Album Of The Week: Antidote - Thou Shall Not Kill

Antidote - Thou Shall Not Kill (1983)

This classic is probably one of the best hardcore records ever released. Antidote fucking rules, and this record is flawless. It's fast, angry, and straight up hardcore punk. Life As One, Real Deal, Something Must Be Done,  Foreign Job Lot, just a few awesome songs from this 7". Antidote was one of the early hardcore bands from New York and they definitely left a mark as one of the best hardcore bands from NY if not of all time. If you've never heard this band, or this 7" you should probably quit hardcore right now. I don't think I can ever get tired of listening to it and it sucks I missed their most recent reunion (though it wasn't the original line up).

This EP is deemed record of the week but it should be record of the year because it's that great. Their later stuff (Return 3 Burn LP) isn't nearly as good, but check it out as well. Alright, that's all I have. Check this record out; I highly recommend it like all my other records of the week. Antidote is the best band. Disagree and you're a poser. End.

2 ALERT LOGO DESIGNS

This is a design created by our friend xSLABAx he is a great great artist I seriously am amazed at the detail of this drawing. An angry skinhead dude breaking from chains over the word ALERT. This is Mike's idea in terms of concept and Slaba really put it to reality. Will thinks it's too angry and would be more fit for a heavier new york skinhead band, but I think it's great and fitting. Seriously an amazing design.

Our friend Jay Jacoby from Kansas designed his ridiculously amazing design inspired from the well-known Side By Side "stance" design. It shows the silhouettes of 3 crucial dudes "posi" jumping, the middle holding a mic. This design, in my opinion, is absolutely awesome and I recommend Jay to anyone. Like Slaba, he does his work for free. You'll see this design really soon, but I won't give out too much.

So these are the two designs we currently have. There's more on the way so I'll post them as I get them. Also, Tim McCauliffe is working on a shirt design for us as well as the demo layout/design and this dude is great so I recommend him if you need design/art done his website is www.timcauliffe.com Check it out! He designed the website for The First Step (www.thejourneyofathousandmiles.com)!

Stay true

XXX

Sweet house show in NY

Blogspot image sizing isn't very good at all.

So last night my band Alert played a house show in Schenectady NY at my friend Dan's house/venue called The Asylum House with The Effort and Gaining Ground. All Star Me was supposed to play but there was an incident with a van so they couldn't play and the Effort dudes were left with no equipment. The night was dark and stormy but we had a great time. We only brought drums and a guitar head so even though the show was supposed to start at 5, we ended up playing like 6:30-7ish. The space was smaller than I expected, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. We played a pretty sweet set I think, though my bass was WAY too loud in the beginning then I turned it down too much and midsong Mike had to adjust it. I swear I'm losing my hearing or something. Anyway, the set was good and kids mostly went nuts to the Judge and Project X cover (which I guess is kinda normal for a band you've never seen). I know sometimes I get into a band from the covers they do because I know they know music and it makes me more interested. So our set was cool (for the 3rd time).

Next was Gaining Ground from the Albany area of NY. I really liked them and I even bought their 7". They were heavy and kinda reminded me of Strife a little. (A lot of heavy bands remind me of Strife for some reason) but I dug them a lot. The Effort was awesome as usual and they covered Turning Point - Behind This Wall and In My Eyes - Take The Risk which was sick. 7th time I've seen Effort and they always put on a good show. I bought their four way split 7"

So after I almost left my bass at his house and he gave me a sleeping bag that belonged to a dude from No Turning Back, Dan brought us all to his burrito place called Bombers. I had a vegan chicken nugget burrito with barbecue sauce and it was the best thing I've eaten in weeks. We all ate and talked about some stuff then proceeded home.

In conclusion, the night rules, the dudes in Gaining Ground are awesome as well as the Effort, who we're gonna try to play with more in the future, the road leading to the Mass Pike is ridiculously dark and scary at 12:00AM. Seriously, look in the rear view mirror and nothing but total darkness. In front, only 2 feet ahead of the white dotted lines. THAT'S IT.

XXX

Album Of The Week: Release - The Pain Inside

Release - The Pain Inside

Alright this EP is fucking sweet. It featured Rob Fish (Ressurection/108) on vocals. It's heavy, fast, and pissed off New Jersey straight edge hardcore at its finest. If you're into Turning Point/Youth Of Today mixed with the heaviness of Raw Deal or Breakdown this is for you. It's a great EP (though I've read through interviews Rob sees Release as more of a necessary phase) and like the other albums I've reviewed, yes, I highly recommend you get this. When I first got this album I must have listened to it on repeat for a week and a half. I can imagine the energy at one of their shows back then because you can hear it in the music.

The quality is pretty good for its time, but I'm a sucker for recordings that aren't too rough and not too clean. To me, it's perfect. The intro is hard as fuck and it goes right into one of the best songs on the EP, Drug Free Youth, which should be covered more nowadays if you ask me. I don't have a lot more to say about this EP other than it rules and Floorpunch probably wouldn't be a band if Release never existed. It's great youth crew hardcore from NJ.

