Chain of strength-The one thing.. LP Green

This is one I have been after for a while. The annoying thing is that I could have easily gotten hold of this when it was released for a fraction of the price. I stupidly convinced myself that I didn’t need it because I already had the 7”s despite there being a bonus track on it. Here we are nearly 18 years later and I’m paying daft money for it. What an idiot!!!

 Just 312 of these were pressed on green vinyl and since then there have been four more colours (discounting black of course). My copy came with a nice photo too. You don’t need me to explain how great Chain of strength were. They only ever did two 7”s but they were two of the best hardcore 7”s ever in my opinion.  The irritating thing about this release is that that the songs aren’t in the same running order as the 7”s. It feels like a jumbled compilation. It’s not the only time that Revelation have done this. What were they thinking?

I’m happy though because this completes my colour collection of this record. For now anyway, I’m sure another colour will come along given Rev’s recent frenzy with colour represses.

Black Magician-The Pursivant 7" Clear.

Saw Liverpool ’s Black magician destroy live again the other night and picked up their latest release, this 7”, limited to 100 on clear (the black is 400 making 500 total). It’s a wonder that Rise above, southern lord or one of the bigger labels haven’t picked this band up. It's gotta happen soon I reckon. This release is by Svart No which is an unusual label choice as they usually put out reissues of old European punk bands.

 Anyway onto the music-this is heavy shit. Imagine crushing organ-driven doom laced with just a slight hint of Celtic frost. This sounds like the soundtrack to your worst funeral. The B-side is a lot more subtle but seriously these guys are best in a live environment but this record is a must have if you love this kind of stuff.

Iron lung/The Process-Split 7" Tour repress

Okay, my first post in about a million years. Last week I went to see Iron lung destroy my hometown. I first saw them in Liverpool in 2007 where I first purchased a copy of this 7”. I say ‘purchased’ as it wasn’t actually out then but you paid for it, gave your address and a copy arrived about a month later. Punk rock!!!

I’d heard that this was getting a limited pressing for this tour so I was determined to get all the three colours as there were only a total of 165 copies. 67 on orange, 70 on purple, 28 on black. I knew the black one would be difficult to get and I missed out on that but managed to snag the other two copies. It looks great. Silk screened pull out cover. Really nice.  I love picking up tour only editions at gigs-it’s a great everlasting souvenir of a top night out and the fact it's a great pulverizing record doesn't hurt either. 

Sunny day real estate-Friday 7"

This is has been on my wants list for absolutely years. I used to trade with a guy who joined the pushead fan club twice so he could get stuff for himself (a huge collector of septic death/pushead stuff at the time) and for trading purposes. I managed to bag a number of items off him (which I still have) but he’d already shifted this just before I got in touch with him in 1997.

Skip forward to 2013 and Marcus sent me a message informing me one was up on the bay. I decided it was my time and snagged it. I got it for a fairly reasonable price but got stung on the postage costs. Anyway I’m glad to finally have this in my collection.

 SDRE’s ‘Diary’ is still one of my favourite albums ever. Yes I rank it up there with ‘Those who fear tomorrow’ and ‘Reign in blood’ so obviously I like this band just a bit.

 Like all the pushead FC stuff the packaging is mind blowing . These crappy photos really don’t do it justice. A true thing of beauty.

 Thanks for Marcus for the heads up on this one. I may even trade you that boyzone test press you keep pestering me about.

Magic circle-s/t LP

I remember fellow doom freak Mike posting a Magic circle track onto my facebook wall a while ago informing me that it was a project involving members of Rival mob. Apparently some of the doom purists have been put off by this simply because of the hardcore connections (talk about narrow minded) but this album lives up to the hype and is better than a lot of the stuff released by rise above, Southern lord etc.

 Not sure of the pressing info on this but I had to grab copy and this album is constantly on my ipod at the moment. On the Armageddon label. Get, get, get

Black Sabbath-Sabbath bloody sabbath LP Japanese pressing

I popped in my local store last weekend and found this little beauty. A Japanese pressing of my favourite Sabbath album. I remember hearing this when I was 14. My uncle liked some rock and he lent it me along with  a live Ozzy LP. That was 27 years ago and I can still remember listening to it for the first time.
 Jap pressings usually always look awesome and this is no exception, complete with obi strip.

