FOOD NOT BOMBS BENEFIT LP

It’s weird to go back and listen to these old compilations that have a place in the heart and soul of the 16 year old me. I hate to say it but I try to be an honest person… if I heard such an eclectic mix of bands on a CD today I would probably cringe and chuck it out of my car window. What happened to that youthful energy I had? That ambitious and inquisitive nature? Everything seemed so new and exciting then. Bands were harder to come by, and putting out records was reserved for those who had the money, gumption, and know how. Politics and being socially conscious were at a great all time high with hardcore, crust, emo, and punk kids. Did we get lazy? Are we too wrapped up in quick fame, technology, business, and egos? With all of the worlds advancements I feel like things have changed so much and everything can sometimes seem like any sort of messages are lost or watered down. If you stand on your soapbox and talk about something you are chastised for being preachy. Remember the phrase “More than Music”? Maybe it’s all part of growing up. I’ll be 32 in just a few days and as much as I try to be as involved with the music scene I feel like I know less and less of what the fuck is going on. I think the 16 year old me would be proud of me in some ways, and in others want to kick me in my 32 year old dick. Who knows? Maybe the 30 year olds in 1994 felt the same way about my generation at the time. Punk rock saved my life and in other ways I feel like it ruined it. There are times that I wish I worked a 9-5 desk job, came home drank a can of Miller Lite, and played Xbox for 8 hours a night. But that’s not me, it’s not in my blood like the music and ideas such as the ones conveyed on this LP that I feel connected to. Maybe there should be a support group for the 30+ “kids” to help each other through our trials and tribulations of coping with everyday. It’s hard to stay blind to the bullshit of the world. Anyway, if that support group is out there, sign me up…

Well enough of that randomness… “A Food Not Bombs Benefit LP” on Inchworm records came out in 1994 with a great mixture of who’s who in the hardcore, metal, and emo world at the time. Many of these bands are still highly revered to this day. I think there’s a reason for this, these bands were ahead of their time and setting the standards for their sub genres. On top of all of that this LP was all about bringing awareness to homelessness, starvation, society's ills, and where our Country’s money is spent. These are all subjects more than relevant today as the US is still pissing away our finances into projects that are not really improving the general quality of life here on our own soil. These cool silkscreened covers (I still have a soft spot for those) also contained a thick zine like liner note booklet. Inside you will find a lot of information about FNB and also each band contributes a page of their lyrics that look like were individually designed by each band, further giving you a sense of their art. Overall everything about this release is what made me fall in love with punk and hardcore. The sense of being pro-active, giving a fuck, and actually getting off of your ass and doing something. I see flyers for benefit shows all over the US these days and there’s not one ounce of info stating what it is even for. I attend shows where there’s canned food drives and I don’t know if kids are doing it because it’s trendy or to save $2 off of the fee. But then at the show no one gets up and talks about where the food is going and what the point of it all was. Listening to this LP gets that fire going in my gut. I appreciate the fact that it can still invoke that sort of reaction out of me.


Various Artists - Food Not Bombs Benefit LP
Released on Inchworm Records in 1994 (IW 001)


http://www.mediafire.com/download/r638s5ssi383q9q/VariousFoodNotBombs.zip

1. Ten Boy Summer - The History Of Blank Pages And The Conscious Decision To Discontinue The Tradition Our Gender Has Been Plagued With
2. Swing Kids - Disease
3. Campaign - Industry Slave
4. Indian Summer - Reflections On Milkweed
5. Starkweather - Mainline
6. Franklin - Slow Into Questionable
7. Fingerprint - Surrender
8. Braille - Capitol (previously mentioned in coregasm)
9. Half Man - Tripped Up (previous 7"s posted in coregasm here)
10. Premonition - Left Unsaid
11. Railhed - End Song
12. Current - Chairtied

THE DIVISION HAS BEGUN "CT HC 1999" 7"

