Violent Reaction - Dead End (Quality Control HQ - 2014)

With more and more hardcore reviewed on the webzine, I just couldn't let it go any longer and not talk about the most Oi! of all the current hardcore bands. I'm of course talking about Violent Reaction, coming from the northern shores of England, involving guys playing in about a billion other bands (I'll guess we'll take about some of them sooner or later here). I'm currently waiting for the new LP to hit the european distros (if I can avoid paying like 30$ of shipping cost I'm willing to wait a couple more weeks), so I'll just deal with their 2014 7" called Dead End.

Let's see. Can you imagine a perfect mix of 80's USHC (Negative Approach/Negative FX/Last Rights/you know the score...)/UK82 (Exploited when they were not doing boring metal/Discharge...)/80's english Oi! ? If you can, then you pretty much got what Violent Reaction sounds like. Blitz worship all day everyday, just perfect ! If you don't, think mean, angry, pissed-off violent songs. Oh yeah, and think straight edge. Violent Reaction is a fucking straight edge Oi! band.

On that 7" you'll find two pure Oi! anthems ("Dead End" and "Can't Be Beat"), three fast in-your-face compromiseless hardcore songs ("Guilty", "Shut Up" and "Stand Accuse") and the last one ("Waste of Space") is kind of a mix of both. The red thread in that record being fucking anger. That I can relate to. Best songs being EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM (but more seriously "Dead End", "Shut Up" and "Can't Be Beat" are my favourites).

Plus you don't only get 6 awesome songs, but they also come in a sick package : unfold that thick paper cover to the X-shape it has (do you get more edge than this ?) and you'll get all the lyrics, band pictures, thanklist, the all thing. Though I don't know if all the versions of that record have that X-shape cover (I guess mine is a later repress of the QCHC version, got the thing on red vinyl). I love when a record comes in a great cover, that's no secret to you anymore, so I can just be pleased with what I have right now in my hands.

You can still find a few copies of that gem in US or european distros, but if I were you I would hurry the fuck up and get it, we're dealing with the last and final pressing of that record right now (if I'm not wrong). Best european hardcore band going on right now, and they could easily fight for the title of best Oi! band has well !

Reconquesta - Recupera El Que Et Pertany (Disco Nightmare/See You - 2015)

Last week end I had the chance to see Reconquesta (we already talked about them here, remember ?) live in Stockholm and get my hands on their newly released LP.

And well, it does not disappoint ! Still the same english/french 80's/90's inspired melodic sound, always in their own native language, even though I got little more Retaliator-like vibes on this on than on their previous single. Probably because of the sound and the solo guitar sometimes (pretty fucking well done I have to say !), especially on the intro.

So let's get down to it. Recupera El Que Et Pertany ("Take Back What is Yours") gives us eleven songs (plus the intro), one of them already being in the last 7" ("Reconquesta") and two covers : "Skinheads Catalans" -an adaptation of Skinkorps' "Skinkorps Mécanique"- and a cover of Frontpilsen's -an early 90's Barcelona Oi! band- "El Final de la Nit" ("The End of the Night"). There's also an instrumental ballad called "D.E.P." ("Rest In Peace") dedicated to an ex-band member that passed away (if I understood well ?). The rest is, as I said, melodic but angry Oi! with great rythm section, solo guitars and vocals/choirs. You'll be singing along these songs after 2 seconds, even if you don't speak catalan ! My personal favourites songs are "Hereus de la Conquesta" ("Heirs of the Conquest"), "Morint Dempeus" ("Die Standing") and "Oi! Per Catalunya".

Oh, and before I forget, the songs on this LP are REALLY REALLY patriotic. Fuck, these lads love Catalonia. I understand that they're fighting for their independence and all that, but I can't imagine a "non-political" (by that I mean non-RAC/WP) band doing that in Sweden ! Not that it's a problem for me, the texts are really good and powerful, it's just funny to see what is ok somewhere in the world while it's not ok somewhere else. But anyway, brilliant lyrics full of pride, glory and love for their piece of land. Once again a great record !

All that comes in a nice drawn cover, delivered with a nice poster-like lyrics sheet (the gothic font is sometimes a little hard to read, but that's just me complaining for the sake of it I guess) plus an extra white paper sheet with the lyrics translated in english (really nice initiative !). Excellent production, both musically as in terms of packaging. Plus, I'm in the thanklist (something that I didn't know, thanks guys by the way !), always nice ! Do yourself a favour and get that LP. Marvelous from the beginning to the end. Please note that a CD version is due to be out soon on Sweden's Pretty Shitty Town Records (a matter of weeks now I guess ?). Best fucking southern-european going on right now, period !

Rixe - Coups et Blessures (La Vida Es Un Mus - 2015)

Well it's been a while since i wrote something, but let's look at the bright side of life, it gave me time to get a nice bunch of new (and not so new) records, so let's cut the bullshit and start with the music right now.
And what better way to start than with the latest hype in the scene (these guys are actually good friends, so I can joke/provocate a bit can't I ?), namely Paris' latest Oi! combo Rixe. By now you'll probably already know about their debut 7" Coups et Blessures, but whatever. The band is made of nice lads from Lion's Law, The Sultans and Youth Avoiders (just to name a few, all of them are involved in like a million bands). Please note that Rixe doesn't sound like any of the band quoted in the last sentence. No melodic modern Oi! here. What we have a raw early Oi!/hardcore sounding band. Let's get done with the name-dropping, think Negative Approach, 80's french Oi! and, maybe the best influence possible, the mighty Nabat. I get kind of 90's NYOi! vibes as well (Oxblood and the likes). Straight to the point, no bullshit, dirty-sounding but yet fantastic songs is what you'll get here. They also in a way remind me of their fellow countrymen Outreau. And that bass sound, please yes !

