The Short List is a periodic dive into non-album releases; live, EPs, splits, comps, reissues, etc
SPLITS:
Concrete Elite / Ultra Razzia Split 12″ EP Rebellion Records/Warthog Records
February 23, 2024
Here is a pairing! Concrete Elite has been tearing things up since 2013. The Austin TX stalwarts began as simply, Concrete. The name change happened and in 2016. Tomato/tomato. It is 2024. The lads continue to rumble. Here we see Concrete Elite punish speakers with three hard as nails tracks. Songs placed on this slab of wax are about struggle and fortitude; violence and rebellion; fighting and winning. Tough, fast, heavy. Concrete Elite provide a soundtrack to melee. Ultra Razzia conjure incendiary tunes striving for defiance and chaos. “Victory at Any Cost”, the final song, infuses a catchier riff. It is still a coarse blow, but with a little bounce.
Ultra Razzia has also left a legacy in their litany of releases. This Montréal group has two full lengths and a fistful of splits. 2022’s Jusqua’au Bout on Warthog Speak was one for the ages. They provide four tracks. Their music has a reticent tension under the surface. The singing is cleaner, the guitar lines a little crisper. Ultra Razzia’s brand of Oi! incorporates some melody. The third track “La Mirage” picks up the pace and embraces a harder thump from the drums. The band ends with a French-Canadian version of one of the greatest songs, Blitz’s “Razors in the Night”.
Both sides of this split twelve inch will satiate any fan of aggressive music but especially those of traditional Oi! and punk.
Shout out to dope artwork by Ramon Girones (as always) and Grimblack
Pre-order at Rebellion Records or Warthog Speak
Follow Ultra Razzia on instagram
Follow Concrete on instagram
VINYL:
Rebellion Records (EU) + Warthog Speak Records (US), 500: ultra clear, 250; black, 250
Bullshit Detector/Liberty & Justice Split 7″ EP Crossbar Records
OUT NOW
Crossbar Records release select bands of astonishing caliber. This round, we are presented with two Texas bands who have been ripping up stages relentlessly. Houston hooligans, Liberty & Justice, partner with San Antonio upstarts, Bullshit Detector. L&J’s 2023 was a gem with their five track EP, Top of the Scrapheap, on Contra, adding to their impressive output. Bullshit Detector released a top 5 (top 3?) record of 2022, Death Depression (Contra/Guerilla). 2023 saw the Rat Tail Cassingle and the Violet Crown EP. “Rat Tail” found BSD infusing that ubiquitous Cold Oi!/DarkWave sound. And they fucking nailed it. Here on this split, they begin with “Rat Tail” and that triumphant bassline. Their other offering is a Bob Seger cover, “Feel Like a Number”. I am rather anti-Silver Bullet Band era (I know early Seger has fantastic garage stuff). It is a working-class anthem, shouted delivery. Again, that bass shines under the hazy distortion of the guitars. A solid lead and punching drums all adhere to the intent. I’m converted.
Liberty & Justice resurrect their clean, Hammond driven, ska joint from 2023. Hand claps, gruff vocals, and a smooth riddim make you second guess your slighting of third wave. I might go get my Skoidats CD. Maybe some Inspector 7 or Mephiskapheles. Then, L&J share a recording where the band recruits Fat Tony to ravage a stage and crush a cover of Circle Jerks’ “Live Fast, Die Young”. Side B is fun as hell.
VINYL:
Black, 150; Violet, 100
Bullshit Detector on instagram
Liberty & Justice on instagram
Purchase at Crossbar Records bandcamp
EPs:
The Slads Tough Times Oi The Boat
OUT NOW
Guess who’s back. PA’s The Slads recently released a new cassette tape of five tracks. Seven months ago, this nascent band dropped their demo. The Slads’ fiery return is accented by aggressive grit. The sound is straightforward, lo-fi Oi! with catchy hooks. The first two songs, landing shy of 2:30, display rollicking, rough punk. “Dark Skies” and “Future Insanity” blend some Brickwall, (early) Black Flag, The Last Resort, and The Templars. The riffs are beefy. The “catchy” is tricky as it is undeniable, but the pop aspect is eschewed and honed to a tough punch in the gut. The delivery is as if The Briefs’ skeleton was draped in Blitz’s distortion. The song smack dab in the middle, “Panic Attack”, reels back and adapts a mid-tempo nod to Red Alert and Angelic Upstarts. The atmosphere is mesmerizing with a ‘live in the pub’ with drunken mates chanting along feel. “T.T.W.N.L.” gets its Creepy Crawl on with a strewn along build up. Dark and menacing, The Slads unfurl a snarling track with a hardcore stomp. The closer, “A Thousand Lives” nestles comfortably between sneering rock and roll and early USHC. The guitar work twist as the rhythm section pounds away. The two-step jaunt at the end is infectious. The end repeats a combative surge for fans to rush the stage.
The Slads have provided a unique mix of rock n roll, Oi!, and hardcore. The band – with contemporaries such as Concrete Elite, Liberty & Justice, and Fuerza Bruta – which beckons hooligans and outcasts to come unite. The rage and disgust are spat with conviction. There is not a wasted second on the cassette; which is presented in a yellow inlay.
