Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all. Here's hoping that it will be a good year for all. Ecpect another updates in a month time. Cheers!

Warhammer Gods

Drunk Fucks Spending Loud Nights - Cluster Bomb Unit In KL!

Alright, Cluster Bomb Unit from Germany is making a stop here in KL for a show. From the looks of it this should be an awesome show for all punks, grinders and thrashers. I will be there... but only if I don't have any Open House invitation on that day. Makan free ma, saper tak mau! Damn, I should start listening to some CBU now.

MYHC Hardcore Dancing 101

Who said hardcore kids doesn’t have any sense of humor? This video surely cracks me up when I saw it for the first time. I heart Hardcore Dancing.

A little update

Hey have you checked out 7Inchpunk recently? They just got some nice Swedish hardcore punk goodies for you to download and enjoy (and share with your friends). Go there and have fun.

There are no Purple Haze here Jimi...

Haven’t had much to update lately, the haze have really kill whatever inspiration I had for writing. I really hate the haze and I am getting sick of having to go through this every year. Man, the thought of going to Europe at this time of the year next year seems appealing to me right now.

I am listening to the new Converge that had leaked a few weeks ago. I think it is a good continuation from the last two previous albums. It is heavy and intense and it is nowhere near a let down unlike the new album by ISIS. At least it has not been a total disappointment for me in terms of new albums that I have been looking forward to hear. The only thing that disappoints me about the new Converge is that Deathwish wouldn’t ship the pre-order of the new album to Malaysia or any other countries in South East Asia. I am sure this has something to do with the whole hxc-schmucks-credit-card-fraud thing that happens a few years back. Thank to you fucking morons, now I can’t have those LPs from Converge. I hope karma will get back at you and treat you well.

Yeah I know that Revelation and Interpunk got the same pre-order package as well but they wouldn’t accept any credit card order from Malaysia. Sending cash is not an option right now because I would rather do everything at the comfort of being in front of the PC and at the click of the mouse instead of going to the moneychanger and the post office. Give me convenience or give me death ok.

Talking about hxc schmucks, I just found out that they are having some interesting discussion at Ricecooker about the upcoming FC5 shows/tour. Hmmmm… hxc schmucks will always be hxc schmucks. A friend asks me what are my opinions regarding the whole issue. Well I don’t really care actually. I have no idea about the band and I have no interest to check them out or 95% of the bands that will be performing with them on the tour. But yeah some kind of drama will be good every now and then. It is kinda boring when everyone agrees with you all the time. I think I would rather do the stuff I believe in instead of wasting my time and energy debating about the whole DIY issues on the internet especially not with a bunch of strangers who are hellbent on fucking with you instead of having a healthy discussion. But then again is that surprising? Hxc schmucks and the Internet don’t go well with each other you know.

Oh well enough with the hxc schmucks, Selamat Hari Raya for those who celebrate it. Eat well and have fun.

Death Breath Interview

Go here and read it.

We Got Shirts

Like what you're seeing? Go to this site and check out some other t-shirt design that will make you the coolest kid in your town.

New Stuff That You Should Check Out

Nebiras - Our Blood For His Glory

I am not well versed on the current black metal scene, be it locally or internationally. My interests fade when I discover the awesomeness of Napalm Death and other grindcore bands. Regardless of how much popularity black metal is gaining these days, I would say that I prefer the early Rotting Christ and Impaled Nazarene over any Norwegian, French, Ukraine, or American bands. Am I being a pussy? Who the fucks care being a “troo” scenester in the first place?

So yeah for those of you who are being “troo” all these years. Here is something from the past.

Nebiras – for those who are uninitiated is one of the earliest black metal band from Malaysia. These guys were around when the whole thing started back then in Norway. Goat knows what the fuck Melefic and Wrest were doing back in the days but these guys were creating the blackest of metal and were hailed by Fenriz himself. Shit, Fenriz even wrote a fucking poem for them. How fucking gay is that? Did the likes of Leviathan or Drudkh ever have a fucking poem written by Fenriz? Don’t think so. Even though we can suspect that Fenriz was fucking high or drunk when he wrote that poem and hailed Nebiras as their “brother band”, it sounds cool enough in my fucking book and that far surpass anything within the black metal scene these days. Yeah, enough about that. Now go here and download the Our Blood for His Glory demo. Too shitty? Well I heard Cradle of Filth got a new album out that you can wet yourself with.

“Join me, Stand forth as Gods of the abyss and makes the flames reach for the sky.”

p/s: Nebiras were wearing robes before Sunn O))) made it a fashion statement.

Playlist!

I am not really in a writing mood. But I have been listening to Haymaker and Morser an awful lot this week. Awesome stuff if you feel like punching someone in the face. If you are wondering why nobody make any good metalcore like Morser anymore. I don’t really have the answer. My guess is maybe they don’t really bother with how their hair looks like or how fucking tight their girlfriend jeans is or how fucking scary the mascara will make them looks unlike some other bands that have their pictures all over Alternative Press… Or maybe they are just being Germans. You know how Germans are right?

