LAST DAY FOR DEALS!

Today is January 31st, which means it's the last day for January deals on stuff in the webstore!
Those deals are: getting both THE HELM LPs for $20 (the new one- "Home", and the hard-to-find first LP "Grim Harvest"). That's a pretty good deal considering both are in gatefold packages and "Grim Harvest" was pressed onto heavy duty 180 gram vinyl.
The other deal is that for $15 measly bucks you can choose any 4 CDs from our catalog, new or old, and I'll send them to you. Just like that.
So go here and get 'em while the day is still young.

JANUARY REVIEWS

Man, does Winter suck a big fat one or what? I try to make this the time of year where I buckle down and work on stuff that will keep me stuck in front of a computer or turntable all day because I sure as shit am not really motivated to venture outdoors, and I can't afford to travel away to somewhere warm all that often. So with that, I've done what I've always done- I listen to records and talk shit about them. Here's a handful I recently had some brainfarts of relevance concerning...

DAYLIGHT, “Sinking” CDEP
When you open up the cover of this EP it looks like the inside of an Engineer record- dudes playing in front of walls of amps and cabinets. And so I thought, ‘maybe this band is really damn heavy?’ And then I listened to it and it’s really no different than your average gruff and rocking, pop-punk inspired rock band. Comparisons to No Idea and Kiss Of Death bands are fairly noticeable, but it seems a slightly more straight ahead rock approach is more apparent. Not too shabby, but nothing crazy. (Get This Right Records)

GAZA, “He Is Never Coming Back”
After their first full length, “I Don’t Care Where I Go When I Die”, came out of nowhere and promptly knocked everyone within hearing range on their collective asses, Gaza finally strike back with another sucker punch to Christianity, “He Is Never Coming Back”. It seems that some inner-band turmoil has held up the process somewhat, and many of us converted fans have been waiting with baited breath for this thing to drop. And thankfully, it does hold up quite well. For a band that involves so much chaos within their sound this new record mirrors their last outing in many respects. As much as it is based upon screeching Botch-styled noisy riffing, off-timed drum blasting, thick and clunky breakdowns, it also dives into gigantic almost My Bloody Valentine-inspired guitar swells that give way to oceans of lush droning. That’s some crazy shit they got going here. Something about this feels ever-so-slightly more streamlined, but just a little bit. Vocalist Jon Parkin alternates between crazed shouting, high-pitched screeches, and guttural death metal bellows, and frankly there’s so very, very few vocalists I can stand that alternate in such a range of styles and do so in a way that works well. So, in summation, if you were previously a fan of Gaza you will not be disappointed. If you’ve never heard of them and you enjoy crazy, noisy metal do yourself a favor and check this out. (Black Market)

GREAT REVERSALS demo tape
One might be confused looking at the demo from Michigan’s Great Reversals and listening to the actual music. The hand-assembled package, complete with sewn-on pouch containing a lyric sheet, makes it look as if sweater vest-wearing emotional crybabies were about to lay the poetry on thick. But the music sounds like something out of the New Age Records catalog circa 1994 mixed with a healthy dose of Bane and one blatant Achilles rip-off part. For the most part this is mid-tempo hardcore heavy on a mid-90’s sound, but unique enough to warrant a few flips of the tape for repeated listens. (www.greatreversals.blogspot.com)

LIPONA, ‘Pigeonholed” CDEP
Consistent with more modern punk bands like Rise Against and Wilhelm Scream you get Lipona, who hail from Florida. I personally don’t care much for bands of this style as it sounds kind of bland to me. But I know there are legions of people out there who do like this stuff. Their ethics seem to be in the right place, not only in lyrical content but in how they release their music (this CD was self-released and originally was up online for free download). So clearly they’re in this for the love of it first and foremost. But again, it’s not my style. The singers vocals bear a striking resemblance to Aaron Scott (Attica Attica, Marathon) and that’s never a bad thing. (http://www.myspace.com/lipona)

