Smash Your Enemies

Smash Your Enemies is a hardcore band representing Detroit scene. As you would expect from the Detroit band, it's all about keeping it heavy and breaking necks in the moshpit. These guys have just released new album on the On The Attack records filled with heavy rhythms and real life, no bullshit lyrics so make sure you check it out.

Smash Your Enemies is a hardcore band representing Detroit scene. As you would expect from the Detroit band, it's all about keeping it heavy and breaking necks in the moshpit. These guys have just released new album on the On The Attack records filled with heavy rhythms and real life, no bullshit lyrics so make sure you check it out.

You guys have just released a video for No Turning Back song . So how do you feel about the whole experience and are you happy with the finished product?

yea it was on short notice and we were running late lionheart and legend met us up around 430 and load in at the show was at 530 so we were really short on time but everything turned out great

Let’s start from the basics for all the kids not familiar with Smash Your Enemies. When and how did the band come to being? What did you expected for the band back then and what lead its creation?

IT STARTED AS A SIDE PROJECT REALLY AND WE DIDNT PLAN ON TAKING IT SERIOUS, THEN WE GOT ADDED ON A SHOW AND WE USED SMASH YOUR ENEMIES AS OUR NAME WHICH IS THE NAME OF A HATEBREED SONG BUT IT WAS ACTUALLY THE BAND NAME WE USED TO PRANK CALL PEOPLE WITH AHAH

And how did you guys personally get involved in hardcore? Is there a particular band or album that got you into it?

EVERYONE GOT INTO IT A DIFF. WAY. FROM METAL AND OR PUNK IT VARIES WITH EACH MEMBER

Being in hardcore band, what's the toughest part of it? What's the biggest wall to get over?

PROBABLY THE NEW SCHOOL KIDS WEARING CUT OFF JEAN SHORTS WHO THINK THEY ARE BETTER THAN EVERYONE ELSE WHEN IT WAS JUST ONE YEAR AGO THEY WERE WEARING THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA T SHIRTS, AND NOW THEY ACT LIKE THOSE KIDS ARE THE WORST THING EVER...IT MAKES ME SICK. YOURE NOT ANY BETTER THAN SOMEONE ELSE BECAUSE OF MUSICAL TASTE.

How would you describe Smash Your Enemies live show? What was the craziest reaction from the crowd you ever got at your show?

VIOLENT. WE HAVE HAD MULTIPLE SHOWS SHUT DOWN AND MULTIPLE PEOPLE SENT TO THE HOSPITAL AND VARIOUS OCCASIONS

How do you see today’s hardcore scene, especially with the media attention it’s been getting lately? Do you ever feel the movement seems to be evolving from a raw and dirty to clean, polished and user friendly?

LIKE I SAID EARLIER THIS WHOLE JEAN SHORT AND FLANNEL FAD IS KILLING IT...WE ALL GO TO SHOWS FOR THE SAME REASON WE NEED TO STICK TOGETHER,

It seems like bands from USA are getting a lot of love here in Europe so I wonder does it work the other way – are there any bands from Europe you guys are feeling and are like ‘damn, I wish they would to come to the States to do some shows’?

BORN FROM PAIN CAME OUT HERE...AND EVERYONE WAS LIKE FUCKKK YEA THE EUROPEAN HATEBREED I LOVE THEM!!! THEN THEY COME PLAY AND 30 KIDS COME OUT...ITS SHITTY I FEEL TERRIBLE ABOUT IT BUT IM GLAD THEY CAME OUT.

Let us know about your debut album which is about to be released in the near future via On The Attack records. Tell us more about that release, what can kids expect to here on there?

ITS CRUSHING. ITS VIOLENT. ITS INTENSE. HIGH ENERGY 100% OF THE TIME.

How did you hook up with On The Attack records and what made you choose that label? Is it because with all the heavy stuff they’ve been releasing, you guys feel like you fit this label musical wise?