Heard the Sunn O)))/Boris collaboration as well. Don’t listen to it if you don’t take enough drugs. It will bore you to tears. I am enjoying it, without the drugs of course - because I can’t afford to do drugs and my girlfriend have all my money. So anyway if you are familiar with the two bands you know what to expect. Drone, drone and more drone apart from one track that sounds scarily enough like an actual song that you never expect you are going to listen from Sunn O))) and Boris. Man that shit is trippy. It makes you wonder whether they are taking the right drugs when they recorded this. Oh and to those who are like excited because Kim Thayil (of Soundgarden fame) is on this, do curb your enthusiasm because there is no Black Hole Sun or Spoonman on it. The rumors that Sunn O))) and Boris going to record Badmotorfinger in its entirely is false and have no truth at all.

Well how is that for not being in the writing mood?

Negative Fucking Approach

Overhype? I don't fucking care. Reunion is lame? Tell that to them.

Slayer - The Anti-Christ

Gridlink

Ok, since there are nothing much heard about this ultimate grindcore project, why don't we feast on this

RIP Jesse Pintado

Just heard about the passing of Jesse Pintado today. Here's the announcement from Century Media.

Guitarist Jesse Pintado Dies
08/28/2006

Guitarist Jesse Pintado (Terrorizer, ex-Napalm Death) died over the weekend in a hospital in Holland. A pioneer in our musical genre, Jesse and his influential sound will be sorely missed. Century Media Records would like to offer our most sincere condolences to his family and friends, and will make a further announcement later in the week.

Rest In Peace...

Isis - Dulcinea

Hey check this out. It is the new song from the upcoming ISIS album entitled In The Absence of Truth. I am really looking forward for this. Oh, and these guys are much better than most pretentious post-rock wanker... at least these guys know how to fucking rock. But what's up with the artwork?

Self Made Grind

SMG have posted two new songs from the upcoming split 7" with Sloth. Go here and let them know what you think of it. I think it is killer. These guys have line up tons of new releases in the near future. Get and collect them all before it all went to ebay and sold for unreasonable price.

Relapse Signs Death Breath

Read the official news here. This will be the only Relapse release that I will check out in a very long time.

Slayer In Singapore - For Real

Alright, it is confirmed, Slayer will be thrashing Singapore on the 13^th October this year (that’s Friday the 13^th in case you are wondering). Let’s not cry that the Singaporean always get the good bands to rock their sock off while we have to endure a lot of wash-up rock acts of yesteryear who couldn’t rock to save their own life (read: INXS). Go here for the grand announcement. Will I be going? Heh…

Converge New Album

Converge has revealed the track listing and the artwork for the upcoming No Heroes album that will be released in October this year. More info here.

As far as modern hardcore goes, Converge is the only band that matters to me. I regard Jane Doe as one of the modern hardcore classic and won’t complain much if they kept on doing the same thing along the line of Jane Doe or You Fail Me. I know they are huge with all the fashioncore scenesters but I don’t make that as an excuse for me to overlook them or dismiss them as one of the bands that matter in recent time. If you don't like Converge, you can always listen to some shitty metalcore like As I Lay Dying, but don't blame me if people pity you for having a bad taste in music.

We're No Here

I was in Singapore for a few days. The reasons? MOGWAI.

Yes I was watching MOGWAI live at the Esplanade. To those who are wondering how it was. It was fucking awesome. Definitely one of the best show I had watched in my entire existence. I don’t need to explain it in detail; you just had to be there to experience it yourself. Oh, if there is one thing I want to tell you; I don’t need to watch any shitty post-rock bands anymore. Yup, that’s right and I am pointing my finger at every dime a dozen post-rock bands who are going through the motion and don’t know shit about rocking out. You are pretentious and your “art” are only suitable for pretentious asshole.

MOGWAI rule.

Your post-rock band sucks.

Just die.

P/s: While I was in Singapore I heard rumors that SLAYER will be playing a show over there in the not too distant future. If this is true than we are in for a treat. Fucking SLAYER man. It is about time that people over here got the chance to experience one of the best metal bands in the history of rock and roll. I will keep an eye for any update on this.

Slayer - Christ Illusion

Almost finished downloading the new Slayer album from soulseek (couldn’t finished the last track because the user I am downloading it went offline… bohoo). Yeah it has been leaked. Don’t be surprised. Even Satan will approve those who downloaded it from the Internet. If Slayer bitches about people ripping them off a la Lars and Metallica, they should drop the whole “Satanist” image they are attaching themselves with. Stealing and Satan go well with each other. Whining like a baby because someone is stealing your music on the other hand is un-satanic. So there…
Anyway the new album is kinda good and I must say that it is much better than the last two albums. Truth is, I couldn’t remember much of the last two albums. Must have spun each one of them less than 2 times. It wasn’t that good of a nu-metal album anyway.
If you one those people who wish that Slayer make Reign in Blood part 2, don’t bother to check this out. It is nothing like Reign in Blood. There is no Angel of Death or Raining Blood. If you want those songs, just listen to Reign in Blood. Still not satisfied? Well why don’t you offer some good money (plus your mom and sister) to them so they can record the kind of songs you like. And make sure the money is really good because you definitely don’t want to piss them off.
I really hope the new album will be available in Malaysia… full version and uncensored. Who the fuck wants to listen to censored version of Slayer’s songs? I am not paying my hard earned money for something inferior. Those fucks at the record distributor better not fuck this up if they know what’s good for them.

