Losin' It - "Danger Zone" EP Review

Losin' It is a youth crew hardcore band from Florida, and let me tell you these guys have more youthful energy than you probably expect. They have a new, debut full-length out now on Life to Live Records (check out relevant post from few weeks back), but on this post I would like to present the 7" that Losin' It has put out on the same label back in March 2012. It is a release you wouldn't want to miss if you're into action-packed hardcore. So let's go!

The 1st side of the 7" kicks off with a classic (for youth crew style, that is) intro that prepares you for what's about to come. Mid tempo and definitely groovy, it kicks off with a guitar squeal that puts Zakk Wylde to shame! Now we're talking. After this super-groovy one minute mosh, it is time for the core to take over; Losin' It start churning out one good hardcore tune after the other, with ferocity and commitment to the sounds we all love. This is super-tight youth crew, but with a bit of a more punky and (may I say) reckless approach!

What we get is a mix of tempos, from mid-tempo jungle mosh, to fast youth crew all-go no-slow. The riffs are all good and energy-packed, while the drums and the bass follow solidly along. Song titles like "Fuck Off" and "Check Your Head" don't leave much room for guessing on what the lyrics are about. These guys will tell you what they don't approve of without thinking twice. In fact, they'll tell it straight to your face with these pissed off hardcore songs!

The good thing about Losin' It is that the are obviously totally about the core, but you can also tell they are chill dudes who are having a lot of fun. Just a look at the back of the cover, and you can tell that this is just a bunch of friends doing what they love, doing their part to "make this shit work". The whole artwork and layout also help in eminding us that hardcore is about venting and having a good time, not taking things way too seriously and adopting a negative stance.

All in all, Losin' It have stomped their way in the hardcore scene in a very promising way. Every note these guys hit is bustling with energy and sincerity and that is exactly what I am asking for from a youth crew hardcore band. If you like speed, anger and a ton of positivity coated with the intensity of youthful anger, then this is for you!

Truth Inside - EPs and Comp songs (2012)

In the near futute, we will be reviewing records from a label which has been putting out good hardcore that gets us psyched about all kinds of shit. This label is Life to Live Records. With the craziness of personal life and vast amount of music I have to go through to actually get to what's good, I almost missed out on Life to Live. But hey, I didn't, so good for me. First up will be Truth Inside, which is actually the band of Dan who runs the label.

Truth Inside (I'd like to write it Truth X Inside) is a band that's fairly well known in the hardcore circles of today. Especially within the straight edge hardcore scene, this band has spread its name and rightly achieved a status of hard earned respect. I can easily see why: this is the type of youth crew... no! -- just plain hardcore that we've always loved, the style that's been in our heart. We got catchy, fast hardcore songs with a positive message about unity, staying true (to the straight edge but most of all yourself) and giving respect when it's due.

Best Times is the 5-song ep that Truth Inside released in January 2012. The cover art is consistent with the positive lyrics and album title and generally adds to the overall upbeat feel. It all blends together perfectly for a hardcore record that overflows with energy and that I can play both summer and winter. My favorite song has to be "Abstain" since I am biased and down with the straight edge, but really -- all the songs are good.

In addition, this positive hardcore combo recently had two songs released by the legendary Commitment Records (in the form of a three-way split with other notable straight edge hardcore acts). OK that's gotta be good! What we get by Truth Inside on this one are two short and anthemic songs of hardcore appreciation. Nice grooves, positive vibes, a rawer 'organic' production and a total thumbs up is what I'm feeling about this. It's good to have bands like Truth Inside to remind us the good old solid values of hardcore. The awesome thing is that they can do it in such a fresh way.

http://truthinside.bandcamp.com/

http://truthinside.bandcamp.com/

http://truthinside.bandcamp.com/

p.s. Truth Inside also released a 7" on Ugly and Proud Records in 2011. The label is run by Nikki, an awesome dude who has done a lot for straight edge hardcore in his native Bulgaria, but also in Europe and the world. Respect!

Record Review: World in Arms - "Strong at Heart" (self-released)

Genre: Melodic Metalcore

Country: Providence, US

Band website: bandcamp, www.worldinarms.com

Label: - (self released) 

Metalcore can be both a good and a bad thing; and in this case it is a VERY good thing. World in Arms plays emotive, modern metallic hardcore that the same time hits harder than the proverbial ten ton hammer. This is no joke; these guys took the lead from all good things in US metalcore and went to create a masterpiece of pent up emotions, accumulated sadness and blind rage.