I MESSAGED SAM AND TOLD HIM WE NEEDED A LABEL TO PUT OUT OUR STUFF AND HE WAS DOING SIMILAR STUFF AT THE TIME....SO WE WORKED IT OUT. WE ORIGINALLY WERE GOING TO DO AN EP AND RELEASE IT IN MAY BUT HE DIDNT HAVE ANY SPOTS OPEN SO WE HAD TO WAIT UNTIL DECEMEBER, WHICH WORKED OUT BETTER FOR THE BOTH OF US

Chad from the band Legend is dropping guest verses on the No Turning Back song. Are there any other guests on the album?

JOHN AND DAVE FROM TYRANT
LORENZO OF SWORN ENEMY
HEAVY JERRY EX-RECON
PHIL ANSELMO OF PANTERA....HE DOESNT KNOW WE USED A QUOTE OF HIS FROM AN INTERVIEW WHEN HE WAS TALKING ABOUT FAR BEYOND DRIVEN HAHA.

So what are some other bands from Detroit you support and are down with?

TYRANT
HOT ON THE STREETS
LEGEND
MAKE IT CLEAR
WILD AT HEART
HELLMOUTH
H8 INC.

WE TRY TO SUPPORT EVERY BAND WE CAN, WE DONT HAVE PROBLEMS WITH ANYONE AS OF NOW.

So, final question to wrap up the interview: what's your pick for best hardcore release of 2009 so far?

THE NEW HATEBREED
THE NEW TRAPPED UNDER ICE

Thanks for taking your time to do this. Any last shout outs?

SUPPORT YOU LOCAL HARDCORE BANDS, DONT BE AN ELITIST.

Smash Your Enemies at Myspace.

Skull Crusher to release debut album in February on Reflections Records

Reflections Records has announced the signing of Skull Crusher (New York). The label will be releasing their debut 12”/MCD, Blinded by Illusion, in February of 2010. You can check two tracks from the upcoming album here.

Band's bio:

A handful of bands throughout the last few decades of 'hard' music have been able to capture that elusive gray area of creative overlap where hardcore, metal, and rock morph into one crushing wall of sound where everything to the listener is somewhat familiar and yet still completely fresh. The list is pretty short, and most people fond of the underground would be able to rattle off at least a few of these heavy hitters. The underlying structures and ideas to this formula aren't anything mind boggling...it's rock-based music after all. But sometimes even the most simple sounds, when played right and through the right gear, can be devastating.

Skull Crusher is an attempt by obsessed fans of hard music to blend their favorite elements of the above. If you took a mixtape (cassette of course) of the Cro-Mags, early Metallica, Danzig, The Icemen, Underdog, Raw Deal, Judge, and Rollins Band, and had to try to form one sound out of them, Skull Crusher wouldn't be too far off.

Maximum Penalty - Life & Times

Ratout - Thick As Thieves

Ratout is a new Boston,UK hatecore band in very early stages bringin the pain! The band has been around just for a while but members have played in other local acts before. This track is one of the first they've recorded and it's done just as it should be done - fast and agressive with some slower parts for some mosh action. Check out their Myspace profile for the rest of their set.

Soul Train

Soul Train is an awesome new band from Massachusetts with some solid groove and rap vibes going on. They've already recorded a demo which you can download somewhere on this site.

Name: Soul Train

Location: Massachusetts

Active since: '09 Baby!

How do you define your overall style?

I would say it's straight forward hardcore, we don't have any bullshit "BR00TAL" breakdowns and we are very DIY. We like to keep a good tempo and just stay on point.

What’s your goal with this band?

As far as goals go we just really want to get our music out there. We already plan on a small week tour in Febuary and a full tour in the summer with the release of our full length. We are slowly establishing connections from state to state.

What do you have recorded so far?

We have our 5 song demo, that was recorded by our buddy Sean Wimer, and we are currently in the process of a full length.

Could you please give us some basic info about the band – Who ? where ? when ? and why?