"THE PAIN I FEEL INSIDEEEEEEE" enter divebomb "THE PAIN'S INSIDEEEE."

ALERT update - 12/13/08

So I thought it'd be cool to give a little update about Alert, for those few who read this. I'll probably start doing this every couple of weeks or so, or if something big happens in between.

Tapes, you ask? Well we still haven't released the demo tapes because they aren't in! I bought the tapes and the covers from seperate companies and I bought the tapes before I bought the cases, but the cases already came in. That's probably the only part of the demo tapes that are in. So hopefully the cassettes come in either today or monday, so I can start dubbing them all. I'm also waiting for the art to be finished so hopefully this all comes together over the course of the weekend.

Completely irrelevant picture of Turning Point, courtesy of Jade Tree

Okay, as for plans. We have a few shows lined up in the next few months leading into 2009, including a couple of weekends. January 23rd, 24rd, and 25rd I believe we are doing a weekend with Right Idea, Overload, and Face Reality which is probably the most awesome line up ever. We're hitting up Baltimore to play with Mindset, Worcester the next day with I Rise, and a NYC date in the works. There's absolutely no way that weekend won't rule. So if you're in the area, make sure you stop by one of the shows. It will be a great time.

After that we're working on something with Fired Up and perhaps Hostage Calm, but I won't get into those details until it is 100% confirmed. After February we're not sure. We may do a weekend with Revenge after, and maybe something with Resolve either in the spring, summer, or both, since their singer is back from California and that band fucking rules.

Musicwise, we have yet to practice and try to write new material. We have a show coming up next saturday so we probably won't focus too heavily on songwriting at this time, but we're heading to release an EP on a 7" with this label from Florida called Life To Live Records, which is pretty awesome. So we're probably going to work on a few more songs in the next month or so. Keep an ear out!

So that's pretty much the update for now. Once we have the demos out and ready, I'll write something about it. Until then, stay alert! XXX

Resolve - 7"

If you haven't already, check out Resolve from Missouri. They are probably one of my favorite bands currently and I'm glad to do a review of their 7" I just recieved in the mail today. This band is fucking awesome with a strong Youth Of Today/Turning Point/Release/Straight Ahead feel. It's seriously that fucking good. As you can see, the cover of the 7", which was released on Commitment Records, was drawn by the european crucial artist RAM and it depicts a godzilla-sized dude wearing a straight edge varsity jacket, hoodie, champion mesh shorts and classic nikes storming through a city (Washington DC perhaps) while military soliders flee in panic followed with RESOLVE in big varsity letteting on the top. Amazing artwork indeed. RAM's style is very awesome and often reminds me of a Crucial Youth art style. The back shows the same up from the chest down wearing his jacket with an X'd fist with the song names.

Alright, now to get into the music. The recording quality if perfect and fitting. It's not too rough and not too clean and it's absolutely amazing. Mike (the singer) shows a strong, bold sense of a vocal style. Personally I think it has Skip feel (early Turning Point era) meets Release. The music is loud, fast, and in your face with multiple and great uses of the divebombs. It's truly like someone went back to 1988/1989, grabbed a bunch of dudes from the Anthrax, brought them to modern times and started this fucking band. I don't know why I haven't gotten into this band before, but as I'm listening to this record, I'm proud to claim Resolve as my current favorite band. Yes, #1 band of all the bands currently around. If you can, I HIGHLY recommend you purchase a copy of this 7" asap because it would be a shame for it to sell out and have you miss out on such a great record.

On a side note, I've talked to the singer through messages on forums and myspace and they plan on coming this summer. I'm going to try to make it a priority to get at least a weekend with Resolve when they come over to the east coast.

In conclusion, this record is a 10/10 especially if you're into hard fast youth crew hardcore in the vain of Turning Point, Youth Of Today, Release, Straight Ahead, Wide Awake, etc.

www.myspace.com/resolve

My edge on him is my Insight!

Wide Awake - CT Hardcore

Think It Through Zine - Issue 1 Part 2

Alright so now that I'm back to the comfort of my basement, I can continue this intimate journey through this zine. I'll even go back and get into some of the band reviews.

So I left off after the graffiti done by Inflammable. On the next page it shows a bunch of modern awesome bands like Get The Most, Common Cause, Mindset, Right Idea, True Colors, and a nice little section on a sick band from the Ukraine called Clearsight. The next page has more awesome band pictures of DEA, Fired Up, Overload and Hostage Calm. And there's a section about Loud And Clear because they rule too. I must be sleeping or something because the next pages focuses on a european band called Balance. I don't recall listening to them yet, and unfortunately the sound card on my computer is busted, so I can't really listen until tomorrow, but judging from these live shots, I can tell I'm going to love it.

