So I saw Saviours for the second time last night, at the Key Club in Hollywood. For those who don't know Saviours are a metal band from Oakland that mixes NWOBHM style riffage with early Sabbath doom. They just released a new record on Kemado called Into Abaddon which is destined to be on my top list of records for 2008. Anyways, Ancestors opened the show, and fell into their 30 minute proggy dirge..they were not bad, but not my kinda thing. Next were the mighty Saviours who ripped through only four songs, teasing the appetite of a crowd that wanted more. Nevertheless I was quite pleased, and proceded home.
Saviours Setlist 3/18/2008
Circle of Servants Bodies
Into Abaddon
Narcotic Sea
Cavern of Mind
Saviours-"Narcotic Sea"
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
Integrity-The Blackest Curse
From Lambgoat Earlier..
It looks as if Integrity will finally release their "The Blackest Curse" album this year. Deathwish Inc. will put out the album on CD and LP as DWI74.Several tracks have been recorded thus far, with roughly thirteen songs written. According to frontman Dwid, "The album is a concept album based on a book I have written and it follows that story-line premise."The release will reportedly be accompanied by a DVD film..
This is shaping up to be a really really good year for hardcore.
Stay Posted!
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Kill Holiday
Kill Holiday was formed in 1994 by Steven Andrew Miller (Unbroken), Robert Moran (Unbroken), Barry Kellman (Amenity/House of Suffering) and Oscar Paz (Statement, Impel). Influenced by bands such as Quicksand and Jawbreaker, Kill Holiday set out to create music that was still heavy but emotionally charged at the same time. A four song e.p. on New Age Records titled "Monitor Dependency" was soon released. This line up played a handful of shows until Robert left the band and was replaced by June Cate (Impel, I Wish I). Three more songs were released by Indecision Records with a split 7" with Dempsey (ex-Undertow) and a song featured on the "Guilty by Association" compilation. A west coast tour soon followed with June and Oscar pulling double duty since Impel came along as well. Over time doing both bands became too much and they chose to stick with Impel. Todd Beattie (Unbroken) joined on bass and newcomer Chris Perreira came in on guitar. Soon a two song single was titled "Meant to Let You Down" was released on Simba followed with the bands first European tour. After this tour the band was dealt a crushing blow when co-founder Barry Kellman decided to leave the group. Barry's volume and drumming style was always a key factor in Kill Holiday's live shows and would be difficult to replace. In came band photographer Gabriel Gamboa (I Wish I) on drums and a new direction would soon be in place. Growing tired of the typical post hardcore sound, Kill Holiday decided to draw from other musical influences that were always just as important as hardcore bands were. Taking a big risk "Somewhere Between the Wrong is Right" was released by Revelation Records receiving mixed reveiws. People didn't know what to make because this wasn't the same Kill Holiday they had been used to hearing. This record was followed with a European tour with local friends Jejune and a US tour after that. After one more tour of the US the same year Kill Holiday decided to call it quits in 2000.
-from bands myspace
Kill Holiday-"Somewhere between the wrong is right"
Enjoy.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
A389 Records Rules/Integrity 7" ?
A389 Records is a label run by Dom of Slumlords and Pulling Teeth fame; two awesome bands I recommend you check out. A389 just re-released the long out of print Gehenna The War Of The Sons Of Light And The Suns Of Darkness LP which also features rare demo tracks, and split 7" tracks. They also released an In Cold Blood record with all the non Victory records recordings. Pretty Sweet, I know. And three days ago Dom posted the following on the A389 records site:
".....Tons of other great stuff in the pipeline as well. Integrity 7″, Ringworm LP, Slumlords DVD and some other new releases that are just being finalized. Stay tuned for more info, it’s going to be an exciting year."
An Integrity 7" ?! ?! ?! !?!
Ringworm LP? (Could be the vinyl version of the last record..??)
Slumlords DVD (Been hearing about this for a while, should be rad)
As Dom said...should be an exciting year for this extremely promising label.
Stay Tuned.
http://www.a389records.com/
".....Tons of other great stuff in the pipeline as well. Integrity 7″, Ringworm LP, Slumlords DVD and some other new releases that are just being finalized. Stay tuned for more info, it’s going to be an exciting year."
