Selfish - Life Has No Vacant Time

You already know Selfish. You may know the fellow finnishpunks to be the most boring punk band ever to watch live but they've released some the best japcore albums ever. Life has no vacant time is their latest album on Feral Ward records. It's been recorded some years ago but never saw the light of day until now. Heavy and in your face like a fighting movie scene directed by Chan-Wook Park. "life in every breath" kicks in like a kick trying to destroy an enormous door. oh man, i had a long time to listen such a good jap record. The flying solos and the biting vocals, the fast tempos. Everything is absolutely perfect here, nothing will make you feel numb or bored. Grab a huge glass full of london's finset dry gin with tonic, hold this record in your hands and go to the nearest beach bar. Grab the neck of the stupid dj, hit him hard and play SELFISH louddddddddddddddddd.....you know Life has no vacant time.

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RAPPA - the still grey sky

Oh God, why japan have to be so fucking brutal? I think Disturd is the best crust band out there right now - and they have a new two-track cassette released - but Rappa came as a hurricane in my face. Brutal and aggressive hardcore with lots of crust hints. Crazy speed drums, axe-giutars and lunatic vocals with all tracks nearly to 1 minutefrom ex-members of GOUKA. That's crazy stuff. If you think this blog is dead, well it is, but RAPPA deserve to be here.that's what bombing out my stereo alongside to Violent arrest and Chokehold, it worth your time.

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The Varukers

If you wanna be trendy, look elsewhere. Here's the Varukers first ep ( also known as "Protest and survive" ep) and here's the first step in d-beat's odyssey. Varukers alongside GBH, Amebix and Discharge created (by accident?) that music genre known as UK82. Classic 77 punk blending the heaviness of Motorhead and heavy, monolithic drum beats and anarchist ideology. All of the four tracks included here are fucking classic and this 7'' is all i want for my summer craziness plus Discharge's "Realities of war" ep and Motorhead's "Bomber" ep. That's it.

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Out Cold - A Heated Display

As i promised, this is the new Out Cold album, released some months ago on a cd format and it's scheduled to be released on a lp in some months. I'm not going to start explain the importance of Out Cold, lyrically and musically, for the hardcore "scene" or how different they sound in this album, cause they don't. If you're interested you can read some previous reviews HERE. All tracks have been recorded somewhere in 2005 after "Goodbye cruel world" release except the vocals. The vocals recording done in 2012 from Kevin Mertens (band's first singer). Still i don't know if i can like the voice of Kevin Mertens who sings here, seems that Mark's voice is and always be tremendous and attacking and cannot be compared. Now, some tips about the album as John (drummer) write it down on Out Cold's page (the whole column can be found here):

"In 2005, shortly after the release of the "Goodbye Cruel World" album and the "Planned Accidents" EP, Mark & I went through an unprecedented writing spurt. Over the course of just a few months we had written the music for 28 songs, enough for two albums. In December of that year, the two of us went into the studio and laid down the guitar and drum tracks for all 28 songs in just two days. Wanting to achieve a higher level of production than on our previous releases, we went to the expense of bringing Daniel Rey up from New York for the weekend to supervise the sessions.

Even stranger, after these sessions had sat in limbo for some length of time, Mark put forth to me the notion of having Kevin Mertens, our first singer who left the group after the first album way back in 1994, do the vocals on them. The idea was so out of left field to me...I was incredulous. I told him that, while I had nothing against Kevin or his vocal style or anything like that, it was just too weird...and unecessary. Mark was our vocalist and had been for the last five albums and well over ten years. To bring Kevin back at this point was just beyond bizarre."

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Eyesore - Love the old, learn the new

Eyesore is a punk band from japan playing a blend of old-school USHC ala die kreuzen, minor threat and the likes of the era but with a personal style. This 7'' released back in 2011 from Crew for life records (what a name!!) and delivers six short fused and angry tracks full of speedy but catchy drums, simple hardcore riffs and a yelling vocalist. Those of you that like Total Fury i'm sure that you'll like Eyesore too. Also, eyesore had the guts to cover an Out Cold track for the upcoming VA - A tribute to Out cold Lp featuring 10 japanese bands. Eyesore have what it takes.

