Tom Araya - Looks That Kill

Still waiting on the Martyred Heretics CDr to come back from the manufacturer and in the meantime was neglecting the Relics. Will be posting up again when I have those bad boys in my greedy little hands but had to break the silence and share something that I thought was real skippy. Tom Araya of Slayer doing the vocals for a cover of My favorite Motley Crue tune (God I hated that band in the 80s), "Looks That Kill". The Youtube clip descriptions says "Rehearsal clip from Nov 1983 w/Tom Araya on vocals Dimitri Galeos & John Araya on Guitar Al Messi on Bass & Jake Alvarado on drums..." Fucking beautiful. Having spent a fair share of my time rehearsing with a band (to no avail, no matter how hard I practiced, I still sucked), I can't begin to tell you how cool what is going on in this vid is...

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNcFl4yRtzg?ecver=1&w=560&h=315]

Satyress - Dark Fortunes

Not sure how I know Jamie LaRose (as I've mentioned my memory is terrible...my brain holds memories like a colander holds water), but somehow she is one of my "friends" on Facebook. She resides in Portland, and I've got a few peeps there, involved in music, one way or another, so that may be the connection. This site is proof positive, I am a staunch music lover, so my interest peaked when I found out that Jamie was in a band. Not only is she in a band, but she fronts an out of this world, killer band. Once I got a chance to hear them, I was instantly a follower.  If you took the above band photo at face value, you might guess they were a stoner/doom type of outfit, but they're deeper than that.  Listening to their songs, there's variety, like there is in a deck of Tarot cards.  They can do stoner and doom, but they can also do the precisest of progressive rock, Sabbath-y psychedelic heaviness, chugging early 80's thrash and I hope I'm not stretching it too much, but there's even some European folk metal that almost delves into raw black metal.  Every song is different, not a moment of repetition to be found.  What is common throughout though is Jamie's otherworldly siren-like vocals, a guitar player that has honed his skills to razor-sharpness, a bass player whose sound weighs a septic ton, and holding it all together is a drummer that would make Bill Ward proud.  Underneath it all, as it should be under the general umbrella of rock and roll, Satyress really know how to play, to be, the blues. They're releasing their debut album, Dark Fortunes, on April 18th, that's one fucking week from today people.  If you don't believe me and the humbleness (yet serious as a fucking heart attack) that is Mustard Relics, go check out heavy hitters in the review world like The Obelisk, Terrorizer and Decibel Magazine (where you can stream all their songs). They're releasing their debut album, Dark Fortunes, on April 18th, that's one fucking week from today people...500 copies on vinyl. If you're interested you can pre-order the vinyle or get the digital at their Bandcamp or you can socialize with them on Facebook and catch up on current goings on. Here's a couple streaming for ya...the hit is "Soma" in my opinion, but every single one of their songs is well worth a listen... "Esta Noche" [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Satyress-Esta-Noche.mp3"][/audio] "Soma" [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Satyress-Soma.mp3"][/audio]

Winona Forever - Kolony digital download

Starting up where I left off the other day, a guy who can boast of his dancing skills (and fashion sense).  Back in the mid 80s when I was in high school, I was like most teenagers very concerned with my image, and except for running around in a circle bashing into people, I thought dancing was for women and effeminate men who listened to likes of Depeche Mode and Duran Duran (I was secretly a Smiths fan).  Rather than being too cool, the reality was I just didn't have the moves or the confidence to put myself on display like that.  Now of course, like many things I regret, being able to dance would be very cool.  Not just cool, fucking fun and maybe even handy for those occasional weddings...hahaha, just kidding. It must be a cool feeling for a band to have people dancing to their music, I can't remember if they ever did to mine, or just stood there thinking WTF. I dig one man bands, the guys who play several instruments at one time, ala Kind Automatic, or in the case of the guy I'm focusing on tonight, one who records all the instruments in the studio. God(!) I admire that. It's enough to play one instrument, but when you start mixing up strings and percussion and whatnot, damn. Having gone through the tremendous hassle, nightmare really, recording in the studio with a bunch of guys, I can appreciate simplifying it and just doing all the instruments/vocals yourself.  The mixing and production too, no one to argue with about whether the levels are right.  Anthony is one such guy who has tackled this task, the ultimate do-it-yourselfer, with Winona Forever. He hit me up like this, "I do a solo hardcore/punk project and was hoping you would be able to help me out. All instruments are done by me including vocals. I am in love with Johnny Depp so I decided to name the project after his Winona Ryder tattoo. All I have is bandcamp with free downloads and a bunch of tapes I just finished dubbing. I started this project by myself over 2 years ago because I couldn't rely on band mates anymore. I said fuck it I'm doing it all. Influences come from Johnny Depp, Discharge, and Jay Reatard, the ultimate one man band! I play in many other projects such as Black Prism (intense stoner sludginess, ordered their 7" myself...check out their VID), and Golden Milk. Black Prism just released a single through Easy Rider Records, and The other one is a punk project with a friend of mine who runs Chained Meat Tapes." I was blown away and responded to him, "...I really dig what you've got going on. You've got this raw black metal thing akin to Bone Awl or Idjarn. Down and dirty dude. ..nice! I need to investigate further." And investigate further I did, to the tune of listening to these songs a dozen or so times over the course of a couple of weeks (I know these reviews aren't mind blowing, but I do put some thought and effort into them, I get backed up and it takes a while). These 11 tunes are raw, lo-fi ugliness at it's very fucking finest. Anthony's inspiration is short, simple and to the point, he's not trying to mesmerize you with sappy intricacies, he's hitting you in the head with the claw side of a hammer. The vocals are straight from hell, growling in a cavern.  The music can either be this grinding dirge or all out attack. His guitar must have the distortion turned up to 11, and it's a filthy, heavy kind of distorted sound. And once again this is all from the mind and soul of one stricken man. Shit, I can't wait to get my cassette in the mail. Here's my favorite tune... "Culture Vulture"

[audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/4.Winona-Forever-Culture-Vulture.mp3"][/audio] "You Claim To Worship The Breath Of An Unholy Power And Pass The Flesh Of Newborn Life You Still Fear The Holy Hand, But Wear The Badge Of EVil You Fucking Culture Vulture To You Its All An Image Keep Digging For Scraps I Spit In The House Of Worship Curse He Who Carry's The Cross On His Back I Am The Chosen Child Spin The Record Back And Hear The Howls Of He In Power Close The Circle Of Stone And Mount The Head Of Flesh And Bone"

I can't believe how perfect it is when he sighs and growls while singing this tune, the vile frustration and contempt of it all. It's all evil, but not with the kind of over the top, blatant theatrics, hair spikes and pentagrams, it's more sinister, like the smell in a crematorium. For you old timers, this should have been the soundtrack for the 80s movie Heavy Metal, instead of shit like Sammy Hagar. He's got a Bandcamp (embedded below) and a Soundcloud so no excuse not to give him a listen...do it!

EDIT: apparently this tape is no longer on Bandcamp and hard copies are sold the fuck out, thanx for the heads up Rich, who emailed me, "Hey man!!! Been reading your blog, awesome stuff!!! So on February 20th, 2014 you posted a review on Winona Forever's "Kolony" tape. I went to the band camp page which only had a couple of songs for download, love the stuff!!! Problem is I want to hear the whole album. I know there was a limited amount of tapes available and their all sold out, I've been looking everywhere to find a place to listen to the whole album to no avail. I was wondering if there was anyway you could send me mp3's or wav files of the album? I've tried contacting the artist and got no response, I've looked everywhere to buy a tape and of course there is no copies anywhere including used ones. If you can help me out I'd much appreciate it. If you can't just e mail and tell me." So anyway, hope Anthony doesn't mind, I went ahead and ripped the cassette as one file (too lazy to go through the hassle of separating the tracks and labeling them)...