NAKATOMI PLAZA, “Ghosts”
Not only has this NYC group been together for a great deal of time but it also seems as if they have been breaking up for just as long. It feels like they made the announcement of their impending split eons ago, and yet still played shows and recorded this final full length before playing some more shows and I think now... finally... they have laid the band to rest? That’s my guess. I could be wrong. Either way, this last batch of songs are good ones. It’s what listeners have come to expect from them- proficient musicianship that displays talent, but maintains a level of catchiness that balances things out. Musically it’s a fairly straight-ahead rock record with alternating male/female vocals and a stylistic nod to mid-late 90’s Dischord style bands, in particular the J. Robbins and Jason Farrell brand of clever and melodic punk rock. I’m personally a bigger fan of their earlier stuff, like “Private Property”, that just felt more fun. This feels more professional, which isn’t a dig on the band as they have clearly progressed as songwriters, I just prefer the older stuff. What did kind of annoy me about this record though is the band’s parting shots in the linear notes, where each member contributes their thoughts on the history of the band. It feels so full of animosity- attempting to play the music industry game and get signed with no luck, upset that punk and hardcore tend to be music for white males, not being pretty enough for rock stardom... whatever the gripes are I feel like it would be better to leave your final published thoughts about your band as good ones? Felt defeated by trying to play the music biz game? What did you expect? It crushes 99.9% of anyone who makes a go of it, regardless of race or gender. What’s new? Claims of too many straight white guys in the punk scene? Maybe the music just appeals more to us? It’s not like there’s a hidden agenda to push out anyone different. Regardless, it’s just annoying to read stuff like this in band’s final record where they seemed to go on at length about things that shouldn’t matter in the long run when putting forth, as a whole, a final document of 9 years culmination of the music they make. (Nakatomi Plaza Records, no contact info)

TITLE TRACKS, “It Was Easy”
Last year Title Tracks debuted with a two song 7” that rocked my world. Two very early Elvis Costello-styled rockers that just nailed it perfectly. So hearing that this initial project (everything was performed by one guy, now there is a whole band backing him) has become a more serious endeavor and dropped a full length my interest is piqued. “It Was Easy” is 11 songs that, well, just don’t have the same kind of energy that that first 7” had. Maybe I should have expected it. The nods to lo-fi pop, the Kinks, and the Beach Boys have been there from the start. I guess it’s just that the stuff that I heard initially was on the more upbeat and energetic side of things. “It Was Easy” flirts with more subdued tempos at times, total retro bubblegum pop styles, and a couple of covers- The Byrds and Bruce Springsteen. The songs from the 7” are re-recorded and I gotta say, “Found Out”, the best one, has the life sucked out of it with some weird 80’s Casio Samba beat replacing a good chunk of the organic sound. I guess the overall vibe of this record isn’t bad. These are good pop songs. I think I was just expecting a bit more fire here considering what I had heard before. (Ernest Jennings Record Co.)

TOUCHE’ AMORE’, “... To the Beat Of a Dead Horse” 12”/CD
There’s a good deal of hype surrounding this band right now and while I feel that, ‘hey, better them than another carbon copy swooshy-haired mallcore band’ I’m also kind of confused as to why a lot of people are into this band. They’re not really catchy. There are no hooky choruses, or breakdowns, or fad-jocking to be seen. They raid the vaults of the Ebullition back catalog almost exclusively in terms of their sound, so I’m left to wonder, ‘do people really like that?’ I saw these cats open up the Undertow reunion last year and wondered what the hell they were doing on the show. But they played quickly, graciously, and then got the fuck out of the way so at least they had some manners. Then I heard this joint- 11 songs in 18 minutes and was pleased at the brevity of these songs. Get in, get out, and don’t overdo it like so many other screamo (and I mean that in the best possible sense of the term) bands tend to. While most songs dive right in with hectic and jangly guitars, scratchy vocals, and hints of brief melody before spazzing out again there’s this underlying sinister vibe to portions of the music that I find really intriguing. This is apparent on the B-side with songs like “Suckerfish” and that slow and mean bass intro to “Always Running Never Looking Back”. While certainly on the side of bands like Ampere, old Lack, and Saetia Touche’ Amore’ manages to honor this style with short songs and not overdo it with anything other than the necessary elements. And that’s a good thing. (6131 records)

