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The birth of punk in the UK has been covered to death. There are books and documentaries on it, and rightfully so. It shook up the music word and created some of the best tunes ever laid down to wax. But just like in the USA, the second wave is more interesting to me.

In America, the second wave was a narrowing. Bands trimmed the fat and got faster, less melodic, and more aggressive. USHC was here. In the UK, the second wave was an expansion in many ways. The music branched out in multiple directions and different styles and ideologies emerged. Although everything was just punk then, you can see the beginnings of subgenres that are still relevant today: D-beat, anarcho, UK82, street punk, hardcore.

The first wave of punk was much bigger in the UK than in America. Bands like The Clash, The Damned, The Jam, and even The Vibrators all made the top 50 of the national charts with their debut LPs. Never Mind The Bollocks by the Sex Pistols hit #1 in November of 1977 and was in the top 10 for eight weeks. Compare that to America where the only time the Ramones broke the Top 100 in the ‘70s was with their second record, Rocket to Russia, in 1977. It peaked at #49 and spent eight weeks on the chart. A band like the Dead Boys didn’t even sniff the top 100 (#189 peak for their 1st LP). L.A.M.F, Blank Generation, The Incredible Shrinking Dickies, and (GI) didn’t crack the top 200.

Even with the smashing successes of UK punk records in ‘77/’78, the major labels’ interest in signing new punk bands was waning just a couple years later. By the 1980s, the majors that were interested in punk in its early years had moved on to new wave or post punk. In response, the UK, like many other places across the globe, saw the rise of independent record labels. Some like No Future, Crass, Clay, and Riot City are now legendary and are heavily represented in this tournament.

The tournament bracket was put together by me with help from Dan Sant, Mark Boardman, Jon Westbrook, and Dave Ackerman. I tried to have the best representation here from a multitude of styles and subgenres that were firmly planted in the second wave of UK punk. The year selection of 1981 to 1983 mirrors our USHC tournament, even if it eliminated some of my favorite records like UK Subs Warhead (1980) and Broken Bones Decapitated (1984). Tons of things were left off to narrow this down to 32. Some on the bubble were Chron Gen, The Business, Toy Dolls, Chaotic Discord, The Skeptix, Uproar, Major Accident, Amebix, Demob, Dead Wretched, etc. Overall, I’m happy with the bracket and think it paints a good picture of the region and era.

Much of the information in this post is from two terrific books by Ian Glasper, Burning Britain (2004, although I’m referencing the 2014 version) and The Day The Country Died (2006).

Alright, let's get into it...

4-SKINS ONE LAW FOR THEM (1981) vs. THE VIOLATORS SUMMER OF ‘81 (1982)

Garry Bushell was in the crowd at the first 4-Skins gig in the summer of 1980. He was impressed enough by their set that he invited them to be on the soon to be released compilation, Oi! The Album that came out later in the year. Guitarist, Tom McCourt, described their sound as “punk but faster. A lot heaver and more basic, like Sabbath meets The Ramones, with terrace chants” (Glasper, 2014, p. 440). Their first single, One Law For Them, was released on their own label, Clockwork Fun, and charted at #4 on the independent charts. It was distributed by Secret Records who signed them officially after its release.

The 7” is totally propped up by the title track, which is one of the best and most recognizable songs from UK punk’s 2nd wave (“one law for them, another law for us”). The B-side is more of a downtempo pub rock tune that I could take or leave, depending on my mood.

The Violators were born in 1979 out of a band called The Dismal Sports. One of their two-person vocal contingent, Shaun “Cess” Stiles says of the band:

“Being close to Manchester we experienced its first ‘Renaissance’. We’d go to the Factory and clubs like it to watch bands such as Joy Division, PIL, Magazine, The Fall, the so-called post-punk bands. To us they were punk, but they were just not permitting themselves to be typecast. We still loved the early bands too, but, apart from The Buzzcocks, the post-punk set up was what gave Manchester its unique pulse. The north had a more DIY feel to the movement than the south – the London scene seemed driven by major record labels until the hardcore punk thing occurred.” (Glasper, 2014, p. 128).

After the first Blitz 7” came out, The Violators mailed their demo to No Future Records who included a couple of the songs on their compilation A Country Fit For Heroes in 1982. In April of the same year they released their Gangland 7” on No Future, and followed it up in December with the 7” in this tournament, Summer of ‘81.

Their 2nd 7” maintains the original Violators sound but presents sleeker, more honed in songwriting. “Summer of ‘81” is similar to “Gangland” with Helen Hill’s haunting voice captivating from the beginning of the track, but this time around she handles 100% of the vocal duties. Cess handles vox on the B-side track (“Live Fast - Die Young”), probably their most raucous tune.

ABRASIVE WHEELS THE ARMY SONG (1981) vs. THE VARUKERS S/T (1981)

The first Abrasive Wheels 7” was a completely DIY affair. Vocalist Shonna and guitarist Dave decided to start a label called Abrasive Records. Then came the hard part: figuring out how to scrounge up £600 to put out the record. Dave sold his motorcycle but Shonna didn’t have anything of value to sell, so he just waltzed into a bank and told them that he was the managing director of Abrasive Records. He ended up getting a loan for his half. They sold through the first press of 3,000 quickly before it was picked up and repressed by Riot City.

All three tunes on the record are catchy and anthemic, with the title track being one of the biggest ear worms of the era (“You gotta fight, fight, for what you want”). The recording is perfect: clear enough to hear everything but with enough of that early ‘80s stank that can never be recaptured. If the 7” came out on No Future and they were called an Oi! band, you wouldn’t think twice but Shonna thought different:

“The press were calling us ‘Hardcore’ or ‘Oi’ or whatever, and we were thinking ‘What the fuck are they going on about?’ We didn’t like labels anyway, but as far as we were concerned, we were just a fuckin’ punk rock band. The press wanted to pigeonhole us with all the other bands that were emerging at the time, but we were just writing what was coming out naturally, what we felt; there was nothing contrived about us at all. We were just angry young punks, all of us on the dole, all of us disillusioned with society. We had no respect for reputations or authority. As far as I’m concerned, real punk music comes from the streets; it doesn’t matter whether it’s fast or slow, it’s the sentiment behind the music that’s important. For us it was always a working class thing, and maybe that’s why we got called an ‘Oi’ band in the press.” (Glasper, 2014, p. 128).

The Varukers represented the more aggressive side of punk although their origin wouldn’t point directly to that.

“Basically we formed The Varukers because I saw The Sex Pistols on ‘Top Of The Pops’ and wanted a piece of that!” exclaims Rat.” (Glasper, 2014, p. 56).

The band formed in Leamington Spa and put out two demos before releasing their debut 7”, the first release on Inferno Records. It was on the UK indie charts just outside of the top 30 for over a month. The record features three ripping hardcore tracks in the Discharge vein and one anthemic midtempo track, “Soldier Boy,” that folks might know from the Punk And Disorderly compilation. It’s kind of hilarious thinking that someone who loved that track off the comp might have bought their debut 7”only to have their wig split by the other three songs, which sound nothing like it.

In the early/mid ‘80s, the Varukers put out a ton of records, all good to great. They’re one of the most consistent bands of the era, even with an evolving sound and constant member changes. After this 7”, drummer Gary Maloney left the band to play in Discharge. After the 2nd 7”, guitarist Tom Lowe left to join Anti-Sect. My favorite material is the era when Andy Baker and Damien Thompson of War Wound were in the band (Led To The Slaughter / Another Religion, Another War). After those records, Damien would leave to form Sacrilege.

THE ADICTS VIVA LA REVOLUTION (1982) vs. ULTRA-VIOLENT CRIME…FOR…REVENGE (1983)

The Adicts formed in Ipswich in 1976 as The Pinz.

“We became The Adicts because The Pinz was such a shit name,” deadpans (drummer) Kid. “At the early gigs we just used to wear punk clothes, but never anything bought, like those posers who went down to Kings Road. After a while though, black came in and it all became boring, so we started to dress in white to be different, and ‘Clockwork Orange’ had been a major influence on us, though not for the violence, more the teenage angst…” (Glasper, 2014, p. 177).

They are one of the most notable UK punk bands due to their longevity. Over four decades after their debut 7”, Lunch With The Adicts, they are still drawing large crowds. For the tournament, we included their 1982 single, Viva La Revolution. The title track and “Numbers” both appeared on their debut LP, Songs of Praise and “Steamroller (My Baby Got Run Over By A),” I believe is exclusive to this 7”. “Viva La Revolution” might be their biggest song, but “Numbers” is probably their best (“I don't wanna be no 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8”). It’s classic Adicts, tapping slightly into darker melodies while staying anthemic and light hearted.

The Adicts play melodic punk with big hooks and they’re not scared to be theatrical. Beyond their outfits, they also appeared on an ‘80s kids TV show called Cheggers Plays Pop as The Fun Adicts.

Ultra-Violent put out maybe the meanest sounding hardcore 7” of Britain’s second wave. They had some solidarity with the band Crash from nearby Halifax, who did a record on No Future. Between the two towns there was a small scene of punks who would support them. They did a practice room demo in ‘82 that Riot City Records liked enough to pay for them to enter a real studio and record the Crime For Revenge 7”.