Violent reaction-City streets LP European tour Red vinyl

This is in danger of becoming a Violent reaction only records blog. When I ordered a blue vinyl UK pressing of 'city streets' on Quality control records.I found out that there were another 100 pressed up on red vinyl for the forthcoming European tour. At first I wondered if I really needed it as I had scored a red copy of the US pressing but then the collector geek snapped in me-of course I did so it just made me more determined to catch them with Hounds of hate in the UK. Apart from an amazing gig I also managed to pick one up-double win. It's more of a clear red compared to the solid red vinyl on Painkiller. So you need one basically.
 I picked up a spare copy -figuring one of my overseas comrades would be after one. No this strictly for trade not for flipping on Ebay. If anyone has a copy of the prisoner abuse LP on clear then that would seal the deal.

Violent reaction-s/t 7" US pressing

Yep, I know I’ve been quiet of late on here but I’m going to try and catch up with stuff-it’s not like I’ve done no record shopping lately or anything.

 Sticking with Violent reaction, I noticed their 7” was getting a stateside release thanks to 6131 & Mind rot records.  I couldn’t resist-100 on white, 200 on red and the rest (600) on black. I own 5 copies now-bring on more represses

Violent reaction-City streets LP

Everyone's raving about the violent reaction LP and for good reason too. It's superb!!! Anyway I'm happy as I got two very limited versions. The first photo is of the UK pressing on Quality control on blue vinyl. Just 100 copies pressed and they went quick as you'd expect.
 The second copy is the US release on Painkiller and my copy is on red. If Marcus considers himself lucky to have grabbed one of these then so do I. I've still no idea how many there are on this colour. Not many I bet. As you can see the covers for both records are totally different so for once I don't feel too silly owning more than one copy of a record.
 So onto the music-it's total UK82 style with hateful, angry straight edge lyrics. Seriously it is. This could have come out on riot city or No future back in the 80's.

Quicksand-Divorce 7" Promo

An old friend came round a bit ago and sold me a load of mainly Metal records but amongst them was this, a two track promo 7” for Quicksand’s second album ‘Manic compression’. Must admit that I never rated that album, I don’t even own a copy anymore. I wouldn’t have gone out of my way for this but since it was amongst them and basically free I couldn’t say no.

 What’s interesting is that even though Revelation pressed the vinyl and Island did the CD, this single is a purely major label issue. I remember owning a 4 track 12” promo for their first album ‘slip’, fuck knows whatever happened to that copy

Institution - Domen Är Satt - 12" red vinyl

This was one of my favourite records of last year. No nonsense Swedish hardcore with ex-members of Heratys, Meanwhile etc-you knew that it had to be great. The first black vinyl pressing of this sold out very quickly but here's a limited second pressing on red. 300 I believe. Bring on the next pressing (and colour).

No Tolerance-No remorse, no tolerance 7" Test press

Most of you should know about this band and this record already so I'm not going to get into the an depth story of one of the best 7"s of last year. Other people have done better posts about it but I will add my newly acquired  test press to the mix. When I saw Marcus' post a bit back I decided that I just HAD to get one of these even if I knew it would set me back a few quid (or bucks) so here we are. No doubt that this is probably my favourite score of this year so far. The gold on black silk screened sleeve is beyond beautiful and it comes in it's own 'test press' stamped dust sleeve (and even a lyric sheet). Seriously this is the shit and completes my collection of this record nicely. I believe 25 were made. Stoked!!!!

Uncle acid (& the deadbeats)-Poison apple 7"

This new Uncle acid record dropped for pre-order a while ago. As expected shit went crazy on the Rise above site. I got lucky on two counts-one, I actually only found out that it was going up for pre-order an hour before while dicking about on a work's break and secondly because I actually managed to bag one of the most limited versions-the clear vinyl (out of 100) along with the two other mailorder colours (200 pressed of each). Even before the records were shipped, people were already selling them on Ebay which really pisses me off as the clear vinyl was limited to one per customer so these scumbags only bought them not because they were fans but simply as a quick means of exploiting someone who had missed out. Mind you, it doesn't stop people from paying through the nose. And even though all the copies on the site sold out within a week (including the black vinyl) I found out that there are a variety of other colours available in the shops. I'm not getting into that game again. This is where my collection of this record ends.
 This is a taster for the new album and I must say along with the B-side ('under the spell') if these tracks are anything to go by then it's looking very rosy although I'm not looking forward to trying to pre-order the damn thing.
 Also it's interesting to note although the sleeve just says Uncle acid on the front, on the actual record label it still has them down as Uncle acid & the deadbeats. Weird!!!!

