New Morning Again track from upcoming EP

 
A brand new Morning Again track from the upcoming EP, Survival Instinct, has been posted to Revelation Records youtube channel. Stream it below and prepare for its projected November 9th physical release date.

Interview with Damien Moyal (Culture, Morning Again, Bird Of Ill Omen, As Friends Rust)

Damien Moyal is a verified Florida legend who has been involved with such projects as Culture, Morning Again, Bird of Ill Omen, Shai Hulud, As Friends Rust, etc. I was fortunate enough to catch this interview with him about several of those bands, his early days in South Florida's hardcore scene, and what some of these projects are up to now. This interview originally appeared in Plead Your Case Fanzine issue #13 and is being reprinted in the upcoming Giant Sized Plead Your Case Annual.

Hey Damien. First of all, what was your first hardcore or punk show? How did you get involved with the hardcore scene.

            The first show I remember was a local Miami band called The Goods at Washington Square (which was essentially Miami’s CBGBs) in 1990. I was taken there by some older friends, and immediately fell in love with being inside of a filthy, punk club. I was into a lot of thrash/metal stuff at the time, and dabbling in the usual starter kit lot of punk (Dead Kennedys, Sex Pistols, Exploited, GBH, etc.), but my only frame of reference at that point for venues were huge arenas (I had seen some bigger concerts, like Kiss in 1988) so a small, dangerous dive bar made quite an impact on me. Other early shows that stand out were Exploited and Biohazard at the Junkyard, also on South Beach in Miami in like 1991, and Sepultura with Sick Of It All, Sacred Reich and Napalm Death.
            Around 1990 I had started slowly getting wise to bands like Agnostic Front and Sick Of It All, either from friends or through reading thank-you-lists on other bands’ releases. I liked it, and appreciated that this was a nice balance between the punk I was listening to and the metal I loved. But I think when I really fell in love with hardcore was when I heard Minor Threat. The sheer relate-ability of the lyrics, the energy and urgency, and – very importantly – the photos that showed a kid (like me!) down in the crowd screaming in the faces of other kids (like me!)… I was sold, and I think that was the moment I understood what really made hardcore different from the pomp and fashion of metal and punk.
            Not long after that, I joined up with members of a (very) local band called Midget Stew, who mostly played parties and actually did a lot of Minor Threat covers. They needed a singer and wanted to do something new, so I took the microphone and we called the band US Decline. That was my first band. It was all downhill from there.

What was the hardcore scene like in Florida when you started playing in bands? Are there any particular FL bands from that era that stand out as your favorites?

            Miami had some great bands going at the time. Quit, a very skate-y punk band in the vein of Descendents, was incredible, and to this day their LP ‘Earlier Thoughts’ is one of the best things to have come out of Florida. LOAD was another heavy-hitter that you could catch on almost any weekend. The first proper local hardcore I was familiar with were the bands on the ‘Notes From the South’ compilation 7” that Youth Bus released, like Beyond Reason and Ego Trip, and soon after that the scene was brimming with amazing bands like Mindframe, Timescape Zero and Machine. The next wave brought bands like Tension, Brethren and Culture. I’m really focusing on South Florida bands here, as that was where I was from.
            The scene was really diverse, and it wasn’t uncommon to have ska bands on hardcore shows, hardcore bands on indie pop shows, indie bands on punk shows, etc. For being a pretty tough, somewhat dangerous scene (I never realized how much so until I started touring to other cities), the Miami scene was incredibly open-minded when it came to new bands and styles, and there was an overarching sense of unity across the entire underground scene. We didn’t have a lot of divisive politics.

Obviously Culture was a very political band in a lot of different ways. 20 years later, do you still feel passionate about the same political ideals that you did at that time?

            I still adhere to Culture’s most basic tenet, which was about thinking critically about the status quo, and defying it in areas where you feel it hurts, weakens or threatens free thought and expression. I’m still unapologetically liberal, and still vehemently opposed to oppression by political or theocratic powers. Culture was simplified, perhaps oversimplified, as a vegan and straight edge band, and as far as those topics go, I no longer identify with either. We still have folks in the band that do. But, as you mention, Culture decried a pretty vast array of social and political injustices/issues.

Going from being involved with more "metallic" or heavier bands like Culture, Bird of Ill Omen, Morning Again, etc., did you feel like it was a big change moving on to doing As Friends Rust, which is obviously a different direction musically? Was it strange for you to do a band that was so radically different than other bands you had done prior or was it a natural progression for you?

            I think it was a pretty natural progression. While I always loved playing heavy, dark, screamy, metallic hardcore, I listened to far more melodic hardcore off-stage. I had always wanted to do something more along the lines of Dag Nasty, and (in my mind, anyway) As Friends Rust fulfilled that.

One of my favorite personal Culture songs is "Pimping the Revolution". There has always been a sort of air of mystery around that song since the only recording that seems to be readily available is a live version of it. "Why would the machine mass produce what rages against it?" is a lyric that I have always thought was very cool. Would you care to elaborate a bit on that song and what its meaning was?

          That song was really trying to explore the issue of bands with subversive messages signing to major labels. There seemed to be a prevailing theory, and we’ll use Rage Against The Machine as an example since the line you cited addresses them, that subversive bands were “using” the clueless mainstream music industry as a platform to spread insurgent ideas. I started thinking that this was a bullshit justification, and when looking at a band like RATM’s audience – fraught with khaki-shorted Frat guys – I began to question how much of those messages were getting through. On the other hand, I didn’t want to dismiss the potential entirely, because I saw plenty of flaws with hardcore punk’s tendency to keep subversive messages so insular and protected that they couldn’t really being doing very much good in that capacity either. So the song didn’t really end with any conclusion being drawn… It was really about the question itself: Do these messages do more good underground, or above ground? Do they do any good at all? Is anyone listening?

If you were asked to pick 5 hardcore records that you'd consider "essential" or favorites, what would they be?

            Off the top of my head, I’ll go with (1) Judge’s “Bringing It Down” which is the perfect balance of introspection and anger, hardcore and metal, sad and pissed, (2) the Downcast 7” because ‘Hate Comes Easy’ is easily one of the best hardcore songs ever written, (3) the Inside Out 7”, (4) the Minor Threat discography and (5) Corrosion of Conformity’s “Six Songs with Mike Singing”

Are there any current or more recent hardcore bands that you're interested in? If not, what kind of music do you find yourself listening to as of late.

           As far as newer hardcore goes, I’ve been digging Turnstile, Wisdom in Chains, Expire and Alpha & Omega a lot. Maybe my favorite newer band at the moment is Noy, from Tokyo, whom I’ve had the honor of touring with twice now. They’re amazingly intense live, and give 100% of themselves when they play. Pretty special to watch.

In recent years you've been involved with On Bodies? What's going on with that band currently? What other projects, if any, are you currently involved in?