The title track and “Dead Generation” are two of the most rabid and ferocious hardcore tracks of the era. “Where Angels Dare Not Tread” plods along but the lyrics project a gritty poetry that carry the track. The 7” got Ultra-Violent on bigger gigs opening for bands like Abrasive Wheels and the UK Subs but they didn’t last long. They broke up over an argument that stemmed from guitarist Andy “Griff” Griffith wanting to add keyboards to the band (boooo). Vocalist, Adie Bailey, joined the English Dogs for their crossover period between 1984 and 1989.

ANTHRAX CAPITALISM IS CANABALISM (1983) vs. SUBHUMANS DEMOLITION WAR (1981)

Anthrax were an anarcho band out of Gravesend. Vocalist, Gary ‘Osker’ Budd, did a fanzine called Enigma prior to playing in the band, which helped Anthrax get a lot of helpful contacts for once the band started rolling. One of those was Fack fanzine, who introduced them to Conflict, a band they played many of their first gigs with. Anthrax recorded seven songs at Oakwood Studios in Herne Bay in 1981. One of those songs “All The Wars,” ended up on the Crass Records compilation Bullshit Detector 2 in ‘82.

That gave them enough notoriety for Small Wonder Records to put out their first EP The’ve Got It All Wrong in ‘83, that peaked at #9 on the indie charts. Capitalism Is Cannibalism was recorded at Southern Studios with Penny Rimbaud (Crass) and John Loder. Apparently those two made a bunch of changes in post production that Osker was unhappy with, including removing their bass player’s tracks (!!).

“After the Bullshit Detector 2 album, Eve Libertine [from Crass] rang us up and asked if we wanted to do a single. It was weird, ‘cos we recorded for three days with Penny and John Loder [at Southern Studios], and when they mixed it, they took our bassist Gareth off the recording! And added all these little bits… and it ended up sounding nothing like the original songs. Basically we ended up sounding like Crass! Personally I prefer the first demo we did, but we were young, and it was good; we enjoyed it, no real regrets or anything.” (Glasper, 2006, p. 185).

The A-side of this record is good, but B-side rules. “Prime To Pension” starts trippy, then hits into a herky jerky midtempo banger. “All Things Are Bright and Beautiful” is midtempo on the toms with fast anarcho style singing on top of it and has stellar bass work peppered throughout. It’s over in 90 seconds. When this style embraces brevity, it’s at its best.

The final track they recorded before disbanding was “It’ll Be Alright On The Night”, that came out on the Mortarhate compilation, Who? What? Why? When? Where? in 1984.

Subhumans are one of the most legendary punk bands of all time and they are still killing it live in 2026. The band was previously called the Stupid Humans but changed their name to Subhumans when Dick Lucas joined on vocals, after his band The Mental disbanded. They started gigging in the fall of 1980, eventually getting the attention of Flux of Pink Indians, who released their first 7”, Demolition War, on their label Spiderleg Records in ‘81. Their sound is already fully flushed out—a mix of hardcore punk and darker midtempo tunes, all with poignant, well written lyrics and hooks. Any of their 7”s from this era could’ve made the tournament, so why not just go with the first?

This 7” contains six tunes and all are great except the last track “Human Error” which kind of drags until the final 30 seconds. The first track, “Parasites,” is one of the the most classic Subhumans songs (“you build your demolition war / what the hell are you fighting for?”). That bass line on “Society” will live in the deep crevices of your brain (“our society, what a drag”), and good luck forgetting the chorus on “Who’s Gonna Fight In The Third World War?” (“there ain’t no patriots here no more, who’s gonna fight in the third world war?”).

ANTI-NOWHERE LEAGUE STREETS OF LONDON (1981) vs. SPECIAL DUTIES POLICE STATE (1982)

Anti-Nowhere League was formed in Tunbridge Wells by two bikers, vocalist Nick “Animal” Culmer and guitarist Chris “Magoo” Exall.

“It was a strange scene in Tunbridge; you’d get all sorts of yobbos – skinheads, bikers, punks – all drinking in the same pubs and all being friendly, and outsiders who came into town could never suss it out!

“It’s a weird place to live really; it’s not a city, it’s more like an oversized country village… very cliquey. It can be a bit violent, but there didn’t seem to be any major factions dividing people up back then, and it was just a very natural thing for the band to have bikers and a skinhead in it.” (Glasper, 2014, p. 249).

Anti-Nowhere League got the attention of promoter John Curd, who began managing them and signed them to his label WXYZ. Their first single Streets Of London hit #1 on the indie charts in 1981. The title track is a punked out cover of the Ralph Mctell’s folk song. The B-side is their most famous song, “So What?,” a track that Metallica covered on the B-side of their Unforgiven single in 1991. Both songs rule in totally different ways. Animal says of “So What?”…

“It was just a simple song, about those big-headed fuckers you overhear in the pub, saying ‘I’ve done this, I’ve done that… yeah, yeah, yeah, but anyway, I’ve been here, I’ve been there!’ To which my reply has always been, ‘So fucking what?’ The song was just about the fucking stupidity of those people and their conversations, but that’s the magic of songs; they can be about the simplest of things. They just pop into your head on the spur of the moment.” (Glasper, 2014, p. 250).

Their next two singles, the I Hate People 7” and their 1st LP, We Are…The League, both hit #1 on the indie charts, with the LP hitting #24 on the nationals.

An early version of the Colchester punk band Special Duties started in 1977 when singer Steve “Arrogant” Green was just 15, inspired by the Ramones and The Sex Pistols. They started playing gigs in 1979, with their first show being on the loading dock of a department store. Their first 7” was released in 1981 on Charnel House Records.

“We started the band as a result of ’77 punk, but before we knew what had happened, with all the lineup changes and the demos and the Charnel House thing, it was 1980, and we were starting to get left behind,” explains Steve. “The second wave of punk had started, and all these bands like The Partisans and Blitz were signed to No Future and releasing records… Anti Pasti were on Rondelet… so we sent a demo and a copy of the Charnel House single to both of those labels. No Future said they liked it but they already had too many bands on the label, but Rondelet wrote back and said they’d be interested in re-releasing the ‘Violent Society’ single…” (Glasper, 2014, p. 182).

The first single on Rondelet came out in ‘82, a ridiculously busy year for the band. It was a re-recording of the two songs from their debut 7” along with an extra track. They recorded their 3rd 7”, Police State, at Cargo Studios in Rochdale, and were aided by having Mackie from Blitz and Helen from the Violators in the studio who helped them produce the record. Personally, I think it’s their most solid record—four meaty, mean sounding hardcore songs with zero fluff. They did an LP shortly after and ended ‘82 with their most notorious record, the 7” Bullshit Crass.

“Everything I said about them at the time, I meant, and I still feel as strongly about it now as I did back then. It wasn’t a publicity stunt or anything… if it was, it wasn’t a very good one, to tell everybody that we hated their favourite band! We alienated almost everybody! It sold quite well, but that may have been because it looked a bit like a Crass record, and their fans were so stupid they thought it was one!” (Glasper, 2014, p. 184).

Distributors Rough Trade and Small Wonder both refused to stock the record and shortly after, their label Rondelet imploded. They put out a final single in ‘83 before imploding themselves.

ANTI-SYSTEM DEFENCE OF THE REALM vs. RUDIMENTARY PENI S/T (1981)

Anti-System was an anarcho band out of Bradford whose demo tape got the attention of Pax Records. Their first songs hit wax on the Pax comp Punk’s Dead? Nah, Mate, The Smell Is Jus Summink In Yer Underpants (uhhhh…wat?) in ‘83. They decided to record their first 7”, In Defence Of The Realm, at Cargo Studios in Rochdale because Discharge had used it (Why was mixed there.) It’s a crushing debut that mixes anarcho and hardcore.

The record kicks off with “Animal Welfare,” a 90-second, aggressive UK82 style tune similar to Chaos UK or GBH. It’s followed by “No Longer To Choose,” a brutally long over-four-minute song that sandwiches a ripping middle section with two big dragger parts that, in their defense (of the realm har har), have pretty cool, trippy guitars. “Service” is a poem, and then they hit the best one-two on the record, “1000 Rifles,” a total ripper, into “Government Lies,” a crucial midtempo banger (“government lies, we die”).

Their 1985 LP that follows, No Laughing Matter, is my favorite record of theirs.

Rudimentary Peni of Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire need no introduction. They are quite frankly one of the most legendary punk ever. The band formed after singer/guitarist Nick Blinko’s previous weirdo synth band, The Magits, broke up. Their debut 7” was self released in 1981 on Blinko’s record label, Outer Himalayan, and is a bonafide classic. It’s 12 songs in 12 minutes of ripping, uptempo midtempo hardcore punk. There’s as much aggro, late ‘70s/early ‘80s So Cal punk in their sound as there is anything anarcho. You can’t hear the Black Flag and Dead Kennedys? Hit the Q-tips then circle back.

Blinko’s vocals are out of this world, and they’re at their wildest here when he has the smallest pallets to fit his poems onto. The first five songs are all 10/10 tracks and none break a minute. It isn’t until “The Garner” that they slow it down and plod a bit. On the flip, you get hit with one of their most classic songs, “Teenage Time Killer.” It starts with haunting one string bendies before adding the bass and kicking into that raging uptempo midtempo pace. “Dead Living” might be my favorite song on the record and it’s only 34 seconds. Fuck.