"Razzia", "Infatigables", "Larmes de Crocodile" and "Coups et Blessures" are brilliant songs, the two last ones being my favourite, with lyrics dealing with smashing the fuck up people in the streets, hanging like wolves at night (do yourself a favour and translate the lyrics, or learn french and fuck you). Fitting pretty well with the sound and the concept of the band if you ask me. No complex shit, simple but yeat hitting you right in the face. The only think I don't like is that 4 songs are just fucking to short, I want to hear more !
Everything in that record has a authentical and vintage feeling : the thin DIY-looking cover, the big central holes and the xeroxed lyric sheet. The whole thing comes with a bunch of stickers of the band (always nice with a few goodies). The hype is well fucking deserved for that band. Once again I can't say how happy I am with this kind of going-back to the basics Oi!. More of that please !

Foreseen - Death Injection/Market Target (Self-released - 2014)

Ok, this is gonna be a strange one, but probably a funny one. I have to admit, first, that I know ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about crossover (might have listened to Power Trip a few time, but not more), so don't expect any precise references, or even an accurate description of what that record sounds. But, eventually, since I have no knowledge about the genre, I don't have any "pre-maid ideas" or "vision of how it should be" about it (like I might have while talking about Oi! sometimes), so I'll just talk about what I think that record sounds like and what it makes me feel.
Lately I have been searching for a new kind of sound. Something perhaps more brutal, more violent, more compromiseless. Not that I had enough of Oi!, far from it, but the whole "bootboy rock'n'roll/glam-inspired" thing is startint to get less attractive. Seems like I've heard enough of it. I've started to get more and more interested in hardcore punk, taking a look at power violence and such things (even tried to listen to some d-beat stuffes, while I was mocking a friend who did that a few years ago. Still not my thing though), in a quest for savagery. Am I going too far ? What are these unknow shores I'm heading to (yes, I'm also a fucking poet) ?
I must say I don't really remember how I got introduced to Helsinki's Foreseen (probably by some facebook link), but what I remember is that I was kind of sceptic at the very beginning. Still to much metal-sounding for me when I first listened to it. But then a bit later I came back to the band, and I realised that it was actually the sound I was looking for at that very moment. Brutal, dark and almost creepy lyrics and sound (just take the intro of "Market Target"), negative. A perfect mix of hardcore and metal, mixing faster part with slower (perhaps mosh ?) parts, more-metalic-than-what-I-usualy-listen-to solo guitars, gang choirs and aggressive, pissed of vocals (that whole chorus on "Death Injection" is magnificent !). These two songs, "Death Injection" and "Market Target" are awesome (especially the first one, for the reason named before), as I said exactly the kind of music I'm looking for right now. And it mix good with my habitual Oi! habits, just because it's pretty far away from it.
As I said, I would probably never have listened to a band like Foreseen like a year ago, but right now I have no problem listening to the whole LP Helsinki Savagery (which I own only digitaly, but I managed to get my hands on a copy of the 7" promoting it, that's why I'm reviewing only these two songs) between two Oi! bands (let's Battle Ruins -wow what a surprise !- and Reconquesta for example).

I am still pretty unsure about that review. Not that I don't know if that 7" is good or not (as I said it's brilliant), but that's a whole new thing to me, seems like, after reading what I've written, that I kind of talked a lot about my musical researches and not so much about the record itself... Anyway, I'll keep navigating in these unfamiliar waters for a while, but don't worry, I'll be coming back with more Oi! soon (let's say in the next review, that Victory/The Clichés split got to be reviewed soon !). But until that (by now you'll have understand that I don't write on a daily basis, yep, I'm lazy sometimes), give Foreseen a listen. You might be, just like me, extremly surprised, in a good way !

Fatigue - Dog Bodies tape (Self-released - 2014)

As the time goes, it seems like I'm more and more talking about hardcore punk. Well, I guess I'm going where the music is, it has been kind of quiet on the Oi! front these last times... But hopefully some good things will come later this year.

There is anyway a link between San Francisco's Fatigue and Oi!, because it's the other band of Carl, singer of the mighty Sydney Ducks. Unless you've been living under a stone for the last few years, you'll now who Sydney Ducks are, otherwhise I invit you to check their discography out. If you're lucky (and sophisticated) enough to speak french, read the reviews that we've done about them on Vengeance.

So, let's talk about Fatigue itself. No bootboy rock'n'roll here, this is pissed, angry and raw UK82-influenced hardcore punk. Raging vocals (I had a hard time believing that it was the same singer as Sydney Ducks, but it is), nicely bass driven music with a dirty sound that gives a great atmosphere to it all. Think No-Future punk (Partisans, Attak and the likes) played in a 80's punk hardcore fashion. No bullshit here, this is straight to the point, aggressive and vicious.

Five tracks on that cassette, the best ones being "Punisher" and "Outlander". 100 copies were done, but it's still findable on the internet, and you can anyway download it through the band's bandcamp ("name your price", as often). Fuck, I really need to get a working tape player... Good one, and they apparently have more coming soon !

War Path - S/T tape (Protest, Object - 2014)

As I said earlier, 2014 was a great year in terms of releases, and it seems like it still has some surprises for me.

I stumbled pretty much randomly on War Path's band camp while searching for some fresh music, and boy, what a nice surprise it became ! I had never heard them at all before, and there's no review of their 5-tracks tape, and not much infos about them on the internet. So basically, all I know is that these guys are from Los Angeles, and some of them are ex-members of Stoic Violence (didn't knew them as well, but after listening to their stuffes, I guess "fast violent and mean punk hardcore" is a good description). Another thing I know is that these 5 songs by War Path are AWESOME. It's still pretty much punk hardcore, but not the same thing as Stoic Violence at all. We're talking here about higly UK82/Oi! music. Think Negative Approach, Blitz, maybe even Oxblood or Hammer & The Nails and Hired Goons if you'd rather have more recent references. Rough vocals, melodic guitars, dirty sound... Some kind of excellent cavemen Oi! (great expression, isn't it ?) that will make you want to go on the rampage and smash stuffes around you.