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Sickoids - No home

Long time no see. Trying to overcome some technical problems, as my external hard driver has been burnt off and i don't know if i can fix him (or how much money) i hadn't the best time lately. I won't start to grumble so let's focus. What i knew about sickoids was that they are a totally tough band and by tough i don't mean all that muscle pumped tough guy hardcore bands but the toughness you get from a raging bull on second before he demolishes his attack and their first LP was the proof. What i didn't know is that they feature members of Government Warning and Witch Hunt and they have a new 12'' out there released from Sorry State Records. To be honest i was waiting for the new Active Minds and the new Out Cold (yes, they have a brand new lp out...) Lps but "No Home" came in as a tornado. "Occupy your time" starts out with that crazy mid-tempo bass line and the drums start rolling over and then the vocals, and then you press repeat. Yep, the lenght of the album is twelve long minutes and yes this is a hardcore album. "Delusion" will be on my new mix comp before Partisan's 17years of hell, oh yeahhhhhhhh.

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Hassler - self titled 7''

Hassler comes from toronto, canada and they are really good. What else can you except from a drummer that wears an ENTOMBED shirt and a bassist on a RAZOR shirt? The dudes have to enjoy the good old metal. Now, to the point. Hassler done the simple trick. Simple, short and raging tracks thrashing up the whole place. They had compared to Carrer Suicide and Double Negative and that's no coincedence, bro. A solid 7'' that needs your attention

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Institution - domen är satt

Totalitär
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Write 1000 times more the word Totalitär and then you might get the picture.

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Shut the fuck up & The Rats - split 7''

This gonna be a short one. Shut the fuck up (don't be confused with STFU from bay area) and The Rats are two totally unknown bands and they are both brilliant. SHUT THE FUCK UP comes from germany delivering some furious fast hardcore punk tunes reminding bands like Tear it Up and Down in flames but with more groove while The Rats comes from Umea, Sweden and as you probably imagine they add more of the famous Umea melodies without being melodic. It's just Umea hardcore blending with old-school hardcore punk. Both bands totally deserve your attention but i don't know if they are still active. The 7'' released by Thrashbastard records back in 2006 and the rip have been nicely delivered to me by oldschoolmike. Thanx dude.

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Warsong - The caravan

Hey cats, what's up? Life here in athens are pretty "cool" with all the shiity things goin on and around of Villa Amalias squat and the constant trying of the police eviction, but we will take it back for sure (some columns in english here). A lot of the fellow athenian punks feel Villa Amalias like their second home and so i am too, so this post is dedicated to the squatters, the squat and the punks.

Warsong comes from the Zaragosa desert, where the sand is gold and there is no water, nomads of the modern-day-life Warsong sing their loving interludes as an elixir to our poisonous and ruined lives. You may be familiar with bands like Insomnio and No Escape, bands who recorded some of the most intense yet melodic, soft yet PUNK rock tunes the last 5-6 years (or maybe more). Tracks like "Too hard", "she says no", "still remember" or "any moment" holds a great place in my heart, mainly because when i'm tired of all the speedy hardcore tunes or the dark crust/core bombardment i tent to listen to some smooth and chilling tunes, tunes i can go sing along or shed a tear. Mihael (the good friend behind Teenage Lobotomy and Doomtown records) was kind enough to sent me this ep (12'' lp) but i never listened to it (stubborn i fucking am) cause their previous album "Ancient Times" it was THE letdown. While a friend spined the record on his turntable i was "what's that shit?", and i immediately went to buy a copy. "The Caravan" is the lost Atlantis of the modern melofic punk, bass rtyhms anchored to the drumming simplicity, while the lyrics have been forged with ice and fire, strenght and gentle. Add a great cover to the "window shop for love" of Wipers and you got what it takes.

"You shine, but on my skin i'm feeling nothing

You shine, but deep within i'm feeling frozen"

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