As the zine comes to a close there are some advertisements and band promo pictures of Step Forward, Go For Broke, and Thought Crusade, as well as a cool Screen Printing place called Lotus. Next page is an old Judge interview that was originally done by New Start Fanzine regarding the "beef" between Judge and Integrity which should be an interesting read once I get to it. The last page show some gnarly True Colors shirts and Jeff's closing notes and credits.

Overall I think this zine is fantastic. I love all the band reviews, new band discoveries, live shots, everything. He put a lot of time and effort into this zine and it really paid off. I'll definitely be at the front of the line for issue #2. I've decided to talk about the band he reviewed at another time. I'll just cop the demo and review it myself (I already have Face Reality's though so that should be up soon). I'm going to go into this zine with a little more detail for myself so I'm going to call this to an end.

Stay straight XXX

Think It Through Zine: Issue 1

Okay, I don't have a good camera, so unfortunately I can't upload any pictures from this zine at the time, so this blog entry will be text only.

So I just answered the door and a neighbor says "Hi, I'm your neighbor. The mailman accidently gave this to us." I look at the package and the first thing I notice is on the top left where the return address is, two crucial Turning Point logo looking dudes (I'm pretty sure its the same dudes from the Turning Point demo) just chillin over the name Jeff Hess. My eyes light up because I've been waiting for this zine for about a week and I'm super pumped it came and that the neighbor didn't just keep it. I doubt she'd know how awesome it was anyway.

So this blog entry is dedicated to this zine,  and I will type my opinions as I read through it for the first time. Ready? Here we go! (also listening to Amen Ra right now this band rules and I highly HIGHLY recommend you get into them if you haven't, especially if you're into heavy, ambient music). One more thing before I proceed. You might want to get a snack because this is going to be long...

So now I look at the cover, and I notice that it was drawn by xSlabax, an awesome dude from Ohio. I haven't met him (yet) but I've exchanged some myspace messages with him and he's designing some sick art for my band Alert as we speak. He is an amazing artist and it shows on this cover. It shows a brick wall and a door, an open door with a picture of Stephen TFS from their last show this previous September at Championship in Lemoyne, PA. The door is being opened by a dark hooded crucial dude with nikes laced up and a bold X on his hand with his finger pointing to Stephen. Two other dudes with THINK IT THROUGH written on the back of hooded varsity jackets looking into the doorway. THINK IT THROUGH is also written in a sick font above the door as well as ISSUE ONE and the price of the zine (3$). Featured in this zine is Judge, Seeker, Balance, Loud And Clear, and Face Reality in terms of bands. For other content there's a HC Art Section (I'm excited to see this) featuring Ram, xSlabax, Jay Jacoby and Graffiti by Inflammable.

I'll turn the front page. Alright, maybe I won't type for every page because there's way too much content in this zine (all the more reason for you to get it before its too late!) I'm reading the Intro to the zine and it's pretty sweet. It's Jeff talking about all he's done with hardcore and how it wasn't as hard as sitting down to do the zine. True story. It's not as easy as you think, especially if you want your zine to have substance to it.

Alright I'll spare you a little and skip out on the band reviews for now (I'll read them to myself when I go over the zine again) but the first band he talks about is Seeker and I can imagine it's all good because that band fucking rules. They are from Texas with influences as awesome as Beyond, late Bold, Underdog and Absolution. When this band comes to Massachusetts I'm gonna lose it. Face Reality is the next band mentioned. My band Alert is lucky enough to be able to do a weekend with them as well as Overload and Right Idea in late January which should be fucking sweet.

I turn the page again and ooohh it's a bunch of logos of bands. I love this stuff. No For An Answer, Uniform Choice, Inside Out, Turning Point, Underdog, Wishingwell Records, Straight Ahead, there's no end. Well if I ever wanna rip off a logo, I'm coming to this book for answers. I turn the page and now there's a page dedicated to Jay Jacoby. and artist/cool dude from Kansas (who also is working on a few Alert designs) Man his art is awesome. There's a guy busting out of chains whil wearing a COS shirt and another dude posi jumping. This dude rules, seriously. On the other page is RAM's art and h is also pretty sweet. His style reminds me of Crucial Youth's art a bit which is a style I draw most like. I'll have to hit this dude up soon just because Alert has art from the other two and it'll have to be complete. Next page is an entire page to xSlabax and this dude is the fucking man, in every aspect of the word. Flyers, sticker designs, logos, he has it all and I'm at a loss for words as I look at the sheer awesomeness of this page. I sound very cheesey right now but that's because I'm in such utter shock and the awesomeness of this dude's art. Can't wait to play OH and meet him face to face. Next pages are the graffiti done by a european dude by the alias of Inflammable. I remember lurking his myspace pages and seeing pages and pages of nice graffiti done of great bands; Uniform Choice, Bad Brains, Youth Of Today, True Blue. Great artist.

I'm just going to stop here and call this part 1 because I'm about to leave now, but I will finish it a bit later. In conclusion, this zine rule so far and I'm so glad I got it.

