Upcoming Gore Girls FundRager!
The last one was a blast!
Showing posts with label (Metal). Show all posts
Showing posts with label (Metal). Show all posts
APRIL 12. Redscroll Records Opens. Mark it on Your Calendars.
Redscroll will be to Wallyworld what Metropolis is to the Northwaste Corner -- which is to say, the hub. The center. The everything.
CD CONTEST!
That's right -- it's going down!
The wonderful folks at The Space have recently put out an AMAZING CD compilation featuring 20 (!!!) local bands who have crushed their stage. Among the many bands features are Local Motion favorites Call it Arson, Welcome, Shadowgraphs (ex-Eschellon), and Mile Marker Zero. The great thing about the comp is that it has so many different genres of music, you're bound to discover a band you like (even if you haven't heard of them before).
HERE'S THE DEAL. I have THREE copies of this disc to giveaway. To enter, all you have to do is post a comment on this blog entry (see link below) telling us about the best concert you ever saw at The Space. Haven't seen a show at The Space? That's fine -- tell us who you'd like to see play there and why. (And yes, I'll know if you're promoting your own band, so don't bother.) The best entries get the goods!
A quick note: you don't have to sign up to Blogger to post comments (there's an "Anonymous" option), but if you go that route, please sign with your e-mail address so I have a way to contact you if you're a winner.
Hehe, "if you're a winner."
GOOD LUCK!
Holy Shit, Sugarfist!
HUGE and bittersweet news from the Sugarfist camp. Jenn Jacobs has parted ways with the 'Fist! She's been around since the beginning, and to many of us her awesome voice has come to represent the band just as much as the goofy stage antics and the jambalaya clusterfuck songwriting. Meanwhile, they've already found a replacement!
Here's the announcement from the band:
"We would like to take this opportunity to extend a gracious and sad farewell to one of Sugarfist's own- Jenn Jacobs. Beginning in 1999 and one of our founding and core members, Jenn has decided to depart from the band. She has been a part of the Sugarfist family for many many years and we all wish her the very best in her future creative endeavors to come. Her last performance with us can be seen at a free show this Saturday September 9th at The Haddam River Days Festival in Haddam, CT.
We would like to give a new toasty welcome to the always entertaining and extravagant...Krizta Moon!!!! Joining the band now on vocals!!! Krizta will perform our last song of the evening on Saturday night and can be seen with us thereafter at the following locations of mass media cronyism..
FRIDAY October 6th The Beanery Old Dam Road Fairfield, CT ALL AGES
SATURDAY October 21st The Colony Woodstock, NY"
Will Haven Signed
Bieler Bros Records, home to UK math-metallers Sikth, have recently signed one of the bands that got me into hardcore: Will Haven.
When I first discovered them in the late '90s, Will Haven's thick-chained guitars and relentless 3/4 time signature were quite possibly the heaviest thing I had ever heard. It was simplistic, reductive, and palpable. I grew up listening to alternative; in 1996 a high school friend turned me on to the Deftones, and from there it was only a short jump to heavier sounds. Snapcase came first -- they had just released Progression Through Unlearning, which I think to this day is their best album ever. But shortly thereafter, I found Will Haven's "Ego's Game" on a comp CD, and was thrilled to hear another band using the same kind of guitar style and rhythm. After investigating both bands' back catalogs, I have to say unequivocally that Will Haven's is the better of the two: it's more consistent, and while that certainly leads to a degree of predictability (Will Haven outside of the 3/4 time signature is almost impossible), it's definitely preferable to Snapcase's many failed experiements.
The official announcement:
"Bieler Bros Records is proud to announce the signing and return of metal-core pioneers WILL HAVEN. Will Haven will release their as of yet untitled Bieler Bros. debut in early 2007. The release will be the bands first since 2001's critically-acclaimed Carpe Diem."
Bleach Transfusion Completed: Initiate Self-Termination Process
After an incredible 4 or so gigs, and with seven epic minutes of recorded audio under their belts, the boys of Bleach Tranfusion have announced their indefinite hiatus. Vocalist/synth player Ben Kohanski is beginning his college education (majoring in Gore, no doubt), leaving the future for the acoustic grind band open but uncertain.
