Happy New Year imaginary audience. I can remember some really bad years, so even though this year wasn't particularly mind blowing, I am grateful. I don't put forth a lot of effort in life and am satisfied with pretty much taking what I can get. Shit happens sometimes that is out of our control, but I've found that the quality of life that you have is for the most part in your hands (short of being born into some crappy situation in life). This place is as good as it gets for me other than being happy for the family and friends around me. In 2014 I did manage to discover a few electronica related blogs that are worth of mention. I highly recommend you check out Electro Body Music and very much recommend Gorish. Other than that I suppose, a tall glass of sparkling soda and a wide cup of coffee to you all in 2015.
Can't believe I've never posted any Joy Division, perfect for those moments of apathy and self-loathing. My buddy Dougie Grime turned me onto them in 1987, at the time he said that I looked like the singer. I really felt these guys back then wallowing in my own teenaged depression and nothing goes better with a dark mood than dark music. The epitome of post=punk and perhaps the first coldwave band??? If you don't know this band, then you should and this is a perfect place to start. Written on the jacket is, "unobtainable session tracks and live recordings" and I couldn't agree more. The candle was burning at both ends for singer Ian Curtis, who of course hung himself in 1980, live fast die young baby. Crank this puppy up, grab your favorite razor blade and start cutting designs into your flesh, live it up a little bit...
Colony (Bbc Maida Vale Studios London 26.09.79)
Komakino (Britannia Row Studios London 18.-30.03.80)
As You Said (Incubation 2) (Britannia Row Studios London 18.-30.03.80)
Shadowplay (Arrow Studios Manchester 03.-04.05.78)
Interzone (Arrow Studios Manchester 03.-04.05.78)
The Drawback (Arrow Studios Manchester 03.-04.05.78)
Atmosphere (Cargo Studios Rochdale 10.-11.79)
Dead Souls (Cargo Studios Rochdale 10.-11.79)
Insight (Eden Studios London 04.03.79)
Glass (Eden Studios London 04.03.79)
Ice Age (Eden Studios London 04.03.79)
She's Lost Control (Strawberry Studios Stockport 03.80)
Ceremony (Tj Davidson's Rehearsal Studios Manchester 28.04.80)
In A Lonely Place (Tj Davidson's Rehearsal Studios Manchester 28.04.80)
Candidate (Pennine Sound Studios Oldham 04.06.79)
The Only Mistake (Pennine Sound Studios Oldham 04.06.79)
Chance (Atmosphere) (Pennine Sound Studios Oldham 04.06.79)
Autosuggestion (Live In London 02.08.79)
I Remember Nothing (Live In Bournemouth 02.11.79)
Atrocity Exhibition (Live In Manchester 13.07.79, Wrong Date On Cover)
EDIT: The links are long gone, thanx to the copyright wars (I might be persuaded to upload to YT if asked). Here's a cool live set...
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnchmyoAm2E]
From our harbinger of the day, "Hey, man. I stumbled onto your blog from a Brent's TV video you posted on YouTube and spent the last hour reading your reviews. I appreciate the amount of effort you put into your writing. My name is Andy. I ran a label called Mortville Records in the 1990s and 2000s, but it sort of petered out. I've been playing in a band called Captain Three Leg since 1995 that's flown under the radar for most people. No big deal, I play and record to entertain myself. A few years ago I decided to just stop releasing physical copies of our stuff because nobody was buying it. I like recording, but I don't like losing money pressing shit nobody wants. Bandcamp has been great for people like me who just want to get music out there for people to hear and don't care about money." You know, first off, it's nice that someone out of the blue, comes along and shows the blog some appreciation. Seven years of doing this here thing, and I know it's not mind melting shit, really just barely interesting at times, fuck, if it wasn't for the music there would be no point, what's the fucking point anyway. Well, creative souls like Andy, one of the rarely thanked, movers and shakers of scenes all over the world, make it all worthwhile. Imagine my delight when I put the proverbial needle into the groove and it turns out to be a vibe I haven't explored in a while, taking me back to my late teens. Captain Three Leg is some of the finest power violence, I call it post-hardcore, I've run across in years. This is the pinnacle of the evolution of hardcore, started by none other than Middle Class and ending with bands that took what little good there was in youth crew, beating it to a pulp with a ball-peen hammer. The vocals remind me of Infest or my buddy's band Lack of Interest, yelled x2, but understandable, not screamed beyond comprehension. The musicianship is razor blade sharp, stopping and starting on a dime, maneuvering around your head like a zero-turn mower. In the Winnie the Pooh hardcore punk world these guys are lightning fast bouncing around like Tiger at times and at others, deliberately plodding like Eeyore, in no rush at all. A little metallic here and there, with a very short burst of noodly solos and some chugga chugga chunking, and that's just fine with me. Something that makes the songs interesting is that there are these short little sound bites at the beginning of each one that serves as some sort of lead in or intro, I like that they took the time to put that kind of thought into these compositions. Overall, made my day, and the gravy is that it's a free fucking download ready to be loaded on your iPod!. Oh yeah, there's more, to top it off, this is a split release, so along with the sweet sounds of Captain Three Leg, the first three tunes are done by a late 80's (when it was still good) styled grindcore band (with a little PV thrown in) called Flvx Capacitor. The vocals here fall into the grunted, growled, screamed category and I can't understand a thing, reminding me of when I first heard Napalm Death, but like ND the songs come with lyrics and they're worth reading or following along if you dare. This shit has an old school sound too, nothing like the pop-grindcore of today. Only down side, only three songs. Go give this split a listen/download at their 
Well my favorite Finnish aging punk rockers