Album Of The Week: Speak 714 - Knee Deep In Guilt

Speak 714 - Knee Deep In Guilt (1998)

If you didn't already know, Speak 714 is another Dan O' Mahoney band that formed during the alleged "youth crew revival" of the mid 90's. With Dan and Joe from Unity/Ignite, this band released two records on Revelation; Knee Deep In Guilt and a 7" The Scum Also Rises.

Now I must say this is probably one of my favorite records. I'm almost sure I like this band more than No For An Answer and all Dan's other bands. It's a youth crew style record, but the riffs are so well put together with structure and melody it feels like this band is in the direction of a post hardcore sound, similar to what Better Than A Thousand does. This record is so powerful it just makes you wish you were seeing them and had the opportunity to leap off the stage. This record is still available on Revelation Records so I'm not going to upload it (unless you can contact me some other way, then maybe I can arrange something) but don't sleep on this band (though they've been asleep for a while since they are no longer a band). Some of my personal favorite songs on this record is Virus, Throwing Stones, and the self-titled Knee Deep In Guilt. Most of the songs on this record is powerful in the sense that the vocals and the melody are in perfect sync, complimenting each other and giving off a certain feeling or mood. Maybe I just feel this way because I've always been able to detect certain moods of bands and songs. In any case, definitely check this band out.

www.myspace.com/speak714

REVENGE

Revenge.

Storming out of the depths of Western Mass is a new force to be reckoned with. Revenge. George (ex Casket) put together a monster of a band. Drawing influences from bands like Left For Dead, The Swarm, Think I Care, and Black Flag, Revenge puts out fast, heavy, aggressive music that should appeal to everyone that says they like hardcore. Not even playing a show yet, the amazing quality and substance of their demo proves this band is in to stay, and you can hear the demo free by downloading it either from their myspace page (www.myspace.com/revengema) or from mediafire here.

If you are a fan of Trash Talk, New Lows, Think I Care, or Mind Eraser you'll definitely love this band. On the demo, most of the songs are less than a minute long, so you have no excuse to lose your mind to some of the most anti-religious simple but powerful lyrics around today. "I'll shoot down the stars because they get me so vexed. If god really exists tell him he's fucking next." Just a taste of one of the hardest demos released in 2008.

If you live in the area, definitely catch this band at a show. January 4th in Springfield they are playing with Death Before Dishonor, Shoot To Kill, Crowns Of Kings and a bunch of others so make sure you catch that. Revenge.

BACK IN BUISNESS

So here we are. xOpen Mindx is back. I was originally going to call it quits in hopes of helping Mike with issue 2 of his Too Deep Until Now Zine, but so much has happened in the past month or so and it probably won't happen soon. So here we go! Back in buisness.

Album Of The Week: Underdog - Vanishing Point

Underdog - Vanishing Point (1989)

So this is the first of many Album Of The Week entries I'll be doing. This week's focus is on New York's own Underdog. Underdog is probably one of my favorite bands, and this album is great. Mixing everything from hardcore to raggae this album is really ace. When I listen to this album I can only think how different it is from most other NYHC bands. You can definitely hear a major Bad Brains influence, but it also has a grungy feel to it. Some of my personal favorite songs on this album would have to be Mass Movement and Back To Back. Mass Movement is probably the perfect blend of hardcore and raggae. Very soulful and relaxing in the beginning, then goes straight into a burst of hardcore and finally ending with something similar to the beginning. And Back To Back is just an amazing song all around. Every song on the album is. Now I've heard talk about the quality of the recording being horrible, but I disagree. Though most bands from that time did have "better" recording quality, I feel Vanishing Point came out very well. Richie is probably one of the best vocalists of all time and his performance in every song is amazing. If you haven't listened to this album I highly recommend you do. I'll probably upload it sometime this or next week along with the Demos LP.
www.myspace.com/underdognyc
www.underdognyc.com

MINDSET - Baltimore Straight Edge

Mindset at Championship in Lemoyne, PA
Photo by irish.blood

So I thought I'd do a segment on the upcoming Baltimore straight edge sensation, Mindset. Formerly known as the Anti-Wasteoids, Mindset has changed their sound from a thrashy style hardcore band to a more youth crew style of a band.

This album is probably the point in which they changed from the Anti-Wasteoids to Mindset. It appears that on the cover the band is Mindset and the album is entitled Anti-Wasteoids, but when you search for this album via the internet it shows up as the band name being the Anti-Wasteoids and the album being Mindset. In either case, this is a great album and I recommend picking it up. It has a great sound, in my opinion, and it's not set on a particular style. Some songs remind me of Turning Point while others have a more thrashy approach. I'm not sure how much longer it'll be available so I would get it while you still can.

