Quick update from Seconds Of Peace

My dudes in Seconds Of Peace are teaming up with Beardown for a split tape due out this April via The Bro Code Commitment. The whole thing will be limited to 150 pieces. 3 new tracks from each band, plus a collabo song.

New Disgrace coming soon

As you might know about two weeks from now Disgrace is dropping new album via Closed Casket Activities. It's gonna be called 'True Enemy' and judging by the two tracks they are already sharing from the record, it's gonna be dope. As far as metallic hardcore goes, this is one of the newer bands I dig the most. A perfect blend of gritty hardcore vibe and raw heaviness, everything served with double dose of aggression.

Respect the bad guy

Krutch breaking down the science of being tough:

pahxc: HOW MANY PEOPLE DID WE HAVE TO BEAT UP TO BE LABELED A TOUGH GUY BAND?

Good question, we became a "Tough Guy" band in 96', before that we where only in a triple A tough guy league....But in 96 we beat up the required amount to turn "PRO Tough Guy band"...I believe the number was 666..We are very very proud of our "TOUGH GUY BAND" Status, originally we where going to be a "Youth Crew" band, but we where not skinny enough..then we decided to try "Emo", but noone in the band wore glasses, plus sweaters make me itch..The whole Vegan thing woulda been great for us, except for the fact that we love to torture animals and stuff, so eventually we tried this "Tough Guy" style out, and it's workin' out O.K.

Source: PAHC webzine

New Blood: Cold Truth

Cold Truth are keeping it real in their area, which is Tacoma, WA. Definitely a band worth checking out if you're into hard-hitting, aggressive hardcore with a crossover vibe.

Tell us what people should know about Cold Truth.
We’re a straight edge hardcore band from Tacoma, WA. We just let the music speak for itself.

How did the band get its start?
I came along pretty early in the game. My understanding is that when Trevor, our singer, and Patrick, our bassist, were in Prepare the Bride half of that band went to start Singled Out. Trevor and Patrick decided to do a heavy band. Originally it was going to be like this early 2000’s Throwdown kind of thing. Then Trevor asked me if I wanted to play guitar. So, I wrote Choke, Life Lesson, and True Love pretty quickly, and Patrick and I collaborated on Mind’s Eye. We got Chris to slap some drums on it real quick and went to the Mukilteo Mansion and recorded with Cameron Heck. Then we had the South Sound Demo.

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Review: Bloodlands - Nihilistic Dimension

Bloodlands hails from Finland and features members of Ratface, No One Is Safe and couple other local bands that make you expect quality. What they offer is heavy, thick metallic hardcore with an old school death metal twist. This combination is more often a miss than hit, but they kinda get this formula right. Over past few days I’ve been really getting into this album and the more I listen to it the more I start to appreciate its strong points
.
While Nihilistic Dimension is not without its flaws, it is a very entertaining and solid release showcasing wide range of skill and ideas. Despite all the heaviness, the main vibe is hardcore, so it’s not straight up death metal and it’s definitely not deathcore. For the most part the music is brutal and to the point as they keep tracks time down around two minutes. The tempos range from slow to fast, and most of the songs are driven by thick midtempo rhythms, filled with tight riffing, tremolo picking, pounding drums and booming double bass. From time to time they toss in some badass solo, but it’s done in right amount. All the way throughout the album the band as a whole hold together tightly, these dudes know what they’re doing. The production is crisp, even sometimes too crisp for my liking as some more dirt and distortion would do this album good.

The record was put out by the band themselves, so if you dig their sound do your part and get to getting.

Life For A Life - new video, new ep

That new track from Life For A Life does not disappoint, but that's what I expected. I knew this band is destined for greatness. The band is dropping a new 'Soul On Ice' EP this coming May via Innerstrength Records. Very cool!

New Blood: Society Sucker

Society Sucker are a new blood from Wilmington, North Carolina who dropped really tight self titled debut ep last year. Check it out if you're into heavier NYHC style, it sounds like they were really pissed off when recording it. I can never get tired of this type of hardcore.