Their next record, Farce, came out on Crass Records in ‘82 and then their first LP, Death Church, came out in ‘83 on Corpus Christi, a Crass Records sub-label.

ATTAK TODAY’S GENERATION (1982) vs. THE PARTISANS 17 YEARS OF HELL (1982)

Attak sound a lot like Blitz. That’s not a diss, it’s intentional and they’d probably take it as a compliment. They were from the same town and even took their name from the first Blitz 7”, All Out Attack. Attak sent their demo to Blitz’ label No Future, who liked it enough to put their song “Blue Patrol” on the A Country Fit For Heroes compilation that came out in early 1982. Their debut 7”, Today’s Generation, followed on No Future in the same year. It’s a noisy 7” that sounds like Blitz if they were from Bristol. The title track is the best song, sounding like a more raw Blitz without the big vocal hooks. “Hell” drags a bit but the three-song 7” caps with “No Escape,” an aggressive UK82 style jammer.

They put out a 2nd 7” and an LP before splitting in 1984. Guitarist Gary Basnett sang on the 1989 Blitz LP, The Killing Dream.

The Partisans put out one of my favorite LPs of the era, their self titled 1983 LP on No Future. For this tournament, we had to decide between the first two Partisans 7”s and it wasn’t easy since both are great. We ended up taking the 2nd one from 1982, 17 Years Of Hell. The title track appeared on the LP from ‘83 and may be their best song, equal parts gritty and anthemic. The other two are no slouches in their own right and show the other side of The Partisans—that they can be a fucking great hardcore band.

The boys from Wales started the band in 1978 when they were still in their teens. They got signed to No Future off their demo and their first 7” came out in ‘81. It caught the ear of Garry Bushell who courted them to contribute two songs to the 3rd album in his Oi! series, Carry On Oi! the same year. In ‘82, they put out the 17 Years Of Hell 7” and then frustrated by violence at gigs, they broke up in the summer. By the end of the year they had reunited to record an LP, simply to fill a contract obligation.

“As usual we didn’t rehearse before we went into the studio,” admits Andy (Lealand). “I think we just recorded it as if it was a demo, completely live with a few overdubs. It was all done and mixed within eight hours or something; we really had no idea what we were doing, and I don’t think we cared that much. We just sent it off to No Future and they released it shortly afterwards.” (Glasper, 2014, p. 267).

Some bands just have it. It’s one of the best LPs of the era from anywhere in the world. Later in ‘83 they released a more mature sounding EP on Cloak & Dagger Records called Blind Ambition, and the following year they released an LP on the same label called The Time Was Right. That record was half studio, half live recording and confusingly kicked off with a song off their previous LP. The new songs are good but the fire of the first two EPs, the comp tracks, and the previous LP is gone. They broke up later that year.

BLITZ NEVER SURRENDER / RAZORS IN THE NIGHT vs. RED ALERT IN BRITAIN (1982)

Hailing from New Mills, Derbyshire, Blitz are one of the premier punk bands of the era, and thus all time. They started jamming in 1980 and named the band after “Blitzkrieg Bop,” by the Ramones—the band that guitarist Nidge Miller said got him into punk. Their first show was opening for Discharge in Bradford in May of that year. They recorded a demo that ended up being their 1981 debut 7”, All Out Attack, the first release on the legendary No Future Records. It sold over 25,000 copies.

They had two songs on the Carry On Oi! compilation later in the year but Blitz weren’t one for subgenre labeling.

“We never really liked the ‘Oi’ label, anyway,” admits Nidge. “We just thought it was a bit silly really. Plus with the explanation mark after it, it looked like we were on an album called ‘Carry On Oil’! We always thought of ourselves as a punk band, end of story. We never set out to ‘break down barriers’ or anything either, because as far as we were concerned, there weren’t any barriers in the first place… certainly not in our crowd anyway.” (Glasper, 2014, p. 64).

The single that is included in this tournament followed in 1982, Never Surrender / Razors In The Night. “Never Surrender” is their most hardcore song, full throttled and over the plate with the memorable “never surrender” hook. The B-side, “Razors In The Night,” may be their best song. Equal parts anthemic and gritty, it showcases both sides of what people love about the classic Blitz sound. In a way, it’s like the early Misfits material where the raw recording somehow elevates the soaring vocal hooks.

The Warriors 7” and their first LP, Voice of A Generation, followed, marking a hell of a year in 1982 for the band. I know people ride for the whole Blitz catalog but this is where the classic material ends for me. Yes, the song “New Age” that got released in ‘83 is one of the best songs of all time but the production is totally different. The song is just so good that it succeeds in spite of the massive change. Miss me with anything after, including the B-side.

Nidge was tragically struck by a car and killed outside of Austin, TX in 2008 while on a three week long American tour.

Sunderland’s Red Alert started in 1979 when they were all still in school. Their first 7” was self released in 1980. They recorded a new demo and sent it to Garry Bushell who gave them a spot on Carry On Oi! and told them to send their tunes to No Future.

“As soon as we got home, that’s what we did. And literally within two days we were signed to them. It was comical; when the call came that they wanted to sign us, we were all out in the street screaming and shouting. We thought we’d done it, what a feeling. All the hard work had paid off, and, no matter what is said or written about him, we’ll always have Garry Bushell to thank for pointing us in the right direction.” (Glasper, 2014, p. 106).

In Britain was released on No Future in 1982 and the title track is one of the more memorable punk songs of the year. The band put out a few more singles and an LP before breaking up in 1984.

THE BLOOD MEGALOMANIA (1983) VS. PETER AND THE TEST TUBE BABIES BANNED FROM THE PUBS (1982)

The Blood first appeared on the scene in 1982 as the final track on the fourth installment of Garry Bushell’s Oi! series, Oi! Oi! That’s Yer Lot!, under the name Coming Blood. They tweaked their name and released Megalomania on No Future Records in 1983. It’s a fabulous record that mixes speed and fury with over the top melody. To me, it sounds like a mash up between The Damned and maybe a band like B.G.K. or Upright Citizens. On the pod, Kev compared the speed and unhinged nature of the drumming to Jerry’s Kids, which I think is a great comparison.

All three songs on the 7” are spectacular. The title track opens the record and starts with a piano intro. When the song kicks in, it’s based around a guitar lick that mirrors the opening piano part and works as a de facto chorus. Coming out of the second chorus, the song launches into a fabulous solo before landing back into that recurring lick. “Parasite In Paradise” has an insane contrast. The drummer is raging on this one, playing most of the song on the cymbals in a way that almost sounds like raw punk. But then you have this spacey keyboard solo that is so fucking random that it actually works. “Calling The Shots” is super melodic and almost sounds like an aggressive Leatherface song (“calling the shots, ahhh ahhh”). That little guitar lick that surrounds the chorus…chef’s kiss.

They put out another 7” and an LP in 1983, ending their classic era. The 1985 12” more of a hard rock record and I haven’t listened to anything beyond that.

The first time Peter and the Test Tube Babies appeared on vinyl was with their song “Elvis Is Dead” on the Vaultage 78 - Two Sides Of Brighton compilation LP in 1978. It’s not the best debut song. Shit, it’s not even a good song but that wasn’t the point. Singer Peter Bywaters said they only wrote it to piss off the Teddy Boys. Regardless of my opinion on that track 48 years later, John Peel liked it enough at the time to give them a session which brought them greater exposure. That lead to two of their tracks appearing on Garry Bushell’s 1980 compilation LP, Oi! The Album. Then came No Future.

“Anyway, then Del saw this classified advert in Sounds,” says Peter. “It wasn’t even in a box or anything, asking for punk and skinhead bands, so we wrote off… and they sent us a contract. So we just signed it and sent it back, we didn’t take it to a lawyer or anything! Our manager (Nick McGerr) was tearing his hair out, saying, ‘You could have at least shown it to me!” (Glasper, 2014, p. 255).

Their first single on No Future was Banned From The Pubs. I’ve hated the title track since I first heard it on Oi! The Tin back in the late ‘90s. But again, regardless of my thoughts, it’s a classic track that folks seem to love. I gotta admit, the riff is pretty catchy and the verses are endearing at first, it’s just annoying by the time the “banned from the pubs” refrain goes into double digits. The other songs are kinda whatever. “Moped Lads” reminds us that these guys are no Johnny Moped, and “Peacehaven Wild Kids” could have been a great tribute to their hometown. It starts great with a nice little guitar lick over some (future) youth crew toms. The verse and chorus are nice and tuneful but then the song just kind of drags along for nearly four minutes and makes me want to never hear it again…basically just like the other two songs, or any of their other songs.

CHAOS UK BURNING BRITAIN 7” (1982) VS. THE OPPRESSED NEVER SAY DIE (1983)

“We thought, ‘If Vice Squad can do it, why can’t we?”

- Andy Farrier, OG guitarist of Chaos UK (Glasper, 2014, p. 22).

The classic tale of hardcore. If that band can do it, why the fuck can’t we?

Before the Bristol punk scene was defined by the harsh tones of Chaos UK and Disorder, it was represented by bands like The Cortinas and Vice Squad. If they could put out records, why couldn’t Chaos UK? So the band hit the studio to make a demo. The four songs from that session ended up being the Burning Britain 7”, a total tone beast. The way the fuzzy guitar sits right behind the pummeling bass makes it one of the best sounding 7”s of the era. It was put out by Riot City, a label ran by Simon Edwards of Heartbeat Records along with two dudes from Vice Squad.

