[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] ALGARA's first communiqué vomits in the face of moderate leftism; encouraging class war and insurrection, and wanting the total annihilation of police forces. Home recorded in a Barcelona Squat, the production of their debut four-track EP is minimal. ALGARA deal in stark and sparse sounding post-punk that hints at CRISIS, early DECIMA VICTIMA and JOY DIVISION in equal measures. The lead guitar is brittle and skeletal, and sits perfectly on the driving rhythm section, made up of a primitive drum machine, creating a sonic background for their message to be heard.

[engl] ANARQUÍA VERTICAL’s Sistema Total de Liberación aims to be the handbook of the ultranihilist revolution to come: think about Eskorbuto’s “anti-todo” motto becoming not just an slogan but a full gospel in the hands of five suited-up punks. The A-side contains 10 tracks of raw 80’s hardcore in the vein of Spanish and Italian traditions; think about Anti-Dogmatikss and Eskoria-Tza in one hand and Indigesti, Negazione or CCM in the other, plus some NYHC circa ‘82 like The Mad, Kraut and Heart Attack, some Deep Wound and tons of Void. The B-side contains a remix of all the tracks of the A-side in the form of a couple of dark electronic tracks courtesy of Hagal, of Destino Final's fame.

[engl] ARCHAIC is a new project based between Berlin, Venice and Barcelona. This debut three track EP is a rusted nail of intense hardcore with industrial undertones which sits somewhere between FOGNA and DESTINO FINAL but with a bigger production. Guitar layers of repetition create a bed of noise when the delay infected vocals lay painfully. Someone called it the NWOIH and I won't be the one saying that isn't the case.

[engl] ARMS RACE follow up to their “New Wave Of British Hardcore” LP with four new tracks, which sees the band solidify their place as one of the strongest pillars of UK hardcore. Touring Europe and Japan since the release of the LP, these 4 new tracks are yet more proof of why the band leaves a trail of fans whenever they play. “The Beast” displays a ferocious hardcore attack with both boots firmly stuck on the hardcore and punk territories while looking forward to new soundscapes on which they evolve, such as on track ‘Distort Britannia’ that showcases a slowed down atmospheric stomper. Part classic USA Hardcore, part Bristol and Stoke On Trent punk, these new tracks are a perfect continuation of what the band has created during these last 5 years.

[engl] "On their first vinyl effort, ASID’s almost monomaniacal devotion to gutting hardcore of its accretions of style and refinement and revelling in its basest instincts of power and fury is on rude display. Pounding forward with a jackhammer beat, ASID burn through tough riffs birthed choking in a dirty glut of muggy fuzz that conjures up the sickened tone of something like Disclose's Nightmare or Reality 12". Pathetic Flesh is an intense explosion of a record, chucking up the rudimentary stomp of Fever, the brawny pogo of Bootlicker, the panic-stricken downhill rush of the title track. This record is a total hardcore statement, with stunning art from the singer Tin, whose tortured yell struggles painfully against the storm of the noise, breaking through with ugly anguish." Joe Briggs

[engl] AVIADOR DRO Y SUS OBREROS ESPECIALIZADOS formed in the Prosperidad Neighbourhood of Madrid in 1979. Influenced equally by Dadaism and Futurist ideas as by the contemporary sounds of bands such as DEVO, THROBBING GRISTLE or CABARET VOLTAIRE, they started creating their own brand of electronic music. Soon after the band won the third prize of a local Battle of The Bands show and were given a record deal as a prize that resulted in La Chica De Plexiglás 7” (Movieplay-1980) and La Vision 7” (Movieplay-1981) both of which were recorded at the same session with a third 7” recorded but not released at the time. Faced with the total lack of interest showed by the label and feeling alienated in a Music World which wasn’t the one they dreamed of, they decided to do what dozens of their peers were doing worldwide; They started their own label, Discos Radioactivos Organizados (DRO) following the steps of Factory or Industrial Records. Faced with the exit of three members who left the band to form a more radical band (ESPLENDOR GEOMETRICO), AVIADOR DRO entered Doublewtronix studios to record Nuclear Sí, marking the birth of the Independent Music Industry in Spain. The four tracks on the EP became instant classics with Nuclear Sí being the absolute standout track, while Varsovia en Llamas, Sintonia Del Refugio Atomico and Godzilla were perfect nuggets of Synth-punk who remain amongst the greatest Spanish Pop songs ever.