Society Sucker is straight up hardcore and I dig that 100%. When you were starting out did you have a clear idea what type of music you want to play or did it just happen?
In the beginning we just knew we wanted to be heavy but we also wanted to keep more melodic and "groovy" elements prevalent in the music, but we hadn't necessarily figured out exactly how we wanted to go about it. Our demo was our first stab at it but by the time the demo tape was out we had halfway written our EP where, in my opinion, we really found our sound. So I guess you could say it just happened, but we definitely wear our influences on our sleeve.

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The future is now

2015 is shaping up to be another fat year for everyone into raw and gritty hardcore sound. It's been years since I found core and I still get excited about tons of new records, demos and bands that are popping up all over the scene. Here's a little run down on what I'm definitely looking forward to checking out this year.



1. New King Nine and Suburban Scum

Closed Casket Activities are going hard this year with a slick plan to dominate heavyweight division in hardcore. No joke. First, I hear they will be dropping new King Nine album, the album is due late 2015. Next thing I know, Suburban Scum will be releasing a debut full length "Ultimate Annihilation" this year via this very same label. More info coming soon, but I expect nothing but dopeness from this band. Scum bands never fails.



2. Lifeless

That is the type of a band this scene needs more of - working class hardcore, dedication, realness. I've heard some music off this new record and it's beyond hard.



3. Steel Nation

If you seen the new video you know these dudes cooked up some hard-hitting shit for this comeback album. Of all the records that are about to drop this year, this one I'm most stoked about.



4. Hardside

Honestly, not much is known about the new LP except the process of putting it together seems to be in an advanced stage. Plus, the band gonna drop a video for one of the new songs.

Review: Creepout - Ovskvre Tortvred Order

Japan’s reigning kings of hardcore Creepout come back with new ep which was put out by FWH Records as MCD (as far as I know, there’s a vinyl version of the release as well). One look at the front cover and you know they carry on with their Cleveland worship thing. Everything about the package, from the layout to the logo (designed by Dwid himself) screams Holy Terror. They are trying hard, to the point some might call it biting a bit too hard off of Integrity/In Cold Blood style, but since there’s nothing bad about the music as such I have no problems with that.
With the music taking a similar approach as band’s previous record, a split with Integrity, Ovskvre Tortvred Order brings on the heavy, metallic side of hardcore with a grim, negative twist. I remember Tribe Called Hardcore had more NYHC/OLC flavor to it, but this time it’s all darkness and depravity.
The riffs are bit more technical than before, the music definitely got heavier and the overall vibe drifted much more into darker corners. The vocals are brutal like they should, dude’s doing great job.
I am not sure I get all the lyrics though, some of it sounds bit odd. It's almost like they were trying to sabotage this record on purpose coming with some cheesy lyrics like ‘Shut the fuck up and go away (4x)/ Fuck you bitch ass (3x) / I want you nothing’. It’s like Dwid going all out Rick Ta Life style. Either they were not giving a fuck at all or were trying too hard. I look at the lyrics are integral part of harcore, so this made record’s impact lesser than it should’ve been. But other than that, the record is dope. Check it out!

Video: Hollow Truth - The War Economy

Hollow Truth have new video out for The War Economy, which is a new track off the upcoming 7" of the same name. When I first time heard this band I was hyped and it's cool to see them still going strong. This new song is assisted by Ronnie of Warhound and sounds more dope than any track at Next Level or Enemy. This new ep, due out via Powertrip Records, is shaping up to be really something to look for.

Yeah, the filters they used for this picture might come off as hipsterish, but just try to get past through that and enjoy the music.

Check out the interview I did with the dudes back in 2013.

New Blood: Shadow Of Doubt

Some dudes in Texas teamed up for this new band and they're killing it all the way. It probably helps that some fo them had previously sharpened their craft in bands like Bitter End or Hardside, but they hold their own even if you put that 'all stars' bullshit aside. I've got admit, debut demo by Shadow Of Doubt was one of the highlights of recent months for me. I can attest it is dope, no only because it includes Telltale cover, but basically each track is tight. Far from generic hardcore but still sharp all the way. Here's an interview with Ely (vocals).

