THE END OF LIFE IS HERE, NO LIFE, NO LIFE LEFT!!!

it's been a while since i updated this thing. Lots of really rad shit has happened since i got wasted and slagged on that shitty CD i reviewed here (thanks REAL PROBLEMS for taking my drunken rant against you guys with a grain of salt... if more people had your attitude i'd probably be punched in the face by people i hardly know a lot less frequently).
i don't even know where to begin. Vancouver has a new punk run jam space/show venue (albeit limiting it to 2 shows a month) called Garbage Mountain, which a bunch of us built shit for, and actually got off the ground. instead of talking about how cool it would be to have a space (which i've been doing for 10 years now), we finally fucking did it! Upping the punks!!!! Mad props to Roger and TEMPEST for actually taking the plunge and the brunt of most of the work!!!!!!
We had our first show there last night, and it went off without a hitch. MASS GRAVE killed it as usual, and the space was packed with punks, skids, and hard core kids. Fucking sweet, and i can't wait to have dear friends MUNDO MUERTO pack that place on January 15th!!! Arrrrrrrgh!!!!

Got a lot of rad shit as of late. The DISARM 2xlp discography (took forever cuz of a shitty postal service, but damn it was worth the wait! Thanks Jocke!!!), SISTA KRIGET 7" (raging Swedish Kang? you know this asshole is gonna love it), LOST TRIBE cassette (Shraven of AGHAST hall of fame kicking out some bumming goth punk? Fuck ya!), DEATHRAID all life ends lp (sorry nay sayers and shit talkers... these are the fucking masters... the song Lay Down All Hope alone makes this record worth it with it's grooving rock n' roll riffage!!! And the last song, Smothered makes me wanna shot gun a beer and kick a hole in a wall everytime i hear that fucking intro!!!), and cassette demos of LA raw ponx MATA MATA and KRUEL (which kill as well).
Also, Amelia sent me the new tracks for the CERVIX tour cassette, and it is a notch above their last tape (see review in an earlier post), and seems tighter, and you can hear the bitchin' riffs a little better... i think this band will savagely destroy the west coast in January, so if you get a chance catch the fucking brutal onslaught of noise, reverb, and Japanese worshiping puuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunk.

i also saw some amazing shows. WARCRY devastated our unworthy fucking city last month. Obviously. Unfortunately, BURIAL got turned away at the Canadian border, angering me even more about how we are so close to the US, but that stupid imaginary line keeps us from seeing kill bands like BURIAL, CRAZY SPIRIT, MAUSER, DEATH RAID (and on and on and on and on...).  
BLACK MOUNTAIN at the Commadore was insane too. i don't normally like smoking weed, but figured what the fuck, i'm at a big rock concert and a girl is passing around a joint.... And holy shit, i started tripping balls when Steve McBean started throwing down the sickest, catchiest, saddest yet happiest riffs i have ever heard. it's like BLACK SABBATH possessing NIEL YOUNG for fucks sake!!! The opening band, THE BLACK ANGELS were amazing too... it felt like i was watching HAWKWIND Space Ritual, in 2010. Total epic, weird, psychy, and totally not contrived (which is why i HATE bands that claim they are psyche in 2010... sorry, retards, but it takes more than a beard and plaid shirt to make awesome music)... Anyway, a killer night, and props to my old friend Chris for getting me in!!!
KYLESA played here too which is always fun to hang out with them, and drink all their band beer and whiskey, and end up barfing out of a moving cab while shooting the shit about CRUCIFIX, VOID, and DISCHARGE with Steve McBean. Oh, and go off about hating CONVERGE in front of their sound guy... Sometimes i wonder how i don't get beat up more often than i do...
Finally, KILLING JOKE played here last week, and duh, it ruled. if your one of those wieners who's to cheap to pay $20 to see one of the most influential, and talented, and amazing bands ever, well, you deserve to miss the epicness of this evening. i'm doing a whole review for the Skinny magazine here, so i won't go off about it. But thanks to Tanya for getting me in, and fuck you to the douchebag security guards who kicked me out for sodding them off when they flashed their lights in my face.

i'm going to Calgary tomorrow for the holidays. Food, parents, cable television, dancing at crappy hipster dance clubs with punks... i'm actually pretty stoked for it... But not as stoked as i am on these shows coming up, and seeing some really awesome friends that i don't get to kick it with half of much as i want to:

And of course on January 15th: MUNDO MUERTO, NOMOS, THE MEN, SPECTRES, and FEAR OF TOMORROW @ Garbage Mountain. i will get that flyer on the go soon too.

i leave now rocking the Strangers In The Night live 2xlp by UFO. Fuck ya!
'Til next time, up the punks, don't trip, and be excellent to eachother.