Italian Grindcore Bastards

If you a grind freak and have no idea who Cripple Bastards are, please fuck off and stop listening to grindcore. These guys have been around for ages and any self respecting grindcore fans don’t need any more introductions about them. I found this relatively good live recording of them on soulseek. I did some research about this recording and couldn’t find any useful information. Anyway download the whole thing and enjoy it. I have to confess that I am not the biggest of fan and I think I totally lost most of my interest after the last album where they went “metal”, but the old stuff (the live set is pretty old I think) is pretty top notch grindcore in my book especially the ones that is raw and dirty. I just seem to have this ultimate fetish for all those raw and dirty grindcore, you know the ones that is not as polish as a spanking brand new Ferrari.

For all those ultimate Cripple Bastards fan, this piece of news from the band official website will definitely have you shit in your pants;

“CRIPPLE BASTARDS 4 CD BOXSET RAGING FROM CHINA!! a Chinese label run by an old time italian friend now living there has financiated a huge studio work to remaster ALL our demos/tapes from 1988 to 1993 for a huge 4 CD boxset collecting all our noise from those days. This includes the 4 official demos, the split with Violent Headache session, the whole 1988-1991 collection (90 minutes!!), all our side-projects, and hours of unreleased noise including pre-CB, pre-Grimcorpses thrash from late 1986/early 1987!!! Thousands of songs to make the joy of TNT & Records nostalgics and those who miss the raw uncompromised lo-fi nihilism of 7 MON, early AC, Violent Noise Attack, Sore Throat and similars. The masters will be completed by the end of June and soon later we'll start to work on the packaging layout which is going to be a mess.”

Yeah it is old news, but it is still news to me who just found it out not too long ago (again it just show that I am not the biggest Cripple Bastards’ fan). A 4 CD Boxset? Fuck yeah! Oh I also found out that Relapse will be releasing something from them in the not so distant future. Relapse? Hmmm, I think I will pass that one.

War Kvlt Supremacy

Fancy some War Metal? Go here and download the Black Witchery/Conqueror split. I did this for someone on the Metal Terus Forum and thought that this should be share with the two of who have been coming here. Don’t know what War Metal is? Neither am I.

Not So Happy Music For Not So Happy People

Ok the World Cup is over. Italy won it. Zidane head butted Materazzi. Blablabla. It is over and I am happy that Italy won it. You got a problem with that?

If you are still depressed and couldn’t get over the fact that a bunch of whiny divers had won the World Cup. Here is something for you. Go here and download MODAR’s Inferior Symphony LP (on tape, not vinyl!). No it won’t make you a happy chap, on the contrary. Listening to MODAR will make you even more depressive. Not because it is crappy (well some of you might find it crappy) but because it is fucking depressive. They are a bunch of doom merchants who probably listen to too much doom metal and take a lot of drugs when they recorded this. As far as I am concern this is the most depressive piece of music that ever came out of the not so vibrant Malaysian underground metal scene. If anyone can prove me wrong about this I will thank you by uploading their demo from 1992. Yes please prove me wrong that MODAR is the most depressive thing that ever came out of Malaysia. And why I am recommending this to you? Simple, you still can get over the fact that Italy won the World Cup so why bother living anymore. Get a knife and slit your wrist. Listening to MODAR will make it a little bit easier. END.

Note: I am not the one responsible ripping this into mp3. The quality might not be the best out there, but it is not the worst either. Regardless, enjoy!

The Plot Sickens

No updates until the end of the World Cup. Period.

Head Splitting Metal!!!

Dekapitator had posted a couple new songs from their upcoming album. Go to the band Myspace page (yes they do have their own Myspace) and sampled it yourself. I like it. Maybe you will like it too.

06/06/06

Today is the National Day of Slayer. If you don’t know what it is all about, go to this website and learn a few things about it. Yeah it is silly and dumb, but don’t we all love to be silly and dumb once in a while?

I think the new Slayer album will be coming out soon. Since they haven’t really captured my attention with the last couple albums, I don’t really think I am that eager to hear it when it comes out. They should have called it a day not too long ago. Or maybe stop recording any new album and just concentrate on playing live shows since nobody actually give a fuck about the new songs anymore. The only thing that matters is the old songs. Period.

For those who still care...

... about SLAYER, check out the blabbermouth website for some info relating to the new album. The image below is the artwork for the upcoming album. I do hope the new album is as what Tom Araya described it is. But then again...


Update:

Got the chance to listen to one of the new song from the upcoming album on the band official website. I am quite impressed with what I am hearing. Maybe there is some truth when Araya claimed it is not going to disappoint anyone. Check it out and let me know what you think about it.

