OAK & BONE/ LIKE WOLVES LP PRE-ORDERS UP!

Pre-orders are now up for both the LIKE WOLVES and OAK & BONE records.

http://www.hexrecords.bigcartel.com

There's also a bunch of new and old stuff added to the webstore to check out.

Additionally, there are a number of pre-order package deals I have going on with extra records for a cheap price, the BIG DAY IN (Ithaca) DVD, and more!


The debut LP from Syracuse crust/stoner metal warlords. Fans of Kyuss, KARP, and Eyehategod take note. These jams will wreck yr skull.


Debut LP from Rochester punk killers. Fast jams, nods to both the Louisville scene and Jehu/Hot Snakes riff mastery.

* Both records come with download coupons for those challenged by archaic music technology. The future is then.

And check this deal out too:



Get both LPs, as well as a 3rd LP from any other 12" Hex has released/co-released (The Helm, No Idols, Achilles, Ed Gein, Prize Country). Gotta clear some space on the shelves, so get something extra for cheap.

And if you still haven't hear new songs from both bands check here:
http://www.likewolves.bandcamp.com
http://soundcloud.com/oakandbone/poison-snow

http://www.hexrecords.bigcartel.com

OAK & BONE- NEW SONG AND RECORD COVER

OK, so it's about damn time, right?
Above you will see the cover artwork for the new OAK & BONE full length LP. Looks nice, doesn't it? Looks weird, huh? Yeah.
The official release date for this (and the LIKE WOLVES LP)is July 12th, but providing all goes smoothly I ought to have them ready to sell by mid-June.
I'll be setting up a pre-order as soon as the test presses come in and are approved.
In the meantime, prepare your neck for maximum bangover with this new track, "Poison Snow":
CHECK THE NEW TRACK HERE

THE HITCHED: GRIM HONEYMOON

That headline is courtesy of Jeffry Poso, The Helm drummer and smooth dude extraordinaire. So as you can see from the photo, my man Bob Swift (he's the one on the right) got married. He's the tall glass of water that shouts for that band The Helm that three of you are familiar with and whose records I put out.
It seems lately that I'm putting up more posts of people whom I've released records for getting hitched than actual announcements about records I'm releasing. And I'm OK with that. This label has always been about helping my friends out and doing cool things with/for them, and weddings are also cool things (especially when they last!) so it's fitting that I post about it I think.
So with that I just wanted to give a hearty congratulations and was stoked to be a part of the shindig, and also spend some quality time in the Northwest!

Yo! So I'm super busy with a million things and I wanted to try and get them into a concise little paragraph for you all while I have the time.
OK, first and foremost- I'll be gone all next week in the great town of Seattle. Why? Because the one and only Bob Swift (from The Helm) is getting married, by gum. Congrats to him! Yours truly is in the wedding party so it will no doubt be limos and many vegan cheese platters, right? So that means no updates for a bit.
Second- the OAK & BONE lp is done. yup, mastering went down last night and it's ready to be sent to press. Expect a new jam to be posted online once I return. I don't think the internet can handle the heaviness.
Third- LIKE WOLVES lp will also be going to press right about now as well. Sit tight.

So that means, finally, pre-orders and stuff will be happening soon. I'm thinking of some wacky package deals for this one, so keep checking back. I'll probably get pre-orders going around mid-May.
The official release dates for both records are July 12th, but mailorder will more than likely go out a few weeks ahead of that.

So that's that.
To stave you off til then, here's a bunch of reviews of records and stuff I've checked as of late.



BRIDGE UNDER FIRE, “The Night Court Sessions” ep
Local dudes make good with this new band that sprang up out of nowhere. I have to say, it really has a strong Hot Water Music vibe to it. I mean really a very similar vibe. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with that, they do it well. Ya know the drill- gruff and melodic punk, but leaning more on an overall ‘rock’ vibe more than anything, and plenty of goofy song titles to go around (take, for example, “Midnight In the Olive Garden Of Good and Evil”). It’s melodic, fun, hits hard, and in the right spot. I can get down with that. (Bridge Under Fire)

JESUIT, discography
This came out awesome. Jesuit were easily one of the meanest bands around on stage- constantly belittling their audience with between-song shit talk, punishing their ears with horrid squalls of noise, not giving a rat’s ass if people liked them or not, and let’s not forget doing something musically that wasn’t too common at the time. I certainly was a fan and got to see them on many occasions. But I will definitely admit that they made me quite uncomfortable on a few occasions, what with all the berating and all. I eventually came to find they were awesome dudes when not on stage, which doesn’t really matter since we’re talking about the band here. So yeah, while not prolific (this discography has the two seven inches, a couple comp tracks, a Black Sabbath cover, and a few demo songs) Jesuit dealt a threatening whallop to late 90’s hardcore that was equal parts Eyehategod feedback-noise-sludge worship, bad ass blunt force hammering, and a dash of powerviolence. Their original recordings didn’t always get the justice they dealt out live, so Kurt Ballou came in to remaster this stuff and it sounds great. A kick ass package with all new artwork and a ton of stories and photos about the band round it out. Seriously, get this. Your ears will cry for help but your reptile brain will thank you. (Magic Bullet)

