[engl] Game returns after their 2019 full-length No One Wins with the Legerdemain EP. Piercing the listener with nonstop aural carnage, the EP would be an apt soundtrack to the armageddon. Part Venom, part Death Side, all live and loud, Legerdemain offers no restful moments. An instrumental masterclass with blistering drumming from Jonah Falco, weird and wonderful guitar melodies conjured up by Cal Baird, and a rumbling and decapitating buzzsaw bass by Nicky Rat, the release's finishing move is an ever-changing vocal tone by Ola H. Legerdemain can be a rewarding, or punishing, aural journey depending on your perspective. The new release, which was recorded and mixed by Jonah and mastered by extreme music legend Arthur Rizk finds Game leaning heavily into their metal influences, with sounds of early 80s UK steel given extra ferocity through the lens of Japanese hardcore punk from the same era. Having toured multiple times in Europe and North America, Game, which features members of Fucked Up, Arms Race and Violent Reaction, is equally comfortable playing to punks, metalheads and everyone in between. ‘Legerdemain’ is a magician’s term meaning sleight of hand, a key skill of deception. The term is used as a metaphor for our current post-truth society where governments, technocracies, and financial institutions use smoke and mirrors to create a farcical and bewildering existence where one cannot know if something is real or not in order to cover up social injustice and mechanisms that drive inequality. As Legerdemain progresses, one is being continually dragged along towards an apocalyptic ending on "Release", which reflects on this current predicament as a nuclear explosion approaches with nothing left to do except give into the madness. There is a constant cycle of rising again, fighting against wrong doing, exhaustion, and endings. The lyrics in Polish, English and a sprinkle of French, represent the multinational members of the band, who feel culturally in a no man’s land, which in fact is everyone’s experience in 2021. Legerdemain tries to answer this anomie with urgent metal punk that is hauntingly relevant.

[engl] “Man, talk about deja vu all over again: I just saw Outburst last week and it was amazing to witness people go apeshit for them, some literally not born yet when I caught them last in 1989. This vibe continues upon listening to Big Cheese’s debut 7” on Quality Control HQ. The record is basically a love letter to the NYHC sound during the late 1980s: I hear a Killing Time/Leeway mosh part here, an Altercation/Warzone divebomb there, of course the aforementioned greats in Outburst, and how the hell does a northern UK lad sing a la Jeff Perlin from Breakdown?! These are all good points in my book as sometimes the implementation of retro styles can be a colorless, slavish reproduction of the past with no heart at it’s core. This is not the case here as the obvious affection for a particular time and place manifests itself in well executed grooves that both reflect and transcend their influences. Kudos to old friend Don Fury for a nice, crisp production and to Big Cheese for getting it right and flying the flag for an atavistic ethos that’s near and dear to my heart.” Freddy Alva, Wardance Records, New York and Author of Urban Styles: Graffiti in New York Hardcore Big Cheese fly the flag for the New Wave of British Hardcore and hail from various parts of ‘The North’ of the UK. Members are also currently in bands such as Higher Power, Blind Authority and Rapture, and have previously played in Violent Reaction and Shrapnel.

[engl] From start to stop this is pure rage in the truest sense. The Denver Wolfpack has been running strong for a while now and if the likes of ASBESTOS, SNARLING HATE, CITY HUNTER, PITBUL, COMBAT FORCE or VEIL II have caught your ear in recent times, then you need this in the arsenal as well. The sound of boots crushing skulls. No frills, no nonsense hardcore punk.

[engl] A love affair between Australia and Spain - one for the real rockers out there. Those lovers truly can't cease to amaze. Highly enjoyable one-of-a-kind sounding stuff from these masterminds. Demento synth noise from the creepy depths of a dark basement. The energy, hooks, and rawness elevate this above also-ran status, so if you’re a fan of this sound, you have to love it. A wave of skrunky, Adderall-eyed eggpunk-worship. This Split EP is an impressive collection of tunes, and I’m looking forward to seeing what this rockers come up with next. Wrap your favorite body parts in tin foil, dye your eyebrows blue, and get ready to sweat out chemicals when you listen to this one.