Winona Forever - Kolony

False Trinity digital download

Who says the Midwest doesn't know how to rock and roll? No doubt, rockers False Trinity out of the dinky town of Mountain View, Missouri (I checked it out on Google Maps, 578 miles, the closest of any band I've reviewed so far) can give a guy a lesson or two on how to rock hard. From the outset, for me, they've got two things going for them, that small town inspiration, the kind fueled by boredom and disgust, and they're female fronted. And how about that band shot, stellar, whoever took that, hit the nail on the fucking head and could probably be taking pictures for coffee table books.  After a couple of listens that left me smirking in aural delight, my response to Jennifer, who's on lead vox, "Howdy Jen and thanx for hitting up Mustard Relics. I bet my small town is smaller than yours...hahaha. Nice to see southern mid-westerners rockin it out. I'm always down for a female fronted band, not a sexual or sexist thing, it's just that women are under represented in R&R. We need more Joan Jetts and Eve Libertines. Your band hits it hard at times and shows some variety in sound. My two favorites are the first and last tunes on your Reverbnation page, kinda more heavy Rock-ish. The rest of the tunes remind me of a band called Snot, neu metalish with the cookie monster vocals. You guys pull it off but I just prefer the other two. Is there anything you would like to add or say about the band, what you guys are about, influences, the scene there in Mountain View and the surrounding area, what you think about gas prices, etc." She kindly responded to my response and queries, "Thanks for the kind words, and I agree! Women are way under represented in the rock world (and most are only recognized for their sexy bodies). My father would always play guitar for me and my sisters when we were little (things like Eric Clapton and Lynard Skynard among others) and I always loved singing along. Then when I got older I learned to play guitar myself and started with just me and my Taylor. Then when I met my husband (Davis, the rhythm guitarist) we started this band with a few good friends. It was just a hobby for empty Friday nights filled with drinking games and lots of creativity. Davis and the other guitarist J.t. used to switch on and off with bass since we didn't have a bassist. So when picking a name we picked False Trinity not knowing the religious background of the name. But we were four and not three so we were, in truth, a false trinity. We've had a few people rag us about the name, but we just continue to tell them that it has no religious meaning at all. HA! Well anyway, we finally found a bassist and have been doing this for about 5 years now. We write about the crappy ass government, my epileptic brain or bad childhood experiences. Just life for us really... But we all love playing music and even if we don't make it big one day we will continue to do what we do. As for our first album, I want it to be out by the beginning of summer at least. The bassist Dustin and drummer Jake run their own studio called Jacks Fork Recording and they do all of our recording and mastering, so you can imagine that they are very, very picky... This is the third time we have recorded this album. First re-do was due to bassist change and the other two were because they just weren't happy with it. But I'd say we should have it completely done by at least May." So, after many more listens to the six songs they have on their Reverbnation, I'm digging on the whole thing. There's a lot going on each of these songs, and some serious complexity to the compositions. Jen has a fantastic voice, she has the ability to croon and then in the next verse bellow, reminding me a bit of the singer of Kittie (am I the only person that likes that band). The band itself, is this metallic rockin' thing and they can switch back and forth from almost a ballad type of pace, to chugga chunka, to a distorted jam, and they do so freely throughout these songs. From the picture, they look fairly young, but the sound is sophisticated and nobody sucks at playing their instrument.  These guys/gal, hopefully have the opportunity to gig around and share their sound, and I imagine we'll be checking them out again when they get that LP released.  My favorite tune is still the first one...

http://www.reverbnation.com/widget_code/html_widget/artist_2895399?widget_id=50&pwc%5Bdesign%5D=default&pwc%5Bbackground_color%5D=%23333333&pwc%5Bincluded_songs%5D=1&pwc%5Bphoto%5D=0%2C1&pwc%5Bsize%5D=fit

 

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXU3kUjYyU8]

Black Sabbath - Walpurgis The Peel Sessions 1970 LP

Relentless!  A word that's never come to mind in describing myself.  More like "surviving", kinda like the guy facing the relentless onslaught.  When you think about a struggle though, a life long kind, most of what we face is self inflicted.  Not victims of some kind diabolical external force, but just day in day out trying to get the peanut butter off the roof of your mouth.  Nothing so dramatic as a comic book, a good vs. evil battle, I am not the Wolverine, the battle ground exists in my head.  Shit, your mind is your best friend (God I abused you old pal) and yet it's your worst enemy.  Really this GIF is what it looks like inside old Mustard's noggin.  Uh oh, I'm far too brain damaged to make any kind of attempt at getting deep...but I enjoy trying.  ;-) I've mentioned this before, and I've also mentioned before that sometimes things are worth mentioning more than once (Maximum Rock N Roll's review of my band Garden Weasel's demo said, and I quote, "Nothing you haven't heard a million times before"), I absolutely and irrevocably can't stand Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama" or "Freebird".  Too many years in too many bars with idiots playing those songs over and over again.  I am close to throwing "Gimme Three Steps", "Call Me The Breeze", and "Saturday Night Special" into that lot, so that doesn't leave much left as far as LS.  With that being said, I never did explore any of LS's other stuff.  A few years ago, I started hearing tunes of their's that I really liked...a few, to be exact.  Stumbled across a place called The Witchwood Records and found two of said songs, from a live set they did on KBFH Show Cardiff, Wales, UK 1975-11-06. For your listening pleasure... The Needle & The Spoon Simple Man There was one more of their tunes I wanted to feature here but, after searching though about 30 bootlegs I could not find them doing it live. Had to settle for the demo version... Junkie Got this bootleg a while back, it's on Discogs, and I've seen them on black vinyl, but mine is on clear, #247/300.  Not sure why I got it, I have so many Sabbath records, guess I just wanted to have a bootleg.  And on top of that I just love Peel Session recordings, high quality, live in studio.  About the only recording I've found that I didn't like was SPK's, believe it or not.  And the cover, I just love the image they chose, it is so Black Sabbath.  The back cover is sweet too, with the vintage photo, not sure if it's from 1970, when most of these tunes were recorded.  And...and...and, it's made in Finland, maybe my only record from that under-represented Viking country.  There's a million BS live recordings out there, so maybe this will interest no one.  The first four tunes are the Peel Session ones, "Walpurgis" is "War Pigs" with different lyrics, all very cool, live and heavy. "The Rebel" is from a 1969 demo, very PRE-Sabbath (extra emphasis on the "PRE"). Lost In Sabbath had his/her take on the Peel Session (aka Radio 1) and you could download it from Frequency LSD, where you can find those alternative lyrics to Walpurgis (War Pigs). I thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing (actually have it hanging on my wall)... Black Sabbath Walpurgis Fairies Wear Boots Behind The Wall Of Sleep The Rebel Was curious about this demo track so did a little more researching and came across the Big Takeover, where you can find a lengthy treatment on early Black Sabbath (Earth) demos and early recordings. Again at the Witchwood Records blog, I found the recordings that guy is talking about on the Early One Morning bootleg. Here's those other Earth tracks that go with "The Rebel"... Unknown Demo Early One Morning When I Came Down (this is called the "full version" but it's actually just a loop of a segment)

Mollusk - Colony of Machines CD

Haven't used the word brutal (a shamelessly overused word for describing bands) in a while, but that's what you get with the band Mollusk. Let's add words like ferocious, barbarous, merciless and inhuman. Cincinnati, another band from the northern mid-West, further serving to define this as mid-West blog.  It must be in the water up there, because the talent spans many genres...big or small these bands have it going on.  Neal on Guitar/Bass/Vocals (Chase on Drums/Vocals) did me (all of us) a favor by allowing this to see the light of day...and brand spanking new, just came out on the 24th of last month.  The album itself starts off with this minimalistic raw black metal vibe, like a Bone Awl, but it's a long song that develops and morphs into all kinds of shit, a precursor to the kind of sophistication these guys have to offer.  I don't normally like long songs (3 of the 4 tunes here fit that description), unless in rare cases the band can keep me interested and these guys deliver in the biggest of ways.  I also have strayed away from the gruffer type vocals, but this singer reminds me of Iron Lung's and that's a hell of a plus in my book...more tortured than growled. The music vaguely fits certain molds...vaguely. Self described as "metal ambient doom sludge space" in their bandcamp tags, what makes them an extremely digable and unique doom/sludge band, is that ambient/space-ness.  You get lost in the music, off on a trip to God knows where, getting pummeled all along the way.  It's a good pain though, accompanied by an endorphin rush, where in the end you feel satisfied.  They have it all going on, musicianship, heavy hitting, melodies, hooks, I'd be interested to know what they're singing about (dark and heavy like the music I imagine)...still trying to figure out what the image is on the cover, but dig it's abstract nature.  These guys have a Facebook and a Bandcamp, where you can listen/buy, they have two previous releases that are available too.  Check it... http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=253819890/size=medium/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/

Love the above album but wanted to share one of the tunes from their 2011 S/T cassette, the epitome of brutality... [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/2.Mollusk-Endless-Mountains.mp3"][/audio]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7PzabO9yFg]

Sacrilege (NY) - Thoughts Are But Dreams Till Their Effects Are Tried - 1985 Demos LP