Parasite/Wermapyre-Split 7" Test press

I got this release a couple of years ago when Holy terror put it out-at the time I was loving Parasite but not feeling Wemapyre at all. Nothing's actually changed on that front although I haven't heard this for a while. Also when this came out I had the chance to pick up a test press but at $99 I thought it was a bit steep even though I don't normally mind paying a bit for test pressings off small labels (as it helps keeping them afloat) but I'm glad I hung fire and got this considerably cheaper. I like the look of this-the sleeve is black and white but silk screened. I need to see if Parasite have released anything since-the tracks here have reminded how great they are.

Violent reaction-s/t 7" Edge day 2012 edition

I'd forgotten all about this one-mind you, it's an easy one to forget as it's so unremarkable as a package. This came out last October to celebrate Edge day.  At first I thought they were leftovers from a show as I bought this from the band online but seeing as their first 7" sold out within 20 minutes at the release show I doubt 20 of these would have lasted long anywhere. As soon as it was announced on the band's facebook page it was gone pretty much straight away. I was one of the ones who first saw the status on goofbook and automatically ordered one.
 So why is it so unremarkable-well it's the third pressing of the 7" in a plain cardboard mailer with a logo stamp, hand written and hand numbered and......erm..that's it. No bonus stickers, inserts or anything, just the 7", I could have made one myself.  Still I should count myself lucky, given the band's popularity right now, plenty of people would love to get one of these. Still, I can't help thinking that it could have been such a better package. The actual third pressing of the 7" in it's fold out sleeve looks nice though.

LARM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Last year I finally managed to get hold of the original Larm 7"s. Now it's turn for the LPS. The first is the split with Stanx on Eenheidsfront Records from 1985. I had the tracks on a cute looking 10" bootleg but this was more desired. It's probably the most sought after item out of all the Larm original vinyl.

Also got hold of the 1986 LP on One step ahead records. Again , another classic release.

What can I say about Larm that I haven't already said before apart from that even though they are hailed as a highly influential and inspiring classic hardcore band by many, there's still plenty of folk who are unwise to them. Seriously, get on the case and track down the full discography CD or double LP. Or like me, you could break the bank and get the originals.

Stars and stripes-Shaved for battle LP

Famous for featuring Jack Kelly of Slapshot fame, this album came out in 1989 and I can remember not bothering with it because it seemed too overly patriotic which is daft really considering at the time I was (and still am) a HUGE warzone fan. Released on the aptly titled Patriot records this has become a bit of a collectors item due to the presence of Mr Kelly and with collectors of Boston HC although is more straight up oi!!, still this is a dam good record. Something that took over twenty years to realise.
 The chance to own this came up so I thought why not. This goes for a bit these days and managed to get it at a  fairly reasonable price and avoided the ebay hassle. Surely a reissue would be appropriate sometime.

Brotherhood-Fuck racism/No tolerance 7" Blue

Another gap in the collection filled-the blue version of the Brotherhood 7" on Skate edge records. I've had a red vinyl copy for about 20 years along with a couple of copies of the 12" version  but this rarer colour has always eluded me for some reason. I nearly did a trade with someone off the Rev board back in the day but they turned out to be shady like a few that I encountered on there and in the Ads pages of MMR.
I figured it was time to grab one even if I had to pay a bit for it. Even though Brotherhood were from Seattle, they had a harder edged sound akin to the classic era of Boston HC  rather than a lot of the late 80's youth crew bands. This still holds up well today. Definitely one of the greats.

Alone in a crowd-s/t 7"

Yeah I know I've been very slack lately , part of it is sheer laziness and the other reason is even though I've been buying loads as usual I've only mainly be getting regularly stuff. I thought it was time to hit the piggy bank and chase up some bigger wants.  So much for cutting down and saving money.
 An old pal whom I bought some stuff off last year still had some bits left for sale so I hit him up and spent some dough. First up from that batch is this, the first pressing of the classic 7" from Alone in a crowd on flux records. Now I had four different versions of this including a test press but I was still missing this leaving my collection feeling incomplete so here we are. My fifth copy.
This is one of my favourite hardcore 7"s ever. It's just so angry and kick ass. 24 years later and it still hits hard. Glad I went out and finally got this. Just can't believe it took me so long.

Manpig-The Great Negative LP

Deep six records deliver yet again-the greatest label for fast HC/power violence/grind since Slapaham folded in 2001. Anyway this is one I've been waiting for-it's a 2005 re-recording of a 1992 session (which was lost) with RD Davies and Matt of the mighty Infest. Anyone who knows me is aware of my long time love for Infest. This isn't quite up to the standards of that classic band but it's still essential for fans and lovers of that sound. It sounds great and the cover art is well cool too.
 On a nice red/black splatter colour, I'm sure the pressing info as Deep six put stuff out in weird numbers so it could be anything between 50-100 (I'm rough guessing no more) but whatever it is this is sold out so only boring black vinyl remains.