Now I first heard of this band during the Verse 5 year anniversary show earlier this year. Though I liked the majority of the line up at that show, I was probably most excited to see The First Step. After edge day's performance I was just counting down to the time I would be able to see TFS again. Before hand, I had planned on giving Stephen TFS an interview for my friend's zine Too Deep Until Now Zine. I talked to Stephen via AOL instant messenger and he said he was up for it. Sometime after their set I approached him about it we were on our way outside to do it, when Stephen was approached by a drunk Scott Vogel (Terror), who insisted in engaging in conversation with Stephen. That's when I met Mike and Chad of Mindset. I remember walking to Store 24 or something talking about vegetarian/veganism and the likes and eventually we were brought up about music. They said they were in a band called Mindset and that I should check them out. They gave me on of their demos entitled 2Kgr8 (two thousand great). So later on I went home, listened to it, and fell in love instantly. I love this style already, and the lyrics and raw energy put into this demo was amazing. You can definitely hear the Youth Of Today and Turning Point influence, but they take it and add their own originality to it making it a really solid demo.

Fast forward to Connecticut Punk Fest which I attended just a few months ago. I was excited to see Fired Up and Mindset above all, but came to find out Fired Up wasn't playing. Though that was a bummer, I did meet a bunch of great people there. I was also able to see Mindset again, and having both the demo and the Anti-Wasteoids cd I knew a lot of the words so I went nuts. I met the singer, Ev, who was a very nice dude. Hopefully in the future my band Alert can do something with Mindset.

So in closing I say check out Mindset. They are energetic, passionate, and in your face. Soon to be coming out with an EP by React! Records in a few weeks, they are gonna take the scene by storm. www.myspace.com/mindsetsxe

The First Step - "The Last Step" Part 2

The First Step - Most Recent Line Up
Photo by nobodysxhero.com

So for part two of this piece, I'm going to share my personal experience on attending this show and what this band, The First Step, has done for me.

As you should already know, this event took place at Championship Vinyl on September 6th, 2008. The line up of this show was The First Step, Breakthrough, Get The Most, Hostage Calm, Mindset, Warpriest with Sidetracked and Sojourner added last minute. This was probably the most comfortable show I've ever been to. The energy was amazing and everyone was into all of the bands. But before that, let's discuss the events leading up to the start of the last TFS set.

I was fortunate enough to have a friend who was willing to take the 5 1/2 hour drive to Lemoyne, PA to attend this. I'm personally a huge TFS fan, but I don't know many people in the area who also love this band enough to want to go, but my friend Mike Puffer was more than willing to drive, provided that I would help with the gas costs, which of course wouldn't be a problem. So weeks and weeks went by and the countdown to this show came to an end. Saturday morning I woke up probably at 6:00am just from sheer excitement, since we originally planned on leaving at 9:00am. But we didn't end up leaving until 11 or so. The journey began and we entered Connecticut. It was then we all (me, Mike, and his girlfriend Allie) decided that we were hungry and that they heard about a chinese restaurant in Farmington, CT that was Vegan/Vegetarian called China Pan. Eventually we found it and it was the most amazing chinese food I've had upon turning Vegetarian. I tasted some of Allie's barbecue spare ribs and they were very delicious. Then I ordered some General Tso's chicken and I swear it tasted 100% real. It was very delicous.

So after that we left, made a quick stop to Trader Joe's for some apple slices and tea, and headed out for the most crucial show of 2008. Instead of taking 91/95 to the Washington Bridge, we went some alternate way through NY and thought we were lost of a second, but we were on track. We made it to NJ and headed on a road that would lead us straight to Lemoyne. This road also happened to go directly into that Hurricane that was passing up. Visibility was pretty bad so I napped for about 45 minutes or so. After that horrendous rainstorm we came into the clear and drew closer to Lemoyne. Butterflies kicked in. All I thought was "TFS... last show ever." I was bummed and excited at the same time.

We finally got of the exit, stopped at an ATM and drove down the street where the venue was. Lucky for us, we skipped the whole "its so hard to find this venue" trip because there was a sign that read "CHAMP" with an arrow pointing down a driveway. After we turned, the crucial evening began. We were directed to park and we proceeded to the venue. One word went through my mind as I looked around... Crucial. I swear every kid there had some sort of band labelled as youth crew. Youth Of Today, Side By Side, Battery, Fired Up, TFS, Token Entry, Turning Point, you name it, they had it on. I swear it was like looking at a YOT video from 89 or something. I felt so comfortable. As soon as I went in I thought I would buy everything I needed to get it out of the way.

The First Step 2004: Photo by Even Score 2004

List of merch:
TFS - What We Know T Shirt (L - white)
TFS - TFS Crew Shirt (L - black)
TFS - A New Reality Shirt (L - gray)
Mindset - Be The Spark Hoodie (L - white)
Get The Most - React! Shirt (L - white)
TFS - What We Know 12" (blue last show edition)
3 TFS Posters

So about the bands that played.
Warpriest - They were pretty sick from what I've seen. I missed some of the set looking at vinyl but they were good. Kinda reminded me a little of Pulling Teeth. The whole heavy, fast, kinda sludgy at times and had a couple solos. They ruled.

