New Agnostic Front 7inch Coming on March 8th from B9!

The Godfathers of New York Hardcore, AGNOSTIC FRONT, are gearing up to release their new full-length, My Life My Way, on March 22nd! The album features 13 new powerful and anthemic songs laid down by Erik Rutan (Madball, Goatwhore, Cannibal Corpse etc.) at his Mana Recording Studio in Tampa, FL under the watchful guide of producer Freddy Cricien of Madball.In preparation, they’ll release two songs to the masses on the That’s Life 7inch, which will be available March 8th from Bridge Nine Records.

On their third collaboration with the band and second time working together with a pre-release album 7inch, Bridge Nine Records couldn’t be more excited about the partnership. Label owner Chris Wrenn commented, “One of my most proud moments here at B9 was re-releasing the Victim In Pain and United Blood records from Agnostic Front in November ‘09. And to open the doors to do so, we worked with AF prior to that on a pre-release 7inch for their album Warriors on Nuclear Blast. It was awesome working with both the band and the label, so we figured – with a new full-length coming out - why not do it again?” The That’s Life 7inch will feature two songs from My Life My Way – “That’s Life” and “Us Against The World” – and will be extremely limited to 2,000 copies worldwide. 1,000 copies of the 7inch will have silk-screened B-sides, while the other 1,000 copies will have hand-etched B-Sides. More information and photos coming soon to Bridge9.com.

Vocalist Roger Miret commented on the new material: “After all is said and done we are amazed on how great our new record turned out! It’s by far our catchiest record to date and it’s going to make everyone want to sing along for sure. Freddy killed it on the production end, just capturing that hardcore vibe that only he can get out of AGNOSTIC FRONT. The boys all put nothing but passion into the songs, and Erik Rutan just dialed it all in to make AGNOSTIC FRONT sound as natural and as organic as ever. This one will definitely be a classic once it’s heard worldwide!”

For more information check out Nuclear Blast and Bridge9.com!

Facedown Fest 2011 announced

Facedown Fest 2011 will be held at The Glasshouse in Pomona, CA on April 8th and 9th. Night one will be headlined by War of Ages and For Today will headline night two to close out the weekend. Facedown Fest 2011 will also feature Call To Preserve's final west coast show, as well as Overcome's first appearance at Facedown Fest since their one-time reunion in 2003. Doors open at 4pm each day and the ticket cost is $15 for one night, or $25 for a two-night pass.

Night 1, Friday, April 8
War of Ages
A Plea For Purging
Hands
Onward to Olympas
My Epic
Your Memorial
Hope for they Dying
Messengers

Night 2, Saturday, April 9
For Today
In the Midst of Lions
Overcome
Call To Preserve
A Hope for Home
Take It Back!
As Hell Retreats
Gideon
Saving Grace
The Burial

Call To Preserve is breaking up

Central Florida hardcore band Call To Preserve will be disbanding after playing several final shows this year. Formed in 2003, the group has released three albums, including their latest with Facedown Records.

Here's the official word:

"After eight years, three full-lengths and countless tours all over, Call to Preserve is calling it quits. For the past year or so we've done our best to keep functioning as a band despite losing members and having remaining members cut back their involvement. Now all of us are being pulled in different directions and our aspirations for our future have expanded much further than being on tour all the time. With some of us moving away, going back to school or starting careers, we just can't sacrifice our time to this band like we used to. It would be a disservice to ourselves to do CTP half heartedly, so instead we want to go out on a high note and enjoy our last few months as a band.

"We want to do our best to make sure those who want to can come see us for the last time. This April we'll be playing our last west coast show at Facedown Fest 2011 and in the coming months we'll be announcing our last tour dates, which will include a stop at Cornerstone Festival. Our last show will be near the end of July this summer in Melbourne, Florida. More details will be announced soon.

"In these final months we'll also be working on a few new songs that will be on a 7" coming out this summer on Facedown Records. We've wanted to put out vinyl for years and felt we had a few more things to say before we go, so this seemed like the perfect time and place to put out a 7".

"We never thought that this band would get as far as it did. We never thought we'd have the chance to travel so much and tour with some of our favorite bands and make such amazing friends from all over the world. We are eternally grateful for the chance we were given to play music and actually have people listen. We want to thank Jason Dunn and Facedown Records for standing behind us for the past five years, being some of the easiest people to work with and for just being great friends. We want to thank all the bands we've met and toured with who have become some of our best friends and we will miss the shows and the hangouts dearly. Finally we want to thank everyone who has supported us by coming to a show, buying a shirt, letting us sleep on your floor or feeding us. We are more thankful than you'll ever know."

