people from other places in the world that you're from the D they seem to connect to it in both good (music, cars, etc) and bad (crime, death, fear, etc)ways. I guess being from here kinda takes some of the edge off of it. Once you've talked to the "legends" the mystery is gone and they're just folks. I'm sure it's had an influence though. And you also forgot the incredible boom of soul, blues, rock, etc that our city has enjoyed for many a year.

Mark: I can't say any of those bands influenced me, indirectly they did I'm sure. I grew up in Lansing which is 70 miles away so by the time I heard most of those bands, I already had a style of creating music. But supposedly we have a Detroit/Midwest sound, maybe the bad weather and rusty cars are the secret ingredients.

Amando: It's hard to tell how I feel about being from Detroit, since I don't know any other way. I tell you what, some people in other towns still take a step back when I say I'm from here. All of those bands you mention have spent alot of time on my stereo.

Q 3. How did you end up releasing on ACME Records? Are Out Cold like your brother-band in a sense?

T : John Evicci (Acme Records/Out Cold/Bad Chopper/etc etc) is a friend of mine. That's really all there is to it. Just a good dude who hooked it up for us. No real crazy backstory. Believe it or not, we've still never played with Out Cold. Something happens every time we even talk about it. Great band though. Probably one of my all time faves.

Amando: Tony hooked up the Out Cold/ACME flavor. He's known Evicci for quite a few years. I wouldn't say that we're quite at brother band status with Out Cold. They've been around alot longer. They're more of an uncle band to us. The cool uncle who'd buy for you and give you his old tapes.

Q 4. Like Out Cold, Bill Bondsmen seem to play stripped down fast rock n roll rather than a uniform version of another hardcore band, and there are clear non-hardcore influences at play...what are you thoughts on this?

T : Ummm... Listening to other music beyond hardcore helps. That's all I can think of. We all listen to a lot of different stuff and i'm sure it's had an effect on how things come out. And this isn't dogging on hardcore. Just that expanding your horizons music wise helps you come up with something more than just the same stuff I guess...

Mark: We all listen to different stuff, not just hardcore punk so it comes across when we make up the songs. Good, real music doesn't only exist in punk rock land.

Amando: My thought? Of course there's some non-hardcore touches here and there. Who wants to sound just like another band? (apparently a lot of bands, judging from what I've heard in recent years).

Q 5. What are your 3 favourite 80s Midwest hardcore bands, and why? I hear a bit of Die Kreuzen to Bill Bondsmen's sound...

T : Ahh the music nerd question. Tough one... Hmmm... Die Kreuzen, NA, S.B.L.C. DK for just being weird. That lp is just all over the place. Like Void after a steady diet of dark wave and 70's arena rock. Very cool. NA because their "Fucking NA maaaaaaan!" and SBLC because I grew up being deafened by them, Feisty Cadavers, etc. Good memories.

Mark: Tough question. Today i'll go with N.A., Zero Boys, and Crucifucks because they're from my hometown and I saw them play a basement show back in the day.

Amando: My 3 favorites off the top of my head....of course NA, lets just get that one out of the way. Effigies were good especially some of their more Gang of Four sounding jams (Security). Zero Boys are in there too, cause they had hooks and I like hooks.

Q 6. When did you first get in to hardcore? Can you remember the first record you heard, and band you saw live? What was the scene like in Destroit in the 90s?

T : Ummm... I was really lucky and had a way cool mom so I actually had the Suicidal Tendencies LP when I was about 9. I was all into metal like Venom, Celtic Frost, etc and read about Suicidal and was lucky enough to have a high school radio station that played all that stuff and then played punk rock on the program afterwards. I think the first punk related stuff I heard was Devo as a little kid. Hardcore would probably be Dead Kennedys on the radio station I mentioned. First band I saw was 7 Seconds with Token Entry on the Soulforce Revolution tour. Sucked balls. But I got an invite to a better show later and it snowballed. Ummm.... A lot more fighting back then, nazis, weirdos etc. It was a lot scarier to go to gigs for sure. Lots of great bands though.

Mark: I first got into hardcore because SST used to have ads in a heavy metal magazine and they offered a free sampler tape. I was drawn to the artwork of the Black Flag covers and then once I got the tape in the mail, the sound of it was 180 degrees different than what I was listening to. Even though I already had my punk band and wrote the songs, the stuff on that tape sounded so raw and intense. I didn't know anyone who was into punk or hardcore, but I knew other people did somewhere. The first show or "concert" I went to was Billy Idol on the Rebel Yell tour. 3000 people there so it wasn't really a "show."

Amando: Detroit in the 90's: Early 90's: Lots of beards, oversized t shirts, patches, corny breakdowns, t-shirt sleeves as headbands etc.

Q 7. What is one of your favourite underrated bands (from the past) you want to spread the love for?

T : SBLC and Feisty Cadavers. Look em up. I would say Swell Maps but that's probably a bit out of place. So yeah.... Original answer.

Amando: I'm gonna give love to some of the unsung Detroit bands. Cinecyde (quite possibly the first Detroit punk band) S.B.L.C. (rough hardcore punk from the roughest part of town. Flesh & Blood still blows away half of the stuff that's considered hardcore today). Feisty Cadavers (my all time favorite Detroit band! Dying Art gets played all the time!!).

Q 8. The recent LP is great and a real achievement considering it can often be hard for hardcore bands to translate from 7" on to full length format...Do you think punk often works better on a short urgent format (i.e. a 7")?

T : Probably the shorter format. But, if you put the effort in it can translate. I think it depends on the song writing more than anything. Anyone can hash out 10 songs that all sound the same. Taking the time to write a bunch that are similar but different enough is another story...

Q 9. On a related note, what are your 5 favourite hardcore LPs EVER and why? Tough question I'm sure...

T : Germs (GI) because side one is flawless. Poison Idea "Kings Of Punk" because they were. GISM "Detestation" because it's so weird. Black Flag "Damaged" because i wore it out more than once. Batallion Of Saints "Second Coming" because it rules. This is all I can think of right now.

Mark: My favorites are ones that I heard early on; Bad Brains s/t tape,Descendents - Milo Goes To College, All - Trailblazer live,Gorilla Biscuits - Start Today, Circle Jerks - Group Sex, and all of Minor Threat's records. That's more than 5 but so what.

Amando: Poison Idea - Feel the Darkness. To me (and alot others) that is the definitve PI album. So burly and fierce sounding!!! Dwarves - Blood, Guts & Pussy. The sound they got off a 4 track is amazing. Nihilistic, trashy and over in 14 minutes!! Fear - the Album. When I was a teenager. I got into Fear and made a homemade stencil. I wanted to put it all over my skateboard (which had bright green grip tape). There was no black spray paint in the house, and you couldn't buy it if you were under 18. So rather than ask my friends if they had black spray paint, I proceeded to use what I found in the house (shit brown spray paint) and paint the stencil all over my bright green grip tape. Every time I hear any song from that album, I think of that skateboard. Negative Approach - Tied Down. Not as good as their 7" but I gotta put it in there. It's a Detroit thing. N.W.A. - Straight Outta Compton. To me this was as hardcore as any Flag, Bad Brains or Minor Threat record. This record scared the shit out of many parents and even the FBI!

Q 10. What's the worst show you've ever played, and why? What's been the best?

T : Second show maybe? I dunno. Bunny (second drummer) had just joined that day. We practiced for hours. I drank way too much. etc. Probably the best was Limoges, France. We played my friend's birthday party and people went apeshit.

Mark: The worst show for me was some fest in Europe where it was all crust bands except for Idiot's Rule. 99% of the crowd walked out half way through our first song. We don't sound like watered down metal so they didn't want to hear us. People are so locked into whatever style, they can't appreciate anything else. Very lame. The best show for me was maybe at Kopi in Berlin last year.

Amando: I don't really know what would constitute being the worst show, at least in recent memory. I would probably have to say last March @ the 2500 club. It wasn't the worst, lets just say it was the least best. There was a pretty heavy snowstorm (which kept the out of town band from showing up) and we basically played to the bar. The best one to me is probably when we played at the same club in December 06 to a crowd of drunken Santas (there's an annual pub crawl in Detroit called Santarchy where the crawlers dress as Santa Claus and who happened to show up just as we were starting our set). It was just such an ridiculous sight and Tony was antagonizing the whole lot as well. Good Times. Sharing the stage for a week last year with the Cola Freaks was a close second.

Q 11. Dream 5 band line up for a show, any bands past and present, go for it. Also, what venue...

T : Nolan Strong, Feisty Cadavers, Germs, Swell Maps, "Space Ritual" era Hawkwind. In a basement.

Mark: Stooges,New York Dolls,Descendents,Slayer,and the Plasmatics in my basement.

Amando: Ramones/Black Flag (chavo era)/ Prince and the Revolution/SBLC/Doggy Style @ The Falcon Club in Hamtramck.

Q 12. Have Bill Bondsmen ever played any cover songs and if so, what songs?

T : Alan Milman Sect, Big Boys, Zero Boys, Descendents, Naked Raygun, NA, Feisty Cadavers. Some of this is recorded. Most is not.

Amando: In the past we did Fun Fun Fun by the Big Boys, Amphetamine Addiction by Zero Boys, Stitches/I Wanna Kill Somebody by Allan Milman Sect and most recently Live Like Vampires by Feisty Cadavers. On the Euro tour we did Can't Tell No One by NA (I know...we're reaching pretty deep, huh) and Kabuki Girl by the Descendents.

Q 13. What's your favourite Japanese hardcore band of all time, and why?

T : GISM because SKV is friggin awesome.

Mark: Teengenerate! oh wait they're not hardcore...Vivisick because we played with them.

Q 14. Tell us about how the song 'Comfortably Dumb' came about, and what it was about?

T : A stupid nazi that came to a show who had something like white pride or white power or whatever tattooed on his head and had all these other dodgy tats. My friend and I were debating asking him how the job hunt's been since getting out of jail. The thing about Pink Floyd is about the crossed hammers from "The Wall" and the fact that the hammerskins wear them and probably don't realize it makes as much sense as them wearing a tie dyed shirt.

Mark: That was one of the first songs we wrote together after I joined the band and kind of showed the direction we were going in, not lyrically but musically.

Q 15. How important are lyrics to Bill Bondsmen, and to hardcore in general in your opinion? What one hardcore vocalist from the past impresses you the most lyrically? (Jerry A is a personal favourite).

T : Depends on my mood I guess. I try to write something more than just "_________ SUCKS!" stuff because it's too easy. Jerry is a great writer but for my money gimme Darby Crash as far as punk rock goes.

Mark: I think the lyrics are important and I think it's one of our strengths.

