Magnitude / Search For Purpose

North Carolina is slowly but surely becoming a powerhouse for up-and-coming hardcore with a strong sense of unity, excited new kids, and great bands. A handful of these releases do an awesome job paying homage to influences from the Early 90's that are sure to quickly become favorites for readers of this blog.

The newest North Carolina HC output is an incredible demo from Magnitude. Straight Edge hardcore in the vein of Strain and early Trial. It's awesome to see this style being played by a new band in 2017, as there aren't too many other bands trying to nail this sound. The songs are catchy and intelligent in a way that does a service for fans of this particular niche of hardcore while not being so specific to alienate those who aren't familiar or into the bands that Magnitude is influenced by.

You can stream the demo here

A handful of members of Magnitude also play in Search For Purpose, another awesome straight edge band from Charlotte, NC. Less moshy and more introspective than the aforementioned Magnitude demo, SFP's demo takes cues from Outspoken and Early strife, while their newest release, a two song promo tape, veers further into emotional and melodic territory with nods to bands like Drift Again. Either way, this band would sound right at home on the "Words To Live By, Words To Die For" comp, so if you're a fan of New Age Records early to mid 90's output, be sure to check this band out!

you can stream their new tape here

Undying - Demo 1998

 

I can distinctly remember the first time I heard Undying. My friend had just gotten a shipment of new releases for his distro, and knowing how much I loved the Day Of Suffering CD, he heavily urged me to take a listen to Undying's 'This Day All Gods Die' EP. I went over to his house to pick it up along with some other new stuff, and it was the first thing that I put on in my car. That EP didn't just blow my mind, it splattered my brain throughout the interior of my car. The mix of thrash/black metal speed, the urgency and breakdowns of hardcore, and the melody of one of my all time favorite bands, My Dying Bride, was the absolute perfect combination for me.

Over the years, I happily booked and played many shows with Undying and was fortunate enough to see them play in multiple states and multiple countries. They never once disappointed me, but over the many years, the one thing that has always eluded me was the demo tape. That all changed quite recently when I finally acquired a copy from a pal like Rich Thurston. Another rip of this demo has floated around the internet for years being labeled as 'Demo 1999', but that is inaccurate. This Day All Gods Die was released in January of 1999, and recorded in August of 1998, so obviously, this demo pre-dates that. Just to be sure, I consulted James Chang, and here's what he had to say about the demo recording:

"I remember that it was freezing when we recorded it. I recorded it in our practice space, and we couldn't leave the space heater on while recording guitars because it dropped the voltage on our amps and made them sound like shit, ha. The band started towards the end of 97 though, and we were together a bit before the demo, so I've got to figure early 98."

Two downloads are below. One clean rip straight from the tape with no alterations, and a remastered version that I think sounds extra nice (both at 320k). Take your pick, or download both, whatever suits you.

 Undying - Demo 1998

https://www.mediafire.com/?1vk49xeswcmcubv 

Remastered 

https://www.mediafire.com/?x677vg3721x6o12

Gut Feeling - (Ex-Catharsis, Undying) S/T EP to be released on Headfirst!/Bitter Melody Records

 A few weeks ago, we posted about a new band, Gut Feeling, that features ex-members of Catharsis and Undying.  The recording previously mentioned will now be released as an EP, and here's word from the labels.

Gut Feeling is a new hardcore band consisting of various members of older hardcore bands scattered around the North Carolina area (Catharsis, Undying, Nightbear, etc).  Musically these guys deviate from the previous more metal-laced endeavors and the only part that really carries over from the previous is top notch song-writing, structure and musicianship. Gut feeling does a great job bringing back anthemic hardcore in the vein of bands such as Champion, Comeback Kid, Modern Life is War, etc  think fast polished hardcore punk with melodic guitar overtones, a tasteful spattering of gang vocals and sing along parts.

They recorded a 4 song EP in November 2012 (recorded by Kris Hilbert/Legitimate Business and mastered by Brad Boatright/Audiosiege) and then made it available online shortly thereafter. Headfirst! and Bitter Melody having worked together before and already looking to do another project together - briefly discussed interest in putting out this EP on vinyl.  A few days later we got together with the band, and it was decided Headfirst! and Bitter Melody would co-release this EP as their first projects of 2013!  With the combined artistic talents of the band and both labels involved you can expect this to be a top notch release for the start of 2013!

You can stream/download the EP for free at their bandcamp: http://gutfeeling.bandcamp.com/

Gut Feeling has started booking shows and can be contacted at gutfeelingHC@gmail.com

Day Of Suffering - Live at Breast Fest 2012

Day Of Suffering reunited once again to play a set at this year's Breast Fest in North Carolina and a lovely individual was there to capture it all on video.