by marcs77
I must say it's been a pretty nice surprise when I found this CD from São Paulo's QUESTIONS in my post-box.
Out via Seven Eight Life records in July 2011 this appears to be four-some's last official recording since band's inception in 2001.
“LIFE IS A FIGHT” is good listen for your early morning wake-ups to pump you up at it's best with healthy dose of old-schoolish hardcore urgency and the positivity the guys strive to inject in the hardcore scene.
Solid recordings and graphics courtesy of singer Edu grace the artwork together with layouts that breath DIY.
They close the record with a fast, powerful and pissed off rendering of Minor Threat's “Filler”.
Together with CD I got a two-chapter DVD titled “Life Is A Fight”.
Opening up the S/T, 9.35 minutes long, chapter that packs some footage of band's behind the scene life and features the guys holed up in their rehearsal room playing tracks off “Life Is A Fight”.
The chapter two is titled “Rise Up Days” includes some live footage and street life scenes with a commentary about what hardcore and its scene means to Questions and the role they mothers played accepting and supporting their personal choice.
A really solid record and cool DVD I highly recommend everybody to check out.
Check: www.facebook.com/questionsbr
OLDE YORK are the new (relatively being the quintet around since some years now) and proud flag-bearers of HC from New York city that, as stated in their fb, want to bring it back to its glorious roots.
Of course, anyone can agree or dissent on this mission statement (truth id Olde York isn't the one and only old-school HC band hailing from the city) but listening to their latest effort and second full-length release “Shallow World” you cannot make mistakes finding out where their “modern” take of NYCHC deeply put its roots down that has a more slower beat and punky feel and “On And On” (still a more punky number) but there's plenty of in-your-face material like the opening “Peeling Paint” (very much in the vein of Sick Off It All) and the third track “Entropy” (to name a few).
Fans of NYCHC cannot miss this record, out worldwide through WTF records.
If you're not new to our zine I'm sure you've already heard of this new combo that based its home in Bad hersfeld/Gotha, Germany.
MARISOLV is a project born out of the ashes of Bury My Sins one day during the summer of 2011.
Beginning of this year they holed themselves up in at Suckerpunch studios to record the 6 tracks, to be included in their debut effort, later mastered at famed Temple Of Disharmony.
There's definitely a trait d'union that bridges the more metalcorish delivery of BMS to the sound of MARISOLV.
Since the very first time I heard the opening “Blackwater” (my favourite together with “The Simple Sound Of Our Last Days” I noticed some more 90's stoner-rock-metal influences and some huge, dark and heavy as hell down-tuned guitars.
I can spot influences coming from German bands like Zero Mentality and Opposition Of One with the voice of singer Marco that is still there to kind of remind me of BMS.
A powerful mix of hardcore urgency and modern metal that brights of something other records don't have these days.
The EP is out on Toxic Tape records in cassette tape and CD.
LE FAUCI S/T (EP)
Monza, Italy's LE FAUCI is a new DIY project that sees behind this moniker some individuals that came to age and have been actively involved in the Milan hardcore punk scene playing in 90's bands like Match5 (a band I honestly remember only from some compilations circulating years ago) In Berid So Cold, For I Am Blind and Water Tower.
Last summer they recorded 3 tracks that are included in this s/t EP.
3 tracks of hardcore punk with rock-ish hints, a good dose of melody and lyrics sung in Italian.
Lyrically, they bring on the tradition of some Italian hardcore punks that felt more comfortable drenching their thoughts in poetry and sought-after words than in slogan-filled bursts.
I've no idea whether the guys are gonna print physical copies of this recordings but you can check out and get the EP at their bandcamp.
I've always had a special thing going for thrash metal with some socio-political message to it and found it somehow very close to hardcore punk ethics (this not because famed acts like Metallica, Anthrax, Slayer were sporting hardcore punk t-shirts or covering punk tunes). The likes of Nuclear Assault, Megadeth, Kreator, Sacred Reich had lyrics dealing with a variety (that concerned them at those times) of themes like menaces of nuclear warfare, exploitation, racism, enviroment (to name but a few).