Q 16. How important do you see political or social issues to hardcore? Do you think bands need to have some sort of 'message' or not? How have you seen politics within hardcore change over the years...

T : That's a loaded question. I'm not really into being preached to. But, I don't want a buncha gooney GG wannabes around either. I'll take six of one, half dozen of the other for 100 Alex. The evolution as I recall it : Nazis, Care Bears, fighters, Care Bears, drunks/druggies, Care Bears, ad nausem.

Mark: There's room for every style of lyrics and messages. People should be pissed off about what's going on today, so there's plenty to scream about.

Amando: It seems the scene in general is a little less uptight, a little less PC than it was when I was younger. Of course, the uptightness/pc vibe was a reaction to the super macho/violent vibe that preceded it. I think now it's at a happy medium.

Q 17. You are all older than the average hardcore kid, am I correct? Do you think it's reconsilable to be in o hardcore punk but also have a so called "real life" (career, perhaps a family, home etc)? Isn't it the kind of music that's just "for the kids"?

T : Ehh... Yeah. I think i'm a hair younger than Amado and we're both 32 right now. I dunno. It's just always been there. Like eating and breathing or something... I don't really think about it until we play a gig on a weeknight.

Mark: For a lot of people it is "just for the kids," a phase they go through. Obviously for us it's not a passing fad. It's a good thing there's lifers out there. My record collection would suck if there weren't.

Amando: I'm in my early 30's. I don't give a fuck. I do what I want. And if doing what I want includes having a family (which I do) as well as playing the kind of music I love with my best friends, then I'm for it. As far as this music being strictly "For the Kids?"... fuck it, I'm an old kid!

Q 18. Last words?

T : Thanks.

Mark: Bush is a war criminal.

Amando: Thanks for the questions! Live every week like its Shark Week!

All photos from the band's myspace.

Finally, an update. New SONS OF ISHMAEL interview... 30 Oct 2008 4:21 PM (16 years ago)

Updates won't be quite so regular I'm afraid, but to kick things off again here's a detailed interview with some members of SONS OF ISHMAEL I did recently, and it is infact one of my favourite interviews I've done.

If you're not familiar, SONS OF ISHMAEL were a great hardcore band from around Ontario, Canada, that existed from 1985 to 1991. They played a fast thrashy style akin to classic DRI, early JERRYS KIDS or VERBAL ABUSE, high energy and manic hardcore that was best captured on their debut 7" from 1985, 'Hayseed Hardcore'. Listen to some tracks on their myspace here ('Break Free' is a classic!). GREAT STUFF.

Participants:
Myke Canzi – guitar
Paul Morris – guitar
Daragh Hayes – bass
Chris Black - drums

Q 1. How did you first get into hardcore? Did you get into the old Canadian bands (DOA, Neos etc) first? Can you remember the first band you heard described as 'hardcore' punk rather than just punk?

Myke: I heard the DOA song "Fuck You" on the local college radio station and was hooked. The shock value of the cussing had a lot to do with it. DOA in turn was the gateway band to louderharderfaster stuff like MDC.

Chris: I’d sort of heard punk and HC in the background at house parties, but then a friend gave me a cassette tape with Black Flag’s My War on one side, and Dead Kennedy’s “A Skateboard Party” on the other. I listened to that tape every fucking night while I delivered ribs in my Datsun 510. I then found “Brave New Waves” on CBC Radio.

Paul: My introduction was in December 1982 when we saw a Dead Kennedys album at the Sam The Record Man store and bought it. I was introduced to more of it by listening to fuzzy broadcasts from Carleton University radio in Ottawa when it was audible over the static. As I heard more of it I was introduced to NEOS, PORCELAIN FOREHEAD, STRETCH MARKS etc. but no more or less than the English or American stuff of the time. DOA were already more well known than the rest at the time as even they got records into Sam The Record Man too. At the time hardcore in rural areas was pretty much a well kept secret and few knew of it. Apart from DOA or DK's, you couldn't buy the records any place but the big cities.

Daragh: I also grew up in a fairly small town and information about punk and hardcore wasn't so easy to come by at the time. My parents are from Ireland and Germany and I have very distinct memories of visiting family and having the BOOMTOWN RATS make a big impression on me when I saw them on Irish TV, which led to me getting my first LP. Later I was interested in finding something more aggressive than the "new wave" I was listening to at the time but what I considered to be "old" British punk like the Sex Pistols wasn't all that appealing to me. From time to time I would find the odd used LP in my small hometown and buy it based on the cover and as Chris mentioned, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation radio program Brave New Waves helped introduce those of us living away from the big city centers to music we wouldn't have heard otherwise. Two bands that finally provided the "A-ha!!!!" moment I was waiting for were the DEAD KENNEDYS and BLACK FLAG and fairly soon tape trading and fanzines helped fill in more of the gaps.

Q 2. What was the first hardcore band you saw live, if you remember? What attracted you to the music in the first place (the energy, the anger, the haircuts?...)...

Myke: My first hardcore show was DOA at Assumption Hall on the University of Windsor campus in February 1984. I was really worried for my safety before I went. I didn't know what to expect from "punk rockers." In the end, they were very forgiving of my mullet.

Chris: I went to see Youth Brigade at the Latvian House in Toronto in ’84 or ‘85, but they didn’t show up so I saw the Bunchofuckingoofs. I thought they played soooo fast! What attracted me was the swearing and anger. That and it was so different from everything else you could hear on the radio at that time. It sounded dangerous.

Myke: That's it exactly. It sounded dangerous.

Paul: I remember it very well. In fact it was July 1983 and the band was MDC at the Ottawa Boys and Girls Club. There were 4 bands, it was hotter than Hades and I was hooked. First and foremost I was attracted by the music and it's frenetic pace but I cannot really pinpoint what else made it so great.

Daragh: Well, technically the first real band I ever saw was JOHNNY CASH. However, since I was in Grade 3 at the time it wasn't all that interesting and running outside to play "cops and robbers" with my brother took precedence. Later I saw some "new wave" stuff like CABARET VOLTAIRE and some reggae like Toronto's 20th CENTURY REBELS but as I lived about two hours from Toronto it seemed like it took forever before I was finally able to catch a HC band live. I couldn't drive and only one or two of my friends in my hometown were really into the same music at the time. Also, I didn't know anyone in Toronto so the extent of my exposure to things happening there was taking a bus ride to the city to buy records, zines and to collect flyers. On a few occasions I bought tickets for shows and would get turned away from the club for being too young and just take the bus back home. In the summer of 86 I finally saw a flyer for an all ages show with some local bands and a band called NO SYSTEM from Boston. I took the bus up to Toronto knowing that I was finally going to get in! Circle pits, fast music, buying fanzines, it all seemed pretty fantastic.

Q 3. What was the scene like around Meaford, Ontario like before SONS OF ISHMAEL started? Was it an active scene, or did you travel to other cities (ie Toronto) in order to play shows?

Paul: I joined the band after they left Meaford and went to Toronto, so I cannot comment much. However, being from a tiny town of 1000 in eastern Ontario I had a parallel existence to the guys from Meaford so I will fill you in on hardcore in rural Ontario. There was NO "scene" outside of large cities in the early 80's. The entire Leeds County probably had less than 10 people actively listening to the music. It is nothing like it was 15 or so years after that. If you wanted records or wanted to see shows you had to go to Ottawa, Montreal or Toronto. Having said that I managed to find two others in my town who liked the music and played the right instruments to form a band. See next question.

Daragh: I joined the band much later (in 1990) but growing up and trying to be into punk in a small town in the 80s was not a great deal of fun. I remember a school friend getting beat up by other students in 1983 and having his mohawk cut off while our school principle laughed. Events like that helped solidify my determination to not "give in" and be like "them". As strange as it sounds in retrospect, it really felt like something as superficial as a haircut or a t-shirt was making a strong statement and was enough to invite harassment at the time.

Q 4. What other bands had you guys been in before (tell us about ANGRY THALIDOMIDE BABIES, what a name)...

Myke: My first band was Sanitary Napkins, which was a band on paper mostly. My second band was a duo called Butt Plugz. We did covers of Ramones and Killing Joke songs, as I recall. I played my guitar directly into one channel of my cassette deck. Matt played his bass directly into the other channel. Eventually we joined up with Paul A (later of One Blood, now of Legion) and starting writing our own songs. That band was called Burning Rectal Itch... See any patterns?

Chris: My first band was Charlie Brown’s Wang. We practised a lot, but I never played a show with them. After I got kicked out, I joined up with the Sons at a D.O.A. show sometime in ’86. (Paul remembers the exact date, I’m sure… Paul?)

Paul: I appreciate your confidence in my memory, Chris, but I have no idea! I was a in a band in Athens, Ontario from 1984-85 before moving to Toronto. We were called DISORDERLY FASHION but never really got out of our town.

Daragh: Nothing notable or interesting before or since! Still, I reckon the temptation to "make some noise" never fully goes away. On that note, while punk bands reforming can be a contentious issue in some parts, I have to say that I have a great deal of respect for bands like GAUZE from Japan or SEEIN RED from Holland who keep going year after year and still sound as vital as ever.

Q 5. What one band had the biggest impact on SONS OF ISHMAEL? In sound, and in attitude (who made you think "YES, I want to do a band too")? What bands influenced the manic thrash sound? Also, were you influenced by bands from overseas (Europe, Japan etc)?

Myke: To me, the early Sons of Ishmael stuff sounds like it was inspired by Jerry's Kids, which was a good band to be inspired by. If we'd been able to snare Brian Betzger as our drummer ... we'd have been deprived of Chris's friendship. The Crucifucks would have been one influence that led the band away from its manic thrash sound.

Chris: I think going to shows and seeing people that looked like me getting up on stage and playing was the biggest “I can do that!” moment for me. They weren’t “rock star” looking – just regular guys in jeans and t-shirts. Probably seeing S.O.I. before I joined them was inspiring. I remember thinking I’d like to be in that band.

Paul: MDC

Daragh: Again, I was the "late comer" to the band but I have very fond memories of getting the Hayseed Hardcore 7" in the mail and catching SOI live in Toronto. At the time I never would have guessed that I would end up playing in the band one day.

Q 6. How did you see the hardcore scene change from 1985 onwards? How do you respond to the argument that hardcore punk "died" in 1986? How was it different than before?

Myke: Hardcore is young people's music. It appeals particularly to young musicians that are just learning how to play their instrument(s) because it's a style that's fairly easy to play. As they improve, these budding, young prodigies continue to play with and for the same people they always have... Then at some point some authority decides it's not hardcore anymore and the world ends.