The ep (7 tracks in total) starts of with an heavy youth crew-ish intro and the phrase "you did this to your self" manically shouted with gang vocals. This is the type of shit that shows me right away the record will fucking rule. The driving guitars contrast the gnarly vocals, the latter (along with the lyric subjects) clearly placing this band in hardcore and not so much in metal. The vocals - and I don't say this easily - are some of the best I've heard lately in this genre. There is so much passion and anger in them, but also a heavy dose of melancholy and despair. We're talking really thick, raspy vocals with a unique identity, and obviously totally removed from the Terror clones you hear every day. Dude also attacks with some ear destroying death metal vocals evey now and then, and puts the cherry on the cake with some classic (in HC) spoken words over the music.

World in Arms continues to wreck shit all trhough the album, but there also is the correct amount of diversity to keep things interesting. There are some clever and super bouncy beatdown parts that luckily don't last forever, and thus serve their purpose boosting the songs and making them sound more groovy. Then again, there are some cool clean parts that are not emo by any means, but do add a bit of atmosphere to the whole outcome. These parts make the ep sound really modern and give it a strange avant garde (dare I say) aura. But let us not kid ourselves; it's the guitars that shape most of the things around here, with the aggressive yet melodic approach which brings to mind stuff like Misery Signals or even With Honor. This is good shit!

I just want to sum this up by saying that even though metalcore is looked down by some as the flavor of the day, let us not dismiss the bands who are doing things with heart and do have something to offer. Music styles, values and aesthetics come and go as fashions in hardcore, but there are always those who are true -- and this you can suss right away. World in Arms is just like that, and they hit so fucking hard. You won't forget them easily so get into them.

Fotis TxYxS

Featured Band: Focused X Minds

FocusedxMinds hail from Milwakee, Wisconsin, US. Even if Milwakee is not particularly famous for HC punk, you should check out FxM for some passionate and self-empowering straight edge HC, because they are making big noise right now with incessant touring and recording.

They already have a great demo (2010) that you can download for free here: http://focusedxminds.bandcamp.com/.

Somewhere between a NYHC / Boston sound and fastpaced straight edge HC (at times thrashcore), songs like ‘No Satisfaction’ and ‘Free Your Thinking’ are bursting into youthful blasts of positive energy.

Earlier in 2011 FxM released a 7’’ at 6131 Records, titled ‘Stay Focused’, which contains 3 tracks from the demo plus 3 new songs!  Especially the title track is one of the best songs I have heard lately. A couple of days ago FxM got out of the studio after recording a bunch of new songs to be released in a 3-way split with Out of Time and Another Mistake later during spring 2012 by 6131 Records. So, stay tuned, there is a lot coming from FxM!

FxM are a new band but they are spreading out mature messages (sxe, animal rights, personal change etc.) and seriously positive vibes. FocusedxMinds stand for being open-minded while being a straight edge kid. It is about self-determination refuting stagnation in any doctrines or submission to norms (even within a sub-culture).

I recall the times when the straight edge community has suffered from ‘zero tolerance’ mentalities and militant violence towards people who do not follow straight edge lifestyles. There is a difference between being passionate about your beliefs and being blinded by them. In a passionate state you can go forward while in a blind condition you can become destructive and backward-minded.

- Rigas

Links:

http://focusedxminds.tumblr.com/

http://www.last.fm/music/FOCUSEDxMINDS    

http://www.facebook.com/FOCUSEDXMINDS

http://www.stereokiller.com/FocusedXMinds

http://focusedminds.blogspot.com/

https://twitter.com/focusedxminds

http://focusedxminds.bandcamp.com/

News: Youth of Today free show in NYC!

2011 seems to be the most energetic year for Youth of Today since their reunion in 2008, but their latest show was a special event! They recently headlined the free re-release event/festival for the book ‘Making a Scene: New York Hardcore 1985-1988’ book, which originally came out  back in 1989. The book is now revamped with more than double photographic material, new commentaries etc. You can check it out through the following links:

http://www.makingascenebook.com/

Making a Scene Facebook Page

The festival was entitled True Til Def and was held at Santos Party House in the context of the annual CMJ music marathon, hosted by Andrew W.K. (musician/speaker/owner of the venue). Other bands that played the True Til Def festival were youth crew holdovers Mouthpiece, notorious punks Trash Talk as well as heavies Kylesa and The Fucking Wrath (some indie rock and hip hop artists also appeared). The festival was free, with placed reservations.

Hit this link to see YoT rampage the stage:

Check out  some photos from True Til Def here.

further links:

http://www.last.fm/music/Youth+of+Today

http://www.truetilldef.com/

http://www.cmj.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_W.K.