LALLY, JOE, “Why Should I Get Used To It?”
Admittedly, this is the first time I’ve heard Joe Lally’s solo material. This is already his third record. The dude stays productive, that’s for sure. As the bassist for Fugazi Joe laid down some of the best bass lines in all of punk music. He never got too showy, he always played what the song called for, but he was so present in all of their music as the component that got butts moving. I totally dig his style. So as a solo musician it appears he is writing most everything, but does have a couple people backing him to make it a full band. Musically, he does keep it fairly simple, even though these feel like full songs. There is a weird, sort of eerie vibe going on through many of these tracks, but I can’t quite explain how. I’m reminded of another rather short-lived Dischord band from not too long ago when listening to this called Antelope simply because both bands do a great deal with simplicity in the songs and make them sound quite full. There is also this sort of post-punk, new wave kind of thing happening here and there akin to fellow DC group Trans Am, minus synth. It’s hard to describe what’s going here, which is good because it means it’s original. Nevertheless, I like it and you ought to give it a shot as well. (Dischord)

THE MEN, “Think” b/w “Gates Of Steel” 7”
I really don’t get this new trend of bands purposefully recording themselves to sound like absolute shit. You know how easy and cheap it is to record these days and sound at least halfway decent? The days of setting up a boombox in a practice room, pressing record, and hoping for the best really are over. And there’s this crop of bands springing up that seem to completely miss the boat on this. And they’re mostly good bands too! The Men, for example, are doing some cool things. Imagine My Bloody Valentine as a raging punk band. That’s kind of what’s happening here. I can only imagine live them blowing my goddamn ears out. This short 7” focuses more on the raging style and not so much the huge walls of noise they have displayed on other records. Oh, and they cover one of my favorite Devo songs ever too. But yeah, the whole affair sounds like it was recorded at a basement show or something... gotta work on that. (Karmic Swamp Records)

MIXTAPES, “A Short Collection Of Short Songs” 7”
Fuck, this band is just too happy. Seriously, I’m all for good moods. But punk (no matter how shallow this group flecks at the surface at that term) should have some degree of grit to them. This has absolutely no grit. It’s just happy pop music, happy girl vocals, happy little piano parts, and taking up a happy little corner at Gainesville Fest for people who just want to sit in the sun... ok, that doesn’t sound half bad. but it’s really just not for me at all. (Animal Style Records)

MONSTERS, by Ken Dahl
So I was in NYC for a show and it turns out the MOCCA festival was also happening. I’d been trying to hit this thing up for a few years now and miss it every year. But I dropped my plan of going to a museum and hit this up instead. What is it? Well, just basically the East Coast version of San Diego Comic Con, but for strictly indie comics only... which is, essentially, all I read these days. While there I noticed the newest book from Ken Dahl, and the man himself selling it. I was a big fan of his previous collection, which Microcosm released, and this new book is one big story, instead of many random ones. Ken not only has a quirky illustration style, but a great sense of humor and storytelling. I can only describe it as being grim depression that somehow is very hilarious as well. he typically mixes the ultra-personal and embarrassing to the point that it becomes quite funny. So this book deals with a long spell in which he thought he had herpes- all the terrible social encounters that came with it, the stigma of having it, and the resulting sad state of a personal life that left the dude pretty desperate for some time. Yeah, sounds strange and bleak... which it is. but it really comes off as a great and funny story. I thoroughly dig this and the dudes work. Check it out for shits and giggles (Secret Acres)

OBITS, “Moody, Standard, and Poor”
I’ve been waiting for this one basically since their first full length came out. I was so impressed with what these Brooklyn cats were doing, being a long time fan of basically anything Rick Froberg dips his creative pen into. “I Blame You”, the first LP, was an excellent collection of tunes. This new one... well... basically keeps things moving. I wouldn’t really say there is any serious development, just more Obits songs. That may sound bad, but when you already write great songs how can you really improve on them? This continues in the garage-y, but refined style they’re known for, along with Rick’s very distinctive voice and guitar work which falls somewhere between the loose punk-leaning style of his previous outfit Hot Snakes, and something classic rock sounding... like CCR. And I dig the shit out of that. Some of the standout here include the catchy melody of “No Fly List”, the quick urgency of “Killer”, and the hook in “I Want Results”. Once again, Froberg handles all art duties with a beautiful cover, but the interior is lacking a bit, it’s super simple design makes me wish for another bizarre pen and ink illustration he is well known for. (Sub Pop)