Chris: It got more serious and less humorous (with exceptions). Metal started to permeate in a big way (Crossover). Songs got longer, and equipment got better. By the early 90s the musicianship started to really improve (although, not necessarily the music). Today, it’s rare to hear a HC band that sounds like 80s HC. Hatebreed, Terror (which I listen to and like a lot) etc. are called hardcore today, but in the 80’s they would have been been called metal.

Paul: I think in the summer of '86 in Toronto things were more alive than ever. With a reliable venue and reliable promoters it seemed there were tons of bands coming through town that summer and it was a blast. By summer of 1987 things seemed dead despite a few large shows. I think by this time things were starting to sound the same and it was not fresh anymore and that's why you get the "death notices" from various punks. It seemed that there was a complete turnover of participants every few years.

Daragh: As I said, I spent a couple years visiting Toronto to buy records but age and a lack of contacts in the city meant that while I was collecting flyers for what looked like incredible shows (Articles of Faith, Battalion of Saints, even Einsturzende Neubaten around '85) I was missing a lot of it. A little while later I was fortunate to have lived in Germany in '87 and I was able to see and take inspiration from a lot of what was happening there at the time. Catching touring bands like Concrete Sox, Chaos UK, Heresy, Larm, Negazione or even Chumbawamba ensured that punk felt very much "alive" to me at the time. I had a similar experience while living in Japan between 1998 and 2007. Seeing bands like Gauze, Bastard, Gism, Corrupted, Forward and countless others was further proof that there are still a great deal of incredibly vital and powerful bands out there.

Q 7. Do you think the fact that your debut, 'Hayseed Hardcore', came out in 1985 as opposed to say 1983 impeded the band's popularity? (since by 1985 so many bands were playing metal/crossover, or had "progressed", while SONS OF ISHMAEL were still playing straight forward hardcore not unlike early DRI/VERBAL ABUSE)

Myke: The band broke up repeatedly so that its various members could pursue other opportunities. As a result, it was never able to build much of what you'd call momentum.

Chris: I don’t think so. There was still a sizeable audience for what we were doing in ’86 to ‘91 – they just didn’t come to our shows. Also, you have to compare North America to Europe. We had much bigger crowds and enthusiasm in Europe than in North America, for sure. Lots of girls too! But, we never had sex with them.

Q 8. Also, do you think being from Canada, rather than the US, meant you perhaps went more un-noticed than some of your peers from larger US cities?

Myke: A little bit maybe.

Chris: I’m sure things would have been very different had we lived in S.F.

Paul: No, it seemed of no concern of whether you were from USA or Canada but if you were from Washington, DC you could walk on water. Back then word spreads by way of trading of mix tapes and word of mouth.

Daragh: Agreed. Despite the lack of the internet at the time, tape trading and fanzines like MRR helped negate the distance and borders that separated people from bands from different parts of the world.

Q 9. What are your three favourite Canadian hardcore bands of all time, and why? Who was always really good live?

Myke: The Andy Kerr-era version of Nomeansno was magic, both live and on record. There were always good local bands, too: No Mind and Guilt Parade, for example. As far as live shows go, SNFU was always fun.

Chris: I’d have to say Nomeansno, along with SCUM and Fair Warning, both from Montreal. Montreal bands were always really good. Countdown Zero, Genetic Control, Asexuals among many. I loved early Sudden Impact as well.

Paul: It is hard to identify the "best bands" because most of them did not last that long or have a prolific output. If they did, they likely changed for the worse or put out bad records. SNFU was one of the best live bands. I'd say my 3 favourites are The Spores, Asexuals and Subhumans. I can't remember who really stood out as there were many.

Daragh: I never saw them live but I think the YOUTH YOUTH YOUTH record from Toronto still sounds great. They had a pretty unique sound and I would say that they were a band that perhaps went underappreciated internationally at the time. As far as a "top three" list of Canadian bands of all time goes, it's too difficult! It's pretty subjective depending on what someone has been exposed to and when. I'd agree with Myke and Chris that NOMEANSNO and SNFU both seemed pretty impeccable at a certain point in time but to someone catching those bands in their present form and comparing them with more recent Canadian bands (Career Suicide, Endless Blockade, Inepsy or Cursed, for example) that statement might make very little sense. Seriously, I have a hard time answering this one and in the end what I have to say about it just isn't all that important.

Myke: I agree with Daragh on the Youth Youth Youth record. A big influence on me at the time.

Q 11. I've heard various funny stories about SONS OF ISHMAEL shows; can you tell 3 stories of some of the funniest things that ever happened?

Myke: Wow, so many funny stories, so many of which involved ruining someone else's day... I laughed really hard the night we spent trying to encourage a large dog to hump a pal sleeping on the floor. I also laughed really hard the day our van got towed in Barcelona and was driven into a wall on the way back from the pound. Some cretin stealing my chorus from the stage in Derry while I was out in the van fetching merchandise ... that was a highlight, too.

Chris: I don’t think I ever laughed so much than the time Tim got on his hands and knees and serenaded us for an hour so with his farts.

Myke: That was funny.

Paul: We had to pay to play our own show in San Angelo, Texas.

Daragh: Being in a band with Tim as a vocalist pretty much ensured that every gig was entertaining in one way or another. He was a pretty incredible front man to say the least.

Q 12. SONS OF ISHMAEL displayed a strong element of cynicism and sarcasm, especially towards the hardcore scene in general. What was it about hardcore that, in the mid-80s, left a bad taste in your mouth (so to speak)?

Myke: The inability of some people in the HC scene to think for themselves and make their own decisions made their company very oppressive after a while. I had no respect for authority at the time, regardless of what kind of haircut it had. I still don't.

Of course, "group think" is not unique to the hardcore scene. It happens any time individuals try to work together. To be accepted as part of the team, you have to turn a blind eye to dishonesty, inconsistency and all that other shit.

Daragh: I think part of the band dynamic involved confounding people's expectations, something that became increasingly apparent as time went on and the band attempted to sing less "generic crap". I'm not sure how well some of the ideas translated but writing about rock formations (Paul) and incorporating polka elements into the music (Paul) was, if nothing else, doing something different.

Q 13. Tell us about when rednecks chased you out of Sault St. Marie...

Myke: It was about midnight when we decided to stop for breakfast at a roadside diner in the Soo. As we walked back to our van, a longhair in the parking lot made a comment about Paul's haircut. Safely inside the van, I rolled down the passenger side window and asked him to elucidate, but before he could, Chris put the pedal to the metal and we were on our way. The longhair tried to catch up to us in his pick-up and enlisted the support of two friends on a motorcycle, but our paths never crossed again, which is my single greatest disappointment. Tim was even brushing his teeth in anticipation of the meating.

Chris: Myke, you forgot to mention my excellent driving as we raced through the streets, running redlights and stops signs. At one point I made a quick left and the pick up truck when straight through. Watching Starsky and Hutch really paid off. Since then, I've heard stories from other bands who had things go down in the Soo. But, we never had sex with them.

Q 14. During your long tour of the US in 1987, how do think the hardcore scene differed from state to state? What bands are you glad to have played with on this tour?

Myke: All of them, really, but particularly Porn Orchard in Myrtle Beach and Penfold's Revenge in Chicago.

Chris: Playing in California was pretty amazing. Our show in San Diego with the Adolescents, and a bunch of other bigger bands really showed how ingrained the scene was down there. It was still underground, but really big. San Fran was great too. Gilman Street and MRR house: Wow. So much media – radio, zines, photography, and scenesters everywhere. I’m proud to say we played with Nomeansno, Government Issue, C.O.C., and Youth of Today on that tour. I like to speculate that little kids like Billie Joe Armstrong and Kurt Cobain might have seen us play in SF and Tacoma!

Myke: I've always wondered if Kurt Cobain was at our Tacoma show, too. Might explain why Nirvana did so many Sons of Ishmael covers.

Paul: Chris never had sex with him.

Q 15. Regarding the 'Pariah Martyr Demands a Sacrifice' LP, why is the production so bad? I have heard before that it is because the band couldn't be bothered to hire decent equipment?

Myke: By mistake, we booked time in a studio that didn't usually record guitar music. Its name was similar to the name of the studio we really wanted, but it wasn't the one we had in mind. We fucked up. That was mistake number one. Mistake number two was that our equipment was utter shiite: Paul was playing a $100 guitar through a keyboard amplifier, for example. Mistake number three was when the rest of the band ignored my pleas for more bass in the mix. Actually, now that I think about it, mistake number one was accepting money from a record label to record a bunch of songs that weren't very good to start with. This should serve as a lesson to all young people: money has a way of influencing decisions for the worse, in music and elsewhere.

Chris: That was my first recording studio experience and I have to admit I was completely unprepared. We agonized over the release of that record for months. Remixing it at huge expense ($200??) before finally sending it off to Over the Top. Seeing it in vinyl for the first time was a thrill, but that was soon replaced with mortification at the quality of the thing. I like the cover...?

Q 16. Why did you end up splitting up in 1991? How had you seen things change over the 6 years of your existence? Did the advent of grunge move things along? Is it true your last show was opening for Hole as you stated on the band's bio?

Myke: Paul and Daragh had girlfriends and didn't want to go on tour again. Tim chose not to continue playing with Chris and I and whomever we might find to "replace" Paul and Daragh. It was very disappointing, as I thought our newest songs, and we had a lot of them, were among our best.

Chris: Our last show in Toronto was opening for Hole, at the Rivoli, a very small room. But, our last show was actually in Ottawa in early ’92 (Paul, date?). I wore the same DOA shirt I wore at my very first show in Guelph in ’86!

Paul: Chris, I think you wore that stinky yellow Beethoven shirt in Guelph. It is true that our last show was in the Blue Room at U of O in Ottawa but I cannot remember the date. Daragh could not make the gig (hangnail? ) so either I or Myke played bass and I am sure it was an underwhelming way to end. It was not a girlfriend that kept me from touring for that would never happen. It was road burnout mostly.

Myke: I did not know that.

Chris: It was my DOA shirt, and I have the pics to prove it.

Daragh: My recollection was that not everyone was interested in doing more DIY-type touring and that some people were interested in trying something else musically. My "plan" after SOI broke up was to get another band going but the reality was that I spent a few summers as a roadie and driver for friends' bands going across North America, promoting diy shows for a while, and running a telephone "hotline" that listed upcoming punk shows and events in Toronto. Hangnail rumours aside, as for missing the final show in Ottawa, I was informed pretty late that the show was happening and had just started a new job and a weekend shift. I couldn't get anyone to cover for me and as great as it was to work in a photocopy shop for the next five years it was a shame to miss the last show. Regardless, despite the band breaking up everyone stayed active in some capacity; whether playing in other bands (everyone at one point or another), running a label (Chris), putting out the odd 7" record (me), or releasing a pretty awesome cassette of parodies of popular punk songs (Paul); so while the band ended, our interest and involvement in music did not.