Details on new Agnostic Front album

Official press release: The Godfathers of New York Hardcore, Agnostic Front, have revealed the cover art and track listing to their upcoming record entitled My Life My Way. Cover artwork was brought to life this time by artist Todd Hubber, who also works with vocalist Roger Miret on designing his street wear clothing line American Made Kustom.


"The concept was to capture the D.I.Y. ethic and crude themed artistry of the early punk flyers, with a nod to the era of crime and pulp comic themes of the early 50's. Society deemed those materials as having no social redeeming values, and as a contributor to youth delinquency. Similarly outcasted were punk and hardcore in the early day for its aggressive, anti-authority message, and dangerous aura. My Life My Way is a throwback to the early days, and Agnostic Front has proven that what society deems unredeeming, has been, still is, and will continue to be relevant."

My Life My Way track listing:

01. City Street
02. More Than a Memory
03. Us Against the World
04. My Life My Way
05. That's Life
06. Self Pride
07. Until the Day I Die
08. Now and Forever
09. The Sacrifice
10. A Mi Manera
11. Your Worst Enemy
12. Empty Dreams
13. Time Has Come

Agnostic Front have uploaded the first of several video blogs chronicling the making of their highly anticipated follow up to their 2007 release, Warriors. Check out the clip at the following location.

Reason To Fight

Beer and hardcore is the main influence for Reason To Fight. They're from Providence, Rhode Island and bring anthems of working class life, Saturday brawls and ups and downs of life to the sound that pays homage to the roots of hardcore and punk but is more than capable of standing on its own terms. Their split with Chesty Malone And The Slice'em Ups has been released just recently so make sure you check it out!

Beer and hardcore is the main influence for Reason To Fight. They're from Providence, Rhode Island and bring anthems of working class life, Saturday brawls and ups and downs of life to the sound that pays homage to the roots of hardcore and punk but is more than capable of standing on its own terms. Their split with Chesty Malone And The Slice'em Ups has been released just recently so make sure you check it out!

Would you like to introduce yourselves to the readers who may not have heard of you, as well as a brief history?
We are Reason To Fight from Providence, Rhode Island USA. We play a mix of OI/Punk/Hardcore, which is what we grew up on. We have been playing up and down the East Coast for almost 10 years. Our current line up is Fuzzy on Vocals, Dylan on drums, Josh on Guitar, and my name is Greg and I play bass.

So the split with Chesty Malone And The Slice'em Ups has been out recently. How do the new track compare to what you did at your debut album?
The first CD was written over the first five years. We had only done a few Comps and a split EP with our friends the 86'ed until then. So we took the best of the rest of the songs we had recorded and put them on BLOOD & GLORY. The 2 songs on the new EP are from our next full length BLUE COLLAR PRIDE, which will be released in early 2011. We just kind of wrote what came to mind, trying out some different style riffs and beats. They were all recorded at the same time in the same studio, so the overall quality is better.

How did you guys hook up with Chesty Malone And The Slice'em Ups for the split?
We play in NYC any chance we get and we have been working with Dennis from UNITED RIOT RECORDS for years. So when he mentioned a split with these guys we were definitely down. We are planning to do some shows together in the near future.

Can you tell a bit about the lyrics and which themes you have touched this time?
Dying Breed is about the living your life by your rules and hold on to your roots. If you really believe in something, that feeling should last for ever. We got to teach about pride and not getting caught up in trends. Don't let anyone tell you what you should believe. Follow your heart, no one can take that away.
Hard Workin, Hard Drinkin, Hardcore is just what it says. It goes out to everyone who does everything they can to make the lives of those who depend on them better. And when you work hard you usually play hard, I know we do.

You describe yourself as a working class hardcore. Can you expand on that further?
We all grew up in working class families and met each other going to Hardcore shows. I am a Plumber, Fuzzy works in a rubber and plastics plant, Dylan installs overhead doors and is part of the stage crew at one of the bigger clubs in RI, and Josh is an electrician. We all work hard to play hardcore. But Hardcore doesn't pay the bills. We do this because we love it!

And how do you feel about hardcore bands who are more about fancy haircuts and heartaches then everyday struggles?
To me the whole emo scene is kinda like the glam rock scene in the 80's. All these guys wearing skin tight clothes, make up and taking an hour to do their hair before shows. I don't get it. And luckily we don't play too many shows with bands like that. I guess if mom and dad are paying the bills, there is no struggle to sing about.