TIN HORN PRAYER, “Get Busy Dying”
Plan-It-X rejects? Ghost Mice-This Bike Is a Pipe Cleaner-Bat Shit- trainhopper punx? I have no idea. It’s somewhere along that blurred line of hippie crust panhandler and legitimate Americana type campfire songs. I can’t say it’s really my thing at all, but dudes with banjo, mandolin, harmonica, and your other regular rock band set up get down with some rock n’ twang. I’m thinking a bit of Scouts Honor, a a dash of Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band, and the aforementioned Plan-It-X stuff by gruff fellows drinking whiskey by a fire. Not too bad of a debut, but not my cup of tea. (Bermuda Mohawk Productions)

NEW LIKE WOLVES SONG POSTED!

LIKE WOLVES have posted a new song from the upcoming full length LP that will be coming out this Summer. Get excited spuds. This will be a ripper. This track only hints at the rest of the awesomeness that lies ahead.
Oh yeah, the picture above is the cover art for the LP. So you get that too. Stare at it and feed off the vibes.
OK, now listen to the song HERE.

ACHILLES VIDEO FROM 10.23.10 ROCHESTER SHOW

Here's a link to a great video of ACHILLES playing in Rochester last Fall. It's a full set and includes a NEW SONG that they will be recording when they have the time/the stars align just right.
In the meantime, follow the link and enjoy the set.
ACHILLES IN ROCHESTER

(S)MARCH REVIEWS

I'd typically say, "lousy Smarch weather" about this month, in typical Homer Simpson speak, but I have to admit it's actually been pretty nice out (knock on wood). So one ought to have a good zine to read while sitting on the porch, or good Spring jams to enjoy while riding your bike.
Of course, now that I say this we'll probably get some unholy blizzard trifecta across the Northeast. So I'll just shut up now and let you read these reviews.



ALL TEETH, “Young Love” EP
While this is a pretty decent showing of modern hardcore of the more stereotypical Bridge 9 variety (think the speed and urgency of American Nightmare as well as the thoughtful and more involved melodic approach of Verse) there are a couple things that kind of irk me about this record. The first, and most obvious, are the downright crappy guitar sounds on this. Did these dudes bring practice amps to the recording? Are these Gorilla combos? They just sound so buzzy and cheap. It’s really a distraction that can be quite annoying. Secondly, it appears as if there are guest vocals on every single song here. While that’s not necessarily a bad thing really, I just think it’s a little weird when a band has a guest vocalist on every track. Maybe it’s because I feel a band ought to be representing themselves on a recording and not other people who aren’t in the band. That’s just me and I shouldn’t gripe about that, I just find it peculiar. Nevertheless, for those who like genuine newer hardcore this ought to do it for you. (Panic Records)

ANARCHIST BIKE RALLY: CONFIDENTIAL MAD LIBS
This is an interesting read- the entirety of this zine is a collection of Freedom Of Information Act-obtained police documents detailing how the Portland PD infiltrated meetings of Critical Mass bike rally, and then raided their monthly rides with unnecessary police presence. While at the beginning it appears to be totally nefarious, as well as a waste of taxpayer money. By the end it basically seems like routine police accompaniment of the ride to make sure people followed traffic laws. Big deal. Still, the fact that the police planted undercover officers at meetings, as well as in the rides in order to disrupt them is silly. And the instances where blatant police abuse is documented and ignored, shines a much-needed light on police brutality that ought to be dealt with. What I find most disconcerting is the budget outlines that show the police department somehow justifying spending upwards of $5000 on officers just for a Critical Mass ride that draws about 150 riders. That’s just stupid. While I don’t really think having a couple officers accompany a ride is necessarily a bad thing, it’s the crazy over-reaction to the idea of Critical Mass that is just plain stupid. These collected documents show how overboard some of it got.
The almost afterthought of the author presenting some of these documents as Mad Libs is kind of a moot point as it is only done a handful of times and doesn’t really add anything interesting to the whole thing. Additionally, there doesn’t seem to be much of a conclusion to this story. Maybe some closure would be nice. (Cantankerous Titles)