“Four Minute Warning” is a perfect UK82 song—anti-war, super in the pocket, big chorus, the bass driving the whole thing. “Kill Your Baby” follows and is a hell of a number too (“put your baby on the kitchen table”). The B-side shows their more plodding side with “Victimised” being the more memorable of the two (“I’ve been victimised, the police won’t leave me alone”).

A second 7”, Loud Political & Uncompromising, followed in the same year. It’s three more songs of the same style and you could make the argument that it’s even better. They somehow managed to put out multiple classics throughout the ‘80s despite many member changes, and famously toured Japan in November of 1985.

The Oppressed hailed from Cardiff, the capital of Wales, and first appeared on the Oi! Oi! That’s Yer Lot! compilation in 1982 with their track, “White Flag.” In ‘83, they followed with two 7”s, one of which is the Never Say Die E.P. that we included in the tournament. It’s three songs of 1983 boot music and features one of the most classic Oi! anthems of the era, “Ultra-Violence” (“violence, ultra-violence”). “Urban Soldiers” is a pretty catchy number too. When singer Roddy Moreno starts yelling “skinheads” after the chorus, it sounds like he’s literally yelling it in your face, drill sergeant style. They put out an LP the following year in ‘84, the final record of their classic era.

COCK SPARRER ENGLAND BELONGS TO ME (1982) VS. ONE WAY SYSTEM NO ENTRY (1982)

Cock Sparrer started as a pub rock band before punk existed. Their ‘70s material reflects the mashup of that style along with the emerging punk sound of ‘76/’77. They put out two singles and an LP before breaking up for the first time in ‘78.

A couple years later, Garry Bushell started putting some of their old songs on his first two Oi! compilations, Oi! The Album (1980) and Strength Thru Oi! (1981). This created enough buzz to motivate the boys to get the band back together and release their first new music in four years. The end product was the England Belongs To Me 7” and the A-side title track is one of the most classic songs of the era. You know it, you love it…you might be so burnt on it that you never need to hear it again. On the flipside, you have “Argy Bargy,” a song that is only good if you’re three sheets to the wind and singing with your friends, but classic nonetheless.

The following year Cock Sparrer would release their Shock Troops LP, one of the greatest records in the history of guitar music.

One Way System out of Fleetwood, Lancashire released their first 7”, No Entry, on Lightbeat Records in 1982. It contained what may be the punkest song of all time, “Stab The Judge.” The other two songs on the EP are greatly overshadowed, although “Riot Torn City” is a pretty sick song title. They followed with another 7” the same year that featured one of their best songs, “Give Us A Future.”

1983 was a busy year for the band to say the least. They managed to put out three 7”s and two LPs in one calendar year, each one ranging from really good to great. The band put out a final EP in 1984 called Visions of Angels, that was kind of sorry, before breaking up.

CONFLICT THE SERENADE IS DEAD (1983) VS. OMEGA TRIBE ANGRY SONGS (1983)

Conflict from Eltham in Southeast London, one of the most notable renowned anarcho bands, played their first gig in April of 1981. Conflict recorded their first 7”, The House That Man Built, for Crass Records on day before drummer Francisco “Paco” Carreno turned 16. It came out in June of ‘82 and was the beginning of a whirlwind of releases that would last throughout the majority of the ‘80s, producing multiple classics. In ‘83, they started their own record label, Mortarhate, to release their third studio EP, The Serenade Is Dead.

It’s a killer three song EP that kicks off with the title track—a perfect anarcho song that represents the best of the genre. It starts with a memorable bass intro before hitting cymbal crashes with guitar ringouts. When the first verse kicks in with Colin’s singing, it sounds so triumphant. It’s classic Conflict where it feels like he never takes a breath cuz he’s just got so much to say. “The Positive Junk” is an aggressive, UK82 style number and “The System Maintains” starts as a plodder before it explodes and pummels you until the end.

Omega Tribe from Barnet played their first gig at Monkfrith Boy’s Club during in the summer of ‘81. The band recorded their demo in ‘82 and one of the songs off it was included in the Crass Records compilation, Bullshit Detector, Volume 2. Their debut 7”, Angry Songs, followed on Crass Records in ‘83.

It’s an ambitious record for a young band. The first song, “Another Bloody Day,” starts typical enough until it cuts out around the 20 second mark for a piano part. Then the singing hits all Peter, Paul, and Mary style and when the drums and bass start accenting, it kinda sounds like ‘70s rock. “Profiteer” is a cool, swinging midtempo song that’s too long. The B-side is stronger, despite starting with a ska song called, “Is This A Future?” The bass flow is nice, they hit some spacey ‘70s parts and there’s a good chorus. The final song, “Time For Change,” is the best on the record. It’s a strong midtempo song with solid bass playing, and those parts where it’s just bass and drums give it that anarcho vibe.

They followed with an LP later in ‘83 and put out another EP in ‘84 before disbanding in ‘85.

DISCHARGE NEVER AGAIN (1981) VS. DISORDER COMPLETE DISORDER 7” (1981)

If you climb on top of the roof at the next gig you attend and shout “Discharge is the greatest UK hardcore band ever,” you’ll probably just be greeted with a bunch of shrugs and “yep’s.” You didn’t need to do all that to tell us what we already know, dude. By the time the Never Again 7” came out in 1981, Discharge had already released three classic 7”s and possibly their greatest record, the 12” Why. Never Again sits in a weird spot between that 12” and their first proper full length, Hear Nothing, See Nothing, Say Nothing.

It doesn’t sound as burly as either 12”, but all three songs are excellent. “Never Again” is Discharge doing a perfect mix of their style blended with UK82. New drummer Garry Maloney, previously of the Varukers, is on the ride cymbal the entire song. Shoutout Olho Seco. “Death Dealers” is a killer midtempo banger and the 7” ends with “Two Monstrous Nuclear Stockpiles.” Not only is it possibly the best title for a Discharge song, it features some of the most apocalyptic bass playing ever laid down in a punk song sandwiched between two verses. It’s one of their coolest tracks and it barely breaks the minute mark.

When Bristol’s Disorder presented their demo to Simon Edwards of Riot City, he didn’t think they were the right fit for the label. It makes sense, I guess. Going into ‘81, Riot City had only released records from Vice Squad and Disorder was much gnarlier. So the Complete Disorder EP came out on Disorder Records in ‘81, a Riot City sub-label.

It’s a four-song tone beast of a 7”. All of the songs are good but the first track “Todays World” is the most memorable. The guitar is super fuzzy, the recording is noisy, but the chorus is memorable and ties everything together (“todays world is now, punk is here today, if you don't like our way then fucking go away.”) The guitar starts alone on “Insane Youth” so you get to hear how sick it sounds by itself.

They followed with two more nearly as good EPs, Distortion To Deafness (1981) and the Perdition EP (1982). That’s not to say they fell off in ‘83. The Mental Disorder EP is faster, but it marked them moving away from a sound that was them to a more straight up fast hardcore style.

MAU MAUS SOCIETY’S REJECTS (1983) VS. INSTANT AGONY FASHION PARADE (1983)

Mau Maus out of Sheffield named their band after the American band, Mau Maus, who had broken up in 1980. I wonder why they didn’t just choose Led Zeppelin instead. They had been playing around town as a cover band when local promoter and Pax Records bossman, Marcus Featherby, offered them an opening slot on an Angelic Upstarts gig at the Marples Club. Soon after, Featherby booked them five hours of studio time at Kayley Studios for £50. When Mau Maus emerged from the studio, they had clocked eight tracks for an EP.

That record was Society’s Rejects, released in 1982 on Pax Records. It’s the most USHC style record of this tournament, with its high song count and short song lengths, but it’s still very straight forward UK82 style hardcore. They somehow took a genre that is already pretty much fat free and figured out how to make it even leaner. Three-chord riffs sit perfectly on top of rudimentary drumming while Chris Taylor’s burly voice snarls over the top. Every song is good and no song over stays its welcome.

The first song on the B-side, “The Kill,” also appeared on the Wargasm compilation. Their next two 7”s were great as well, No Concern (1982) and Facts Of War (1983). The latter may actually be their best, but it’s hard to choose a five-song 7” when there’s an eight-song one on the table. Facts Of War was the last record of their classic material before they were infected by the vicious musical disease, long song syndrome.

Instant Agony from Birkenhead put out their debut 7” in 1982 on the most British sounding record label of all time, Half Man Half Biscuit. It’s a killer debut with three lofi hardcore songs that never take the foot off the gas pedal. The production was bigger on the next record, 1983’s Fashion Parade, but Instant Agony still kicked just as much ass. You wouldn’t know it from the first 50 seconds of the opening track, “Fashion Parade,” that starts as a Clash-inspired ska song. But soon enough, it rings out and singer Stephen “Hocky” Hockenhull blurts out the song title in classic hardcore fashion. It then breaks into a rager.

“Anti-Police” is a tick faster and has that big, memorable chorus (“anti, anti-police”). Cool lead, too. “Dead-End Kids” starts with some single string guitar noodling before kicking into a fast UK82 style song. The chorus (“dead-end kids, dead end kids!”) over the drum rolls reminds me of “Seeing Red” by Minor Threat.