As I said, 5 songs filled with rage and anger, my favourite ones being "Bloodshed" and "Night and Fog". With titles like these, or "Try and Survive", "Alone in the Streets" and "Destroy Me" (here you go with the 5 songs), you know you're gonna get some dark and frenzied texts, and the music just consolidates that feeling. These fine gentlemens are definitely on the warpath !

So don't be fooled by that Thin Lizzy glove cover, do yourself a favour and listened to some good cavemen Oi!. If you own a tape player, you can still find physical copies on the web, otherwise you can download all the songs through the band's bandcamp, for as much money as you're willing to give. Fuck, I don't understand why nobody talked about them ! I don't know if they're very active (I found like one gig flyer with them, for their first show last june, and nothing more), but I wish I'll here more of them soon !

Vanity - Vain in Life (Katorga Works - 2014)

First review of 2015, woohoo ! And what better way to start it than with one of 2014's late gem, namely Vanity's Vain in Life LP ? 
Now I have to admit I had completely missed Vanity's 3-tracks cassette (from 2013, on Rock'n'Roll Disgrace), mainly because I don't own a cassette player, and I like to play records that I buy (otherwhise there's no point owning them). So if you did the same, know that this 2-men band is composed of people from or formerly from bands like The Rival Mob or CREEM. Pretty solid basis, but don't be fooled, Vanity has not much to do with these bands. If you're into '77 punk/early Oi! (let's say Slaugther and the Dogs, Chelsea and the likes of it) or more simply All Skrewed Up by Skrewdriver, you are gonna love that record. Rock'n'roll-ish as fuck, dirty sounds, light-boostered guitars, rough (like in "Can't Be Bothered") to clear (in "Bal des Ardents", for example) vocals, everything is perfect in that record.
Twelve songs on that marvellous LP, and they're all good, but if I had to pick my favourites it would be "Can't Be Bothered", "Fuck Right Off" and "The King Drinks", but really, it's a really a all killer no filler.

Here you go, the whole record is even on Youtube. Listen to it, feel the awesomeness of it all and buy that shit quick !

That last mentioned song fits perfectly the cover by the way : the king drinks and it's bloody fucking medieval chaos (I wonder if my own king, the mighty Carl XVI Gustaf, does the same, but he probably does 'cause the guys is a real player), even though the first time I saw the cover I thought this was a gangsta-HC band (mainly because of the band name's font). But I usualy don't judge a record by its cover (even if a nice artwork is always a plus when buying a record that I don't know), and fuck I was right not to in Vanity's case.
You still can find it in some mailorders (like Contra or Rebellion, who is, by the way, going to release a CD version of the record), but hurry up, because this is going to sold out quick, and then it's gonna be to late and you'll regret it !

Glory Days - S/T tape (Self-released - 2014)

Something like a week ago I got a mail from Piotr, guitarist of the Warsaw-based 3-piece band Glory Days, asking me to review these guys' debut tape. I agreed, because I usualy don't refuse to review stuffes (unless it's really bad, it's hard to write bad stuffes about a band, there's not a thousand way to call a shit record a shit record), and also because I pretty much know nothing about the polish scene, and the eastern european one in general (never got a deep interest for it, for no particular reason). I also saw that these guys got litteraly destroyed by Maximum Rock'n'Roll. Well what a fucking surprise, MRR generaly doesn't like Oi!, so nothing new here.
Let's talk a bit more about Glory Days itself. They're a melodic mid-tempo Oi! band, with nice solo guitar additions, some nice gang vocals and all the package. Once again, it don't really know how the scene is in Poland, and what they sound like, but Glory Days sounds pretty "western european". I hear 80's english Oi!, and more modern bands, like Alternate Action (yep, they're canadians, and Canada is not in Europe, I know thanks), Perkele (the Från Flykt till Kamp period) or, to quote their fellow eastern comrades Saints & Sinners from Czech Republic (both musicaly and the vocaly, in that case). Also they sing in english. On the one hand, that's good because then I can understand what they're singing (my abilities in polish are pretty much inexistant... kurwa ?), but on the other hand, I like when people sing in their native language. I guess it's easier to express yourself and transmit your messages in your mother tongue, but whatever, that's not the problem here.
So, on that tape Glory Days give us 4 tracks, "Reality Check", "Glory Days", "The Line" and "Out of Sight", all dealing with kind of topics : trying to escape reality, which hits you right back in the face, living for today without forgetting the past, or telling people trying to use and abuse you to get lost. Best songs being, for me, "Out of Sight" and "Glory Days" (even of the two other ones are more than ok).
So, nothing revolutionary here, Glory Days obviously doesn't break the "Oi!-mould", but they fit just right in it, at least to me. That's an honest band, giving us a nice 4-tracks tape, I actually have a hard time understanding why MRR hated it so much ?
Anyway, give these guys a listen, you can stream 3 of their 4 tracks through their bandcamp, with lyrics included.

Syndrome 81 - S/T (Offside Records - 2013)

I've been mentioning this guys quite a lot lately, so it seems kind of obvious to review their first 7", even if it has been out for like a year now. And moreover, first french review here, and I don't think it could have been a better first one than this.
Syndrome 81 is made of members from french hardcore bands like Thrashington DC, Night Stalkers and Police Truck. So you might think these guys have not much to do with Oi! But just listen to that 7" and you'll see that you're wrong. this is definitely one of the best french band I have listened to lately, mixing HC punk (Negative Approach seems like an obvious influence here, especially since the band cover one song of them) and Oi!/Chaos punk (think about bands like Kidnap, Trotskids or Komintern Sect, I would actually also name Tolbiac's Toads because these guys play so good and kind of faster than your usual french Oi! band, the hardcore influences and background explaining it a lot). Extremly melodic mid-tempo songs, perfect solo guitars, nice lyrics and vocals, gang choirs and morever a kind of dark/depressed feeling to it all... This is just fucking awesome.