[engl] Dead Finks is the musical output of New Zealand-born duo Joseph Thomas and Erin Violet. Formed in Sydney sometime in the late '10s, it's current incarnation is a four-piece rock band based in Berlin. On The Death & Resurrection Of Jonathon Cowboy the band showcase an incredible knack for writing catchy and unique melodies. They play punk music in the tradition of Wire, Sonic Youth and The Fall (whose "Frightened" is covered here, recorded the night of Mark E. Smith's death) and take cues from contemporaries like Parquet Courts and Iceage in their efforts to manipulate and expand upon what it means to be a punk group in 2021. Written and recorded in Sydney, late 2018 (shortly before the duo moved to Berlin) the LP serves as a strange prediction of the horrible state of the world today. Songs about war, plagues, pissing, police, David Cronenberg’s Videodrome and the climate burning. Its a sea of wiry guitars and thumping bass that plants itself inside your inner ear and doesn’t leave. Thomas’ smart-ass delivery and literary style with odd references abounding, sees a return to something similarly touched upon in his previous group Trust Punks. However, on this LP Dead Finks feel more straight-forward in the best kind of way. Stripped down rock music that knows what it is and smashes you over the head. Vocal harmonies and lush organ sounds. It sounds really good. Divorcing somewhat on this release from the harsh underground sounds of previous iterations of the band. An extremely strange synchronicity. Some will try and say it was planned. It wasn’t. This is art working in mysterious ways. Hopefully for some of you it will help. Personally, these songs transcend this horrible situation we are collectively going through. But they cannot be exempt from being looked at through the gaze of a world stricken by plague. It’s the Death… & RESURRECTION of Johnathon Cowboy; you, me & everyone else.

[engl] "Right-wing governments. Riots following sickening, racist police brutality. The general feeling that these are end times and the human race we know it is hurtling towards a doom of its own foolish making. Yessir, you can draw a lot of parallels between 2020 and the 1980s, although obviously as soon as anyone says it’s worth suffering all this because ‘the tunes will be better’, you are obliged to call them a fucking moron, set their hair on fire and give them a wedgie for good measure. Still, just as good tunes are undoubtedly a good thing, so too are absolutely blazing, ear-shredding, soul-soaring, fist-raising punk rock songs. Especially ones that race by at 150mph, while implicitly daring you to scream along with every line and probably dismantle all your furniture by bouncing all over it. Just ask Chain Whip; they know all about it. Hailing from the Canadian city of Vancouver and comprising members of Fashionism, Corner Boys and more, Chain Whip don’t so much sound ‘in thrall’ to the sounds of 1980s hardcore punk as ‘completely inhabited by the spirit’ of it, in the best way possible. They snarl, they holler, they roar and by gosh every single cut on debut album ‘14 Lashes’ is a thrill ride and a half. Originally released in 2019 on their own Chain Whip Records (makes sense), it gathers together 14 (also makes sense) blasts of irresistible fury in under 20 minutes, with subjects ranging from half-baked cultural commentators to not wanting to live in a fucked-up world (say it three times: this makes sense). This is hardcore as in ‘the snottiest rock’n’roll imaginable’; no shitty metal involved. They’re at their best when exploding in under 60 seconds, like on the very cross ‘Spectator’, but two-minute epic ‘Turner Street Ghost Motel’ reveals something dangerously close to Dead Kennedys-style melody that could make Chain Whip ones to stick with for the long haul. Well, that’s assuming they’re even in it for the long haul; maybe this is the last we’ll see of ‘em and this blizzard of brilliance that sounds like DOA, the Germs and Career Suicide punching holes in the side of a mountain is all we’ll have to remember ‘em by. If that’s how this is all gonna play out, I implore you to buy this record -. you owe it to yourself to hear it before we and they meet our grisly fate."

[engl] 6 tracks of Vancouver, BC hardcore. Chain Whip formed in 2018 with the sole intention of playing their favorite blend of hardcore punk. Part KBD, part California beach, part grimy Vancouver. This 12" E.P. finds the band in a faster, more furious mode with five original tracks written and recorded in the height of the 2020 Pandemic. 3 tracks are re-recorded and polished versions from their 2020 Demo (being pressed on LP RIGHT NOW by No Spirit in Germany) while the others are brand new Chain Whip recordings. The final track, Death Was Too Kind was written by Brian Goble and recorded by the Subhumans.

[engl] 6 tracks of Vancouver, BC hardcore. Chain Whip formed in 2018 with the sole intention of playing their favorite blend of hardcore punk. Part KBD, part California beach, part grimy Vancouver. This 12" E.P. finds the band in a faster, more furious mode with five original tracks written and recorded in the height of the 2020 Pandemic. 3 tracks are re-recorded and polished versions from their 2020 Demo (being pressed on LP RIGHT NOW by No Spirit in Germany) while the others are brand new Chain Whip recordings. The final track, Death Was Too Kind was written by Brian Goble and recorded by the Subhumans.

