P is for Patriotism

$10. A small price to pay for freedom

Forgive me for being a lil Yankee-centric here (hey, I did a post about Justice/Russia), but as I sit here in my bedroom having just ingested 6-7 pounds of Watermelon, listening to Ted Nugent and planning a night of BBQ's and basketball with my friends, I decided to slap a lil bloggy-blog on"patriotic" hardcore.

I know the American Flag has started to become a mainstay in HC design again, but looking at this flyer...wow. America! Almost exclusively NY/NJ bands, some pretty well known (Biohazard) and some a little more obscure (Sick Society). I like the fact that Maximum Penalty is playing, along with a band called Maximum Force...and then a band called Brute Force. I'm not entirely sure about how far 'right' some of these bands went, so don't crucify me for any of that (actually, go to Hell, I don't care what you think). Not a lot of variation in the names there. Still a pretty hefty lineup, and how late do you think this ran since it started at 7 PM? The Icemen need no introduction, and neither do Fit of Anger (doesn't Porter talk about how they're better than Chain of Strength in the Floorpunch 'Final Mosh' vid? Maybe I'm mis-hearing). American Eagle had a much better name/logo than recorded output and I really wish I'd come up with the name Savage Choir.

Anyway, benefit for vets. I dig that. I'm in the process of writing an essay/short story about my uncle who first heard rock n' roll music (Cream Disraeli Gears I think...) while traipsing through the jungles of Vietnam. How much crazier of a context for RNR would it give you if it was coupled with land mines, agent orange and blitzkrieging air raids on villages? I come from a military town. I'm not going to get into any politics here, but many people I hold dear (Daniel Montgomery) have served, or are currently serving in the armed forces. For those observing this day here in the States, have fun and be safe. For those who aren't, seek out some Fit of Anger MP3's and mosh in yer room.

N is for No Warning

I'm never gonna work another day in my life. 

When I interviewed Chris Morgado for the STILL pending Drug Dogs #3, we talked a lot about this band (the zine’s still in development hell btw). The thing that many people will remember about No Warning is how they went from writing arguably one of the most classic LPs of 2000s core (like Morgado said on the Trumbull blog, no matter how bad everyone wanted to write them off as generic tough guy mosh-foolery, Ill Blood uses absolutely NO recycled riffs anywhere, all killer) to schlepping out a sorta ok LP that pandered to mainstream audiences. Yeah, lots of idiots like to pretend to dig it in an attempt to show how open minded they are or something ridiculous, but they know in their heart of hearts that Suffer Survive just isn't great. End of story. I can, however, still get behind how shamelessly it was touted as being their ticket to fame and fortune.

This band in their prime, NYHC via Toronto, was baller, and in no small part because of the rumors attached to them. Having a demo tape of Ill Blood songs re-recorded with white power lyrics, a certain affinity for Biohazard comparisons and a definite rep for being dicks on message boards got people talking and/or hating...which meant I was paying attention.

I don’t think this art was ever used anywhere, but I’m told that during Suffer Survive era, it was on their website as “fan art” which is laughable in itself. I like that there’s an original version of it (featuring a naughty symbol and a giant minotaur schlong respectively) and then a “censored” version. Cool stuff.

I’ll never tire of the 7” and Ill Blood, but a tour with Machine Head in promotion for Suffer Survive still gives me douche chills as I look back on it.

[Edit: it's now 2018 and I've come around on Suffer Survive. I dig it now]