An Integrity 7" ?! ?! ?! !?!
Ringworm LP? (Could be the vinyl version of the last record..??)
Slumlords DVD (Been hearing about this for a while, should be rad)
As Dom said...should be an exciting year for this extremely promising label.
Stay Tuned.
http://www.a389records.com/
An Interview with Daniel of Die Young (TX)
The following is an interview I conducted with Daniel of Die Young (TX) in Octoober of 2006, just before the release of their album "Graven Images". Die Young has firmly established itself as one of the most itriguing and thought-provoking Hardcore bands of their time. Their vitriolic stance against organized religion, the government, and mental complacency has set them apart from their peers. They have a brand new 7" coming out on A389 records soon entitled "Loss".
------------------------------
(GTR=myself)
GTR: First of all, how long has Die Young been a band?
Daniel: Die Young has been together for about 4 years now. We've changed members a lot, and RJ (drummer) and I are the only two original members, but RJ was out of the band for a good couple of years.
GTR: Were you in any bands previously?
Daniel: Yeah RJ and I were both in a Straight Edge band called Finer Truth for the duration of high school and a little bit after. Finer Truth was sort of in the vein of Earth Crisis/One King Down/Another Victim.
Daniel: I only played guitar in that band though.
GTR: So you guy's recently inked a deal with eulogy. Congrats. How are things going with them?
Daniel: Things are going pretty smoothly thus far. We start recording our new full length for them in about 3 weeks, and so far they are down with everything we want to do artistically for the album, which is our main concern aside from the actual recording.
GTR: are these going to be all new songs? Or is "The Messenger" for example (from your recent split 7" with 7 Generations) going to be on it?
Daniel: Everything on the full length will basically be new, except for a newer song we've been playing out over the summer called "Fuck the Imperialists" which is going to be on a split 7" with a band called Invade form Long Island, New York on Double or Nothing records a couple months before the full length hits stores. We just recorded our two tracks for that release a couple weeks ago. "The Messenger" will probably remain exclusive to the 7 Generations split 7" forever.
GTR: awesome
GTR: Your touring ethic is very much appreciated. You guys are one of the hardest working bands out there. You've recently even gone to Asia. How was that? What's the scene like out there? And is there any place in the world where you'd love to play?
Daniel: It's not so much that we're hard working, but rather stubbornly refusing to not work real jobs, haha. Asia was incredible. The three weeks we spent there playing shows really only wetted our lips as to all the places we need to explore over there. Before the band is done we will definitely have to go back and do a more detailed tour. We didn't get to do the Philippines and Indonesia this past time, so those places must be included next time. The scenes in East Asia varied greatly. Japan has a very integrated and blooming scene, as did Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong, while places like Taiwan and Thailand are very estranged to the concept of a unified hardcore scene. However, the shows in those places were still intense and the crowds were welcoming. Most kids at shows just appreciated the fact that we came to play. It will be interesting to go back in a few years and see how things have developed. There's a lot of potential, and some great bands, too. They just lack the opportunities most bands in the US have because of either economic circumstances, or as I said, the lack of a unified scene to support them.
GTR: How was Alaska?
Daniel: Alaska was awesome, too. It was a beautiful place, and the shows were fun. Kids up there are starving for bands to come up form the lower 48 states, and as far as I know, we were the first DIY hardcore band to do so. To be honest, playing Fairbanks was pretty much a waste of time, but the scenery on the drive up was worth the trip. The Anchorage area, however, gave us two great shows, and I thought it was especially cool because I think most of those kids had never even seen a hardcore band before. Hopefully we corrupted some minds.
GTR: haha, the topic of corrupting minds leads us to my next question..
GTR: You guys definitely convey powerful messages throughout your songs. (Filled with enough vitriol to make Nietzsche himself cringe.) Something that I feel is lacking in a lot of hardcore today. Your music opposes mindless complacence and ignorance; the two biggest plagues of humanity; and I appreciate that to no end. But it seems like a lot of kids today just go to shows and don't take any of the messages seriously. I think more kids need to be proactive in utilizing the ideals and messages spoken of at shows. Isn't that the true essence of hardcore? Using the words spoken as weapons for which we bring down mainstream society?