They slowed down significantly for their 1983 and 1984 7”s and broke up.

THE EXPLOITED DEAD CITIES (1981) VS. ICONS OF FILTH USED, ABUSED, UNAMUSED (1983)

It’s possible that the biggest punk band of the UK’s second wave of punk didn’t come out of London, Manchester, or even Britain at all. Perhaps that designation goes to Scotland’s The Exploited. They started in Edinburgh in ‘79 and released their first tunes, “Daily News” and “I Believe In Anarchy,” on Oi! The Album in 1980.

They had released three 7”s and their classic LP, Punks Not Dead, by the time they released the Dead Cities 7” in late 1981. Following its release, they appeared on Top of The Pops to play that tune, which chafed the jimmy of every square who was tuned in. For the rest of us, “Dead Cities” is a 10/10 track that blends the militant UK82 style drum beat with ultra-anthemic vocals. The chorus (“dead cities, dead cities”) seems to devolve to Wattie shouting “disease” by the end, perhaps an accidental commentary on urban areas becoming destitute in the days of Thatcher and Reagan.

The B-side is chocked with two more classics, a killer uptempo midtempo track, “Hitler’s In The Charts Again,” and the bass driven “Class War.” The Exploited put out their best record, the Troops of Tomorrow LP, the following year.

Icons Of Filth hailed from Cardiff, Wales and put out a demo in 1983 on Conflict’s Mortarhate records. This got the attention of Crass sub-label Corpus Cristi who offered to release their debut 7”, Used, Abused, Unamused the same year. Although more associated with the anarcho scene, Icons of Filth sound way more like Discharge than Crass. Unfortunately what they didn’t adopt from Discharge on this record was brevity. The first three songs, while killer, all break the three minute mark. The final song “Virus” shows themselves how it’s done, clocking in at a mere 1:39. If they shaved a minute off the first three tracks, this could’ve been the 8th or 9th best Discharge record of the ‘80s.

They figured it all out for their 1984 LP, Onward Christian Soldiers, where the majority of songs were significantly shorter. It was produced by their bud Pete Fender of Omega Tribe, and is one of the best hardcore punk records of 1984. They also had a song on seminal international hardcore compilation, Welcome To 1984. Two more EPs followed in ‘85 before they broke up in ‘86.

FLUX OF PINK INDIANS NEU SMELL 7” (1981) VS. G.B.H. SICK BOY 7” (1982)

Birmingham’s GBH were no doubt one of Britain’s hardcore heavyweights of the ‘80s. They played their first gig in September of 1980. By mid 1981 their demo was out, they had done a string of gigs with Discharge and signed to Clay Records. Their first record, the 12” Leather, Bristles, Studs and Acne, was released in September of 1981 and was on the indie charts for three months, peaking at #8.

1982 was a massive year for GBH. They released three 7”s and their first LP, City Baby Attacked By Rats. Sick Boy was their 2nd single of 1982. It features three of their best songs in the classic GBH style: “Sick Boy,” “Slit Your Own Throat,” and “Am I Dead Yet.”

Flux of Pink Indians out of Bishops Stortford were influenced by Crass, kinda sounded like Crass, and put out their debut single, Neu Smell, on Crass Records in 1981. The A-side has two poems that surround the excellent tune, “Tube Disaster,”—a choice, bass-driven midtempo track that’s catchy as hell (“I love tube disasters, I wanna marry a tube disaster”). The B-side isn’t quite as memorable, at least for good reasons. “Sick Butchers” is a nightmare on my ears and I’m not going to attempt to describe it. “Background of Malfunction” is back to a “Tube Disaster” style track, it just lacks a big hook. They continued to put out records through ‘86.

If you’re in the San Diego area, come see my band SUBVERSIVE INTENT and say WHATUP. Next gig:

If you enjoy the podcast or this blog, here are the ways you can support:

1. Spread the word

2. Like/rate/review the podcast wherever you listen to it

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4. Become a paid member on Substack. I get it. You’re loyal to Substack and Patreon feels OnlyFans-adjacent. Supporting on here also gets you access to all the archives (anything over a month old) plus all the bonus pods that the Patreons get.

5. Recurring payment-adverse? There’s always this.

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Thanks for the support!

Hardcore rules - peace!

- ZN

185milessouth.com

Last night we lost one of my favorite people on the planet, Joe Rivas. He was more than a Nardcore dude…he was a brother, a husband, a son, a dad. My heart breaks for Meadow, Davi, and his whole family. For this post, I’m going to talk about punk, hardcore, and our beloved homestyle version: Nardcore. It was a big part of his life. It shaped him and in turn, his presence and outlook shaped me.

Hardcore is so fucking cooked right now. Bands can record remotely, use studio tricks, release their tunes digitally and get flown out to the majority of shows that they play. It feels like there are more festivals than hardcore bands that do full US tours. The scene is dictated by social media and algorithms crafted by some of the worst people on the planet.

But the roots of punk and hardcore will always be local—crafted in bedrooms and garages, tested in basements and in small rooms in front of peers. Attaining respect on a regional level is just as important as getting acclaim on a national or international level. If your own people don’t respect you, what are you really about anyway?

Punk has been in the 805 since the late ‘70s. The Rotters put out a 7” in 1978. Agression started in the late ‘70s or early ‘80s depending on who you ask and were first documented in 1982 on the BYO compilation, Someone Got Their Head Kicked In. By 1983, Ill Repute had put out their first 7” and the following year they’d release their seminal LP, What Happens Next. 1984 also saw releases from Dr. Know, Stalag 13, False Confession, RKL, and was the year the original Nardcore compilation was released. The scene was in full effect.

Regional hardcore is a story of building blocks. The aforementioned generation of bands influenced another generation of kids to pick up guitars, jam in their rooms, and sometimes even make demos and play a couple parties. Coming out of a down period in the late ‘80s, this generation of kids was determined to make their mark in the ‘90s. The genesis was south Oxnard and the bands were FAY, Clenched Fist, and most importantly Joe’s band, Burning Dog. This unit of old friends provided one of the strongest links in the chain that was ‘90s Nardcore.

Burning Dog put out a few demos in the mid ‘90s, a 7” in 1996, and full lengths in 1997 and 1999 but they were important for more than just music. They put on gigs, helped local bands, and Joe was a welcoming presence to newer kids who could have just as easily been chased out of the scene. They gigged all the time and Joe was in many ways the glue between the old school and the new school (my generation).

The first time I met Joe would’ve been in ‘96 (I think) when my first punk band, It Doesn’t Matter, played with Burning Dog, No Motiv, and some other bands. It was a normal Oxnard house party—a bunch of misfits converging on some rando house cuz punk bands were playing. Many 40s were drank, much dirt weed was smoked, someone got put through a window, and of course the show got broken up before the last band was done with their set.

Shortly after, Burning Dog put my new band Against All Odds on a couple of those gigs at the Oxnard Armory by the old high school. I don’t really remember the details but that’s kind of the point. They were always looking out for younger bands even if we weren’t shit.

Joe and Forrest (FAY) got to live their boyhood dreams by joining a late ‘90s iteration of Ill Repute and playing on their CD And Now… The title track on that record is definitely about my friend group at the time, something I loved jabbing Joe about. Of course we were never even mad about it back then, just stoked that Tony Cortez knew who we were (ha ha).

Joe roadied for a bunch of bands: locals Ill Repute, Agression, and Disordered Youth in the ‘80s and then No Motiv and Good Riddance in the ‘90s. He famously flipped the Good Riddance van and lived to tell the tale.

In the late ‘90s he set up a recording studio near Ventura Theater called The Ghost Chamber. He recorded my band In Control’s demo there in 1999. Joe had a bit of a temper back then. He almost killed us all cuz Roger bent the fuck out of his headphones but didn’t own up to it. And then he almost killed our drummer, Tony, specifically over something about a cymbal (can’t even remember those details). Again, we were never mad and always laughed about it in the years to come.

When Mark Hickey from Agression died there was a big benefit show at the Ventura Theater. Burning Dog played and brought Agression’s Henry Knowles out to play the song “S.A.T.C.” on guitar. In one of the biggest honors of my punk life, Joe asked me to sing it. Henry died a couple years later.

Joe was just always there and there was almost no one better to talk shit with. When he was in Italy for a couple years, whenever I’d visit Oxnard it wouldn’t feel the same without him around.

When I started 185 Miles South in 2019, there was only one person who could be on episode one.

Every year that goes by we lose a little bit of what made us who we are. The memories slip away. Friends change, we change. Folks grow up, move away. The places that marked our childhoods are replaced. Still, there are core people and things that keep you rooted. That’s why it’s so hard to imagine the 805 without Joe.

I wish I was a better writer so I could express everything I feel about Joe but this is all I have now. It’s all just so sad.

Love ya, Joe!

- Zack Nelson

It’s the premier night of hardcore in San Diego, Cuddling In The Grasslands. This time around we’re diving into the first round of next week’s best UK Punk 7” 1981-1983 tournament. You all get to see the bracket a week early and we’re jamming a track off each record together. Let’s go!

Read more

Killer episode this week on the pod. Check it out here, here, or here.