Soul Train is a four-piece as of right now. Trey on vocals Dremus on Guitar Keith on Bass and me(Jon) on drums.

What do you feel was your biggest accomplishment so far was?

I would have to say our biggest accomplishment yet is the number of shows we are getting booked. We really are tired of this area and have been getting shows elsewhere which is awesome because we love to branch out to a new crowd.

You just dropped your demo so tell the readers what they should expect from it?

Expect a lot, I feel the demo is different from most bands from around the area. It's free for download on our myspace page so be sure to grab it and check it out for yourselves. 5 jams in less then 10 min is how I like to sum it all up.

Who are some of the bands you've been compared to or you feel have had been influenced by?

Some kid dropped a comment on the page saying we reminded him of Trash Talk which is cool. I personally can't say we really have an influence, we are just trying something new and so far we've had a lot of support in what we're doing.

Tell me something about the hardcore scene in Massachusetts? Any good bands over there to check out?

Massachusetts doesn't have that great of a scene, there are so many good bands and venues that don't get half of the attention they deserve and go unnoticed every weekend. As of right now we are branching out into new areas of MA and seeing what they have to offer. Some good bands to check out are Maker (www.myspace.com/thisismaker) they are cool dudes. Also be sure to check out Revenge (www.myspace.com/revengema) a bunch of heathens who bring down the house every show.

How supportive are kids in your area to the bands like yours?

Support comes and it goes in an area like this, we have alot of support from kids all over and we really love it. The more support we get the better it's a good feeling to know others love what you love doing.

So what’s about the beef you’ve got with the Emmure?

There is no beef, what people don't understand about that song is that it was freestyled, Sean pressed Record and me and Dremus jammed that out. It just shows how easy it is to be in a "BROOTAL" band these days. Most of it is generic and outplayed yet kids eat it up, which is garbage.

It seems like hip hop music have a big effect on you. Who are some of the artists from this scene you’re into?

Myself personally my biggest influences are good drummers, one of the first drummers who ever made me really want to drum fast and on point was Jeff from Bad Days. He's an awesome dude who rules at drumming. As far as Hip-Hop goes I like a lot of old school shit like Raekwon, and Big Pun. I'm also into a lot of horrorcore like Jedi Mind Tricks and Necro, I love rap where the artist has a solid flow.
I can't stand the shit that's on the radio where dudes are talking about taking girls to a candy shop and shit. That's fucking whack.

Have you ever played a show with a straight up rap act? Do you think it’s possible in the future?

Never played a show with a straight up rap act, but for the full length I do plan on doing 2-3 whole rap songs that I wrote a while back, hopefully people will be into them if not 'fuck em.

Is there anything you would do different if you could go back through your ‘career’ as a hardcore band?

I wouldn't do much differnt, I'm a real DIY type of guy, I've always just kept it real doing as much as I could for every band I've been in. I've always supported my friends and always backed those who have backed me and my bands and friends.

The year is coming to an end so how has 2009 been for you so far? And who are some of the bands, records, events in hardcore that we will remember this year by?

2009 has been an amazing year for us, we have some good shows coming up and some new places to travel to. some bands that I know I'll remember this year by (despite their genre) are Lions Lions, they have real good music and are all cool dudes. The Kidcrash Trey introduced me to them and I honestly love them. Darasuum, I will always back Gabe in anything he does he's one of the coolest dudes and if always keeping it real. We still have yet to kick it but he's always touring so I'm just waiting for him to come around again so we can grab some sushi. Revenge, love these dudes so much big shout out to them as well. We just can't wait to see what the new year brings.

Anything else you would like to add?

Be on the lookout for our full length this spring or summer. We are gonna put 2 tracks from it up on the page this winter. Merch will be availble in the future we have the money we just need to get it printed. Stay up to date and follow our blogger and twitter all the accounts are on our page. Keep up the support and keep it real!

FREE MUMIA!