Daniel: Sure it can be, I think Hardcore can be many different things to different people. For some people it's just kind of a hobby, not necessarily a vehicle for change. And to each his own, but I do grasp what you are saying about the mindlessness and trend following of the current scene, and I mostly attribute that to the fact that the scene has already been built. Kids these days usually don't have a stake in building it. It's been there for them. They can take it for granted because it is easily accessible in churches, and in shopping malls, and all these really despicable places. There's very rarely any community left--everything is mainly industry or business. And it might seem hypocritical to some for me, a dude in a band that is now on a label, which is on the forefront of all Hardcore in all its commercialism these days, to criticize that aspect of it. I understand that viewpoint, but I can say with all certainty, that the real problem is bands not utilizing this new forum in the public marketplace to reach kids and to really push the boundaries in the minds of more people than ever before. Don't get me wrong, I still think DIY ethics are essential and valuable, and that sometimes reaching people on a more personal/grassroots scale is every bit as effective and important, but Die Young (TX) is doing what we can to juggle both of those worlds. I wouldn't think the commercialism aspect of today's scene wouldn't be so bad if more bands were really making controversial and catalytic music.
Daniel: But I guess selling records takes doing exactly the opposite--playing what people want to hear. Haha, it will be interesting to see how our new cd goes over.
GTR: most definitely
GTR: It's hard to tell in your lyrics whether you're an athiest or an agnostic. In one song you mention, "no god's, no more masters", while in one you dispose of religion and science by saying both "lack reason". An athiest would most of the time side with science, whilst the agnostic with neither..
GTR: Or do you embrace more of a nihilistic point of view?
Daniel: Well hey, it's not like science never fails people. Science in many ways can be almost as much of a religion as spiritual religion itself. I just really don't have any faith in anything haha. But even so, I tend to stay away from nihilistic living because it just doesn't lead to a better world. I don't believe in any conventional morality prescribed from any of the world's major religions, or from any nation or from any institution, but that does not mean I am not obligated to live and abide by ethics of my own. I don't believe in karma either, but I do strongly feel that the way we relate to other people, our environments, and other beings (of all kinds) does play into, to some degree, how well we are able to survive and enjoy life in this world. None of us are excluded from the community of life on this planet. We've got to find positive ways to function within in it, and I think that has a lot to do with rejecting dogmas of any kind.
Daniel: In many ways, our self is all we have, but at the same time we're still mostly insignificant. haha, oh man....
GTR: we could go on forever, and I would be very interested… but for the sake of the interview we must carry on.
GTR: haha
Daniel: Yes that's truth--it's really a never-ending discussion, as opposed to (as most people think) a final word of some sort.
GTR: Who are some of your main influences when you sit to write? (Philosophically, Musically)
Daniel: Lyrically, I think I've stolen the most lines from Brian of Catharsis, Greg Bennick from Trial and Greg Graffin of Bad Religion. There's been a lot of books that have impacted what I have written about, and some of my most influential authors/philosophers thus far have been Nietzsche (Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Beyond Good and Evil), Daniel Quinn (ALL of his books), Ernest Becker (The Denial of Death), Howard Bloom (The Lucifer Principle), Emma Goldman (collected essays), Upton Sinclair (The Jungle), Eric Fromm (Escape from Freedom, The Art of Loving, The Dogma of Christ, collected essays), Bertrand Russell, and the list goes on.
GTR: quite an eclectic collection
Daniel: I try man. haha.
Daniel: I've got to get as many perspectives as I can, whether they are psychological, sociological, or straight up anarchistic.
GTR: you don't know your own beliefs until you know your counterparts.. or something like that
Daniel: Totally true. We don't have a cd player in the van, so I listen to AM conservative talk radio when we're home form tour and I'm driving around. Goddamn, that's a good way to get fucking pissed off.
GTR: hahah
GTR: back to more easily digestible questions...
GTR: The scene in Texas seems to be flourishing to say the least. How's it
going out there?
Daniel: We just had our annual Fallcore Fest last week, which had 25 bands this year--all from Texas. It is basically a showcase of Texas's best and most active bands. If that show is any indication of the scene here, then we're definitely on top right now. It was fucking insane, that's all I can really say about it. I am pretty stoked on how I've seen this state grow from just having a few cities that do shows regularly, to having a ton now, and a ton of bands to boot.