This week on the pod Kev, Dan, and I spent a lot of time talking about Lou Koller and Sick Of It All. I wrote this a couple weeks back when he passed. If you aren’t a SOIA fan, I implore you to check them out by starting at the beginning of their catalog with the Revelation Records 7” and working your way at least through their 1994 LP, Scratch The Surface. They’re a hardcore band who put together great records and that’s how they should be taken in. However, as a cheat, here’s a starter kit taking you through what I consider the most classic SOIA material.

1. “MY REVENGE” DEMO TAPE 1986

I don’t know if I’d consider the SOIA demo essential material. Everything gets re-recorded for the 1st 7” or 1st LP, but it IS cool cuz it’s ‘86 and they’re already a good band. Plus that cover art is pretty legendary.

2. “GIVE RESPECT” S/T 7” 1987

My favorite SOIA song. Killer tune. Good life lesson message while not being preachy.

3. “THE BLOOD & THE SWEAT” BLOOD SWEAT AND NO TEARS LP 1989

First song off their first LP. Hard, fast and mean with a big singalong/mosh. The blueprint for modern hardcore at its best. Many would forget the fast (and most important) part.

4. “MY LIFE” BLOOD SWEAT AND NO TEARS LP 1989

I remember the first time I heard this on CD, I played it like 10 times in a row. Nothing had hit me like this since I heard “Do What You Want” by Bad Religion a few years prior. Of course when I listened to that one a dozen times in a row it was a little more frustrating since it was on cassette. This SOIA song was much easier…I smashed the fuck out of that back button and jammed it over and over and over. Every time it got better. Every time I was blown away by the simplicity and how something could be equal parts catchy and hard. It’s legitimately the golden goose and in my opinion a crucial song in any hardcore starter kit.

5. “POLITICS” V/A NYHC THE WAY IT IS LP 1988

Whaddayaknow…46 more seconds of hardcore perfection from SOIA.

6. “WHAT’S GOIN’ ON” WE STAND ALONE 7” 1991

A little slower, a little harder. Still great.

7. “CLOBBERIN’ TIME” / “PAY THE PRICE” / “G.I. JOE HEADSTOMP” IN EFFECT ‘91 VHS 1991

Gods of tha stage.

8. “SHUT ME OUT” JUST LOOK AROUND LP 1992

Still fast. Still hard. Big chorus. Bigger singalong on the end. ‘90s hardcore at its best.

9. “BETRAY (MINOR THREAT)” LIVE IN A WORLD FULL OF HATE LP 1993

A rare good live hardcore record. LAST CHANCE TO DANCE!!

10. “SCRATCH THE SURFACE” SCRATCH THE SURFACE LP 1994

What’s the heaviest you can sound in E-standard without being metal?

(click above)

11. “GOOD LOOKING OUT” BUILT TO LAST LP 1997

What a banger track.

RIP Lou Koller.

Jhaja Iwaki of Lip Cream passed away last month as well. Lip Cream was one of the most prolific Japanese hardcore bands of the 1980s, putting out four LPs, two 7”s, a tape, and multiple comp tracks. They’re a rare hardcore band that kept the heat up until the end and never fell off. I’ve talked to a handful of people who like their final LP the most. He also sang on the final Judgement 7”. What a legend!

Lip Cream’s catalog recently got re-released by Relapse so they’re easy to get right now on vinyl, and everything is up on streaming. I’ve spent significantly less time listening to Lip Cream compared to Sick Of It All over the last 30 years, but here’s a short starter kit nonetheless.

1. “LONELY ROCK” S/T 7” (AKA LONELY ROCK) 1984

Baki from The Execute/Gastunk sang on the Lip Cream tracks on the Unlawful Assembly comp before Jhaja joined. This is his first record with the band. Crucial debut. All four songs are killer but this one comes first, giving you the feel for the whole record.

2. “VX-2” NIGHT RIDER MORE THAN FIGHT! 7” 1984

This is my favorite Lip Cream record, although the 1st song kinda blows. The next four are top tier hardcore including this one, “VX-2,” which is one of the best midtempo bangers of 1984.

3. “RADICAL MENTAL TRUTH” KILL THE IBM TAPE 1985

In the write up for the Relapse reissue, it says this came out on tape because they were influenced by Bad Brains Rock For Light. I think they meant the ROIR tape cuz that was exclusive to cassette when it came out…but cool nonetheless. That fun fact makes me like this song even more cuz it seems like the song title is Bad Brains-esque. They got positive mental attitude? Lip Cream’s got RADICAL MENTAL TRUTH!

4. “汚名” V/A THRASH TIL DEATH LP 1986

The final song on their five-song block from the compilation Thrash Til Death.

5. “FIGHT IN THE STREET (TEENAGE WARNING)” KILL UGLY POP LP 1986

First full length. Full of SIQ tracks like this one.

6. “ENOUGH TIME” 9 SHOCKS TERROR 12” EP 1987

Probably their best record. All ragorz, no skippers, and the best recording of all of their 12”s.

7. “HEAD GAMES” CLOSE TO THE EDGE LP 1988

Noiser and sloppier. Depending on who you are, that may be right up your alley. This is one of my favorite album covers of all time…seriously.

8. “カモフラージュ” S/T LP 1989

Their final record goes hard. The original was sample heavy. All of that was cut out for this re-release which is a pretty great variation for the catalog, although I’m sure some purists were butthurt.

9. “ドライヴ” JUDGEMENT Just Be… 7” 2000

The only non-Lip Cream track on the list. This is the final song off the final Judgement 7”. It starts with hi-hat sizzle and a bass run then breaks fast with a sick vocal cadence from this legend we are paying respect to right now. This song sounds like Judgement in their prime and a lot of that has to do with the vocal delivery.

RIP Jhaja Iwaki

With our failure to find any early or mid 1980s punk or hardcore bands from Arkansas in our Roadtrip! Hardcore USA episode, I had to go to a reliable source for confirmation that I wasn’t trippin’. Ben Sizemore from Econochrist stepped up to break down how the punk scene came about in Arkansas, who were the players, where they played, etc. We also get into his early punk days, the birth of Econochrist and some memories of their time as a band. A cool interview, so check it out.

If you’re in the San Diego area, come see my band SUBVERSIVE INTENT and say WHATUP. Upcoming gigs:

If you enjoy the podcast or this blog, here are the ways you can support:

1. Spread the word

2. Like/rate/review the podcast wherever you listen to it

3. Become a Patreon. The patreons have been keeping this project a live for over seven years.

4. Become a paid member on Substack. I get it. You’re loyal to Substack and Patreon feels OnlyFans-adjacent. Supporting on here also gets you access to all the archives (anything over a month old) plus all the bonus pods that the Patreons get.

5. Recurring payment-adverse? There’s always this.

6. Buy the Subversive Intent LP and listen to us wherever you stream music.

Thanks for the support!

Hardcore rules - peace!

- ZN

185milessouth.com

Six…No Skips, a monthly recommendation series from 185 Miles South. I’ll tread through the 50 years of punk and hardcore to pluck out some records that I think are good enough to merit you giving them a spin. ‘70s punk singles to one of the best of the 2020s, I got you.

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1. THE RUDE KIDS – STRANGLERS/PUNK WILL NEVER DIE 7” (1978)

The Rude Kids hail from Hagsätra, a suburb of Stockholm, Sweden, and you’d be pressed to find a punk 7” from 1978 that sounds as mean as this. Maybe Slash Your Face gives it a run for its money but I don’t know what else would. They kind of sound like Black Flag mixed with the hardest elements of the Buzzcocks to my smooth brain.

Vocalist Björn Olle Eriksson aka Böna’s voice is a huge part of that. It’s raw, gruff, and almost hoarse—you can feel his vocal chords straining and shredding. The bass breaks and choppy drumming, paired with the starts and stops on “Stranglers” are a big part too. The second song, “Punk Will Never Die,” ups the pace a notch and the chorus kind of reminds me of “No Reply.”

Tragically Böna died in a car wreck in ‘83.

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2. FINAL CONFLICT – ASHES TO ASHES LP (1987)

Other than Screaming For Change and Slave, is this the best California hardcore record of the 2nd half of the ‘80s? Maybe it’s in a duel with The Power Of Expression depending on my mood, but most days Ashes To Ashes takes it. I can never tell if this LP is cannon or criminally underrated, but I will say that most people who I see eye to eye with musically love this record.

1987-1989 is kind of a weird era of hardcore. Zooming out and looking at things globally, here are the buckets that I think dominated (quality wise, not necessarily in popularity):

1. Revelation Records / NYHC / Straight Edge

   I’m putting all of this in a bucket—basically Rev 1-10, all the CBGBs bands of the time (Killing Time, Breakdown, Leeway, etc.), and all the bands across the US that were kind of emulating either NYHC or Youth of Today. Outside of New York and the Rev catalog, I’m thinking Hard Stance, Against The Wall, Unit Pride, etc. in California and outlier bands like Powerhouse in Florida, Brotherhood in Seattle, and Wrecking Crew in Boston.

2. Japan / Birth of Burning Spirits

   This is the birth of Burning Spirits. Bands like Poison Arts, Chicken Bowels, and later Death Side, Nightmare, Tetsu Arrey, and Bastard are all kicking off. And they’re joined by vets who are arguably putting out their best material like Crow and Lip Cream.

3. UK fastcore

   Outside of the grind and crust that were percolating, the Brits had the fastcore scene popping off: Heresy, Larm, Ripcord, etc.