            On Bodies just got back from Japan (last night, actually) where we played a handful of really awesome shows. Cosmic Note Records from Japan released a CD that combines “The Long Con” EP and our (brand new) “Unremarkably Mortal” EP. A similar release will be coming in Europe soon-ish, but on vinyl, and in the US, Irish Voodoo Records will release the “Unremarkably Mortal” EP on 7”. We’re in the process of booking some US dates as well.
            Aside from that, I’m doing the occasional As Friends Rust show (two dates this late spring/early summer) and the occasional Culture show. This year is the 20th anniversary of Culture’s “Born of You” LP, so we’re reissuing it with new artwork on Germany’s Demons Run Amok label, and playing the Florida Rules Fest in June.

Your favorite show you ever played with Culture?

               My first real show with Culture was with Strife and Sick Of It All. Kind of hard to top that one, considering I was 17 and had been in the band like three weeks. The first reunion show in Miami in 2012 was amazing, and This Is Hardcore 2014 was as well.

Culture has a new 7" coming out this year. Tell me a bit about that 7".

             The reunion shows have been so much fun, and a very cool reminder of how much we (the Born Of You lineup) like playing together. So, on the heels of these reunion shows, we were curious to hear what we might sound like today, after twenty years of change and growth. The two new songs are no indication of any future shit, and while they bear some of the essence of old Culture material, they’re definitely more modern and different. We weren’t all interested in 90s hardcore replication, but I’m sure the traces will be there.

For those who don't know, what's the story behind the "Mike Warden Can Suck It" record, which seems to include a lot of alternate recordings of songs from Born Of You?

              Well, it never came out, but was basically just a re-recording of five of the “Born Of You” songs. The idea being that we felt Mike/Conquer The World had been less than honest about his sales and pressings of “Born Of You” so we wanted to re-do some of the songs on a different label, as a limited jab at him, inspired by Judge’s “Chung King Can Suck It” release.

Thank you so much for doing this interview. Any last words or shout outs you'd love to give?

               Thanks for being interested! Culture still has a few plans up its sleeve, and we try to post regularly on our Facebook page: facebook.com/bornofyou – Aside from that, keep your eyes peeled for On Bodies, because we’re hoping to turn it up a notch this year: facebook.com/onbodies

Morning Again Announces Upcoming Shows And Vinyl Represses

Morning Again has announced they will play a few shows this summer, the first in South Florida. More will be announced soon.

The band will also be re-releasing their discography on vinyl to coincide with the upcoming shows. Revelation Records will reissue "As Tradition Dies Slowly" and Demons Run Amok Records will release the rest of the bands recorded output.

Follow the band on Facebook to keep up with their whereabouts.

Morning Again To Play Bloodaxe Fest In Japan

Morning Again will be once again heading overseas, this time to Japan for the first time. The band will be playing this years Bloodaxe Fest which will be held in Kawasaki on September 21. Heaven Shall Burn will be headlining. You can check out the flyer for the fest below.

Also, check out footage of our friends Loyal To The Grave destroying at the previous Bloodaxe Fest.

Morning Again Merch Available on Thursday at 12 Noon EST

Yes, its finally here. Ive gone through everything and have it up in the store. All items will be available to purchase on Thursday at 12 NOON EST. If you left your email in the comments last months, I have emailed you to let you know. All purchases will begin shipping on Monday morning, Janury 31st. Thanks for your patience everyone.

Morning Again Merch Available on Thursday at 12 NOON EST

A Statement from Kevin Byers (Morning Again)

The other day, I was editing the final part of my interview with Rich Thurston (expect that in the next few days) when I received a message from Kevin. He told me that he had just read my interview with John Wylie and he wanted to address two topics. One, the subject of an alternate recording of "As Tradition Dies Slowly" and two, a comment made by one of our followers regarding the second Morning Again lineup and a stolen amp. Here's what he had to say:

"There was a first recording of "As Tradition...", recorded before a Euro trip. John thought the recording was too fast so we re-recorded it after the tour. I was sick on the record, could barely talk and that's why my vocals are really strained, especially on some songs you can tell the difference. Also, there's a comment on the Erie show. Our at the time guitar player did steal a dual rectifier head. I did the next day, unlike the comment said, call Dave Steele and tell him who had it and made Aaron send it back. He said we all played dumb. I realized after we got back to town and tried to resolve the problem asap. I had no part in it. That was why the second Morning Again broke up, because I knew Aaron ruined the name. I would like the air cleared on that. I don't want the Erie kids to think I would support something like that."

If you would to go back and read the interview with John, you can do so by clicking here.

The History and Demise of Bird Of Ill Omen (as written by Peter Bartsocas)

Last week, I received an email from Peter (guitarist of Bird Of Ill Omen) telling me about his current project, Gators. When I wrote him back, I told him that I would it if he would write up the history of Bird Of Ill Omen seeing as how the band still gets mentioned and there really isnt much information on the band to be found. He agreed and a few hours later, this is what I received. I really appreciate Peter taking the time to write this and for all the members giving this thumbs up. I hope you all enjoy reading this. -Chip