Can you give us some introduction to Shadow Of Doubt? How did the band come together, as a whole?
Well shadow of doubt is patrick from (hardside) on guitar, my man jake on bass, Lorenzo on drums and me on the mic.
I asked Patrick if he would be down to write some riffs and we kind of pieced songs together and kind of just asked the rest of the guys if they would be down to jam and play some gigs. And our bass player jake recorded all the music.

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Review: Life Sentence - Marked For Death

Life Sentence are from Albany, New York and this is their debut ep which dropped last year via Panda Claw records. Marked For Death is definitely my type of shit, aggressive and no bullshit. The band lays down heavy but tight hardcore that place them somewhere along the lines of Last Dayz, Soul Search or Death Threat. It’s not a rocket science, you just gotta put together some tight riffs, strong drumming and pissed off vocals and that’s it. The track Under Siege is a fine example of band doing it right - a monster stomp with furious vocals. This shit is pretty basic, but take it as a compliment. The title track also gets the job done and is my another favorite. Another proof that most of the times simplicity is the best. Truth be told, none of the 4 tracks in here go below a certain level of standard.

The lyrics are down to earth and with lots out of the gutter attitude that makes this stuff very relatable. Some of this stuff might seem bleak and negative, but the ultimate message is to hold your own. Every kid reading this can relate to that type of real life poetry.

All in all, this is a solid record which seems to have slipped under the radar when it came out. If you haven’t checked it out, you’re missing out.

New music: Coldburn

Coldburn are working on the follow up to The Harsh Fangs Of Life and to get a taste of what's to come you can check two of the new songs below. Both tracks are solid and there's something to them that really get the head nodding. The video has so dark and negative vibe to it I am starting to feel some empahty for these dudes. Whatever type of problems they got themselves into, hope they get through it soon.

I think these dudes have potential to come up with really strong album, if they only don't fuck it up with too much of that Joy Division shit and keep it sharp all the way. Pre-orders are here.

Demo daze: Cold Truth, The Heist, Nuke

Cold Truth - No Rules

100% hardcore/hardcore, awesome band that I'm sure we'll hear more of in the future. FFO: Backtrack, Donnybrook, Crown Of Thornz, Manipulate, No Turning Back and basically solid hardcore.

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The Heist - Demonstration

Fast, aggressive old styled hardcore with mean breakdowns from somewhere in Europe, but I don't know exactly where. If you want to have this one on wax, you can cop 7" from Farewell Records here.

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Nuke - W.M.D.

Metallic hardcore outta Montréal, Canada. Among the lines of Merauder and Hatebreed with some Crown Of Thrownz groove added to the mix.

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New music: Bent Life - Cheat Death

Bent Life is streaming new track from the upcoming 7" ep due out via Bad Teeth Recordings. I gotta say that new tune is fire, but I know these dudes could do no wrong.

Spineless bastards
Watch nothing change
There’s no liberation
For those who’ve learned to love their chains

Video: Bloodline Ltd / Skam Dust - Bloodust

This is brand new vid from Bloodline Ltd outta Johannesburg. South Africa. Skam Dust is lending his psychopathic vocals to most of the track and definitely steals the show on this one. He should start his own hardcore band, get some dudes who can rip Leeway riffs and lay that groove down like Crown Of Thornz used to and get on with it.

I'm not saying the rest of Bloodline is not keeping up. The track is blazing, and the scary, big dude who fronts the band on usual also plays his part well. I'm definitely gonna check their future stuff.

Review: Last Dayz - Ready to Die

So, this is the end. Ready to Die is band’s last release, and when I am writing this review it’s long past their farewell show. Sure, it’s a shame, but you gotta respect a band that decides to call its quits when they are on top of their game. So many bands just drag on and on till the point when nobody really cares that it's not even funny.