Review

REAL PROBLEMS - Scum City Girls CD
What is wrong with the city i live in? You know a band is complete shit, when the guitar player comes to your table at a bar and says, "hey, check out my band" as he passes you their CD. Thing is i've heard this name before. Tons, in this city. it makes me wish i lived somewhere where people appreciated truly good raw hardcore punk. Guess not. i guess me, Lenny, and Nick fucking Hart will just be those 3 pretentious assholes who trashed the pub with Keno cards, just wishing to have a punk pitcher of beer, while this band and 2 other total skid mark core projects drove us to more booze (hence more sarcasm and bitterness).
Oh, the music on this CD? Sorry, i smashed it in the alleyway outta my house, and tried to get my dog to take a dump on it. Who cares, "punk" and "metal" in Vancouver blow goats, and this CD is no exception.
if you live in Vancouver, fucking pull your head out of your ass and listen to WARHEAD or BASTARD or NO SECURITY. At least that's what i'm gonna do right now, in that order, 'til i pass out.
Cheers Len Dawg, Nick, and #14 Alexandre Burrows for the beer tonight... Fuck you Gainesville, Florida dicks, and the shitty bands who graced the stage at Pats Pub tonight.

Cleaning my house can suck it...

i should really be cleaning my filthy messy house (that's been left in shambles since before my trip to Varning, when the fine gentlemen of SEPTICK SYSTEM spilt many a beer on my floor while watching Fubar... actually, it was probably mostly me)... But fuck it, there's punk records to listen too, and reading columns in the new MRR where they talk about people they made out with more than they do records, has sickened me to the point of taking matters in my own hands so the 3 of you who look at this thing know how awesome my record collection is.

A recent trade i did with the same dude who got me the LAS SENORAS 7", also got me this record here:

This is a split between, duh, SUDOR and CRIMEN D ESTADO, both hailing from Spain. Lately i've been feeling a little lame, with the excess of international hardcore punk i've been rocking, where i can't understand a single lyric! Over the years i've tried to teach myself different languages, usually of the origin of my current favorite records, but either get frustrated, or just move on trying to learn another language, hence actually learning nothing! Maybe while i'm laid off this season, i'll actually take a course... i'm thinking Swedish (influenced mostly by Eddie Meduza youtube videos, and my obsession with TOTALITAR and anything Jallo related). But i digress.
Both bands solely yell in Spanish (hence my little off course rant). Honestly, i kinda missed out a little in the hype of Spanish hardcore in the last couple years, aside from the like of INVASION, DESTINO FINALE, and a few older bands like UVI, ESKORBUTO, RIP, etc. It was probably dumb on my part, but i get sick of reading the same reviews about the same bands that half the reviewers probably didn't listen to, they just saw someone cool from MRR digs it, so they cut and paste what they wrote so they don't look uncool or something. Ugh, again, i digress.
SUDOR fucking rip. They play mid tempo, rocking d-beat... i'm talking Ain't No Feeble Bastard or A Look At Tomorrow speed (riding the floor tom, lots of 16th note high hat hits)... in fact, the chorus of the last song "No Te Escucho, No Te Miro, No Me Hables" pretty much IS the chorus for Ain't No Feeble Bastard. Throw pissed off Spanish vocals over this shit, and you will have a happy Foat. i've just listened to this 3 times in a row. Catchy rocking punk riffs, nice stops with just vocals, and a sweet punk recording with raw slightly distorted vocals.
CRIMEN DE ESTADO offer 5 really raw punk songs. This reminds me a bit of WRETCHED with their faster scissor-beat kinda tunes, then it switches gears to mid tempo rocky shit, and then fast MOB 47 style d-beat. The recording leaves much to be desired and i think this woulda worked a little better as a demo, not a split with a top notch band like SUDOR. To top it off the guitars are out of tune, which is a little annoying... though if they were more blown out and distorted i would probably let it pass... i can see what they're going for, and i know i like it, but it misses the mark for this d-beat snob. i would like to hear more in the future though.