"When Chip asked me to write a piece on bird of ill omen's history i had to figure out how and where to start. since i joined a few months after the bands inception, i think it's best to do it two segments. bird of ill omen with damien moyal and bird of ill omen with shane post. so let's get started.
Damien Moyal had since left Morning Again and i was about 15 years old, playing bass for them at the time when i first learned about BOIO. i knew tom rankine from shows and his distro, indian burn (if there are any people still owed monies from this distro, i urge you to please call the BBB and file a claim. AHAHAHAHA). i knew he was in a band with fed up frank (he had a zine called fed up) called burning strong. i had no idea of any other bands he was involved with. i din't know much about the bird until i saw them for the first time at cheers, might have even been their first show, i think. the line up was george rios on drums, tom rankine on bass, jose (?) on guitar, joe simmons on lead guitar, and damien on vocals of course. they blew me away that night. the music was so heavy, dark and emotional. they really pulled the crowd in... literally. i remember damien grabbing some kid with a sepultura shirt from the audience that was up front by the stage. not sure what prompted this, but by the end of the song the kid was being strangled by damien with the microphone cable and the kid was loving it! that was the kind of vibe bird was emitting at these shows. i was with jerry v. at this show and we just looked at each other with equal parts amazement, disbelief, and pure delight. i was listening to all sorts of types of HC at this time. anything i could get my hands really, but i had never really SEEN anything like them. i was an automatic fan.
I continued playing bass with MA for a bit, but i was really just into playing guitar, so i always had many projects going with various people (night of broken glass was one of these bands, but i wanted to write heavy shit, so i would play with whomever was into it. at one point chad gilbert, kevin bauers, and some others.. -i think maybe jerry on bass?- had some songs written but never really went anywhere). Morning Again was getting pretty serious and John mentioned how he was going to book a tour in europe for the upcoming summer. Now, I was still 15 and even though i had done a small US tour with them, i knew there was no way my parents would allow me to take off with these guys for a month long tour to a bunch of foreign countries. I mean, i had a hard time convincing them to let me go out with them for the 7 days we did a few months prior. So i had to tell MA that they would have to find someone else.
One of the classic BOIO shows i saw was the infamous Club Q show where Damien had made a John Wiley mask and had a song about how he wanted to "trash your face", no doubt a reference to the MA lyrics he had written for "god framed me". the place went ape shit. projectile bar stools, people hanging from the rafters, just kids letting some steam off. it didn't help that the venue was run by a bunch of racist assholes, so a small scale riot ensued. it was a mess, but fun. i spoke to john about it after the show and he was actually really cool about damien pulling a stunt like that. he was actually really flattered and thought it was awesome. hahaha
i must have been 16 by this point, and i was hanging out with the coral springs crowd and/or miami people at this time, so i would find myself at different practices and whatnot. that's what we did back then. hang out outside of denny's after shows and go to band practices that our mutual friends were having, 'cause well, there was nothing else you'd rather do, and they were playing music you loved. i really don't remember the details of why or how jose left the band, but i think he was planning on moving to tampa or something, so bird was looking for a replacement. i was hanging out one night at bird's practice space, which was relatively close to my house. after jose left practice, tom rankine pulled me aside and asked me if i wanted to play in the band. i was so honored and really excited to get a chance to play with them, so of course i said yes. i do remember some sort of pranking/hazing thing happened during that conversation, like when there's that back and forth, "just kidding", "no i am serious". i think tom would have to way weigh in on this, since all i remember is driving off and him chasing me down, pounding on my window, and then finally telling me i was in the band. he was such an asshole. ahahahaha.
so along with my new guitar duties in the band, i ended up becoming the band's practice chauffeur. i was starting to wonder if the only reason i was even in the band was 'cause i had a car. hahahaha
we played with this line up for a few months, ended up on some sweet bills and everything was good. we wrote some new material as a band and it was all sounding great. at one practice i remember rob augman (dead patriot) being there to try and be our second singer, an idea that tom and damien had, i think. we wrote a song called scratch that night, which later became several different parts for other songs after damien and joe left. the best memory i have of that line up was this one old school house day fest /show. there was just this awesome vibe and atmosphere in the air where full moon hung around lighting the wooded outdoors. lot's of kids from vero/ftpierce/wpb area having fun and mingling with the ftl/mia crowd that drove up in large numbers. the highlights from that night included chad's first show with shai hulud (he was so nervous/out of breath after the first song he leaned over the open window and puked. after that, he basically ruled it), discount (with alison mosshart reading her own lyrics off a paper with her back to the crowd), but the one that will live in infamy was to take place during our set.
i remember plugging in my guitar, tuning, the lights going off and starting our newest song, scratch with this "acapella " screaming trade off between damien and i. that's basically the only memory i have of playing that night. it was a mystical feeling. almost like an out of body experience. joe and i have talked about this night and we've both agreed how we've never experienced a sensation or energy like that again. i would learn later from these pictures (i will include some of these if you haven't seen them already chip) that the place erupted and everybody just having a great time dancing and going nuts. now, the reason people still talk about this show, is that because during our set this kid eric (we'll call him ostrich since that was kind of his nickname after this day forward) kept turning the level down on damien's vocal mic. damien would go back to the PA and turn himself up again. this went on for several songs until ostrich was caught red handed fucking with the volume fader. damien went after him and the lights went on, pulling me back from the ether. screaming and fighting ensued. the fight was broken up and damien was walked outside to "cool down". not even a minute goes by and damien appears from outside the open window behind the drums and like spiderman just lunges on top of the ostrich. it was fucking insane and hilarious and one of my favorite memories of playing music.
several months later tom approached me with the idea of getting a replacement for joe. i think he was jealous of the time that joe was spending with the MA again guys and questioned his dedication to our band. i was opposed to the idea, but tom at that time was getting his way pretty regularly. i am sure he had a replacement in mind before he even suggested this move, and after several talks i just went along with it, 'cause it was the path of least resistance. when damien got word of all this in gainesville, where he was already spending a lot of time there doing his other band culture, he understandably quit.
turns out the guitar player tom rankine had in mind the whole time was a childhood friend, andrew logan. i later learned that most of the original bird songs were in fact songs written by a band andrew, tom, the original guitarist of bird jose (?), george rios and bundy had before called , crestfallen. i had met andrew a few times before, but didn't know him until the day i went to his house to "teach" him songs he already knew! ha
you have to understand how incestuous our scene was back then. it was commonplace for these sort of things to take place, as i am sure it was everywhere. hardcore bands were more like baseball teams, trading members and making moves to reach the majors....
so we there we were with this odd falling out with our former members, but it turns out that tom was half way right about joe anyway. he ended up joining MA right after and helped write their first record for rev records, and being a principal member for a long while. i think he was bummed, but i do believe he was a better fit with them and he went on to do a lot of great bands.
now we had a big task ahead of us finding a replacement singer. those were not easy shoes to fill, so we did what any band does in a situation like this. we held auditions (blegh). we shared a warehouse space with makeshift and brethren in north miami beach. we basically had an open call there. i remember scene vet coach, maybe alex from makeshift, rob augman, and a few others showing up. one of those people was a guy named shane we didn't know at all who was recommended to us by this guy ryan who at the time i think was playing guitar in MA. those two knew each other from the cleveland area and both had recently moved down to SoFLa. the "audition" was sort of like a cattle call. we didn't have any recorded material at this point (except an off the soundboard tape that jorge had), so we didn't expect anyone to know our songs enough to "try out". we had a few new musical ideas so we would play them as each contender would come in and take a swing at the mic. this was only an experiment to get a feel for the screaming voice each person had. one by one, as the others stood outside listening, we churned out our tunes, with each hopeful singer taking a crack at itt. after a few of the guys went, we were realizing how finding a suitable replacement could be harder than initially thought. we kept going that night. i think shane post went last. we started our drop D mayham jam and he let out this fucking growl that almost made me stop playing. tom and i looked at each other smirking in relief. before we even discussed it, we pretty much all knew he was the man for the mic. and it was like that how we settled upon the voice you hear on the recordings.
tom and i would drive up to lighthouse point where shane lived at the time and teach him the lyrics to the songs we already had and to get to know him a bit better. he was a few years older than all of us, worked as a mechanic, and he and his friend/roommate had moved from ohio together under dubious circumstances. we would joke behind his back that he probably a serial killer or something and shit just got too heated and he had to flee. i think there might have been some legalities involved with his buddy, but at this point it's all speculation and doesn't really matter.
we played a few shows with our new singer and he was well received. we were excited to be a full band again. around this time john wylie was thinking of starting his label, eulogy recordings, and asked us if we would like to go in to a studio to record for his first release. we did just that. a few weeks later we found a place in north miami called mad hatter studios. i have no idea why or how we found this studio. i assumed we'd be recording this is at studio 13, jeremy staska's joint. maybe he was booked, or we got a better deal through these guys, but john came by the studio and dropped off the money for the 2 day session. the studio was way pro. it had a huge live room where we ended up setting the drums up in the middle off and the guitar cabs on each end of the room. i was literally like 25-30 feet away from andrew's rig. the bass might have been DIed or maybe the bass rig was in an isolation booth, not sure. the control room was equally as nice with ADATs and equipment in racks everywhere. this is before i had any idea about recording what so ever. we recorded the main tracks in those two days, but we still needed to track some over dubs and all of the vocals. we had ran out of money and asked john to provide us with a bit more so we could finish it. he might have given the studio a little bit more, but then john stated that he wasn't going to put up any more money for the recording. we ended up bartering some stuff with the studio for some more time. i think i "stole" an extra VCR from my parents' house that wasn't being used, and some of the other guys came up with some cash. we were still trying to work out the final touches on some of the lyrics to a new song, might have been "manaquin". time was running out, but we made it happen. i am not sure if those jokers even spent the time to mix it, but we were all more than pleased with the outcome and got out of there with the masters. the artwork was compiled by tom and myself, using images we though were cool from god knows where, and some photos that stefanie jones had shot of us playing live. we send that off to sean from immigrant suns records with some notes and we waited. this was all still new to us. i remember having to download the layout for approval. this meant going to my mom's office after hours and waiting for HOURS to print and see the images. oh dial up, how cute you were back then.
at the same time john was booking a MA 2 or 3 week long east coast tour and wanted us to join the whole way through. not sure if we had any shirts or other merch on that tour, but we did end up dubbing a bunch of tapes/demos of two songs off that recording session. i believe we used "sharpshooter" and "now ruin is". we borrowed my dad's jeep cherokee and attached a hitch for a rented u-haul trailer. it was rather tight like that, so we were lucky that MA had a good sized van and one of us would jump in there for a bit to break up the long drives. we drove up 24 hours straight to to the first show, which was in staten island at some center of sorts. maybe like a knights of columbus type of thing. the bill was coalesce, the vorhees, MA and us. i might be missing some other bands, but i was totally stoked to be playing with coalesce. they killed it. some highlight shows from that tour were the first hell fest in syracuse, a few hatebreed shows, legion of doom in columbus OH, some toronto dates with New Day Rising, and indianapolis fest, where i broke my toe and guitar. what can i say; i had a lot of pent up frustration at the time. i had to play a few shows after that sitting down and did not make for good live performances, but we weren't about to quit the tour, that was for sure. our last show on that tour was at 403 chaos in tampa with Cave In, i think.
Several months after we got back, Eulogy ended up putting out red letter day's CD first because it was more ready i suppose, but we were in fact the Eulogy Recording 001 release. a few months later, with the help of erica scull and alexxx kenny we had pressed a simpler version of the vynil on thinktank records.
During that summer tour, tensions between George (aka lil' jorge) and the rest of the band could not be overlooked any more, and we decided to replace him with Jose(?) from the band Mendacity. Since he had long black hair and was somewhat similar to our old drummer, i think we called him little george. We played some shows with him and wrote some newer material, but never got a chance to record any of it. As the Christmas break approached (i was still the only member still in school) we decided to book another two week tour up the east coast, including Canada. We wanted a better suited vehicle for this trip and started looking for a van. We ended up renting a recreational van from some guy in Pompano. i have no idea how we hooked this deal up, but it was way cheaper than the van we were looking to buy so we went for it. I will never forget Andrew getting dropped off in Bubba C's (escape pod) car with a plastic bag consisting of an apple, a toothebrush, a pair of socks and 2 tshirts. i had to remind him that we were touring in the winter time in the north. along for the ride was Jose's friend and guitar player in Mendacity, Ralph. Nice, but quiet guy. so we piled in all our equipment in the back in such a way that you could lay down pretty comfortably and we were off. i dont remember a lot of the shows on the way up to Canada, but i will never forget the way back down south. we played a few shows in toronto and london ontario, with brutal truth that were pretty awesome. I think we had some new york shows booked up after those dates and were excited to get there and hang out in the big apple. i think tom had set up a radio show too. driving back in through the us boarder we were stopped and searched. next thing we know our drummer Jose was taken into custody and boarder patrol was looking to detain us for "aiding an illegal immigrant". we were confused to say the least. it was quite the fiasco. turns out that Jose's student visa (he was from ecuador) had run out months prior to the tour and didn't extend it. we didn't know any of this. we had no idea that he even had a visa. after much explanation the boarder patrol said that we were free to go, but jose would not be allowed back into the U$. They released him to the canadian side and we drove into Niagara Falls area and got a hotel room. After hanging out a few days we had no choice but to leave Jose behind and we were off back home, with our final stop being gainesville, where we were supposed to play the Alexxx Kenny fest on the YMCA campgrounds, near Micanopy. Turns out Jose and his girlfriend had secretly married a few months back and he was hopeful that he would be back soon after the legal stuff came to light. Jose had some family in montreal where he ended up staying for a few months. After his time there, his situation was still not resolved, so he ended up moving to spain. We hadn't heard from him for a long time after that.
Shane had met his future wife in Canada on that tour, so shortly after getting back to florida he moved back to Ohio for a few to be closer to her i think. Needles to say we all took a nice break from the band. During this time Tom, Andrew, and Bubba C started the band dead man's theory. I would fill in on bass once in a while, but the bird void was growing too big. Andrew and i would still get together and write for bird of ill omen stuff that would be placed on the back burner, but we also started giving more attention to our melodic punk band project from years past called the springfields.
We ended up meeting Nahuel who played drums in Milkshed, and after Tom convinced us that he could be put to task on playing our style of metal hardcore, we scheduled a few practices with him in hopes of reviving the band and recording the unreleased material. Middle George, as Nahuel would be referred as, was a phenomenal drummer and really let us hone in on our sound. He was actually perfect for the stuff we were trying to write and i think he liked the change of pace and maybe even viewed the stuff as a challenge. Either way, we were clicking and it was sounding great. We were practicing, sans shane who was still out of state, in this tiny room in Andrew's house in Miami Springs. His mom Rita, who we were all very close with, was diagnosed and was battling cancer during this time and stress inevitably arose. We booked some time with Jeremy Staska at his deerfield beach Studio 13 this time, and called Shane to come down and record. He might have been living back down there at the time even, i don't quite remember. Either way, we ended up recording the 4 songs that would end up on our second and last release. We never played a show with our new line up and after we got done recording we decided to take another break as Shane was going back up to Ohio to be a married man and Andrew's mom's condition hadn't improved. Around the same time i got offered to play with As Friends Rust and go on tour for 5 weeks with them and Discount, so i would gladly go up to Gainesville to rehearse with them. Eventually i got my GED and went up to GVL to start the tour.
I fell in love with Gainesville and felt it was time for me at the tender age of 17 to move there, but i was eager to have my bird buddies come up with me so we could continue doing the band. They did not come and understandably so, as andrew needed to stay home and deal with his family situation. We never had a conversation about the future of bird of ill omen again. We just kind of drifted apart i suppose. A whirlwind of stories, experiences shared and memories are what shapes lives. it has certainly shaped mine. Those times in bird of ill omen had it's ups and downs but it was a hell of a ride. I don't think we intended to break up, but it certainly happened. Nothing in life is promised, but i am super grateful to have lived that little piece of my life, and more importantly that other people liked our music enough to give a shit. i never really thought much about our impact, if any, on the hardcore community, but i am happy that we left behind some great memories for all of us to share. I moved up to NYC about 7 years ago now, and every so often i'll meet somebody who is not from florida that has not only heard of our slightly insignificant band but remembers us fondly. that's what is so great about this community. it transcends labels and fashion while reaching all who care enough to truly be a part of it. thank you for giving our flash in the pan efforts significance."

EDIT: Cover scan of "Self Dare You Still Breathe" by Alexandre Julien.

Homesick Holidays: A Sorrowful Christmas Compilation

I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and happy holidays from all of us here at Stuck In The Past and hope that you all have a safe and happy holiday season. I received an email from Peter (ex-guitarist for Bird Of Ill Omen) who told me that he had put together a Christmas compilation featuring his band, Gators, as well as some other bands featuring members of Culture, Morning Again, As Friends Rust and more. Its a free download so if you have the time, check it out. Also, Peter has agreed to write up the history of Bird Of Ill Omen so expect that in the near future. Thanks for all of your continued support and have a great holiday.

Homesick Holidays: A Sorrowful Christmas Compilation

Morning Again - Leftover Merch from the Reunion

I just spoke to John and he said he has some stuff left. Not sure of the sizes yet but Im trying to find out at least who might be interested in picking something up. Leave a comment if you are interested so I can forward it to him. There should also be posters left too...here's the designs. The first 2 (God Framed Me and We Can't Always Rebuild...) were also made as hoodies in a limited number so they might be available as well.

Morning Again - A Child Only Knows What They Are Shown Tshirt

To be quite honest, this shirt is a little bit of a head scratcher for me. Yes its legit, I bought it from the band after the release of the "My Statement Of Life In A Dying World" record. I don't remember them selling it after I purchased it and I haven't seen it for sale since (on Ebay I mean). The front has the standard XXX logo but only a one color, more simplistic version, not the usual 2 color that we tend to see. The back has a picture of a young girl holding a gun with one hand and covering her eyes with the other. The lyrics next to her are from the song "Stun The Evolution". Perhaps the design didn't do as well as the band expected so it was discontinued? Strange...I still haven't seen it since I picked it up. Other color variations besides the heather grey? No clue..but I really do dig the simple logo on the front.

Morning Again - Martyr T-shirt

Today, Im looking back at "Martyr" design that Goodlife did for the band. Simple and to the point on the front with a nice silver ink laid over the white but a nice live photo on the back. The photo was used in the insert for the record and features a few South Florida regulars at the time including Jordan Pundik (New Found Glory), Jordan Leitner, Peter Bartsocas (Bird of Ill Omen) and Stephanie Jones (local photographer). Not quite sure who took the photo but Im assuming it was Lori Austin, another local photographer, as she and Stephanie were both credited with the photos in the insert (and the fact that Stephanie is in the photo). This design was also used as a hoodie as well the tshirt. Not quite sure how many colors this was printed on but I have it in this blue as well as hunter green and heather gray.
I spoke to John and he told me that there are about 50 presale tickets left so if you want to get into the show an hour before everyone else instead of hanging out outside in the beautiful area known as Little Haiti, get them soon. Tickets will be sold at the door but you'll still have to wait outside until 8. The first band starts at 8:30 (my friends Harbinger are opening and they're killer, so get there early to see them). Click here to order your presale tickets.

Morning Again - The Cleanest War T-shirt

So here we are, counting down the days to the Morning Again show (5 days). At this point, I've basically bombarded you to no end with details on the show but I'm not quite done yet. If it has gotten to a point where this is starting to bug you, I apologize but Morning Again has been and continues to be my favorite band to come out of Florida and knowing that I've had a hand in this whole process makes me pretty excited so I'm passing on the excitement to the rest of you. Until the day of the show, I plan to post a different shirt with a little history each day.
Anyway, today I was going through my shirts and I came across the bands "Cleanest War" design. This, I believe, is the bands second t-shirt following their "Progress Sets Us Back" design that I posted a few months back (thanks again Ivan) before they signed with Conquer The World Records. This design was printed for the "Cleanest War" record that Conquer The World did release (on a side note, while some people do have their opinions on Conquer The World Records, Mike did release some killer records) though I'm not sure of the quantity in which they were pressed or if the label sold them or just the band. This design features what would become one of the bands 3 logos (the others being the XXX logo from the Goodlife Recordings releases and the later designed Richie Birkenhead logo from the Rev release) and if I'm not mistaken is the first time the tree logo was used. No info on who designed the logo though (John, Damien, Eric...if you have any info, pass it on). The back features a smoke stack with the "Cleanest War" above it. The print is this weird puffy paint...very odd. It's almost as if the print should be glow in the dark. I don't think I've seen this type of paint used on any other shirts I own...definitely a cool design though. Not quite sure if this was printed by the 90s resident South Florida screen printer, Lowell from Bending Tree, but I'll do some snooping and see if I can find out.
The show is this weekend and the band will have merch as well as the silk screened posters so Ill post updates...lots of old friends coming out that I haven't seen in years. The show is supposedly going to be videotaped so you'll be able to see the happenings at a later date.

Morning Again Silk Screened Poster for the December 11 Show

John just posted this poster that will be available at the show next week. These were silk screened by Iron Forge Press and they look absolutely amazing. There's a chance that after the show, whatever is left will be available on the website. Leave a comment if you're interested in getting your hands on one after the show and if enough people do, Ill post the link.

Morning Again Reunion, Tickets Now On Sale

Tickets are now available for the Morning Again reunion show. In case you missed the information we posted, you can get more or less everything you need right here. The show is $10 for 8 bands on 2 stages. Im really excited that this is actually happening and I hope that many of you can make it out the show. As more info is passed along to me, Ill have it posted.

Tickets can be purchased by clicking here

Morning Again Reunion, Confirmed! A Stuck In The Past Exclusive

I just got off the phone with John Wylie and he confirmed the Morning Again reunion. The show will take place at Churchill's Pub in Miami on Saturday, December 11 2010. More details will be released later this week but the following bands are scheduled to play:

Morning Again
Kids Like Us
All Hell Breaks Loose
Remembering Never
Knock Em Dead
Homestretch
Harbinger

The lineup for the band will be John and Steve on guitar, Jerry on bass, Kevin on vocals and Matt on drums. If you are interested in traveling down for the show, shoot me an email at Dancefloorjustice305@yahoo.com and Ill try and get you some info on hotels that are relatively close. Again, this is 100% confirmed by John. If you have any further questions, leave a comment or shoot me an email and Ill do my best to field them until John releases more info. No word yet on whether or not the band is going to make merch for the show (crossing my fingers that they will) but check out the Eulogy Outlet store. They had a few shirts up but quickly sold out. There are still loads of boxes to go through so it's possible there are more so be patient. This is something I've been bugging John about for years and its finally happening. As soon as we have more info, it will be posted.

"Love Is Never Wrong...."

Rich Thurston (Culture, Blood Has Been Shed, Terror, etc) Interview: Part 2

Here we are again, part 2 of my interview with Rich. Sorry for the delay but we should have part 3 up next week and I plan on finishing the interview soon. Again, I want to preface this by stating that the opinions expressed belong to Rich and do not reflect Stuck In The Past as a whole.