While I wouldn't exactly classify Bleach Transfusion as good, they're certainly one of the more interesting bands* I've encountered, both in terms of setup (cheap drums, crappy synth, capes, gas masks) and artistic vision. (Their aborted album, Purging the Swarm, was to be an epic tale of Space Marines [think Doom, Halo] forced to annihilate a malevolent race of sentient insectoids. Not exactly typical concept album material.)
*(Note to readers: please do not call bands/works/artists "more unique" or "less unique." "Unique" means one-of-a-kind; there are no orders of magnitude. It's either unique or it's not.)
For those of you who never saw them live -- and let's face it, your number is legion -- it sounds like a DVD is in the works. If you enjoy B-movie kitsch, you may want to get a copy.
Relevant MySpace bulletin (from vocalist Brian Sierakowski) below:
Is this truly it for BLEACH TRANSFUSION?
As many of you probablly know, our beloved keyboardist/vocalist, Ben Kohanski, will be departing for college today. He was a great bandmate and friend, and truly the mastermind behind Bleach Transfusion. We've had a good run with our acoustic grindcore project turned synth led grind assault on the senses.
Is Bleach Transfusion dead?
No. We are just on indeffinate hiatus. Myself and my brother, Sam, will be part of two untitled bands, currently forming. Our first is an artsy hardcore project, and the second (which I am personally excited about) is a synthy gore grind project featuring Poop Sludge vocalist Chris Little and ex Revelations of Doom guitarist Tyler, whose name I embarassingly forgot this morning (sorry, man). Also, I myself might be playing keyboard for a local black metal project.
Bleach Transfusion does, however, plan to release a special DVD/EP CD set at Jamfest 07. This DVD will include their full live performances from Jamfest 06 and the 06 Dodgeball Tournament. Also, we will include the "basement sessions," which will show everyone what happened while we recorded our sick awesome tracks. We'll show you the laughs, and more laughs, because really, there was never any drama. The EP will provide you with all of our old tracks from The Lies That Grind, and the Purging The Swarm concept album. We will also include unreleased and alternate tracks. Whether we will actually make an appearance at Jamfest is highly doubtful.
...
It was a fun ride, guys. And hey, we might actually pick this up again, we still have Purging the Swarm to try and finish.
So thanks again, all.
And look forward to our DVD/EP release at Jamfest 07! It will be the best $7 you've ever spent.
Ramallah's "Kill A Celebrity": Officially REQUIRED LISTENING for Readers of Local (Com)Motion
You may or may not like heavy music. You may or may not like punk. I don't care. You need to hear the messages on this album.
Normally I would be racing to write a CD review of this so it could be published in The Advocate and reach thousands of readers. Unfortunately, I slept on Kill A Celebrity for too long (it came out in late 2005) and The Advocate has a policy of publishing CD reviews that are fresher.
So I'm sitting down at 2:30 in the morning, after 2 and 1/2 glasses of wine and exactly two listens of this CD, to tell you that you need to hear this. Why? Because, quite simply, Ramallah's latest disc is the kind of music that compels you to act. You can't fucking listen to this and sit still.
Within the legendary Boston hardcore scene, there has been one band that has been consistently hailed over all others: Blood for Blood. If one were to liken them to Connecticut's Hatebreed, it wouldn't be too far off the mark. Blood for Blood (who have since broken up) had a dubious reputation for shedding, um, blood (imagine that) at shows, and for generally attracting working-class thugs who needed an outlet for their pent-up frustrations. To quote from the Victory Records website:
"Their ‘white-trash working man’ ethics and ‘no holds barred’ attitude have garnered Blood For Blood a following that is among the most fanatical and dedicated of any fanbase in the music scene today. In a scene currently lacking in old-fashioned angry hardcore, Blood For Blood stands where legends Sheer Terror and Killing Time once reigned."
Yeah. There's violence here. But it goes deeper than that.
