[engl] New York City's KRIMEWATCH are one of the most exciting bands to emerge from hardcore in the last year. The five tracks on this EP are a combination of Japanese punk and early NYHC; keeping it simple with shouted vocals (in both Japanese and English) and driving beats. This 7" is the bands first recordings, now remastered and pressed on vinyl to coincide with their upcoming UK / Euro tour.

[engl] When admiring a piece of cultural and historical significance it's not uncommon for the admirer to question where it all began; to trace it all back to the epicenter of the event that set it all into motion. If RICKY AND THE WHITE BOYS were the punk rock meteor that crashed into an unsuspecting Richmond, VA in the age of disco then L'AMOUR was the shock wave immediately following that fabled and chaotic impact event, forever altering the cultural landscape within the city limits. Formed in 1978 by a couple of disciples of rock and roll who'd had their lives altered by said genre / belief system in the years prior to that, Tom Applegate and Dave Stover recruited other like minded rockers to aid them in their aural conquest over the next few years that followed in the group's all too brief existence. In that time they left behind a trail of broken bottles, perhaps a few broken hearts, and definitely some perturbed club owners up and down the east coast. But most importantly, the fellas in L'AMOUR left us with documentation of their rock in the form of some long forgotten tapes. Nearly 40 years after the band entered the studio to lay down tracks for their first and only 7" single on the band's own legendary ZERO DEGREE RECORDS (a label that became synonymous with the release and widespread circulation of the early Richmond punk scene that was soon to follow), Beach Impediment is proud to not only re-release those classic songs but also bring to light a slew of previously unreleased tracks, alternate demo takes, and even a rare later era soundboard recording of the band live in their hometown that exhibits a grip of originals that sadly never made it into the studio before the band's untimely demise the day before Reagan took office. Lovingly transferred from the original 1/4" reels (some of which were a wee bit moldy after years of being M.I.A. but were thankfully salvaged via professional cleaning) along with a new mastering job, these tracks hit harder than ever! Members would go on to play in other classic and ground breaking Richmond bands like BEEX and THE PREVARICATORS. Each record comes with a fold out 12" x 24" double sided insert chock full of archival photos and flyers plus liner notes from Tommy the Rock himself that give the reader a glimpse into the counter-cultural explosion of the late 70's / early 80's in the land once known as Dixie. Electric guitars were (and still are) their only desire. Limited to 500 copies.

[engl] Passionate, claustrophobic, angry protest hardcore played by Puerto Rican punks in NYC. “Pánico” is a scathing reflection on what it’s like to be alive and in the streets screaming for change in a world full of bigotry and deafness. The pure systemic stupidity is truly panic inducing. You feel your body start turning on itself and suffocating from the outside in. A bitter fucking reality aggressively squeezing the last breath from your body. 500 copies of 150gr black vinyl housed in a 24pt reverse board jacket with lyrics insert and download card included. Recorded and mastered by Sasha Stroud. Art by Robin, Amanda Pelaez, Dhania

[engl] Tight and catchy punk, post-punk and garage out of Leipzig from a German/French three-piece with the lyrics all urgently delivered in florid French. Not much else information is to be gleaned from the album itself, which I’m guessing is purposely to let the music speak for itself. It has that pleasingly frantic MARKED MEN guitar sound sans distortion which drives the melody and pace of all ten songs featured. This will be given quite a few revolutions before I’m finished with it. - Artcore

[engl] “A decade after the international boom of the Iberian Hardcore scene and its subsequent decline, some members of the bands ORDEN MUNDIAL and BARCELONA, scattered around Europe, got together to form LAME, with MORREADORAS’ bassist on vocal duties. These 7 songs were written in Mallorca during 4 days and recorded in pieces between Mallorca and Berlin shortly after. An instantaneous and fleeting project, quick and concise, with no time for regrets. A journey through the generalised madness that affects us from far and near; a mixture of reflections and blind head-butts against the padded walls of understanding. The loss of control, the loss of time, the loss of oneself and the loss of dear departed all meet at once. Resignation is death indeed. What does it sound like? Unabashed hardcore with a broad spectrum of current and classic influences. Serrated guitar riffs, mechanical deep bass lines and hypnotic drumming backing an extremely sharp and vile vocal delivery. It can remind you at times of CHAIN REACTION and GRB, of RUDIMENTARY PENI and NOG WATT. All passed through a Mediterranean filter”.