Hostage Calm - Probably one of my favorites of the night. Yeah, this was my first time seeing them even though I live in Western MA. For some reason I kept having to leave shows they played, and now I regret it with all my mind. Musically they were so great. Reminded me of the whole early 90s post hardcore thing but they did it with so much energy, so much passion and I was sucked into it. They definitely grabbed me as a big fan and I'm gonna support this band as much as I can.

Mindset - I mean seriously this is one of the best bands to emerge this year. Great people great music and very passionate. I can see them as one of my favorite bands now and they performed astoundingly, followed with both a YOT and a Turning Point cover just to add a little more wood to the fire. Great great great band check them out www.myspace.com/mindsetsxe
Get The Most - I mean really. This band is very fun and great live. I saw them at Edge Day 07 for the first time and was hooked. And now that I've been listening to them since then, I could let out all my energy and that's what I did. It was great, even though they didn't play the intro to Think it Through haha. Glad they came from Vancouver to play this.

Breakthrough - Never knew too much about this band, but from the 3 songs they played it was very good. I guess the singer couldn't do it anymore, but man were they intense, especially on the last song. Can't wait for that EP to be released.

THE FIRST STEP - This goes without saying, but the best TFS I've ever been apart of. Kids applauded as Stephen came on the stage. It was very sad but at the same time kids were stoked. After a brief speech, they opened with Time To Understand. The place EXPLODED with stage dives and sing a longs. I would describe the set, but I'll just post the videos when they come out.

POST-SHOW
So after the show, or during the show actually Dylan introduced us to the kid who would let us be staying the night. His name was Brad and he was a very cool dude. Very nice and hospitable. We stopped at some place called SHEETZ which was like WaWa but very high tech as you order food from a touch screen and stuff. Pretty cool. After talking about hardcore with him and his friend (whose name I forgot, I'm sorry) we headed to Brad's house in Reading, PA which was cool because it was actually on the way of the direction we'd be heading home on. His house ruled and so did his dog Hobbs (or Hobbes) either way it was great. After a tour of the house we sat in the living room and talked about hardcore (what else?) and waited for his other nighties to come over, 5 dudes/dudettes from Canadia (one of which turned out the be the bassist of Risky Business) all great people. So we sat there until like 4 AM talking about hardcore then went to sleep. In the morning we talked about hardcore some more then me, Mike and Allie proceeded to leave at around 11. We went to some mall called King Of Prussia, then a pizzeria in NJ, then went home. It was awesome.


The First Step set list: (taken from http://stuckinthecity.wordpress.com/2008/09/09/the-first-steps-last-show/)

Pressure's On - Interview With Justin

Honestly I didn't plan on doing this interview for a while, but considering I like to procrastinate in class and Justin was online, I decided why not just do the interview? I mean, it's one over AOL instant messenger, but anything works. Please keep in mind that even though I am talked about in this interview, I am used in the 3rd person. Here it goes:



xOMx: What were your intentions upon starting PO? Justin: My intentions? Make music, have fun, sell my records at Best Buy... the intentions of every band OBVIOUSLY.
xOMx: Haha nice.
Justin: INDEED.
xOMx: Compared to the 2007 Demo, your new EP Barren Wasteland has shown a change of sound and structure. What made you decide to do this and what does the future hold musically for PO?
Justin: That 2007 Demo was very very very limited by the abilities of our drummer at the time, not being able to handle intricate parts, but while playing we also realized, we needed to progress so we dropped the hammer on him and went through like four other drummers. Throughout that time, our guitarist, William Hirst, was writing more songs on guitar. Once we came across our current drummer, Dave Moson, everything pieced together. Still hunting for a bassist we came across Keith Freeman. Everyone coming from different backgrounds has caused us to write some music we never dreamed of coming from Western Mass, but it did and it sounds great.
xOMx: Well that sort of answers the next question, which was going to be about the process of finding an established line up.
Justin: Haha myspace. And other bands. Dave's in a band called All I've Got (www.myspace.com/allivegotx) and Keith is in a band called Alert (www.myspace.com/alertstraightedge). Me and Will are friends with the members of both bands. We asked Dave if he wanted to play drums. He said yes, and we asked Keith to play bass and he said yes. xOMx: Now I understand that you're doing a split 7" with Use Your Head! which is most likely coming out sometime in December, followed by an east coast tour, you're first tour. Are you excited about these progressions and did you ever think you'd come this far with the band? Justin: Oh definitely. I've been wanting to do a split for a while. Doing it with Use Your Head! will be wicked fun. And touring, well that's something I've ALWAYS wanted to do. Having a chance to do this is going to be a great experience and test of will for Pressure's On. We all know the hard times and complications that come with touring. I think it's going to be great.
xOMx: Alright that's great. Now as an influence, what personally has inspired you to even start a band? And what inspires you lyrically and motivates you?
Justin: Well I've been going to shows for about 7 years now and I've seen so many bands. Performing my own music in front of people just seemed like such a rush, but being really young at the time, I was busy with school so I had no time for a band. Once I got out of school I started a band and it was horrible, but right after that me and Will started Pressure's On. Me being a vocalist lets me get out a lot of emotions. That's where a lot of my lyrics come from but some, like the closer off the Barren Wasteland EP, all came from my brain. A story of a man, trapped in the desert. What motivates me is the music, the atmosphere, everything. I love playing shows, I love going to shows. Having people come out to my shows and enjoy themselves is one of the best feelings.
xOMx: Now, being a band from Western Mass, is it difficult establishing support from local kids? Do you feel it's important for the locals to support PO, or Western Mass bands in general?
Justin: Here it goes. Yeah it's difficult. People here have a different vision on what's GOOD and what's the same boring repetitive breakdown after breakdown after breakdown of the same chug chug bullshit. If you're into that, cool, but you're giving hardcore a bad name. Ask anyone on the street what they think hardcore is and they'll say "isn't that the music that goes RAW RAW RAW with the really low boring guitars?" Yeah. The locals out here, some support us, some don't, and some PRETEND to support us. I'm not going to say support your scene, but support bands trying to make a difference. Support original bands, support bands who DON'T fit the mold. Support bands that are doing this all on their own. don't support bands because some dude who's got a mightier than thou mentality supports them. Support them because they deserve it.
xOMx: Great point.