Dinosaur Jr-Bug;live at the 9;30 club LP Live

Hard to believe it’s 24 years since I first heard Dinoaur Jr.’s ‘Bug’ and I never thought I’d still be talking about it nearly quarter of a decade later. It’s become regarded as a true classic and for many fans is their favourite Dinosaur Jr. album. So here’s an official live recording  of a performance of that entire album.  I’m not normally a fan of live albums but this is a sweet package. To start with it’s housed in a silk screened sleeve with a variation of the original artwork and on nice green vinyl. Also it’s a great quality recording-a must for fans. Limited to 800 I believe. Outer battery records.

Cathedral_a new ice age 12" Green

Despite loving the first two albums I had a phase where I really went off Cathedral. It wasn’t until the surprise triumph of 2010’s awesome ‘The guessing game’ until I started being a fan again. I ashamed to say that I never got to see them live, gutted. When their last record, this 12”, dropped at the end of 2011 as their last release I was content owning just the purple vinyl version despite there being various other colours (including just 100 copies each on white and clear, which were only sold at their last show). It wasn’t until reading this month’s record collector which stated that the green vinyl copy is now worth £55 that I decided to go and grab one since my local store stil had it in. Must admit solid green vinyl records give me an hard on and this looks great, limited to 300 copies,

So these two last tracks are a great send off to a great band that were often misunderstood (even by me) .

Enough-Common visions LP

About 18 months or so ago, I was introduced to Enough by Mike via their demo which had been released on 7”. Despite it not being original it sounded great-better than many bands’ ‘official’ records never mind demo’s.  Brilliantly executed and heartfelt old school style sXe hardcore but for some reason the world hasn’t caught on. By rights, Enough should be on a label like Revelation or Bridge nine but justice doesn’t always prevail. Still, their debut LP is nothing short of storming. I ordered this direct from Assault records and got the stamped numbered version.

Turbonegro-Sexual harassment LP

It’s always tricky when a band gets a new singer. More often than not it spells decline especially with the die hard fans but in Turbonegro’s case with ex-Dukes of nothing front man Tony Sylvester, it’s just another chapter in their book of greatness. Easily the best band I saw in 2012 have also delivered probably the best album of that year too. Although this arrived about a month after I ordered it I got an instant download which I played at least 4 times in 12 hours-I knew I was hooked straight away. Tony’s gruff vocals add an extra dimension to the band’s awesome brand of rock. It kinda reminds me a bit of Jerry A’s (of Poison idea) style which is no bad thing. The music is still catchier than herpes and the lyrics are just as sleazy and twisted as ever.

 The vinyl package is nice. Gatefold sleeve on a hot pink coloured wax (only available through mail order). Essential to any fan. I do need to get on the case and add lots more to my Turbonegro collection though. Here we go again….

2012 highlights list

As Chain of strength once said 'I can't believe another year's gone by..'. Oh well, 2012 was another great year for music in my book. Some great releases, some amazing gigs and some awesome scores---in fact I managed to track down some BIG items-some longtime wants I never thought that I was going to own.
 So here we are, my best of 2012 ...in no order.

LPs

Corrosion of conformity-s/t

Orange Goblin-Eulogy for the damned

Burning love-rotten thing to say

Dragonforce-The power within

Turbonegro-Sexual harassment

Admiral sir Cloudsey Shovell-Don’t hear it…

Morbus Chron-Sleeper in the rift

Institution-Domen ar satti
Boston Strangler-Primitive

 

7”

Crusades-Parables

Unholy majesty-s/t

Rot in hell Termini Terrae

No remorse-No remorse, no tolerance

Electric wizard-Legalise drugs and murder

Violent reaction-s/t

Gigs

Break it up/Orange Goblin (@Morrowfest, Nottingham  May)

Turbonegro-Manchester (November)

Poison idea/Cokebust/Wormrot (@Obscene extreme) Trutnov (July)

Kill the client-London (October)

Lotus Fucker-Manchester (November)

Backtrack-Manchester (April)

Scores

Iron Maiden-Soundhouse tapes 7” (Signed copy)

Black Sabbath-3 LPs with the vertigo swirl labels

V/A-NYHC together

Infest-s/t 7” Clear

Larm-No one can be that dumb 7”

Bastard-Wind of pain LP

Deathside-Bet on the possibility LP