[engl] Nolan Potter is putting us home recording freaks to shame. We had a year of global pandemic to lay out our grand ideas and the sum total of most artists “quar-riffs” wouldn’t push the constraints of a normal band practice (gosh, remember those?). Nolan Potter, in the meantime, has quietly painted us a beatific masterpiece that veers from the whimsical to the wigged out, deftly weaving an untamed tapestry of sound all the while archly commenting on the present musician’s predicament - and he did it alone. No drum machine clattering in the background amidst tape hiss and 4 track grime here - this is a fully realized, insanely well played, full on rock record that might even one-up his first LP for us, last years excellent Nightmare Forever. The guys’ got more chops than a beauticians’ college across a wide array of instruments - no small feat, and easily overlooked when you leave the lyric sheet and credits on the dining room table. That the songs travel far, wide, up, down, backwards, and gamely spill out over the 5 minute mark with exceptionally loose interludes and diversions is just another marvel in this carnival of aural delights.

[engl] At long last, the follow up to 2017’s "Who Will Play?" flexi has materialised in the form of "No One Wins" on the LP format. With influences and membership that span the world of hardcore punk, both stylistically and geographically, this platter sports 10 tracks of pummelling hardcore punk that incorporates metallic elements drawn from the near and far reaches of mid 80s international hardcore and thrash to the simplicity of domestic HC pestilence. Blended with a great finesse that is both tasteful and potent - which seems to be a rare feat to attain this day and age - and buttressed by a top notch mastering job by the great Arthur Rizk (SHIT "What Do You Stand For," Impalers "Cellar Dweller”, Power Trip ‘Nightmare Logic’) which only feeds the fire that is the base of these already enormous tracks. GAME is the conduit. Relatively new but sending sickening sounds into the New Wave of British Hardcore collective, decimating any and all willing to be destroyed. Seek further advice on Game's sound via the precedent set by Gastunk, Celtic Frost, Sacrilege, Death Side, and the Execute. Members of Arms Race, Fucked Up, Career Suicide, Shrapnel, Violent Reaction and Subdued.

[engl] "Stylistically rare masterclass of melody and restraint from Stages in Faith on their debut LP for QCHQ and Advanced Perspective Records. This band inhabits the moments of departure and reflection that seems to have affected so many of the bands that worked on pulling hardcore out of the cataclysmic drilling directness of the explosion of punk, moving the formulaic into calculated musicianship and off centred splashes of colour and emotion. Sounding like a too hot high school summer under the umbrella of Government Issue, American Standard, All, Bad Religion, Quicksand, a rumour of Southern California hardcore, and a whiff of early pop punk. Standout!” Jonah Falco, Fucked Up / Career Suicide Stages in Faith have been carefully crafting a post-hardcore sound in London since 2017, having learned their chops in UKHC bands such as Frame of Mind, Blind Authority, Mourning and Splitknuckle. After two 7" singles and tours with Fiddlehead and Glitterer, Stages in Faith are ready for the format they were meant to be on with their Delside LP.

[engl] Members of Fucked Up and Power Trip have coalesced to create the throbbing musical beast that is Masterpiece Machine. Imagine pounding the drum of Psalm-era Ministry with flashes of Nine Inch Nails, massive rock riffs, cinematic electronics, and post-hardcore influenced vocals. Rotting Fruit b/w Letting You In On A Secret is their debut 12” single. In this chaotic world, industrial influenced music seems more relevant than ever as it channels the unstoppable wheels of a mutating mass of electronic and biological matter lurching towards an unknown destination. Singer Riley’s love of comics led to a collaboration with celebrated comic artist and animator Lale Westvind, known for critically acclaimed works such as Grip, Hot Dog Beach and Hyperspeed to Nowhere. Lale’s art for Rotting Fruit/Letting You In On A Secret perfectly captures the aforementioned musical qualities as technological chimeras made up of biological matter cruise a desert landscape seemingly without purpose, while simultaneously racing towards the future head on.

[engl] “Lion City Hardcore. "This Segregation will end" a 9-song 12" EP created by FUSE from Singapore is 100% hardcore concentrate. I don't need to mention similar sounding bands, influences or FFO type shit. FUSE bring a contemporary stab at a classic style while injecting their own unique worldview. You've heard hardcore like this before, you like hardcore like this, self described as "punked up hardcore, hard but not like those tough guy hardcore bands", they produce 8 songs and an intro that are worth your time (personal favorite is "Poison"). Music aside, because hardcore is so much more than what you play, it's how you play, and more importantly it's the reasons why you play. The Extracurriculars - FUSE never miss an opportunity to shout out their local scene, they put energy into building up their hometown, and they support their peers. Bottom line, they fucking care about creating their own space for themselves and their friends and that's all I want in a hardcore band.” John Scharbach, Give & Shining Life Press