Q 17. Was the band never tempted to go down the crossover/thrash route, in an attempt to ride the wave of METALLICA's success in order to become rich?

Myke: Uh, no. Personally, I was tempted to going down the college rock route blazed by Dinosaur Jr and the Jesus Lizard--not for the sake of money, mind you, but just because the music and its fans were more interesting. I got to a point, fairly early on, where I thought that an occasional loudhardfast song would be a great thing to leaven a set, but it wasn't something I wanted to play song after song of.

Q 18. Similarly were you never tempted to start playing in the style of the youth crew bands that was becoming so popular coast to coast? I heard you shared a stage with YOUTH OF TODAY once, how was that?

Myke: I wasn't interesting in playing by anyone else's rules. As for sharing a stage with Youth of Today, I have no recollection of this. I remember hangin' out with dem shits in SF for a cupola days. They seemed to be very interested in sports and muscles and stuff, which doesn't do it for me, but they were nice.

Chris: Yep, we played with them at Gilman. I broke my snare mid-way through our set and Mike Judge lent me his. I still have their Nerf football. It has “Youth Tour ‘87” written on it. But, we never had sex with them.

Daragh: E-bay.

Paul: They, in fact, opened for us at that show. I believe they had a 20 hour drive to Mormonia and had to play earlier.

Q 19. How important do you think having a message was to playing in a hardcore punk band? Did you often encounter people who just wanted to dance hard but didn't care what anyone had to say? On the other hand, how did SONS OF ISHMAEL feel about very politicised or anarcho hardcore/peace punk bands of the time?

Myke: I think the most important things are passion and creativity. Whether your lyrics are about man's inhumanity to man or a parakeet drowning in a toilet, if the song ain't got that swing, it don't mean a thing, yo.

Chris: We had those people (Harry Hardcore types) at pretty much every show and they’d be the first people to the bar or out the door after we finished. It was the folks who came up to us after or to our merch table who seemed the most enlightened to what we were saying. We met lots of really great people and had some real quality discussions. But, we never had sex with them.

I remember my moment of disconnect with anarcho/political types. It was in London UK and we were visiting some lefty collective. They were situated in a 15 storey apartment block that had one elevator (no light). As we sat around watching video from the Trafalgar Square poll tax riots, they took great pleasure in repeatedly watching a policeman get a metal sign planted into the side of his head as he was driving by. I remember thinking, wow, I’ve got nothing in common with these dolts.

Daragh: If anything, one thing I took away from my involvement in the scene is how easy it is for someone to write progressive and politically aware lyrics and still be a wretch of a human being. As for how this relates to SOI, I believe it's far better to be in a band with sometimes fairly opaque or cynical lyrics performed by fundamentally decent people than to simply wave the nearest banner while treating the people you deal with on a day-to-day basis poorly.

Q 20. Anything else to add? Say whatever you feel.

Myke: Thanks for showing an interest. I haven't had to answer questions like these in about fifteen years and I really enjoyed doing it. One other thing... There's a lot of good music being made today, too. Give Pissed Jeans a try, or Black Lips. If you're a little more adventurous, a listen to Califone, Deerhoof or Old Time Relijin might be worth your while.

Daragh: Agreed, I cringe at any suggestion that punk or hardcore died in '85 or '86 and really feel that the people who make those claims are being somewhat presumptuous if not downright disingenuous (not to mention the fact that some of these people attempt to draw a pay cheque from something they now claim to be "dead"). There's still a great deal of fun and fantastic music to be had by anyone willing to look for it.

More importantly perhaps, I'd like to commend the other SOI guys on remaining true to themselves and staying creative. Paul turned his hobby and interest in hockey into a successful business, Myke has been working for environmental organizations for many years, Chris has kept progressing in computer work, Tim is a University Professor, I teach at a college, etc. As with punk, life is what you make it and it's never time time to think you've seen or done it all.

Paul: I suggest you try Irish Rovers or Grandpa Jones.

Chris: There's talk of a Hayseed Hardcore re-release on 12" vinyl, that will include additional tracks that were used on comps. We'll post any info on the website (which is, for now, our MySpace page) at http://www.sonsofishmael.com/.

Also, if anybody has video, pics, or recordings of us, we'd love to see them! We're putting together a website and it'd be cool to include whatever we can get (that's good). You can contact us at thesons@sonsofishmael.com.

New posts soon... 23 Sep 2008 7:39 AM (16 years ago)

Just a short update. I'll soon have regular internet access again and I've got some good stuff to post up, so keep checking back! In the meantime, listen to Danzig II and the Inmates.

New interview with EXTORTION... 4 Aug 2008 10:26 AM (16 years ago)

Q. 1. What was the hardcore scene like in your area before the band started, and were you all from the same place? What about the Australian scene on a national level at the time?

R: We live in Perth which is pretty isolated from the rest of the country (which is a country that is isolated from the rest of the world (that makes isolated squared)), the scene here had/has a lot of bands, probably because until recently very few bands would tour here, so we’d have to make our own music. That said most of the bands suck, shitty metalcore and melodic hardcore bands, none of the bands we started really fit in and I’m surprised this band has gotten the response it did. We just make music we like. Some bands rule, most bands suck shit in any genre really. I guess such is the case here also. We do our best not to suck.

Q. 3. What 3 bands do you think collectively influence Extortion the most, and why?

R: Collectively? Hahah I’m pretty much the evil totalitarian of the band, our new guitarist is more into technical death metal, the bassist first love is doom and sludge and the drummer loves stock standard rock, but they play what I tell them to so it works out fine.

No Comment, Infest and Negative approach are probably the main three but we try to pull influence from many places so we don’t sound like a clone of just one band (but we sound derivative of many hah).

Q. 4. What do you think of the term power violence, and do you get annoyed if people label Extortion as a PV band?

R: I don’t get annoyed because we definitely take influence from power-violence bands, but yeah, I’d say we’re a hardcore band with a heavy power-violence influence. Like Mind Eraser, heaps of their riffage is obviously lifted out of Crossed Out/Infest/Neanderthal etc, but the song structures and speeds are definitely not “pure” power-violence. But we’re really nit-picking here and there is no definition of power-violence written in any brutal dictionary or raging encyclopaedia anywhere, so it can mean whatever you want.

Q. 5. How did you first get into hardcore: can you remember the first record you heard and the first show you attended?

R. The first albums were probably the usual shit like Minor Threat and Discharge. I liked (and still do) whatever was punk but faster and angrier. I was a big FYP fan. A friend made me a mix tape with lots of early Boston bands and that’s when I probably got focused more on hardcore in general.

There wasn’t much in the way of local hardcore bands back then and no one bothered to tour here from elsewhere due to Perth being in the middle of nowhere. The first hardcore band I ever saw was probably a local band called Negative Reply.

Q. 6. List the total Extortion discography so far...

R: Demo tape
S/T EP
Degenerate LP
Control ep
Sick LP

We’ve also finshed material for splits with Completed Exposition, Rupture, Jed Whitey and Agents Of Abhorrence on various labels, we’re just waiting for them to be released.

Q. 7. What other bands had Extortion members been involved in previously?

R: Jaws, The Collapse, Burn For Me, Bete Noire, Sensory Amusia, Heist, Rupture, Nailed Down, Excretion, PC Thug, Dead Hand, Squandered, Los Goblanos, Cobra Clutch, All In Deep Shit, Hailstones Kill 200, Halo of Knives, Australia, The Bankrupt, The Jury, Hospital beds, Defeat, Drowning Horse, Frightener, Eagle Boys, Penetrating Stairs, Chris Mainwaring Is Dead, Meatlocker, XmerchX, Clever Species.

Q. 8. Incidently, how good is the HEIST 7"?

Pretty fucking good. So good we pilfered the drummer. Well, the drummer from the first two 7”s at least. They also released a 22 song cd later on that (bar about 4 songs) sucked sloppy shit. A bunch of shitty joke stoner rock songs. It was reportedly recorded by Stumblefuck from Rupture on his 4track, which he has done brilliant recordings on in the past (check out the Rupture -Righteous Fuck 7”) but it seems he downed a little too much bourbon the day this one was recorded.

Q. 9. What's been your favourite show so far (and why), and what's been the worst? Any funny stories?

R: When we last played in Sydney some cunt in a wheelchair was lifted onto the stage. now the stage wasn’t terribly large so I think I had to kick him out of the way and he ended up waiting for about the length of a song before “stagediving” off the front, a good 4 foot drop face first into the floor. Entertaining to say the least. The guy said he loved the set but thought the crowd were arseholes for not catching him hahah.

Q. 10. Explain what you love about the NO COMMENT: Downsided 7"...

R: It sounds like what you’d get if asked a man you locked in a 1m x 1m cage, which itself is in a dimly lit concrete cell, for five years and then fed them nothing but porridge and plain bread for the duration to write a record upon release. Pure desperation, you can see it in the points where the english language, as it is, isn’t enough and words are put together in an attempt to describe something that has no name. Downsided, mind-tied. Etc.

A dance on pins and needles. You may know the theory, the rules of how to dance, but without the feeling in your feet how can you be expected to do so in any sort of natural way? I suppose the same can be said for social interaction.

Q. 11. Since you've released 2 LPs so far, what are your 5 favourite hardcore LPS EVER and why? Do you think it's hard to translate the hardcore formula to a full length?

R: I think writing a full length album for a hardcore band (and ESPECIALLY a fast hardcore band) is difficult to do. Too many bands just end up writing the same song a whole bunch of times, which make for a boring record. Adhering too much to formula I guess. And here’s a piece of advice for the world- DON’T PUT BREAKDOWNS IN EVERY SONG.

The other problem is that fast bands always put too many songs on a record. When the track list gets to 20 songs or over, its pretty hard to keep interested. Here’s a ridiculous analogy- say you’ve got a photo with 5 babes in it. You can look at and appreciated each one (as nothing more than a sex object) separately and take in what each one different and/or awesome. Then look at a photo with 30 babes in it, you’ll find you end up appreciating a few, but ignoring a lot of em, for no other reason than its too much to take in.

The above-mentioned coathanger abortion t shirt.

Q. 14. Who is your favourite hardcore frontman of all time, and why? Similarly, favourite guitar-player?

R: Sakevi. I don’t think I need to bother explaining why. Riff wise, I guess who-ever wrote the riffage for negative approach? Seriously, how good is nothing. and I was theorising that the stop-start-riff-with-fast—beat-over-it of friend or foe was probably inspired by AC/DC, though obviously AC/DC did it over rock beats, to less aggressive tunes.