Filthy Fucking Ultracore - Comp. Tape

All you ultracore fanatics rejoice!

hey friends,

This is crucial, this is serious. This is not lame all filler no killer compilation tape. We are planning to release a short 8-10 minutes compilation tape. The shorter, the better. It will be great if we can get 8655400 bands to be included in one 10 minutes tape. UNRELEASED SONGS ONLY Hurry! Contact us faster and let us hear your sample. All bands will be rewarded with free tapes and headache. Just for underground 4 track/ 8 track fast ultracore bands only. Doomsters n sludgers are also invited, if you do sludge or doom, make sure it is short as fuck like the Noothgrush song on Bleeaarrggghhhh 7"

Interested, send message or e-mail: distort_sa at yahoo dot com

Check out their myspace too!

Poison Idea - Latest Will & Testament

I can't believe I totally missed this;

POISON IDEA "Latest will and testament" LP / CD

Worldwide Release Date 19th May 2006

POISON IDEA are back again with a new record!!! Germany´s FAREWELL Records is proud to announce the release of the new record "Latest will and testament" by the "Kings of Punk" from Portland, Oregon. Poison Idea was started in 1980 in Portland, Oregon. The band was motivated back then by the Germs and Black Flag, and took their musical cues from bands such as Discharge and SOA. Pushing the speed limits of contemporary punk rock, they played raw and angry hardcore the likes of which had rarely been heard before (or since). Their 1983 debut EP, "Pick Your King", is a classic and arguably one of the best hardcore record ever released. Its subsequent followup, "Record Collectors are Pretentious Assholes" (featuring Pig Champion's substantial collection on the cover). Both records were put out on a small label from Eugene, Oregon called Fatal Erection.
In 1986, Poison Idea released the aptly titled "Kings of Punk" LP on Pushead's Pusmort label. By this time, the band's sound had changed from manic, breakneck thrash, to a more driving, Motorhead-influenced attack - losing none of their intensity, anger, or nihilism. In the next few years, Poison Idea's lineup (mainly the rhythm section) changed several times. 1987's "War All the Time" was released. By 1989, Poison Idea started their own record lable, American Leather, after having trouble with record companies and distributors in the past, and began by reissuing their 1982 demo. The band recorded the excellent "Discontent" 7" an in 1990 they released the classic "Feel the Darkness" LP, successfully combining (where so, so many others had failed) the best elements of hardcore and hard rock for a dark, powerful sound. In the next three years, Poison Idea put out several more records on American Leather - two more full-lengths, a string of 7"s, and an LP collection of all covers. When Pig Champion decided to leave the band in 1993, Poison Idea called it quits. Their last show on 6th of june 1993 was released as the "Pig´s last stand" CD in 1996 on Sub Pop Records.

In a way, the group's widest success came indirectly -- when the multimillion-selling band PANTERA recorded "The Badge," a song by Roberts and Jerry A. that was originally on POISON IDEAD's "Feel the Darkness", for the 1994 movie soundtrack "The Crow", which went on to platinum sales. But P.I. (as fans tended to shorten the group's name) already had earned its own measure of fame. Locally, it put on notoriously energetic, even chaotic shows -- often highlighted by Jerry A.'s onstage fire breathing.

However, three years after the break-up the band briefly reformed in 1996 and recorded 1997 the "Learning to scream" 7" for Taang!, who also reissued (again) most of their early catalog. The band continued to play and gig, but without a new record the bands existance didn´t get noticed outside the american north-west. In 2003 and 2004 POISON IDEA toured Europe twice as well as Japan. And now they are back with the new album "Latest will and testament", the release of this record was overshadowed by the death of POISON IDEAs Tom Roberts at the end of january 2006.

In describing Tom Roberts, guitarist of the Portland punk band Poison Idea, there's really no way to get around the word "big" or its synonyms. His sound was huge and fierce, his lifestyle was extreme, and his massive weight led him to go more commonly by the nicknames Tom Pig and even Pig Champion. Sometimes weighing 450 pounds or more, Roberts was known for his size as well as for drinking prodigiously and generally living life on the edge. But those who knew and worked with him describe him as a man of keen intellect and relentless curiosity, a gentle giant behind the brusque exterior. "If anybody thought he was up there as some nihilistic, morbidly obese guy just flailing around, no," said David Wilds, who managed the band from 1988-91. "He was remarkable for his knowledge of any kind of music. It's been said that Poison Idea was a punk band that could really play, and a lot of that was due to Tom. He chose a simple, stripped-down sound for artistic reasons, not lack of ability. There was structure, the material was well-rehearsed, and he really cared what the audience thought". So it has to be said now that the world wide punk and hardcore scene lost a big piece of its rock community when Roberts died at the age of 47. He was found dead in his home from an untreated kidney infection and the flu. Roberts' musical acumen, force of personality and uncompromising attitude were key factors in making Poison Idea one of the most influential and memorable forces in the punk rock and hardcore underground for the past quarter century. It has to be said that Tom´s death came unexpected. The title of this new record already had been chosen way before Tom died. The story behind the album title can be read inside the record-package, written by Jerry A. Just a week before Tom died he wrote liner-notes for the new album "Latest will and testament", which you can read here below. It is self-explainatory to the max and doesn´t need any more quotes from the record lable promoter!