VIOLENT SIDE 7”
This looks like it came out of 1987 Lower East Side New York City. It kind of sounds like it too. I don’t really think I can, or should, elaborate on this record much more than that. You’ll know exactly what you’re getting. For added information this is a project band of sorts with dudes from Black S.S. and Forfeit and stylistically is pretty much what you’d expect to result from a pairing of those two bands. Six songs on seven inches of wax and limited to a pretty small pressing. One thing though- I’ve never been into bands that yell out ‘bust!’ in their songs unless they’re old school rappers. That’s just me though. (Reaper)

WORN IN RED, “The Offing”
Here is a bit of a strange bird for the No Idea camp to be releasing into the wild. Georgia’s Worn In Red make a go with somewhat prog-minded heavier emo type stuff, rooted in a mid-90’s kind of ethic when bands were cool with playing songs that lasted 4 minutes, had numerous swells and breaks, lots of yelling and weird melodies that didn’t always make sense on paper but felt cathartic to play live. I’m feeling a bit of old Planes Mistaken For Stars (Deep Elm era) here, or maybe a little Engine Down with more yelling. It’s pretty good for what it is and I gave it a few spins. It won’t make any year end list, but it did a pretty decent job for what it is. (No Idea)

JANUARY SALES- BOTH HELM LPs AND CHEAP CDs!

I'm doing two different sales this month at Hex Records. One is 4 CDs for $15, any current titles I have in stock. The other one is both HELM lps for $20 (one being the hard-to-find "Grim Harvest" from the now-defunct Rome Plow Records)
The deals are good until the end of the month or until I run out of stuff.

http://www.hexrecords.bigcartel.com

We have a short-lived deal going on here. We got our grubby paws on a handful of THE HELM's first LP, "Grim Harvest" that came out on the now defunct Rome Plow Records. It's still in press, but no one can seem to find it. So we're selling a few copies of it. With this deal you get both "Grim Harvest" (gatefold record and 180 gram vinyl) and their newest LP, "Home" for $20
This offer is good until I run out, which shouldn't take too long.
* Sorry, but this deal is only valid in the US because it would cost way too much to ship them internationally at this price

For the entire month of January we're selling CDs on the cheap! This deal is 4 of any of our CDs for a total of $15 (plus $2.00 shipping in the U.S.).
Just order away,AND MAKE SURE TO LIST WHAT IT IS YOU WANT! (otherwise I'll just pick them myself!)
Here's your choices:
INKLING, "Miscommunication", BUILDING ON FIRE, 'Blueprint...", ED GEIN, "It's a Shame..", THE MINOR TIMES, "Chris Chambers..", ACHILLES/ ENGINEER split 2xcd, ACHILLES, "The Dark Horse", ACHILLES, "Hospice", PLAYING ENEMY, "My Life...", NIGHT OWLS cdep, NO IDOLS, "Low", ENGINEER, 'Reproach", THE HELM, "Home", PRIZE COUNTRY, 'With Love"

* sorry, but international orders need to pay more because our postal system charges an arm and a leg to send anything bigger than a postcard to your wonderful lands...

http://www.hexrecords.bigcartel.com

TOUR!!!!

If you didn't know already, THE HELM are flying out to the East Coast next week for a week of shows around the Northeast. They will be joined by the ever-affable OAK & BONE on all dates.
A few of the details are still a bit fuzzy, but here's the itinerary. Definitely go to one of these shows as it's not often The Helm make it out this way! One last thing- if anyone can help with a last minute show on the 28th in the region (house, basement, attic, storage closet, whatever!) hit me up at hanginghex@hotmail.com
OK, here it is:
Sun., 12/27- Brooklyn, NY @ Stolen Sleeves Collective
Mon., 12/28- HALP!
Tues., 12/29- Boston, MA @ Unit 11 (Allston)
Wed., 12/30- Burlington, VT @ 242 Main St.
Thurs., 12/31- Rochester, NY @ Flying Squirrel Community Space
Fri., 1/1- Syracuse, NY @ Lost Horizon w/ Black S.S., Forfeit, many more
Sat., 1/2- Philly, PA @ address TBA
Sun., 1/3- Baltimore, MD @ Charm City Art Space

I'll be with these cats the whole trip so if we know each other come hang out and show us love. Make sure to speak loud if you talk to me because I'll be deaf from nightly barrages of heaviness.