Soul Train at Myspace

Lazare teamed up with NBAB for their debut EP

Lazare aka LZR (Rouen, France) have joined Nothing But A Beatdown for a release of their debut EP which should drop sometime in 2010. Official info after the jump:

We proudly want to introduce you to our new NBAB family member : our good friends from LAZARE aka the infamous LZR, comin' outta Rouen, France ! We're gonna help them releasing their debut EP in 2010. Watch out for an uncompromising hard band with a pounding underground attitude, that's so rare these days not to be mentioned ! Please add them & show some love, check their live video we just put up on this page and stay tuned for their next live acts !

New merch from Barcadia

This gotta be one of the meanest tees I've seen in a while - Barcadia are not afraid to let their stance on rape be known. I give props for them cause there are just few things in this world as disgusting as rape. The other design is Taxi Driver based and is cool as well. If you want some of these, click here.

Here are the new shirts:

New t-shirts from Overpain

Coming straight from Salonika city, Overpain are making sure the Greek hardcore is heard all around the Europe. The band has just released their new tee, which you can see on the left, and if you want one get in touch with them by clicking here.

Norte Cartel Interview

"It's deeper. It's about the music, but it's also about the values. It's about friendship, family, overcoming, self-esteem, staying true to what you are..."

"It's deeper. It's about the music, but it's also about the values. It's about friendship, family, overcoming, self-esteem, staying true to what you are..."

Would you like to introduce the band to the kids who may not have heard of you, as well as a brief history?

Well, Norte Cartel is a no frills hardcore band from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, dedicated to keep the oldschool torch burning in a respectable way, like it was done back in the 90's when we all got into the whole hardcore thing.

Could you please tell us about your new release called Loyal To Tradition? Why should kids give it a shot?

Loyal To Tradition is our first full lenght album and it has three long years of effort of ours in it. It's probably coming out on January of 2010 in Europe. Kids who like NYHC stuff like Breakdown, SOIA and Madball should really give it a try to get a picture of what's being done regarding latin and oldschool hardcore down here in South America.

Loyal To Tradition -- what does this title mean to you? Is it only about the music, which itself is indeed kept in old school spirit, or does it go deeper than that?

It's deeper. It's about the music, but it's also about the values. It's about friendship, family, overcoming, self-esteem, staying true to what you are... In short terms, it's about being loyal to these values we judge as essentials to hardcore and that perhaps are being neglected by some of the newer kids and newer bands nowadays. This is the tradition we talk about and that we feel everyone involved in hardcore these days should experience and not only hear about from the old jacks.

So what is your label situation? Who is releasing the new album? I've seen the record with the title both in Portuguese and in English so that's why I'm asking -- are there going to be two versions of it?

In fact there is going to be only one version of teh record itself, but it's gonna be released with different artwork. The "Loyal To Tradition" version is gonna be released through XBLDCLOTX Music from Bulgária. And the Portuguese version, "Fiel A` Tradiça~o" will be released by Caustic and Seven Eight Life Records, two of the best hardcore labels in Brazil nowadays.

Could you please give us a run down on your previous albums? What have you released before the Loyal To Tradition?

We only released a split CD with Otra Salida from Argentina in 2008 and a 3-song demo in 2006. We are pretty much a new band and our expectations regarding this first full lenght are very high.

What would you say is your best song, or is that yet to come?

I would guess it is Golpe De Sorte. But that's just my personal taste.

Could you tell us about the Skincore Fest experience? How this whole situation did come about?

In 2009 we are called to play a gig with some hardcore and Oi! bands. The event production told us it was going to be a totally apolitical and non-partisan one. Some time after that a few sites were publishing an e-flyer with the name of a German band on it: "Endstufe". None of us knew this band by that time, but we soon found out they have a song on the album "A Tribute To Ian Stuart And The Glory Of Skrewdriver". Based on this, we immediately got in touch with the event producer and cancelled our participation at this gig. We don't wanna have nothing to do with this kind of stuff and feel that the ideology behind it is absolutely incongruous to our view of hardcore.