"This is a dedication of love to Jerry A. and Poison Idea. It is with great
pride that we have delivered this LP. That we have completed it is almost a
miracle. We were always obsessed with trying to top the past. I feel this
new record stands up to the standards of rip-snortin`punk rock we delivered
on earlier recordings. If you disagree, write your opinion on a Darby Crash
wig and send it to somebody who cares!

To the gossips, "writers", liars, internet impersonators and record labels
who hide behind p.o. boxes, secretaries, computers and strippers: spare us
anymore of your hip, angry poo poo. There is shit on your mother`s asshole!
With this record we are back and, through legal means or direct action, will
level your karma!

A message to record labels who continue to sell our records and provide no
accounts: watch out!

I hope this makes the fans happy. It`s a tribute to 25 years of tortured
loving self-abuse. PI comes back again. It`s like Elvis`68 comeback special
in a `77 Easter basket. Remember that punks are the old farts of today and
old farts stink the worst.

Hey Kids. Do it yourself -- it`s better!

"Pig Champion"


POISON IDEA "Latest will and testament" LP/CD tracklist:
1. Number one
2. Jihad love
3. Factor X
4. Kill the messenger
5. Novelty
6. Fake
7. With / Against
8. Baby flys
9. Nothin´ to say
10. Atonement for the cursed

Band Line-up:
Jerry A. Lang - Vocals
Tom Roberts - Guitar
Jimmy Talor - Guitar
Chris Carey - Bass
Chris Cuthbert - Drums

Info:

FAREWELL RECORDS
MICHA MEYER
HECKENSTR. 35 HH
47058 DUISBURG
GERMANY
farewellrec@plastic-bomb.de

Tragedy @ YouTube

Someone was cool enough to record and upload two videos from one of the recent Tragedy shows. Check them out.

Tragedy 1
Tragedy 2

Tragedy - Nerve Damage

In case you are wondering, Tragedy got a new album out entitled Nerve Damage. I am not sure how you can get your hand on this new LP because at the time of writing this, none of the well-known distros I know are carrying it. At the meantime maybe you can go search the mp3 version on your favorite p2p network. I can actually point you to some link to save you the hassle but I don’t think that it is a cool thing to do.

Upon a listening to it a couple of times, I must say that I am not entirely floored with what I heard, not unlike when I first heard them a few years back. Maybe it have something to do with the over saturation of bands doing somewhat a similar style (there is no arguing that TRAGEDY is one of the most copied bands around these days) or maybe it have something to do with what I have been listening lately. FYI I have been listening to Deathside’s Bet On the Possibility LP for almost a week now. I don’t really bother about the status of that particular LP to most Japanese hardcore aficionados but after listening to it almost constantly for days, I don’t really think I should be bothered with any new hardcore/punk records at all. So yeah, blame it on Deathside for making me unable to enjoy the new Tragedy.

Still there are some good songs on this new LP. Maybe not as good as some of their earlier songs, but still good if you compared it with other bands who are doing the same style (what the style call again? Epic crust? Emo crust?). Well I am not going to stop listening to this. Maybe it is a grower. And who knows, maybe the mp3s that been circulating on the Internet turn out to be fake as well. So yeah, I am giving this another chance… but only after I am sick and tired listening to that Deathside’s LP. Ask me again in three months time…

Man Is The Bastard @ YouTube

Don't you just love YouTube? Here are a couple of MITB footages that I came cross on YouTube.

Footage 1
Footage 2

MITB rules. 'Nuff said.

ISIS - Live In Cleveland

Alright, if you hate ISIS, please don't bother to read this post. I know how much they are fashionable to some but I don't care about that. I have been listening to this guys before all those hipster decided it is OK to listen to them. So, anyway, I got this awesome link from one of their recent show from the Southern Lord forum. The only reason I would bother to share this with anybody is because they are playing a couple of new songs that will probably be on the next album. How fucking cool is that? Maybe I am the only person who is excited about this but I don't care. There is also rumors about ISIS band members doing some projects with the dude from Leviathan. That one sounds interesting and I must say that I am really looking forward to hear the outcome of that collaboration (if it is indeed a real thing and not just some baseless rumors). Anway click this and download the whole live set. Again I am not the one responsbile for this, I am just sharing the wealth.


Enjoy!

Texass is the Reason

Hey don't forget to catch Texas' Die Young show in Bangi next week. This will be their only show in Malaysia. If you are too scared to listen to some macho hardcore, you can still check out some local bands as well. The dude who are organising the show told me that there will be two proper thrash bands opening this show too (they are not listed on the flyers but believe me on this). So if you are looking forward to bang your head and point your finger at the same time, get yourself to this show and enjoy it. Click on the pictures for more info. Hey if you are wondering how to get there, just give a call to the organisers - their number is listed on the flyer for your convenience. Go to the Immigrant Sun records website for more info regarding Die Young. Until then, stop listening to Unearth!