Class lines have always clearly divided the hardcore pretenders from the real heirs to the scene. Blood for Blood, you might say, were the kings of lower- and middle-middle class hardcore: they ran into problems with society enough to have a political bent, but they were still sonically punk-as-fuck. (Compare to Hatebreed, who, over the long-term, have shown themselves to be eagerly upwardly mobile -- both in business practice [signing to Universal Records and, for their latest release, Roadrunner Records] and musical composition [their increasing metal influence culminated in a guest spot by Slayer's guitarist Kerry King on 2002's Perseverance]. Hatebreed's lyrical material has always stayed squarely centered on abstract values, whereas Blood for Blood were always eager to grapple with real-life issues.)
So enter Blood for Blood's "White Trash" Rob Lind, the mastermind behind the Ramallah project. Their first disc, But A Whimper, was a wicked taste of things to come (it clocked in at just 13:53). On Kill A Celebrity, White Trash Rob takes the time to unpack and expand his views, providing what one might dub a "working class progressive" stance on international politics and domestic affairs.
At least, that's the scholastic way to put it. Another way to put it: far-left liberals (as opposed to centrist Democrats) and progressives have always struggled with giving their beliefs an artistic voice. The effortlessness with which Ramallah does so suggests that we (I say "we" because I count myself among the ranks) have all been overthinking, overarticulating, and self-censoring too much.
White Trash Rob cuts straight to the fucking chase, and it's magnificent. One can only quote.
"What a beautiful rage/what a noble crusade/what a beautiful hatred ... I wish I was as strong as you." -from "Brother Malcolm"
"I'd love to... put some sarin gas/in the central A/C at the VMAs/and watch those beautiful faces/turn ashen gray... Kill a celebrity, and you will find you can strike down a god." -from "Kill a Celebrity"
Watch in awe as Rob quotes from the Sacred Cow themselves, The Beatles, by covering "A Day in the Life" and translating it into hardcore-ese as though the song's original authors were just, y'know -- people. (As someone who resists the canon [and canonization] of The Beatles as one might resist Titanic, The Da Vinci Code, and the Harry Potter books, I knew from the opening notes that Ramallah was covering a song. But, ignorant as I was of the source, I have to say that I enjoyed knowing that Rob was making an old song relevant in the first half, and explicitly updating it in the second. Such audaciousness could only be punk. Doubly so upon realizing [a Google or two later] that he was fucking with the holiest of rock's holies.)
But the high point of the album, for me, had to be "Heart Full Of Love." Reading is good, but listening is better. Shit, if you want an MP3 of this, e-mail me.
"I want to cut the brakes on every SUV in the world. And I'd love to burn down to ashes every jewelry store in the world. I'd love to drown in crude oil every 'spring break' beach in the world. I'd love to slap awake every sheep that puts their faith in the monsters that run our world. My heart's so full of love... I'd love to rape a Hilton sister or kill an FM show director and piss on the illusions that you hold so dear. I'd love to silence all the liars preaching what they know is poison; piss on their illusions and show you true fear. I want to grind into dust your American Idols, all with a heart full of love... My heart's so full of love that I would save you all if I only could. My heart's so full of love, I'd even die for your sins than watch it all fall... My heart is so full of love... Blood. Terrorist, is your heart also full of love?"
Incredible. Incredible. Finally someone is able to step up to the plate and say: no, no, my dissent, my qualms, all the times I've disagreed with you and freaked out and told you you're full of shit -- they're not because I'm neurotic and not because I'm weak and not because I don't have anything better to do. They're because I am so fucking full of love that cold assholes like you could never even comprehend it. They're because I love this country and this world and its people so much that I can't do anything but point the finger and call "bullshit" on your lies. And you -- you're not even from the same planet.
Ramallah's dreams of MTV-destroying, SUV-disabling violence may be short on real-life solutions -- but they're long on giving pent-up frustrations a voice and a purpose. For once, here's an aggressive disc that does the real thing: by articulating and advocating extreme solutions, it gives those of like mind the impetus to seek realistic changes.
On Paths of Torment is Calling it Quits!
So if you want to see the the band that's arguably been at the core of the young Torrington metal scene for the past three years, come to Musomania this weekend. They play on Saturday.