East Coast Empire was a really cool label in the late 90s that paved the way for a few bands. Focusing mainly on really heavy hardcore and also supporting their local scene, I had nothing but respect for these guys. They went away for a few years but now they're back which is pretty cool. This was a sweet 7” comp (man how awesome did comps used to be!?!) that featured some of Connecticut's finest at that time. There’s even a pretty sweet Death Threat track featuring guest vocals from the singer of Divided By Hate that I don’t think surfaced on any of their other releases. Fear Tomorrow has a great heavy sound and ECER released a split with them and Integ2000. I also think the 100 Demons track on here was an exclusive song and boy is it a heavy hitter. All in all I really miss these 7” comps showcasing a local scene. This makes me want to do an all Erie Hardcore 7” on Surprise Attack. Hmmmm…

The Division Has Begun “Connecticut Hardcore MCMXCIX” 7” (mines on clear!)
Released on East Coast Empire (ECER 010)
http://www.mediafire.com/download/f934g39c5brmrgf/ConnecticutHardcoreMCMXCIX.zip
1. Fear Tomorrow “The Wretched:
2. Death Threat “Forgiveness”
3. 100 Demons “Straight to Hell”
4. Divided By Hate “Embers”
5. Mans Ruin “Better Off Dead”

East Coast Empire Records online

OVERSIGHT "After This Day" 7" / COUNTERPUNCH "s/t" 7"

This 7” seems like it flew under the radar a little bit when you think of Syracuse Hardcore. Oversight features the very recognizable voice of Shane Durgee from Framework & Gatekeeper (previously posted on Coregasm) among other bands. His vocals are heavy and in your face but in a melodic, strong singing kind of way. Here and there a few of the songs even have that e-crunch that Green Rage and Earth Crisis spread to the whole world. These tracks were recorded in 1992 @ Penguin Studios. The players were: Shane – vocals, Dave – guitar, Jay – bass, and Casey on drums. Funny thing about the inner sleeve is that eccentric label owner Mike Warden from Conquer the World even has his own thanx list in the layout. I’ve never seen a label owner (not in the band mind you) do such a thing. Very weird… and to top it off Mike thanx “My mom for putting on my X’s”. haha, awesome. I’ll give him some credit though, this was his very first release so who knows!?!


OVERSIGHT “After This Day” 7” (mines on grey marble)
Released in 1992 on Conquer the World Records (CTW 001)
https://www.mediafire.com/?lwokxyc4xd6gk68
1. Picking Up the Pieces
2. Princess
3. Reveal
4. The Pedestal

--------------------------------------------------

A little addition to this post is the 7” from COUNTER PUNCH. I picked this up back then simply because it was released on Shane Durgee’s label Reflection (not to be confused with the current awesome European label Reflections). There are no liner notes, lyrics, or any information other than song titles and that it was Reflection Records #4. So maybe some of you can fill in the missing pieces on this release and band. I actually really enjoy the songs so check them out! It’s kind of in a similar vein of groovy, raw, and heavy but on the melodic tip. Great stuff and I wish more bands were trying stuff like this.


COUNTER PUNCH “Counter Punch” 7”
Released on Reflection Records #4
http://www.mediafire.com/download/x8j3ca92l97fjqi/CounterPunch.zip
1. Inner Reality
2. Letting Go
3. Freedom
4. Stranded
5. Outro

EVERLAST "drown the self" 7" / COLD WAR 7" comp

Everlast's sound captures the mid 1990s sound to a T with their chugs, drum tom parts and double bass, feedback intros, the whole band just almost overplaying in a weird way, and layer upon layer of vocal tracks. I had seen many pictures of these guys in zines for what seemed like eternity before I could actually lay my hands on a recording. My introduction to them was the COLD WAR compilation 7" that is featured below and their track was really aggressive and up my alley at the time. The Within a Lie and None Left Standing tracks are really good as well and show a diverse cross section of hardcore for the era. I have always been a Mean Season fan but the live track just does not need to be released by any means. My friend Justin had all ready posted this compilation awhile back in his blog x43x but I re-ripped it and upped it for those who might have missed it.

A few months later after seeing ad upon ad for their "drown the self" 7" on the short lived Chapter Records I finally scored a copy. It was enjoyable but I think I liked their compilation track a little bit more. Regardless it is still "post worthy" as I'm sure many of you will enjoy this bit of Illinois hardcore history. I think the band had either broken up by the time this came out or shortly after. On my photocopied lyric sheet it states "Due to excessive laziness on behalf of the band the real lyric sheet was not finished (started) by the time the record was ready to be released..." haha, man funny times. I'm not too sure what the cover art was all about either...