Another badass record from the Wardance Records camp (thanx Freddy!), this time in association with another badass label, Radio Raheem Records. One of three Sacrilege's from the mid 80's, this being the most obscure one, outta New York.  As Freddy put it, "this recording has been a pet project of mine for the longest time."  WR & RRR have done the world a service by giving these two demos to us and putting them in their rightful place, on vinyl.  Only 600 pressed, and word is they're almost sold out.  The packaging is nice, relevant art, live band photo (so you can see who you're dealing with), two inserts, one with lyrics and the other with flyers and band member reflections.  With this kind of complete packaging it sets the stage for some serious aural stimulation.  The first couple of seconds are a little warbled telling you it's straight from cassette, but for the next 46 you get your mind blown.  The first side, the Don Fury Demo, is like Discharge only dirtier, with a first generation New York hardcore punk twist.  This is no "Dis" band though, no more than any other band playing this style way back in 85.  What makes it so crazy is the scene these guys were playing in, was not this band.  Hardcore, straightedge, skinhead and then...what the fuck.  They would have fit in a lot better in the LA of SF scenes, but this is decidedly a New York band, and as such they make the perfect anomaly.  Now if side one was dirty, side two is fucking filthy.  Almost two totally different bands and shit, these guys were only around for a little over a year.  According to the band these tunes were never played live (and they really only played live about 10 times).  Side two, the Bolt Studio Demo, is just plain evil, sinister.  In a conversation we had, Freddy said, "blackened metal HC thing 27 years before everyone else".  Venom, Sodom, Hellhammer, inspired, with a definite hardcore edge, you know what I'm talking about.  It seems like playing a little bit longer together the band is bit more on the same page, everybody is doing their part and I love how the band continues rocking while the guitar player goes off on these eerie, soulful tangents/solos. I really like side one, but side two, is this decades old secret, a dinosaur rising out of a tar pit.  And what's crazy about this whole thing is you have members of Agnostic Front and Reagan Youth, who are visiting another planet.  Overall this is a must get and if it sells out, I'll see if I can get permission to post it in it's entirety.  Thanx to Freddy for getting me this copy, and to Wardance Records and Radio Raheem Records for putting this thing in it's rightful place.  The band has a Facebook, not sure if it's the band that manages it. You can read a Victor Venom (guitar) interview over at Freddy's Quixotic Dreams. The record is available from both labels, Wardance Records and Radio Raheem Records.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8vEUFH7gT8&w=560&h=315]

VHOL - S/T LP

No prompting on this review, just sort of stumbled across the music and in my blown-away-ed-ness, I felt compelled to make mention of this fine piece of work. Others have had their say on this opus, including the likes of Downpart, Ghosts of Saturn, Album Weak, and Daughter of Plunder...so whatever I say will probably just be regurgitation, since they all dig the hell out of this record as well. First off, the art work is amazing and really foreshadows the music, emotionally complicated yet starkly blatant. To quote the almighty Cyrus in the movie The Warriors, "Can you dig it?" I can dig it, because from the first few moments into the album you know you're listening to something huge. Almost that raw black metal feel, but not patient enough to be bogged down in the mire. Full steam ahead, raging at times, at others taking time to observe the full moon. For some reason I thought of an opera, or at least as operatic as a fusion of hardcore punk and black metal can get. I wouldn't expect less though from this bunch of seasoned vets, no amateur bullshit. They have a Facebook and I found the CD in a quick search at Profound Lore Records and Amazon. I need to get myself a copy of this bad boy, but I think I want to wait to see if it comes out on vinyl... [bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=668507890 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false artwork=small]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8keSZbrxKUU]

Shower of Smegma (S.O.S.) - S/T CD/LP + Ed Gregor Interview

One of my favorite bands from the 80's cued up. A while back I posted a dubbed cassette (BF's Loose Nuts was on the other side) with two of their Demos on it. Man, I played the hell out of that tape. Of the many tapes I had, it was one of probably ten that I played constantly.  I was stoked when I put a cassette player in my '74 VW bug...Screaming mid range and high end that was perfect for the hardcore of the era.  As I said in that initial post, my old buddy Roy was the guy who introduced me to these guys.  (I didn't mention it before but, I'd go hang out at Roy's a lot on the weekends when he lived in North Hollywood and less so when he moved to Brentwood.  His step-Dad was this world renowned Japanese chef, they had a Japanese restaurant and it was funny because when he'd make us something to eat, it was always some very American thing like grilled cheese).  Recently Shower Of Smegma released this S/T CD/LP which has music from all four of the demos they recorded.  InterPunk , had this this write up about the band, "With a median age of 14, they played the L.A. / Hollywood club circuit in the early '80's with the likes of such great bands as D.R.I., Dr. Know, Entropy, Excel, Stukas Over Bedrock, Justice League, The Beer Nuts, Cycotic Youth, Balance of Terror and Armed Response, Neighborhood Watch. One of the first bands to Crossover Hardcore Punk with the dirge of Sabbath, and not get caught up in cheese-metal. None of them old enough to drive, their parents would drive them to the gigs. Raging, intense, full-throttle punk rock from the early 1980's."  As I said, I played the hell of that tape I had way back when.  I loved Eddie's singing, I liked how the band was very hardcore punk and very metal at the same time.  The lyrics hit the spot too (the fact that you could understand them was a bonus), I had them all memorized or at least thought I did...you know how a guy will make up words that they think they hear.  In modern thinking this thing was definitely on repeat on the iPod!.  So this new release hit me like a metric ton of bricks.  Songs I had heard before but different versions and then tunes, with that same edge, that I had never heard before.  The whole thing is edge of your seat madness from beginning to end.  Like finding some long lost treasure. There's already downloads available for this thing, but the ones I could find were just the LP, and you get bonus tracks on the CD. This is the first and possibly the only time I recommend getting the CD over the LP, those bonus tracks are well worth it. Every tiny bit you can squeeze out of this band amounts to huge listening.  You can get the LP or the CD from that InterPunk link above, but the place Ed suggested was from the label...Punk Records...and it's dirt cheap.

Wanted to thank you for agreeing to do my first interview, for sending me this CD/LP that you just put out and most importantly for the hours and hours of listening pleasure I've gotten out of Shower of Smegma over the last (almost) 30 years.

Ed you've been involved in creating music for some time know, can you recall what it was that gave you that initial spark?

I'd say there are a couple really important moments that inspired me early on.

First, when I was about 11 I went to my cousin's house for thanksgiving one year. He was 16 at the time. I walked into his room and it was magical. Posters of Kiss, David Bowie, The Stooges, Pink Floyd, Hendrix. It was the 70's and he had his room completely decked out with rock posters and paraphernalia. Playboy magazine on the dresser next to his bong. When I entered his 16 year old lair it was like a dream. I was overwhelmed with all the imagery and atmosphere. I was a kid in a candy store. I didn't understand what it all meant but I knew I needed it in my life. He threw on Kiss Alive and it was like a comic book coming to life. I looked at the back cover and saw the huge crowd and I was hooked. The next thing I knew I had a tennis racket in my hand and was playing air guitar. A new door had opened for me. Little did I know that in 1995, when I was on tour with No Use For A Name I would play to a sold out crowd at that same arena on the back of that record, Cobo Hall in Detroit. Standing on that stage in front of 13,000 people, I thought back to that thanksgiving day and looking at that album cover. It was an indescribable feeling.

Do you remember when you realized that music was going to be a part of your life forever?

I think when SOS played at the Cathay de Grande in Hollywood the first time in 1983. We had played other shows before, but not a "real" show at a club. None of us were old enough to drive, so my dad brought us and the gear to the show in his VW camper van. I felt like I had an identity and it was playing music. It wasn't that I wanted to be a rockstar, it was that I could focus on doing something I loved and people knew me for that. I wasn't really into team sports, not great in school, I got in trouble but nothing too serious. Music gave me a purpose. And that gig taught me that the more I put in, the more I got out of it. And that has stayed true.

What were the bands you were listening to around that time? What are you listening to now?

Around 11 or 12 I distinctly remember the first time hearing KISS, ACDC back in black, Led Zeppelin 4, Pink Floyd The Wall. Each of those were huge for me and left a mark in my psyche.

Then when i was about 13, my friend Jon Garrett came over one day and put on Black Flag Jealous Again EP and the Adolescents record. My mind was completely blown. We ended up blasting it and pushing each other around the room in our own 2 person slam pit.

I used to sneak my dads playboy and penthouse magazines, like any self respecting American boy should do, and one penthouse had an article called "Slamdancing in a fast city" I tore it out and read it. It was an exposé of the early punk scene in Hollywood with the reporter following and interviewing a kid called Mike Suicide, soon to be known as Mike Muir of the Suicidal Tendencies. It was a gritty article about the violence at gigs, the drugs, cops beating on people. My little pre pubescent mind was sucking it all in and wanted more.

At that time I had been taking guitar lessons and ironically my teacher broke both arms sparring tai quan do so I had to get a new teacher. I was learning fleet wood Mac and Tom petty songs and was starting to get bored. My new teacher was David Baerwald. He was kinda winging it and had very little structure, but he asked me the most important and simple question, "what songs do YOU want to learn?" Well, I handed him a mixed tape with Adolescents, FEAR and Black Flag. I thought he would laugh at me or tell me it was noise or bullshit or something. But he didn't. He came back the next wee with a bunch of those songs written up in tablature and helped me learn them. Figuring out how to play those songs changed me. I was super inspired and worked hard to play them just right. Later that year he brought me to my first concert, X at the Roxy. Seeing Billy Zoom up there and slam dancing in the crowd was the most liberating experience a 12 year old could have.

Stuff I listen to now is all over the place. In my late teens and 20's I really dove into reggae, jazz, experimental, hip hop, progressive rock, metal and lots of post punk like Fugazi, No Means No and the Jesus Lizard. Just all over the place. I've sort of settled into listening to a lot of 80's punk again and really gotten back into Hendrix, Thin Lizzy, Bob Marley, Floyd and Beatles as I'm turning my kids on to music. I don't like any electronic music at all, really. I never got into any DJ stuff or trip hop or whatever. I'm really drummer centric. If you don't have a live drummer, fuck it. If you drummer sucks, fuck that too. The new stuff I like recently is A Wilhelm Scream. They basically have taken melodic hardcore punk and mixed it with iron maiden like guitar gnarliness and smashed it into math rock. Catchy but intricate music with crazy rhythms, great melodies, poetic lyrics and a heavy dose of ferocity.