Here's their announcement from MySpace today:
That's right kids. After 3 years, we feel that it's finally time to put OPOT behind us, for various reasons. Regardless of the fact that we won't be doing much after this show, we'll still be shooting a video for "There's Something Rotten In The States Of Condition", so we want as many of you guys there as possible to make it something to remember. To everyone who has ever supported us or helped us out in any way, we can't thank you enough. It's been an amazing ride, but at this point this band is just not what all of us want to pursue. And to Josh, thank you so much for giving your all to us over these past few weeks, and busting your ass to learn our songs as quickly as you did. We all <3 you and are sorry things turned out this way; we hope there are no hard feelings. We wish you the best in your future endeavors.
Again, thank you to everyone who has supported us over the past few years. We'd absolutely love for you all to come out to Musomania this weekend and rock out once more. The show's profits are going towards our singer Lou's hospital bills, as he suffered a fractured larynx earlier this summer, putting him in the hospital for 3 days without any insurance. So come out for a good cause, rock out for the video's sake, and have a great time. Check out our shows page for more details.
http://www.myspace.com/onpathsoftorment
Metal Bands Needed for Sunday Shows in Terryville! (What Weapons Bring War)
What Weapons Bring War has just recently begun hosting a Sunday night Metal showcase at the New England Sports Bar in Terryville (23 Main St., Terryville; right next to Bristol). The shows will all be 21+. If your crew is looking for a Sunday gig (or if you like metal and want to catch some good tunes at a small/laid-back bar on a Sunday night... you lush), then drop WWBW a line.
http://www.myspace.com/whatweaponsbringwar
If I Had Eyes Release KICKASS Video
Want to see what I saw that fateful night at The Oxbow? Check this shit out. It was recorded the same night that I wrote this review.
If I Had Eyes are a bunch of fire-breathing, math-textbook-eating demons. And can I just say that I love the opening of this song? And they have a sick drummer. Ok, 'nuff raving.
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=805137213&n=2
Undead Review: The Deadly
The Deadly
The Wolves Are Here Again
Pluto Records, 2005
http://www.plutorecords.com/
There’s enough bad metalcore these days to send the staunchest scene stalwart screaming towards Emoville. And with labels flourishing from the influx of “new jack” capital, it seems like new, hot bands are coming out every week. How’s a hardcore kid supposed to stay on top?
Maybe, to some extent, we’re not. The over-saturation of heavy music right now might not be a bad thing—because as much as it reeks of being the new fad, it also places that much more responsibility on the bands to turn listeners’ heads.
The Deadly turned my head. There’s an instant similarity to the Blood Brothers: both bands place screamy vocals and plucky bass riffs in the forefront of their sound. But where the latter are raucous and spastic to a degree that alienates most listeners who, uh, don’t have rabies, The Deadly have enough heft and chunk to their riffs for the sane to glom onto. What’s more, they’re fucking catchy. Right from the opening riff of the CD, it’s clear that bouncy, catchy rhythms รก la Coheed and Cambria dominate The Wolves Are Here Again.
The lyrics may be a bit hashed-over by this point. I mean, is the sexual sarcasm of “Make Me Rich”—“so you want to make out again well we’re stealing every heart we can”—really going to send any ex-lovers to the emergency room? But then, who really listens to hardcore for the lyrics anyway? The nitpicky downsides are a disappointing read-along and a lyric booklet full of typos; but these are balanced out by the unconventional, beautifully executed design work. Every hardcore band, including your mom’s, seems to have a logo with blood drips and splatter marks. The Deadly opt for disturbingly clean design, and photographs of high-rises and chandeliers that reek of too much order. Sometimes spitting in the face of the trend can be good for one’s dignity.
UJIMA, Cipher's Online Community
hey y'all,
some of you may remember me mentioning a band called Cipher a while back. I did an interview with them in Clamor Magazine -- you can peep it in my previous Local Commotion posts.
Anyway, Cipher has created an online community and message board called Ujima. Anyone with an interest in activism, progressive politics, building communities, or finding common ground between various socio-political movements will want to get on board. I just signed up and it looks excellent. I would assume that as Ujima grows and matures, the bulk of its members will be hardcore and punk kids who dig Cipher's music -- but whether you're into hip hop, jazz, or hardcore, you'll be able to appreciate the vibe and the momentum that's already under way there.