Q. 15. What good current Aussie bands would you recommend checking out? How about internationally?

R: Around here I’m liking what I hear from Suffer, Wasted Til Death, Battletruk, White Male Dumbinance, The Kill, A.V.O, Mindsnare, Agents of Abhorrence, Straightjacket Nation, Deathcage, Snake Run, Crux and probably more but my memory sucks.

Realistically though, (and to answer the second part of the question) I’ve pretty much only been listening to Beirut, Grizzly Bear, Midlake and the Radio Dept recently. Not very hard or core.

Q. 16. How did you end up releasing on the classic label DEEP SIX? Do you know why they haven't released the LOW THREAT PROFILE 7" yet?

R: I sent our recording to Bob at Deep Six and he liked it. Pretty simple. I’ve asked about the Low Threat Profile 7” but never got a reply (how bullshit are those comp tracks? Fucking amazing!) but I heard a rumour it had something to do with one of the members taking off with the recording when he left the band? It was just a rumour, so its probably just a load of shit.

Q. 17. Being from Australia, did you only listen to 28 DAYS and MEN AT WORK growing up? How about watching Neighbours? (a show seemingly only known to the unfortunate Australian and the British it seems)

R: I don’t watch television, and didn’t watch much as a kid, but my sister loves all that TV soap bullshit. Neighbours and Home and Away and all that stuff. I don’t have the patience, it never fucking ends!

Also never got into 28 Days, but I was a big Frenzal Rhomb fan as a kid (and was chuffed to find out the drummer is a big Extortion fan). I am familiar with Men At Work’s one hit wonder, whatever it’s called...

Q. 18. How important do you think a DIY attitude is to playing in a hardcore band? Do you think some newer bands start, thinking they can easily 'make it big'?

R: Until recently everything we did was via the DIY scene, the style of music we play is not one that attracts the masses. though it must be said over the last year or so we've been offered some gigs in sydney and brisbane that paid quite well, enough to cover the costs of flights for all five of us, and so we've played them. DIY is great, but we're not about to look a gift horse in the mouth. Playing hardcore and expecting to make money out of it is downright ridiculous. We're doing well, and we just cover our own costs (recording, travelling, etc) The percentage of bands that actually make money and "make it big" out of playing would be tiny.

Q. 19. Speaking of Negative Approach before, did they play Australia on their recent reunion tour? If so did you get to see them? What do you think of reunions in general?

R: No, there was talk of it being organise (a friend of mine was in contact) but it fell through. reunions generally don't go well probably because the bands were never as good as the stupid level of hype and worship given to the band post-humous, coupled with the fact that hardcore is a pretty energetic style of music and you've got to be pretty fit to play it, something that getting old and fat doesn't agree with (Pig Champion is exempt from this statement (or was until he kicked the bucket). That said I hear the Negative Approach reunions were pretty good.

Q. 20. What will Extortion eventually turn into... a hair metal band like late SSD, or a progressive/emotive band like Fugazi?

R: Given my listening taste, probably "progressive" emotive bullshit, though if I want to play a different style I usually just start anoter band. I play in a sludge band and a Wipers-esque band on the side at the moment. so if I ever get the urge to play some wanky bucket of piss, hopefully i'll do it with another band rather than shit all over our good name hahah.

Q. 21. Negative FX or Siege? Perhaps not comparable, but answer anyway...

R: Probably Siege. The good songs by Negative FX are shitloads better than the best stuff Siege did, but there is a lot of filler on that album. A lot of short boring songs with boring riffs. All Siege songs rule, but if you think anything they did is as memorable as something like Protestor then you are insane and I would thank you to stop talking to me.

Q. 22. DYS or SSD...Why?

DYS! SSD had some killer slower anthemic songs, but their faster songs (what should be bread and butter for a hardcore band) were boring as fossilised turds. Too much verse-chorus-verse-choruse-verse-chorus-etc into infinity. Screw and Boiling Point are alright though. DYS slow songs (the hardcore ones, not the rock stuff) AND fast songs were both good.

http://www.myspace.com/extortionextortion

The results of this week's poll (favourite BLACK FLAG vocalist), and BLACK FLAG Last Show live boot upload... 30 Jul 2008 4:06 PM (16 years ago)

The results are in for this weeks poll for favourite BLACK FLAG vocalist, although I believe there was some confusion in Florida which might have skewed the results (people were ticking the box for Dez Cadena thinking they were voting for Henry Rollins as his name was below it). That's the only thing that could explain why Rollins received less than 50% of the vote overall. Maybe we should try again? To be honest, the results are to be expected, and it perhaps blasts any conception I had that the world is full of Rollins-era haters. Chavo would have been my 2nd choice, his energy on the live songs from the 'Decline Of Western Civilization' movie is undeniable, as are his versions of 'Revenge' and 'Depression' on Everything Went Black. I also prefer 'Jealous Again' sang by him to the original Keith Morris take on it (shoot me!).

New DESPISE YOU interview... 26 Jul 2008 4:37 AM (16 years ago)

Q 1. First introduce yourself, and say where you are right now...

DY: Inglewood, South Los Angeles. 310. Always and forever.

Q 2. You've not done many interviews, even less in your original existence...how come? Did the band attempt to keep a mystery around them originally?

DY: Naw, we never really got hit up to do interviews, and if we did, it was in some small fanzines that no one has ever seen.

Q 3. How come you never vouched to play live in your original inception? Was EXCRUCIATING TERROR the primary band to some of the members?

DY: Yea, everyone that was in the band originally (all the "West Side Horizons" recordings) were in other bands so we didnt have a lot of time to even practice that much, let alone play live.

Q 4. On a similar topic, how come you never printed your real names on the original DESPISE YOU records? Or appeared in many photos? Did you get a kick out the fact that some people thought you were members of a notorious gang?

DY: We didnt want to be "members of....bla bla bla", so we didnt print the names. There was plenty of "non-music" related shit going on with us then, though. haha

Q 5. Who chose the whole aesthetic of DESPISE YOU for the original records (gangland photos, starving children etc, bleak imagery all round)

DY: I guess that's just the vibe we wanted from where we were at around that time. It's kinda the same thing now.

Q 6. What bands were DESPISE YOU members also involved in during your original inception?

DY: EXCRUCIATING TERROR, STAPLED SHUT, CROM, RISE, FELT NUMB.

Q 7. How have the live shows been over the last year or so? What's been the best, and worst, experience so far?

DY: All the shows have been good. Playing 6th street/L.A. was good. A lot of our "friends" were there to dance and help break up fights.

Q 8. How did it come about that Chris Dodge would play bass?

DY: We needed a bass player and since he used to play in STIKKY, we thought he'd be good. Actually, he lit a fire under us to get back together and see what happens. Thanks Chris.

Q 9. When did you first get into hardcore punk? Can you remember the first record you heard, or band you saw live?

DY: For me it was BLACK FLAG "Jealous Again". The first band I saw was a local Inglewood or Lennox band called POLICIA PUTA or something like that, in a garage.

Q 10. Another question I like to ask, what did your parents or family think about you getting into punk/hardcore & metal?

DY: I was skating all the time, the punk rock was just a part of it. My folks didn't give a fuck either way, as long as I stayed out of jail and kept the trespassing tickets to a minimum.

Q 11. What was the scene in Inglewood like in the 90s, around the time DESPISE YOU started?

DY: No punk stuff, there was a couple death metal bands. NECROSIS was a CARCASS-style grind band in like '92. Just gangs, and people with anger management "problems". Inglewood Skate Rats etc. Perfect.

Q 12. How has the area changed over the years? What keeps you in LA?

DY: Things just got more crowded and expensive. Demographics in L.A. neighborhoods seem to be changing a lot recently. All my family and shit is here. I'll be here for a while.

Q 13. What were your favourite power violence bands in the early to mid 90s? Choose a favourite: CROSSED OUT 7", NO COMMENT: Downsided or NEANDERTHAL: Fighting Music, and explain why...

DY: All those are good. The MAN IS THE BASTARD/CROSSED OUT 7" too. The NO COMMENT "Downsided" is my favorite 7" ever. Beginning to end. Everything about that record is perfect. Birth to death in like 6 or 7 minutes. Beautiful.

Q 14. How close do you see skating in terms of a relationship to hardcore? How do you think it's changed over the years? Do you all still skate?

DY: Skating and punk rock. They go hand in hand, you weren't into one and not the other. If you listened to DIO or PINK FLOYD you rode some stupid BMX bike and brushed your hair all day. Stupid. I still feel the same today about it as i did "way back then". I see a lot of hip hop in skating now. Not sure what hip hop and skating have in common though. I guess you can buy both of them at Walmart or something.

Q 15. Who is currently providing female vocals at live shows, still Cynthia from GASP? What happended to Leticia, aka Lulu, the original singer?

DY: Lourdes "Lulu" Hernandez did all the vocals on the "West Side Horizons" stuff. She was in high school at the time. Not sure where she is now. She used Leticia cuz of her sister or something. Cynthia from GASP is doing the vocals for us now. We've all known her a long time, and she "brings it". Plus she's a 310 veteran. Those are always good.

Q 16. What were some of the key hardcore bands that influenced DESPISE YOU?

DY: DRI, LEEWAY, MINOR THREAT, AGNOSTIC FRONT, all the "standards" I guess.

Q 17. Who is your favourite hardcore frontman ever and why?

DY: Probably Rollins, cuz "Damaged" is my favorite punk/hardcore record.

Q 18. Obviously good metal bands were a big influence on DESPISE YOU too. Who are some of your favourite metal bands?

DY: All the L.A. shit. SLAYER, DARK ANGEL, OMEN, BLOODCUM. Then there's POSSESSED, VENOM, CELTIC FROST... all that stuff.

Q 19. What do you think are the main things that seperates heavy metal from hardcore?

DY: Maybe the metal bands try to be more musical? I don't know. Lyrical content is more "fantasy" related with the heavy metal people.

Q 20. What new records do you have in the works? I hear talks of AGORAPHOBIC NOSEBLEED and CAPITALIST CASUALTIES splits?

DY: We're doing a split LP/CD with AGORAPHOBIC NOSEBLEED called "And On, And On......", 23 or so new songs. It's all recorded except vocals. We hope to do a split with CAPITALIST CASUALTIES also.

Q 21. How did the MAN IS THE BASTARD split LP that was never released come about? Were/are you friends with any of those guys?

DY: MAN IS THE BASTARD asked us if we'd do it and we wanted to. We recorded like 16 songs for it. They recorded their songs, but got side tracked with some stuff, and never put vocals on it. So we put our songs with all our other out of print shit, and that's the "West Side Horizons" CD.