CHASE THE COLD AWAY WITH WARM REVIEWS

Man alive it's getting pretty friggin' cold around here. Time to brew up something warm, stay in your pajamas all day, and read some record reviews. Screw going out in this winter mess.
This batch of reviews here, I must say, is heavy on the upstate NY region (present and past residents). And let me just state that once again, it must be something in the water around these parts because there are quite a few awesome bands that spring up around here, and a lot of them having been putting out records lately.

ANOTHER BREATH, “The God Complex”
I’ll be the first to admit that Another Breath is a band that I’ve never cared for on record, but always a total blast in the live setting. Yet, within the last year that they’ve been playing out select songs from what would be “The God Complex” at shows I thought to myself, ‘man, I can’t wait to hear how this sounds on record!’ Well, this thing has been in the can for probably a year now, but there was no label to release it until now. So here is officially the first AB record that I’m giving repeated daily spins with because it seriously fucking shreds. A sick, lurching intro and the words, “there’s still no god!” open up this fucker and if that isn’t a good enough start to make you love hardcore than now’s probably a good time to see how far you can make it through a Phish album while cutting your own head off. Half the record follows AB’s general vibe of rough melodic hardcore, while the other half takes a more riff-oriented approach, whether it’s the breakneck pace of “I Want To Live”, or the more rocking feel of “Belly Of a Whale”. Lyrically, much of the record takes a big swing at the man upstairs in various ways and it’s very well-written, mostly on a personal level. So yeah, I’m digging the fuck out of this record. Well done fellas! (Panic Records)

COALESCE, “OXEP”
These aren’t discarded tracks from “OX”. this is more like a companion piece that works awesome for a band that (once again) reunited and dropped an album that made me want to chain smoke humans with a blowtorch and a jet turbine... puny humans. Book ended with some wild percussion tracks everything in the middle pulls out more of those dragging, sludgy skull melting songs that pummel you like a drunken sumo wrestler who has secretly been masterminding your demise for weeks. They again let loose with a bit of what the band is calling their “Americana” style, but if you ask me it sounds creepy and weird yet totally awesome. It’s more like some crazy asshole with a steel guitar who polishes shotguns on his porch in his spare time. Regardless of all my hyperbole, if you at all liked “OX” there’s no reason why you shouldn’t pick this gem up as well. It’s just as essential and is basically an extra treat for dorks like me who couldn’t get enough of the full length. (Relapse)

CONVERGE, “Axe To Fall”
Do I really even need to review this? There is a hype machine rivaling the size of Egon Spengler’s Twinkie Theory (that’s a big Twinkie) behind this release and what further justice can I do to clearly state that this record is indeed bitchin’? Though I must admit, my hair wasn’t blown back (figuratively, seeing as I’m bald) by every track the way that every other review outlet has been giving out verbal handjobs to this record. A couple songs here, while interesting experiments, aren’t really my thing. I speak of the Steve Von Till track (which could have just been a Neurosis song) and the Genghis Tron song (again, a cool song, but it just doesn’t fit on a Converge record). It’s totally understandable to mix things up every now and again, but part of making that work is to retain some identity of the band doing the mixing up and in this case, these two closer tracks sound more akin to something their guests would make on their own rather than a collaboration. Either way, a good example of this collaborating that works great is “Effigy”, which features the Cave-In dudes,and you can definitely hear Steve Brodsky’s unique leads all over Converge’s thrashing hardcore punk in the 1:47 space in which the listener gets floored. Either way, whatever little gripes I may have are easily made up for with the title track, which manages to be one of my favorite songs of the year in less than 2 minutes. Jesus Christ, how does Kurt Ballou play that fast? It’s just inhuman. Much of this record races right by with such speed and intensity that it’s a very satisfying record, and makes me happy that Converge can go for this long and still sound like a hungry band in their prime. Kudos to that. (Epitaph)