Could you tell me about what or who got you interested in hardcore/punk?
I got into this through skateboarding. I used to hang out at this Ramp when I was like 12. This guy down the street had a sick spine ramp in his yard. On a good day there would be like 30 kids there, They'd be blasting bands like Minor Threat, Black Flag, Suicidal Tendencies, DRI, Misfits and Dead Kennedys. Some of the older guys were in local bands. So we would go see them play at The old Living room and The Skate Hut. My first few shows were Suicidal, The Ramones, Fugazi, Exodus and Murphy's Law. That was it. I was hooked. I would wash dishes on the weekend and spend all the money on music and skate stuff. By 14 I played my first show in a band called Big Mistake. I'm 35 now and I'm still doing it. I used to go to Club Baby Head like 3 times a week. Providence is between Boston and NY, So every band would play there. Sick Of It All, Judge, Cromags, Burn, Slapshot, Sheer Terror, Burn, Madball, 7 seconds, Slapshot, Fear, The Meatmen, Murphy's Law would play about 10 times a Year. One of my favorite shows was The Bruisers opening up for Agnostic Front on Tuesday night.
Everyone in the band used to hang out there. So we all kinda knew each other before we started the band.

Your music is mostly influenced by good old hardcore bands, but what are your favorite current bands?
I'm loving Wisdom in Chains, we just played with them and DRI a few months ago. Bullet Treatment, The Bronx, Fed Up, Olde York, Cheech, Death Before Dishonor. Rival Mob. The new Madball is sick.

What is hardcore scene in Rhode Island like?
Our scene comes is going strong lately. Right now we got a good Hardcore/Punk scene going with bands like The Usual Suspects, The Doosh bags, The Paraplegics, The McGunks, Soul Control and a bunch more i'm probably forgetting. Last night we played with H2O at Club Hell with a great RIHC band Unsung. That show was packed. H2O tore it up. Club Hell and a couple other clubs will still let us do Hardcore shows without a big headliner, which is rare these days. But as long as people keep coming out for the local shows, it can only get better.

Tattoos are important part of hardcore. What's your favorite tattoo style?
I'm into boats and fishing, So I'm all about Sailor Jerry and traditional with a little new school shading and color. Fuzzy's got a sick Bio-Mech sleeve. Josh has a couple sleeves, Some old school and black and gray work. We all have alot of different style work. And always wanting more. One more addiction to add to the list.

If you were on death row what would be your last meal?
I make a nasty Chicken stuffed chicken Parm. I split a chicken breast thin, pound it out. Then take Prociutto, Spinach, Ricotta cheese mixed with about 4 other cheeses then wrap the whole thing in a huge piece of breaded eggplan. Bake it, Throw some Mozzarella cheese on top. Serve it with some pasta and red sauce. Yeah, that's want I'd want. But, hopefully I'll never be in that situation.

Ok, thanks for the interview. Anything you’d like to add? Any plans for the rest of 2010 we should be aware of?
We got a Christmas show on Dec. 17th at the Hour Bar in RI. We'll be playing Brooklyn on January 29th, and we should have our full length CD out by March. We have a big Record Release show planned for that. And if all goes as planned we should be hitting the road for a weeks in Late summer/fall of 2011. For booking or merch or any questions about the band, you can check us out on Myspace or facebook.

Soldiers to release Hit The Bricks Ep

After a brief hiatus Soldiers is back and more fierce than ever with their new 5 song ep “Hit the Bricks” to be released as a 7” (with download) early 2011 on Long Islands own State of Mind Recordings. Unrelenting and unapologetic hardcore from Long Island stalwarts. Soldiers has once again drawn the line in the sand. You can stream and download a new track from the ep “Never Short on Enemies” for free here. Features key members of This Is Hell and Incendiary. For fans of: Merauder, Sick of it All, VOD, Biohazard, All Out War.

Expire to release "Suffer The Cycle" 7" on SFU Records

"Suffer The Cycle" is the new 7" from Expire on Six Feet Under Records. Recorded at Young Brothers Studios with Taylor Young (Nails), Expire has put together 4 songs of straightforward, heavy-hitting hardcore. Members of Expire live in different parts of the midwest and the band seems to draw influences from the east and west coasts, finding a happy medium with heavy grooves reminiscent of the NYHC style and fast parts that are worthy of a good 'ole California circle pit. If the best of both worlds sounds good to you, see Expire on tour, mark your calendars and get ready for "Suffer The Cycle." It'll be a great way to kick off the new year. The new track "SLEEP LOST" is up on the SFU home page We have an Expire shirt up in the SFU Webstore right now and pre-orders will launch very soon for this release.
They will be touring the US this winter and throughout most of 2011. Check posted dates here: (more coming soon)