Daniel: Texas is generally pretty good to us.
GTR: the general crowd reaction for you guys in California seems to always be mediocre at best, which is a damn shame. Where do you guys usually get the biggest crowd participation?
Daniel: Hmm, well Sink With Cali this past time out was a nice surprise for us. Maybe all those kids weren't from Cali haha. Anyway, we are received really well in the southeast mostly. I don't know, it's a Southern thing. Basically with Die Young, we're not the kind of band that attracts huge crowds. Most kids could probably care less about what I've got to say, and we don't have too many obvious breakdowns, so we're pretty good at receiving blank stares, haha
Daniel: But I can say, the few kids around the states that follow our band are usually really dedicated
Daniel: I know quite a few kids in random parts of the world (Europe even) who have been emailing us their Die Young tattoos. I'm pretty stoked on that. That's a real honor.
GTR: Wow, that is!
GTR: What is Die Young's ultimate goal? Shall I dare say immortality? haha
Daniel: We're simple dudes haha. We just want to see the world a few times over before we're done playing in this band. We want to play every possible place we can possibly play as a hardcore band. We love introducing people to Hardcore--it's an honor to be able to do that. We just want to travel and play, and build community every step of the way. I'd really just like to see, if at the very least, a small portion of the kids involved in Hardcore living more passionately and more aware of things beyond the scene itself by the time our run of things is up in this band. I used to always think I wanted to be a band that was "tattoo-worthy" but we've already accomplished that I suppose. In the end, we just want to pass the torch the next generation of kids in the scene who are going to keep ethics and controversial ideas alive, just like I feel bands like Trial and Catharsis and Indecision did for us.
GTR: "Millions are enslaved, at the hands of intangible gods!!", Haha you guys should cover "Blindfold".
Daniel: Haha, man we've done quite a few covers lately. We need to lay off or else people might think we're actually trying to please crowds.
GTR: I understand
GTR: Well you guys' are in a league of your own, and your unrelenting lyrical commentary on religion and society is greatly appreciated. Thanks for doing the interview. Any last words or cliché shout outs?
Daniel: Nah man, no cliché shout outs haha. Thanks for asking some good questions. The conversation has been fun.
GTR: Thanks Daniel
http://myspace.com/dieyoungTXHC (Official Die Young Myspace)
http://a389records.com/ (Label releasing "Loss" 7")
------------------------------
(GTR=myself)
GTR: First of all, how long has Die Young been a band?
Daniel: Die Young has been together for about 4 years now. We've changed members a lot, and RJ (drummer) and I are the only two original members, but RJ was out of the band for a good couple of years.
GTR: Were you in any bands previously?
Daniel: Yeah RJ and I were both in a Straight Edge band called Finer Truth for the duration of high school and a little bit after. Finer Truth was sort of in the vein of Earth Crisis/One King Down/Another Victim.
Daniel: I only played guitar in that band though.
GTR: So you guy's recently inked a deal with eulogy. Congrats. How are things going with them?
Daniel: Things are going pretty smoothly thus far. We start recording our new full length for them in about 3 weeks, and so far they are down with everything we want to do artistically for the album, which is our main concern aside from the actual recording.
GTR: are these going to be all new songs? Or is "The Messenger" for example (from your recent split 7" with 7 Generations) going to be on it?
Daniel: Everything on the full length will basically be new, except for a newer song we've been playing out over the summer called "Fuck the Imperialists" which is going to be on a split 7" with a band called Invade form Long Island, New York on Double or Nothing records a couple months before the full length hits stores. We just recorded our two tracks for that release a couple weeks ago. "The Messenger" will probably remain exclusive to the 7 Generations split 7" forever.
GTR: awesome
GTR: Your touring ethic is very much appreciated. You guys are one of the hardest working bands out there. You've recently even gone to Asia. How was that? What's the scene like out there? And is there any place in the world where you'd love to play?