Frankfurt's thrashers TANKARD has just roughed out to more social themes (I'm thinking at the record "The Morning After" and the new track "Witchhunt 2.0" which deals with cyber-bullism) had some alien-creature-from outerspaces themed stories but I think it's clear to everyone after a 30+ year career what they care of the most is drinking beer and have fun.
With the new full-length "A GIRL CALLED CERVEZA", out on Nuclear Blast, the guys can carve the 16th notch on the Tankard's wooden pint (I'm sure they must have one, or is it Korpiklaani who has one?).
The teutonic thrashers stick to the fast powerful thrash metal formula they are known for with the vocals from Gerre that lead the crew through the morning-after hangovers.
Over the years the sound recording technics improved big deals so now Tankard doesn't sound as crappy as in the early recordings. For the rest it sounds Tankard to me so, take or leave it.
Check: http://www.tankard.info/start.html
BETTER TIMES Better Measures (7” vinyl EP)
This 7" EP is not the latest recording from Baffalo, NY's based straight edge 4-piece BETTER TIMES.
This six-track EP was originally pressed on tape in US by Like Glue records in 2011 and it is now available in coloured (black and green) vinyl on xCommitmentx records.
Over two years span the guys recorded a 7-track demo, this EP titled “BETTER MEASURES” and one song to be included in the new 7" titled "If Not Us" coming out on State Of Mind Recordings early 2013. Fans of Floor Punch, Youth Of Today and '88/early nineties sXe hardcore will find something for their tastes.
Lyrically, Better Times deals with hardcore punk scene (“Better Measures”), pressure to succeed (on same titled track), the corruption of the system and the global crisis their country and, let me say, many of Western countries, is going through (“Powder Keg”) -I wanna quote a few lines here: "Ultra-rich getting richer while everyone else is kicked to the curb to fend for ourselves", but they also call the scene to cheer up on the s/t song.
BETTER TIMES Better Measures (7” vinyl EP)
This 7" EP is not the latest recording from Baffalo, NY's based straight edge 4-piece BETTER TIMES.
This six-track EP was originally pressed on tape in US by Like Glue records in 2011 and it is now available in coloured (black and green) vinyl on xCommitmentx records.
Over two years span the guys recorded a 7-track demo, this EP titled “BETTER MEASURES” and one song to be included in the new 7" titled "If Not Us" coming out on State Of Mind Recordings early 2013. Fans of Floor Punch, Youth Of Today and '88/early nineties sXe hardcore will find something for their tastes.
Lyrically, Better Times deals with hardcore punk scene (“Better Measures”), pressure to succeed (on same titled track), the corruption of the system and the global crisis their country and, let me say, many of Western countries, is going through (“Powder Keg”) -I wanna quote a few lines here: "Ultra-rich getting richer while everyone else is kicked to the curb to fend for ourselves", but they also call the scene to cheer up on the s/t song.
YELLOWCARD Southern Air (CD)
YELLOWCARD is one of year 2000s pop-punk acts that worked their career up the ladder to reach the global recognition among the mainstream listeners.
But the pressure of success and inner feuds among the band-mates lead first to some important line-up changes and later on to hiatus period lasted from 2008 to 2010.
Back on the map in 2010 with a new record label (a small one this time around) the guys put behind them the years of billboard chart topping tunes, mtv and glossy cover features and steered their band on a track where the passion for music and burning need to write song weights more than fame.
“When You're Through Thinking, Say Yes” comes out in 2011 on Hopeless records and just one year later the Jacksonville, FL's quintet follows it up with this new album titled “Southern Air” -out in Europe through Rude records / Hopeless in the US.
Yellowcard year 2012 still sticks with the pop punk sound they've become known for (the violin is still there) but shows also signs of their musical grow with a bunch of songs that are definitely more mature without being shamelessly mainstream-oriented. I've actually never been much of fan of the guys (too famous) but “Southern Air” is a nice listen whenever I crave for some more “adult” or sophisticated punk rock music.
“Rivertown Blues” is the one song I dig the most, perhaps just because is more in your face and features a cool lead guitar.
Check: yellowcardrock.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment