Lifetime "Seven Inches" Ad

It's been a year. I've debated what to do, just leave the blog up so people can download or just walk away. Most things are still functional download wise, though with mediafire, some aren't. Maybe we'll make a switch over, maybe not. But for now, we'll get this going again.

Here's an old Lifetime add for the Seven Inches collection CD.

Enjoy!

the Assistant - Both LPs, EP, and Splits

The Assistant were a hardcore punk band from New Jersey. They played loud, fast, heavy music with lots of screaming. They also played catchy and poppy songs with slightly off key singing. Songs with programming, keyboards, and samples- Yeah, that too. They could also jam for 5 minutes without saying a word. I try not to get to tied up in the genre(s) slapped on a band, outside of the broader things like Hardcore, Punk, Ska, Rock, Emo, Metal, etc.; I know that the Assistant was a Screamo band, but that just sounds so narrow, so I guess I will get caught up in it this one time, which is why I called them a Hardcore Punk band at the onset of this post. I think that does them the most justice, and at least for me, more fairly says what they were and the depth of what they meant to me.

The last song that the Assistant released, "I Have A Name", from the split with Takaru & This Ship Will Sink, states that the Assistant, as a band, was about standing up for what you believe in. To me, that speaks far more to what this band meant to me (and many others). They covered topics that encompass just about every aspect of human emotion, self-reflection, and dealing with life itself, as a whole. From self-abuse to the impacts of illicit drugs (and discussion of the lengths that governments have been willing to go to in order to test out new drugs on the poor and the resulting impacts), sexual abuse, consumer culture, the consequences of convenience, the com-modification of independent and thought provoking music sounds/scenes, and much more. All of it with thought and explanation - an insight into the words and thoughts that are just as heavy (if not more so) than the music they are playing. Multiple members singing and writing lyrics gives a little something extra, not that the band wouldn't have been great with just Leigh singing.

I will leave it at that- as i've said before here, some times less is more. The Assistant, for me, is a band that ranks up there with Battery, Hot Water Music, the Cable Car Theory, By The Grace of God, and other incredible bands that seemed to fuse themselves into the music they played, and shared words that were bits and pieces of themselves and of myself too. That's not said for a dramatic flair; this music of hardcore and punk ; through many bands and people; has indelibly made an impact on nearly every aspect of my life in some way.

Members have been in a laundry list of other bands, especially guitarist/vocalist, Tom. Check each and every one of them out.

Sadly, it seems, everything the band has done has gone out of print. So, in two downloads, you have the Self-Titled LP, In the Year of the Dawg Tour EP, We'll Make the Roads By Walking LP, the aforementioned 3-way Split, Split with Red Scarlet Letter, and a song that seems to come from an internet created Comp (an alternate version of the song "I Have A Name" from a comp called Screamo Room Presents...) ***In the Year of the Dawg actually features two tracks that ended up on the second lp, they are identical, but included for completions sake***

Enjoy!

DOWNLOAD: The Assistant "Self-Titled LP & In The Year of the Dawg"

DOWNLOAD: The Assistant "We'll Make the Roads LP, Splits, & Comp Track"

Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - Live on KEXP 9/6/2005

For those of you not in the loop (I say that VERY jokingly), Ted Leo and the Pharmacists are a east coast Punk/Rock band originally formed in the late 90's as the alter-ego of Leo after the demise of his indie/punk outfit Chisel, for whom he had sang/played guitar. Leo's involvement with the punk & hardcore scenes is rather storied, from time spent as the first singer of hardcore punk pioneers Citizen's Arrest as well as many other projects such as the Sin Eater & Hell No (that's to say nothing of his brothers' involvement in music, including the great Native Nod as well as playing in TL/RX at various times).

TL/RX as many will often abbreviate the band to be eventually solidified as a punk infused rock band with the release of their "Treble in Trouble" Ep in 2000. From that point on, the band built upon a framework of big hooks, precise drums, and soulful yet punky vocals. While the sound and members have varied over time from the very 70's influenced "Hearts of Oak" (moments that make you think Thin Lizzy and then Elvis Costello and the Attractions) to the more concise and even stronger late 70's punk sounding "Shake the Sheets", the band has continued to put out a sound that gets tighter and tighter; but still able to go any direction needed, as evidenced with the digital only release of their "Rapid Response" ep which featured 2 new songs along with covers from the diverse background of the band that showed the band doing their send up of the Cocksparrer classic "I Got Your Number" and Leo alone on vocals and guitar doing Amebix's "Nobodys Driving", all pulled off as a basement recording outside of the "proper studio" comforts.

Leo himself is also known to tour on his own doing sets not unlike "Back To Basics" era Billy Bragg, as well as even doing abbreviated sets in the same manner before the full band takes the stage. A final aspect to the TL/RX sound is their ability to write and play songs that not only get you sucked in and ready to move, but have ideas, concepts, and dare it be said, politics, that do not smash you over the head with blatantly over stated ideas. Again, a page from people such as Elvis Costello and the Attractions.

Forgive the long intro, TL/RX is a bit left of center for this blog, none-the-less, the set here is 5 songs from right around the time of the release of "Shake the Sheets" and features the band firing through 5 tracks, including the rather catchy "Counting Down the Hours." Edited out is the banter between songs, but it can still be streamed from the KEXP site, who do numerous great in-studios with music from across genres.