EDIT: For some reason, the second half of the interview was cut off. Its fixed now and part 2 in its entirety is now up.

Stuck In The Past: So you guys released Born Of You with Conquer The World. Did you guys start touring right after?

Rich: We never actually did a full tour. We did weekends. To be honest, we never really played anywhere. Chicago, Indianapolis, and Dayton/Cincinnati. We never did a full US tour or anything. We played Syracuse and a few other East Coast cities but again it was all done on weekends.

Stuck In The Past: Who was doing the booking at that time?

Rich: I believe it was (John) Wylie mostly. I did a few here and there. Mostly John though.

Stuck In The Past: After the full length, you guys did a split with Roosevelt.

Rich: yeah. We were good friends with those guys. It just seemed natural to do it. At that time we were down to record and release as much as possible.

Stuck In The Past: Its nice to see a split between bands that play different styles. You guys sounded nothing alike.

Rich: I know. Ha. There were so many bands back during that time and what was the coolest thing about it was that no one sounded the same.

Stuck In The Past: Was it after the release of the split when John and Damien left the band?

Rich: I'm pretty sure thats when yeah, Damien first then John. John's last day in the band is when we opened for Shelter in Melbourne.

Stuck In The Past: Why did they quit?

Rich: Well therein lies the big story. Ha, I think John and Damien just butted heads, Damien quit in Johns car after we had practice one night. I remember it like it was yesterday. John quit after I got arrested and all my bullshit started. John was smart like that. He knows how to play his cards correctly.

Stuck In The Past: And you were arrested because....

Rich: Well...I was with someone that did something and I got arrested for it too. Basically, I got into a fight with a guy and someone I was with, not even a friend, pulled a gun out. Someone else stole something out of the guys car. It turned into an armed robbery charge. Ray from Tension and later Vietnom was also arrested.

Stuck In The Past: Because of the same incident?

Rich: Yes sir.

Stuck In The Past: After John and Damien quit, Mark re-joined?

Rich: Thats all about the arrest? Ha. Well we tried some other singers. Louie that played drums for the original Morning Again lineup sang and I think there was one more. Mark joined eventually.

Stuck In The Past: Whoa theres more about the arrest?

Rich: There is plenty if you reallt want to get into it.

Stuck In The Past: Hell yes I want to know

Rich: Ok.... this may take a while to type so bear with me. All the drama for me can be summed up pretty simply. I was dating a girl. That girl traded up for a more notable scenster. I was friends with said scenster. Now you know the rule about dating your friends exs etc etc. Instead of following that he used my arrest as a way to rally the troops against me. There was a guy named Scoot Haak. He was living in Hollywood, FL. and he was friends with all of us. He got shot and killed at a show in the courtyard of Far Out Records. When I was arrested for armed robbery said scenster used that saying I should have known better. I was involved with guns and after Scott was killed, I should have known better etc etc. One by one, all of my old friends listened to this guy and I eventually lost everyone. It was so frustrating because not only was I arrested for what someone else did but it was so hypocritical. Every single one of my so called friends had guns and sold guns. It was just easy to use me as an example.

Stuck In The Past: Holy shit!

Rich: You have to understand that time in South Florida hardcore. It wasn't safe. It wasn't all stage dives and sing alongs. It was dangerous. Gangs like Zulu Nation and shit like that had people involved in hardcore. Anything could happen at anytime. Have I done things that were shitty? Of course. I made alot of bad decisions. Maybe what happened to me was karmas way of getting me back. Who knows. What I do know is that I was for sure a scapegoat for some people. I have a milloin stories...

Stuck In The Past: I think we should do a regular feature called "Storytime with Rich".

Rich: Well I have plenty of them. I mean some real good ones. Looking back it was a crazy ass time man. It was really out of hand.

Stuck In The Past: So what became of the whole incident?

Rich: Well I had always admitted to punching this guy in the face. I was willing to pay for that crime which I did. Two weeks time served and 3 years probation. I never ratted. I never lied. I had nothing to do with any gun and eventually it came out. Thats why I got probation. I was two months into my probation when we (Culture) went to Europe for the first time. I had to go to court and shit to get permission to go.

Stuck In The Past: And they were okay with it?

Rich: I guess so. Ha. It was job related as far as there were concerned. I played the Shelter show in Melbourne with an ankle monitor on. I got released from jail like two days before the show.

Stuck In The Past: That didn't leave much time for practicing haha.

Rich: Well I was only in jail for two weeks so it wasn't like I forgot the songs. My life back then was lawless and insane. From about 18 to 24 or so it was crazy. I'm really surprised i'm alive to be honest.

Stuck In The Past: What about Greg Fish?

Rich: I was best friends with him for a long time. He was the "scenster" I was speaking about earlier. I loved that guy man. He was one crazy bastard. Half the shit I got into was because of his influence. The only thing I would change would be I would like to have reconciled with him before he died. I found out he died a day or so after we got back from Europe.

Stuck In The Past: I heard he died in the back of someone's truck.

Rich: Yeah. He was drunk and choked on his own vomit from what I was told. I always knew he would die young I just thought it would be in a hail of fire

Stuck In The Past: I remember being at the Earth Crisis show at Cheers in 1997 where Culture got up to play a song and Fish threatened to kill you if you he saw...or something to that extent?

Rich: Ha. Yeah. The funny thing is I dont think he really wanted to. It had built up so much that he had no choice but to continue the nonsense. Before we played I saw him outside. We had words. I didnt back down and nor did he but I know Fish. If he really wanted to fight me he would have right then and there. I had stood next to him so many times before and we would fight all the time. Hell we would go to South Beach and just randomly fight club goers. I know if he really truly wanted to he would have. We played three songs then I left. Being involved in the South Florida hardcore scene back then was not all fun and games. You were constaintly being tested and watched by other people. You could never show weekness and you could never back down. No matter what. I have a great Rich and Fish story if you want to hear it.

Stuck In The Past: Absolutely

Rich: West Palm Beach, Florida. Not sure of the year. Pantera, Biohazard and Machine Head show. For those that don't know, at that time West Palm had a ton of sudo nazi skinheads. Like they were only nazis when there was 20 of them together. Ha. So It was Greg, myself, Josh Williams (Culture drummer)and I can't really think whom else but only like one or maybe two other guys. I was the biggest one. There were easily 30 or so nazi skinheads there. During the Machine Head set they must have recognized either Greg or myself. To make a long story short...the lights go down for Biohazard. We can see these guys circling around us. We were screwed. I remember Greg saying to the other guys..."If any of you pussies run i'll kill you". Ha. The lights come back on. To our pleasant surprise, all of the Non nazi West Palm skinheads were there. Eventually South Florida would know them as Colorblind. Fyi... I was the first person to have a colorblind tattoo. Anyways....It was like 30 on 30 now. We beat the holy hell out of
these guys. I'll never forget the looks on their faces

Stuck In The Past: Was that the Slayer show?

Rich: No, it was Pantera-Biohazard-Machine Head. I'm sure something similar happened at Slayer too though. Ha.