Justin at the Waterfront Tavern 2008
Photo by www.returntothepit.com

Justin: I thought so.
xOMx: On a similar note, there are other bands emerging from Western Mass. All I've Got, Use Your Head!, Alert, Keepin' It Real, and Where I Stand just to name a few. Honestly what direction do you think this place is going?
Justin: To be honest. The quality of bands has nothing to do with the quality of the fans. No ones coming out to shows unless certain bands play. No one's really enjoying hardcore out here. A lot of the bands playing out here have got something to prove, but most just are here for the street cred. We have venues shutting down left and right and no one's opening new ones.
xOMx: So there is a lack of support here it seems. But do you think it'll continue to go on this way? What will it take for kids to get more into the music as opposed to the image?
Justin: Yeah there's a lack of support. It's a downwards trend, gas prices go up, kid's wallets shrink down. No one's got money for shows anymore. No one wants to travel to shows anymore. I'm sure once gas goes down, people will come back.
xOMx: Alright. One last question going back to the band. What do you think the future holds for Pressure's On?
Justin: The future, more shows and a new direction with the music. We're aiming for a more technical sound on the brink of 108 but still a Pressure's On feel. Heavy but still audible. Just be ready for music that people haven't heard coming out from Western Massachusetts
xOMx: Any last remarks?
Justin: Support hard working bands. Be on the look out for Siberia in the next few months featuring ex members of Conqueror, 315, and current members of Pressure's On. DIXXX

Well you have it. Exclusive interview with J-Kirk himself.
Keep an eye and an ear out for Pressure's On, and check them out this sunday October 5th at the Waterfront Tavern in Holyoke with Since The Flood (last show), On Broken Wings, The Miles Between, Outrage, Keepin' It Real, and Before The Sky.

www.myspace.com/popo413

The First Step - "The Last Step" PART 1

The First Step in Barcelona 2007
Photo by behindthiswall

The First Step, one of the greatest straight edge bands in the past 10 years, has finally taken their last step. From 2001-2008 this band has made an impact like no other. Originally hailing from the depths of North Carolina, this band has reached out to kids worldwide with their positive message and energy combined with innovative fast paced sound. From their very first West Coast Demo Tape in 2001 to their Connection EP in 2008 this band has traveled all over the world, while consistently touching subjects like inner peace, friendship, bettering yourself and making an impact to change the world. This band's efforts are not in vain.

The First Step in Germany 2008
Photo by Ruben Navarro

The First Step announced mid summer that they would be having their last show, though some people weren't surprised (like myself) considering there were so many rumors going on. Later on it was announced that it would be held at Champion Ship vinyl in Lemoyne, PA. Now you're probably thinking "Why not just do it in North Carolina?" That's initially where I assumed it would be, but considering only Stephen and Aaron are the only original members, it's not too surprising that it would be held in a state where it's easily accessible for kids nationwide. Also, playing the Championship so much it was probably a home away from their homes. The bands that would be playing along was Breakthrough (the reunion of Breakthrough, featuring members of The First Step), Get The Most (Vancouver youth crew straight edge band), Hostage Calm (Connecticut hardcore band, ex-At All Costs), Mindset (emerging Baltimore straight edge with a lot to say) and Warpriest (sorry I don't really know much about them). Also, Sojourner and Sidetrack were added to this show last minute.

Kids from all over met for this show, not sure whether to be sad or excited to see the exploding energy of TFS, but they helped make TFS's last show one to remember.


This is one of the videos from the last show. You can watch the rest by viewing the YouTube user FlatSphere's profile here.

Keep posted for part 2.

