I’m trying a little something different here so bear with me, we’ll see how this shakes out.
Rather than a rote item-by-item roll out of releases I thought I’d frame this as more of a train of thought sort of exercise in stuff I’ve been listening to lately, which is still mostly new. Mostly.
It’s a new year and I’ve been running reviews in the same way for like a million years. I even considered stopping doing this altogether, but the thing is, I enjoy writing about stuff I like and sparking discussions about those things. So that all being said, why not discuss some new (mostly) music?
First off, a band that I had an eye on for the last couple years teased something new in the fall last year and then I kind of forgot about it. But right as the calendar turned over an entire LP from the St.Louis-based Blight Future popped up and it was a welcome surprise. I really thought they were a band that kind of called it during pandemic times, but they merely hibernated. They don’t seem to be a super active band by any means, but I thought they had a cool approach to tried and true hardcore by injecting some very awesome sludgy riffs, interesting transitions, alternating vocals between guitarists Stephen and Emily, and parts that lean into thrash amongst a hefty dose of modern hardcore punk. It’s quite the stew, but it’s effective. “Succession Species” is their second self-released full length.
Another surprise I received was a record I actually ordered a couple months ago, I just received it faster than anticipated. In the past I’ve been hesitant to review reissues because it’s taking space away from new bands. However, I’ll make exceptions every now and again because this is a reissue of the Angel Hair discography and it’s one of the most looked over, yet batshit insane, hardcore punk records ever. Angel Hair existed only for a couple years between the early-mid-90s yet their mark is undeniable. While the band hailed from Colorado they were lumped right into the Gravity Records / San Diego scene of the first wave of what would eventually be known as ‘screamo’. Their music was a chaotic swirl of guitars being thrown down the stairs, wild drumming and the very distinctive scream and wordplay of vocalist Sonny Kay. These dudes all went on to a million other bands (notably The VSS, Year Future, Pleasure Forever, Ssold, Rabbits, and more) but this is where they started. Back in the late 90’s their discography was originally issued as a CD titled “Pregnant With the Senior Class”. This is the same material- their sole LP, a couple splits, and 7”- all on LP and it’s finally been remixed/remastered so it sounds fucking awesome. All the original material sounded cool in this otherworldly basement-recorded shitty sort of way that still made the band sound exciting. This new mix emphasizes all the rad stuff you couldn’t pick up on in the original recordings, as well as some drum and bass treatments that sound crushing. The record has a new layout that is pretty wild to look at (save for an awful new logo…. seriously, the original one was sooooo much better) and re-titled as “Insect Immortality”. Seriously, grab this for a lesson on how to play completely spastic and off-the-wall hardcore punk.
Sticking with old stuff, but in a different way, Black Donut Records comes at us again with another covers comp (they did a Melvins one not too far back) and this time it’s all 80’s New Wave covers. I’ll be honest, I don’t know most of these songs even though I grew up in this era. So in a way, some of these sound new to me. The first half of the record is stacked with some really excellent bands such as Science Man, Wipes, Naw, and Basement Family all doing different styles of awesome heavy music/punk/noise rock/whatever. Actually, there’s just one dud on here because I’m not sure a glam/metalcore-sounding cover of The Eurythmics is at all appealing to me. But then things wrap up with Seattle’s grungy chonk rockers Glose dirty-ing up “Everybody Wants To Rule the World”, arguably one of the prettiest songs ever written.
OK, ready to get back to new stuff? Here’s the quick and dirty: Dry Socket from here in Portland has been completely ripping faces for several years now and their official first full length- appropriately titled "Sorry For Your Loss" given some of the record's subject matter and a sentiment that has seemed to lose most of it's meaning over the last couple years out of sheer exhaustion- just came out. This thing was written and recorded like 2 or 3 years ago and it’s just now coming out. Chalk it up to being one of the final (hopefully) lags in the horrible vinyl production bullshit of 2022-ish. Either way, the fast hardcore crew has introduced a little more variety into their exceptionally speedy tracks by, wait for it, playing fast AND slow. Yeah, it’s a minor detail. Even though the whole record is done and over with in probably under 20 minutes it’s not just one quick punch after another. What I’ve always admired about them is their ability to tap into a raw emotion and parts that genuinely sound pissed off and desperate. It’s not just playing to a crowd, it’s exorcising personal demons.
On the other coast, featuring other long time pals, Into the Light is a new project of dudes who have spent time in Achilles, How We Are, No Idols, and a million other things playing exactly what someone between the ages of 38-45 believes is post-hardcore. It’s exactly that. Which means you get an entire EP of big, spacey riffs, tons of melodies, rock-solid heavy-ass rhythm, and mostly kind of spoken/sung vocals. You can hear some of the more shoegaze elements of Deftones, the kind of chunky rhythms Quicksand built a foundation of this kind of music on, even a bit of the upbeat sunshine of groups like Sensefield. I love this stuff, it’s incredibly catchy and well-written and a lot of fun to listen to.
Lastly, a couple blasts of noise rock from two different sides of the coin- both Philly’s sludge grumpsters Eye Flys and Kalamazoo artsy/aggressive duo Bronson Arm both dropped new self-titled LPs this month. While Eye Flys throw down the most burled of burly in a very direct ‘yeah, we’ve friggin’ heavy’ sort of way Bronson Arm really throw the listener for a loop with an exciting take on what you can do with just guitar and drums by running various effects and left-of-center angularity, but still with dextrous muscle behind their somewhat more manic approach. It’s cool. Eye Flys are cool too for those seeking immediate gratification through ham-fisted riffs and fans of their previous material will be completely satisfied I’m sure.