That's it. time to mop the stale month old beer stains off my floor. And annoy my poor neighbours by blasting UNCURBED.
Oh, and just a disclaimer, i have absolutely no beef with Maximum Rock and Roll. i still find it the best punk magazine there is... But like any community based zine or project, there will be shit i object too. Just like some punks probably complain about how there's too much music nerdery in some columns, i complain that a few columnists don't even write about punk!!! Like Juls' column... it's great you had a boyfriend when you were younger... But what does that have to do about the punk scene at large??? Oh well, to each their own... i'll just flip to George Tabb, the interviews and the reviews and quit complaining!!!
Up the punks.

RECORDS FOR SALE...

i just revised my list of records i'm selling off. e-mail me at distortvancouver@hotmail.com for the full list.
Here is my list of new shit:

LP’S:

ACAO DIRETA – Revolta/Repudio/Confronto/Resistencia (Epistrophy/DPG)

HAGGATHA – S/T EP (Self Release)

HAGGATHA – S/T (self release)

INFAUST – S/T (Epistrophy)

INFAUST – Muster (Epistrophy)

LIMB FROM LIMB – Death. Famine. Plague. (No Options)

NU-KLE-ER BLAST SUNTAN – Blot Out The Worthless Sun (SPHC)

TEMPEST – Passages (Amputated Limbs)

SUDOR/CRIMEN D ESTADO – Split (Mal Sonido)

7”s:

ABANDON – Dead Dreams EP (Defector)

AFTER THE MASSACRE – The End (Wasted Dream)

ALARIC – S/T (FYBS/Buried In Hell)

ATAKKE – March To The Gallows (Mountains Of Madness)

THE AUSTRIAN GOAT – Witch (Noxious Noise)

CAPITALIST CASUALTIES – Planned Community (Six Weeks)

CHINA CREEPS – S/T (Self Release)

CRIME – Extortion (FYBS)

FEAR OF TOMORROW - …No Fucking Future, No Way (Charged//Distorted)

PERDITION – S/T (Distort Reality)

PONTIUS PILATE – Thy Kingdom.Com (New Audio Terror)

LAS SENORAS – S/T (Solo Para Punks)

THE SKUDS – S/T (Vex)

STAGNATION – S/T (Self Release)

SUPERBAD – East River Deathsquad (Ragerizer!)

V/A – Half Life Under the Knife Covers (CAUSTIC CHRIST/SCARED OF CHAKA/Etc.)

WEAVING THE DEATHBAG – S/T (Hungry Ghosts)

WEAVING THE DEATHBAG – The Devils Punchline (Kangaroo)

AGAINST EMPIRE/AUKTION – Split (Threat To Existence)

BLACKHOLE OF CALCUTTA/GATX – Split (Starving Times)

HARD CHARGER/IRON FIST – Split (Capital Kill)

LEPER/ELEUTHEROS – Split (xTruex)

HUMAN SHIELD/SHOT ON SIGHT – Split (Evil Robenchi)

ROSKOPP/EVISCERATED SOUL – Split (Self Release)

ROSKOPP/SUPERBAD – Split (Ragerizer!/303)

SKAVEN/STORMCROW – Split (Decline Of Oakland)

WAR TRASH/WHAT SHAME? – Split (I.O.H.)

As i write this, i am listening to the LAS SENORAS 7". i got a bunch in the mail from the dude who does Solo Para Punks label.

This is definitely not the kinda stuff that i generally listen too, but it's insanely catchy all girl powerpop from Spain. i'm talking keyboards, and jangly guitars... recorded really rough, so it has a really punk feel, and a very endearing rawness. it's all sung in Spanish, and it makes me want to pogo the shit out of my bedroom. Highly recommended for MRR hipster snobs, and punks who dig MIKA MIKO alike!!!

While i'm nerding out, and since it's to cold for me to work or leave the damn house, i may as well recommend some other great stuff.
ELECTRIC FUNERAL recently put out their 4th demo tape entitled, IN LEAGUE WITH DARKNESS. This is Jocke of D-TAKT & RA PUNK label, WAR VICTIMS, DESPERAT, etc. Check his blog at http://dbeatrawpunk.blogspot.com. This guy is the current king of Kang in Sweden!!!
Anyway, the music... Arrrrrrrrrrrgh, fucking raw, brutal d-beat hardcore punk... Very heavy, and very noisy. Distorted to hell!!! What can i say? it's my favorite kind of hardcore punk. it states right in the liner notes the inspiration is DISCLOSE, VENOM, WARCRY, and GLOOM. How can you go wrong? The idea of this recording was Jocke rounding up his buddies to write lyrics to his noise. You have dude from DISPOSE, Fafao from BESTHOVEN, dude from GO FILTH GO, and even yours truly lends a song with help from dear friend Maddie (MUNDO MUERTO/HOMEWRECKERS). I guess DISTORT THE WORLD records and tapes already got rid of the whole press (of a whopping 40 copies), but maybe if you hassle Jocke enough he will repress it??? E-mail me if you want a dubbed version or visit DISTRO-Y to download it (http://www.distroy.webs.com/downloads.html). Buy stuff from him too, he's a cool fella.