ELDER, “Reflect”
To be perfectly honest, I’m kind of surprised that this project band (of sorts) has dropped a sophomore effort. Their initial offering kind of felt like a one-time deal of a few dudes that are busy in other bands coming together to hash out some songs in homage to Japan’s Envy. Well, they apparently couldn’t get enough and are back with round two of Envy worship- ya know, loud, quiet, loud hectic emo (jn the very best sense of the word). They seem to be a bit more tuned in as a band this time around and create some solid songs- 6 in the span of about 25 minutes. While most maintain a similar feel track five, “Vultures”, finds the band doing their best Gravity Records circa 1995 impression with nice results. The whole deal comes in a fancy fold out package with some cool artwork. And with that you got your Elder, record 2. (Forge Again Records)

FORFEIT, “The Lower Depths”
Forfeit may be from Syracuse, but they’ve probably been mistaken on more than a few occasions of emerging from a Sunday matinee at CBGBs, circa 1989 via some weird time warp. It’s understandable. These dudes have such a strong NYHC vibe going on with “The Lower Depths” it’s ridiculous. Their first proper full length clocks in at just about 22 minutes with 11 tracks, only three of which break the two minute marker. While their 7” was really good one can see that these guys have put some time in working on their chops and adding some diversity to their sound. They’re not busting out clarinets or anything, they’ve just put some more thought into these songs by adding a bit of crossover (a la S.O.D. or Leeway) thrash, abrupt transitions (the end of “Parallel Worlds”), and a good dose of the same bouncy and chugging hardcore fans have come to expect from them. It’s a solid first full length effort. I’m sure you’ll see them all over the place a lot this year, I just can’t be certain if AF, SOIA, or a 13 year-old Freddy Madball will be there too. Time travel is weird like that. (Reaper)

HIGHER GIANT, “Al’s Moustache” 7”
Somewhere else I read about this record and the only thing the critic said about it was, “this is the guy from Warzone?!” Hey, people grow up and their interests change ya know? As if anyone who ever followed anything from Ernie Parada couldn’t see this in the trajectory- Token Entry, Grey Area, and now Higher Giant. Over the years everything has gotten more and more on the poppy side. For those totally unfamiliar this sounds kind of like early Saves the Day (who, of course, are 3rd and 4th generation poor copies of what these dudes in their previous bands did years before those kids hit puberty). The musicianship is good, the songs are fairly catchy, the singing is a little annoying, but at least they reference how much Sick Of It All rules. And that most certainly counts for something. (Black Numbers)

KNIFE THE SYMPHONY, “Dead Tongues”
I’ve listened to previous material by this band, but I feel as if the music on this effort is going in a bit different of a direction... perhaps a little more loose and rocking. There’s a distinct quality to the dudes vocals versus the rest of the music. He definitely doesn’t fit in with it, but it’s working, and it most definitely reminds of another band but I can’t put my finger on it. It’s in that vein of how End Of a Year does it, but in a decidedly more post-hardcore vein... perhaps in a bit of a West Coast 90’s emo, a la Ebullition way? There’s accompanying female vocals on a couple tracks that sound really great and bring the music in a slightly more shoegaze direction, yet still retaining some of that loose and hectic feel like the rest of the album. It’s nice mix of styles and works decently. Seriously though, Phratry Records has to do something about these record layouts they send me. Man, work with all that blank space on every release! (Phratry Records)

LIKE WOLVES, “Paths” 7”
Yes! This band is finally get their bearings and rocking the shit out of me. I liked their previous material (and seeing them live is always a blast), but I felt it was a little too all over the place... sort of in that Lords vein of chaotic hardcore, but even more wild. On this self-released 7” they unleash four new songs that still retain a lot of that Louisville style of really loud punk hardcore, and total Black Widows/ Black Cross worship. But I feel like they’ve worked on sticking with some great riffs and rather than jumping around way too much they’re writing better songs overall that stick in your head a bit more. These Rochester kids really have their shit together with this awesome record, really great design on the record, and they did it all themselves. Fuck yeah, let’s hear it for upstate New York bands just flat our ruling! (Like Wolves)