EVERLAST "...drown the self..." 7" (clear vinyl)
http://www.mediafire.com/file/346c59dkudtwa78/everlast_drowntheSelf.zip
Chapter Records #3
1. Drown the Self
2. Another Step
3. Broken At Last


THE COLD WAR "Hardcore Compilation" 7"
Foresight #001 / Stability Records #002
http://www.mediafire.com/download/vc763il6fmt2qj2/coldwarcomp.zip
1. None Left Standing - Just Another War
2. Everlast - Crutch
3. Mean Season - Sea of Shame
4. Within A Lie - Him

FOUNDATION "demo" & "unreleased"

One great thing about doing this blog is that when I post some tracks from an old band that I really like, I pretty much immediately start getting more emails chock full of hard to find info about them. Sometimes I even hit the jackpot and someone will have tracks that I don't have and swap them with me. This was the case here. I had posted two 7"s from the early '90s Rochester, NY band Foundation earlier this year and they seemed to go over very well. This eventually led me to scoring a copy of their demo and an unreleased 5 song ep from them. So here it is for all of you to enjoy. You'll notice other versions of the 7" songs on both releases but there are also plenty of other new (to me at least) songs that are nothing short of awesome. "Dragon's Mouth" is a real stand out track for me that would have surely got my head banging back in the day. Check them out and check out the original post of their two 7"s CLICK HERE.

FOUNDATION "demo"
1. Semi-Voluntary Reaction
2. Nothing Personal
3. Disaster
4. Your Deception
5. Enough
6. Communication Breakdown

FOUNDATION "unreleased" EP
1. Undefined
2. Broken
3. Down
4. Dragon's Mouth
5. Purity

http://www.mediafire.com/download/hpgx16i36h0g7up/foundation.zip

COREGASM turns 3

The Coregasm blog has officially turned 3 years old yesterday and with each passing year I always try to share something humorous from the past. This little gem is nothing short of embarrassing. I had this band in 92-93 with two friends that would just jam out in one of the guy’s basement. None of us could really play well and we basically just did it for fun here and there. Well this straight edge beaut of a song somehow got made and here it is for all of you to enjoy.

We went through a slew of different names like Wish Pure and then Object Lesson among others, and we never made an official demo or played any shows. Like I said, it wasn’t a real band just more of a hang out / jam out type of thing. Our real songs were pretty much a combination of Youth of Today mixed with Next Step Up. And after typing that just now, that made me want to go out and start a band that sounds like that today. The band was Mike on drums, me on guitar, and my cohort Will who actually starting Surprise Attack fanzine with me on vocals. Somehow for this song it was me playing drums and Mike and Will on vocals.

We all went to tons of shows together throughout high school allover PA, NY, NJ, and the DC area. Those were great times. We eventually all drifted apart as life took us on different paths. Last I had heard (around ‘95) Mike was a pizza deliver guy and got hit by a drunk driver. He was banged up pretty good and shattered most of his one leg. Will went off to Kutztown College which was a bit of a hardcore Mecca back then. And I moved to Erie around that same time. I hope all of those guys are doing well in life with all of their adventures and if they somehow stumble upon this I’m sure they will be laughing.

xWISH PUREx “Live by the X” (circa 92/93)
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=DLYFSAQ7

Getting wasted, you think it’s cool.
Doing that shit you’re just a fool.
Tell yourself you’re living fast.
Faster you live, the sooner you die

Live hard!
Live strong!
Live by the X!!!

Look around, it’s going down.
Doing that shit, you’re gonna drown.
Lying in the gutter, Life’s a bitch.
Don’t blame me, you dug your ditch!

Live hard!
Live strong!
Live by the X!!!

STRAIGHT EDGE!!!

APPROACH TO CONCRETE "...failures" CD

Approach to Concrete were a mid nineties hardcore band from Germany. Somehow we got a hold of their 6 song CD "failures" and proceeded to rock it a plenty whether it was in the van on tour or at my friends house that he tattooed out of. ATC did the fast yet not too youth crewy sounding hardcore really well. Brother's Keeper actually got the chance to play with these guys in 1996 and it was pretty awesome to see them live. I remember dancing for them and their singer commenting on how different (read violent) that US kids danced compared to the Euros. I felt bad but he was just busting my balls really. Anyway check out these 6 songs and see what you think.


