Alright so the word "classic" is a little bit of a stretch when it comes
to the Doughnuts but this layout is as classic as they come. For years I
had heard about the "naked straight edge kid" layout for their debut
release "Equalize Nature", originally released by Desperate Fight Records. I had only owned a copy of the
re-release by Victory Distribution but a few years back I picked up a
copy from our old friend xYosefx. No additional songs but the layout...well it's something alright. The CD was released in
a cardboard sleeve (thanks again for that 90's hardcore) so I did scans
of the entire thing. Not sure where they were going with this idea for
the layout but it's sight to behold.What's the story with the kid on the front? Anyone know him? The layout makes no mention of who it is.
Major labels, guarantees, etc. are things that have always been highly contested within the realm of hardcore. From 80s originators being courted by major labels to the legendary Sick Of It All / Born Against argument, it's a subject that will likely never go away, and it was as prevalent as ever in the 90s as well. Exposure from fests like Ozzfest had label scouts knocking on the doors of many heavier hardcore bands, but there was also a contingent that hated the likes of Victory Records and their roster of bands. The arguments usually accused them of being no different than a major label and the bands as being money hungry.
Here's a handout that printed the rider for Earth Crisis and Strife that I would place somewhere around 1995. Rife with spelling errors, it still conveyed the author's anger.
In all fairness, here's something Chad Peterson of Strife had to say in reference to tour riders of that time period -
"When we toured with Earth Crisis we had the same
agent, Tim Bohr. He sent the riders out to the clubs. Ours was kinda
funny because we would ask for things like chocolate milk and stupid
shit but it was more in the vein of we knew we would never get it. Have
you ever looked at the Smoking Gun website and seen the craziness some
of these bands ask for? It was more along those lines. We were shocked
if we ever rolled into a town and a promoter ever filled our rider (this
happened maybe twice that I can remember) and they would always be
nervous about it until we said we really don't care. Food, water, soda,
cocaine were all we really cared about (minues the cocaine). If anything
we didn't start "beefing" up our rider until after we toured with Sick
of it All and they were putting things on theirs like fresh socks and
power bars. The bottom line is none of that shit matters when you are up
there playing. That is what you are there for and when you leave the
venue after a show you talk with your band about the show.. not the
rider. I do work for a promoter down here and this rider pales in
comparrisson to what some of these touring bands that maybe just put out
a record ask for."
Do you remember when labels packaged CDs in cardboard sleeves? Yeah, so do I and I really didn't care for it. It was awkward in your CD storage unit (whatever it was), if a price sticker was placed on the cover, it was impossible to get off and generally just got beaten up since there was plastic protecting it. When Victory Records released Earth Crisis's 7 inch "Firestorm", the label was finally finding its legs and was well on its way to becoming the powerhouse it would become having just released records from Snapcase, Integrity, Warzone and the planned release for Strife's "One Truth". The label released the record as a 7 inch and as a CD in the aforementioned CD cardboard sleeve. The insert was 2 sided with one side featuring a live photo and the other side had the lyrics. Eventually, the record was re-released in a jewel case but without the lyrics. I never understood this because in hardcore, the lyrics generally are just as important as the music. Also, notice the first mention of Guav the SXE Weapon. Anyway, here's the original CD release layout for "Firestorm".
PLEASE NOTE: We are not including a download for the record, just the layout for your viewing pleasure.
This is an article I've been meaning to write for a long time but just never got around to doing so. A pet peeve of mine is when a label re-presses a record but changes the layout. Sometimes, this is because the band and label didn't have the money or time to put into what they originally envisioned or because a label has bought the rights to the record and re-released it, often with remastered sound. Half of me is alright with this idea at times but the other half of me, the half that is the nostalgic collector wants to have the original. Like I said, sometimes this is fine with me because the original layout may have been...well just not very good. Below are a few examples of records that were originally released by their respected labels and then repressed by either the original or another with a different layout. For now, I've just scanned the covers but Ill try to get the rest of the layouts scanned as well. The original is on the left and the repress is on the right.