4. Birth of Powerviolence in CA

   This possibly overlaps a bit with the SXE/Rev stuff, but you get the first No Comment 7” along with the Infest 7”/LP, and the Capitalist Casualties demo.

5. Sweden

   You get No Security tapes, 7”s, and a split LP, the first two Totalitar 7”s, the first Svart Sno 7”, and Really Fast Vol. 4 comes out in 1988.

For outliers, you have Poison Idea in Portland putting out War All The Time and some of their best songs on those singles that land between that and Feel The Darkness. Then there’s Bad Religion putting out Suffer in 1988. RKL put out Rock N Roll Nightmare in ‘87—a record that shreds harder than anything not metal in the era.

But what’s the best old school ‘83/’84 style hardcore going on the West Coast? It’s gotta be Final Conflict and Ashes To Ashes is the LP that proves it. To me it sounds a lot like Crucifix Dehumanization or The Varukers Another Religion, Another War. Every song rips except “Shattered Mirror” and only one song (barely) breaks the three-minute mark, “Constant Fear,” is a total mindfuck that flies by and feels like it’s 90 seconds.

Eight of the 14 songs on here were on their 1985 demo, but this recording just sounds better. It was recorded by David Kory who did Infest Slave, Visual Discrimination Step Back and Listen, and No For An Answer A Thought Crusade. Pushead put it out and there’s a big ass booklet. Just a crucial hardcore record that YOU should own, or at least jam on the reg.

INFO / LISTEN

3. SUBZERO – S/T 7” (1991)

“Boxed In” is a GOATed NYHC song. If you haven’t heard it, drop everything and listen to it in the link above. That wasn’t enough? Listen to the version on their 1990 demo, their 1993 demo, their 1996 CD, or their 2003 12”. Want a different take? Hatebreed covered it in 2009, and Terror covered it in 2010. It’s basically the “Disconnected” of hardcore. It fuckin’ rules.

The rest of the Subzero 7” is pretty killer too, but it definitely lives in the “Boxed In” shadow. “Waiting” sounds like Merauder a full two years before their demo dropped. “Ice Age” sounds like it could’ve been a missing MTB off of Age of Quarrel. “One Too Many Times” might be too ambitious for me but that ‘90s NYHC bounce is infectious.

INFO / LISTEN

4. STEP FORWARD - 10 SONG EP 7” (2006)

Mid-2000s Boston hardcore band with a slew of modern hardcore heavyweights. Like the cover says, it’s a 10 song record. This is hardcore in its true spiritual format: a bunch of blazers packed onto a 7”. No song is over two minutes and only two are over one minute, but this isn’t a dollar bin fastcore album from the turn of the century—every song has a different structure and they never fall into the verse/chorus/verse/chorus/breakdown formula. Not only that, but they tuck in some really good little leads in a style that has never really embraced solos.

If you’re in a subpar hardcore band and you want to write one winner, just copy “Boiling Over.”

INFO / LISTEN

5. THE COMBAT ZONE – S/T LP (2014)

Mid-2010s underrated classic from a different slew of Boston heavyweights, this time it’s dudes from Bloodkrow Butcher, Savageheads, The Massacred, etc. They sound like Slapshot mixed with some of the faster stuff off of This Is Boston, Not LA like the FU’s or Jerry’s Kids. The record starts midtempo and then they blast you with “Give Me War” in the two slot which is a total ripper. It’s kind of like “Overdose” off the first Boston Strangler LP—same slot, same intensity. Just S-tier level hardcore punk with big hooks. “Stay the fuck away from me”…come on. Chef’s kiss. I ranked this one #27 on my best records of the entire decade list.

INFO / LISTEN

6. GEHENNA – NEGATIVE HARDCORE LP (2022)

Hopefully Mike Cheese doesn’t kill me for saying this is the most listenable Gehenna record since the demo. I don’t think he set out to be part of anything “listenable,” but good god, man…this record is an easy listen. In the era of streaming, if you make it through a whole record without wanting to skip tracks, that’s gotta be one of the biggest compliments possible, right? And when I say “listenable,” it’s not that it sounds meek. It’s super punishing. Tonally it’s totally brüt in tone, and while the guitar playing leans early ‘90s death metal, the mix is more classic ‘90s black metal with guitars high in the mix and kinda buried vocals and drums.

The LP starts with two bonafide ragorz, “Where The Worms Don’t Die” into “Like Maggots.” Then they hit us with what’s mostly a midtempo banger on “Return To Simpler Times” when it isn’t being sliced up by a scissor beat. My favorite track is “Know War / No Peace,” the first track off the B-side. It fades in all “It’s The Limit” style then comes in on a 3/4 fast beat. The mosh is a total mindfuck. It’s a midtempo breakdown but the timing sounds slightly off in a purposeful way, which makes you feel like you have vertigo. It bounces back and forth between midtempo and a slow headbob, then hits you with a nice solo and ends on a “fuck the police.” Hell yeah.

The record ends big with “Negative Hardcore,” a pounding final song that goes back and forth between tom smashing savagery and a heavy droning verse with an earwormed out guitar lick. Hypnotic. Savage. Listenable.

Want to hear me and Kev talk about all these records? Here’s the podcast:

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Killer episode this week on the pod. Check it out here, here, or here. Playlist HERE.

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If Sick Of It All broke up a few months after the 7” on Revelation Records came out, they would’ve been remembered. That’s not just because they were part of the early Rev cannon, it’s cuz they were a huge part of what made the early Rev catalog cannon.

I love listening to hardcore records but the genre is at its best live—when the speakers are cranking,…

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Were you in the room last Friday night at the Whistle Stop in San Diego to witness Dan Sant’s premier night of Britpop, Fucking In The Bushes? I hope you had fun. Now it’s time to walk down the block to the Humgo to witness its ugly cousin, Cuddling In The Grasslands…the premier night of hardcore. Instead of your regular potpourri of classic shit through the decades, this time we’re dialing in directly to 2026 to check some of the best hardcore and punk tunes of the year.

By the way, why’s that dude over there with the lazy eye staring at you? Did you bring your blade JIC or nah?

I think the Violencia song was 2025…ooops!

If you’re in the San Diego area, come see my band SUBVERSIVE INTENT and say WHATUP. Upcoming gigs:

If you enjoy the podcast or this blog, here are the ways you can support:

1. Spread the word

2. Like/rate/review the podcast wherever you listen to it

3. Become a Patreon. The patreons have been keeping this project a live for over seven years.

4. Become a paid member on Substack. I get it. You’re loyal to Substack and Patreon feels OnlyFans-adjacent. Supporting on here also gets you access to all the archives (anything over a month old) plus all the bonus pods that the Patreons get.

5. Recurring payment-adverse? There’s always this.

6. Buy the Subversive Intent LP or listen to us wherever you stream music.

Thanks for the support!

Hardcore rules - peace!

- ZN

185milessouth.com

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Killer episode this week on the pod. Check it out here, here, or here. Playlist HERE.

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Six…No Skips, a monthly recommendation series from 185 Miles South. I’ll tread through the 50 years of punk and hardcore to pluck out some records that I think are good enough to merit you giving them a spin. ‘70s punk singles to one of the best of the 2020s, I got you.

Paid Substackers: There is a podcast episode at the bottom of this post.

Patreons: The episode is available in the Patreon portal or in the RSS feed.

Let’s jump in…

INFO / LISTEN

1. Menace – G.L.C. 7” (1978)

Dude, it’s “G.L.C.” You know it, you love it, but that’s not why I chose this. I had my Itunes on shuffle one day and the B-side, “I’m Civilised,” popped on. What was this? I thought to myself. Have I lived my whole life as the ultimate Menace poser who only liked “G.L.C.”? Shameful, I know. I’m straight up baffled by how good this song is. So do yourself a favor and jam both like I did three times today already.

Jam these tracks: “G.L.C.” / “I’m Civilised”

INFO / LISTEN

2. RIISTETYT – SKITSOFRENIA LP (1983)

Ever since Daniel from Sorry State did the Finnish starter kit, I’ve spent a lot of time with hardcore records from that country and have carved out a slew of favorites. A handful of them appeared in the 1st wave Euro hardcore 7” tournament that we did last year: Terveet Kädet Ääretön Joulu, Rattus Rajoitettu Ydinsota, Mellakka Ei…, and Kaaos Totaalinen Kaaos. For 7”s, I’d add the Tampere SS record too. For LPs, it’s Appendix Ei Raha Oo Mun Valuuttaa, Bastards Järjetön Maailma, the first two Rattus 12”s, and my favorite, the one we’re talking about today, Riistetyt Skitsofrenia.

A unique thing about the Finnish HC bands compared to their 1st wave American counterparts is that they all got better as they went along. For so many early USHC bands, their first record is by far their best. By the time Riistetyt put out Skitsofrenia, they had already ripped a split 7”, their own exclusive 7”, a couple demos, a bunch of comp tracks, and their first LP, Valtion Vankina. So it’s kinda wild to think the next thing that they put out was going to be the one, but it was.

Their sound is totally dialed in on Skitsofrenia, blending the power of UK 82 with the sheer unbridled wildness of their early run. The recording captures it perfectly, letting the rippers rip and the plodding songs like “Odotus” and “Irtolainen” sound pummeling. There are memorable parts all over this thing, like that riff on “Vapaaehtoiset Kuolemaan” that sits between the verses or the opening of “Ala Elämään” that makes you feel like you’re falling down a mountain. The record doesn’t lull either—some of my favorite songs are on the B-side. The title track kicks it off on the flip and “Rotat” into “Takaa-Ajettu” might be my favorite 1-2 on the LP.