Come talk to us!
http://www.cipheronline.com/ujima/community/index.php
Undead Review: Discordance Axis
Discordance Axis
Our Last Day
Hydra Head, 2005
www.hydrahead.com
If you think your metal’s been getting faster in the past couple of years, you’re not hearing things. Discordance Axis is almost single-handedly responsible for the recent popularity of grindcore, a spinoff of death metal that uses the fastest drumming humanly possible. No, seriously—the fastest. (It’s called “blasting,” and it involves an alternating one-two punch on the kick snare that, at high speeds, sounds like a machine gun.) Grind musicians are basically endurance athletes, and DA led the charge with their phlegmatic growls and dissonant anti-chords. Their songs rarely last more than one minute, but who can blame them when they play so sickeningly fast?
Our Last Day is more a tribute than an actual DA recording—the band broke up shortly after the release of 2000’s opus The Inalienable Dreamless, arguably the pinnacle of the grindcore genre. New fans should start there rather than here; the odds and ends that comprise Our Last Day are more likely to interest those with a more developed interest in the genre.
Two previously unreleased tracks open the album, and the rest is devoted to covers of the more popular songs in the DA catalog. But this is no chintzy tribute album—amazing bands like Melt Banana and Mortalized rewrite the songs entirely, taking bold liberties with the original material. The most unexpected treat on the album are the contributions by Cide Projekt, a rabid fan who programmed covers of DA songs with the synthesizer sounds from a Sega Genesis console. The robotic drums and plucky synth lines are minimalist as fuck. But by stripping away all the vocals and distortion, these particular tracks reveal just how powerful DA’s songwriting is. (Cide Projekt’s songs forced even my metal-hating friends to admit that, with the screaming vocals out of the way, they liked what they heard.) There’s a crackling tension between Dave Witte’s straightforward drums and Rob Marton’s spiraling guitar riffs; the latter seem to swirl around the former at such a dizzying rate that even computerized drums threaten to fall off-tempo at any moment. Unsurprisingly, it’s that same creative tension that eventually drove the band apart.
Invocation Of Nehek Announce Breakup, Farewell Show
This just in from Lambgoat.com:
Invocation Of Nehek has called it quits. The Connecticut group released one album with Prosthetic records. Guitarist Robb Cyr comments:
"Over the last 5 years ION has had so many great experiences, and we have met so many awesome people, and we are truly grateful for all of it, we sadly have come to a point where it was just time to move on. Although this is a sad moment for us, we know that it is best. When this band started it was meant just meant to be something fun to do on weekends, ION exceeded all of our expectations, trust me you don't name a band 'Invocation of Nehek' and expect to get a record deal or tour the country. We are all still great friends, and will support each other in any new projects. Keep your eyes peeled because you certainly haven't seen the last of all us. We'd like to thank everyone that we have met along the way and that has helped us out in some way shape or form. It was an amazing experience that we will never forget."
The band will play one final show on June 10th at the Sons of Italy in Torrington, CT with Necrosis and Wrenchintheworks, among others.
Shitty news, but then again ION has been plagued with lineup change problems for a long time now.
There are lots of other good local bands on the June 10th bill, too. They include These Days Are Ours, the posi-core group featuring members of On Paths of Torment; Shroud of Turin; and Porphyria.
Just recieved word from Nick Necrosis that the original ION drummer (Tom) and vocalist (Robb Sheol) will be coming down to perform the band's old material. The new drummer and Lou will perform the new stuff. Should be a good send-off.
James Arbys is booking some killer shows.
Here are some upcoming show flyers. The May 6th show in particular looks incredible; The Red Chord, Doomriders, and Ed Gein are all amazing.
Full Text of my Interview with Cipher!
Now HERE'S the crazy shit! This is why it's nice to have a blog.
I had my interview with Cipher published in the spring issue of Clamor Magazine. (They're an awesome publication that will appeal to progressives, punks, DIY kids, and anyone who's generally into indie culture/politics.) Cipher is an excellent hardcore band from Long Island who set amazing sociopolitical lyrics to VERY heavy, danceable music.