Do you remember that first time you played live in front of an audience? What was gong through your head?

I think the first time was SOS at the palisades rec center. I was really nervous but we had been rehearsing all the time. I had it easy though, cuz being in a band with Daryle Goldfarb is amazing. People are just watching him play these leads and they can't believe what is coming out of this little kid. Honestly Daryle at 13 ripped any guitarist twice his age. The kid was phenomenal. And not just technically either. He would strangle notes out of the guitar. Daryle taught me how to really step up my playing. If I messed up a bit on stage it didn't matter, Daryle had the crowd. I think that is what made us a good band at the time. Neither me or him were trying to hog the spotlight. We knew when to let the other take center stage. We were a lot more musically intense than any other bands our age and we kinda knew it. We would love to be the opener at a gig, cuz nobody thought we would be good. Then we would explode through our set and the next band would have to try to match that and usually couldn't.

You guys were way ahead of your time with your sound, punk/hardcore/metal all wrapped into one, what was behind that?

Jon turned us all on to Black Sabbath early on. He really dug that sound. Also other obscure more bluesy rock. Even shit like Ted Nugent and Black Oak Arkansas. Daryle was straight up into Queen and Van Halen. His guitar teacher was basically KLOS and KMET fm radio stations in LA. He would turn on a rock station and try to play along to whatever song was on. No judging it whether it was cool or not, just sheer musical knowledge. And he absorbed every note and nuance. I think Daryles heaviest influences on guitar were Eddie Van Halen, Jimmy Page, Brian May, with a touch of Hendrix. A perfect amalgamation of those guys through his own filter of expression.

We all liked punk, especially hard core like flag, 7 seconds, GBH, Adolescents, Social D, minor threat, etc, but we also liked heavy rock. The Sabbath and Van Halen guitar riffage mixed with punk just came naturally to us. It really reflected exactly who we were. Most hard core seemed stuck in its 3 chord monotony. That's fine if you just like punk or aren't that great at your instrument, but we liked to challenge ourselves musically. We got some shit for it too. Punk purists did not like our rock roll solos or metal riffage, but suicidal was the first crossover band to really stick there neck out and utilize some metal riff infused punk. The riffs and solos that Grant Estes ripped out on their first record were amazing. They made it ok and we embraced that fusion. Take the cool things from metal and toss the rest.

I can think of several, but can you give me a list of ALL the bands you've played in?

Gumby's Buddies (1982)

SOS ( also known as Dead Zeppelin for our first gig) (1983-85)

Alter Drown (1986)

OUT (1987)

PVHC (1987)

Animal (1987-88)

SWA (1987)

Oblitasaurus (1987-88)

Linus On Fire (1988)

Hedgehog (1989-1995)

No Use For A Name (1994-1995)

Harken Kraks Howl (1998-2000)

I Want Out (2001-

I Don't Wanna Hear It

Of the many demos you did what are you most proud of, or best represents your skills? Favorite song, then and now?

Oh. You are killing me. That's tough.

I think the Alter Drown demo is my proudest moment. I don't necessarily think it as a whole is great, but that was my first band where I played lead guitar and sang. And right after singing in SOS with Daryle on guitar, how do you match that? You don't. You can't. So, Alter Drown represents me showing my skills as a guitarist and main songwriter and I worked hard to get my guitar chops to be worth listening to compared to having just played with Daryle. Who I still think to this day is the greatest guitarist I've ever met in my life.

A close second would be Hedgehog - You Happy Face. That was the pinnacle of my skills as a guitarist, performer, songwriter and improvisation. Especially the song You Happy Face. It is a loose structure with really open parts for us to explore and improvise and the guys and I were so in tune with each other we could pick up on the slightest improvisation and communicate like you would have thought we were reading music off the page. That is the ultimate musical experience for me. But it wouldn't have been possible if I didn't believe I could do it back with Alter Drown.

I think S.O.S. stands the test of time, what's the response been like to the CD/LP?

Hasn't gotten much response outside of a few fans and friends. I'd really like it to reach more people.

You guys were super young when you first started playing gigs, shit, your parents were giving you rides to you gigs, how did the scene treat you, like a bunch of kids or did they respect doing/what you were about?

We had a really great following after we played our first few gigs. Punks from the west side of LA, Venice, Hollywood, Mar Vista, Santa Monica really dug it and we made a lot of really great friends rather quickly. Many would travel from all parts of the city just to see us practice in Jon's garage. I think some of the older punks didn't like us, but the kids our age and a couple years older dug it. We had a real great group of new friends like Jaybird, RC, Pat Sweeney, Shane, Dan and Shawn from Excel. These guys would be front and center at every gig and got the crowd going.

Noticed that Phil Newman of Sin 34 helped you with one of your demos, any other guys in the scene that helped you out?

I don't even remember how that came about, but that was our first time in an actual recording studio. To us we felt like rock stars. It was funny. Jon Nelson, the guitarist of Suicidal at the time saw us and offered to manage us. Basically just help us get a few higher profile gigs, which was great. Our first gig at the Cathay de Grande was set up by Excel (then called Chaotic Noise). They were absolutely the guys who made it really happen for us, supported us and encouraged people to come early to see us play with them. Also Entropy from Santa Monica had us on quite a few of their gigs and they were great guys and supportive. The one person who really got our name out there was Adam Bomb (Pat Hoed) legendary DJ of the Adam Bomb show midnights on KXLU. He invited us on his show, interviewed us live on air and played our songs on the radio. That was the pinnacle of my youth right there. I used to stay up and listen to Rodney on the Roq, but by '83 his show was full of more new wave and cow punk stuff and less Flag and Adolescents. Adam Bomb was the place to go to hear the latest hardcore punk and being on his show was a dream come true.

The absolutely most influential person on the band's punk rock tastes and personally the most influential person musically in my life is Nelson Cline, now paying lead guitar in Wilco, and an amazing artist in his own right. He was the Indy music buyer at Rhino Records store in Westwood. Our band and friends would take our allowance, grab our skateboards, ride the number 2 bus to Westwood on a Friday night and bomb the hill down Westwood blvd and Nels would have the 7" and 12" little punk section filled with the latest great American and English punk rock. We were the chirping little hungry birds and he fed us mouthfuls of the best punk rock vinyl there was. Rhino was like our church.

Other than being in the incredible band you were in, give us some of your greatest memories of being the punk scene back in the 1980’s.

1st gig. X, the Mutants at the Roxy. 1982 life changing.

2nd gig. Black Flag, Misfits, Vandals Santa Monica Civic, 1983

Misfits bassist Jerry Only smashed his bass on stage and threw it to the crowd. I caught the neck, held on to it and was immediately dog piled and pummeled. Left the gig without the bass but with blood and bruises and an awfully big smile.

3rd gig. Suicidal Tendencies, Descendents at the Vex in East LA.

Gnarly slam pit. Plenty of friends with me. The bands blew my mind completely.

SOS playing at the Cathay. I vaguely remember making out with my friends sister who was 18, I was 15. Then getting in an argument with the bassist of Neighborhood watch and at some point finding myself getting thrown down a flight of stairs.

All the many times walking or skateboarding and having jocks or burn outs ( we called them "greeners") throw bottles, call us fags, tell us to get a haircut, or chase us down the street.

Being at the beach with friends and having Venice gang bangers beat the shit out if us.

Riots at any number of the larger gigs. Like the Exploited.

Toward the tail end of it there was a really remarkable gig at e federal building in Westwood in support of legalizing marijuana and Black Flag played an amazing set. I think it was the first time I saw them play slip it in, black coffee, and my ghetto. Henry was annihilating.

In high school, Dave Travis, our school president and good friend with SST invited Henry Rollins to do poetry at lunch on campus. It was in the drama classroom and I sat in a desk in the front. Henry started by standing with one foot on my desk and the other on my friends next to me and did his whole reading from there. That was amazing.

Rather than complain about the current state of punk rock, my question to you is: do you find it strange or maybe amusing how incredibly accepted punk is now?

Punk was the soundtrack to my adolescence. It raised me. It taught me things my parents couldn't. It was honest with me when the world was a big lie. It allowed me to express myself without having to confirm to something. It wasn't just music, it was an attitude. Now that it is just a genre of music to most, it makes sense it would become mainstream. Punk as a music form was always just chuck berry sped up and angry with more politics and nihilism. So the fact that the music is accepted now is understandable. Society is still as self centered, egotistical, profit driven, corrupt, hateful and disingenuous as it was then. In fact even more in some respects. The fact that the entire media was duped and duped the public into the Iraq war proves to me that the meaning behind punk rock still hasn't hit the mainstream and its in the best interest of the corporate power structure that we continue to live in fear and mindlessly consume. It's up to us old fucks that used punk to express ourselves when we were young and felt like we had nothing to lose to live those ideals we were spouting on about. It aint easy, but being true to yourself never is. That message has been sucked out of most punk today. It's just a shell. But there are plenty of bands doing it for the right reasons. I'm just not a rebellious adolescent anymore, still passionate and angry at an unfair and corrupt culture, though.

