Straight Edge: Rise Of A New Era

I tried poking around the interwebs for extra information about this Breakout Records compilation from 1999, and I came up with nothing. So, I'll just have to give a play-by-play from memory about the comp and the bands.


1. ABOVE THIS WORLD was fronted by Mikey Hood. Old style "cali hardcore"
2. ADAMANTIUM this recording of the song "virus" was from a different session than the one that ended up on When it Rains..., and I honestly like this version better EXCEPT for the singing part. The guitar into is different and the song just has a grittier, more raw feel.
3. SHUTDOWN this track was also on the album Few And Far Between
4. BUILT TO LAST was from the San Diego area, and always reminded me of Sick Of It All. Good dudes.
5. ANOTHER VICTIM this track was also on A Portrayal Of Vengeance, and is another stand-out track from this comp.
6. THROWDOWN this recording of "go the distance" is also different from the album version. The song would eventually be known as just "family"
7. BROTHERS KEEPER contributes a track from Sweet Revenge
8. RELY was fronted by this awesome kid named RJ who has been AFI's roadie forever. Very Nor-Cal style hardcore from this little-known band.
9. 18 VISIONS used the first track from the first full length Yesterday Is Time Killed, with arguably one of the best ways to start a song ever.
10. RACE TRAITOR's song "curse" was a great way to start their album as well. A funny review of that album can be found HERE
11. SWORN VENGEANCE was another Nor-Cal hardcore band. They put out records on Westcoast Worldwide and Back Ta Basics, so that might describe their sound.
12. BURDEN was the first sxe band from Vancouver, Canada. Members went on to be in Blue Monday and Carry On, and Aram from Champion filled in on guitar.
13. xCLEARx was one of the first and best sXe bands from Salt Lake City, Utah. I don't even need to get into SLC SXE in the 90s...
14. SHOW OF HANDS used the last song from their Smorgasbord Record's 7". Good, So-Cal hardcore.
15. TRIAL's song appeared on Through The Darkest Days, my favorite release from the band. I believe this song was also on the demo.

All in all, not a whole lot of exclusive tracks here, but a good representation of Straight Edge hardcore at the time. Worth it for the Adamantium track alone.

STRAIGHT EDGE: RISE OF A NEW ERA