Shelter - Quest For Certainty (Original: Equal Vision, 1992. Repress: Revelation, 1998) An early release for Equal Vision Records when they still concentrated on releasing only Krishna-core record, this records comes in a close second to Mantra as my favorite Shelter release. The original has a black and white cover with a nice sky blue firewheel while the repress has a new black and white photo but the fonts have been changed to red. This is a case where I'm alright with either release. Both have live photos on the cover and there isnt much of a difference other than the actual photo.
Culture - Born Of You (Original: Conquer The World, 1994. Repress: Goodlife, 1998) A record that created an incredible amount of controversy over the past few years, controversy that I am not going to go into here (do a search on here for "Culture" and you'll see). The original release features a picture of the famed "Portrait Of Pope Innocent X" by Sir Francis Bacon. While this cover is very representative of the time, I feel that the repress gives the album more energy with the cover depicting Damien handing out the mic to the crowd. Culture was very much about crowd participation and this cover portrays that to the listener. I only wish that the band would have used the logo that Guav created for that them as opposed to the logo on the repress.
Doughnuts - Equalize Nature (Original and Repress: Desperate Fight, 1994 and 1996) A much maligned band, Doughnuts were touted as the first all girl SXE band back in 1995. They released their first record with Desperate Fight out of Umea, Sweden and then signed with Victory Records in America. Equalize Nature, their first release, was originally released in a cardboard sleeve in 1994 and features the legendary "Naked SXE Kid" on the cover. To be honest, I'm not sure where they were going with this image on the cover but the re-release (also on Desperate Fight) shows a blurry live photo of the band. Perhaps Victory asked Desperate Fight to change the cover because they would have trouble getting the naked kid cover picked up in America. That's just my opinion, I have no idea if that's the reason. I have to say that the repress is an upgrade.
As Friends Rust - The Fists Of Time (Original: Goodlife, 1998. Repress: Doghouse, 2000) Now here's one where I prefer the original. Goodlife chose to use paintings by vocalist Damien as the cover as well as the insert. If you read the lyrics to the songs on this release, I feel that the cover really does a great job of capturing the mood of the record. When Doghouse released this in America, they included a track from the split with Discount as well as their Circle Jerks cover from the God Hour EP. This time around though, the cover shows a package addressed to the band. Not bad but to me, the cover of the original release conveys the band's message much better.
Three years after breaking up, Delaware post-hardcore outfit Boysetsfire (or Boy Sets Fire) has announced plans to reform. Details regarding the extent of said reformation haven't yet been disclosed, with the group only issuing the following:
"We were a band for over a decade. We decided that we wanted to try different things with our lives. So we stopped playing music together. It wasn't Noel/Liam Gallagher ugly; we parted as friends and we generally see or talk to each other all the time. I think we underestimated how much we would miss it. The communion, the intensity, the genuine outpouring of emotion- it just doesn't exist for us without BoySetsFire. So we are going to start playing together again. All we know now is that BoySetsFire is playing in Berlin on December 5,2010."
Prior to disbanding, the band had released four studio albums (in addition to a host of other releases) with Victory Records, Equal Vision Records, and Wind-Up Records.
The news had slowly been leaking that All Out War had recorded a new record but no one knew much about it. The band's Myspace showed the cover art but no new tracks. Victory Records, their label, had the record up for pre-order but no new songs either. Finally, in a last attempt, we contacted Victory directly and they were nice enough to grant us a promo copy so we could review it. I was excited to hear it but worried that it might not live up to the last record, Assassins In The House of God. I was also a little skeptical since Jim Antonelli, guitarist, was nowhere to be seen and from what I remember, he wrote a good portion of the music. Back again is bass player Eric Carrillo who had been there since the beginning with a short hiatus and the man Mike Score, still dropping evil tales of the apocalyptic future and challenging those who believe in God to show proof of his existence.