En-fucking-joy!

DOWNLOAD: TL/RX - Live on KEXP

A Thin Line Fading - "Discography"

A Thin Line Fading were, as you can see, a sXe hardcore band from New Jersey in the 90's. They played a style of old school hardcore at a time when the mid/late 90's revival was really in full swing again. Building intro type music on a song like "Neville Chamberlin Was A Chump" (aka Fuck You) that shows just a hint of melody, to shorter blasts like "Better Than Her" which also breaks from standard lyrical fare and deals with domestic violence.

I could certainly see ATLF playing a show somewhere between In My Eyes & Fastbreak (pre-Rev lp) as there are songs that have some vocals that drift somewhat away from out & out screaming and add some singing as the music changes pace for a brief moment.

I came across this band just by chance on the good old interwebs when they were still active, sometime in the mid/late 90's. I think it was via Laces Out and around the time In My Eyes came out for the Rev Tour. I distinctly remember one of the guys from Laces Out, who I had been talking with at the time had shared that In My Eyes was opening their sets on the tour with the Minor Threat cover songs. I digress. I heard the band on their website and wrote the band about getting a hold of their stuff. I had also been trying to put together a compilation record at the time and the band had been gracious enough to send me a CD with the demo, split with Gatecrashers, and 3 unreleased songs. In fact, the CD case which is packed away somewhere actually has a nifty sticker on it with a picture of the band. Good Times.

Members went on to, among other things, Anything Goes (whose 7inch is posted HERE) and Down In Flames.

*Demo cover boworrowed from HC/Punk Demo Tape Archives, a fine blog, so check it out.

DOWNLOAD: A Thin Line Fading - "Discography"

The Cable Car Theory - "The Deconstruction"

I have to confess, from time to time there are albums I almost get excited to find out are out of print because I can (in good conscience & good faith) share them on the blog. Of course, I'd love for everything to be accessible at a reasonable price for anyone interested to own, but that's a whole other discussion...

The Cable Car Theory sound almost like a hyper version of bands like Hot Water Music and Avail. They draw on all the great aspects of 90's Emo/Hardcore with thick guitars, vocals that go from pissed off to exasperated and back again, drums that are so precise the drummer could very easily be playing in a much more metallic band.

The Cable Car Theory's strongest asset may be that they can musically turn on a dime- plowing through a song like Analysis, while taking a more mid-tempo pace with opener Nakama, only to slow things down with Spit Happens. A real testament is a song like Caffeine Battle Cry which employs a little of both. The lyrics again evoke feelings of the aforementioned bands and sounds, with subjects like friendships, child birth, child abuse, emotions & feelings, etc. The album ends pretty emphaticallywith the foreboding sounding Tears For Broken Toys which starts pretty heavy for their sound as members of the Assistant help out with vocals.

Hailing from New Jersey in the late 90's- early 00's, they released a few different records (a previous ep/lp, some 7inches, & comp tracks) in their time and apparently did a fair amount of playing at least on the east coast and even Europe. This record stands as a very good and under-appreciated piece of hardcore/punk from the early part of this century (sounds weird to say that, hah). Dig in and enjoy, 13 songs in just over 30 minutes.

DOWNLOAD: The Cable Car Theory - "The Deconstruction" 

Anything Goes - "The Party's Over" 7inch

HAPPY MONDAY, here's one for the car ride to work. Anything Goes was an early 2000's hardcore band from New Jersey. I don't know a ton about the band, and came across them only because guitarist, Jay Pepito, had sent me their demo tape years ago after I had been in contact with him about his previous band, A Thin Line Fading (which also included future Down In Flames guitarist John Devlin on vocals).

I still have the Anything Goes demo tape (though currently no tape deck) as well as the A Thin Line Fading discography cd, but today you get the Anything Goes "The Party's Over" 7inch. Release in 2001 on Broken Glass Records, it offers up good old standard hardcore- driving songs that give way to bass lines and pounding drums; a little melody under the angry music that abruptly stops and restarts. This style got to be pretty standard for a few years; but here, it is far from boring and still a few years from over done. Standout tracks include the re-recorded demo track "Same Old Story" as well as the song "All That Matters" which has a nice drum/bass break that builds to a nice little melodic tempo change and the sage advice 'always up everyone's ass, keeping up on all the trends, you've got all the right records, but you still can't buy friends' . (Ed. Note- its a catchy line in the song and a point shared, but the intended sarcasm in "sage advice" should be noted).


DOWNLOAD: Anything Goes - "The Party's Over" 7inch

Ressurection - Self-Titled 7inch

East Coast Hardcore feat. members of every other band* you can think of (seriously). I'd guess that a lot of people who frequent this blog know who they are already; and those of you who don't- DOWNLOAD THIS.

Pissed Off hardcore that held enough straight forward sound mixed with a boiling over of emotions and changing sounds. A simpler sound than Unbroken but possessing an anger and voice just as loud as them- volatile and explosive mid paced hardcore.





DOWNLOAD: Ressurection - "s/t" 7inch


*including members of Release, 108, Lifetime, Floorpunch, Kid Dynamite, Paint it Black, and many more


**This was released on New Age Records originally /// Deathwish has been claiming to be preparing a Discography for some time. Those versions will be remastered, but for any who may have concern- i will remove these if you find it necessary, just contact me*