Daniel: It's not so much that we're hard working, but rather stubbornly refusing to not work real jobs, haha. Asia was incredible. The three weeks we spent there playing shows really only wetted our lips as to all the places we need to explore over there. Before the band is done we will definitely have to go back and do a more detailed tour. We didn't get to do the Philippines and Indonesia this past time, so those places must be included next time. The scenes in East Asia varied greatly. Japan has a very integrated and blooming scene, as did Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong, while places like Taiwan and Thailand are very estranged to the concept of a unified hardcore scene. However, the shows in those places were still intense and the crowds were welcoming. Most kids at shows just appreciated the fact that we came to play. It will be interesting to go back in a few years and see how things have developed. There's a lot of potential, and some great bands, too. They just lack the opportunities most bands in the US have because of either economic circumstances, or as I said, the lack of a unified scene to support them.
GTR: How was Alaska?
Daniel: Alaska was awesome, too. It was a beautiful place, and the shows were fun. Kids up there are starving for bands to come up form the lower 48 states, and as far as I know, we were the first DIY hardcore band to do so. To be honest, playing Fairbanks was pretty much a waste of time, but the scenery on the drive up was worth the trip. The Anchorage area, however, gave us two great shows, and I thought it was especially cool because I think most of those kids had never even seen a hardcore band before. Hopefully we corrupted some minds.
GTR: haha, the topic of corrupting minds leads us to my next question..
GTR: You guys definitely convey powerful messages throughout your songs. (Filled with enough vitriol to make Nietzsche himself cringe.) Something that I feel is lacking in a lot of hardcore today. Your music opposes mindless complacence and ignorance; the two biggest plagues of humanity; and I appreciate that to no end. But it seems like a lot of kids today just go to shows and don't take any of the messages seriously. I think more kids need to be proactive in utilizing the ideals and messages spoken of at shows. Isn't that the true essence of hardcore? Using the words spoken as weapons for which we bring down mainstream society?
Daniel: Sure it can be, I think Hardcore can be many different things to different people. For some people it's just kind of a hobby, not necessarily a vehicle for change. And to each his own, but I do grasp what you are saying about the mindlessness and trend following of the current scene, and I mostly attribute that to the fact that the scene has already been built. Kids these days usually don't have a stake in building it. It's been there for them. They can take it for granted because it is easily accessible in churches, and in shopping malls, and all these really despicable places. There's very rarely any community left--everything is mainly industry or business. And it might seem hypocritical to some for me, a dude in a band that is now on a label, which is on the forefront of all Hardcore in all its commercialism these days, to criticize that aspect of it. I understand that viewpoint, but I can say with all certainty, that the real problem is bands not utilizing this new forum in the public marketplace to reach kids and to really push the boundaries in the minds of more people than ever before. Don't get me wrong, I still think DIY ethics are essential and valuable, and that sometimes reaching people on a more personal/grassroots scale is every bit as effective and important, but Die Young (TX) is doing what we can to juggle both of those worlds. I wouldn't think the commercialism aspect of today's scene wouldn't be so bad if more bands were really making controversial and catalytic music.
Daniel: But I guess selling records takes doing exactly the opposite--playing what people want to hear. Haha, it will be interesting to see how our new cd goes over.
GTR: most definitely
GTR: It's hard to tell in your lyrics whether you're an athiest or an agnostic. In one song you mention, "no god's, no more masters", while in one you dispose of religion and science by saying both "lack reason". An athiest would most of the time side with science, whilst the agnostic with neither..
GTR: Or do you embrace more of a nihilistic point of view?
Daniel: Well hey, it's not like science never fails people. Science in many ways can be almost as much of a religion as spiritual religion itself. I just really don't have any faith in anything haha. But even so, I tend to stay away from nihilistic living because it just doesn't lead to a better world. I don't believe in any conventional morality prescribed from any of the world's major religions, or from any nation or from any institution, but that does not mean I am not obligated to live and abide by ethics of my own. I don't believe in karma either, but I do strongly feel that the way we relate to other people, our environments, and other beings (of all kinds) does play into, to some degree, how well we are able to survive and enjoy life in this world. None of us are excluded from the community of life on this planet. We've got to find positive ways to function within in it, and I think that has a lot to do with rejecting dogmas of any kind.
Daniel: In many ways, our self is all we have, but at the same time we're still mostly insignificant. haha, oh man....