w/ Grave Maker, Expire
2/19 Waterloo IA @ Amvets Post 19

w/ Wisdom In Chains, Grave Maker, Expire
2/20 Chicago IL @ The Beat Kitchen
2/21 St Louis MO @ Fubar
2/22 Cincinnati, OH @ Fogarty's
2/23 Cleveland OH @ Peabodys

w/ WIC, GM, Backtrack, Expire
2/24 Windsor ON @ The Blind Dog
2/25 Toronto ON @ The Hard Luck Bar
2/26 Montreal QC @ Underworld
2/27 Quebec City QC @ Cafe L'Agitee
2/28 Gatineau QC @ The Warehouse

w/ Grave Maker, Expire
3/01 Timmins ON @ Victory Tavern
3/02 Thunder Bay ON @ Black Pirates
3/03 Winnipeg MB @ TBA

w/ Expire, Agress, Steppin' Stone
3/04 Moorhead, MN @ Gio's Event Center
3/05 Minneapolis, MN @ The Beat

Demons Run Amok records got some exciting plans for 2011!

First of all, Risk It from Dresden / Germany will release their first 7" on Demons Run Amok! Check these guys out if you are into Trapped Under Ice, Guns Up or No Warning! You can preorder the limited coloured vinyl now here. Spider Crew is signing over to DRA and will release their upcoming full length "Still Crazy But Not Insane" at the end of Februar/ beginning of March.Be careful these are their best songs ever. Powerful NY Styled HC. Alcatraz - yes that's right - will release thier debut full length "Smile Now Cry Later" throughout Demons Run Amok on vinyl and CD in early March. We are so glad to work with these guys together! Incarnate is coming Up with their new album "Hands Of Guilt Eyes Of Greed" in March. Incarnatebrings you music with the intensity and power of Hatebreed, the thrashing riffs of Slayer and the heaviness of Crowbar. Lasting Traces from Germany will release their upcoming full length in May. This is melodic Hardcore in the vein of Killing The Dream, Verse or Betrayed. Check them out on their tour with Midnight Souls in March!

Roadrunner

Roadrunner has spawned from the crowded Massachusetts scene but hold their own when it comes to dropping some seriously heavy hardcore. The band brings some awesome grooves, all big drums and down to life lyrics; 'I want kids to hear our music and realize that life is tough on all of us in all different ways, but eventually you will overcome any obstacle...'

For those unfamiliar with the band - what do you want people to know about the band and your music or message?

This band means a lot to all of us, I feel this world is a rough place and you often think that your alone in your struggle, but the truth is your not alone. I want kids to hear our music and realize that life is tough on all of us in all different ways, but eventually you will overcome any obstacle.

Massachusetts has a strong scene with a tons of good bands around so it must be hard to get your name out. How has the local hardcore scene treated you so far?

Your right, getting your name out there is a tough thing to do for a new band like us. The Merrimack Valley scene has always been a great thing. Josh Hynes runs a great venue Anchors Up! in Haverhill, MA where we have played quite a few times.

What's the toughest struggle for the band like yours? What's the biggest wall to get over?

Any group of kids with any musical talent can throw together a few songs, but I think the toughest thing is finding the chemistry between you and your band and getting comfortable with one another.

For those who have not heard anything from you how would you describe your band's playing sound?

Aggressive and Hateful. I've always been an angry kid, so it's good to be able to get on stage and just scream about what hits home the most.

What have you released so far?

We recorded our demo back in 2009(I know it's not too long ago, but damn it feels like yesterday). This past fall we recorded our new EP with Ryan Stack of Andrew Lanes Recording Company(Hammer Bros, Word For Word, The Effort). We have nothing but good things to say about him the cd came out great. You can download the 2010 EP for free on mediafire.
http://www.mediafire.com/?banm34bzglrypyc

Who are your strongest musical influences and why?

I'd say my musical influence comes from Glenn Danzig and Henry Rollins. The Misfits and Black Flag were some of the first bands that I heard that lead me to my future with hardcore/punk genre. With Danzig's dark lyrics and Rollin's crazy stage presence, it always made me want to sing for a band.

And where do you draw your inspiration from when it comes to the lyrics?

As corny as it sounds my inspiration comes from my hate of the world, the ignorance of society disgusts me. I find myself constantly writing about my anger towards others.

Tell me about band's performance element – what should kids expect from your live show?

Evil.

Tell us what you have coming up that we can check for. Plans, gigs and releases planned for the upcoming months?

We just recently parted ways with our original drummer Dan. Our friend Tom is going to be playing for us from now on. We're currently practicing and getting ready for the new year. 2011 is a new year for RoadRunner. Be on the look out for new tracks, merch, and news.