Jeet Kune Deathcore!

Wow it has been almost a month since my last update. Pretty lame huh? Anyway I just found out that Willowtip Records have posted two mp3s from the upcoming DIM MAK album. I am stoked. The tunes are fucking sick. Definitely one of those technical bands that don't just throw whatever sick riffs that they can come out with into a "song." It will be the greatest injustice of all if they don’t get proper recognition with this album. Just because they are not on Relapse doesn’t mean they are not worthy for everyone’s attention. Oh well, maybe that is asking too much. Go to the Willowtip website and download the mp3s.

Sick Grindcore Fucks: SMG

Hisham pass me the new SMG recordings and it is definitely the best thing I've heard from them so far. And I am not making that one up just because I used to be in this band. Check out their myspace page and check it out for yourself (you can stream the mp3s or download it). These guys deserve every fucking respect they can get and to all those who talk shit about them... get a fucking life (and learn to broaden your musical scope).
Here are some "interesting" facts about the new recordings; The songs are recorded live in less than half an hour (they book the studio for an hour but arrive there late) and Hisham was involved in an accident a few hours before the recording took place. Lesser band will surely crumble under those circumstances but this band definitely deliver the goods when needed. Awesome!

Sonic Corpse Glide

Any blog that have Lurker of Chalice, Oxbow and Poison Idea is cool in my book. So don't be an ultra-wimp and check this blog out. Head over to Sonic Corpse Glide and immerse youself in darkness.

R.I.P. Pig Champion

Thanks for the awesome music...

Thomas "Pig Champion" Roberts, guitarist for POISON IDEA, died at his home in Portland, Oregon, Monday night (Jan. 30). A founding member of the seminal punk band, he continued to appear with POISON IDEA throughout the late Nineties and into the new millennium, despite officially quitting the band in 1993. Variously described as "spectacularly fat," and "the single largest man in hardcore history," Roberts crowned himself "Pig Champion" after hitting an impressive 450 lbs. on the scales. The highly regarded guitarist was revered by a devoted following worldwide. No further information is available at this time.

Just in case you have never checked them out, go here and here and download some of the mp3's.

...

Pass the news...

Jack Control, Lead vocalist of hardcore punk bands Severed Head of State and World Burns to Death, Long time force in the Texas Punk Scene and behind Mind Control Records, was stabbed and seriously wounded in an altercation at a show in Austin, Texas on Saturday January 28th.

There was a large show on the North Loop in Austin-An earlier show at a Record Store had featured J-Church, Army of Jesus and Storm The Tower and a later show was with Manikin at the Pizza Parlor a few doors down. At the end of the night some random trainhopper kids got rowdy. One guy went on a rampage and kicked in the glass doors of the venue, and then tried to kick in the windows of the anarchist bookstore next door and windows of cars parked on the street. When confronted by the people running the show, Including members of World Burns to Death and Signal Lost, a big mess of a brawl broke out. Jack Stepped in to stop a guy from Hitting Jasmine from Signal Lost and one of the trainhoppers came from behind and stabbed jack in the gut just below the ribs.

Jack's wounds required over three hours of surgery and he lost 4 pints of blood. Jack has stabilized and will recover, but is still in ICU at Brackenridge hospital. The person who stabbed Jack (who goes by the name of " Bingo") fled, but was arrested nearby. He is currently in police custody and being charged for attempted murder.

Jack has no medical insurance and will face a monolithic amount of medical and legal bills, as well as missed time from work as a result of this. A pay pal account has been established at punkcontrol@hotmail.com for anyone willing to donate funds to help Jack with his expenses.

People wishing to run charity Auctions on Auction sites such as Ebay, Yahoo or DIY auction to raise pay pal funds for Jack please put ñ Jack Controlî in the item title and description. People wanting to buy benefit items can search for them by putting " Jack Control" in the search box. A benefit show will be held in Austin on February 9th at Emo's 603 Red River http://www.emosaustin.com/ with Signal Lost, Camp X-Ray, Army Of Jesus, Iron Age and Modern Needs performing. Further benefits are in the works and anyone wishing to organize an benefit event around the country contact Ashley at smashlost@yahoo.com or Timmy Hefner at timmythetexasturd@gmail.com. Immediate Pay Pal donations should be sent to Timmy's email address until Jack is out of ICU.


I also heard the news of the passing of Pig Champion. No info so far but I will post it if there is any.

Agents Of Abhorrence

An interview with Australia's Agents of Abhorrence. This interview is conducted via e-mail. Thanks to Max for answering it. Check out their Myspace page if you haven't checked them out yet. If you are a fan of Discordance Axis and Iron Lung, there is every possibility that you will love them too.

Hello dudes, how are you doing? So how is life treating you down there in Australia?

Life is good at the moment. 2 out of the 3 members of AOA are currently unemployed and are now waiting to get some touring done. Melbourne is a great city to live and play music in. A healthy dose of grindcore and a lack of work is a great way to live.