APPROACH TO CONCRETE "...failures" CD
Released 1995 on Mad Mob Records (MM010)

http://www.mediafire.com/download/q9b669w535fw15b/ApproachToConcrete.zip
1. Absolution
2. I Fail Again
3. Bad Time Story
4. Ineffective
5. Did You Know
6. Blood Runs Red

THIRD DEGREE "opium" 7"

Massachusetts band Third Degree's double 7" on Suburban Voice always intrigued me. Im not sure what made me pick it up back then other than it "looked hardcore" haha. That was pretty much the basis of many of my record store picks in the early 90s to be honest. I always thought it was weird to be a double 7" as I didn't see many of those and still don't. Even back then I hadn't really heard much about this band but this recording was decent. Kind of reminded me of a lot of stuff that started popping up at that time like early Iceburn, later Insight, Temperance, and Guilt type of hardcore. Kind of laid back and rocked out. It wasn't a life changing find but is definitely representational of some stuff that was going on at this era so I thought I'd share it.

Third Degree was: Frank Quintiliani - vocals, Dave Hunter - bass, Jim Mccobb - guitar, Brian Fraher - guitar, & Steve Meuse - drums.


THIRD DEGREE "Opium" 2x 7"
Released on Suburban Voice (SV #008)
Recorded January 1992 @ Bobcat Studios.
https://www.mediafire.com/?v67glkba25bk2t3
1. Must
2. The Herd
3. Opium
4. Consequence Inevitable

-------------------------------------
On a side note you might have noticed it's been awhile since any updates. I've really enjoyed doing Coregasm which is almost reaching 3 years (next month!) but due to all of my other endeavors time is limited. Coregasm is not going anywhere and I will continue to post old gems as I have time so don't worry. I haven't given up. Since I've started this blog I've noticed a huge increase in other nostalgia filled hardcore blogs and I think that is amazing. Some of them are intense that I can barely keep up with reading them. I'm glad a lot of this is getting documented and put out there. I don't think you HAVE to know your roots to be apart of hardcore but I would like to think that there are some people who are interested in knowing where this lifestyle stems from and why we are all apart of it. A great book just came out called Radio Science and it is nothing short of amazing. Where else are you going to get to look at sketches of the original Minor Threat black sheep? You should do yourself a favor and pick this book up (I got it from Revelation Records for $25 here). If you like to look at lots of old high quality pictures, read stories of yesteryears, show flyers, accounts from legendary band members, and tshirt art this book has it all. Anyway, my point to all of this is that punk and hardcore have been a huge part of my life that regardless of how often Coregasm gets updated you can rest assured that sooner or later something will pop up. DIY til I die. - ems

OPTION "In Memory..." 7"

OPTION "In Memory..." 7"
Released 1995 on Ascension Records 001
http://www.mediafire.com/download/54j6765h5juf1wc/option_InMemory.zip

1. Remembrance
2. Grasp
3. Clear Conscience

OPTION "Not Forgotten" Demo Cassette

Looks like listening to these old tracks got some other old heads excited about the mighty Option! Check out Jimmy Buttons as they just posted Options earlier "Not Forgotten" Demo from 1991. It's a little more crude sounding but listening to it now I can tell it had an influence on some of my bands from this era. Good times man, great demo. Thanx Jimmy for the post!

http://www.mediafire.com/download/l71kn6knu4nplb8/option_NotForgottenDemo.zip

Jimmy Buttons "Option" post

OPTION "1993 Demo" CASS

Option were without a doubt one of my favorite PA hardcore bands in the early and mid nineties. Their demo was the first item I had mail ordered from VERY DISTRO and I remember my first listen. I'm guessing it was either 1991 or 92. I later caught them live at a festival in Wilkesbarre (their home town area) featuring a pre- "All Out War" 7" era Earth Crisis among many other great bands. All of the bands from that fest are still frequently listened to today. Option had a great heavy yet melodic touch to them, an energetic live show, and a good attitude. I went on to get to know some of the guys and hang out with them a bunch in the mid 90s and I always felt like this band deserved to be a lot more well known than they were. I think they put out like 4 or so demo tapes, a bunch of compilation tracks, and a 7". All of which had superb songs on them. For that era and all of our ages they just always seemed to be exceptional musicians. I always envied that about them. I have most of their back catalog so I'll be putting it up from time to time as I get the chance to turn them into mp3s. I couldn't even ball park how many times I have seen this band. It was never a disappointment. This is their 4 song demo cassette from 1993.