That Negative Approach cover is just brilliant, I mean even the translation kicks asses !

But the whole "Chaos punk" thing isn't just about the music. You can feel it in the lyrics as well : talking about the dark side of everyday's life ("Une Vie Pour Rien", which is not a cover of Camera Silens' song with the same name), their city (Brest, in Britanny, which already has a glorious punk past with bands like Al Kapott, Les Collabos or the more controversial but still classic Brutal Combat) like "Recouvrance" and "Brest la Grise", and even a kind of a surprising song about the french war in Algeria and the use of torture during that war, with "À Coup de Gégène" (myself being french, I can't really think about any punk song sharing the same topic, apart maybe "Un Pays à Défendre" by L'Infanterie Sauvage). And of course the Negative Approach cover in french, exclusive to the vinyl version of that release. A great anti-P.M.A. song is how you can describe that cover. Fuck your positive attitude, the future is not bright.
That record came out in different version, first a cassette limited to 81 copies (what else ?) and then, hopefuly on vinyl (a regular black version and a special artwork and grey vinyl version limited to 100 copies). All that with an artwork that match the dark ambiance of the songs, a really D.I.Y.  insert with band photos, lyrics and thanklist, but moreover, 6 fucking brilliant songs.
These guys have already toured Europe now (even playing in Sweden, where I unfortunately missed them) and are going to play in Paris with the legendary band R.A.S. soon. If you can go to that show please do so, because you don't want to miss it, this is just gonna be epic.

Syndrome 81 is bloody fucking awesome, I read that they were on their way to record more stuffes, and I can just be happy with that ! Vive la France, vive them and I hope I'll be able to see them live soon !

Urban Savage - Let Thunder Roar (Savage Records - 2014)

It is time to head back to Sweden, more precisely to Malmö, aka Crime City, home of the best falafels of Northern Europe, good hardcore bands and Urban Savage, which is today's subject.
How can I describe Urban Savage to you ? I would say that they are a Oi!/UK82 sounding band, with obvious hardcore and rock'n'roll-ish/cock-rock influences. They seem themselves not to care much about what they are labeled as (they describe themselves as "hardcorepunkoirocknroll or whatever" according to their facebook page), and that's good, who the fuck needs a label anyway. What's important is that the music is good. And Urban Savage is good music, let me tell you that.
No-compromise songs driven by strong bass lines, with powerful vocals backed by good gang choirs is what you will get here. The sound is changing through the songs, for example songs like "When the Day Comes" and "Those Who Go & Those Who Stay" are more rock'n'roll-ish (here you will here that cockrock influences I was talking about), while "Minimum Wage/Maximum Slave" as a more Conflict feeling to it all, and "Fight to Win Fight to Lose" is definitely sounding more Oi! In the end it reminds me, once again, a lot of that whole Boston-Oi! scene (namely Battle Ruins, Hammer and The Nails or Tommy and the Terrors), or bands like Hired Goons and Syndrome 81, mixing musical genres to end up with a great sounding result.

But the most important with Urban Savage is definitely the lyrics. I hope you like songs about drinking beers and being a smartly dressed skinhead. Because that's absolutely NOT what Urban Savage is about. These guys will bring you back straight to reality, reminding you what life really is. And it's dark and hard according to them. And they're right. The lyrics deals with what's wrong with society, how you get fucked up by it and how you should not give up and fight back. For that matter I would definitely associate them with Hammer and the Nails, because they deal with the same kind of subject (and have kind of the same sound influences, to me) : everything that is wrong with the modern world. If I had to choose my favourite song on that 12", it would definitely be "Wolves", the bass line, the dark ambience, the lyrics... Everything is just perfect to me in that song. But once again, every songs are good on that album.

As the band said themselves, this records includes "no download codes - no silkscreened cover - no free lollipops". Everything is straight to the point, DIY insert, plain black vinyl, good "let the thunder roar in Malmö" (I guess the cover is depicting Malmö ?) looking artwork (it's self-released by the band through their own label, Savage Records). You don't need more than this and you will anyway not get anything better than this. Because Urban Savage are just fucking brilliant. If you want to listen to something more than just "Oi! Oi! drink beers wear boots", if you want reality to punch you right back in the face, and if you're into great music, then Urban Savage is made for you. If you don't, you can still continue listening to Evil Conduct. But that's your problem.
Anyway, it's always good to see that Sweden is producing some of the best actual punk bands, I mean, between them and Sabotage, both producing great music with clever and socialy aware lyrics, it just doesn't get better than this.
I read that these guys were going to have a new song on the upcoming volume (number 8 if I'm not wrong) of Turist i Tillvaron (which is a great swedish punk compilation serie. If you want to know what's going on in Sweden right now, get these records, because they're great and they give a wide perspective of the swedish scene), and I can only be glad with that because I want to hear more from Urban Savage. This is definitely a record you want to have, so make yourself a favor, contact the band and get this 12". I can assure you you won't regret it ! This record is going to be the prefect soundtrack to my winter ! Here you can listen to some of the songs included in the full length.

Last Crusade - Demo 2014 (Self-released - 2014)

Alright, next thing we'll be talking about is Last Crusade, a new band from northern England that just released a 4 tracks demo through their bandcamp.

