Barcadia - Violent Means, Violent Ends
One thing that is obvious about Barcadia is that they got their own opinions and are not afraid to voice them. They’re clearly comfortable with their chosen, non-conformist lane and they are not about making compromises. Hate them or love them, many people have been waiting for Violent Means, Violent Ends to drop.The band has poured loads of attitude and confidence to this album. Compared with their prior record the music seems to be more mature, with much more twists, but still maintains high energy and high impact. The band mostly wanders in mid-tempos now, with lengthier, drawn out songs, but there's a good combination of different styles with some faster, straight up aggressive parts as well. Everything seems to fall into place musically. The album is filled with menacing and dark atmosphere it suffocates and scrambles the senses of the listeners. The sound quality is heavy, bur raw. It’s not a type of music that needs to be that slickly recorded and I dig that aspect as well.The standout aspect of this album is definitely in the lyrics. Barcadia tackles every form of sexual abuse or act of violence against the innocent. It’s really surprising this problem is so rarely taken up by hardcore bands. As the band explained in the recent interview; “The more I looked into sexual assault and saw how prevalent it is, the more disgusted and pissed off I became. I decided to use my band as a vehicle to drive all of this information into the heads of people who might not be thinking about it or who might not know about it. I also wanted to be a band that lets anyone who's ever been sexually assaulted know they are not alone and there is at least one band, one group of people in this world who care and who actively stand up against what ruined their lives.”
Violent Means, Violent Ends is a good album for Barcadia. Both the music and the message maintain the high energy level and it makes each track a strong and powerful statement.
Review: Dloogi
Label: Seventh Dagger
Year: 2011
Band's website
New merch and planned releases from Beatdown Hardwear
"We've got tonz of new apparel with rad designs and a short feature in the coming 'Streetwear Today' magazine. Got new Beanies, Shorts, Baseballjackets and all that stuff.. planning new Caps.." - this is the massage I got from the good folks at BDHW. Check out their webstore for more info! It seems they've got a lot of going for them now with tons of new stuff and releases. Red Eyed Devil with members of EGH signed to to BDHW Rec. The Releasedate of their upcoming full length will be the 20.04.11. Also, Twitching Tongues from California with members of Alpha Omega, Ruckus, Nails… will release their first physical output on BDHW Rec. Other news is that you can download nearly all BDHW Rec. Releases via several Download Stores as iTunes, Amazon…
Wisdom In Chains and Naysayer - pre-orders are up at Reaper
Reaper Records has launched pre-orders for new EPs from Wisdom In Chains and Naysayer! Pennsylvania-based Wisdom In Chains with Pocono Ghosts. The pre-order is available in a gold or a red vinyl, and you can check these three new tracks on Stereokiller.com. About Naysayer's release, here's official press release: "From Richmond, VA's decades deep hardcore tradition comes Naysayer, the area's newest offering to the international stage. Following the footsteps of old school legends such as 4 Walls Falling and newer heavyweights Down To Nothing, Naysayer's mission is to keep the faith and make their hometown proud. Their brutal signature sound, coupled with their youthful enthusiasm for hardcore makes them a strong addition to the ever-diverse Reaper roster."
Mediaskare Records signs It Prevails
Mediaskare Records has signed Portand, Oregon band It Prevails. Formed in 2004, the group has released two albums, one with Rise Records, followed by another with Rain City Records. It Prevails is currently at Undercity Studios in Hollywood, CA recording a new full-length titled "Stroma," due out this summer.
'H8000 HC - a decade and more' book details
H8000-Central got some news about the 'H8000 HC - a decade and more' book! As they wrote: 'Yes folks...things are getting organised, while 2011 had to be the release of the book, there's a change that 2012 will be more realistic. A ton of work and organisation is part of the deal here. Interviews are been taken this weekend with some h8000 veterans by Willem, as he will be the main man to do this job...which is awesome of course. The working title for the book will be ' H8000 Hardcore 'a decade and more'....things will be starting probably from 1990 on, which is the pre-h8000 period, but the base for everything afterwards..' Read more here.
Summer Of Hate - first info and partial line-up
Summer Of Hate V will take place July 9th at Peabody's in Cleveland, OH. So far, the following bands were announced for the show: Bulldoze, Stout, Suburban Scum, Crowd Deterrent, Harm's Way, Ten Of Swords, Taste Of Steel, Line Of Scrimmage and Homewrecker. More names to come for sure! Taken from Hard-Ass Records blog: Here is a partial line-up for the show, There will be more bands announced, but don't expect anymore bands to be announced for another month or 2. Just because there's not 15 bands announced doesn't mean the slots are not full/booked, so please don't bombard us with requests to play the show... although we'd like to have every band play the show (and some very good bands ask us) the fact is that we only have so much time (and money) to work with and sometimes even bands that we are good friends with cannot play as a result.
Pay No Respect - Moving On
Moving On is highly anticipated follow up to the band’s self released debut Fear Profits Man Nothing. Once again, Pay No Respect shelved out a collection of hard hitting songs saturated in a hostile sound and raging aggression. The album has its share of catchy hooks and memorable moments and even with the limited diversity of sound and style, none of the tracks are skip-worthy. The music seems to be more detailed than on their prior release, which shows that the band is progressing and actually made an effort to live up to the expectations. The riffs are bone crushing, the drumming is heavy and forceful and the bass completes the sound. The delivery is razor sharp and consistent, with one track flowing seamlessly to the next but never slowing down its adrenaline pace. And when you combine it with ‘not to be fucked with’ vocals, it’s hard not to imagine broken noses and black eyes during their show. Lyrically, the band pledges the alliance to the lifestyle based on holding your own and not caring what society says. It may seem cliché but I still enjoy stuff like this. Overall, Moving On is a decent album that offers something enjoyable no matter if you are invested more into breakdowns, faster parts, or both.Review by Dloogi
Label: Spook Records
Year: 2010
Band's website
Edge Of Spirit - Edge Of Spirit
If you know anything about Japanese hardcore there’s a big chance that the name Edge Of Spirit rings the bells. The band has been around since 1997 and during that time has released a shit load of material – four big albums, couple of splits and appeared on countless compilations. With their fourth, self titled album, Edge Of Spirit brings to the table one of the more violent metalcore albums I’ve heard in a long time. It is packed with rage filled riffing, double bass played like an assassin, soul raping vocals and ultra mega breakdown grooves. The songs are complex and excellently executed. The band is focused on all-out brutality, taking you on a ride down the memory lane to the times when passion and honesty were a must in a metalcore game. They might be not the most technically skilled band around, but somehow I can’t be bothered by that. The guitar work here is pretty impressive anyway, delivering shredding riffs as violently as possible, but also laying some groove now and then throughout the album. There's a pretty heavy melodic, Swedish influence going on in the riffs as well, but they still know how to make it bite. Throat ripping vocals only boost the level of adrenaline, while the rhythm section is precise and on point. Production and sound are top-notch with every instrument and vocals having the great placement. I also gotta mention that the whole stuff is packed with a dope artwork.The band may not be pushing any boundaries, but they surely know how to unleash a beast of an album. I am not that familiar with their previous releases, but it would be hard for me to believe this new album is not their strongest effort yet.
Review by Dloogi
Label: Demons Run Amok
Year: 2010
Band's Website