[engl] It takes BALTA seven minutes to annihilate Rendszerszint? Agybasz?ás (Systematic Brainfucking), the debut EP by these feral Hungarians. Their approach to music is beyond urgent and their delivery equally drastic. BALTA’s sound is vicious, pounding and hectic. With one of the nastiest guitar tones to grace these ears in recent memory, and a drumming style that may collapse at any giving moment. Drawing parallels with PIÑEN, ULSTER, the first TRANQUILIZER Flexi, PLASMID or IMAGEN is fair, giving the total disregard for melody or time the band displays. But it is their anti-authoritarian lyrics and uber punk attitude that sets them on their own path; Searching for a primitive future amongst the concrete ruins.

[engl] Extremo Nihilismo en Barcelona is the sound of a slow cooking bomb. The 8 tracks of anxious hardcore contained within this 45 RPM 12" are pretty much what it says on the tin. Extreme, Nihilist and utterly Barcelonian. The sound of the eternal frustration with your surroundings. The soundtrack of falling out with everyone around you. Musically filled with a solid yet counter intuitive rhythm section, insanely violent riffs and the angriest and more credible female vocalist since FIRMEZA 10 stopped playing. The barely 11 minutes of music contained on this 12" rate amongst the most claustrophobic hardcore sound I've ever heard.

[engl] Over three years ago the band Barcelona entered the studio to record what was originally planned as a double LP. As the genius that they are, they managed to record around 25 minutes of their trademark “extremo Nihilismo” sound. A high concept sonic vomit somewhere between CRO MAGNON, ISKRA, NO TREND and PETRA DE FENETRA. Comfortably sitting on the crossing between hi-brow conceptual art and low-brow delinquency. In the intersection where the EXPLOITED meet the Incus catalogue as if Tony Oxley and Ian Brighton were jamming with Wattie and Big John. The recording was eventually (and conceptually it seems) split into two records. The first one being “Un Último Ultrasonido Nació Y Murió En Barcelona” (MUS138, 2017) and the second one “Residuos Del Ultrasonido” released now a mere three years later. Loads could be written about the painful process between both records but let’s just focus on the recording and be clear: Residuos pisses all over its predecessor. The songs are full of spite and power with the level of vileness reaching new levels on this eight track 7” EP. Listen to Higiene or Salvajes and tell me they are not some of the best Barcelona songs ever. As always, artwork taken care by Oriol Roca, a person I look forward to never hearing from again.

[engl] BARRERA follows up the NUEVO SONIDO BALEAR path started by ORDEN MUNDIAL, POU and PENA MÁXIMA with a debut release filled to the rim with lust, sex, power and distortion. Their songs are slow and acid, with a tortured tone that would make GLOOM or BRAINBOMBS cry. The seven songs on “Visiones Nocturnas” are themed around the death of romantic love and are not afraid to look at the darkest side of life with a nihilistic conviction. Musically the record follows the path laid by STICKMEN WITH RAYGUNS or FLIPPER but are firmly rooted in Spanish Punk with DESECHABLES as a clear point of reference, both aesthetically and sonically. Although BARRERA occupy their own space with a sound that is clearly their own nightmare.