These guys are playing an awesome melodic mid-tempo "bootboy rock'n'roll" as they say, think Templars (mainly for the guitar sound I guess), french Oi! (both 80's bands -like Warrior Kids, which they cover, Tolbiac's Toads or Snix- and more recent bands like The Veros). Light-boostered guitar, straight to the point music, raging vocals (it sounds like there are two singers, as the vocals are different on "Morally Bankrupt" as on the other songs, but I might be wrong), gang choirs, all that in english (which is kind of not surprising coming from a UK band), except a cover of "Personne" from Marseille's Warrior Kids, sung in a perfect french (probably because of the singer being from Canada, and from the Québec area I guess). They kind of remind me in a way of the french band Syndrome 81 (great band, check them out if you didn't already).

As I said, 3 great songs in english, called "Deadbeat", "Morally Bankrupt" and "Cycle of Terror", and a cover from Warrior Kids. That last cover is brilliant, different from the original, maybe a bit more "aggro", but still pretty good. A cover shouldn't be the exact copy of the original song, in my opinion, because then why listen to anything else other than the original ? Plus "Personne" is one of my favourite song from Warrior Kids, so great job here. Please keep making songs in french in the future, people in England probably don't give a fuck about it but it sounds great !

A very good surprise, that's what Last Crusade's debut release is. I definitely want to hear more from these guys, and I hope this demo will be released in vinyl soon (but I don't worry too much for them about that, as I am pretty sure it will be). Anyway, you can (and you should) listen to these songs on the band's bandcamp, and even download them by paying the price you're willing to pay for it.

Hired Goons - Demo 2013 + Demo 2013 Part II (Nobody Cult - 2013)

You've probably figured it out by now, I'm now a very punctual guy. I rarely talk about stuffs that just came out. But I guess the majority of people reading this are not after "fresh news of the scene" (they're easy to find on other websites/pages anyway), but rather for what I think about bands I review (or at least I hope that, because otherwhise I don't understand what you're doing here), even though I try to talk about relatively "new" releases.
So no exception, the material we're going to talk about tonight (the night fell at least 2 hours ago here in Uppsala) is not that fresh. But still, it's good as fuck. We'll be talking about Hired Goons, from Ontario, Canada. I'll be killing two birds with one stone here, and talk about their two demos that came out respectively in April and November 2013.
What we have here is an Oi!-influenced hardcore punk band (or hardcore punk-influenced Oi! band, put it as you like), playing mid-to-slower tempo straight in your face rock'n'roll, driven by strong basslines, no-compromise guitar and shouted, powerful (but no tough guy/gangsta hardcore shit involved) vocals, sounding a bit like Sheer Terror. Basically it sound like a more punk hardcore version of bands like Hammer & the Nails (they have been reviewed here earlier), Tommy & the Terrors, or these NYC 90's Oi! bands that all sounded pretty hardcore influenced on the Oi! side, and Negative Approach on the hardcore side (I'm not that much of a hardcore punk guy, so I, unfortunately, lack a bit of references here...). Their seconde demo as, though, some kind of a Templars feeling, mainly because of the solo guitar lines and the guitar sound in general. It's more melodic, sounds more "melancholic" sometimes. Which, in my opinion, make it even better. The songs are hardly longer than 2 minutes (and a minute and 45 seconds on their second demo), so no time for bullshit here, it's hitting you straight and hard !

A song from the band's second demo, and probably one of the band's best song

If you didn't bought their demo tapes yet (because yes, both demos came out as tapes), then you're, like me, probably fucked because they seem to be completely sold out. But rejoice, they're both available (digitally) through the band's bandcamp for the price you're willing to pay for it. Nice gesture, that's another reason for you to check these guys out if you haven't done it yet. If you're into that kind of music you will definitely like it, if you're not then broaden your horizons !

Broken Heroes/The Guv'nors - Keep on Drinkin' (Contra Records - 2014)

We once again, after the Templars/Agent Bulldogg split 7", will be speaking of the two areas that I review the most here : America and Scandinavia, more precisely U.S.A. and Denmark.

So here we go with Broken Heroes from New Jersey and The Guv'nors, hailing from Aarhus (as Last Seen Laughing, that I review earlier here). Both bands grant us two songs, each band having a very different sound. 

Broken Heroes are a hard-hiting Oi! band, they have a very american sound (well, especially the singing sounds very american to me), straight to your face and with shouted vocals and choruses. I would compare them with their forefathers Niblick Henbane and The Wretched Ones (both also being from New Jersey, do we have a "local sound" here ?). I can see a logical link between their two songs, the first one, "Violence is the Answer" is about the necessary use of violence when you have to defend yourself or what is yours in some situation, and the second one, "Witch Hunt" is an anti-PC song. Given that the use of violence is, you will agree on that, not regarded as something good or PC in nowaday's society, that second song is basically saying "hey, you didn't liked the first song ? Why don't you just fuck off ?", or at least that's how I linked them.

Here's a (short )preview of what you'll find inside that 7"

The Guv'nors are playing a kind of rock'n'roll-ish Oi!/skinhead rock'n'roll, though much more hard rock-ish than bands like The Clichés (which I reviewed here) or bands like Suede Razors or 45 Adapters. Lots of choirs here as well, and really nice guitars, all that driven by stomping drums and rolling bass. Both songs are about alcohol, but that's no suprise given that the Danes are a bunch of alcoholics (says 99% of the population up here in Sweden). The first song, "Get Out" is a drinking and party anthem. I could easily have imagined handclapping to that song, it would just have made it even more party-ish and awesome. The second song, "Love in a Bottle", is a love declaration to alcohol, talking about it as it was a woman. Funny and well-written, hats off !

These four nice songs are packed in a gatefold sleeve containing the lyrics and band logos. You'll also find a download code in it. I basically don't ask for more, good production ! 380 copies in black vinyl and black and white cover, and 134 in red vinyl with sepia cover.