OPTION "1993 Demo" Cassette
Self released
http://www.mediafire.com/file/kpd35bn1por0985/option_1993Demo.zip
1. Siblings
2. Follow
3. Search
4. Shorehead
5. Endtro

SUBZERO videos

"Higher Power" video


Equipment meltdown!!!


"Lionhearted" video


"Sick People" cover song

TASTE THE STEEL

TASTE THE STEEL are one of the newer breed of Erie Hardcore bands that have come out post Y2K. Lead singer Buck has been going to shows as long as I can remember and while I was living down in Philly I had heard that he had a new band with him on vocals. I knew he was super into heavy brutal hardcore and his new project was no disappointment.

Here's a sample of their first demo (I think I'm missing a track). Their newer stuff is even heavier and more brutal and Buck has some cool lyrics dealing with societal issues, war, and government. These guys really need a proper release. Check out their myspace for current info: www.myspace.com/tastethesteel

TASTE THE STEEL "Blind Society" demo 2005https://www.mediafire.com/?ajryw0npsh0jw7s

PRAYER FOR A FALLEN ANGEL "Drawing Near Armageddon" CD

Initially the idea behind Prayer For A Fallen Angel was to be an all Erie straight edge hardcore group featuring numerous different friends on vocals and featuring me on guitar, Mike Ski on bass, and Bob Williams on drums, all 3 of which were in Brother's Keeper at the time. We even started writing some songs and took some really cool group photos that have been lost over the years. I still wish those would surface as they came out really bad ass. Anyway, the idea started to kind of change for some people and the initial design of an all Erie band started to get scrapped. I didn't want to have to tell my friends that they could no longer sing in the project. Then there was a suggestion for a 2nd guitarist who was a good friend of ours named Nate. Nate is an amazing guy and a great guitarist but he was no longer straight edge. So I decided that I didn't want to be a part of the project any longer as I felt like I was compromising what initially attracted me to the idea. It wasn't really that dramatic or anything as it was still in its infant stages idea wise. And to be honest, Nate wrote way better songs than I ever would have even dreamed of and made the band much much better!

I think the idea got shelved for a little bit but Mike decided to pick up the pieces and got more momentum going again and enlisted some of our other friends to join in. The band added Dave Quiggle onto second guitar and asked some of my favorite vocalists/lyricists Chris Logan and DJ Rose. This band had nothing short of a super group resume at that point.

They wrote all 5 tracks and recorded them at our favorite local studio in Erie which was Miner Studios. Basically it was this old rocker dudes garage with a few mics and a tarp in it separating it in half. When I say garage I mean that he had to hit the automatic door opener when we wanted to go in or out. At the time every Erie hardcore band recorded there. The guys recorded the music and mailed off the recording to DJ and Chris who then penned some ideas down. The two eventually came down to Erie and they all put their ideas and lyrics together to finish out the songs. So basically the band never had a full practice with all of the members, not even one time in its existence. After all of the vocals were done a huge crew of us went out there and did the back up crew chants. It was a lot of fun with about 15 of us there encircling the microphone that was just sitting there in the middle of the floor. We all pointed our fingers angrily at it as we shouted our parts.

The band was later scheduled to appear at one of the highly successful Syracuse New Years shows but for one reason or another the band never got their act together and practiced, resulting in a cancellation even though most of the members were present seeing as how Brother's Keeper was on tour at the time with 78 Days (at least I think so). It's a shame too because I was very anxious to see them live and had plans on going completely apeshit. You see I just found this EP to be an awesome example of the hardcore that I grew up on and backed. It had all of the elements that make my heart pump a little faster and harder. Most of all I loved the lyrics, the originality, and the sincerity flowing through all of it. Granted the recording is a little rough and can be a little sloppy at times, the guitars have way too much treble (anyone remember those Line 6 pedals? ugh...), and the drums sound could be a bit better. I always looked past all of that and just enjoyed what my friends had created.