So what's going on for you now, music, family, etc.?

Got 2 great kids and a wonderful and beautiful wife. Being a father is the best thing in the world to me. I try hard to teach my kids to respect others, express themselves, try hard, follow their passions, seek the truth and not to fear the world. Trying to practice what I preach. I haven't grown out of punk, I'm a teacher, mentor and protector of these kids. It's a different role, but just as defiant as I was as a kid. I think and deal a lot with fairness as I raise my kids. And kinda realize that's all anybody really wants from society. To be treated fair. I think maybe that's all that punk was really angry about. That society, economics, politics, authority, school, you name it, was corrupt and unfair and we weren't gonna fall in line and drink the koolaid. And as I look around today, there's plenty of koolaid to go around, and plenty of people drinking it up. There's that which we can affect and that which we have no control. I enjoy my life. Have fun with family and friends. Still play music. Raise my kids. And stay mindful of not falling in line too much and know when I'm putting the koolaid to my lips and know when to throw it on the ground.

What are the other guys from S.O.S. up to?

Jon Silverblatt is an attorney living in New York. In the last few years he has gotten back into playing drums and is currently in a band. He has a family and we stay in touch.

Daryle Goldfarb is living in Los Angeles, still playing guitar here and there and recently played a few gigs with his very first band The Draft

Along with members of The Inclined. He also has a family as well.

Sean Wheatley has a family and lives in Seattle. He and his wife run an event planning company doing Weddings and large events with Sean and his wife both DJing and performing music.

Steve Tounsand lives in Austin with his family.

Thanx again Ed!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ev8vmPUuY8?list=PLR43P3xkbevM3GxsKVfOhPZd2e83LW4Oi&w=560&h=315]

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EON - s/t cassette

Starting off here with a theme I used way back when, running out of things to say I guess.  Can't really get enough of gored matadors though and this one satisfies me on so many levels. The gored matador level, the man vs. nature level, and of course the plain ole blood and gore level (you just couldn't duplicate this without CGI).  See the horn sticking out of this gentleman's mouth.  I wonder if the bull still gets butchered when he is the obvious winner?  I'm sure he does.  You know, I eat meat, after 15 years of being a vegetarian, so maybe I'm not better than a matador or the people who follow the "sport", but damn that shit is a throw back to the days of slaughter in the Colosseum.  Funny too how brave the matador is made out to be, with a bull that has been tortured, speared and left exhausted before the matador even hits the scene.  At least the bullriders in American rodeos (haven't made up my mind on those yet) have to ride a bull that's fresh and raring to go.  I don't know, perhaps it all sucks, everything sucks...

Was going through my records looking to make a few extra bucks and sell some shit on ebay, yes even in my little corner of the world we have hit the hard times that everyone seem to be going through.  So came on this one, Fang's 1998 release, American Nightmare.  This was the second coming of Fang though, after the singer had done a 5-6 year stint in prison and not the band I remember from the early 80s.  It just didn't do it for me, although the cover is a site to behold, funny as hell, done by an extremely good artist and to be honest with you, if I owned a bar/club (a venue for bands to play of course) I would have this as a mural on the wall.  Anyway like I hinted at, this thing didn't do much for me, except one tune, a cover of Thin Lizzy's "Jailbreak"...that was just perfect.  Figured that my throngs of fans should get a chance to sample it, so I ripped it and even posted it to Youtube as it wasn't represented there either.  Dig it or don't. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1Yu1ea1siA&amp;w=560&amp;h=315]

In this modern age, sharing music is just as enlightening as the old tape trading days, minus the impatience waiting for the mail to arrive.  Can't get away from waiting for the hard copies to arrive, but with a few clicks of the mouse you can at least give shit a listen.  So my internet buddy, Bjorn, of Unter den Linden & Pilleemandjoonks, among others, emails me the other day. We shoot the shit sometimes (he's been a stud and sent me hard copies of rarities too) inquiring about our very different living situations and locals. This time he sends me a tune by a Swedish mid 90's band called EON with his nephew, Fredrik, on vox & guitar, recorded when he was in his teens.  I'll be damn if this stuff doesn't rock the fuck out, with a heavy emphasis on the interestingly unique side of some kind of metal conglomeration.  Elements of thrash and speed, mixed with an odd sort bluesy post-grunge.  Fredrik's vocals sound so much older and mature than he is at 17.  Like nothing I've ever heard in metal.  It could even be called pre-Nu Metal if Nu Metal wasn't such a bad word (I don't care what you say, the System of a Down early demos I posted a while back...shred).  The music is hard and soft, like a salad with croûtons, chunky and driving.  I got in touch with Fredrik and asked if he'd do a little who, what, why, where, when, how on the band... "The demo was recorded about 15 years or so in a small town called Kristinehamn located in Värmland. Kristinehamn had practically nothing to offer, so creativity was a way to survive and deal with the surroundings. Almost everybody was in a band at that time, and i guess we all influenced one and another. The strong influences I had at that time was anything from Slayer, Entombed, Henry Rollins, the Doors, Jimi Hendrix, Alice in chains, John Lee Hooker, to Miles Davis and probably a lot more, at that time I was also interested in paranormal phenomena and astral sleep. Since i don´t remember everything from that time this could give you an idea of what elements influenced the demo. We were around 17 years old when the demo was recorded, a year later the band split up, we had different paths to walk i guess, I went to study music, the bass player Pontus went to another school and the other guitarist Dava got kids early, the drummer Christer still plays in different constellations like me. I live in Gothenburg and i have finally returned to rock´n roll after exploring what i had to explore."  He's going to be sending me some of his more recent tune-age so keep an eye out for that.  This stuff would probably be lost in time if it wasn't for this.  In the meantime, explore the band that was EON... EDIT:  This was lost in time again during the great Mustard Relics apokálypsis, but all is left to be revealed. It's just too fucking obscure and too damn good not to be floating out there waiting to be heard. Special thanx to Bjorn and Fredrik for feeding my brain with this monster of a demo, cheers guys.  There is no web presence for EON, or at least none I could find other than my old post and I've noticed that people have been hitting this post, but of course nothing was there, just scorched earth. So we continue to sow the seed and we all reap the harvest... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3EgO1nKGig&w=560&h=315]

Beef Supreme - S/T digital EP

Picking up where the last post left off, we have Beef Supreme outta Tempe Arizona (I believe)...not quite as doomy as HPoS, more of a heavy hard rockin kind of thing.  When I say heavy I mean fucking HEAVY.  I don't know much about playing the guitar, but this feels like they are leaning hard on the low E shit.  The songs range a little in tempo so while they can sludge along in 1st gear, they can shift up little bit into a nice cruising speed.  Once again like HPoS, we have a three piece, and to my ultimate pleasure, female fronted, with Niki Bel Grande hitting up the guitar and the mike.  On top of that Niki is hot, which I know has absolutely nothing to do with anything this band is about, but there's nothing wrong with having a pretty lady in your band (Lou and Macho are good looking too).  She could be Medusa for all it matters though, because she really knows how to pluck a guitar and has a real feeling for the edgy side of Rock and Roll.  In fact, the guitars and bass seem to have this challenge going on as to who can lead the charge of chunkiness, while the drummer exhibits the precise economic perfection of my favorite drummer, Black Sabbath's Bill Ward.  This ain't no kiddie music either, it's for the aficionado of the dark and varied rooms of Rock and Roll and more specifically metal.  Beef Supreme is badass!!!  The band has neatly put together a package that includes four tunes (at 320 kbps) with lyrics, a couple of jpegs, a bio and links (they're all over the place) which you can find HERE.  At this point the band is digital only, but they are in the process of putting something together that will be released on wax and/or plastic. Got those four tunes below and a bitchen video if you are the visually stimulated sort...