Stuck In The Past: So you guys kicked their asses?

Rich: It was so bad. Those guys got demolished.

Stuck In The Past: Did you ever worry about running into those dudes at a show after that incident?

Rich: Nah. We never really went to West Palm back then for shows and if we did we rolled so deep we didn't worry about shit. Those guys came down to Miami a couple times and got beat so bad that they never came back.

Stuck In The Past: Was it pretty much a fistfight or were weapons involved?

Rich: Good old fashion fists.

Stuck In The Past: Kinda makes you long for the old days...

Rich: Yeah...I mean sometimes there were knives and whatnot but no guns. It was more one on one...hand to hand back then. Like I said...shit was crazy back then. The most important thing to remember about the scene back then was it was so incredibly chaotic. Constant scheming and craziness. You never really knew who was your friend or out to get you. No one hardly ever made good decisions. Did I do alot of shady shit.... absolutely. My middle name was bad decision. However... I took alot of blame and heat for shit that everyone else was doing too. Thats all i'm gonna say about that.

Morning Again - First T-Shirt Design

My friend Ivan, a fine gentleman whom I havent seen in many years, wrote me last week telling me that he was going to send me a package. That package arrived and inside was so much goodness. T-shirts, 7 inches, posters, stickers...I was beyond excited. But the most exciting thing for a collector like me was the inclusion of what John Wylie gave me a 99.9% confirmation on was the very first Morning Again shirt, hand screened by the band. The shirt has a little fading on the print but overall is in good shape. Not sure how many they made or even what year it was screened (my assumption would be 1995 or 1996 obviously). To the best of my knowledge, I now have a complete Morning Again t-shirt collection (unless someone knows something I'm missing). The lyrics on the back are from the song "America Online". I always liked that line...anyway, Ive got loads of stuff to scan and take pictures of but heres a small taste of what is in store.

Rich Thurston (Culture, Blood Has Been Shed, Terror, etc) Interview: Part 1

This is another story that has been a long time coming. Rich Thurston has been a part of some of the most recognizable and important bands of the 90s. He has a great story to tell and told me that he wanted to touch on everything, not holding anything back. This is the first part in what is going to be quite a lengthy interview so get ready because Rich speaks his mind.
I want to preface this by stating that the opinions expressed belong to Rich and do not reflect
Stuck In The Past as a whole. His opinions regarding Conquer The World Records again are his.

Stuck In The Past: Alright well lets start at the beginning. How did you first get into hardcore?

Rich: I was introduced to "heavy music" by my cousin. She was into stuff like Kiss and Van Halen. I was five when I got my first Kiss 45". I went as Paul Stanley for Halloween and shit. It was sweet. Around fourteen, I started listening to Motley Crue, Iron Maiden and other metal bands of that era. I started skating and as such I was hearing more punk. I remember meeting a kid named Chris Goldbauch (Radiobaghdad). He was one of the few punk/skater kids in my high school. He had a Dag Nasty and a Minor Threat sticker on his car. I went into Record Bar in the Coral Square Mall and bought them both. The rest is history.

Stuck In The Past: Matt Fox (Shai Hulud) told me about how he used to go to Coral Square mall with some friends and see you at the arcade. He referred to you as the "Suicidal Tendencies guy".

Rich: hahahahahaha. I had a Suicidal Tendencies "possesed to skate shirt". I wore it all the time. I loved that mall. It was the best place in world when you are 15 or 16.

Stuck In The Past: When did you start your first band?

Rich: I was 18 I believe. I was still in high school. The band was called Ego Trip. It was terrible and amazing all at the same time. That was a really great time for hardcore and punk in South Florida actually.

Stuck In The Past: You guys had tracks on the Notes From The South Comp right?

Rich: That is correct. That comp was so much fun to be a part of. All of our friends had bands and we all recorded at the same studio back to back.

Stuck In The Past: That was a great comp. Some great forgotten South Florida bands like Beyond Reason and the Believers on it.

Rich: The Believers shit still holds up today. I loved that band. If you think back there were alot of really good bands in South Florida. The scene went through a shift in the 90's. Like there were alot of bands and kids then nothing then a huge resurgence again.

Stuck In The Past: It seems to go in cycles worldwide where theres lots going on then nothing.

Rich: Yeah man. I really think its a generational thing. The guys that have been around for years start to back out and the new kids come in. There is always a lull when something like that happens. Every scene has that happen.

Stuck In The Past: Yeah its a bummer...I miss a lot of the kids that used to go to shows.

Rich: Well when I moved from South Florida, it was under less then favorable circumstances. I was on the outs with the "scenesters" of the day. I do know what you mean though. I experienced it a bit there.

Stuck In The Past: We'll get to that in time haha. What year did you start Ego Trip?

Rich: I'm thinking it was like around 91' or so. I was a terrible guitar player. I had terrible equipment. As a matter of fact, we were all terrible in that band with terrible equipment. It was still an amazing time. There were no expectations, no worries, no managers or all that. Just straight up core.

Stuck In The Past: But thats kind of what makes your first band fun: trying to figure out how to play.

Rich: For sure. It was just four guys making it up as they went along. Kickin ass and takin names.

Stuck In The Past: How long did the band last for?

Rich: Two years I think. I also played in Timescape Zero during the tail end of Ego Trip. Just a few practices, nothing major. No shows or recordings. Ego Trip broke up at my house actually. My parents went out of town and I had some people over. I was the only edge kid around so everyone else was drinking. My buddy Bob Goldie and his girlfriend were there. She was passed out drunk in the spare room. The drummer of Ego Trip, Brian, snuck into the room and started messing with her. I caught them. I had to go tell Bob. He went in and it got ugly. The band ended that night.

Stuck In The Past: Yikes. Not a good way to end either.

Rich: Not for Brian. Hahahahahah. I was done with it though. I had out grown the band.

Stuck In The Past: What did you do after the band broke up?

Rich: Hung out for a while. I played with other guys here and there. Nothing major. I didnt do much until 94 or so when I started Culture.

Stuck In The Past: How did Culture start?

Rich: Well I had moved to Richmond, VA. I actually played in Grip which later became Dayspring for a bit. Played a few shows with them. When I came back I wanted to play again right away. I had a taste of playing in a real band at real shows. I wanted more of it.

Stuck In The Past: Did you do any touring with Dayspring?

Rich: No. I just filled in on some shows for them when it was still Grip. Like I think it was two or three different weekend trips on the east coast.

Stuck In The Past: They were great band...I feel like they were really overlooked even though they were on New Age

Rich: More importantly they were solid dudes but you are right. Way overlooked. I remember when Dayspring came to Melbourne, FL and played at that skate park place. So good.

Stuck In The Past: I wish I could have seen them

Rich: I wish alot of the kids that came up after me had got to see alot of the bands of that time. I think it would give a different perspective. I have a great Chokehold story if you want to hear it?

Stuck In The Past: Definitely

Rich: Chokehold in Melbourne at some over the top redneck bar. It was their last tour...one of the their last shows actually. There were about 100 people there which for melbourne was huge. I remember the first note like it was yesterday. All hell broke loose. The bar had no idea what was going on. There was a huge American flag hanging up and someone crowd surfing tore it down. That was enough for the rednecks. They cut the sound. The onyl thing you could hear was the drums and a hundred kids singing. So fucking good man.