BOOK BINDERY, THE, by Sarah Royal
You ever think working in a book bindery would be at all prestigious? Like, you get to make the fancy bound books that sit on library shelves, while that high school dropout friend of yours is stuck as a copy jockey for the late night shift at Kinkos? think again. This is the story of one person’s time spent working at a book binding company is one of Chicago’s less desirable industrial-wasteland neighborhoods. The staff of the business are a motley crew of scuzzy characters, cast into some go-nowhere lot in life. The job itself may as well be copy jockey, as cheap coffee fuels the day and dulls the ache of countless paper cuts, while there is no end to the weirdoes and scumbags who come and go. Everything from the authors bus route, to the strange drug fronts that pose as pizza shops in this almost uninhabited neighborhood, and the naked guy that lives in his car outside the business are all under the microscope here. For anyone that has worked a weird crappy job (which is probably everyone), and the nuances that go with it, this is a pretty fun read. (Microcosm)

FIGGS, THE, “Sucking In Stereo” LP
I believe this is a band that split up some time ago and didn’t ever really get their just due. So Matt over at Peterwalkee Records is releasing this record to shed some light on this otherwise forgotten group. And I’m personally glad he did. It’s the perfect remedy for when you have an itch for catchy power pop. For some reason I’m reminded of 80’s stuff like Split Enz, but with a bit more garage rock swagger. Yet it has that real strong power pop, with the slightest hint of punk recklessness to it. So, yes, color me interested. And it all comes wrapped up in a simple, yet slick package. (Peterwalkee Records)

MONUMENT, “Goes Canoeing” LP
I caught this band in DC back in the Fall while on tour and it was nice to see a band you’d never heard of lay down an impressive set. That is always a fun part of tour- discovering new bands amongst the sea of ugly go-nowhere locals that comprise most shows. So here was Monument, kicking it in DC, and people ate it right up. In this setting they sounded a heck of a lot like Braid to me, and they did it very well. This new LP alludes to something a bit different though. There is certainly that late 90’s Midwest emo vibe present, though they mix it up with a number of different elements- a few Minus the Bear style guitar effects, some of that noodly Algernon type stuff I don’t particularly care for, and a bit of noisy skronk every now and again. It’s a varied package, but with a rather consistent backbone. It makes for a fun listen, so I can dig on it. (Tiny Engines)

PINS AND NEEDLES #3
I really liked the first couple issues of this zine when it came out. Basically, if you’re a hardcore dude in your 30s and you’re starting to do all that adult stuff, and still keep your interest in punk, you’ll get what’s going on here. It’s a mixture of the fun of hardcore and the dumb adult shit you somehow find interesting now that you’re an adult. That’s the gist of the zine anyway. But in this third issue I’m not really feeling it as much. The stories don’t have as much character to them, and start to get a bit redundant as well. What is admirable is the authors decision to quit his steady career-style job in favor of starting his own dog walking business. That’s taking a risk, and it’s always cool to see people follow their heart instead of leading with their wallet. Additionally, there is some info on the band The _Network, including the story included with their “Bishop Kent Manning” record, which I have to admit is just dumb. I know the record is based on a story one of them wrote, but I don’t think it’s very well written at all. And as a bonus, when you get the zine there is a download code for The _Network’s cover of Deadguys “Pins and Needles”... which they do alright. It’s no Keith Huckins and Tim Singer, but then again, no one really is. (Pins and Needles zine)

RUN WITH THE HUNTED, s/t
Not a bad record by any means. A bunch of young, gnarly dudes getting excited on hardcore and playing the shit out of it... how can I diss on that? They do a pretty good job too- very heavy-handed, but not lowest common denominator stupid. They keep it basic enough to just go nuts and smash anything around you, yet interesting enough to know that they actually care about what they’re writing too. Personally, I’m reminded a lot of the Hope Conspiracy with a little more metal in there. Super energetic and heavy, not too shabby. Cover art is total john Baizley/Baroness worship. (Panic)

SADDEST LANDSCAPE, THE, “You Will Not Survive”
I never quite got this subgenre, and furthermore, I don’t get why it is kind of coming back. It’s bands that play a kind of epic emo style, like Funeral Diner or La Dispute. It’s just not my bag. I don’t necessarily think this band is bad or anything, but then again, the music doesn’t really go anywhere either. It’s just these bursts of frantic emotion that would probably be pretty bad ass if they were literally bursts that lasted a minute. But instead, it all feels kind of long-winded and drawn out, and in the end, no matter how many times I listen to it, I’m left not remembering much of anything about this band. (Panic)

WHIRL, “Distressor” cassette
This is a pretty new band out of California that is such a direct rip on My Bloody Valentine that they ought to send Kevin Shields royalties. Not that I mind, because I’m sure the younger generation doesn’t have much knowledge of them, and it’s good to see that new bands have a respect for great music. If you have no clue what I’m talking about this group emphasizes huge walls of shimmering guitar noise and melody, all with spacey and atmospheric tones, and soothing female vocals. They really nail it on this, seven songs of huge guitars, blasting beautiful noisiness, and somehow really pretty the whole time. My favorite jam here is “Child”. (Whirl)