Anyway, back to this ep. How badass I would like their last record to sound? Well, it’s that badass. Welcome to the world where words like delicate or gentle don’t exist. The band kept moving forward with each release getting constantly better at their craft. With this final ep they sound more creative and skilled than ever, but they also sound more pissed off than ever. Tough, hard-hitting hardcore stripped down to the barest bones, proving that Poland should be 52nd state somewhere between NJ, PA and MI.

In their weight division, they just were much better than anyone else in Europe at the time. The ep was put out by Ratel Records and they made sure the package is solid and worth your money. Get it if you haven’t already.

Naysayer will be touring Europe this Summer

NAYSAYER / FRIEND OR FOE / BLIND BELIEFS
european summer tour 2015

Steel Nation - Bleak Outlook

Check out the visuals to what's probably gonna be my favorite album of 2015. Steel Nation is not only one of the the dopest bands of all time, but damn, this track is harder than hell! Crushing, metallic hardcore with negative attitude that makes you want to walk around with a knife. A big-ass kitchen knife.

The band is getting ready to drop yet another full-length this year, "The Harder They Fall" via Harm Reduction Records. Order your copy here.

The Real Deal Interview

The Real Deal is a new killer Clevo band with beefy but to the point brand of hardcore. Their tape was released by Straight & Alert Records from France and it was definitely one of the highlights of 2014 for me. Their style is more of 'punch you in the face with a brick' street tested NYC sound than typical Clevo heaviness, and they keep it aggressive and vibrant all the time. I advise everyone to give it a try if they haven't already. Awesome stuff. Anyway, here's an interview with Andy who handles vocals for the band.

Give us some background on The Real Deal - history, who is who in the band, how did you all get together?

Well there is the four of us Me (Andy) on vocals, Burger on guitar, Woods on bass, and Nick on drums. We have all played together in other bands early on and have all been kickin it for years, just thought the time was right to get together and jam and see where it goes. It all clicked well and we decided to get it goin. So far the response to everything we've been doing so far as been very welcoming as far as the Cleveland hardcore scene goes.

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Review: These Streets - Life From The Gutter

I love when you cop a record from the band you know nothing about and the very first track hits you so hard you don’t even know what happened. That's was the case with this ep by These Streets. Things go into high gear immediately with tough vocals over stomping grooves and sharp riffing. The band goes hard on every of four tracks on this ep, with some really dope and better than average guitar work over tight ass section. The occasional solos make the ep that much better.

The drums are way forward in the mix, but after a while it didn’t bother me at all. As far as the vocals go, the dude flows nicely with a sense of purpose in his voice when he spits stories of relationships gone sour, standing your ground, making right (or bad) choices in life and society pressures. Now and then he gets support from the crew, and man, those gang vocals sound like snatched straight from old Biohazard album.

If I was to say anything negative about this ep, I can’t lie, my first thought when I got this record was that this is some ugly ass cover. I don’t get it how they could allow it to happen, such a dope record with such a lame front artwork. I am glad my natural curiosity to discover new bands and integrity as a reviewer didn’t allow me to write it off at start.

All in all, I'm really feelin' the overall vibe of ep and I would recommend everyone to check this band out.

Panda Claw Records
These Streets

Grimlock "Songs Of Immortality" re-issue

This is like news of the month for many kids who grew up on 90' hardcore: Knives Out is releasing Grimlock's classics "Songs Of Self and "Thirst For Immortality". The two are combined together in a form of a single limited picture disc 12" titled 'Songs Of Immorality' which is sure to make plenty of record collectors wet.

If you need any background on the band, click here or here. Grimlock seems to be unfairly forgotten which is a shame because they had no shortage of monster tracks with vocals that would cast fear in the weak of heart. Real man type of hardcore.

Since it's being released by Knives Out, you know you can expect quality. Being familiar with some of label's previous releases I reckon it's going to look beyond awesome. Picture this: dope looking picture disc and die-cut, embossed and hand-numbered packaging. You also know there's gonna be a limited run, this time of 300 copies, so when it's sold out the prices on Discogs gonna go crazy. You can cop it here while it still doesn't cost fortune.

Demo Daze: No Victory, Incited, Shadow Of Doubt

No Victory - Demo

Gary, Indiana is no joke and this band is testimony to this. FFO: Buried Alive, Stigmata, Blood In Blood Out...