NOT SORRY, “Moving On” 7”
I like how a couple fairly known Northeast bands break up and some of the members of each band coincidentally moved to the Northwest and start another band together. Seriously guys, moving to a new town means getting out and meeting new people! Well, at least their drummer is from Seattle! Ha! All kidding aside, Not Sorry is a straight edge band comprised of dudes who most recently did time in How We Are and From the Ground Up and it’s not really too hard to guess what the results are. I guess if there is a noticeable difference between members past efforts and this is that right out of the gate Not Sorry feels really, really pissed. “Moving On” is a pretty fucking vicious song, but as the record moves on there are some more thoughtful lyrical themes that arise around personal health and environmentalism. As a first effort it’s a pretty fun record for the traditional hardcore fan in you. (Lifeline Records)

REASON demo
Despite anything you might have heard there are actually dudes in Buffalo who are over the age of 30 and still straight edge. To me that’s pretty killer, seeing as they’re all dudes who were regulars at shows when I still lived there. It’s always good to know some people are lifers for this music and not just because they are losers with no other prospects in life. That’s a given for any of us at this age who still frequent punk shows and it’s a sad fact that we’ll deny in person but secretly admitting to ourselves as we scour the B9 board at 2AM on a Tuesday. Still, here we have Reason and they have delivered unto us 7 songs of straight edge hardcore fury. Each of these dudes has probably been in every Buffalo band ever (minus Zero Tolerance) at one point or another so if you were a fan of No Reason, or Dead Hearts, or Halfmast, or Envy... the list goes on and on. It’s basically no frills, in your face, and fast Buffalo hardcore. This is seriously what I thought every Buffalo band (besides Snapcase) sounded like when I first started going to shows there. (reasonsxe@aol.com)

SECRET CUTTER 7”
Jesus Christ, this is fucking heavy. Chris from Square Of Opposition described this to me simply as, ‘heavy as shit’ and that’s really all that needs to be said about this band. Good lord. Kicking off with a good dose of grindcore and then breaking into these ridiculously heavy and repetitive breakdowns over the course of four songs each one is noisy, mean, and awesome. I’d say there’s a bit of Coalesce in mind here, but more primal... not as evolved with the weird tricky parts. It’s like watching that scene from Goodfellas where Joe Pesci beats the guy to death with a shoeshine box while Robert Deniro kicks him over and over again. This should have been the background music for that scene. This band tore me a new one. The lack of information on the record just increases the allure. I can pretend in my head that they chase people with hammers or something while they play. (Square Of Opposition Records)

SNOWING 7”
This somehow successfully cross-breeds two distinctly different styles that really shouldn’t mesh, but seem to work wonderfully together with this group. You have some of that intricate-noodley math rock stuff akin to maybe Algernon Cadwallader mixed up with a bit of the loud and brash, somewhat sloppy and noisy Gainesville punk sound. You’d think that you can’t be sloppy and play noodley right? Well, each song on here sort of feels like they’re working that intricate stuff for a bit, get tired of it just when it’s starting to get pretty good, and need a break so they can throw their instruments around a bit, and go full bore with a heavier rocking thing near the end. It’s really cool. I like the very obscure Simpsons reference in “Methuselah Rookie Card”.. clever. Silkscreened covers on all these suckers. Get one, get nerdy for a bit, and then throw beer cans at their head. It rocks. (Square Of Opposition Records)

MAKING STUFF, DOING THINGS...

So when it starts getting cold here in Syracuse I start to hibernate. Ok, I actually sleep late, drink tons of coffee, and try not to go insane. It's a good thing that a lot of stuff around Hexquarters (TM) is hand-assembled.... it keeps the craziness and Winter doldrums from setting in. Kind of "The Shining" style, ya know? Anyway, check some of the stuff that's been getting put together here- the final versions of the 10 Year comp., and the End Of a Year 7" covers (all hand-folded)

HEX RECORDS INTERVIEWED IN NEW ISSUE OF RAZORCAKE

So the fine folks over at Razorcake fanzine have done a big, fat investigative article regarding the demise of Lumberjack/Mordam (who some of you may remember as being my former distributor). Hex Records was interviewed for this, along with many others that gives a history of LMMG and how things got so messed up. This issue features part one of the story, so it's pretty exhaustive. But I'm glad to see someone is shedding light on this ugly little situation that nearly bankrupted my label (along with many others) over the Summer. Go check the link and pick up a copy at your local joint that sells punk magazines (I believe you can find it at most larger chains)