Rigas

Things that happen at Youth of Today shows

RIVALS! - Make Your Own Path

Rivals! is a modern youth crew hardcore band from Athens, Greece, and possibly one of the best HC bands to come out of this country. These dudes have a strong Champion / Have Heart influence, bouncing back and forth between melodic youth crew and harder straight edge hardcore. They also manage to add some new school elements (some intelligent mosh parts etc), but without sounding lame or emo.

Members of Rivals! were in a more forward straight edge band named xFor No Reasonx, and after their demise in 2008, Rivals! was created with the same ideals more or less: to play honest, driving hardcore with a strong sXe feel. They have an awesome recording that will be released soon after a lot of anticipation, as I really feel the world needs to hear this. Their ep entitled Make Your Own Path contains a bunch of hard-hitting hardcore songs with layers of melody, aggression, melancholy, and great vocals and guitar work.

The thing I like about Rivals! is that they are doing it old school: they are a bunch of kids who are friends and they love hardcore. You'll spot these dudes in hardcore shows in Athens and elsewhere keeping it clean and buying merch with a smile on their faces. I am glad to call these guys friends and I think the time has come for the world to get to know more about this band!

Rivals! Facebook Page

COMMON CAUSE - S / T EP (React! Records)

What we have here is a straight edge hardcore record that makes me wanna wear some athletic gear and go straight for a run, lift something heavy or just room-mosh with this music on full volume!

I know that React! Records puts out some of the best stuff in positive / oldschool hardcore, and I definitely wasn't disappointed with Common Cause's new ep. I first heard this band on the Chain of Strength tribute ep (an awesome comp by the way) with their cover of "Those Days", also included on this ep.

These guys continue the tradition of the few remaining purely old school straight edge bands out there. The sound, the ethics and even the aesthetics all belong in the  old school SXE tradition, and this is something I couldn't be more happy about. No matter how much hardcore music progresses, it is important to save and persevere the sound of crucial hardcore bands like the aforementioned Chain of Strength, Insted, Youth of Today, etc. Being a new band, Common Cause have obviously updated their sound with a good production and a heavier edge to their sound, but the outcome remains totally old school.

The lyrics are about values and ethics like understanding and compassion. This may sound weird to some hardcore kids but believe it or not, hardcore also has its compassionate, thought provoking side. I wish there were more hardcore bands singing about this stuff nowadays, with no hard attitudes, violent and self-destructive messages etc. Hardcore stands outside from metal and punk not so much because of the sound, but because of the message of unity and integrity.

UPs: Good production, awesome self-righteous hardcore message, an evident straight edge identity, fast paces & speedy guitars, Chain of Strength cover. 

DOWNs: Could do with more songs (a full album), and would like a bit of a wider vocal range.

THE LOWDOWN: 6 songs of old school straight edge hardcore with a newer edge, filled with positive hardcore messages.

HIGH HOPES - New EP and Euro Tour

HIGH HOPES is an awesome Swedish melodic hardcore/punk rock band in the vein of Have Heart and Champion. They play neo-youth crew hardcore, which owes as much to the straight edge hardcore scene as it does to Dag Nasty and other melodic bands that ALL hardcore kids love. They are named after a Gorilla Biscuits song, so you know where these guys stand!

This is summer 2011 and there is no better time to get into some crucial Swedish hardcore that ain't Dbeat. So get into it like NOW, and visit the band's pages to leave an encouraging comment for their summer European tour! European Youth Crew Hardcore Rules!

One X Choice "Forever War" Video (w/ Karl from Earth Crisis)

We never hid that we are big fans of all things youth crew, positive and anything Karl Buechner of Earth Crisis is involved in. Therefore, today we have posted a video that includes all of the aforementioned things!

Once X Choice is a hard hitting, Southern Californian straight edge band which carries the - almost forgotten - tradition of rad Californian heavy straight edge hardcore. That means that they might look like sun-tanned, chill out bros, but they are heavy on the thinking side and very serious about the edge! Various members of the band have been active in hardcore and skateboarding for years, so you can tell they are no rookies who discovered hardcore as the flavor of the month. Check out the following video featuring Karl from Earth Crisis, mosh around to it, get psyched, make yourself a vegan smoothie!

The band has a CD out called Forever War and it's just heavy youth crew meets mosh that you will definitely like if you're a straight edge kid or even just a hardcore music fan! It's also filled with guest appearances by Earth Crisis, H20 and Outspoken. Dig it!