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Incited - Victim Of Reality

This demo is couple months old but I gonna post it anyway cause the amount of brute force it delivers is at sick levels.

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Shadow Of Doubt - Demo

Members of Bitter End and Hardside, so you know it's banging. Juggernaut type of hardcore

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38 seconds of new Lifeless record

Shit, they could share a full song at least. I hate those 30 seconds teasers. Anyway, mew Lifeless is in the works. Be on the lookout, the album is dropping in March.

Rat Path / Drag Me Under - Split

Rat Path didn’t disappoint with the two chunky, thick and aggressive tracks they deliver. It’s not a huge departure from Mean Streets, but the song writing and execution is tighter than ever. It's some hard-ass riffs over a heavy drums and fat bass, with sick and straight up menacing vocals. Behind Bars has a nice groove to it, and the breakdown in the middle crushes. I imagine kids are going crazy when they play it live.

Hunter Gatherer is faster with a cool thrash vibe, but once again the slower part at the end is flawless. What I like about it is that it’s all time in your face, but somehow the band manage to find something fresh and new to add to that style. Rat Path might be slept-on in many circles, but they’re definitely a band to watch. Listening to this type of hardcore makes you bad ass.

I don’t know much about Drag Me Under except they’re from Reno, NV and this is their third release after two full length records . The band reminds me of the trend not so long ago when bands were focused on mosh parts and basically everything mosh related. Mid-tempo, metallic stuff like Throwdown or Hatebreed with gruff vocals and breakdowns and groove. Can’t say I miss those times that much, but since that trend died down I don’t mind to listen to such band from time to time. I’m cool with it cause there are only two tracks, not sure if I could stand a full blown album.

Panda Claw Records, 2015

Video: No Turning Back - Fight To Survive

New video from 'Never Give Up' album which drops this week, on January 7th. I feel little stupid writing such obvious fact, but No Turning Back is one of the most hard working and dedicated hardcore bands right now. They are also blessed with a mad talent to write hard hitting hardcore tracks that make every legit hardcore kid want to get up and break stuff. All the hype about them is real, you just know that new record gonna be good. I am definitely going to check it out.

Here are the hardest hitters of 2014

The real science behind the list below is me trying to remember on which records I wasted the most of my valuable time in 2014. I might have forgotten something or simply missed some nice records, but it is what it is.

King Nine is hands down my favorite band of 2014 and ‘Scared To Death’ is the hardest record I heard last year. I got no problems putting it among classics like Master Killer or In The Eyes Of The Lord and I am ready to fight anyone questioning my judgment. That’s a type of hardcore we need more of.

New Cold World was dope as well, nothing groundbreaking compared to their earlier shit, but still hard. The same with Sheer Terror, Madball or Ringworm - dope albums that were just like you expected them to be.

New releases by Last Dayz, Survival or Shrapnel prove that 7” is probably the best format for hardcore. Short burst of force and fury to get your testosterone to the right level.

I went through like 20 other lists of such to see the bigger picture of what’s really trending in hardcore lately. The amount of bands included there that I don’t know makes me question my credentials to run such respectable blog like this. Driven by my natural curiosity and enthusiasm to try new things I checked some of the bands and it was shit. I am not even dropping names cause I don’t want to embarrass anybody, but some people need to get their shit together and stop listening to weird hipster shit and focus on real hardcore. Hardcore for hardcore.

Anyway, the list goes like:

Albums:
King Nine - Scared To Dead
Cold World - How The Gods Chill
7 Seconds – Leave A Light On
Battle Ruins - Battle Ruins
Madball - Hardcore Lives
Backtrack - Lost In Life
Sheer Terror - Standing Up for Falling Down
Ringworm - Hammer Of The Witch
Foreseen - Helsinki Savagery

EPs:
Last Dayz - Ready To Die
Survival - Forged In Iron
Forced Order - Eternal War
Souls Search / Minus - Split 7"
The Real Deal - Demo 2014
Desperate Times - Looking For Solution
Indication - XI
Born Low - Refuse To Beg
Criminal Instinct – Fever
Shrapnel - Frenzied State

With so much stuff being released nowadays it’s hard to keep track, so if you wanna add anything do it in the comments.