Q 22. What do you think was the best line up for a show you attended in the early/mid 90s?

DY: Probably the Fiesta Grande shows. DIVISIA, EXCRUCIATING TERROR, CAVITY, CROM, I think it was in west L.A. It was a good show too. There were a lot in A.A. that I can't remember the specifics on now. LACK OF INTEREST and RORSCHACH out in the valley was rad.

Q 23. What do you think of new bands taking influence from, and covering DESPISE YOU (HATRED SURGE, IN DISGUST etc). Are you surprised by the interest and influence the band has had?

DY: Yea, we're always stoked to see bands covering our songs. Sometimes they do it better than we do. ha

Q 24. Did you ever get to see INFEST? Write a little about why they're so good...

DY: Yea at the Chapalita. Well they were like the first band doing that stripped down "powerviolence" type stuff!

Q 25. What's your favourite DRI record and why? Did you ever get to see them, in any form? Do you even like their later crossover records (ie THRASH ZONE)?

DY: I like "Dealing With It" the most. I've seen them a few times. Nursing Home Blues...

Q 26. Any last words?

DY: Thanks for the support.

http://www.myspace.com/dxyx

HYPNOTICS: Indoor Fiends LP (1982) upload... 26 Jul 2008 3:55 AM (16 years ago)

As a follow up to the 'American Youth Report' compilation LP upload a few posts below, here is a cool LP by HYPNOTICS who appeared on that record. It was on Enigma Records, and I believe it was reissued on CD by GTA but I'm not sure if that's still in print...So, here you go.

Download here.

HYPNOTICS were an early LA band that musically bridged the gap between the garage stylings of early LA punk with the emerging hardcore sound... To me it sounds like ANGRY SAMOANS or CIRCLE JERKS meets VILE, a nasty and cynical hardcore punk record with subtle use of keyboards. Sadly it's not as well known as it should be. Lots of catchy tunes and interesting guitar riffs, not to mention great vocals and lyrics that I'm assuming were generally meant to shock and offend. The chorus to 'Nazi Snotzy' goes "Heeeeeil Hitler" (which you'll find yourself guiltily humming after hearing it) and others are about sexual diseases or insomnia, which should give you an idea of what's on offer here. Not unlike Doc of THE CRUCIFUCKS, the HYPNOTICS vocalist Marky De Sade was infamous for his onstage Jerry Lewis style antics, and the band's do share a similarity in style (both high on sarcasm and bile).

Their 1983 record 'The Expendables', which Enigma refused to release, is rarer than 'Indoor Fields' (I believe it wasn't even issued with a sleeve) so good luck finding that...

Here's a photo of them from the insert to the 'American Youth Report' LP.

New interview with OUT COLD (John)... 25 Jul 2008 3:57 AM (16 years ago)

This week I interviewed by email John Evicci, drummer, Ted Bundy lookalike and all round band spokesperson for Massachusetts's OUT COLD, who have been one of my favourite modern hardcore bands for some time. Every record is a winner, and their last LP 'Goodbye Cruel World' is no exception. They employ a no-bullshit approach to playing straight forward hardcore punk, with no frills and little in the way of popular appeal... Even though they've been active since 1989, they haven't followed any of the trends that occured throughout 19 years within hardcore and also haven't broken up, rotating members fairly often but never losing their distinctive sound (comparable perhaps to Tied Down-era NEGATIVE APPROACH meets early FU'S, or something. It's great regardless of comparisons). Currently, two members of excellent but sadly defunct LAST IN LINE are in them, as far as I know... John also runs the excellent Acme Records. Enjoy!


Q 1. Out Cold has always seemed like 'outsider hardcore', are you in any way connected to any local scene around Boston? Were you ever?

J: Yes, we've always been outsiders and never part of any scene.

Q 2. Why do you think Out Cold hasn't broken up after all these years?

J: A few different reasons. First and foremost, we still love playing and creating this type of music. Secondly, we've been lucky enough to find people to play with to replace the many lost members over the years. Thirdly, we do everything at our own pace and on our own terms, so there's no external pressures grinding us down. Lastly, we're still fucked up and angry.

Q 3. What is next for Out Cold? Have you recorded anything recently? Any plans for a new release?

J: We recorded a shitload of new tracks 3 years ago which are supposed to fill out our next two full-lengths. However, we've been too fucked up and disorganized to finish them off as of yet. In the meantime we've had some EPs and splits come out.


Q 4. When and how did you first get into hardcore punk? Was it a stagant scene in Boston at the time, mid 80s? What were the first shows you'd go to?

J: I first got into punk and hardcore in the mid-'80s. I don't know if the scene in Boston was stagnant at the time. I never went to shows. I was ensconced in my disconnected little suburban town and didn't start going to shows until I was older. My guess is the scene was active, but it was full of shit I wasn't interested in. Bad jock-core or progressive post-punk crap. The mid-to-late '80s was a bad, bad, bad time for punk/hardcore and just music in general.

Q 5. Speaking of when you first get in to punk, and hardcore, what were some of the first records that you really loved and had the biggest impact? Also, what did your parents/family think at the time?

J: Some of the first bands I got into, and who have remained some of my absolute favorites to this day, were bands like Black Flag, The Freeze, Bad Brains, Dead Boys. These bands were also big influences on where we took Out Cold. My parents were typically uninvolved/uninterested in what I was listening to, but to the extent they paid attention to it, they didn't like it. My mom has since warmed up to it a bit.

Q 6. Regarding when you got into hardcore, do you think it was the influx of heavy metal's influence, and metalheads, in hardcore in the mid to late 80s that ruined the music for you?

J: That was definitely a big factor, yes. It was also the influence of the more progressive elements that I wasn't into. People were straying from the simple, powerful, emotional, catchy foundations that made the music so great. I just thought 90% of what was going on at the time was either macho crap or pretentious pap.


Q 7. How important do you see audience participation to hardcore? Does Out Cold play as if no one else is in the room, just feeding off each others energy (ala Flag)?

J: It's really nice to get a good response from the audience. We want people to get into what we're doing, obviously, but it's not necessary. We're so used to being ignored or misunderstood that we don't need the audience's approval. We ultimately play for our own gratification and, as you say, feed off our own energy.

Q 8. I didn't manage to see Out Cold when you were in the UK last: do you plan to come over again? How did you find our dismal little country?

J: I loved touring there and seeing and hanging out with all the people, but the shows were mostly depressing as fuck. Dismal is a good word. With a few exceptions, the shows were poorly-attended and just felt like a waste of time. Based on this, it's unlikely that we'll come back, although I'm open to anything.


Q 9. How important do you think it is to be original playing hardcore, and do you think there's any room left for creativity? Do you think with the amount of 'retro' bands currently doing the rounds, it is overly contrived or afraid to experiment?

J: I don't think originality is supremely important. I love a lot of very derivative music and think it's worthwhile as long as it's not a blatant rip-off. Out Cold is very derivative in a lot of ways. That being said, I am starting to grow a bit weary of the current crop of hardcore bands that stick to a such a strict early-'80s style. It's so strange to now be in a position to say that considering that when we started out it was the exact opposite and we often railed about it. Now the pendulum has swung so far in the other direction that it's gotten a bit tired. It definitely does feel contrived now and that's a shame. However, I'm not really complaining because this is the type of music that I prefer, so I guess what we have is an embarrassment of riches, but there definitely is a lot of room left for creativity and individuality.

Q 10. Regarding the surge of retro style hardcore bands, is there any particular that DO really impress you? You've played NO WAY FEST (a few times?), was that good fun?

J: I must admit, I have not kept up at all with the flood of these new old school bands. Seems everytime I turn around there's another band. We only played No Way Fest once (this year's) and that was like the mecca of that whole scene and it was really mindblowing to see all that concentrated into such a focused event. I've never seen anything like it before. It was great. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Even given the high caliber of acts at that show I wouldn't've thought I could tolerate sitting back-to-back through whatever it was, like 12 hardcore bands, but despite being a bit tired and ear-fatigued, I really did enjoy it all. Like I said, I'm not really up on a lot of these new bands, but some I really like are bands like Direct Control, Career Suicide, not to mention foreign bands like The Heartburns, Auktion, Cola Freaks, etc.

Q 11. What is one of your favourite underrated bands, from the past, you want to spread the love for?

J: I don't know of any underrated bands from way back when. Seems every little obscure thing from the past has been plucked from the shadows and held aloft by the punk/HC intelligentsia. Christ On A Crutch aren't from too far in the past, but that's a band I really like that I don't hear a lot of love for. Also, I think that first Joykiller album blows away anything by TSOL, but doesn't have that early-'80s cult of personality status so it's easily dismissed by people.

Q 12. What was the worst show Out Cold has ever played and why?

J: Pretty much any show before 1998. There was no interest in or really understanding of what we were doing. We'd play depressing local shitholes to a sprinkling of people who didn't have any appreciation for us whatsoever. Generally speaking, that is.


Q 13. How did ACME start, and what is the favourite release you've put out?

J: It started because I love records and always wanted to do a label. It took me a good ten years and thousands upons thousands of lost dollars to come to the conclusion that I have no business running one, but I gave it the old college try, and that counts for something. Favorite release? That's like asking which one is your favorite child. I'm not saying it's my favorite, but the most criminally-underrated release I've put out is Hero Dishonest's "When The Shit Hits The Man".

Q 14. You recently played some shows in the US with the Horror from the UK, and you obviously did a split with Voorhees. What older UK hardcore bands are you into too?

J: Peruvian Vacation-era Stupids, Icons Of Filth, GBH (if you consider them hardcore), Varukers. I don't know, most of the old UK stuff I like I would consider punk and not hardcore.

Q 15. Did you like the American Hardcore movie?

J: I thought it was OK, but could've been handled much better. It didn't live up to its potential in my opinion.

Q 16. What do you think were the main problems with it? I personally didn't like the music-video way it was put together too much, with constant flashing of images and 5-second long interview snippets all the way through...never seemed to get to the bare bones of the matter.

J: I only watched it once so my criticism of it should be taken as more of kneejerk reaction rather than a thoughtful analysis, but I thought it came off kinda lazy and amateurish. My lasting impression of it was that they tried to leave it unpolished and raw or whatever, but to me it just came off looking like they didn't put a lot of time and/or care into it, like they just threw it together and put it out there. I just think it could've been delivered in a way to give it a lot more impact. For a documentary about such a incendiary type of music, it was a bit boring to me.


Q 17. What do you think of reunion shows of old bands? I'm guessing since you're from Boston you've perhaps gotten to see Gang Green or The Freeze in recent years? Have you heard about Springa's SSD "reunion" coming up?