So what's up with the band? I heard from the Iron Lung guys that you're going to tour the USA with them this year. True? Are you looking forward for that?

USA will be a blast! Not only are Iron Lung good friends of ours but they are an amazing band to tour with. They are calm, level headed people and have a punishing live show. Next time I bring them to this side of the world I’m gonna make sure they get to play
SE-Asia. But, yeah… Who knows what to expect from a country like America, where people seem spoilt and out of touch with anything beyond their region. Iron Lung are popular enough to attract crowds and Ben (AOA guitarist) has toured USA extensively with My Disco and enjoyed the experience wholeheartedly.

Oh yea, if you don't mind. How was the tour with Iron Lung last year? Awesome?

The Australian Iron Lung tour was a success. They played shows all over Australia, made new friends and covered all their cost’s. Like I said above, I really hope they come out again and get to travel over to SE-Asia. Both Jensen and Jon will play anywhere to anyone and they will most likely blow you away.

Are you happy with the Covert Lobotomy 9" that was released last year? Is there any other plan to release something new this year? A LP maybe?

As a whole AOA is not happy with the way the 9” came out. We pride ourselves on having an abusive and loud sound when we play our live shows. The 9” sound was

way to thin and we felt as though we could have benefited from a harsher/heavier recording. Part of that is our own fault, but we also had trouble inside the recording studio. We learnt our lesson, the next session we recorded (split 6” with Iron Lung – out soon) was much better and more in-sync with our sound (faster and heavier). The 6” is 5 harsh songs recorded when AOA was just Ben and myself. Since then we have added a singer, Grant, who has an amazingly distinct voice and allows Ben and I to strengthen our songs. We will be recording for a full 7” and a split with local Melbourne grindcore outfit, ROSKOPP in February.

By the way, why a 9" and not 7" because I believe the songs would fit into a 7" format? Something to please the collectors out there?

Missing Link Records was offering local bands with an opportunity to release 9” records on their label. They believed it was a strange format that would benefit bands by having their records stands out in stores. There was meant to be a series of 9” records from local artists (AoA being the first) but now I think they realize it can be a hassle, as it is quite expensive to create. Aesthetically the 9” is aimed at record nerds. We love those little creatures and we aim to appease them at all times (hence the upcoming 6” record). Seriously though, it can be nice to stray away from the typical punk format of a 7” and keeps us on our toes to do something different occasionally. That being said, our next release is a 7” haha!

Since I don't have the actual 9" I am wondering what are the things you guys sang on the band songs. Are there any specific messages you are trying to convey to the listeners?

Lyrically the 9” songs were short (mono-syllable) lines that dealt with anger and frustration. We had a few songs on the record about being in love and how distinct that feeling is and how it often does unfamiliar things to our heads. Quite habitually I regard the 9” to be a romantic record. No joke! Just because the music we create is cold, doesn’t often mean our lyrics need to be about killing people or something ridiculous and utterly pointless. All them time anyway!
It can be a difficult task writing lyrics for a band such as AOA. It can be very easy to fall into the trap of writing songs of pure hatred, simply because anger is the easiest way to express yourself. This point becomes even more evident when you have a microphone in front of you and you are screaming your ass off! AOA has a number of songs that relate to our personal life, the stupidity of human interaction or even just plain story-telling. It’s also quite hard to describe feelings accurately when the song is under a minute long and has odd time signatures. Also in the past I have written lyrics about skating, graffiti and things that relate to my life. I think being a little brat is very important to my existence, an abhorrent brat!

Whose idea is it to formed AoA? What influence you guys to get together and terrorize everyone with the unbridled noise? How would you describe the band to someone who has no idea about the music you guys played?

It was Ben’s idea to form a harsh thrash/grind band. I had been playing in various fast styled bands (it’s the music I love) yet wanted a change from that sound. Ben on other hand wanted to steer away from his background and play brutal grind. As usual, I am easily won over if someone wants to thrash with me. If I was explaining AOA to someone whom didn’t relate to punk/HC/metal ect ect at all I would simply tell them it is a faster and harsher version of punk. It’s hard to describe a style not many people know about nor enjoy if they heard it!! As far as our sound goes, our influence was (and still is) bands like Iron Lung, Mass Separation, Nasum, Discordance Axis, SWANS and The Kill. We are fans of anything harsh, fast and innovative. We also add allot of noise and loop work into our sound and sets – this makes things fun and inspires us to find new sounds.

Since both of you are also in other bands, how much importance is AoA? Do you consider AoA to be your main band or just a mere side project? And what's up with the other bands you are in, anything to share with the readers?

AOA is definitely not a mere side project and every member puts in 100% of themselves into this music. At times our projects become busy which causes AOA to take a breather every now and again. Even when our other bands are busy, AOA still is in our minds and we plan tours, shows, recording and general practice during these periods. At the moment I am not doing as much as I used to, I also play drums in a band called Terror Firma. Terror Firma is a fast hardcore band with allot of melody and cheesy breakdowns. Ben keeps very busy with his other band My Disco, who manage to not only tour allot but produce some of the most inventive music coming out of Australia. My Disco are inspired by strange time signatures which leads them to produce off time, intense sounding songs. They are also very loud! Grant used to be in a local classic HC band called Dying Breed. Dying Breed were fast and heavy sounding HC. He now plays drums in a Hardcore band called Sense of Purpose who have been playing around locally for many years. Unfortunately they are calling it quits next month!

