Old School Revisited

An old school pic of a 1996 Warzone / Right Direction show: pure MAYHEM. Bring back the energy of the old school days!

No Good News - Self Titled EP

No Good News is an amazing band which plays pop punk with horns and you should go listen to them right now! The feeling reminds me of good old Less Than Jake somehow, but this is New York (?) pop with enough distortion and snotty bubblegum punk for it to be cool and not just plain pop.

The lyrics are all about broken relationships, indecision, bad choices etc (typical pop punk agenda!) Just awesome pop punk with a totally nostalgic feeling, perfect for those lonely spring (or any other time of the year, for that matter) nights when you come home feeling lost! Thumbs up for the perfect horns, the awesome guitar tone and the spot-on backing vox. This easily gets [9/10] with no second thought!

I'll keep my feet right on the ground / you mean nothing to me now

Check it all out here.

Freddy Madball's Hip Hop Career

The saga continues... Freddy Madball seems to be going further with his career as a rapper, picking up where his 2009 1st solo hip hop album, Catholic Guilt left off. Is "thug" hip hop the future of the NYHC we used to know?

The Movielife - This Time Next Year Re-release

BACK in the early 00s/late 90s, there was a golden era when the term 'emo-core' was understood as a new style of hardcore that was a bit more melodic and well... emotional, but it was definately still HARDCORE, or at least punk. The genre had nothing to do with what emo came to be through the years (whiney kids focused mostly on style, playing modern corporate rock music).

Which brings us to the Movielife and the re-release of their now classic 2nd album "This Time Next Year" by Mightier Than The Sword Records. Originally released in 2000 by Revelation Records, "This Time Next Year" had dropped on the hardcore scene like a bomb, bringing melody and freshness in a scene that was oversaturated with the mostly chugga chugga metal mentality of 90s hardcore.

Some 11 years later, the album still sounds fresh and I am very glad to see it circulating back in the scene which needs positive, melodic bands like the Movielife. Their short career in hardcore surely left its mark on the kids and now it is time to re-live their history all over again!

Some extra info for you all: the re-issue is limited to 562 copies of 180 gram vinyl, so all you collectors can go crazy as of now. The Movielife have reunited for some 2011 shows while you can check out the Mightier Than The Sword webstore here: http://store.mtsrecords.com/products/7850.

Street of Possession - 'The Wolfman' EP (self-released) Review

Just how much ambient instrumental beatdown death metal have you heard lately? Probably not much... Nevertheless, this crazy 'prog meets mosh' band from Lyon, France is here to create a new niche and satisfy your insatiable need for new, crazy, and heavy as fuck music.

The thing with Street of Possession's amazing new EP The Wolfman is that it is actually has no vocals and consists only of heavy downtuned guitars, sick groovy rhythm patterns and beatiful ambient layers to accompany all the unsurmantouble heaviness. A one-man project on this one, SOP also work on stuff with death metal vocals on other recordings, but here Jeremie (guitars, bass, drum prog, samples) ventures on his own to create a masterpiece of avant garde post-deathcore. This is really like nothing else I've heard before, as this kid takes the ball from bands like White Chapel, Misery Index, For Today etc and keeps running, stripping it all down to the bare essentials.

SOP manages to combine the heaviness with some hair raising type of melodies, thus balancing between the extreme and the almost catchy, even mainstream sound if you like. The record is also based on something like a concept theme, about the cruel transformation of a man into a wolf. Sounds kind of crazy (or maybe typical if you're a metal fan), but as I am into all that anarcho primitive, back to wilderness feral type thinking, I can surely dig! Our feral edge is always calling, waiting to make a beast out of us again... Another interesting fact is that  since there are no lyrics, each song leaves you on your own to start making a plot in your head based only on the song title and the complexity of the music.

Awesome work from this French beatdown eccentric! I easily give it a [9.5/10]. I am just curious to see how the next stuff (with vocals) will sound like...

Guess What Time It Is (Steal Sth From Work Day)

Now we've never pretended to be the punks of the purely anarchist order... but the current state of affairs (what with the economic crisis and all) makes even the most positive, well-intended punk kid out there want to go crazy and do something - anything! - to harm the Man and his Babylon system. It's just the way it goes, I guess. When people are made to feel like unimportant pawns in a meaningless game, they are bound to resort in guerilla tactics and Robin Hood activities. It may not change much; but it will surely make you feel better as you take back something from those who stole so much from you!

So... April 15th is Steal Something From Work Day!

Steal Something Every Day from Subversive Action Films on Vimeo.

TRUTH OF MY YOUTH *Interview*

A while ago we did a review for Maine's awesome pop punk/hardcore band Truth of My Youth. Just really amazing modern sounds in the vein of Title Fight, Daggermouth, Wonder Years etc. After getting in touch with these guys we decided to do an interview and have a quick chat about this new band, their influences and their plans for the future. Look out for these guys... their could be your next favorite band!