Really good split 7" of two bands that I heard before but never listened to deeply, I will definitely fix that. If I had to choose a winner it would be the Guv'nors, I just like their songs more, but Broken Heroes sure deliver two really nice ones as well !

The Clichés - Bovver Boots (Randale Records - 2014)

After a short pause, here I am again. And so is the band we'll be talking about tonight, namely The Clichés, from Norrköping, Sweden (yes, again).
Last time I heard from The Clichés was through their 2012 LP Streetrock for the Working Class, which was, as its two older brothers, insanely good.
But this 7" is not the same as the band's previous releases. First, correct me if I'm wrong, the singer Dennis is now all alone (though there's a guest vocalist and pianist on this release). Second, the sound as evolved. A lot. In a very good way. Sure, you will recognize the band (assuming that you have listened to them before, if not fix that mistake right now you fool !), but the style is quite different. You will, here, clearly hear glam rock/pub rock influences, they were there before, but now they've been pushed to the max. They have a genre for that in Sweden, which is called gubbrock I think ? Anyway, think Slade, Sweet, or to take more recent bands, the great Giuda, Suede Razors and basically that '77 Chiswick sound. You got it, it can't be wrong (it's anyway never wrong with The Clichés). Excellent vocals and backvocals, rock'n'rollish flaming guitar gimmicks and there's even some piano on the second song, "Riot". You will want to dance to these songs I promise you that. And of course, still a lot of clichés in the lyrics (basically, beat the shit out of everyone with your mates).
All that is wrapped in a nice old school cover (great artwork !), which, once again, remind me of some of Giuda's artwork (less old fashioned perhaps). No insert, and so no lyrics (too bad for me). There are 100 copies in orange, the rest is in regular black.
I'm kind of happy with the return of that glam-ish/pub-ish sound all over the world. Sweden didn't really had it so far (or maybe with The Manics, also from Norrköping, but they sound more power-pop, not much Oi! influences there, but still, they're really good as well. Excellent comeback by The Clichés, definitely one on of the best releases so far this year. The only bad thing with it is that it's so short ! I hope we'll get more soon !

Thunder and Glory - As the Ocean Churns (Stratum Records - 2014)

Yet another american band this time, Thunder and Glory from the city of Philadelphia. If i'm not wrong, the band is kind of new, but includes an ex member of The Boils (which you should check if you don't know them, really good band).
So these guys are a five-piece band and play a mid-tempo ("To Kill and Conquer", "Out of the Night") to faster-paced Oi! ("Attack and Kill"), with raging vocals, shouted choruses (that sometimes sound kind of hardcore to me), driven by battle drums, powerful guitar solos. Compromiseless, in your face but still melodic. I don't ask for much more. Though I had a hard times with the voice on the first listening, these songs grew on me and now I appreciate them as they are : awesome battle songs.

Because yes, that's what this record is all about. War, battles rage and fury. Just to give you an example, the first song, "To Kill and Conquer" is about some kind of a viking raid (they talk about the fjords, so I guess it must be that) coming to storm your land, conquer you, burn your wifes and rape your churches. Basically these guys are here to fuck you up. And the same goes for the two next songs, the record being closed by a cover of "Soldier 76" by... Soldier 76. Nicely done cover, even though I like the original better (hard to beat the singer's Combat 84-like voice). Me still being into my Battle Ruins madness (this is not gonna stop soon, know it), these battle anthems are pretty much all I want right now. Great !
That record, which was released earlier this year, came out in 300 copies, 200 being in blue/yellow colors with a Philadelphia flag-like based artwork, and 100 copies in black with a different - and very japanese- artwork which is a falcon holding a katana (that's the one I have). Lyrics are included, with a painting of Odin's Wild Hunt in the background (this viking raid thing that I have been talking about becomes more and more obvious).
Really nice release, if my review didn't convinced you, you can listen to the whole EP on the band's bandcamp. But trust me, this is a solid record !

Sun City Skins - Viejo Orgullo, Nueva Gloria (Vinyl 4 Bootboys Records - 2014)

Alright boys and girls, let's head back to the other side of the ocean. But this time (and for once) not to the USA. We'll go a little further south, to Mexico and the city of Hermosillo, and we'll go loco with the local band, Sun City Skins.
First I have to say that it's probably the only record of a band coming from Mexico that I own. I own and have listened to many other latin american bands (mainly from Argentina, Chile or Brazil), I had heard about the mexican scene before (especially when the italian band Asociale went there to play, in 2010 if I remember well ?), but this is, in the end, a pretty new scene to me.
Back to the band itself, Sun City Skins are a three-piece band coming from the city of Hermosillo, as I said before, and started to play in 2008, but that's actually their very first release. They play some kind of melodic up-tempo Oi!, with a lot of nice rock'n'roll-ish guitars, powerful vocals (in spanish, of course) and a lot of gang choirs. You could think that these guys would sound more "american" (by that I mean hardcore-influenced Oi!) given the geographic proximity with the USA, but to me they sound pretty European, you can clearly make a connection between their sound and bands like Decibelios, Zakarrak, Ultimo Asalto or in a greater extent, 80's/90's european Oi! influences.

Here you go with a sampler of what that record has to offer

On this EP the band offers us an intro plus three songs, "Tu Realidad", "La Vieja Escuela" and "Frente in Alto", dealing with the pride of being a skinhead, the way of life, etc... Nothing revolutionary but all in all in nicely written and really well played.
The artwork of this record is kind of... special in my opinion, I'm not a big fan of it. But never judge a book by its cover, as they say, and especially for this record you shouldn't, because you would be missing a great band. So, back to the thing, it's a gatefold cover, with, inside, the lyrics, band photos and a thanklist. 300 hundred copies were released (100 in black and 200 in gold, the golden version being particularly nice according to me).
If you don't want to miss a great band, then you should give Sun City Skins a try, I'm sure you will like it, I was very surprised by these three songs, really good ! I hope I will have the occasion to hear more things from them, and actually I will because I saw that the would be releasing a split EP with the great italian band F.A.V.L. soon. That's good news !