Are you guys a duo because you wanted to be a 2-man noise terror project from the start or because you can't find a suitable band member who can tolerate the level of insanity that is required for the band?

AOA became a 2 piece strictly because Ben and I feel that the guitar – drums combination is perfect for the sound we are aiming to produce. We don’t need a bass player as Ben runs through a Bass Cab and a Guitar Cab. This way it’s very loud without the muddy sound of a bass and you can hear the guitar tone easily. We added Grant on vocals because we felt that our newer songs were restricting the amount of time I had to
create something potent, both in sound and lyrically. Drumming to the riffs Ben comes up with can be hard enough as it is, let alone screaming at the same time. We believe that the Guitar-Drums combo is essential in creating the music AOA does. Now we have Grant and his voice is just as potent as the other two instruments so we aren’t as half assed about vocals now. Grant has helped AOA move forward!

Imagine a celebrity death match between Discordance Axis and Anal Cunt, who'd you think will win the match?

Discordance Axis would win. Anyone who can produce music like that is badass.

This is kinda silly, but what is your top 5 album of 2005 and please give a very good justification why those albums are much better than the Rolling Stones album.

I haven’t heard the latest RS album but I hear it’s a real let down. Anyone who couldn’t see that coming needs there head checked. As far as top albums go – it would be a tie between Sage Francis’s “A healthy distrust” or Putresence’s “mangled, hollowed and vomit filled”. Sage Francis is an MC who has an amazing flow with his rhymes. He manages to be witty and clever; two aspects hip-hop needs more of. Putresence’s album floored me with its creative old school goregrind vibe. Brutal production and most importantly their lyrics are not only hilarious but they are smart also. Gore lyrics usually bore the shit out of me.

Since Australia is not sooo far away from South East Asia, when are guys going to come here and show us some head-busting grindcore Aussie style? Warsore was here a few years ago… and My Disco too but since a lot of pretentious indie kids were all over them the grinders and the punks were scared to check them out…Anyway…

Considering Ben came back raving about My Disco’s tour (and that kids were asking about AOA) the prospect of AOA touring in SE-Asia is very valid. I think it’s a pity that the grinders and punks were closed-minded to My Disco. Especially considering they are DIY in the purest sense of the word and manage to play some loud, in your face music. In the future I’d really love to see some Australians getting behind the SE-Asian scene. Our friends in Pisschrist also went over their last year and I’m sure in the future we will see more bands from these countries getting together. I just hope AOA is around to be apart of that! At the moment I know that My Disco are planning to get back over there, maybe Grant and I can tag along for an AOA tour also?!

Anything else you want to add?

Thanks for the Interview and the interest my friend. Anyone out there who is at all interested putting on shows in SE-Asia for AOA anywhere get in touch. That goes for any SE-Asian thrashers who would like to tour Australia. Let’s set this up properly and hopefully more people will be inspired to stay active and to travel. Grind hard and skate fucking fast!

Get On The Fucking Horse

Will sludge be a trendy thing? Who the fuck care as long as every different band can bring something new to the genre and not just copying what is popular. Check out this awesome doom/sludge band from Australia who called themselves Whitehorse. If you dig bands like Corrupted and Khanate, you should also be enjoying this band. Go to the band's website and check out the mp3. It is worth the wait for the download to complete (it is 20 minutes long...).

Corrupted Vinyl Collection

Ok, I have been kinda lazy lately. Well that is what happens when you are hooked on Football Manager. Luckily enough, I still have my jobs, girlfriend and a little bit of sanity. Anyway....

Corrupted is definitely one of my all time favorite band. Any band who dare to claim themselves to be heavy should get their act straight because there is none heavier than this behemoth from Japan. Well maybe with the exception of Neurosis but everyone know that nowadays they are too concern with being arty than being heavy...
Super heavy and super slow, Corrupted, for me, is the ultimate sludge band. I hardly know much information about them apart from that they are from Japan, sing in Spanish and got a very huge discography. Little is known of them since they hardly give any interview. It is kinda frustating when you hardly know much about your favorite band but that kinda add up to the mystique of this awesome band.
Their most recent album, El Mundo Frio, is released last year and it is one of my top ten album of 2005. I urge everyone to check that album out, by hook or by crook.
I am not sure if the links below are still working or not (yes, I am still lazy) but if it is then you will be treated to some of the finest sludge on this face of the earth. It is actually a collection of their vinyl releases. Pretty handy if you don't have any turntable or willing to part with your hard earned money for the real stuff.

Corrupted Collection 1-1
Corrupted Collection 1-2
Corrupted Collection 2-1
Corrupted Collection 2-2

p/s: thanks to whoever that did this and yes, Rapidshare is a pain in the ass.