This is a double album, tribute to the Italian hardcore punk band called Laghetto compiled by the Italian music web magazine Impatto Sonoro. And what for these guys was a year of hard work, you can have it for free by giving up your precious e-mail address HERE. But, as they say, more then a tribute, this is a declaration of love. Although Laghetto prefers to called themselves a”ninja-core band”. So, this is Ninja love. Kind of murderous, isn’t it? And well, you got the chance to get know a lot of really ass-kicking Italian bands of different genres given quite different flavors to the original tracks. Read more Tribute to Laghetto – Il coraggio di essere suonati (2013)
hardcore punk
History of the Hawk – Future Ruins (2012)
Punk ain’t dead. Even more, the present it’s intense and murderous and definitively there are more then simple hopes for a future. And this is genuine Punk, I mean, not that soap-box/bubble-gum, Californian sun-burnt and Pop flavored “Punk” which the media and the multinationals selling for decades now. “Descending Light” explode like a grenade and the whole “Future Ruins” it’s a killer spiral of energy and aggression. With roots back to Black Flag, Minor Threat and Dead Kennedys, but related to contemporary challengers such as Gallows and Converge merging brutality and intensity, Hardcore energy and Post-Metal rawness, History of the Hawk delivered a truly unique and own flavored, pounding and crushing Punk album. It’s fresh, it’s furious, it’s colorful and re-inventing the heritage of the past to send it right into the future. Read more History of the Hawk – Future Ruins (2012)
Anti-Flag – The General Strike (2012)
Everything is politics. Can deny, can run, but can not hide. Anti-fucking-Flag is well known for its left-wing political views, focusing on anti-war activism, imperialism, class struggle, feminism, and various sociopolitical sentiments. From where I sit, left-wing is no better than right-wing and current consumerism is not quite different of fascism, but still, I love Anti-Flag.
Anti-Flag will be releasing “The General Strike” on March 20th, 2012 on SideOneDummy Records, but the album leaked in its entirety on January 19, 2012, 2 months before it’s release date. Their previous album, the 09’s “The People or the Gun” was one of my favorites records of that year, so, listening to “The General Strike” was at least exciting. Read more Anti-Flag – The General Strike (2012)
Useless – Born To Lose (2011)
I was expected something like The Exploited, but this is more like Suicidal Tendencies. Very neat, brutally incisive, raw, but filled not only with anger and raw fury, but also with smartly sneaked harmonies and melodious parts between the merciless pounding and cutting guitar riffs. Perfect match, as it is quite interesting how they combined lyrics both in French and English. Not quite surprising while we’re talking about a band from Montréal, Canada.
Germ Sauvé (guitar/vocal), Gino Bouchard (Guitar/vocal), Amélie Rouillard (Bass) , Pierre Bouvier (Drum), and Samuel Bourgeois (guitar) delivered a color and powerful debut album filled with killer tracks and great ideas.
Four tracks, “Born to lose”, “Breaking down”, “White pride” and “Ain’t no shit” are available for free download at their Bandcamp page, although can buy the full album for only 7.99 CA $. Read more Useless – Born To Lose (2011)
Boredom – World Bores To Death (2011)
Hardcore anybody? Can download Børedøm¸m’s “World Bores To Death” from their Bandcamp page FOR FREE. It’s a raging mixture of angry hardcore-punk and dirty crust, they are fast and furious, kind of Motorhead meets The Exploited.
As they say, they are from “a shiathole called Graz/Gradec which is located in a pitiful and stupid nation state called Austria in a construct called Europe. We try to deal with that somehow.” 😀 I actually can think of worst locations and situations, but this is not the issue. Formed in the winter of 2008/2009, and after a live-recorded demo released in 2009 and entitled “NÖMEN EST ÖMEN”, several split releases, “World Bores To Death” is the band’s debut full-length album. Read more Boredom – World Bores To Death (2011)
Bad Brains – Quickness (1989)
Although “Quickness” is the fourth studio album by Bad Brains, it was the first I had listen at the beginning of the 90’s and several songs from it still echoing in my mind. “The Messengers”, “Sheba”, “No Conditions”, “Silent Tears”, “The Prophet’s Eye” are only a few of the 11 (plus outro) killer tracks of the album.