One of the singers Chris Logan released the CDep on his fledgling label at the time Goodfellow Records and I believe only 1,000 were pressed with no represses. Check out this gem and let me know what you think, I'm guessing a lot of people missed this one seeing as how it's over 11 years old.

PRAYER FOR A FALLEN ANGEL was:
Chris Logan - Vocals (Chokehold, 78 Days)
DJ Rose - Vocals (Path of Resistance)
Dave Quiggle - Guitar (xDisciplex AD, Shockwave, No Innocent Victim, Jesus Wept)
Nate Black - Guitar (Abnegation, Run Devil Run, Problem Solver Revolver, Thick As Thieves)
Mike Ski - Bass / Vocals (Sumthin To Prove, Brother's Keeper, Run Devil Run, The AKAs)
Bob Williams - Drums (Brother's Keeper, Thick As Thieves, Problem Solver Revolver, The AKAs)

PRAYER FOR A FALLEN ANGEL "Drawing Near Armageddon" CDep
Released in 1997 on Goodfellow Records (GF004)
http://www.mediafire.com/download/r7zy213eyb5ac93/prayerforafallenangel.zip
1. Documentary
2. Losing Ground
3. The Jewel
4. Salvation's Voice
5. Bring It On




This is the show they were billed on but did not play:

V/A "Chop Chop" 7"

V/A "Chop Chop" 7" compilationReleased in 1989 on Skene Records #4
Etchings A: "One otter, two otter..." B: "Team Caffeine"
http://www.mediafire.com/download/0h5klkq5ftx61dk/various_chopchop.zip

1. Constant Grief - Timely Failure
2. Bad Trip - Mixed Emotions
3. Payback - Gothic
4. Vicious Bite - 'Till Death Do You Part
5. A Bomb A Nation - Not Kosher / Belong Be Strong (Live at CBGBs)

Cover:


Back Cover:


Booklet Insert:

EARTH CRISIS video

I had always heard about this incident and was bummed that I missed it. I always love viewing a good debacle. I attended a bunch of shows at Middlesex while I still lived in Harrisburg and they were pretty legendary from this era. Attendance was great, bands were amzing, just an all around hardcore fucking utopia.

Obviously kids are more than welcome to voice their opinion if you have different ideas etc... but it's another thing to throw shit on someone, fuck with their equipment, and to mock them right up in their face. I mean you can't really be too surprised if you get some sort of intense (sometimes violent) reaction for doing something like that. I mean can you honestly be shocked or surprised if you're fucking with someone and pushing buttons that they stand up for themselves? Anyway, that's just my opinion. And really this was NJ in the mid 90s, fights at shows weren't really an unheard of thing haha. Enjoy.

On a side note, the lyrics to "Forged in the Flames" still ring truer today than they did 15 years ago. - ems

Description from the person who posted this video:

"ok here we go: earth crisis played middlesex, NJ in 96 and funny stuff happened.

i'll break it down so you can skip to the good parts.
1st they play forged in flames and nothing happens.
then they play inherit the wasteland and around 2:30 is when beer cans and yogurt get thrown on stage...cant really see much though and they keep playing the song.
around 4:40 karl gives a little speech and then they play forced march.

at right around the 6 min mark is when someone jumps on stage in a fur coat and all hell breaks loose. sadly...the fur coat is not caught on film but the aftermath is.
then they eventually play the song. (with guitars cutting out due to someone unplugging stuff under the stage)"

We're all friends at the Unisound!

Mailers from 1992. Unisound club in Reading PA.



"Just Look Around" tour. SOIA still had the long haired dude on bass! I even had Pete & Lou sign the black and white posters they were giving out. They told me they felt really silly but I insisted. In fact, I still look up to Sick Of It All. I just saw them last month and they played just as awesome over 16 years later. Not too many bands that I can say that about.



You might recognize the band name NEW SCHOOL as they were featured in an earlier post.