TYS: So... Why "Truth Of My Youth"? Are you big New Found Glory fans? Tell us some things about how the band got together, how long you've been around etc.

PAT: We all love New Found Glory, They're Probably the biggest influence on us. We had trouble with our name and one of us looked on the back of the Catalyst record and loved the name. We have only been together since last september when my old band broke up and Sam and Ian's band had stopped playing. We have have had a couple line up changes since then. The line up now is me on vocals, Sam and Connor on Guitar, Ian on bass and Alex on Drums.

TYS: What are your main influences? It is interesting to hear about it, cause you already have a very personal sound on your 1st EP. If you had to strip things down, would you say you are a punk rock or a hardcore band?

SAM: Truth takes influences from a lot of places, there's a lot of pop punk in there but we all also took a lot from punk and hardcore bands. I'd say our main our main influences are bands like New Found Glory, Blink-182, Boxcar Racer, Lifetime and the Descendents. We all also love Title Fight. If it came down to the two I'd probably like to think we were a punk band.

TYS: Since you say Blink is a big influence, are you more into the early comedy stuff or the later "serious" side of the band?

IAN: Blink is Blink, everything from the early stuff to the last self titled album. Its all gold.

TYS: Can you tell us some things about TOMY's lyrics? Could you pick your favorite lyric from the whole EP and explain it to us plz?

PAT: Most of all the TOMY lyrics have a common theme of looking back on the mistakes you have done or gone through and wish how you chould change them or done things different. My favorite line is a tie between "For now my chin is up and I'm never losing hope" and "I hope my friends don't go through what i do, I hope they don't live like i do". One song is about how I dated thsi girl and she lead me on and it really took me a long time to get over it and i finally fell over it. Another is seeing my bestfriend going through financial problems, I have seen some as well but it killed me to see him go through it.

TYS: What are your aspirations in this band and as musicians? Do you wish to do it full time at some point, or are you the kind of people who see it as a hobby in order to keep it pure?

CONNOR: I think I would say our aspirations as a band comes from our love of pop punk and hardcore and our want to make some of our own. As for full time or part time I think we are all taking it as it comes to us and giving the time we need to to be successful. Our music will always be pure because it will be what we think is quality pop punk and that's what matters to us

TYS: What's living in Maine, Portland like? Is there a nice scene there? Are there things to do for punkrock and HC kids? What is good about Maine that the world should know of?

IAN: Living in Maine is all in all a good time.The cold winters get pretty old, but its really not a big deal. As far as stuff to do for kids like us there are some pretty fun shows set up around the area. Skateboarding is always happening as well. One thing about maine is that its the place where the Pop-Punk is happening.

TYS: What are some other things you love and some things you hate about Maine other than music?

PAT: I don"t really know if i hate much about maine but the cold does annoying at times but theirs always something to do year round. Sledding in the winter, hiking in the spring and fall and soo many water holes in the summer. I love living in Maine.

TYS: Would you say there is a lack of bands who play passionately and sincerely (like you) these days? If yes, why? How do you see the future of HC/punk? Do you think you'll still be into it when you're 30?

SAM: Not at all, I feel like that's what the genre is all about. I think that punk and hardcore will always be around, it'll go through changes but i think theres enough people who care about it enough to keep it going for a long time. And i sure hope so, i hope we all are but i don't really look that far ahead.

TYS: OK so now, you'll give the 1st thoughts that come to mind in relation to the following:

Heavy Metal: Slayer 666

Lifetime (the band): A band that everyone should love

Skateboarding: One of the most fun things you could do in your life 

Husker Du: Green Day did a killer cover 

Graffiti: 90s skateboard videos

Straight Edge: Pat

Blink 182: The best band I have ever and possibly will ever hear. The roots of our tree 

Favorite 80s hc/punk band: The Descendents

Favorite junk food: Pizza if that counts? Or gummy bears!

Best punk guitarist: Tim Armstrong/Frank Navetta

Horror films: Dead Alive,Leprechaun In The Hood,

Ramones vs. Sex Pistols: Ramones

Minor Threat vs. Black Flag: Fuckin Black Flag

Black Sabbath vs. Iron Maiden: Sabbath is heavy as balls but Maiden has zombies.... Gotta tie them

TYS: Do you ever drive outside Maine for gigs (or is Maine as big as Europe or something)?

SAM: Nah, so far only shows in state, were hoping to start playing out of state more as soon as we can.

TYS: In closing, plz describe TOMY with just 3 words to someone who's never heard of you before and eyes your CD at a show. Add anything else you want about the band, give your shout outs etc. Thank you very much!

CONNOR: Were a band that is all about having a good time playing the music we love for people who wanna listen. We have roots in different genres which can be appealing to many parties.

We'd like to give a shout out to our boys in Steiner Street, Backround, Let It Go, Broadside, and many others!