GTR: we could go on forever, and I would be very interested… but for the sake of the interview we must carry on.
GTR: haha
Daniel: Yes that's truth--it's really a never-ending discussion, as opposed to (as most people think) a final word of some sort.
GTR: Who are some of your main influences when you sit to write? (Philosophically, Musically)
Daniel: Lyrically, I think I've stolen the most lines from Brian of Catharsis, Greg Bennick from Trial and Greg Graffin of Bad Religion. There's been a lot of books that have impacted what I have written about, and some of my most influential authors/philosophers thus far have been Nietzsche (Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Beyond Good and Evil), Daniel Quinn (ALL of his books), Ernest Becker (The Denial of Death), Howard Bloom (The Lucifer Principle), Emma Goldman (collected essays), Upton Sinclair (The Jungle), Eric Fromm (Escape from Freedom, The Art of Loving, The Dogma of Christ, collected essays), Bertrand Russell, and the list goes on.
GTR: quite an eclectic collection
Daniel: I try man. haha.
Daniel: I've got to get as many perspectives as I can, whether they are psychological, sociological, or straight up anarchistic.
GTR: you don't know your own beliefs until you know your counterparts.. or something like that
Daniel: Totally true. We don't have a cd player in the van, so I listen to AM conservative talk radio when we're home form tour and I'm driving around. Goddamn, that's a good way to get fucking pissed off.
GTR: hahah
GTR: back to more easily digestible questions...
GTR: The scene in Texas seems to be flourishing to say the least. How's it
going out there?
Daniel: We just had our annual Fallcore Fest last week, which had 25 bands this year--all from Texas. It is basically a showcase of Texas's best and most active bands. If that show is any indication of the scene here, then we're definitely on top right now. It was fucking insane, that's all I can really say about it. I am pretty stoked on how I've seen this state grow from just having a few cities that do shows regularly, to having a ton now, and a ton of bands to boot.
Daniel: Texas is generally pretty good to us.
GTR: the general crowd reaction for you guys in California seems to always be mediocre at best, which is a damn shame. Where do you guys usually get the biggest crowd participation?
Daniel: Hmm, well Sink With Cali this past time out was a nice surprise for us. Maybe all those kids weren't from Cali haha. Anyway, we are received really well in the southeast mostly. I don't know, it's a Southern thing. Basically with Die Young, we're not the kind of band that attracts huge crowds. Most kids could probably care less about what I've got to say, and we don't have too many obvious breakdowns, so we're pretty good at receiving blank stares, haha
Daniel: But I can say, the few kids around the states that follow our band are usually really dedicated
Daniel: I know quite a few kids in random parts of the world (Europe even) who have been emailing us their Die Young tattoos. I'm pretty stoked on that. That's a real honor.
GTR: Wow, that is!
GTR: What is Die Young's ultimate goal? Shall I dare say immortality? haha
Daniel: We're simple dudes haha. We just want to see the world a few times over before we're done playing in this band. We want to play every possible place we can possibly play as a hardcore band. We love introducing people to Hardcore--it's an honor to be able to do that. We just want to travel and play, and build community every step of the way. I'd really just like to see, if at the very least, a small portion of the kids involved in Hardcore living more passionately and more aware of things beyond the scene itself by the time our run of things is up in this band. I used to always think I wanted to be a band that was "tattoo-worthy" but we've already accomplished that I suppose. In the end, we just want to pass the torch the next generation of kids in the scene who are going to keep ethics and controversial ideas alive, just like I feel bands like Trial and Catharsis and Indecision did for us.
GTR: "Millions are enslaved, at the hands of intangible gods!!", Haha you guys should cover "Blindfold".
Daniel: Haha, man we've done quite a few covers lately. We need to lay off or else people might think we're actually trying to please crowds.
GTR: I understand
GTR: Well you guys' are in a league of your own, and your unrelenting lyrical commentary on religion and society is greatly appreciated. Thanks for doing the interview. Any last words or cliché shout outs?
Daniel: Nah man, no cliché shout outs haha. Thanks for asking some good questions. The conversation has been fun.
GTR: Thanks Daniel
http://myspace.com/dieyoungTXHC (Official Die Young Myspace)
http://a389records.com/ (Label releasing "Loss" 7")
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)