So is white power or racist movement big in Brazil? Is it something strong enough to worry about?

I guess it really doesn't matter if it's big or small. Since there's a single person who believes in all the racial superiority crap we should already worry about it. Specially when they try to use our lifestyle and our kind of music to spread their ideas. It's simply unacceptable for the ones trully committed with the HC culture.

"Trends come and go when they are not profitable anymore" -- that's pretty sad but true mate. What do you think is the biggest misconception about hardcore? Do you think that kids who get into the whole thing through the mass media have a correct picture of it?

I would say it is the lack os passion. I mean, we all know that media grabs everything it can and turns it into mass culture. It's sad but true and we can do very little to avoid it. But it really bothers me when the contrary movement takes place. And by that I mean kids copying the so called "mass media hardcore" (if that term is possible) and trying to bring it into the underground. The problem is you can copy the look, you can copy the sound, you can copy the style. But never the passion! You really gotta feel it in your heart! And after some years doing this thing you start recognizing the ones who are in it for the passion and the ones who aren't. Lots of kids nowadays aren't.

You stated that Norte Cartel is strictly apolitical bands at the same standing strongly against nazism, fascism, racism and this type of crap. So what exactly does apolitical mean to you?

Apolitical means that our lyrics don't deal about political stuff. Our lyrics, essencially, talk about the values we judge as beneficial for an ever healthy interaction among individuals (in a way may also be considered as political depending on your concept of politics). Our proposal as a band is this one. Building values and ethics into our scene. Individually, however, all Norte Cartel members are extremely politicized and the posture of standing against this shit transcends the band. It's an obligation we have as citizens, as pieces of a community, and not only as members of a hardcore band.

What's the biggest struggle when running a band in Brazil?

To start it we are far away from Europe and USA, so there's a geographical issue that obstructs a stronger interaction among latin hardcore and these two scenes. The second issue regards the lack of structure and money that affects a so called "third world" country, specially an outcast musical scene such as hardcore. But, little by little, Brazilian scene is evolving. Brazil is a huge country and there is an infinity of great bands here. The scene still lacks a necessary professionalism that many times doesn't happen because of financial issues, but great bands and great labels are really starting to make a difference ang getting things flowing in here.

Is there a unity between hardcore bands and kids in Brazil nowadays? Do you ever play shows with bands that are from a whole different spectrum of hardcore, be it metalcore or crust.

Definitely. Back in the days we had a hardcore scene, a metal scene, a punk scene and a skinhead scene. Nowadays it's most likely that all of theses kids can have fun together in a concert without any trouble. Of course some fights still happen, but come on... We are talking about hardcore gigs, not a monastery. And we play with bands from not only different spectrum of hardcore but also hip hop groups etc. Underground
united!

Ever wonder why there are so few girls at hardcore shows and what do you think we should do to change it?

Because generally hardcore guys are bald sweaty, fat troglodytes full of tattoos dressed in black! But it's a fact, there are few girls at the shows and there should be a lot more. Girls should be encouraged to come along and make our scenes something beautiful and wider. No space for sexism, then.

The year is slowly coming to an end so I can finally start asking this question: what's your type for the best hardcore release of 2009 so far?

I would have to say it is Wisdon In Chains -- Eveything You Know. What a great band!

What are some of the future goals and plans for the band?

Start the promotion of Loyal To Tradition, doing lots of gigs, going to places we never been before and, who knows, perharps an European tour sometime in the future. It would be great!

Thanks for taking your time to do this. Anything else you would like to say to the readers?

Thanks, for eveything, Dloogi & HARDBOILED! Thanx for the kids for taking their time and reading it and hope you guys take a chance and listen to the album Loyal To Tradition by the first month of 2010 if you like oldschool stuff. A preview is here at: www.myspace.com/nortecartel You won't regret it. Peace!

