Atlas Shrugged - 'Old Familiar Face' 7"

Another request, and another Moo Cow Records release, this time a 7" they released together with Fistheldhigh Records, back in 1998. Atlas Shrugged was an amazing hardcore band out of New York who had a pretty distinct sound, altho one can definitely hear influences of bands such as Burn. Rocking & grooving hardcore with the passionate spoken/screamed vocals of Chris Weinblad, who also did, and still does, Trip Machine Laboratories. Ever since I first heard this band on their split 7" with New Day Rising, I loved em. I've gotten pretty much all of their releases, at least the ones I know of, and I can recommend them all. This was their final release/7" before their demise in 1998. They did record a few more songs in 1998 tho, however they never got released at the time. Trip Machine Laboratories released those recordings in a limited run as the 'Vigilante Songs' CD-r a couple of years ago, and has also been planning an Atlas Shrugged discography for a while now, hopefully that will happen soon, this band needs more recognition.

Atlas Shrugged - 'Old Familiar Face' 7"
Atlas Shrugged myspace

Review: Killing Time - Three Steps Back

'Three Steps Back', which was released just last month on Dead City Records is Killing Time's first record since 1996's 'The Method' album, and only the 3rd full-length since their debut-album 'Brightside' was released in 1989. To me, 'Brightside' is one of the best NYHC albums of the late '80s, and singer Anthony Comunale has one of the best throats in NYHC history. However, the records they did since (2 EP's and the aforementioned 'The Method') have been received with mixed reviews. Either you loved em or hated em. I really dig the 'Happy Hour' MCD but wasn't into the other EP, 'Unavoidable' and especially not 'The Method'. They lacked power and direction and overall just didn't do it for me. I also saw Killing Time a few years ago with the singer of Uppercut doing vocals for em, and they seemed uninspired and going thru the motions. So when Chip asked me review their latest record I wasn't sure what to expect.

Right from the start the band makes it pretty clear that Killing Time isn't the straight up NYHC band anymore that they once were. Continuing with the sound of their records since 'Brightside', they have incorporated various musical elements into their sound, from punkrock and street punk and even some metal, making the overall sound a bit more melodic, and at times less heavy and hard. Mind you tho, this does not mean that they abandoned their NYHC roots, far from it. They've expanded on it and in a far more successful way than they tried on 'The Method.' The first 2 tracks on this record, 'Flight Plan' and 'Spaceheater' make it very clear that Killing Time still has what it takes. Great tracks that leave no doubt that Killing Time is back with renewed energy and eagerness, and that they know how to mix styles and influences in a seamless way. When the 3rd track, '24', starts and Anthony is adding melody to his voice, without losing his power, it is pretty clear this is a great album. And it continues from there. Most of the tracks have a melodic hardcore punk sound to them, but somehow it works really well on this album. For the NYHC lover in me, they kept the most NYHC-sounding tracks to end the album. The heaviest and most NYHC-sounding tracks are closing tracks 'Crouch' (with the chorus that holds the album's title) and 'AKB', both really awesome tracks that totally bring 'Brightside' to mind. And yes, they are my favorite tracks of this album, however, apart from 'Mingus', 'Rope A Dope' and 'Lookout' which are enjoyable but don't do a whole lot for me, this is quality stuff. 9 out of 12 songs is a pretty good score.

So all in all, this is a great record. Killing Time sounds totally revitalized and Anthony Communale's voice is still as powerful and distinct as ever. If you want your fix of hardcore/punk, this is a good choice. The record is available on CD and LP from Dead City Records.

Drowning (Paris, France)

As requested by one of our readers, here are the Drowning/Restrain split 7" from 1997 and the self-titled MCD from 1999 by this French band. Hailing from Paris, Drowning started out in 1996 as a heavy NYHC meets beatdown band and over time became a full-on deathmetal band. On the split 7" with Restrain they still played their old tough hardcore with their old line-up, which featured Jean-Marc on vocals, the guy who did Inner Rage Records (Starkweather, Overcast, Kickback, etc...). I have 2 versions of this 7" which was released on Back Ta Basics Records (Rick Ta Life's label for those who don't know... tho I doubt anybody didn't already know this). I scanned in both covers, which are the usual sloppy xeroxed and badly cut covers which were so typical for most BTB releases. The split 7" was released after the band did a demo (which I only have a dub of, so I didn't include it), with this line-up the band also contributed 2 songs to the 'The Nightmare Remains... In This Other Land' compilation I posted not too long ago. Restrain, from Ozone Park NY, play raw mid-tempo NYHC... I also have their 1996 demo, not sure what else they did. Good stuff either way, and a solid split 7" all around.

In mid 1998 singer Ridwan and bassist Stéphane, formerly of Cemetery/Garden Of Silence, joined Drowning, and the band switched their style around quite a bit. They dropped most of their NYHC influences and the metal side of their sound took center-stage. In 1999 the band returned with a self-titled MCD on Belgium's hardest label, Released Power Productions. I remember the first show they played with the new line-up, shortly before the MCD was released. They started their set with 'Veil Of Disguise', the second track of the MCD. Pretty much everybody knew they'd switched to a more metal-oriented style, but very few people had already heard the new songs. Awesome stuff, people loved it. A night to remember. And this MCD is definitely the best Drowning release to date in my opinion. Afterwards they became pretty much a full-on death metal band and they lost me there. But this is a damn good record.

Drowning/Restrain split 7"
Drowning - s/t MCD
Drowning myspace