Check out:
http://www.myspace.com/onexchoice
http://onechoice.bigcartel.com/

Homerun - Demo Review (2010, self-released)

I am very glad to see that the spirit of youthcrew hardcore is alive and kicking in SE Asia. Kids from this particular part of the world tend to go against the trends, or even better, create their own trends and support styles of hardcore that aren't so popular any more (at least in Europe and the US).  Bands like Homerun from Malaysia prove the abovementioned point with some proper '88 youthcrew!

These young fellas have released a demo that all fans of fast straight edge hardcore should get into. Homerun goes straight to the point, with a raw, almost sloppy sound (like youth crew used to be!) and positive lyrics about the scene, thinking straight and staying drug free. The bass is high in the mix, so are the thundering drum rolls that land on your head in the many breaks and mosh/sing along parts. In other words, this is proper old-school youth crew (maybe like a mix between Chain Of Strength and Insted), and less neo-youth crew (i.e. early Comeback Kid, or Champion). By now you should probably know if this is your thing or not!

Homerun goes out all positive and old-school!

I don't have many other things to say about Homerun cause the band really speaks for itself. They preserve a form of hardcore that has been somewhat lost back in time. They are all about sticking to the basics and promoting a positive message with lots of energy and passion. Things like that definitely get thumbs up here in TYS!!! I give it a [7/10].

p.s. Another thing I should mention is that the band offers their demo for free downloading through their myspace: www.myspace.com/homerun88crew. Enjoy the songs, youthcrew go!

Spirit Remains - Old School Brazilian Straight Edge

Our biggest love is and always has been plain, old school hardcore! It's been here for us and we will be here for it: clear cut hardcore filled with intensity and a good message. Spirit Remains is one of those bands that remind me where it's at. Their place of origin is Santa Catarina, Brazil, however if I didn't know that, I'd swear they come from a suburb of California and that they were a late 80s straight edge/youth crew band! And that's because their sound is really stuck on that 89 shit! 

Yes! These guys got it all down. The old school production, the desperate vocals (a la Chain of Strength), the thundering drum rolls, the YOT breaks, the gang vocals in the background. All that in combination with some strong riffs and a high-energy delivery, make out for this great demo called We Demand Powerless. I'm not even sure whether the band's still active (the demo's from 2008 and I don't see much action these days), but at least they've left this little gem behind them, a testimony of good old hardcore the way it should be and a paying of respect to the favorite bands of old. This is 'positive peer pressure'.

Happy lads: where are they now?

In any case, search this awesome band out if you wanna get into some cold Cokes, Youth of Today shirts, hoodies, Xed up fists and the party just won't stop! Thumbz up!

Half The Battle - "What We Have" CD Review

Half The Battle come all the way from the Philippines and the shit they play is... life-inspiring.

This youth crew band is comprised of 3 Philippine guys and (I think) 1 American dude who lives there, and from what I see and hear has made a hell of a lot to help create and maintain an awesome, vibrant hardcore scene. This full-length record, What We Have, is really changing my hardcore summer 2010!

First thing you should know about these guys is that they are positive straight edge all the way. They play an awesome mix of modern youth crew with a pretty heavy sound and very, very good lyrics. The overall approach is relatively simple and easy to go down for the average hardcore fan. However, if you pay closer attention to the sound you'll realize that the music is not actually simple at all, as it is full of changes in rhythm, starts/stops and complex mini-mosh parts, let alone the hundreds of intricate gang backing vocals structures. This stuff is totally out of the box!!! This is great shit!!!

I am so blown away by this band. This is type of band that really inspires you to get back on the right track and leave all the fucking debauchery aside. The music is so energetic and the lyrics are so positive that they have all the reasons to convince kids to live a good, honest, sober life. This is the hardcore the world needs: it makes you feel good instead of filling you with hatred about everything around you. I insist that the lyrics (which come with short explanations for each song) are so good that will have you reading them off the lyric sheet and get you thinking about stuff. The hooks will stick in your head for days on end and you will end up pointing fingers at the sky and jumping around!

If you want to get this, I suggest you get in touch with Apostolis from WAK Records, cause maybe he has a few copies left in his distro. What We Have is a CD that will stick in your stereo and will definitely  be kept in a visible place of your record collection for the rest of your hardcore days (may they be many!). Half The Battle keeps putting out quality shit on a variety of record labels around the world (7"s, Compilations etc). In other they're doing their thing right now, so right now is the time to check 'em out and feel the magic for yourself.

I'm out!

http://www.myspace.com/xhalfthebattlex