[engl] """Slithering out from the radioactive waste, we are once again blessed by the glorious creeps from Leipzig known as Lassie. This aberrant hit machine strikes again and again with more of their clever, punchy wacked flavor of synth-punk. Loaded with wacky samples, synth and guitar harmonies, riffs and, of course, a fucking shitload of ear worm melody packed and densely arranged for your listening pleasure. Don’t miss the boat. Pick up this outstanding ripper. For fans of a werewolf who can only be killed by piss."" - Sims Hardin ""Ever wonder what it would sound like if you mashed together the music of the Marked Men, Spits, and Rezillos and played it with the ferocity of the Lost Sounds? Behold! Leipzig’s Lassie delivers their debut LP off the back of a hotass streak of EPs and 7”s, and it’s every bit of fun that those earlier records promised. Poppy robot rock for disaffected punks looking to have the wildest of weekends!"" - Alex Howell"

[engl] LASSIE kinda sounds like if LOST SOUNDS were more into the B-52’S than GARY NUMAN. Super-snotty and non-cloyingly goofy, LASSIE is a rare beast indeed. There’s not a bummer track here, but “Phonecalls on My Deathbed” is a hit if I ever heard one; where’s Dick Clark or Rick Dees or CDs….yeah. Hey, this is why I don’t write silly but endearing spazz-wave songs. LASSIE does, they’re really good at it. “Tiger in My Tank” sounds like the fucking RONDELLES! I bet they turn a boring bar into a total fucking blast. “QT Enhancer” is a pogo party in a can. If you like C.C.T.V. or LUMPY or DEVO, I don’t see why you wouldn’t like this. I feel like if this band was from California, they’d be big, or at least “opening for the SPITS” big. So, not that big. But they should be. They’re great. - MRR

[engl] Chaos is here! Legendary Tokyo raw punks, The Last Survivors, early material finally collected in one place. The Last Survivors sent shock waves through the Japanese punk scene showing there was more than just punk, or just hardcore. The Last Survivors were RAW PUNK! The catchy sounds of UK82 and 70s punk fused with early raw HC from across the globe, particularly in Sweden and Finland. A flawless combination that inspired countless bands that followed. As Jacky Crust War says in the liner notes "There were some bands we couldn't ignore. That was the one, The Last Survivors." This LP collects their 7"s on Crust War, Dan-Doh, and Pogo 77, as well as other rare tracks. Fully re-mastered for vinyl, and sounding better than ever. Liner notes by Jacky Crust War (Framtid), So (Hardcore Survives), and Sakurai (Centipede / The Addiction)

[engl] We’ve been keeping this one under our hat for nearly two years. On the short list of people, I wanted to work with when the original Mind Meld concept was hatched was Chris Gunn (Lavender Flu/ Hunches). I reached out to the Lavender Flu crew at the time (2019) a few emails were exchanged, but it wasn’t till I moved to Portland in 2020 that this collaboration came to fruition. Sure, the original label idea was to work with people outside the genre or project they were known for but when one of my favorite bands ask me to put out a record, I wasn’t going to let something like self-imposed parameters get in the way. Besides it's not like Lavender Flu exist within tight borders and they completely fit the vibe I’m trying to cultivate here at Mind Meld. I eagerly said yes but asked if they would be cool with forgoing the usual pre-release rigamarole and let this record magically appear on release day. Well now here we are…. The new Lavender Flu EP, Assorted Promenades, was started at a point during the pandemic when the band had no practice space and limited options for getting together as a full band. They decided to record a single based around a Moby Grape cover (I am not willing) and spontaneously composed tracks built up on the tape machine. Realizing they had too much material, it morphed into a 12 inch at 45 RPM in the style of the early Flying Nun EPs. By this time they had a space to work in so another cover (Dream Girl by Oscar Mack) was recorded full band style to make a nice long 9 track EP “

[engl] Fast, fun, and loaded with energy, LAXISME delivers a five-song cassette that is a little poppy, a little hardcore, and completely infectious. With bluesy howls to round out the choruses, I am already singing along to the French and German that I don’t know, wishing I were pushing through their crowd. Phantom seems to have their ear pressed firmly to the Berlin [Leipzig] underground, and I hope they keep listening. More, please! - MRR

[engl] Leatherface’s first classic album “Cherry Knowle” has been remastered for a beautiful reissue, also with our friends at Sounds of Subterannia (EU), Waterslide (Japan) and Rad Girlfriend Records (US). Originally released by Meantime Records in 1989, “Cherry Knowle” has been long out of print. “Cherry Knowle” is Leatherface's first full length and is considered to be a hardcore classic. While their sound would coalesce into majestic post punk thunder two albums later on Mush, this album offers a preview of their later sound on a few cuts, particularly on "Colorado Joe/Leningrad Vlad" and "Discipline". There's also the added attraction of Frankie Stubbs' soulful rasp degenerating into an undecipherable growl on "Heaven" (a cover of "Knockin' on Heaven's Door"), something he would later do to great effect on The Last's "Patrick Kills Me" and a couple of other songs. Leatherface is one of the most influential punk rock bands of the 90’s combining complex melody, riffs and poetic lyricism, some consider them to be one of the greatest bands to ever do it.