i recently got turned on the the GEISTER Night Terrors 7" on Josh from the JOLTS label, Moloch records. To be honest, when my buddy Zach played me this in the late summer, i found it boring, and not having much to offer... Josh gave me one of these at Distort Fest, and it sat in my "to listen" pile until a week or two ago when i figured i should give it another spin. Maybe i had to be alone in my room, avoiding going out in the shitty Vancouver rain, but it actually really stoked me out. There are no surprises, no crazy tempo changes, and certainly no d-beats... What you get is repetitive, sloppy, mid paced punk with female vocals that instantly make you think of Exene (from the LA X, you poser). This band would really fit in great in Portland with MORAL HEX, and BELLICOSE MINDS... But they are from none other than fucking Edmonton, Alberta (which may explain the bleak hopeless feeling this record gives off)!!! Finally, the Albertan's are forming great bands again!!! The more you listen to this, the catchier and more intriguing it becomes. The title track is a mix tape must! Track this down from either Joshy (he didn't include a contact! What a guy!) or myself. As a side note, the singer is apparently Graham from WEDNESDAY NIGHT HEROS/NO PROBLEM's little sister! it always stokes me out to see literal punk families!!!

Last of the day... Berzerker (my dog) is bored as shit, and wants me to walk him to the record store, and Army & Navy so i can buy a loonie toque.
CERVIX are among the crop of ripping raw hardcore punk in Brooklyn, NY... And guess what. They're playing in Vancouver on January 2nd with FEAR OF TOMORROW, Mikaela from DICHOTOMY's new band with TEMPEST dudes (apparently it's down tuned d-beat... SKIT SYSTEMy i am hoping!), and one more special band TBA. But i digress. Let's talk noise hear.
There is a shit ton of reverb, and Amelia's maniacal fucking vocals are over the top. She just screams like a banshee slamming an enormous door in the depths of hell... The music kinda has a punkier SACRILEGE kinda sound... less crazy awesome leads and way fucking rawer though (hence, punker), making it comparable to GAI and other great old Japanese raw distorters. Robert Collins described the recording like this: "the whole thing sounds like it was dubbed in a toilet...while someone was using it". Amelia and i were pondering whether that was a good thing or a bad thing... Either way, it's an accurate description, so you know if you love raw hard core, and i mean raw hard core, you really should order this shit now. if you like to hear well produced melodic songs, go listen to your mom's BEATLES records you fucking poser.

And check the video of them in Montreal: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bX38cwWGBMThat's all for today. i leave now, rocking the NOMAD 7". Fuck, i wanna just hang out in New York and get fucked up and watch all these bands play and practice and eat the shit out of some kill pizza, buddy!!!

This saturday:

Last post of the night. Sorry. But come to this shit. it will blow your mind!!!

If you don't know where the Secret Location is, e-mail me at distortvancouver@hotmail.com
Also, before this show, is an early show at the Alf House (1342 E. Georgia) with RAW NERVES (pdx), some band from Oakland with members of ACTS OF SEDITION (Clint!), BURNING GHATS, and FORCED LAUGH. Show will start at 6:30pm, so there is plenty of time to go to both, and up every punk!
Currently i'm listening to this and getting my asshole ripped:

...Jallo might just be my favorite punk musician ever. And Yannick at Feral Ward has yet to put something out that bums me out!
Punks. Up them.