Stuck In The Past: I remember my friend Ivan telling me about this. He was a little older than me and real good friend with Jerry (Morning Again). He said it was the best show he ever went to.

Rich: It was a great display of hardcore aggression. No doubt. I miss those days.

Stuck In The Past: So you started Culture when you got back from Virginia. What year was this? 1994?

Rich: Something like that yeah. After playing those shows with Grip I knew it was something I needed to do. I had no real equipment. I found a couple of guys in West Palm Beach that wanted to play. I had no place to live. I was going from house to house. It was a rough time for me. It really was. However... no matter how hard it got I knew I wanted to play hardcore and I was determined to make the band work

Stuck In The Past: Who was in the first lineup?

Rich: The very first practice was myself (guitar), Mark Mitchell (vocals) and Josh Williams (drums). Our first practice was in Marks spare room.

Stuck In The Past: Did you initially want the band to be vegan straight edge?

Rich: We had no agenda. I did want to be in a band with Straight Edge people but it didnt have to be a sxe band or a vegan band. I think thats what made our first demo and eventual 7" so good. I wasn't vegan until later on in the band.

Stuck In The Past: Did you play any shows with the first lineup?

Rich: One or two at a place called The Foundation in West Palm Beach. We only had like 3 songs. We played covers and stuff.

Stuck In The Past: What songs were you covering?

Rich: Lets see. Integrity, Helmet, hell I cant remember now. Ha

Stuck In The Past: Haha alright. Well you guys released the demo and the 7 inch. Were those different recordings or were the 7 inch tracks taken from the demo?

Rich: Yeah. They were the songs from the demo. We sent it out to a few labels but never really expected it to amount to anything. I remember getting a letter in the mail from a label and they wanted to do it.

Stuck In The Past: How pumped were you?

Rich: I was so stoked. I mean, thats what every band wants. Hardcore was different back then. It wasn't as easy to get signed as it is now. There were only a handful of labels even going so to get an invite to one of them was such a wonderful feeling.

Stuck In The Past: That was Shadow Records?

Rich: Yeah. I think we were one of two releases they did. After our 7", I don't think the label did anything else.

Stuck In The Past: Culture was known as the band that launched the (for lack of a better term) legends of Damien Moyal and John Wylie. When did they join the band?

Rich: What about me asshole!?!?!?! Ha.

Stuck In The Past: You dick haha. You know what I mean

Rich: Damien and John were the final touchs that made Culture what it was. John was a great guitar player and up until he joined it was just me. It let us write two guitar parts and do different things. I think thats what gave the atmosphere we got in the release. Damien's voice is legendary. His range and his aggression fit the music so perfectly. Those times when he wasnt in the band the lead singer position lacked big time.

Stuck In The Past: Were you still writing the lyrics or did he take over when he joined?

Rich: I wrote alot of the lyrics on Born Of You. Damien really came into his own and started writing after that. That fucker wrote some serious lyrics man. I remember writing the music for songs and not being able to wait to hear what he was gonna say over it.

Stuck In The Past: He really has a distinct style with the layering of the vocals in the studio.

Rich: Absolutely. He gave the music such an air to it. It was just so angry. We were angry. We wanted to change the world.

Stuck In The Past: Tell me about Natural Order.

Rich: Hahahahaha. To be honest, it was just a bunch of angry kids yelling alot. We never really did anything. We all got Natural Order tattoos and thought we were invincable. We had such a passion about veganism and straught edge that we needed an outlet. We all did zines. Remember zines? Mine was called Nature First. My boy Anthony Conte had one too. We just need to vent our frustrations so thats how it came about. We were real dicks to people to. Ha.

Stuck In The Past: We were all angry at that age...kind of our way of dealing with the pressure around us.

Rich: I blame Earth Crisis.

Stuck In The Past: hahahaha

Rich: Yeah man. I mean it was real to us. It was something we felt strongly about so we went with it.

Stuck In The Past: Alright, so John and Damien joined, when did you find Gordon?

Rich: Josh Williams knew Gordon. They surfed together or something. Ha. We really needed a bass player so we didnt hesitate.

Stuck In The Past: Who was playing before him? Was it Stan?

Rich: Whats funny about the named bass players before is that none of them really played. I just used there names on releases and stuff so it looked like we had one.

Stuck In The Past: So Stan (Obal) never played on the demo?

Rich: Nope. I played all the guitars, bass and sang. Stan and I were good friends at the time so I just used his name. Ha.

Stuck In The Past: hahaha. I do remember Stan being a pretty good musician though.

Rich: That he was. I dont think that it was we didnt want him to do it. We just didnt really think about it. We just needed a name for the bass player. I think he was with me when I made the inserts or something. Ha.

Stuck In The Past: So the band was playing out pretty regularly and then you hooked up with Conquer The World records. How did that happen?

Rich: Ya know I think I sent a demo to Mike Warden because I knew Chokehold was on the label. He was into it and we began the writing process for a full length.

Stuck In The Past: And who are you to argue with being on the same label as Chokehold?

Rich: Exactly. Back then, they were the shit and pretty much the same as us. Angry and trying to change the world. Go ahead.... ask me!

Stuck In The Past: Ive spoke to Damien and John about it...tell me about what happened with Conquer The World Records.

Rich: That a boy. Ha. CTW helped launch some pretty important bands of that time. Chokehold, Culture and Morning Again at the front of the pack. We didn't know anything about Mike. To us he was a guy that ran a label that wanted to work with us. We didn't ask alot of questions nor was there ever a contract. All verbal promises. That was our fault. We never ever knew what he was doing. He was making shirts and never told us. He would say stuff was out of print but he was sending records all over the place. He is by far the worst graphic designer of all time. Did you see the cover of the Born Of You 12"? At what point did he look at that and say "sweet"? He just turned into a big liar. He ripped off a bunch of bands. I believe Morning Again used him so they could get a release out to shop around. He still maintains that he didn't do anything wrong and WE, the bands, lied to him. I have no idea how we could have lied to him about anything but whatever. He's a sad man that still tries to stick his nose in from time to time.

Stuck In The Past: In the insert for the Goodlife release of "Born Of You", the band says that the record was continuously repressed without the bands permission...or something to that extent.

Rich: Yeah. Records would show up in distros not only in the US but in Europe as well. He just lied to try to make a little change off his bands. Its not like he made alot. Seems a small reward for being basically black balled.

Stuck In The Past: As band, did you ever confront him over the issue?

Rich: Never face to face. We were in Florida and he was in Detroit so we never saw him. If we played close to Detroit he wouldn't show up or anything. I'm sure we had some letters back and forth. I really dont remember. I just remember knowing we would never work with him again. Like I said, I think Morning Again did it just for the sake of knowing he would put it out no questions asked.

Stuck In The Past: Anything else you want to cover on the subject?

Rich: I just think that it dissolved itself. We just stopped talking. He went his way and we went ours.