Here, for your reading pleasure, is the full text of the interview on which my article was based. I've made minor readability edits to some of the band members' typos, but for the most part left their words intact. Enjoy!
DB: I read on your website something about the hardcore scene losing touch with its roots. What do you see as the biggest problems facing the scene today?
Moe: It’s a frustrating and complex phenomenon. As things get bigger - meaning more people buy Hardcore records and there’s more money in Hardcore - more and more people that simply want to profit off the culture and community get involved in it.
Money is not bad. There’s nothing wrong with bands being able to eat on the road or pay their rent off of their music.. That’s a beautiful thing. What’s really wrong is marketing people, executives, PR folks, and others that never went to a show dictating how our culture and community will be depicted and how our stories are going to be told. So now people think that they can buy a few records and wear some clothes and be part of some “underground scene.” In fact, the superficial elements, the fashion, the romance, and the glamour have taken such a front seat, it’s like the music is simply a vehicle for everything else. And people forget that punk and hardcore is rebel music. There’s very little dissent or critique on these records nowadays. People are too busy trying to convince themselves they’re living in a Def Leppard video. It’s amazingly cheesy and trite, yet it sells and it’s surprisingly popular.
It’s American excess with no critique, no challenging commentary, nothing.
Danny: To me the biggest problem facing the scene is the corporate influence. A hardcore show to kids today is nothing more than a concert event. The scene lacks the community of yesteryear. Generally, kids aren’t giving back to the scene, all they do is take and that’s what the corporate world looks for. A lot of bands that get lumped into the hardcore genre, incorporate a modern hardcore musical framework but they lack the integrity, sense of community, and ethic that is hardcore to me and our fellow scene veterans. Hardcore is now more accessible, which isn’t a bad thing for people like our selves who want our music and message to spread. It’s just a different time now. To illustrate, compare your reaction to seeing a kid in with a Bane shirt five years ago, to your current reaction stemming from seeing a bunch of 12 year olds in Comeback Kid shirts. Seeing someone wearing a hardcore or punk T-shirt is no longer a indicator that this person is part of any community.
Another problem facing the scene from a musical standpoint is that there are new bands coming out whose influences are current mediocre metal-core bands. What good is going to come out of that?
DB: To get a bit more specific on that last question: I know you guys participated in the filming of the documentary AfroPunk. I still haven't seen it, but I checked out the website. It looks awesome! Before I saw the website, I would be hard-pressed to name many black hardcore/punk musicians—all I really personally knew of was Howard from Blood Has Been Shed, Carley Coma, and (the obvious) Bad Brains. I could probably brainstorm up a couple of other minority punks—a few Asian dudes come to mind—but it's still obvious just by the lack of representation that there's racism in the scene. And of course there's always been the dark underside of punk, which is the white power movement.
Have you guys encountered racism in the scene? And not just the overt kinds (like neo-nazis). Have you ever had any bad run-ins with punks and hardcore kids who wanted to think they were open-minded, but were actually doing/saying something racist? Do you think the legacy of the original nazi punks has stuck around even though a lot of crews (in the early days) and Anti-Racist Action groups (more recently) have tried to isolate them and push them out? If possible I really want all the members of the band to take a stab at this one.
Moe: Just the other day at a show in Syracuse some kid confronted me and said, “dude, you look exactly like Darryl from the Bad Brains.” I thought that was the funniest thing ever. Funny in an unsetting way, of course. This kid was trying to compliment me and all he could say is “you look like another black dude with dreads.” I look nothing like Darryl Jennifer, or the dude from Stuck Mojo or the dude form Sevendust, or Howard Jones, and we sound absolutely nothing like any of those bands yet we always get comparisons. That type of not-quite-overt racism is stuff we need to deal with everyday. I mean, we actually have a few reviews that start off, “yo, fans of Stuck Mojo...” are you kidding me? Stuck Mojo? Have you listened to Stuck Mojo before? Me neither?!? So to say we sound like or were influenced by them is laughable!! Or “Sevendust fans should steer away.” Hell yeah Sevendust fans should steer away from us! We sound nothing like them.