Death Shuts Its Mouth "A shiny vine that climbs up the side and grinds all the mortar out A tiny worm that winds through your mind and tunnels deep throughout A photograph in fading color, a bruise that's yet to bloom Death slowly shuts its mouth and ups to leave the room

A little shiver that soon proves feverish, shaking, sweating for air A magician's swift illusion, a hope that was never there A scalpel in a shaking hand, a clotting pool of doubt Death slowly shakes his head, 'cuz he'll sit this one out"

Amasia Death Shuts Its Mouth Jim Jones Country(2) The Smart And The Lucky

&nbsp;

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cm-RgCRkPnc&w=560&h=315]

Don Juan Matus / Oxido split 7"

Another one from Freddy over at his killer Wardance Records, this one more on a metal tip.  First thing you notice about any record is the sleeve and this one is cool as all get out.  It makes sense on the splits when each band gets a side to personalize their artwork, and both these sides capture the bands in an intensely eye catching way.  Freddy's releases that I have been exposed to are all sharp.  The description on the Wardance page reads, "Oxido: Legendary 80's Peruvian Metal band, 1st. time on vinyl.  Don Juan Matus: Current heavy Psych/Doom project from Peru HC & Metal scene veterans. Split release with Basilica Records, 300 copies pressed."  Both bands are out of Peru and both bands could loosely be termed metal but that's where the similarity ends.  I don't have a favorite, because these bands are not in the same genre and I'd have to favor one genre over another...and I don't.  In 1984, when Oxido was in their heyday, I was listening to hardcore and punk, but I was most decidedly labelled a metalhead stoner.  The crowd I hung out with, myself included, smoked weed, had long hair, wore those woven hoodies from Mexico and listened to bands like Black Sabbath, Saint Vitus, Slayer, Venom and Motorhead.  Both these bands could have easily been spinning on my turntable back then and they take me back to that glorious time.  Freddy writes up a nice history of Oxido and does an informative interview over at his place, Quixotic Dreams, a great read.  As far as Oxido, this is my first exposure to the band and probably yours too, but these guys rock in that NWOBHM and proto-thrash/speed kind of style.  Hardcore early 80's all the way, and I don't know what it is, but it reminds me a little bit of what I think was going on with metal in Japan at the time (don't ask me why, I have no evidence to back that up).  Good chunky riffing with a hook of a chorus, a little bit of noodling and soulful singing.  Don Juan Matus on the other hand are that modern stoner doom thing going on that's gotten pretty big these days.  Heavy, dirgy and a vocalist that reminds me a little bit of the guy from Sound Garden (and that's a good thing in my book...c'mon the early stuff was good).  If I still smoked weed this would go great with a big bong hit of the kind sticky crystaly red haired green (or the compressed seedy stemy dirty brown if you are on a low budget), but mind alteration is most certainly not necessary to enjoy the vibe these guys lay on you.  Ever seen the animated flick Heavy Metal (an absolute must if you haven't and I might even call you lame if you didn't)?  Both these tunes could easily be on that soundtrack and I absolutely worship that flick so that's a huge compliment.  If you are a fan of metal of any kind, do yourself a favor and go out and get thing from HERE.  For now I have some minute long samples I ripped for your listening pleasure. Don Juan Matus-Kadath (sample) Oxido-El Angel de la Muerte (sample)

VA - Anglican Scrape Attic 7" flexi

Had never seen the video, just the pictures which in themselves made a powerful statement.  I guess people are doing it these days too.  Not sure how a guy does that unless you have a pretty intense vision of the afterlife.  I've been suicidal but for stupid shit, and I certainly would not have made any statement except that people would have thought I was a selfish bastard.  This though is the epitome of an unselfish act. Was going through my media player on the computer the other day and seeing what kind of stuff I have, about 500 gb worth, and maybe listen to something I hadn't in a while.  Found it ironic how I preach about the importance of having physical copies of the stuff and I have so much digital crap...oh well, call it lazy or call it too expensive to pick up for myself.  For some reason I was wanting to hear the Faith/Void split. I have it on vinyl but I couldn't find it among the mountains of mp3s. So sticking with the digital moment, instead of ripping it (or much better listening to it on vinyl), I decided to see if I could track it down from a pirate (am I a pirate?).  Very easy find, it's basically all over the place, but I can't stand a blog that just posts links to the music with maybe a scan, without at least giving his two cents.  You can get it from this guy for example, he at least has something to say. Funny how everyone (I did find one who disagreed) likes the Void side better...I do too. It turns out that in my wanderings they, much later, released what is called the Faith/Void/Faith cd, which is the split plus Faith's "Subject to Change" ep. You can find that out there too for download, if that's how you roll, but do the bands a favor and go get it from Dischord. For now, the best song on either side of the split... Void - Who are You? Another one that I was in the mood for was the Heresy "Never Healed" flexi. One of the finest examples of music ever put to a flexi disc. The poor sound almost lends itself to the vibe of the tunes. Not that rare though, there was 3000 made, but I couldn't find any on ebay and the cheapest one Discogs is $35.  Have that record too (maybe I should post it, but I'm sure the links are dead because someone reported them...Earache maybe?), I was on a roll, so WTF. I'll be damned, in my search, there were several blogs that had it posted, but the external links were dead. Had to settle for a last resort...Filestube, to find at least an upload. I hate using that site, so impersonal, but even that place is dying with the collapse and corruption of external file storage sites. There was just one song I wanted to hear anyway... Looked on utoob and couldn't find the tune there either so I uploaded it, hahaha. Was kinda thinking about flexis now, so went on a search for another one of the best flexis ever put out...the Anglican Scrape Attic comp.  Another one that's not all that rare, 5000 pressed, but I didn't find any on ebay and at discogs it starts at 20 bucks from England.  Pretty sure I got mine when it first came out in '85 through mailorder.  I used to get Flipside and Maximum Rock and Roll all the time and would look through the ads and reviews for stuff to pick up.  I think this was released by the same guys who released the Heresy flexi, Dig (of Earache) and Kalv (of Heresy) but this was earlier.  All the blogs who have posted this have dead external links too, but this time, I figure it's been out of print for almost 30 years, so what the hell, let's give you a chance to give it a listen.  There's not a disappointing track on this bad boy and you get quite the variety in styles.  They were all previously unreleased tracks except the Hirax one, which is disappointing, even though it's a good tune.  They may have been released later, but I didn't research it that far.  Tough to pick a fave, they're all classics in their own way.  Sacrilege was always my favorite and I played the hell out of this thing (so the sound may suck even more than it did when it was brand new), but listening to it, as I ripped it, I was kinda favoring the Concrete Sox tune.  Japan, UK, USA, the big three of mid 80's metallic hardcore (although Germany and Italy may be open to debate) are represented.   I have a feeling that the dead links on all the previous uploads of this is for the same reason the Heresy one is mostly dead, so this may be the first thing I've been asked to take down.  I honestly could not find that it has been re-released in any way shape or form so give it a listen while you can...

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSIrhTx__ZI]

Zebras - S/T LP

Got this bad boy in the mail a couple of weeks ago (been on a hiatus in case you hadn't heard) and I gotta say that even though it's a brand spanking new record, I felt like I had gotten one of those old classics I'm always searching high and low for...a modern classic. I had received a link to the music maybe a month or two ago and was completely blown away, so much so that I sent the link to just about everyone (except Mom and Grandpa) in my email address book. In other words this is some serious shit that needs to be put out there. Here was the message I got... “ there’s a band that is half from Milwaukee and half from Madison called Zebras who are really cool. They are totally insane and unclassifiable” - Dan Kubinski (Die Kreuzen) Greetings, We have been digging through the plethora of zines, blogs, and music websites looking for people that might be interested in our new album. We do not fit in perfectly with any scene or genre but you seem to cover music in our general spectrum so I hope you can take some time to check it out. http://zebras.bandcamp.com We are a Wisconsin band called Zebras. Started in 2007 and toured the states many times over. We have had a few member changes and set backs but are back with a new album and a new drummer. Our current members are Vincent Presley (also a member of Those Poor Bastards), Shane Hochstetler (also a member of Call Me Lightning and previously in Haymarket Riot, Hero Of A Hundred Fights & Managra), and Lacey Smith (also a member of Those Poor Bastards). This is our debut full length album and it will be released in late July 2012 on LP, CD, and Cassette. All limited edition hand numbered editions. The first edition of 50 vinyl copies are on green and black vinyl and have all been pre-ordered already. The second edition is 200 copies of black vinyl and we only have a few available for promotional copies as well as a few CDs and tapes. If you would like a physical copy please let us know as soon as possible. More information: secretrecords (at) live (dot) com - anything at all. Slazebras - confused reviews of our split LP. Bandcamp - downloads and physical albums for sale. Facebook Other Related Info: Those Poor Bastards page Call Me Lightning page

So first off, I don't know if you noticed the image above, but that is one bad ass record cover (it looks even cooler in on the actual 12" LP).  If I'm not mistaken the image is of a woman from days gone by with ectoplasm "associated with the formation of spirits".  If you've seen the movie A Haunting In Conneticut" (great flick!) you know what I'm talking about.  You know if you're going to put something out there, take a badass image like that and represent yourself well...the image foreshadows the music.  And the fucking music, what's not to like or be completely blown away by?  The vocals shred, not in a metal kind of way but almost in a bluesy/hardrock kind of way with the urgency of hardcore.  The guitar is all over the place, raging at times and more emotional at others, with just the right amount of distortion and reverb.  The organ, man the fucking organ is just incredible.  It creates a hum or din that sets the mood for each song, not to mention a bottom end that you can feel in your chest.  Last but not least the drummer...the guy is like a fucking surgeon, carving out malignancy and really ties the whole band together.  I called these guys metal in my categories, but that is a really loose term, with the Moog they almost have an industrial vibe, but there's no mistaking that this is a live ass band.  Intricate songs, almost jazzy at times, with a surprise at every turn, but not misleading, you have to know what's coming next.  Every tune is in top notch form, so as usual in that circumstance, I had a hard time picking out just a couple for your listening pleasure (but you can sample them all their wares at their Bandcamp link way up there), but if I had to pick out just one it would be this first one...