[engl] Seven long years have passed since Barcelona beauties Belgrado last bestowed a full length upon the citizens of Planet Earth, but the wait is over, and ‘Intra Apogeum’ is here to make your life worth living again. With a new bassist in tow, a couple of fresh-out-the-box synths, and drummer Jonathan Sirit switching from kit-bashing to button-pushing, you might be forgiven for thinking your favourite post-punkers have gone cuckoo and lost it. But fear not – more than a decade in the game and Belgrado still know What They Are Doing. Eight sleek-n-chic numbers that simultaneously burn white hot and ice cold. As with their previous record ‘Obraz’, Belgrado have taken the Xmal Banshees template and bled out in all directions, stylishly blending a classic post-punk intuition with elements of disco, dub and psychedelia, now with added textures of electronic lushness. Recorded in both Barcelona and singer Patrcyja Proniewska’s native Warsaw, ‘Intra Apogeum’ is testament to a band committed to pushing forward and investigating the new whilst clearly demonstrating they know who they are. Belgrado is back – viva Belgrado!

[engl] Obraz is a deconstruction of reality to its basic forms and most primitive elements. The starting point after maximum destruction. A reconstruction towards a new reality. The world of images and a thousand spectacles, fragmented, dismantled and reassembled. Dynamism, rhythm, energy and movement. Creative sense over technique. Reality is a construction that we ourselves create. Belgrado delivers a blend of post-punk that takes its influence from many different styles and combines them together into a new form and rhythm. Carefully constructed sound compositions driven by feeling and the senses. Geometrical figures set in motion. Inspired by the mechanical pulse of minimal synth, the hypnotic sounds of dub, the atmosphere of psychedelic and African music, French cold wave and the post-punk classics.

[engl] Barcelona's Belgrado return with their second album 'Siglo XXI' and first for La Vida Es Un Mus. The 11 track album melds dark and dreamy goth and post punk with a stunning and clear production. The bass leads and drives each track into the batcave whilst the vocals yearn and ache on top. This record has a clear 80's English influence (Killing Joke, Vex, A Touch of Hysteria, Blood and Roses etc) but it also very modern day Barcelona with the reverb as important as an instrument and totally DIY. 2011's excellent self titled LP has been bettered in sound, production and song.

[engl] LA's BLAZING EYE return with two new tracks of devilish hardcore punk in the vein of MOBS or ZOUO. The Japanese hardcore influence is prevalent on "Brain" which has an infectious guitar riff- vocal scream dynamic punctuated by a perfect Bristol Beat which will have you screaming like a bloody mess without you even noticing. "Lonely Corpse" on the flip has a stomp dirgy beat perfect to dance like a worm on a devastated city ran by cyborgs. A perfect punk single with two really catchy and memorable songs which show BLAZING EYE at the top of their game.

[engl] We first fell in love with Antwerp’s BRORLAB with an urgently abrasive EP which ranked amongst our faves of 2020. Fast forward to 2023 and they are back with a totally out of control 12” of modern fuckwave. The A side is seven new songs of their trademark dadaist electronic punk, full of fuzz guitars and sharp nasty beats, with a vocalist that fits perfectly the Honey Bane – Chitose vocal range and smart attitude. The B side brings bang back to life the 8 tracks from their criminally obscure debut EP, which will make any lover of ear-damaging noise smile with pleasure. All in all an aberrant slice of psychedelic gabber infused punk for the end of time.

[engl] Chain Cult from Athens, Greece return with a new two track 7" after releasing their much loved demo on vinyl just a few months ago. On Isolated, Chain Cult have upped the intensity and dark atmospherics. The sound is bigger, focused and anthemic. The guitar work is haunting and flanged and the rhythm section locked in, keeping the energy high. It sits somewhere between Vex's Sanctuary 12", a more uptempo Killing Joke and Warsaw while remaining a band of their time.

[engl] Athen’s CHAIN CULT return with their first full length following a great Demo and 7” from last year. Recorded at Ignite Music by George Christoforidis during May and July of 2019, Shallow Grave shows the progression of a band who have played non-stop for two years, covering pretty much all of Europe. CHAIN CULT’s post punk is anthemic, militant and idealistic, putting music to a very dark and bleak time and place. You can hear echoes of early THE CURE, THE SOUND, Second Empire Justice era BLITZ or WIPERS in their music but also the passion and conviction of locals METRO DECAY, STRESS or ANTI… Very much a perfect reflection of what springs to mind thinking about the current Athens scene.