As soon as they see that there are black folks in the band they immediately assume, “oh rap-rock, or rapcore.” We’re thinking, “have they listened to our record?” Listen to a Sick of It All record. Is that rapcore? A lot of the Hardcore of the late eighties and early nineties from New York had a staccato vocal delivery. Sure we’re influenced by Hip-Hop and other musical forms but a lot of people make unfair comparisons that we feel have more to do with race than anything else. Limp Bizkit is rapcore.
I could go on and on. I think every day we encounter some form of it. Or these “tough guy” idiots who refer to themselves as ”nigga.” It’s like the most insane thing to hear a white kid actually refer to himself like that. It’s tiring calling these kids out. Every single one, every time they say something? After a while I think, “you know, it’s not my job to play racism police to white kids in the hardcore scene.” It’s a tiring and unrewarding profession.
These kids don’t feel comfortable in living out their own identity and culture so they appropriate other cultures in a really superficial way. They think black culture is what they see on TV and they liken that with being tough, so they emulate that. Most of these kids are from the suburbs and any brush with that life is something they elect to experience. It’s like a little adventure for them. It’s a topic I could go on and on and on about. I haven’t even touched the surface.
I could really critique your question. I mean, there’s actually not a whole lot of black folks in punk and hardcore but our contributions are huge. We’re usually doing pretty visible/meaningful things in the scene: putting on shows, in bands, etc. But we’re invisible so a lot of people conveniently forget these contributions. The Afropunk message board has a running list of hardcore bands with black members in them. It’s pretty long!!
It’s funny to say buy often times, people don’t even realize certain people are black, like the bassist of Fall Out Boy. I bet most people think he’s just kinda tan or something. So the fact that we’re being rendered invisible is not surprising. America has a rich history of rendering people of color invisible.
Racism at its worst is insidious and subtle. It shows itself through people you know and like, people you live with or even date, your co-workers, your friends. It’s in us all. White supremacy permeates this society, plain and simple.
You hardly see flagrant Nazi-style racism. What’s more ubiquitous is the racism that plays itself out without stating itself. It’s the type of racism that white people can deny and claim is paranoia, but it’s real and more pervasive and more troubling than some drunk Nazi dude spewing racial epithets.
Mark: Well, I don’t know about the other guys in the band, but I myself have encountered some racism in the scene. I was about to walk into a venue to hand out samplers when a group of white hard-core kids (who happened to not notice me) made a harsh racist comment towards a black man having some difficulty getting out of a parking spot. I confronted them and they immediately left before other people realized what they said or reacted against it.
I generally think that hardcore kids aren't as open minded as what they might claim themselves to be. We live in a world in where racism is subtle enough to where people don't realize what they say might be offensive to others. The only way we can ever eradicate this type of racism is by continuing to confront the ones who speak it, live it, and replicate it.
There are groups that still represent nazi-punk beliefs in the present day. Although we might have anti-nazi they persist. The fact that they feel comfortable shows that we live in a culture that continues to create an environment where white supremacist organizations, Nazis, and others feel welcome.
DB: Let's flip it around and take a look at the positive side, too. A lot of hardcore groups like to say they have a positive message or a message of hope but if you look at their lyrics, there's no basis for that claim—they're just as depressed and hopeless as Korn or anybody else. I was psyched to see that there is actually hope and positivity and humanity in your lyrics. What are some of the signs of hope that you have seen recently—in the band, in the scene, on tour, in our nation? What are the things that renew your faith and give you the energy to keep resisting?
Moe: We played Victoria, TX and to see the heart of those kids was amazing. They really loved music and they dedicated their lives to the Hardcore community. A couple that put on our show had a hardcore wedding. Isn’t that amazing? And this community was so genuine. Mostly Mexican kids, all working class. These kids were not caught up on the hype fashion, and crap that’s been attaching itself to hardcore. It’s good to know that scenes like that are still vibrant. We met a lot of bands and a bunch of kids that were tired of the soap-opera-core. And these kids were putting on shows, playing in bands, making zines. The DIY underground is still alive, we saw it on tour.