Still Fighting

"When my eyes were really open to the corruption of the banks and the families who are in charge and how they set this global scheme up, is absolutely genius on their behalf, there is already to much debt for the world to pay off, so no matter how hard you try you owe money to someone who also owes money to someone and down the line we all owe the bank, and until something is said and done about it we will forever be slaves to these families."

Name: Ryley and Tom, Still Fighting

Location: Outer Space

Active since: Early 2008

How do you define your overall style?

A thrashy nyhc band

What’s your goal with this band? 

Bring the winnipeg stomp across the nation

What do you have recorded so far? 

Demo

Could you introduce the band and tell us where you’re from? How did the band came together? 

We hail from winnipeg, the ass hole of canada. Me and Tom started jamming some hard riffs late 2007 early 2008, with various bros, we recorded some jams and weren't into it. Within some time the band had changes and has now come to find it's right mix and were about to take over the world. Unless of course the grandmasters or some artificial intelligence beats us to it.

Tell us more about your demo, what kids should expect to hear on it? 

Some hard riffs, solo's by slash's prodigy, some thrashing head bangers, and politically pissed off vocals.

Lyricalwise, it’s pretty dark and pessimistic outlook on our society and how it gets manipulated by the powers that be. What are some of the issues or events that prompted you to write these lyrics? 

We'll blinded i wrote after researching a bit on obama's past and how he came to be where he is, madness is about humanity falling into the path that the illuminate has set for us and no one questions anything they just follow like the rest of the sheep. When my eyes were really open to the corruption of the banks and the families who are in charge and how they set this global scheme up, is absolutely genius on their behalf, there is already to much debt for the world to pay off, so no matter how hard you try you owe money to someone who also owes money to someone and down the line we all owe the bank, and until something is said and done about it we will forever be slaves to these families. The final demo track is denial and that is obviously written about addictions that i had to help and watch a friend deal with.

You guys seem to be inspired heavily by a NYHC scene. What is it about this style that had such an impact on you? 

Shit is real. When i got into hardcore that's the shit that hit me first, it's harder than fuck and catchier than a madonna single. You can't deny the NYHC reality!

What are some other bands you guys are into? 

bob marley and the wailers, pete rock, krs-one, gangstarr, dead prez, guns 'n' roses, wu-tang (mostly GZA), gravediggaz, madlib, fugees, black sabbath, nirvana, dexter wansel, marvin gaye, billy preston, talking heads, buckshot lefonque, stone temple pilots.

What’s the hardcore like in Canada at the moment? It seems a little overshadowed by the American scene, but you had your share of great bands. Who’s making the biggest noise right now? 

Right now hardcore in winnipeg itself is more booming then ever before, (please do yourselves a favor and check out all our homies bands off our myspace) we do got a smaller scene, 50 people is an average show i'd say, but it keeps everything nice a knit together. American hardcore is bumpin' compared to canadian hardcore, it would be cool have that many kids coming like a lot of american shows, but if it's smaller it weeds out the shit heads and you don't need to worry about any bull shit. The biggest noise for the past while are bands like comeback kid, gravemaker, and fucked up. Honorable mentions though to plus minus (montreal) withdrawal (winnipeg) career suicide (toronto) eating glass RIP (toronto.)

What do you think is the main difference between Canada and USA in terms of hardcore? I’m talking both music and kids… 

I think the biggest difference is how much bigger hardcore is out in america. A lot more kids get into it but a lot more kids use it as a trend and slowly back out.

If you had any amount of money you could put into a band, what things would you buy in terms of equipment or any other shit (but not strippers) and why? 

Personally i would create some from of time travel to visit william cooper, and let him write some of the lyrics for the band. We'd clearly pay off slash to record a few shredding solos for us too.

What are the future plans for the band? 

We got a tape in the works for the new year we already got three out of the five written shit will be hard! There is some other dope shit in the works so be on the look out.

Thank you your time. Is there anything else you want to add for our readers? 

Keep spreadin the hardcore reality, peace.

Still Fighting at Myspace