“Quickness” is 34 minutes of pure essence of Bad Brains delivering the best of their unique hybrid of raggae-punk and hardcore-funk. Released on 14th September, 1989, 22 years ago, these songs sounds still fresh and… quickening. Who said white man can’t jump and black guys can’t rock? Read more Bad Brains – Quickness (1989)
Fucked Up – David Comes to Life (2011)
An eighteen songs epic in four acts, “David Comes to Life”, the third full-length studio album by Canadian hardcore punk band Fucked Up is an over 77 minutes trip into an universe juggling between alternative and post-rock shredding and punk rock energy and the space between is fulfilled with everything from classic hard rock to pop and hardcore punk. It’s like “Tommy” – the 1969’s classic rock opera by The Who – were re-interpreted by a rebellious teenager punk band grown up on Offspring and Green Day diet. And actually, “David Comes to Life” is a rock opera, comparable with Green Day’s “American Idiot” (2004) or “21st Century Breakdown” (2009).
Released on June 7, 2011 in North America and June 6, 2011 elsewhere on Matador Records in CD and double LP formats, “David Comes to Life” became Fucked Up’s first charting album in the United States ranking at number 83 on the Billboard 200. Read more Fucked Up – David Comes to Life (2011)
Media Blitz – A Voice Of Our Own (2011)
It’s been eight years since Wattie Buchan and his buddies released their eighth studio album, “Fuck the System” and I actually miss a little bit of anarchy and I miss The Exploited quite a lot. I love their raging Punk since the mid 80s.
And this phrase: “Riot starting, bouncer bashing, cop baiting, hotel trashing, foul talking, noise making, chaos causing, venue wrecking, government hating, rule breaking, piss taking, unrelenting, punk rocking. Clearly we’re not talking about Pepsi adverts here!” (excerpt from The Exploited History page) somehow quite fits right here as I’m listing Media Blitz, a quartet from Orange County, California, formed by Jason Schwartz – vocals, Eddie Oropeza – guitar, Jeff Salisbury – drums and Ryan Blank – bass.
Read more Media Blitz – A Voice Of Our Own (2011)
Rotting Out – Street Prowl (2011)
Fast and furious. 6131 Records promised “energetic, fast paced hardcore in the vein of Striking Distance and Black Flag” and it’s reminds me of Billy Milano’s M.O.D. (Method of Destruction) with less thrash infusion, but still on the same crossover/hardcore punk direction. And it’s something here also from the unfamous Billy’s humor, one of their best song being “Laugh Now, Die Later”. Walter, Carlos, Tank, Jorge and Ben comes from Los Angeles, California and their hardcore punk is fast as it is possible, still melodious, two decades ago for sure I would mosh out my ass on it. This high-energy, pumping, straight and powerful approach has its indisputable charm and live, down at the club, there’s nothing proper than this loud and angry, spitting right in your face approach. Read more Rotting Out – Street Prowl (2011)
Earth Crisis – Neutralize the Threat (2011)
Karl Buechner keeps the wheels of Earth Crisis running since 1989 – with a gap between 2001-2007 while he focused on his project called Nemesis and later renamed Freya -, using music as weapon to promoting a straight edge and vegan lifestyle, debating further social and political issues and supporting animal rights. Taking off from hardcore punk, Earth Crisis evolved into a metal machinery, getting to their sixth studio album, their mixture of metalcore and hardcore is heavier then ever, established a bridge between metal, hardcore and punk communities.
Earth Crisis’s message of human, animal and environmental liberation has resonated beyond the music industry, they have received national media coverage on CNN (Earth Matters), TBS, FOX (America’s Most Wanted), CBS (48 Hours), MTV (Music News) and ABC (World News Tonight) and Karl Buechner has spoken in front of members of Congress about teens and substance abuse. Read more Earth Crisis – Neutralize the Threat (2011)