Globally, we need to be clear and recognize when revolution is taking place right before us. “The revolution” is a concept that is unhealthy to presume will happen in the future. Not only can it be a very real and palpable thing in our lives, it is really happening outside the context of North America.
Look at the Zapatista movement in Mexico and the very real democratic alternatives to capitalism they’re creating, look at what’s going on Argentina with the autonomous movements, Venezuela and the Bolivarian revolution, and even the movements in Brazil. Look what’s happening across the world. The world is shifting from the structural adjustment programs and the globalized capitalism and looking for alternatives. These are exciting times. We should be very hopeful for the future.
DB: A lot of the issues you confront in your lyrics/song explanations require a very specific vocabulary. To me, it makes sense, but that's partly because I studied some of those same issues and learned the same vocabulary in college. Is it ever frustrating to have that kind of limitation placed on you? Obviously you don't have to be college educated to be part of the resistance, but how do you overcome that language obstacle?
Moe: We never talk down to the listener. Yeah, I read a lot and have a certain degree of academic privilege, but we try to make the music accessible while using everything we have within us to present our ideas. Limiting the words I use would be like limiting the notes a instrumentalist could play. It’s stifling.
Our fans read up on the stuff they don’t get and they actually learn through our music. We’ve had countless fans come up to us after a show and say, “yo I didn’t get the lyrics at first but they inspired me to read up on this or pick up that book and now I get it.” If we dumbed everything down we’d impinge upon their opportunities to grow though the work. However, there is a balance. If your work is super inaccessible, nobody’s gunna get it. That’s one of the reasons we write explanations for each song, to give folks a road map to interpret our music. We give people a piece without spoiling the fun of exploring the work and putting things together themselves.
DB: Ok, here's an easy one: What have you guys been rocking out to lately? Are there any new albums on the horizon that you're really excited for?
Moe: I’m look forward to the new Saigon and Black Star records. I’m listening to Marvin Gaye, Between the Buried and Me, and Bad Brains.
Danny: I’m currently really psyched on the new Ion Dissonance record. The new Coheed and Cambria and Meshuggah rock hard as well.
Mark: I am currently listening to Ion Dissonance's new release entitled "Solace" and I can never get enough of Underoath's latest "They're only chasing safety". I don't that I am looking forward to anything besides the new Deftones cd entitled "B Sides and Rarities"...
Show @ Metropolis Tomorrow (Apr. 21st)
Short. Sweet. Cheap. Come bro down.
These Days Are Ours
Arms And The Man, I Sing
Northend
-April, 21 2006
-Metropolis Records
-537 Main St., Torrington, CT 06790
-Cost: $5.00
Bleach Transfusion
All other bands in the world: you can shut up now. Bleach Transfusion officially has the best name of any band, ever.
Oh, but it doesn't stop there. These demented assholes -- who originally conceived the band as an acoustic grindcore project -- actually are good at titling songs and writing lyrics, too!
Whether they're good at playing them -- well, that's up to you.
They just recorded two new songs:
Industrial Center Of Planet Gabriel XIV
and
Evacuating Carrier Ship 37-B
They sound exactly like you think they do: like the corpulent heavenly bodies of outer space imploding into one cataclysmic, erotic bird's nest of sound.
Born Under Saturn
I just got a big fat package in the mail from the wonderful Robotic Empire records. In it, among other things (GOD I LOVE DEADWATER DROWNING... ahem), was Born Under Saturn's "Reflecting The Beautiful Design."
It is awesome.
This CD only furthers my previous argument that CT-area bands were defining the current metalcore sound back in 2000. It's loaded with the distorted noise that bands like Wrench in the Works and Engineer are still exploring; it's got the blastbeats and punky drums that everyone and your mom is obsessed with. And lyrically, it reminds me of the late great Light is the Language: it looks at society through a series of metaphors about technology, biology, and the intersection between the two.
If you want to listen to samples or order a coppy (hurry -- Robotic Empire has the last copies of the CD, since its original label, Ellington Records, folded!), check these links:
http://myspace.com/bornundersaturn
http://roboticempire.com/record.php?id=286
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