CHARGED//DISTORTED RECORDS:

DISCOGRAPHY:

C//D 001:
CHUCK NORRIS - S/T 7" EP (2002?)
i can't find the image of this on the internet. it's the first record i ever put out, of dear friends, back in 2002 (?). Dumb name, 4 dudes who never knew when to quit (and still don't)... But no regrets with this record. it truly is a rager, and a nice little memento to an era in the Vancouver/Squamish punk scene that collapsed on itself. It should be noted that without CHUCK NORRIS, i doubt the punk scene in Squamish (their small mountain town north of Vancouver) would be half of what it is today.
These days, Squamish and Squamtea play in a great doom band called HOOPSNAKE, Blinky drums for my band FEAR OF TOMORROW and bass in war metal mongers RADIOACTIVE VOMIT, and Skidge plays drums in a pop punk band called GUT FEELING.
500 pressed. SOLD OUT.

C//D 002:
FEAR OF TOMORROW - ...No Fucking Future No Way 7" EP(2010)

Eight years after my first release, here is the second one! My hardcore punk band. Ugh!
500 Pressed.

C//D 003:
ARCTIC FLOWERS/SPECTRES -split 7" EP (2010)

500 Pressed. SOLD OUT!!!

C//D 004:
DISABLE/WAR VICTIMS - Split 7" EP (...in the not to distant future...)

This 7" has been in the works for some time. Hopefully it will be out early in the new year. DISABLE are one of the best DISCLOSE worship bands of North America right now. i highly recommend checking out their demo tape. Very respectable fella's. WAR VICTIMS are the Swedish kings of raw fucking kang, and their songs on this continue there dis-legacy.

C//D 005:
NU SENSAE/VERRATERISCH - Split 7" EP (sometime in early 2011?)
No image yet... i don't even think either band has recorded for this yet. Both bands are just bass and drums and vocals. NU SENSAE lean a little more on the artsy side, and bring to mind SONIC YOUTH and other 90's grunge era favorites while keeping it totally punk and exciting. VERRATERISCH play ripping raw pogo punk sung in German. Their demo has been flipped over more than once in the Distort Manor, and they play the most addictive punk to EVER come out of Sacramento!!! Projected date for release: April 2011... Punk time... so when ever.

Stay tuned for label updates here. Myspace sucks now, and labels that have Facebook pages are lllllllllllllame.
Until next time... Up the punks n' skins!

Currently listening to:

i've had that KIDNAP song stuck in my head for the last 2 weeks. This might be my favorite comp ever... At least way better than that crumby SST comp i was rocking for my last blog update. Side note: the dude who did the cover (Claude Perrault) lives/lived in Vancouver (5 blocks from me)... Does anyone know if he's still around? i'd like to see more of his art, and see what he's been up to for the last 26 years or so...

Up The Punks

So, this is my first blog thing. i guess i just got inspired by lurking on D-Takt And Ra Punk's blogspot, as well as dear friend Amelia's... And hell, if Len Dawg can do one, what the fuck, i guess i can do one too...
So, seeing as i don't know how to do this shit yet, i'll just tell you what to expect from this...
-Record reviews... New and old. i'll try to have links on downloading good records too.
-Demo reviews... Cuz 2010 has produced some of the best demo tapes i have heard in years.
-Stupid thoughts and stories... Cuz if you're reading 'em, i'll write 'em.
-Vancouver show listings...
-CHARGED//DISTORTED Records news...
-And whatever i feel like....
So, with that, i'm gonna continue listening to the PROGRAM ANNIHILATOR comp lp (just starting on the OVERKILL part... what an embarrassing way to introduce my blog here...) and think about venturing outside into the below freezing weather.

TOP 10 (For shits and giggles)
-VARNING FEST 2010 (AGE, MOB 47, PERDITION, QUESTION... Partying with dear friends!)
-DISCHARGE - hear nothing, see nothing, say nothing lp
-DISASTER - war cry lp
-BOG PEOPLE/VIVID SECT ep (i listen to this shit everyday!!! along with the BOG PEOPLE demo)
-PERDITION (demo and 7")
-Anticipation of all the great shows coming up: WARCRY/BURIAL, CERVIX (3 day adventure!), RANK/XEROX, CRAZY SPIRIT/BELLICOSE MINDS/SPECTRES/NU SENSAE, MUNDO MUERTO/NOMOS/THE MEN, etc.
-Getting laid off soon... EI here i come!!!
-DISABLE/WARVICTIMS split almost out!!!
-Fixing up my dear old friend, Akai AP 207... Turntable from Hell!!!
-The record swap yesterday, where i scored: HAWKWIND (space ritual Vol. 2), JAWBREAKER (24 Hour Revenge Therapy... Finally!!!), and a couple records i'm embarrassed to not have owned already...

That's all i have to say. Get fucked. Up the punks.