Black Cancer Tension Now go and support these guys, and in doing so giving yourself an aural orgasm, once again at their Bandcamp!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0s8cd-jVfY&amp;w=560&amp;h=315]

Eyehategod / Cripple Bastards - split 7"

What movie is this from?  For some reason the surreal nature of the GIF speaks to me, like a dream I would have...morbidly dancing away and ultimately, maybe even frustratingly, getting nowhere. Not much going on at Mustard Relics central other than bitching about things that can't be changed (like human nature) and doing absolutely nothing about the things that can. Kind of an Eeyore mood.  As opposed to my mechanic who was whistling while he was working the other day.  Not because he is one of those mechanics getting fat off your money, fixing things that aren't broken or really fixing nothing at all.  He is actually very fair, is a genius when it comes to vehicles and genuinely enjoys his work. We watched The Color of Magic the other day, a made for TV thing, that was surprisingly entertaining.  The guy from Lord of the Rings is in it along with the always masterful, Tim Curry (boy he's aged).  Anybody else used to go to the midnight showing of "Rocky Horror Picture Show" back in the day?  I digress.  Actually as far as comedy movies with "horror" in the tilte I prefer Rick Moranis in "Little Shop of Horrors".  Anyway "Color of Magic" satisfied my fantasy craving that is rarely satisfied. From fantasy to Black Metal (there is a connection isn't there?)...was in a black metal mood for a second the other day and thought I'd share my findings (stumblings).  Black Metal has an almost comical side if you think about it, but if you've read the Old Testament book of Job, you know Satan has a very keen sense of humor...I think the guy must get a kick out of guys with spandex, painted faces and gravely voices.  I started out with this band, outta Spain, the demo is from 2001, and I'd classify them as more of the raw variety... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLqvBdhN_ak&w=790&h=444] This is French "celtic pagan black metal" (or what came up when I typed that phrase into a search) from a 2009 re-release of a 2000 release ... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ICknwYcYWw&w=790&h=593] ...dug them enough to include a second tune... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8b8X3a-_VY&w=790&h=593] ...the kings of modern day raw black metal from their latest 2011 release... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmaRcGl_-Ek&w=790&h=444] ...another one... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0F0RMBRYJS0&w=790&h=593] ...and then I found myself going way back to the gods of black metal... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GEbziEDL0s&w=790&h=444] [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6mM3iZkqK8&w=790&h=593] ...and then of course, 2nd to Venom is... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWp9OupJzsE&w=790&h=593] Sort of ended up with this puppy in a backwards sort of way.  My old San Diego buddy Chris was living in New Orleans and mentioned a band worth checking into called Outlaw Order.  Just so happens they had released a 7" on my old school chum Bob's label, Deep Six Records.  Picked it up and was VERY satisfied with it's heavy beastliness... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1mzz7-09m8&w=790&h=444] ...see what I mean? As it turns out the band was made up of members from a previous New Orleans giant of a band called Eyehategod. Just like a modern day punk rock chicky getting giddy at the Hot Topic store, I get giddy when I discover something new (to me) and promising, so I must shop. Wasn't too hard to track down some EHG as they released a lot of stuff, although it is sometimes a little overpriced on ebay. This split was released on the (infamous) Southern Lord label in 2004 (their 2nd to last release). Now I played the EHG side first of course and was pleasantly rewarded, great fucking sledge hammer of a tune. BUT, when I played the flip side I was completely blown away. What you get is the Cripple Bastards tearing shit up. This longish song that goes all over the place and even in it's longishness it keeps you riveted throughout. Love it, and really that tune makes this split.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qH4Q9Nnbfa0&amp;w=790&amp;h=593]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBRRO4adgGY&amp;w=790&amp;h=593]

Fire in the Cave - S/T digital download ep

Well the requests for reviews keep coming in and as long as the bands don't suck, this one definitely does not suck, I don't mind doing them.  In a way I appreciate the opportunity as otherwise this place would be mired in the past and I encourage everyone to not only appreciate the history of music, but to realize that it's history is unfolding all the time.  Unfolding is what Fire in the Cave do.  Doom at it's finest, which for me is where metal is at these days.  Here's what the band have to say for themselves... "To them, I said, the truth would be literally nothing but the shadows of the images." - Socrates.  Fire in the Cave is a band from Orlando, Florida. The group is comprised of the final lineup of the now disassembled band: Bad Actor.  Blistering riffs become sluggish spells of hypnosis constructed in movements. Each sonic assault surrounds every sense passing through moments of suffocating heaviness that fade into psychedelic tranquility. The band is lyrically driven by themes of environmental psychology, disgust for spiritual proselytization and the inherent beauty in the tribal instinct of mankind."  Our self-titled debut was tracked and mixed by Scott Angelacos and Jeff McAlear at High Five Audio in Deland, FL and mastered by Collin Jordan at Boiler Room Audio in Chicago, IL. The first tune did not grab me right away, but the second tune really hit the spot and then going back to that first tune I found it hit the spot as well.  Long tunes, about 8 minutes each, which don't usually float my boat, but these kept my attention from begining to end, as I said, they unfold.  I wish I had big words for these big songs (there's just two), but my burnt out brain limits me to words like raw, fat, burly, meaty,chunky and evil.  The drug days are over for me (maybe a little late) but I imagine these guys would go well with a bong load and I double dog dare you to give them listen after dropping a tab or two of acid.  This is the stuff Witchy Poo from H.R. Puffenstuf would listen to.  As you would expect from a band that calls themselves doom, you get some heavy, ploding stuff with over the top vocals.  The lyrics are layered with metaphor, weaving a sort of story, dream or vision.  I've got that 2nd tune for you but you can listen to them both at their Bandcamp page and then you can download for "name your price" (kind of a cool idea).  There's a comp of Florida metal bands on that same page that may be worth your time, I just noticed it and haven't given it a listen yet.  EDIT: Got a chance to listen to that comp and I'll be damned if Florida doesn't have as serious as a heart attack scene going on...I can feel my hair growing!  This will be coming out on cassette (do you still have a player, I do) soon, so keep your eye's peeled (another good way to describe the music, eye peeling).  Anyway, give it a listen... Fire in the Cave - Aeden Carr

The lyrics so you can sing along (hahaha)... This civilized swamp, in which we dig our toes, it withers our skin and strengthens our foes. Freed locusts pour upward from the thicket where I saw her collapse. Towards the forefront sky they rise, breathe and circle toward the west. To my waist I’d been deepened in palpable sorrows, emitted from her wails and wishes. I knew not where this town called Christ she spoke of lie, and I’d surely not heard of its men. I am the warmth that burns safety through this fenwick. I walk upon my land ankle deep in living water. I wade through pockets of serpents, and primitive sluggish fins. I live among an exiled leader, and his howling maddened children. Their leader, Doran Amory, had grown them out of flaws that he shed unto his soil. His family stands before me in my final steps out of the marshes. With mire behind me, Doran offers me his lukewarm hail. “Aaden these foreign colonies, they continue their weak and mournful crusade. They fear the light, and welcome caliginosity.” I told him of concerns with locusts breeding where there shines no light. This sweltering climate had driven the servile hosts through pyrexic neurosis. Away from ushering pyres. When they’d heard of my most recent meal we both decide must act quickly, for Doran knew where their temple lie, and tonight it must burn bright. With rifles at our backs, we charge onward, toward the sounds of hymnal desolation. These intruders will, soon know the ire of our kin.

IabhorHer 7"

It's amazing to think of all the jobs I have had over the years but don't think ever with the enthusiasm of  this gentleman here.  Not sure what you would call his job (advertiser?) but I may have him beat as far as having a job that at the very least was not glorious.  When I first moved to Kansas I got a job at a factory farm for pigs, Husky Hogs.  These guys were anything but organic from their genetic altering to the masses of chemicals, hormones and antibiotics.  All for a pig with almost no fat, buff fuckers is what they were.  I guess most of the meat was shipped to Japan.  A big operation by Northwest Kansas standards they had 6 farms, with 10 barns each and almost a 1000 pigs per barn.  This does not include the nursery or the farrowing barns.  A sad existence indeed life in those barns, artificial light and slats in the floor to drain the shit and piss.  Heated and air conditioned so if that's what's important then maybe it wasn't so bad.  About two barns were emptied a week with the pigs being hauled off to the slaughter.  My job title was Powerwasher, which means that I was responsible for cleaning the barns once they were empty.  These pigs were very susceptible to illness so the barns had to be cleaned thoroughly and disinfected.  With my job, I was considered unclean so I wasn't allowed to be around live pigs, the only ones I saw were the dead ones who had been shot because they would not load onto the trucks.  For humanitarian reasons (hahaha) and I suppose maybe health concerns an animal must be able to walk itself into the slaughterhouse.  It took about 2 1/2 days to clean a barn so basically all my time was spent in shit and piss.  With these high pressure hoses/nozzles back and forth from one end to the other.  Sometimes if you hit a nook or cranie just right it would spit the shit and maggots back in you face.  Let me tell you, you haven't lived till your mouth/nose/ear has been invaded by a clump of shitty maggots.  12 hours a day, 12 days on two days off, $7 an hour.  It was no wonder I was having issues with my self esteem and didn't see the point of quitting the bottle.  Hell I brought the bottle to work in my lunchbox. Just virtually met Sean who runs Damaging Noise.  Unfortunately you can not comment there but fortunately I was able to pick his brain a little bit.  Busier than most but not so much so that he can't share his passion for music or his incredible original art.  At some point one of his extremely prolific bands will (hopefully) be releasing a double discography thing and figured I would serve up the first song from that hypothetical beast...piping hot,