Reconquesta - S/T 7" (Disco Nightmare/See You - 2014)

The only european country which is not from Northern Europe present on this blog so far is Spain, and it's not gonna change. Well actually it might change, because Reconquesta (do yourself a favour if you look for the band on internet and write their name right, if you write it Reconquista you will only find a shitty spanish WP band, and by shitty I mean that this made me want to burn a paella plate, yep, it was that bad) are from Catalonia, and I know that catalonians are pretty touchy about their own national identity. So let's say it's not Spain.

These guys were, as a matter of fact, more or less uknown to me, I bought their 7" (which is also their first vinyl release, even though they seem to have started the band in 2012) pretty much randomly, given that I only had heard some demo songs on youtube before.

Well, that was a good random purchase if you want my point of view. Now those who know me (and those who have read the KnockOut review) know that spanish Oi! is not really my cup of tea, even if the catalonian scene is kind of an exception given that one of my favourite record of 2012 (and probably my favourite iberian band) is Secret Army's Crush the Remains. But anyway, I'm open to new bands, and giving a chance to Reconquesta was everything but a mistake. These guys are playing a melodic but still hard hitting Oi!, with great bass and solo guitar all the way, topped by  equaly melodic but still in your face vocals. Through and through it is really strong.  From what I can read on their Facebook page, they list their influences as english, french and american Oi! from the 80's/90's. Well, you can't go wrong with these (especially with the french one), but to me they sound actually much more modern than this, even if you can obviously hear these influences in the two songs on this single.

For some reason Blogspot decided to be a piece of shit and couldn't find the studio version of their song "Gloria". But look for it in Youtube. Believe me, it's worth it.

These two songs, to name them, are "Gloria" and "Reconquesta". I must admit that I am actually not familiar at all with the catalonian language, but reading the lyrics of "Gloria" on internet (they were clever enough to write them in the description of the song) helped a lot, since catalonian is pretty close to french (more than I thought actually). So basically, this song urges you to be proud and to never look down. The lyrics are not going to change your vision of the world, but is that what you expect Oi! to do ? Probably not. Instead they make you feel proud, strong and free (to quote Stars and Stripes), which is, to me, pretty much all I want to hear. Their second song, "Reconquesta", is not as melodical as the first one, maybe more straight forward, but is still great. It actually gives you a balanced single, with a melodical song and a more in-your-face one.

All that comes with a great artwork, which is the logo of the band (a feather and a sword) in a shield with a dragon in some kind of parchment style (it's the brown tone of it all that gives me this feeling I guess). The only thing I regret is that there's no insert but that's only a little disappointement given the quality of this release. Note that this record comes with a big central hole, which is kind of unusual nowaday I guess given that the only records I have like that are from the 70's to the 90's. 300 copies of that record were released, 100 in black, 100 n brown and 100 with a different cover. My advice is that you should buy this record, because by doing that you will not only get 2 great songs, but you will also support a young band which deserves it. So you know what you have to do !

Edit : you can now listen to both songs of the 7" on the band's bandcamp and download them (as a name your price download) ! 

Battle Ruins - S/T LP (Rock'n'Roll Discgrace - 2014)

Finally the waiting is over. It's here. I'm obviously talking about the record I've been the most looking forward to get this year, namely Battle Ruins' LP. And it does not disappointed me, even if there were no surprises listening to it, since it had leaked on the internet some times ago, but still, hearing these songs on vinyl is even better.
You might remember that I reviewed Battle Ruins' 7" some times ago so you should know them (in fact, if you don't know them that's kind of a problem because these guys just kick asses). They play that Boston Oi! I've been talking about in my Hammer and the Nails/Butcher Boys split 7" review, but they had to it a nice dose of heavy metal. And they do it even more on that 12", which makes it even more dark, powerful, violent, straight out of the dark times of the Middle Age, and, basically, awesome. You still have epic lyrics about battles, violence, vengeance and all these stuffs, they still use these going-up back vocals/doubled vocals/vocals in general, and it still makes you want to destroy everything and slay your enemies with a morgenstern while wearing a plate battle armor. Nothing more nothing less. I won't talk more about how they sound, because I already talked about it (and tried to define it) in my previous review about them.

That's how epic this record is.

I have to say that there's actualy one bad thing with that record. It's too short, mainly because the seven songs on it are all great. I mean, I can't think of any bad song on that record, I don't even think I've skipped a single one since the day I first downloaded it. If I had to choose my favourite songs on it, it would be pretty simple : every single fucking one, and probably twice. That's how good this album is (more seriously, "The Coming of the Beast", "Hate Wheel", and "Slaughtering the Wolves like Sheeps" are my absolute favourite ones on that record).
And not only the songs on it are good, but the whole artwork is awesome. I mean, that front cover fits perfectly to what the band is all about. Bloody fucking dark age violence. This come with an insert including the lyrics for "Regain and Conquer" and a picture of what is, I guess, a proper battle ruin. 413 copies came in a white/grey cover with black vinyl, and 111 came in a red cover with clear vinyl plus a poster (and are handnumbered). This record is obviously sold out since the day it was available, but Rock'n'Roll Disgrace said that they would do a second pressing. You don't want to miss that repress, believe me, because this record is nothing less than 2014's best record. Period.