J: I think it's cool, in general. It's sometimes cool to see some of your old favorites even if it's not the same as it was in the old days. I was very glad Jerry's Kids reformed because I never got to see them during their original run. The Freeze are always a welcome act to have around, although I haven't seen them since Bill Close left the band. I saw Gang Green a time or two in the not-too-distant past. They were OK. I have heard about Springa's SSD reunion and the contention over it with Al. I really don't care about that band, though. Much to many peoples' surprise I think SSD is quite possibly the most overrated band in the history of hardcore.

Q 18. Who else do you think is close to being as overrated as SSD? (Edit: I don't agree with this opinion by the way, haha - Rob.)

J: No one really spring(a)s to mind. They're in a league of their own as far as I'm concerned. (That wasn't a dig on Springa...I just couldn't resist the pun)

Q 19. What do you all do outside of the band to pay the rent?

J: I'm a mechanical draftsman, Mark works at a university, Deuce is a registered nurse in an emergency room, and Mikey works with disabled people.

Q 20. There are definite similarities between Out Cold and Career Suicide, in vibe and song writing (as in the songs are well written catchy tunes as well as being grounded in good classic hardcore). Are you into them at all?

J: Yeah, they're good. I need to get more of their records, though. Only have one at the moment. I meant to pick more up when we played with them in Virginia last month, but forgot to.

Q 21. Has the regular change of members, especially guitarists, affected the way the riffs have been written? Have you ever had anyone join who wrote riffs that sounded completely wrong for the band? Saying that, I understand Mark writes all of the music, so have any members felt artistically restricted perhaps? Is he the Mussolini of the band, and the rest the ethnically oppressed gypsies?

J: The change of members has not affected the way music is written since, as you mentioned, Mark has pretty much written all the songs since Fred left in 1997. On our recent recordings for the upcoming albums, both Deuce and Mikey contributed songs, though, which is pretty much the first time we'll release anything written by non-original members. We've never necessarily stifled the other members, it's just that everyone knows how particular we are when it comes to our material and most people are just content to play and are not really pushing to contribute. We've always been open to it, though, with the caveat that it has to be filtered through Mark & I first. These songs that Deuce and Mikey wrote, though, are awesome. I'm looking forward to hearing them finished off.


Q 22. Do you like classic Japanese hardcore? What are your favourite bands?

J: How can one not like Japanese hardcore? Some favorites include No Side, Real Shit, Stupid Babies Go Mad, Assfort, Death Side, Systematic Deth, Gauze, and a little band that I released (that naturally no one's heard) called Spend4.

Q 23. Regarding GAUZE, have you heard the new album yet? It's definitely a solid record...

J: No I haven't, but I've heard tell. That's a band I'd really like to get to see live someday.

Q 24. You've toured Europe a fair few times, how have you found it different to the US, generally and in terms of punk? You must be one of the only US hardcore bands to have toured Russia!...

J: I think you get treated a little better in Europe than you do in the US. The US has gotten a LOT better in the past ten years or so, but there's still room for improvement. We've never done a proper tour of the US, though, so maybe I don't know exactly what I'm talking about. Apart from MDC, I'm not sure I know of another US hardcore band to play Russia.

Q 25. Where do you think there's room for improvement in the US in terms of touring? Also what European cities did you really enjoy to play AND to visit over the years?

J: Again, not an expert by any means on touring in the US, but I get the impression that you get better turnouts in Europe, people buy more of your merch. Plus you play better quality venues, get paid a bit more, get treated a bit better in terms of getting fed regularly and well, things like that. Some of my favorite places to play were Amsterdam, Newport (Wales), Copenhagen, Belgrade, and to visit, Reykjavík (I'm a raging Icelandophile in case you didn't know).

Q 26. What would your dream 5 band line up for a show be, any bands past and present. Also, what venue...

There you have it! I strongly recommend buying OUT COLD's last full-length, 'Goodbye Cruel World', some distros still have it: here, here, here, here or here.

HEART ATTACK interview from Flipside #42... 23 Jul 2008 3:21 PM (16 years ago)

Here is an interview with NY's early hardcore band HEART ATTACK from Flipside #42, 1984. It was done between the excellent 'Keep Your Distance' 12" (which has the aptly titled song 'English Cunts' on), which was recently posted over on Good Bad Music, and the not-amazing 'Subliminal Seduction' 12" (which sort of sounds like early 7 SECONDS with sloppy drumming, but not as good as that description would suggest. Still pretty cool though).

HEART ATTACK arguably put out the first NYHC 7" ('God Is Dead'), but remain a fairly underappreciated band if you ask me. In this interview they definitely come across as fairly "progressive", not unlike mid period TOXIC REASONS, speaking about having no barriers between countries, "pledging allegiance to love", the treatment of Native Americans... ideas more akin with 60s hippie counterculture than punk nihilism. Like many bands of the time they display a sort of delusional belief that playing in a punk band could really change the world (which is understandable when taken in context, if you consider early hardcore as a kind of "movement"... then new and exciting, now just another Myspace genre). While perhaps naive, bands like HEART ATTACK had admirable good intentions, and these sorts of ideas definitely add to the whole early hardcore vibe, whether it was a frustrated desire to improve the world, or destroy it... It's also interesting that they were so outspokenly critical of the church, something heard less and less from bands from around this area, atleast from the mid-80s onwards.

Another thing to note is the cool Dischord Records ad on the 2nd page of the interview. I don't think I've mentioned before how much I love SCREAM: 'Still Screaming'!

AMERICAN YOUTH REPORT compilation LP (1982) upload, and results of this week's poll (favourite Midwest hardcore band)... 21 Jul 2008 2:22 PM (16 years ago)

Here is the CLASSIC 1982 LP compilation 'American Youth Report', originally on BOMP Records.

Download here.

This was actually one of the first hardcore punk compilations I ever bought, finding it in a second-hand record shop (sadly no more) in my home city and being intrigued by the cover and the inclusion of some bands I already knew (BAD RELIGION, TSOL, MINUTEMEN etc). In my humble opinion, this record is up there amongst the great hardcore compilations. Like most good comps it exists as a sort of time-capsule, archiving what was happening at a specific time in a specific place, in this case the early emerging LA scene (the important bands that followed the original trailblazers like FLAG, CIRCLE JERKS, X etc). Each song sounds similar, in that you can tell all the bands are from California, and it therefore encapsulates the style of the region (in the same way that 'This Is Boston Not LA' captured Boston's sound, and 'Flex Your Head' captured the DC sound). It manages to bring together 16 songs from 16 bands, some classic acts and some often overlooked. The weaker tracks are still great, I seriously don't think there's a bad band on it! (feel free to argue this point with me.)

The photo on the back, of a fucked up kid with a spray painted shirt and work boots (see below), and the photo on the front of a punk with "lobotomy" tattood on his head with a dotted line underneath his mohawk, really "spoke" to me at the time as a young angry punk. I knew I had to buy it... Even the photos on the insert really added to the whole experience: RF7 hanging out in a graveyard, BAD RELIGION goofing around, FLESHEATERS and HYPNOTICS looking like they just came off the set of RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD (incidently FLESHEATERS actually appeared on this film's soundtrack)... This comp really helped open my eyes to the origins of 'American Hardcore', where not all of the bands wore the same uniform as each other, or sounded like any of the 90s hardcore bands I had been exposed to. There were real differences between the bands, they had their own styles going on (some to more of an extent than others). The suble use of an organ on the RHINO 39 song, and the simple use of piano on 'Tell Me Why' by M.I.A. are testament to the influence of 60s garage and other styels on these bands. It's odd to think that, at the time this was originally released, all the bands were creating a fresh exciting sound, new and vital. Even though 26 years have passed, thankfully records like this do manage to capture that original enthusiasm of hardcore, in sound, that can't be matched...


A real gem on this record is the LEGAL WEAPON song 'Pow Pow', an often overlooked female-fronted band from LA. While they borrow a lot from bands like THE AVENGERS or THE BAGS (sidenote: has anyone else noticed how much REM's 'Losing My Religion' rips off the chorus of 'Prowlers In The Night' by THE BAGS. Listen to it now, you'll see what I mean), and didn't form til later on and thus probably didn't quite fit in with the emerging hardcore bands who would thrash faster and shout louder, I still really like this band's early records. Another gem is the HYPNOTICS song, a band I know very little about other than that their singer was called Marky De Sade and he was supposed to be a wild and entertaining frontman. They did a lot of creepy sick songs, and sounded not unlike THE LEWD or ANGRY SAMOANS: check out their 1982 LP 'Indoor Fiends'. I also want to mention the funny lyrics of the RF7 song, which I didn't realise were a joke when I first heard them: "You can worship satan, any asshole can. But even he can't save you, when the judgement day's at hand. Remember, Jesus loves you, so don't be fooled by Bad Religion". Plus, it's got an obligatory 80s hardcore tune about ol' Ronnie Reagan by SHATTERED FAITH.

Anyway, here's the full tracklisting. This comp was the first time I heard classics like 'I'm Not A Loser', 'Only Gonna Die' and 'Working Men Are Pissed'...Fucking classic.

1. MODERN WARFARE "One For All"
2. BAD RELIGION "Only Gonna Die"
3. CHANNEL 3 "Catholic Boy"
4. ADOLESCENTS "Losing Battle"
5. LOST CAUSE "Born Dead"
6. LEGAL WEAPON "Pow Pow"
7. FLESHEATERS "Pony Dress"
8. RHINO 39 "J. Alfred"
9. HYPNOTICS "Weird People"
10. DESCENDENTS "I'm Not A Loser"
11. M.I.A. "Tell Me Why"
12. T.S.O.L. "Sounds Of Laughter"
13. SHATTERED FAITH "Reagan Country"
14. MINUTEMEN "Working Men Are Pissed"
15. RF7 "Jesus Loves You"
16. RED KROSS "Notes & Chords Mean Nothing To Me"

Interview with HF from RINGWORM (2005/2006)... 20 Jul 2008 12:57 PM (16 years ago)

I've been gone for a week, but now I'm back... I went on holiday to North Wales, whereupon I walked up a lot of mountains, chased some wild mountain goats and stumbled into a river. A great time was had. I'm glad to see in my absence the 'favourite Midwest hardcore band' poll got a fair few votes. I'll post up the results soon (you can see on the right who won).

To get things going again, here is an old-ish interview I did with Human Furnace, from Clevo legends RINGWORM, done in late 2005 or maybe early 2006 for a zine I never printed... It was carried out via email and isn't the best interview ever, but I thought I'd share it anyway. I wasn't that keen on their last few records, although I did really like 'Birth is Pain'... CLEARLY nothing will ever beat 'The Promise' (one of the best LPs from the 90s), or the equally perfect demo.