The hardest track of the year:

Venom Prison - Defy The Tyrant

Everyone thinks of changing the world

but no one thinks of changing themselves

The only knowledge achieved by man:

life is meaningless

I sense no hidden totalitarian agenda in these songs so I gonna risk and post it up. Everyone is so excited about this band, especially when it has members of such respectable bands like Brutality Will Prevail and Wolf X Down.

Musically, Venom Prison is not that bad as I thought it will be. Gritty, brutal metalcore with raw production that only works in its favor. I dig the vocals too. I have a feeling Larissa had some kind of reality check and finally got over all that commie stuff she used to preach in Wolf Down. That's definitely a change for better. For everyone.

The lyrics above quote Leo Tolstoy, if you're really into that type of stuff you can try to find more of it.

Stream new Harriers album

Not so long ago the band shared an unmastered track from this album, and now the whole thing is out there for a free stream. I approve this way of doing business. LP should be available from Lifers Records, I got no clue when exactly but hope it's not gonna be long.

If you don't know Harriers, they're based in Montreal and play fat, heavy, tough-as-nails hardcore with a crossover twist. The new songs sound like their best work ever.

New In Cold Blood 7" in 2015!

New 7" by the Clevo almighty In Cold Blood out early 2015 on A389 Recordings. Blind The Eyes / Straight Flush. Hell hath no fury!

Demo Daze: Dementor - Self Made

Another dope band from PA. This is their self made record, you can snatch it 100% for free from their Stereokiller page or via the link below. Raw, heavy hardcore loaded with vulgar aggression that just makes you wanna go out and fight a random guy.

PA bands always do their job when you need an alternative to a lot of the soft shit people are calling hardcore nowadays. Definitely worth checking out if you're into bands like Life After Death or King Nine. More about the band here.

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Souls Search / Minus - Split 7"

Souls Search / Minus - Split (Closed Casket Activies) - I had no doubt that this one would be dope when it was announced. Soul Search opens up with two tracks of what they’re known for - crushing hardcore with stompy breakdowns, chugging riffs, hateful vocals and a gritty overall feel. I know a lot of people were saying these dudes were jacking Dmize style in the beginning, but fuck them cause this band has been getting better and better with each 7” they drop.

Not to say there’s no NYHC here, actually it’s all over these two tracks, but there’s a lot of heavier stuff as well. All in all, they keep a good balance. I be honest, Soul Search is one my fav bands right now, this shit is a cut above most of the hardcore I've heard this year.

I gotta say that as much as I am fan of Soul Search, I wasn’t aware of Minus before listening to this ep. And I was missing out, cause the two tracks from them definitely leave good impression. They hold their own against Soul Search, with delivery that’s as heavy and unrelenting, but their flow sounds less rough with more dynamics and tempo changes. The vocals are nice, this dude puts a lot of emotions into his delivery and spits every word like he means it.

All in all, very cool ep. You got two bands with not that different sound but with their own style of executing it and they both rip. Very powerful stuff.

New music from Cornered

Fuck, this one came out of nowhere! New tracks from Holland's Cornered, who happen to be one of my favorite current bands. As always, expect nothing but stomping, hard-hitting, reckless hardcore with mean, maniac vocals. What's not to love here?

The tracks serve as a teaser for band's upcoming LP Sudden Death due out early 2015 on Farewell records and you can count me in buying this album. Serve the Beast is my favorite tune so far, but all the 3 new songs rip and definitely got me hyped!

Remain In Vain - Divining Gold From Fire & Ice

Here's a little Christmas present for all of ya! Ten new tracks of raging, mean and pissed off hardcore from Chula Vista's Remain In Vain. Each song is a rapid burst of force and the music sounds raw as it should, but still there's a lot of going on in these tracks from ripping speed to hard as fuck breakdowns.