[engl] Scorched Earth marks the long awaited debut LP from the UK’s ultimate misfit squad, Vile Spirit. After well loved demo and promo tapes, Scorched Earth marks a major step up in terms of musical landscape and craft as members have sharpened their teeth touring Europe and being active members of the UK hardcore punk scene. Somehow they have managed to sew together influences such as United Mutation, Integrity and Black Metal into a noisy mass of hard as hell tunes with fuzzed out guitars burning your ear drums whilst being punched to death by relentlessly rolling drums excelling at unpredictable rhythmical directions. Meanwhile mid-tempo songs like Going Home march along, snarling in the darkness, creating an atmospheric backdrop for those who prefer to awaken at night. Vocalist Ben summons a cynical view of the world, conjuring tales of the survival of mankind and a contempt for the world. Bursting onto the UK hardcore punk scene three years ago the members have never ceased to play in and create numerous bands such as Saliva, and Chubby and the Gang. They originally formed part of the new generation of Brighton punks re-energising the scene there alongside bands like State Funeral, Never and label mates Imposter, whilst members finished high school or started University. Joining the band on second guitar is Rory O’Neill, singer of Imposter, and responsible for the artwork on Scorched Earth.

[engl] Leeds/London band KOMA deliver their debut LP "Internment Failure": 12 tracks of brutal, unrelenting, constantly contorting and mutating hardcore - perfectly encapsulating the desperation of living in the final generations of a failed state, watching the life of the planet ebb away. Frantically written and recorded across 2 cities within the band's first 12 months of existence, KOMA casts a wide net of global influences but refuses to be indebted to any one singular band or scene. At times recalling the classic Finnish & Swedish hardcore of MELLAKKA and CRUDE SS mixed with the raw distorted brute power of VO?O PROTESTA and BASTARD; echoes of the unhinged mayhem of ATAQUE FRONTAL and CHAIN REACTION subside to moments of gothic tension like TOŽIBABE and PYHÄKOULU. KOMA makes a bold and ambitious statement of intent, a wholly-realised vision and fully-formed sound of pummeling riffs and powerful vocals that will remind of SACRILEGE's debut.

[engl] News from the front: ALGARA's first LP is here. From Barcelona, the land where the CNT-FAI shined in 1936, now the anarchist bombs explode again through the twelve tracks of "Absortos en el Tedio Eterno". Ever wondered what would have happened if the RONDOS and CRASS had joined forces at the Conway Hall or if AVIADOR DRO and ESPLENDOR GEOMETRICO never had a couple of judo kicks and the four started a new band? Well, then you are close to imagining how ALGARA sounds. At times sparse militant punk a la CRISIS/ FALLOUT filtered thru the KGB/ SINIESTRO TOTAL machine. At times minimal synthetic idealist anthems, but always revolutionary, forward thinking, and making the sound their own. The anonymous collective self recorded "Absortos en el Tedio Eterno" in a Barcelona squat while engaging in their agitprop campaigns. With songs about poor working conditions, the constant evictions, youth unemployment, and a city consumed by tourism and other forms of gentrification, the LP is a cold call to arms for today’s political punk.

[engl] Dishevelled, mid-tempo punk has a way of getting under your skin and SPIRITO DI LUPO are the perfect representatives. Raw and snarling, they play short and snappy hardcore punk inspired by the ’80s Italian sound. Based between Milan and Bologna, SPIRITO DI LUPO features members of KOBRA, SKALP, CERIMONIA SECRETA, HORROR VACUI, TUONO and an array of other fine projects. This diverse musical background serves SPIRITO DI LUPO well, as they lurk and jerk between the angry edge of hardcore and the darker dwellings of anarcho punk. Mixing the raw with the rudimentary, their compositions are as ominous and sulky as they are ecstatic and wild. This mix works unusually well and, as a result, their five tracks manage to sound both militant and frolicingly chaotic. Sharp, catchy, almost psychedelic riffs meet a strong and brooding bass, which in turn complements the primitive and raucous drumming. The dual male and female vocals take this notion one step further, with the deep, slurring and sarcastic male vocals contrasting effectively with the strident, more urgent female ones. Their overall sound is aggressive and yet inviting, and this jovial ataxia is none more evident than on their redo of their opening track, “I miei occhi sono chiusi”. The atrocities of humanity often highlight the beauty of the world, and this paradoxical aesthetic comes through in SPIRITO DI LUPO’s artwork, lyrics and sound, complete with stormy weather field recordings on the closing track.

[engl] WUT cruise with an hc style that is either slow or moderate but emits incredibily quick thrash breaks to increase power and interest. Politically lyrics combine in these moments of instrumental anger. A very nicely booklet with the lyrics, old and previously unpublished picture complete this publication.