Review: Pressure's On - Barren Wasteland EP

Pressure's On is a heavy hardcore band based out of Western Mass. They've evolved since 2007 both musically and member-wise. The only remaining original members of this band is Justin Kirkland on vocals and Will Hirst on guitar. After going through a series of replacement bassists and drummers, Pressure's On now has Dave Moson on drums and myself on bass, thus turning Pressure's On into a straight edge band. The only reason I am reviewing a band I'm now in is because I wasn't on bass when the EP was recorded.

Compared to the 2007 Demo, Barren Wasteland is really a work of art. Drawing influenced from bands ranging from Burn and 108 to American Nightmare, this EP is very powerful musically. One of the great things about BW is that a few songs are taken from the demo and rewritten. This really works because on the demo, the drums were horrible. Take the song "Detatched" for example. On the demo the drum beat, which is supposed to be a typical 1-2-2 punk beat was more of a 2-1, 2-1, 2-1 beat. Very metal and definitely unfitting for this kind of part of a song. I'm not going to get too deep into it but let's just say that Dave does a very good job making up for the Demo drums.

On a positive note, Justin lyrically expresses his views and journey through life in a powerful manner. Reinforced by innovative breakdowns, Pressure's On isn't messing around. If you are a fan of 90's hardcore bands such as Snapcase, 108, or even bands like Bad Brains or Inside Out mixed with melodic hardcore bands like American Nightmare and Battery, Pressure's On is the band to get into. They do this all while clearly establishing a sense or originality, which isn't very easy to do nowadays. Look out for a split 7" with Use Your Head! this winter and an east coast tour with Use Your Head! early January. An interview with Justin will most likely be in the works sometime in the future.

www.myspace.com/popo413

Alert - Western Mass Youth Crew

I remember talking to my friend Mike Puffer about starting a band. I've wanted to be in a band for a while but couldn't really decide what I wanted to play. I mean I loved very fast powerviolence bands like Infest, Neanderthal, Crossed Out and No Comment just to name a few, but I could tell Mike wasn't really into playing something like that (though it did almost happen). So instead we focused on a sound similar to Shark Attack mixed with Negative Approach. The ambition was there, but nothing really happened.

Then I remember talking to a kid I met named Kyle. My other friend Josh wanted me to come over for a jam session so I agreed. Kyle was there and he played guitar. After about an hour we ended up talking about bands like Ten Yard Fight and In My Eyes. I was kind of susprised someone in Chicopee knew who these bands were, let alone listened to them. Especially since Kyle was only 17 and most 17 year olds in Chicopee listened to Emmure. Just sayin'. So after exchanging cell numbers I remember randomly texting Kyle saying "hey man let's start a band like In My Eyes" and he replied with "OH MY YES! NO ONE EVER ASKED ME BEFORE!" or something along those lines. But of course, nothing really happened.. yet.

Then I remember talking to my friend Will via myspace, since I didn't really know him on a friend level yet. We exchanged messages in a jokingly manner about starting a youth crew bands, naming everything from Youth of Today to Fastbreak. He said he would play drums and I said I might sing for it, but nothing happened... or did it?

Knowing that me, Will, and Kyle all wanted to start a band, a youth crew band, and we all listened to youth crew bands, we decided to pursue it. I remember writing a shit load of lyrics, though I was extremely nervous about fronting a band at the time. It was then I remembered Mike. I mean Mike got me into most of the music I listen to and he loves every band we wanted to play like so we decided to have him sing. It was a given. It was also decided that I would go to bass, though I never played bass before. I figured if I could play guitar it shouldn't be too hard switching to bass.

So we had our first practice. Kind of a brainstorming. Me, Kyle and Will met in our friend Trey's garage and we did a jam session. After playing for a while I remember showing them a song I had written a while ago when I was going to start the same kind of band with my friend Jay. This song eventually evolved into the song "Be Heard" but at the time it was just a skeleton of what the song is today. After that I don't really remember what happened but Mike eventually came to the practiced, liked the song, and wrote lyrics to it. We moved the space to Will's house since he had a drum kit there and now we have maybe 5 originals and a lot of covers.

With Alert we want to have fun, as well as send a positive message to the kids who listen to us. We want to experience the world, travel, and have fun. Alert will be recording their first demo sometime in mid November. Being from Western Mass it might be kind of difficult to get support from the local kids, but who knows? Can't say for sure what the future will hold, but I'll keep a positive outlook and continue to play what I love.

www.myspace.com/alertstraightedge

Pilot

So I've decided to do a secret blog kind of deal. I'm not entirely sure where I'm headed with it, as I probably won't have the time to commit to something like this, but who knows? My goals for this blog is to share my thoughts and views on the music I love so much, as well as bring out some of the newer bands out there and give an opinion on them. A lot of people probably won't even know about this, so it's probably a wasted effort, but I'd like to look back at this sometime down the line of my adulthood and swim in a pool of nostalgia.

So here we go! xOPEN MINDx web blog begins right now!