As for the three words, "Maine pop punk"

Check out:
http://truthofmyyouth.bandcamp.com
facebook.com/tomypoppunk

NERVOUS BREAKDOWN - New Single

Wow! I am always happy when I receive something from Indonesian punks Nervous Breakdown, cause they always keep it fresh and I really don't know what to expect other than it will be good. These fellas have a great musical background to choose from and they find it easy to surprise the unexpecting listener. Every EP and release is different, but at least it is good and it maintains the character of loose, raw punk. For some of the band's previous releases reviewed on TYS, check here.

This time Nervous Breakdown are celebrating 5 years of existence, so they chose to give us a single track of warm-hearted, tuneful, alternative pop punk. "This Band Could Be Your Life" is just a happy song which will make you think of summer even on your worst, most cloudy day. And this is something essential in a scene that is filled with negativity and hate. Every now and then it's nice to loosen up and chill and listen to something like this. The production sound is perfect and the whole outcome just overflows with the cool and mellow vibe that Indonesian culture has. Awesome, dude! This song just takes you to another world, time, whatever.

I am just waiting the next move from Nervous Breakdown. I am really curious to see what that will be.

XIt Never HappenedX - "This Is My FXXcking Answer" EP Review (2011)

Another outcome of China becoming a leading force in the political and economic world today is the constant export of new hardcore bands who play music with all the enthusiasm and power that European and US bands sometimes lack. It's obvious if you think about it: for Chinese people hardcore is something  relatively new and fresh and there hasn't been enough time for it to become weak and jaded.

An example of the above is XIt Never HappenedX (better known as XINHX), a band that plays brutal straight edge moshcore with full-on power and intensity. Their style is pretty straightforward and simple, like early Hatebreed or to narrow it down to staight edge bands and be more specific, bands like Throwdown, Barcadia and the 7th Dagger stuff. Even if this is eseentially negative music, it is so pwerful that it becomes positive!

Although XINHX play straight on mosh/2-step which as form is overplayed nowadays, they manage to do it well and pack their sound with tons of energy and anger, let alone huge breaks and  punishing, all around kickass drumming. They are pretty oldschool for this style too, if you think that most moshy bands nowadays add noise, melodic, Swedish metal etc etc elements. No! Here all you get is groovy  brutal hardcore with some oldschool NYHC elements. The last song also includes some rapping in Chinese and it's a must-hear, baby!

The production is huge, their edge is fresh, the outcome is you wanting to put your cap backwards and headbutt somebody, so you know it's all good! Chinese straight edge all the way from Beijing!

Check:

http://xinhx.bandcamp.com/album/this-is-my-fxxcking-answe

http://www.myspace.cn/itneverhappenedbeijing 

7th Dagger Interview from Straight Edge Lifestyle

One thing I have always liked is people who dare to voice their opinions and tell it like it is without fear of criticism! One of those people is Danny, owner of straight edge record label Seventh Dagger. Dude has managed to turn a small time clothing company into a fully fledged record label, not to mention he still totally upholds the same X values and outspoken tactics. 7th Dagger has played an important part in maintaing straight edge and pushing heavy hardcore to new levels and we owe it a lot for that (as well as for many awesome releases).

I recently read an awesome, in-depth 7th Dagger interview on this awesome British edge website, where Danny speaks on all matters hardcore, straight edge and business/label-wise. Somehow I was pleasantly surprised to see that he doesn't play the old 'respect the legends' cliche. He says some not so positive things about all those bands who are considered untouched and up there. It makes us think twice if we should indeed keep replaying those same old motives. Read on:

"I was 15 when I first found out about straightedge.  I was a total metal kid and I loved hip hop of the time and my friend who was a skinhead played Minor Threat for me.  I thought to myself  "jesus that sounds awful" haha  and I still feel that way to this day.  I hated all of those early straightedge bands musically (and now I dislike most of them for making a mockery of straightedge by betraying it) but I can credit those bands with making me aware of a movement and a name for what I already believed wholeheartedly."

"On the subject of those old bands, fuck them.  When these old bands full of sellout members reform to make a quick buck playing songs they don't believe in any more we shouldn't be supporting them.  Even if you truly love Youth of Today, Project X or Bold's music we should not be supporting these guys. I have heard a ton of times that Seventh Dagger is just trying to make money off of straightedge, well there is the real people trying to make money off of straightedge. They don't believe a word they are singing and we are lining up to pay them for betraying what we hold so dear."  

OK so if you want to read the rest of this very interesting interview you should check it out here. And remember kids, it takes guts to criticize that which everyone else sucks up to just to be cool and fit in.

Check:

http://www.facebook.com/SEVENTHDAGGER

http://seventhdagger.blogspot.com/

http://WWW.SEVENTHDAGGER.COM

http://WWW.MYSPACE.COM/SEVENTHDAGGER

And of course

http://www.straightedgelifestyle.moonfruit.com/#