What is your favorite year/era of hardcore?

I wish I was born in the 80's. I would kill to have seen many of my favorite bands before their rise to fame.

Favorite Sheer Terror album?

I love that this was mentioned! Can't Hate Enough easily, nothing will top that in my eyes.

Any closing thoughts?

Keep your eyes open this year for us, we're hoping 2011 is going to be a great year for us. Thanks to dloo

x A Call For Revenge x

xA Call For Revengex fly the Straight Edge flag high in Mexico, which is not easy in a country so severely affected by the drug related violence. Hardcore comes from different places and bands like this one goes through a lot of shit to keep their local scene alive. So it's important that you support their shit - read the interview, check out their website, spread the word around!

For those unfamiliar with the band - what do you want people to know about the band and your music or message?

xACFRx’s message is quite contradictive in comparison with the “unity” premise that other straight edge bands promote. We do believe unity is very important, but our lyrics talk about the discipline to achieve your own expectations without relying on no one else but yourself, the willingness to fight your way through standing up by yourself without letting adversity overcome you, and assemble the strength to remain firm even when everyone had turn their back on you. We want to spread a message about the fact that nothing should be more important than committing with your own decisions and goals. If you’re pulled down during your way through and fall, you stand up and strike back with everything that you got.

How did you all meet and how long have you all been a band?

Originally xACFRx came up as a side project blending members from Wanted for Murder and xGeneracionx. WFM has been around for much longer than xACFRx and for a while I talked with my homeboy Lalo (WFM drums) about giving me a hand composing the drums for some ideas I had. The time seemed right to give the project a name when my hommie JC came from Merida (far far away from our city) to take the microphone duties, that’s how xACFRx started out in 2008. We had a couple of bass players that were really not working out, until one day we placed a bass guitar into our merch guy’s hands, and magic simply happened, that’s how Cesar came along.

JC had to move to Canada and the band entered some kind of recess for some months, until Alex came along to take the mic. I knew him from a couple of shows WFM played with his formed band. I talked with him just for a few minutes and immediately I realized he was perfect for xACFRx.

What's the toughest struggle for the band like yours? What's the biggest wall to get over?

Well, the hardcore scene in Mexico has been around for quite a while but no one outside Mexico seems to take it seriously, at least that’s my impression. I don’t know if maybe that’s because it’s something too local and people outside Mexico can’t really get it. Recently, some new school bands are taking off strongly, especially within their local venues. However, some of these great bands are not even noticed outside our country. As a Mexican band, it feels really difficult to get any attention outside our circle. We have no relevant labels in Mexico (mainly because the budget to start a formal label is none existent) and no international Labels seem to give the slightest credibility to Mexican hardcore, which is really upsetting man. There is a lot of heart in Mexican hardcore, what we do lack is production. There is not one single Mexican band promoted by any relevant hardcore label.



For those who have not heard anything from you how would you describe band's playing sound?

xACFRx’s sound is as raw as it gets. It comes out full of energy and almost instinctively, as a punch to someone’s face should be.

What have you released so far?

One single demo/promo, or as you wish to call it. There will be an EP coming out soon!

Who are your strongest musical influences and why?

We all got a great portion of metalheads inside us, so it would be fair to name Pantera and At the Gates just as much as Agnostic Front and Madball. We like lots of things old school and new school. Personally I would say Madball, the day I discovered that amazing band, and understood the attitude inherent to the music, I knew that was my thing.

And where do you draw your inspiration from when it comes to the lyrics?

Some lyrics deal with many things I learned serving in the IDF under Bislamach Brigade in Gaza Strip and Beirut. But mainly, more than inspiration, I would call it a raging derision for all this immeasurable decadence impregnated all over this city…. unrestrained impunity, corruption filtered in all branches of authority, kidnapers destroying innocent people life’s, drug addicts mugging people to buy more drugs……… and we’re sickened by the state of conformity around us. We are fucken tired of watching this crap everyday and we’re fucken pissed off.

Tell me about band's performance element – what should kids expect from your live show?

What xACFRx offers at shows is to convert the stage into a fucking battleground. We really take this seriously and we demonstrate it with tons of energy.

Tell us what you have coming up that we can check for. Plans, gigs and releases planned for the upcoming months?

We’re shooting a video for “Bringer of Deliverance” in December!! So be sure to check out our myspace and “upcoming” facebook pages, we’ll be posting news about the video and shows!!

Any closing thoughts?

Thanks a lot for your interest man, you have a great site running up. Keep up the good work and keep supporting the underground.

Check out the band at Facebook and Myspace