EDIT: As requested in the comments section, here is the 'Voice Of Thousands' compilation on Conversion Records, I got it from Coregasm blog but the link was expired so I uploaded it again. Or, you can just download the FORCE OF HABIT song from it here. FORCE OF HABIT was HF and 3 Gun's band prior to RINGWORM.

Q) 1. You're all older (wiser?) than when Ringworm first started. Do you think you've calmed down at all over the years?

HF: I guess so. We just do what we do, always have, always will. we are proud of that.

Q) 5. Ringworm seemed to go quiet after the first album. Did you ever actually split up any time in the 90s?

HF: Yeah, we actually disbanded from 1994 up until 1998.

Q) 6. What other bands have members of Ringworm been involved with in the past, and at present?

HF: Wow, well thats a long answer. Here goes... myself- I do a band called GLUTTONS, I play guitar and sing, it's a mixture of Misfits and Motorhead, punk rockish type thing. I also do HOLYGHOST, which is a band that i started in '97 while Ringworm was defunct. That band also included former members of Ringworm, Aaron Ramirez and Chris Dora. That band is together once again with a diferent sound and it consists of myself and current Ringworm guitarist Aaron Dallison. Aaron Dallison also is well known for his other band KEELHAUL, in which he plays bass guitar. It's a nice extention for me to be able to do different things, expand some horizons. Matt Sorg has also resurrected an old band of his called DECREPIT, awesome old school death metal.. Mike Lare also does a band called KRUSH EFFECT and THE COAST, as does our drummer Danny Zink. Other original member, Frank "3 gun" Novinec is well known for his tenure in TERROR and is now a permanent member of HATEBREED.

Q) 7. How differently do you see hardcore today compared to, say, the mid 90's? Are you glad to see the back of chug-metal? What current hardcore bands do you like?

HF: Well im not sure what you mean by "the back of" chuga-chuga stuff etc. Im actually just tired of anything thats watered down and generic, or shit that sounds exactly like everything you've heard before, which is a lot. I like good metal and shit that has drive to it and has some personality to it. As for current bands I'm into, that's hard to say... I suppose I'm still into alot of the same shit that I always liked, alot of old classic thrash, and rock, and alot of avantgard music. I do like a new band called UNHOLY from syracuse, the new ACCUSED, DEMERICOUS (GREAT FRIENDS, GREAT BAND).

Q) 8. Being contemporaries with Clevo bands like CONFRONT and FACE VALUE, were you ever tempted to play in a youth crew-influenced hardcore band?

HF: Youth-crew? not my style. Im not very positive and i dont care about unity.

Q) 9. Why are you called Human Furnace? Is there a story behind it (like the origins of 'Dwid')?

HF: There is but i never talk about it.

Q) 10. Do you ever see/speak to Dwid? In retrospect, what do you think about his infamous 'persona'?

HF: I speak to him occasionally, and see hiim when we travel through Belgium. Dwid is an extremely creative person who helped shape the way things are today. I've known him and been friends for many years, at times he can a bit eccentric, but most influencial and ground breaking people are. Never afraid to take chances.

Q) 11. What were you favourite bands from Clevo in the late 80's/early 90's? Any funny stories from 'back in the day'?

HF: There was quite a few great bands from cleveland back "in the day". FALSE HOPE, HYPER AS HELL, of course INTEGRITY, DIE HARD, CONFRONT. More currently BOULDER. I remember the day before the grand opening of the ROCK-N-ROLL HALL OF FAME in Cleveland, BOULDER took a generater down to the front steps and in the middle of the daytime set up and played the song "Cleveland Rocks" (for those of you who are familar with you classic rock) over and over again, for no-one but the construction workers and a few police officers, who enjoyed the set for quite awhile before telling them to pack it up, therefore making them the first official band to play at the hall of fame. I can go on about a shit load of stories, I have a million of them, but I won't. haha

Q) 12. Tell us about your troubles with Incision records with the first album.

HF: Well, we felt ripped off about getting our share of the pressings and having the album not get the proper promotion. Some things never change.

Q) 13. Whats the funniest thing to ever happen on tour?

HF: There's an awesome story about a "chick" we like to call "47 yyeeaarrssss". If anybody wants to know about that ask our bass player. hahahahahahahaha

Q) 14. Straight edge, what are your thoughts? Was there ever any antagonism between straight edge and non-straight edge kids in Cleveland?

HF: I dont have a problem with straight people whatsoever. I dont care what people wanna do. I'm too old to care about what anybody else wants to do, I have enough problems of my own. Problems? Perhaps in the early days. It was usually an issue with the straight edgers, the real hardliners, but that was brief and mostly had to do with individuals not "scene" shit. I never had any difficulties getting along with anybody that is straight edge. I am not.

Q) 15. Tell us a bit about the choice to use the quote "there is no god" on The Promise....There is a fascination with religion/satanism/christianity in your lyrics and imagery. Where does it all stem from?

HF: I find it an extremely interesting subject matter. It's called almost every world war in recorded history, for starters. I write about all aspects that effect my life, I just have a tendency to put a dark twist in things. If I was happy about something I wouldn't sing about it, that's not what this band is about for me.

Q) 16. What are your 3 favourite hardcore punk records? What are your 3 favourite heavy metal records?

HF: Punk records - hmmmm. MISFITS - Earth AD, DEAD BOYS - Night Of The Living Deadboys, CIRCLE JERKS - Group Sec, plus a shit load of others, I hate doing these kinds of lists... Metal records -MERCYFUL FATE - Don't Break The Oath, VENOM - Black Metal, TROUBLE - Trouble, plus tons of others...

Q) 17. Is any member of the band into collecting vinyl at all?

HF: Ah not so much anymore, maybe if there's something I really need to have.

Q) 18. Do you like any Japanese hardcore bands, like Gism or Gauze etc? Have you ever played in Japan?

HF: Yeah I like and respect alot of those bands, we haven't been there YET but it's definetely on our TO DO list.

Q) 19. It's obvious that horror movies have been a big influence on Ringworm. Name some of your favourites.

HF: Horror movies, here's another impossible list. Let's see... CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, ANYTHING VINCENT PRICE, THE THING (CARPENTER VERSION), THE EXORSIST, ITALIAN ZOMBIE...

Q) 20. Remake of Hills Have Eyes. Yay or Nay? Horror remakes in general?

HF: Haven't seen it yet, I never make re-makes a priority to see, the originals are almost always better. The movie industry is completely out of ideas so all they do is make remakes of everything. Hopefully this trend will end soon. I enjoyed the remake of Dawn Of The Dead, I must say.

Q) 21. Who are some of your favourite authors?

HF: Favorite authors - POE, NIETZSCHE, BRADBURRY, HUNTER THOMPSON.

Q) 22. Are you looking forward to coming to the UK soon? Do you like any hardcore punk bands from the UK, old or new?

HF: We are excited as hell to get back to the UK. Can't wait to destroy every town we play in! Uk bands!? Are you serious? Fuck, MOTORHEAD, SABBATH, VENOM... about a zillion others. Thanks a million for the interview, can't wait to rage with everyone. Stay sick bastards!!!

The results of this weeks poll (favourite classic Slap A Ham record...) 11 Jul 2008 6:50 AM (16 years ago)

Here are the results of this week's poll, for favourite classic Slap A Ham record from the following list.

It was always going to be between the 4 heavyhitters: NEANDERTHAL, CROSSED OUT, NO COMMENT and the CROSSED OUT/MAN IS THE BASTARD split. I would be naturally inclined to vote for INFEST if any of their proper records were released on Slap A Ham, but since the P.H.C. split is only a live recording it doesn't make my cut for favourite... I can't say I'm surprised that NO COMMENT won, since it is a perfect record, but I personally went for NEANDERTHAL above all. That record destroys worlds. Ofcourse there are other good records on Slap A Ham, including the EYEHATEGOD/13 split and NOOTHGRUSH to name just two, but I wanted to keep things strictly hardcore (even though sludge IS hardcore in my eyes) and strictly "Slap A Ham-classic" (LACK OF INTEREST is the only later record included just for the sake of it.)

Infest/P.H.C. split flexi 2 (3%)
Neanderthal: Fighting Music 7" 15 (25%)
V/A: Bllleeeeaaauuurrrrgghhh! The Record 7" 3 (5%)
Charred Remains/Pink Turds In Space Split 7" 0 (0%)
Crossed Out: S/T 7" 9 (15%)
No Comment: Downsided 7" 19 (32%)
Crossed Out/Man Is The Bastard Split 7" 7 (11%)
Supression/Despise You Split 7" 2 (3%)
Lack Of Interest: Trapped Inside LP 1 (1%)
A 2nd rate fastcore record that isn't listed above because it's not as good... 1 (1%)

Votes in total: 59

I'm away for a week on holiday, so no posts for a little while. I've got some cool posts in store for when I return, so get excited. In the meantime, I recommend you buy and listen to the new GAUZE LP on Prank. Oldtimers showing everyone how it's done.

LOS VATICANOS: Nerone 666 LP upload... 10 Jul 2008 4:01 PM (16 years ago)

Time for an underatted gem! Here is a great LP from LOS VATICANOS, an excellent and unique band from Rome, Italy. It came out on Thought Crime Records in 2001, and is still fairly easy to get ahold of. I highly recommend buying it if you like what you hear...

I'm fairly new to this band, but when I heard this album I was speechless, and surprised that I'd never heard anyone talk about them before. I don't think it's premature to say this is one of the best post 2000 hardcore LPs to come out of Europe; they have (or had, I have no idea if they're still going) a really fresh style. They sound kinda like a weird mix of RORSCHACH, CHEETAH CHROME MOTHERFUCKERS and LOS CRUDOS, or something along those lines... It also reminds me a little of the great and underrated COLD SWEAT but predates them by a few years. They have a truly unique and gloomy sound, with crazy basslines and peculiar guitar riffs that complement the deranged vocals. As I stated before in a post about NEGAZIONE, the Italian language suits hardcore so well in my opinion...

Generally they keep things fast, and aren't afraid to mix in metallic influences, but I wouldn't say they were a metalcore band. I can also hear elements of the original power violence bands, with some MITB-style bass licks here and there... There's plenty of tempo changes, in the tradition of good Italian hardcore, and the energy levels are high. Also, their lyrics (which are nearly all in Italian) seem to be vehement diatribes against religion and the Catholic church. If it wasn't for the bad singing on the last song, it would be a near perfect release. Oh well, you can't win them all. Great record nonetheless, and recommended if you like things a little experimental. YES.

I have no idea if they are still active, so please leave a comment if you know more about them...