TOE TAG "s/t" 7"

Solid old style hate filled hardcore from Boston Mass. I just remember reading their name in a fanzine and knew I'd like them, not to mention Nemesis records had a nice back catalog. Does anyone know where I can actually find any pressing info on Nemesis records? I couldn't find anything on the web as far as a discography.



Toe Tag was: Mike Cahill - Vocals, Bruce Windom & Jerry Kyn - Guitar, Keith Arcari - Bass, Rich Fortin - Drums. This 7" still stands the test of time. Only complaint is there is no lyric sheet. Song titles like "H.I.V." & "Pro Lifer" make me want to read more!



TOE TAG "self titled" 7" red vinyl
Released on Nemesis Records #48
https://www.mediafire.com/?3rnljjlmo385dh2
1. H.I.V.
2. Tight Rope
3. Dillinger
4. Pro Lifer

SMOKE AND MIRRORS

Well I have this platform so I might as well use it...

My new band SMOKE AND MIRRORS has just posted 2 songs from our debut EP "Fire Ashes Phoenix Rising" on myspace. You can check them out here... www.myspace.com/smokeandmirrors814

SCAPEGRACE & CONNIPTION

Coregasm got a great response to the HALF MAN post I did a week or so ago so I figured I'd post some other really good NYHC bands. Not really the typical youth crew Revelation NYHC you would think of (not that there's anything wrong with that!). This stuff is raw, ugly, and punk as fuck. Fast and with a tinge of crustiness... and boy do I love it. The bass sounds so distorted on the Conniption tracks and the singer has such a burly voice. Scapegrace just have this awesome vibe going with so much attitude and a bit more of a noisy, discordant, melodic guitar style with screeching vocals. Just check it all out for yourself and see what you think. I've included the other half to the HALF MAN split that was mentioned last week. Enjoy. - EMS

All 3 x 7"s listed can be downloaded here:
https://www.mediafire.com/?fnb4rhaf6efa4k8


SCAPEGRACE / CONNIPTION split 7"
Released by Reek Havoc & 01811 Records #002
1. Scapegrace - Crumbs of Crumbs
2. Scapegrace - Smokescreen
3. Conniption - Perverse Creation
4. Conniption - Negative Charge
5. Conniption - Culture of Hate
6. Conniption - Profane


HALF MAN / CONNIPTION "split" 7"
Released by Reek Havoc & 01811 Records #001
(Half Man tracks posted below 1 week ago)
1. Conniption - Gun Shy... and Hammer Down
2. Conniption - Contaminated
3. Conniption - Hopeless at 21

I also added the following (since it's so good) in the zip folder:
SCAPEGRACE "Plead" 7" (taken from their myspace page so it's not the best quality but still a great listen)
Side A: Suck the Dead / One Moment
Side B: Prayer / Sleepwalk

454 BIG BLOCK video

HALF MAN 3 x 7"s

Half Man were a hardcore punk band from NY that had a great Ebullition / Born Against / Econochrist vibe going for them. I always really enjoyed their 7”s. I was first introduced to them on April 1st, 1994 when they played a local show in Harrisburg, PA. The show was Timmy, Half Man, Floodgate, and locals Mainliner. I didn’t really know about any of the bands other than Mainliner so I was pleasantly surprised by Half Man & Floodgate. Both of their sets really left an impression on me as over the years I bought all that I could from both bands.

The funny thing about this show is that I wish I could go back in time and meet who had booked it. I was rather young and didn’t really know a ton of people in my area in punk and hardcore other than a few friends and penpals. I could tell there were a few people at this show that came out just for Floodgate and were probably involved more so within the DIY punk scene. I wish I could have met some more people like that around that era as I bet they could have introduced me to a lot of other great stuff.