All Out War as a collective will be the first to tell you they are metal band in a hardcore world and the record is influenced by equal parts Slayer and the Cro Mags. The first thing I noticed is the recording. Full, crisp, clean and very polished. Everything seems to be at the right level without anything overpowering and without it sounding overmixed. Musically, Into The Killing Fields reminds me of a cross between the good elements of "For Those Who Were Crucified" and "Condemned To Suffer". The record has its fair share of Slayer-ish riffs, less than the last record though, and straight forward fast riffs. The first 2 songs, Defiance Through Fear and Mercy Killer, call to mind the sheer ferocity that the band has become known for: heavy and fast with Mike's unique voice. No matter what's screaming, he always enunciates and is easily understood. With a band like this that places a heavy emphasis on its message, a vocalist that you can understand is key and they do a great job of being understood. As the record progresses, the Slayer riffs begin to sneak in and track 4, Fear Those Who Claim Divinity (complete with Exorcist intro), is the first track that reminds you heavily of "For Those Who Were Crucified". Lots of gallops and double bass followed by that groovy breakdown that the band is so well known for. Oh did I mention solos? Oh yeah...loads of them, dive bombs too. The 90's called and they are happy you're keeping them in mind. The title track, Into The Killing Fields, starts off with a quick drum fill into a straight forward fast riff accompanied by loads of double bass before slowing down into a slow crushing gallop. After another verse the song picks up into a groove that calls to mind "Down But Not Out" by the Cro Mags off their Best Wishes record. More Slayer riffs finish off the track.
Alright now the negative. There really wasn't much about the record I didn't like but one of my gripes was the re-recording of the song "Curtain Call For The Crucified" now called "Still Crucified", the first song on the Assassins In The House of God. I don't see the reason for the re-recording personally as the original I felt was better but perhaps the guys thought they could do something different with it? I don't know...not a bad attempt but I just enjoyed the original version more.
The record is relatively short for this style, clocking in at just over 35 minutes but I feel like it works. Often, I find myself drifting off and paying attention to something but not this time. Overall, I give the record an 8/10. Im hoping the band makes its way out on the road again since its been about 10 years since Ive seen them. The record comes out tomorrow (August 3) so go out and support these hard working guys. Already in my top 10 for 2010.
Favorite Tracks: "Fear Those Who Claim Divinity", "Into The Killing Fields"
Finally!!! The new All Out War record, "Into The Killing Fields", is coming out Tuesday, August 3 via Victory Records. We haven't received a promo copy of the record yet but based on how good the last record "Assassins In The House Of God" was, I'm betting this will be right on par. The band hasn't put up a song yet but when they do, we'll keep you posted. Victory is offering a preorder which includes a long sleeve t-shirt and the CD or a long sleeve t-shirt and the release on vinyl. Regardless of how people feel about Victory Records, All Out War is still a solid band and deserves the support. Pick up the record next week or click the preorder links below.
I got this off of my friend Niels and to be honest I don't know much about it. I was never a huge Bloodlet fan but this design was cool so I traded him for it. No Victory markings so Im assuming its pre-Victory though it does have the Bloodlet logo from the Victory releases. If anyone has any info, pass it on.
The pride of Newburgh, All Out War, will enter the studio in late April to track their 5th full length. Tentatively, the record will be coming out on Victory unless something has changed that Im unaware of. Either way, Im pumped.
Hi everyone. I hope you all had a safe and happy holiday season as well as a great new year. Today I bring you an interview with Louisville, KY's By The Grace of God. This was originally printed in I Stand Alone zine which was one of the best of the era in my opinion. Hope you all enjoy it...we have lots planned for the year including an interview with John Wylie on Morning Again and Pete Spielman reflecting on his time in Green Rage.
I stumbled across this on A Reasonable Guide to Horrible Noise blog while searching around. All credit goes to them as well as the upload link being theirs as well. The demo that helped get them signed to Victory Records and begin the legend that would become Snapcase.
![Deadlock [Spokane, WA]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjShxKvrk2KeaeBzkrq0i1ZY1DBA1eeU_wAITRB96WVCyFMTnEZSO0Xa3-CTomyrfO15irO-pBF6I8R2bgnRmfQI5IgZ39BksEJBb4sa-UgahjIrXPqVZLPTA0piTCemVY6JW4irVczHf0/s72-c/cover.jpg)