Hammer and the Nails/Butcher Boys - Split 7" (Spirit of the Streets Records - 2013)

Remember last time when I said that you'll get some moer exotic stuffs than usual soon ? Well the time is now. As a matter of fact, I still had to go with an american band in that review. Again. And it's Hammer and the Nails. From Boston. Again. Yep, I definitely have something with that Boston Oi! thing (this is how it will be called here from now on. By that I mean bands like them, Revilers or Battle Ruins, that share some similarities, like HxC influences, but not sounding like that New York 90's Oi!, melodic, dark and absolutely fucking brilliant). But on the same time some Crocodile Dundee skinhead rock'n'roll will be involved as well, thanks to Sydney's Butcher Boys. So that's what you'll get with exoticism (if you were waiting for something like north korean RAC or pakistanese powerviolence, well no, that's not gonna happen, but that would be pretty exotic too).
Hammer and the Nails are, for those of you who don't know them (shame on you, you probably missed one of the best Oi! band from the U.S.A.) are playing powerful melodic and hardcore-influenced Oi!, with pretty agressive but not too tough vocals, always with great solo guitars. They actually have a sound and a style that is pretty easy to recognize (I don't think any band play like them), and you end up with a perfect cocktail of aggro and heavy Oi! with still an awesome melodical sound. Here they give us two new songs : "Kept Alive", which is probably one of their strongest song, and a cover of Straw Dogs' "Justice", played in the Hammer and the Nails style, which makes it even more powerful than the original one (and it's not easy, given how brillant Straw Dogs were). Good ones, as always in fact.

"Kept Alive" by Hammer and the Nails. As you can see, both of their songs are dealing with justice. And not a nice form of justice

On the other hand, the Butcher Boys are a two men band composed of two guys from The Corps, which is also a great band, playing what you could call Rose Tattoo-inspired Oi! (you can't go wrong with that). Spirit of the Streets described the band as a mix of Condemned 84 and Chiswick style. That's a pretty good description, and even if the singing is pretty close to The Corps, the music played is not the same. Much more '77 punk I guess (think early Skrewdriver, Slaughter and the Dogs and band in that vein), and even if I prefer The Corps, Butcher Boys give us two solid songs, and it's their first release (if I'm correct, they will do another split with the almighty Hard Evidence soon). I'd gladly listen to more things by these guys.
All that comes in a two-sided cover (one side per band, with their logos) and an insert (once again one side per band) that, unfortunatly, includes only the lyrics for "Kept Alive" by Hammer and the Nails. You'll also get a download code (I actually could only download the Hammer and the Nails songs with mine, no idea if it's the case for everybody or if I just had a fucked up code), which is always good. Oh yeah, 250 copies only, 125 in black splatter on clear vinyl and the other 125 in black splatter on clear red vinyl.
A pretty solid release, plus it's always nice to get some new songs by Hammer and the Nails (who have the best songs on that split EP), but you should also give a listen to the Butcher Boys, they're worth it. You can still find that record on the major european distros, so do yourself a favor and get it !

Arska & Hakkapeliitat - S/T 7" (This Means WAR/Hakkapeliitta Records - 2014)

And once again we're back in Scandinavia... Seems like I'm only reviewing bands from Northern Europe and America here (hopefully soon I will have some more "exotic" things for you), well, it must means that that's where the music is good (in my opinion at least). So, let's head once again to the cold but welcoming shores of Finland.
Today we'll be talking about the band Arska & Hakkapeliitat, which is the last of the many bands of Arska (who is/was involved in Skinboiss, Kalevalan Viikingit, Kareliaani, Ironbird and a bunch of metal bands -yep, the guy is pretty active). He (because I think that's actually a one-man band) described the music played by his band (and not only this one, but a bunch of his other groups) as "Hakkapeliitta rock" (the hakkapeliitta being a finnish light cavalry used by the swedish army during the 17th century, back when the two countries were one), a form of viking rock influenced-Oi!, which would be, I guess, the finnish equivalent of the swedish vikingarock, and when vikingarock is evoked, you know that it's gonna involve epic tunes, patriotic/historical/mythological-based lyrics and melodic music (and that you are going to offend pretty much any average swedish person). No exception with Arska & Hakkapeliitat, both songs on the present 7" are extremly melodical, in the music (even including keyboard I think) as in the way Arska sings, and actually sound pretty light compared to his other musical projects (which sound more Oi! and more "straight in your face", I'm especially thinking about Kareliaani and Kalevalan Viikingit, given that they are, in my opinion, the closest musicaly speaking to this band)., and it makes it even more epic if you want my point of view !

Epic as fuck is what you get with this record

So, two songs on that record, both are patriotic anthems. The first one, "White and Blue Thunder" is sung in english and is and ode to Finland, its beauty and its greatness. The second one, "Fenno Viikingit" is in finnish, deals also with Finland but in a darker perspective, begging the country to remember its roots and its past (note that you have an allusion to the swedish past of Finland and to Kalle Dussin, a.k.a. Karl XII a former king of Sweden extremly popular among the local skinheads - Agent Bulldogg, Midgårds Söner or Ultima Thule, to name a few, made songs about him - and his karoliner). To be honest, that second song is far better than the first one (even if the first one is still a pretty good song), the use of finnish language gives more power to it and makes it even more melodical and epic.
The artwork of the single fits pretty good to the music, because it's once again all about nordic and finnish mythology, with symbols, weapons and even an Ukonvasara, the finnish equivalent of Thor's hammer. The lyrics for both songs are on the backcover, so for once I'm not gonna complain about the lack of insert. 300 hand-numbered copies + 10 test pressings with a different cover.
Well, what can I say to end this review ? That's probably, alongside with Kareliaani, my favorite band featuring Arska, and if you liked his other bands, you won't be disappointed by this one. I will probably be reviewing more of thatt Hakkapeliitta rock in the near future, given that I have a few more records of that genre. Once again a good production by This Mean WAR, these guys seems to be releasing only brilliant stuffs !