Order the cassette here on the The Slads’ bandcamp *(4 remain as of writing)
Visit the Oi! The Boat website/webshop here.
The Breath Reasonless Hate Convulse Records
February 9th 2023
I had not heard of Tokyo’s The Breath prior. And damn, am I excited. This is a bruiser. I expected a GAUZE, GISM, Death Side sound, because I jump to conclusions. The Breath surprised me with a straight NYHC sound. On their bandcamp, they cite YOT and Inside Out. But, “Longing for Survival” erupts from the Agnostic Front template. The Victim In Pain formula is evident with the slow to fast to breakdown approach. Their production style, bass sound, buzzing guitars all coalesce into an urgent, angry delivery. The Breath concoct songs to vent against society and incite raucous pits. The band pledges to the “Dance Hard or Die” ethos.
The Breath had formally released Promo 2021 on the stellar QCHQ which illustrates the band’s drive. On Reasonless Hate, The Breath provides six new tracks recorded and mixed at Studio REIMI and mastered at Dead Air Studios by Will Killingsworth, production/mastering credits include Stop & Think, The Rites, No Time, Haxan, etc. Killingsworth’s discography of playing includes myriad hardcore bands (of which, apparently, I have 54). The mastering adds a bold (super)touch (egregious pun intended). The Breath can write a song. The NYHC sound through a Japanese lens is a killer combo.
Pre-order Reasonless Hate at Convulse Records or Convulse’s bandcamp
VINYL:
Red, 100 (Band Exclusive)
White, 100 (Convulse Exclusive)
Black, 200
Serpent Saints Serpent Saints Self-Released
OUT NOW
One of my favorite liner notes in Deadguy in Punk Rock Jukebox: “Black Sabbath. Black Flag. What else do you need?” *(I am paraphrasing off of memory from 25 years ago as that CD got swiped from me.) Let’s append that sentiment with this one. As a hardcore dude, I love Doom Metal. I, of course, have loved Sabbath since a wee lad. I never understood why Doom bands – correction, Doom crowds – just sit still and headbang. Those hardcore rhythms which Bill Ward pummeled some dark decades ago make me want to windmill and pick up change. I don’t get listening to aggressive music and standing still.
I say all this to evaluate Serpent Saints’ sound. It was described to me as “hardcore meets Sabbath”. But, I entertain the discussion of Sabbath starting hardcore (not in subculture, but in riff). Also, January had me readjusting and adding to my “Best of 2023” list. I can’t believe what I missed. And Kevin Norton’s new adventure is now included. This EP was dropped on Halloween 2023 and I never caught it. So, as I am reviewing missed LPs. EPs, Demos, and Promos. Serpent Saints are Kevin Norton and members of Law Of Power (who I went to interview a few months ago but they had already split up) and Pull Your Card.
As a grown man, I remain a Kevin Norton (bass) fan boy. Eye For An Eye was hometown scene (Boston) favorite. A beloved band with a very unique sound. I flipped Omega Drone (1991, Blackout!) endlessly in my many walkmans through the years. That was followed by the 1992 EP, Who. He then revitalized (with drummer, Alex Garcia-Rivera). 454 Big Block. From the ashes of Wrecking Crew, 454 Big Block came out on Century Media and had a strong rock sound. But, by the second LP, Save Me From Myself (Big Wheel Recreation, 1999) with the new rhythm section, they were a completely different animal. Loose. Raw. Vicious. Unfettered. Dark. Norton later moved to the West Coast and played in Straight Faced, another bangin’ band I played frequently after I first heard “In Through the Out Door” (on their second LP, Broken, on Fearless Records, 1996). Later, and currently, he would open Long Beach staple, Supply and Demand. He played in The Eulogy with Matt Henderson (Agnostic Front, Madball, H2O live; basically, responsible for the hardest NYHC riffs).
Point being, Serpents Saints is lined up for me to revel in glorious riffs and hard beats. This is doomy sludge with a venomous bite. Serpent Saints have a grimy sound, obviously. The vocals are scathing. Snarling and bitter, Pete Bucci growls sinister sentiment. The rhythm section is Norton and Tristan Peterson on drums. The churning dual guitar attack is helmed by Alex Miller and Taylor Stevens. Recorded at the Pit by Taylor Young (Every band ever…). When the term ‘sludge’ is implemented, you know the influences and peers: Eyehategod, Grief/Come To Grief, -(16)-, Noothgrush, etc. Drenched in ire, the songs range from two to three minutes; yielding three songs in under eight minutes. The guitar/bass sound is gnarly and thick. If you have read this column before, especially when I talk thrash metal or hardcore, you know I love my time changes. “Seven Days” ignites the EP with more than a few packed in to two minutes. This song is harsh and dark; heavy with a an uncompromising miasma of misery. The second track, “Take as Prescribed” switches the sound slightly, focusing more on a rowdy, swinging Sabbath riff. This brash offering is undeniably infectious. Serpent Saints ends with “Heavy Artillery” which is a stunning blend of the first two tracks. What a triumphant surprise for my yearning eardrums.
2024 will be blessed with new music. Follow instagram for shows, the next will be February 28th at The Midnight Hour.