I am not sure what's the story with this one, but it's been posted on 10:39 Records bandcamp some maybe they will release it on vinyl, tape or something. That would be rad, although criminal shipping rates from US will make my purchase postponed to an undetermined future anyway. Most of you probably don't give a fuck, but if you wanna support the label you have 'name your price' option and some merch on their bandcamp.

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New music from Harriers (Lifers Recs)

New track for Harriers out of Montreal, Canada. New record, which gonna be the first full length from the band, due out via Lifers Records. It's called VOLTE|FACE and I'm sure it's gonna be dope. Peep the raw version of one of the tracks off of the album below.

Download: Waste Of Life - Nothing To Gain

Rhode Island hardcore on the heavier side of things. Seven tracks that drop heavy with tight guitar work, hard drums and distorted, rough vocals. The ep came out earlier this year but I am gonna share it here for those who weren't aware. Waste Of Life aren't doing anything new, but are doing it damn well. The ep is almost sold out, but if you want a copu you can always try to get in touch with these dudes, maybe you'll have some luck.

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New Blood: Terrible Minds

Terrible Minds straight from the depths PAHC bring that beefy, tough hardcore everybody loves. Their recent record Devolution is absolute ripper, full of ignorant, pitbull-like aggression and pissed-off, fuck-you attitude. I suggest everyone into hard-ass hardcore like No Retreat, Krutch or Menace give it a listen.

Congrats on the release of your recent record Devolution. Give us some overview, how do you feel about it and the reception it gets?
We've gotten a lot of positive feedback from it from a lot of really great people. We're proud of how it turned out, but it makes it so much better hearing it from others.

Is there any type of message in your music that you want to send to the listeners?
Just be yourself, don't give up on your goals, and always keep your head up. Stay true to the people around you that you love and you can achieve anything.

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Forced Order - Eternal War

Forced Order - Eternal War 7"(Ratel) - Considering that after releasing this ep the band got signed to Revelation, I gotta applaud the business skills of Ratel staff to hunt down new talent in hardcore. Well, after their demo that dropped in the beginning of this year it was plain to see the band is up to great things. The fact some of the members are (or were) also in Twitching Tongues, Soul Search, Disgrace and Harness could also have played a role.

Forced Order plays hardcore that owes a lot to 90’ metallic new school with tons of beefed up riffs, stomping breakdowns and relatable, but seriously aggressive lyrics. They pull enough of their own weight though and that’s what makes them stand out. Some people compare them to old Integrity or In Cold Blood, but I don’t know. It’s pissed off as fuck and the vocals sound menacing, but it doesn’t have that evil vibe. Not to say there’s not substance in their music. Hell, these songs are packed with enough nerve and force to crush concrete. The dude who does vocals sounds like hatred for the world is the sole purpose of his existence. I respect that!

The guitar work on this one is tight, maybe I’m getting older but I dig all the solos they throw in now and there. Considering most of the tracks barely hit 1,5 minute mark, the amount of hooks and tricks they put into these songs is amazing. It grabs you from the first track and never let go. Definitely a killer ep!

Demo Daze: Rage Cage - Sick Songs

Rage Cage is new band from Italy started with a mission to bring classic-era hardcore back to life. An inside person in the band told me the main influences are Fit of Anger , Breakdown, Outburst, Raw Deal etc. and if that's not rad I don't know what is. I am sure these dudes have hearts and minds in a right place, you can hear it in the music.

All the tunes are solid, rather fast but with good dose of heavy groove. The vocals are on point, and although I don't know exactly the lyrics, something tells me song titles like Street Invaders, Mad Dog Killer or Revenge are something I can relate to.

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Fuck MTV...

Here are two brand new clips by bands that I hold in high regard:


No Turning Back - Destination Unknown
This is taken from band's upcoming record titled 'Never Give Up'. Hell no, only weak people fall back! Looking at this video makes me want to quit my job and start a hardcore band. If I had any talent, that means.


Desperate Times - Like Wolves Among Sheep
Like Wolves Among Sheep, coming from "Looking for Solution" 7" available from Ratel Records.