Tonight I dug up my 2nd issue of Surprise Attack that I had put out that year (1994) and there was a show review of this one. It was hilarious to read. It really jogged my memory on the events that took place. You see Mainliner were a local Harrisburg area band that seemed to really attract punkers who both the band and their followers seemed to emulate what they thought was punk. You know, wear a leather jacket, slick your hair back, fake like you know what Mike Ness is all about and drink lots of beer and be rude. So most of the show goers were there for them and didn’t really support or give two shits about the other 3 bands. Half Man played second and people were just moshing like goof balls and a bunch of arguments broke out amongst the leather coat punkers verses the more PC punks. It got pretty tense at times and I’m surprised real fights didn’t break out. People we’re just throwing beer around, the floor got soaked, and at one point I saw a 250lb man smash a small girl on top of the PA speakers. Real classy shit that made me very embarrassed to be from the area. Half Man ended their set with an Inside Out cover of “Burning Fight” which I think about me and my 2 friends knew. Floodgate wound up playing and just killed it. I picked up their LP that night as well as Half Man’s “Force Field” 7”. Both releases of which I have consistently listened too over the past 14 years since. Floodgate wound up cutting their set short because the locals were being so disruptive and rude. They just weren’t having it. I remember going up to the bands at their merch tables and apologizing and trying to convey that those kids didn’t represent everyone from the area. They were all real polite and understanding. My one regret of the evening though was they were selling the Ebullition press of the Judge “Rev can suck it” 10” on white for $3. Why the hell I didn’t buy one I don’t know. Anyway… after the show was drawing close to an end the cops rolled up and were arresting kids for underage drinking and it was just chaos at this point. We then realized that my car was broken into and someone stole my friends skateboard from it. We didn’t really have much time to look around as the cops were being real pricks so we just got the fuck out of there.

Overall I was real excited to be introduced to 2 new bands that really struck a chord with me. But in retrospect of the whole night it was a bit of a bum out as I wish more bands like that would have rolled through the Harrisburg area, but due to the action of a bunch of kids who thought that just by being drunk dicks was punk rock, not too much like this really occurred for awhile during this time. I would have loved to have booked shows back then but I was 16 years old and broke and just a bit green as to how it all worked. Either way, here are 3 of Half Man’s releases for you to check out. You can really tell on the “No Choice” tracks that it was recorded at the legendary Don Fury’s due to the chunky drum sound and killer guitar tones. A few of the recording sessions had more songs not featured on the 7”s, I’d love to get my hands on those. I know Half Man had another split 7” that I can’t remember with who right now (I want to say Honeywell but I could be wrong) [edit: i was informed that the split was actually with hugs & kisses]. I also really loved the fact that the 7"s were all silk screened and had interesting booklets with lyrics and writings in them. I left out the Conniption side of the split as I will post that with more of their stuff soon as well. Enjoy Half Man as they really made an impact on me back then.

3 x HALF MAN 7"s: https://www.mediafire.com/?hyd8drqdg0r60ig


HALF MAN "Force Field" 7"
Released on Mountain #002
Records @ Dare Studios April 1993 (tracks originally released on a 12 song demo cassette)
1. Force Field
2. Substitution
3. No Lunch Today
4. Change of Pace
5. Candle Stubs


HALF MAN "No Choice but to Learn" 7"
Released on Chicken Farm Records #004
Recorded @ Don Fury's November 1993
1. In Control
2. Welcome to the Insanity that I Created
3. Heritage
4. Lack of Order


HALF MAN / CONNIPTION "split" 7" (Conniption tracks can be found 2 posts after this one)
Released by Reek Havoc & 01811 Records #001
Recorded @ Tom K.s house January 1994 (3 of 6 tracks from that session)
1. Half Man - All Gone
2. Half Man - Scar(r)ed
3. Half Man - Flog

V/A "Lacking Mindset Compilation" 7"

This early 90's four band 7" compilation knocked me on my ass when it came out. Having been a fan of all 4 bands featured on here and always wanting to hear more, this was just the release I had been needing. The original version of Unbroken's "Blanket" was so heavy it had me and my friends seriously geeking the fuck out. I can remember seeing them twice around this time and going completely ape shit to that song. Honeywell, Groundwork, and Struggle all offer some of their harsh and abrasive punk meets hardcore meets (then) screamo. Overall this was a great release.



V/A - "Lacking Mindset Compilation" 7"
Released by Spoonfed Records - FED 002
https://www.mediafire.com/?l1xlsa3hhbonaic
1. Struggle - The Untitled
2. Unbroken - Blanket
3. Honeywell - Mesh Control
4. Groundwork - ???