[engl] "Once the sadness of their 2020 canceled American tour was gone, Chain Cult went back to the practice space to write new songs, it was a perfect way to keep finding meaning in a world at a standstill. They are back stronger than ever with two new raging post-punk anthems, they're bringing exactly what we need in these troubled times. These two songs give us elements for reflection on our lives, a good occasion to think about what we miss and what we want for the future. « We're not Alone » and « Always a mess » show the band at its best. The very powerful rhythm section allows the guitarist to play the most beautiful and dark melodies and the singer to chant the catchy choruses that Chain Cult is known for. During uncertain times, it is good to be surrounded by people you trust to continue moving forward ; in this spirit Chain Cult has kept the same recipe as for their previous records. No one can say what the future holds and we can't act like this is normal but always shall we remember that we're not alone in this world" (Nico Destructure)

[engl] Chisel this, Chisel that” — it’s on my phone, it’s on my hard drives, it’s on my turntable, it’s on my t-shirt, it’s on my Instagram, it’s on my blogspot, it’s tattooed on my forehead, my own parents renewed their wedding vows to “Rat Running Scared.” I pressed stop. I unplugged my headphones, turned down the volume, and snapped that god forsaken single in HALF. Enough was enough! But see me, yeah. Once the music stopped only one thought rang through my head: What Have I Done? Where once there was explosive energy there was now a void. Lucky for me, the 5 loveable lads from Blackpool, Croydon, Acton, Chingford, and Guildford KEPT IT MOVIN, and just when I thought all was lost they brought me back in. Three more blasts of full fat extra saturated deep fried limb swinging confrontational uplifting chisel chiselling punk for that special space in your life. Enough said? No. Cos they’ve done it again.

[engl] Explosive new music from The Chisel bringing the edifying and restorative powers of the great British folk tradition back to the table for a staggering next pint. Just when you thought you were fucking full, your mouths been winched open and gallons of shards of broken glass guitar, thick bass, and burning howling bilious guts gets poured down your maw. The speed of UK82, the terror of punk, the solid mass of Oi!. Like a bar stool breaking through a bus stop, there’ll always be THE CHISEL. (Jonah Falco)

[engl] It’s going off and The Chisel are back to cause a bit of bovver. Following a trio of explosive singles, the band finally bring us their debut full-length album, Retaliation, on the London-based punk institution La Vida Es Un Mus. Having formed in early 2020 and featuring a crew of members with long-term associations to the London punk scene, The Chisel quickly secured a reputation as one of the most exciting bands from a pool of contemporaries that includes Chubby & The Gang, Stingray and Big Cheese. Their sound is rooted firmly in Punk but with influences that run across the board to create a distinctive blend of Oi!, anarcho, UK-82 and hardcore. Retaliation is an unmistakably British record that draws a line from 1982 up to the present day, pushing its way into your collection and torching your stereo. Opening with the agitated force of ‘Unlawful Execution’, the tone is firmly set by a song that addresses the brutality of the Met Police (“Tell me what’s the difference between right or wrong / When a copper gets to blast a lad who did nothing wrong”). ‘Come See Me’ is a ferocious ode to camaraderie in the face of mouthy boneheads and bellends. ‘Shit Life Syndrome’ is a poisoned reference to the same cynical phrase used by physicians to describe the effects of people living under poverty and in the grips of substance abuse (“How can you expect people to act nicely, they’ve all been left on the edge of society”). It’s one of many songs influenced by singer Cal’s experiences of growing up in the working-class town of Blackpool. Cal states: “Blackpool as a town is often overlooked or even looked down upon, I wanted to write lyrics which gave the people of my town a voice”. With tunes like these The Chisel show that they’ll never pull any punches. However, beyond the fury and the swagger there’s another side that plays to an additional strength; the ability to write a memorable hook. Songs like ‘Retaliation’, ‘Tooth & Nail’ and ‘Not The Only One’ could be described as modern day anthems (the latter has become a fan favourite since the arrival of their first live shows) and cement their identity as a band not to be defined by their influences.