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nsu4oRuosfo&amp;w=560&amp;h=315]

Jefe stopped by after a long hiatus and made some of his crucial suggestions as far as some music that needs listened to.  Someone called them math rock, a genre I had heard of but never heard an example of (are they really?).  Another one of those two piecers, not unlike Jefe's own two piece Fire Demons...a bit heavy on the heavy.  One of my favorites off their self titled thing,

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjrRxpd1slw&amp;w=560&amp;h=315]

Coffee IS GOOD for you (in moderation of course, not the gluttonous guzzling that I do). Another one from my gramps who at 82 has seen a lot of shit in his day. This one had the caption, "When top level people look down, they see only shit heads; When bottom level people look up, they see only assholes..." Perfect! Had a big company meeting the other day, you know a management type meeting with the catered lunch, in other words a waste of money in my opinion. I'm considered "middle management" but I don't have anyone under me, I just manage the lives of my clients. I guess I do get to call the other managers on their shit if they aren't towing the line on what the agency calls "persons served". I was talking to the president of the agency because I was kind of impressed how he talked politics, no left or right, rational. What do we need to do to ensure that the needs of the mentally retarded/developmentally disabled (MR/DD) are met in terms of the state and federal budget? With budget cuts going on everywhere both on the state and national level, nobody want's their piece of the pie cut. Priorities right. Smaller government is what some are saying...funny because for me it used to be about no government. I can't wrap my head around the fact that there are all these government funded things that really "we" can't do without (socialism?). Kansas just banned this teacher's union from the capital building for protesting. Funny how there's protesting going on in the world that seems to be applauded by the US, but the homegrown stuff is frowned upon. If I was a prophet I'd say that we are going to see some shit here around the corner (but I guess every generation says that). Anyway...what was I talking about? Was kinda feeling heavy and like something from the Slap a Ham label, and these guys from long about 1995 fit the bill perfectly.  Haven't had this 7" very long, but once I ripped it, it has been virtually spinning off and on since then.  Went to do a little research on  the band and it turns out my "old" buddy Batguano had it posted.  Go figure though because I think he's the one that suggested I track down my own copy.  Expect this to happen again though because he posted a band called Dearborn SS and I subsequently tracked down a hard copy of that...also well worth posting here.  As Mr. Guano said these guys morphed into Cattlepress and I think they may have coexisted for a short time.  He also mentions that the members of this band are some serious heavy hitters including one of my favorite drummers, Dave Witte.  This stuff is not for the faint of heart and I'm sure there's a name for this genre but I'm going to call it "post-grindcore" (you heard it here first).  I haven't been in the mood for fire breathing vocals lately but this fits.  There isn't a favorite of the two so listen to them both if you dare,

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOg52V2V6ow&w=560&h=315]

With just two tunes, figured I'd take it a couple of steps further and see if I couldn't make it a (known) discography of sorts and find the comp tracks (after a short siesta...does anyone else take naps in the middle of the day?).  The discography used is from that Cattlepress Myspace up there so I figure it's complete, but you gotta think that the band came up with more than four songs.  It would be a treat to discover more, but we'll consider ourselves lucky to have these.  Luckily we were generously supplied with the seemingly rare Vols. 1 & 2 Cry Now, Cry Later later double 7" comps (on CD).  Those are well worth checking into folks there are all kinds of GOOD bands on them, but for our purposes

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9dRlcaLVa8&w=560&h=315]

The other comp appearance off the apparently even more rare "Step on a Crack" comp (I could not find it) was interestingly supplied by another generous donor (victim) in the form of his incredible  "Dave Witte Special" podcast.  That podcast is also well worth you time to be in amazement of, but unfortunately it is provided as most podcasts are, as one giant mp3.  So...I took out my virtual exacto-knife, did some surgery, applied the leeches, dispensed medicinal Coca Cola and plucked that tune right out of the host (I almost feel like I created the music myself...haha).  Enjoy, or do whatever you do with this kind of music.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WHbEI-uhaw&amp;w=560&amp;h=315]

BG / Iron Lung - split 7"

Liam on the early 50's Indian and me on the '69 Triumph back in 1999(?).   Was living with Dirty Steve back then, who was a better friend than I realized at the time (regrets).  Sure fucking loved riding his Triumph and as you can tell Liam was pretty stoked sitting on the Indian.  I wasn't a 24/7 drunk quite yet but was definitely getting fucked up and passing out every night.  The twilight of  my functional alcoholic-ness.  Got the safety orange City of Lemon Grove sweatshirt on, damn that was a sweet job.  The boss was this idiot ex-junkie 12 stepper (idiot, ex-junkie and 12 stepper are not always connected), who had an arborist license (which is a big deal in the landscaper/groundskeeper world), and in the five years I worked there he managed to prune half of one small tree.  It's just not a good situation when you have zero respect for your boss, not to mention when I was coming in to work hung over, reeking like liquor every morning (when I wasn't too shaky to call in sick).  Never laughed so hard as when tank sprayer filled with this weed killer (the name escapes), not available to the happy home owner, and dark blue dye blew up in his face (I was sick, I know).  He was lucky and his eyes and mouth were closed, so he didn't get sick or blinded, but the dye left his face blue for two weeks.  When he finally got smart and decided to look for ways to fire me, not because I didn't kick as at work (when I was there), but because I was a drunk, he took me into the shop office with his boss.  Funny thing was that my bosses, bosses, boss hated me too because I had basically told her to get lost because she had this habit of stepping on people on the radio (interrupting conversations between people in the field on their walkie talkies).  So they have me in there, and their reasoning is that I'm using up too much sick leave.  Pissed me off to the point where I was screaming loud enough for the guys in the shop to hear me, "DON'T GIVE ME SICK LEAVE IF I CAN'T FUCKING USE IT, MAY AS WELL GIVE ME MONEY AND TELL ME I CAN'T SPEND IT!"  They didn't know what to think with my idiot ass screaming at them.  I had gotten a DUI that they didn't know about, which I figured they would sooner or later, so about a week after that I came to work shit faced and told them to shove the job up their asses.  Alcohol is so empowering in a neanderthal kind of way.  That was the beginning of my 24/7 drunk. Not sure what Glenn Beck is crying about, but I find something humorous about a man filled with so much cancerous negativity, blubbering. So if you haven't been there before, you need to go to Killed By Death Records (he doesn't need my plug, he gets millions of hits and rightly so).   Peter posts some seriously out of this world obscure punk/hardcore and just a bit ago posted a recent rehearsal of his old band out of Sweden, the Raped Teenagers (a band you can find round here as well).  Listen to that, but funny thing is, on that post, some guy puts a link in his comment to a Youtube video. Turns out the tune is off this killer band out of Belgium from 1974, called Blast. If you're into the Stooges or MC5, because you know these guys were, or a vibe that foretells punk, you gotta listen to that tune. Fucking rager, BLAST (Belgian) - ? A buddy of mine, Bob, who I met virtually a while back, helped me out and cleaned up my header image, not sure if anyone noticed.  He's working on one of his out of this world creations with it so stay tuned for that.  (Just cracked myself by asking all five of you to "stay tuned"...still laughing)  In the meantime if you dig good digital art or more importantly, if you're looking to get better with your Photoshop program, go join in at his site Photoshop Bus. Because I just listened to it on the media player...BAD ASS TUNE! Doom - No Religion Only on Mustard Relics would you find this and the previous post categorized in metal, of course separated by two decades (what do I know about categories).  I've posted several Iron Lung recordings around here, so you know I already dig them.  If you don't like manic, stop-go action in your music, then they aren't for you.  Mike this should be right up your alley with some serious Cookie Monster-ness going on.  :-)  How about Bert when he's REALLY pissed off at Ernie, ha, ha?  I guess since there is so much Iron Lung around here, this one's really about BG.  Mellower than Iron Lung but by no means mellow and similar in that you get lots of breaks and melody changes.  I had a very hard time separating the tracks on these and probably shouldn't have as each side is meant to be played as a whole...oh well.  Unique cover made out of cut up x-rays, so I guess they're all different.  This is all a lot harder than what I've been listening to lately, but just felt like a little balance. BG Out of the Cave The Hill BG (The Man)

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Iron Lung Disgusting Body Roentgen's Machine Primal Therapy Pt.II

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