Havoc did an American press of this, so it’s not that hard to come by.

Jam these tracks: “Vapaaehtoiset Kuolemaan” / “Ala Elämään” / “Skitsofrenia”

INFO / LISTEN

3. OUTSPOKEN – A LIGHT IN THE DARK LP (1992)

This is one of the first hardcore records I got into and it’s still one of my favorites and super important to me. I love that it’s deathly serious and how nothing sounds like it, not even anything else in their own catalog. In my head, it’s the spiritual follow up to Verbal Assault’s Trial LP—a driving, 3/4 fast, powerful hardcore punk album with an all-time frontman laying down masterful lyrics on the top of it all. Dude, “false illusions and lies draw us into a losing game that we cannot win”…c’mon…too good.

The opening guitar riff is iconic, as are the first lines John Coyle spits when the whole band kicks in.

I've seen some change so fast

It was in a flash

Will their sincerity last?

As soon as the next bandwagon rolls along, their old feelings will be gone

They'll be moving on.

True dat!

If you’re a bassline head, this album has a plethora of them for you. No less than four songs kick off with the bass sans its six-string counterpart, with “Burning” probably being my favorite. Every track on this record has a memorable part, whether it’s a riff, a lyric, or something like how the drums change from the fills to a straight beat at the end of “This Human Machine.” Even the closing track, “Prisoner,” which clocks in at four minutes and drags a little, still hits you with a memorable opening and those huge "you can't imprison my mind" sections.

My favorite song on the record is the 3rd one, “Daydream.” They tap into some of the bounce that they displayed on the title track of their first 7”, Survival, and Coyle’s flow is so tight. Adding that little clean channel guitar on the chorus is a masterful chef’s kiss. Yeah, yeah…the whale sounds are sick too.

Jam these tracks: “A Light in the Dark” / “Daydream” / “Outside My Window”

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4. INEPSY – CITY WEAPONS LP (2005)

One time I was in a strip club in London, Ontario, having a good time watching a single mom apathetically shake her hips while she smoked a cigarette. As a show of solidarity I joined her, lighting up a Parliment as I tossed a $2 coin onto the stage in appreciation.

“DUDE, THEY’RE GOING TO KILL ME!!”

What the fuck, man? I turned to my left and it’s my bud, Bedge, in a full on panic. Apparently a menacing, portly woman had sidled up to him and whispered in his ear, “Buy me a beer or I’ll have you killed” before gesturing to a couple shady looking bikers in the back.

You’ll have to get into those podcast archives to see how this story ends, but anyway…my point is that I imagine those bikers listened exclusively to Bon Scott era AC/DC, Motorhead, and Inepsy.

You can miss me with 90% of motorcharged (motorcrust?) bands, but Inepsy rules. This record is full on, you guessed it, Motorhead worship with the punk sensibilities dialed up to 10—a much better Canadian export than Bret Hart or Sum 41 for sure.

Jam these tracks: “Invading City Weapons” / “City Weapons” / “No Order! Disorder”

INFO / LISTEN

5. LINE OF SIGHT – DISSENT 7” (2018)

Ever since the Supersoul comp put the final death nail in the ‘90s youth crew revival, we haven’t witnessed another significant rebirth of that style. The First Step emerged shortly after and carried the torch for a while and then at some point Mindset seemed to take over. Other than that, it’s been pretty grim. No other band of the genre has done a great LP in the past 25 years and few have really matched their dynamism even in smaller doses.

One who who did was Line of Sight with their Dissent 7”. These five songs clock in at roughly seven minutes and are oozing with the elements that subpar bands of this genre lack: anger and intensity. The aggressive youth crew toms on “Raze,” the Insted/UC worship on “Dissent,” the full-throttled YOLO on “Show of Force.” This is the good shit.

Jam these tracks: “Dissent” / “Show of Force”

INFO / LISTEN

6. BLOODSTAINS – ANTI-SOCIAL 7” (2023)

Yeah, it’s OC but there’s no cool ocean breeze, no hint of salt in the air. You’re still nursing that hangover from too many kamikazes last night and you can almost feel the heat of the pavement through the bottom of your Chucks. You’ve got another couple miles to go ‘til you’re home and the only thing keeping you going is the three songs you’ve been jamming on repeat from that band your buddy hipped you to. The band is Bloodstains and you swear those tunes could’ve been written within the walls of 1801 East Wilshire Ave, Unit 2 in Fullerton. You weren’t even alive when the blue album or Living In Darkness dropped so this is the closest you’re going to get and you know it.

Jam these tracks: “Anti-Social” / “Extinction”

If you’re in the San Diego area, come see my band SUBVERSIVE INTENT and say WHATUP. Upcoming gigs:

If you enjoy the podcast or this blog, here are the ways you can support:

1. Spread the word

2. Like/rate/review the podcast wherever you listen to it

3. Become a Patreon. The patreons have been keeping this project a live for over seven years.

4. Become a paid member on Substack. I get it. You’re loyal to Substack and Patreon feels OnlyFans-adjacent. Supporting on here also gets you access to all the archives (anything over a month old) plus all the bonus pods that the Patreons get.

5. Recurring payment-adverse? There’s always this.

6. Buy the Subversive Intent LP or listen to us wherever you stream music.

Thanks for the support!

Hardcore rules - peace!

- ZN

185milessouth.com

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Happy 4th everyone.

Shoutout America…the country that incarcerates more people than any other country on earth. In tribute to that, Dan and I cut another episode on the best/worst reality show there is, Love After Lockup. Paid Substackers can listen to it at the bottom of this post and the Patreons can listen to it in their RSS feed or in the Patreon portal. Consider supporting 185 Miles South by becoming a member in either place.

Onto some serious shit…

I wanted to mention something on this past week’s Substack about the Prairieland Nine but I couldn’t put together anything decent in time. It’s debatable if this blurb is decent either, but I had to say something nonetheless. If you haven’t heard about this story, these are nine folks who were given egregious, terrorism-enhanced, sentences in Texas last month stemming from a protest that took place a year ago today, July 4th, 2025, outside of an ICE facility in Praireland, TX. This includes Daniel Rolando Sanchez-Estrada who wasn’t even at the protest which is FUCKING INSANE. The message is clear: if you stand in clear opposition to this administration, you will be labeled a terrorist.

Many of you are probably aware of a similar situation recently in the UK with the Filton 25, which included Ola of Quality Control records. That struggle continues so continue to spread the word. Tyrany is on the rise across the globe and it’s up to us to raise awareness, speak out, and take it to the fucking streets.

Alright, time to get stupid…

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Killer episode this week on the pod. Check it out here, here, or here.

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Patreons: the podcast is available inside the Patreon portal or in your Patreon RSS feed

If you’re reading this I’m sure you already checked out last week’s post where I gave my list of the 100 greatest hardcore records of the 2010s. As expected, there were a ton of opinions and suggestions regarding the list, so I’m going to address most of them here. Here are the suggestions that were mentioned by multiple peoplpe:

WASTE MANAGEMENT POWER ABUSE 7” (2011)

This specific record was mentioned more than any other and for good reason. It fits right in with all the classic Boston hardcore stuff circa 2010. This was on the list at some point in the 80s or 90s and got bumped for something else. No ragrets…sorry.

CULO - NO RECORD SPECIFIED

A shit ton of people mentioned that Culo should’ve been on the list but not a single person mentioned a specific record. Culo is a good band who put out a slew of excellent releases in the 2010s. It was hard to narrow it down to one, so much like all the people who suggested them, I didn’t choose a record.

FOUNDATION WHEN THE SMOKE CLEARS LP (2011)

A couple people mentioned this specific record and a bunch of people mentioned Foundation without specifying a record. I think objectively Foundation is a good band. This is a well executed hardcore record with tons of ‘90s worship and it has a great recording to boot. I can see where if you were someone who liked this style, this could easily be in your top 10. For me, I have such an unreasonable aversion to anything that sounds “discordant.” For example, those guitar chords at the beginning of “Anthem For Redemption” are my personal hell. Only one song on this record clocks in at under two minutes and that’s generally a warning sign that a record isn’t for me.

CREEM S/T 7” (2012)

A handful of people mentioned this one. Honestly I didn’t realize that Clapton got the band back together. I’m not above admitting that “Layla” is pretty sick, but I never really fucked with him after he dropped his baby out a window.

BROWN SUGAR …SINGS SONGS OF BIRDS AND RACISM LP (2011)

Excellent, midtempo hardcore punk LP that takes some big risks, like having a sax part even more annoying than Fear. Most of it works though, even some of the other sax parts. Brown Sugar works in fast parts too, so I get if you wanted to call this a hardcore record you could, but to my ear I’d put it into the excellent 2010s punk bucket with Masshysteri, Dark Thoughts, Neon Piss, Hank Wood, etc.

CANDY - NO RECORD SPECIFIED

A lot of people mentioned Candy as a band that should’ve been on the list but no one mentioned a specific record. For heavy hardcore bordering on metalcore, I think Candy Says is a really good record. Good To Feel is pretty good too, although it’s hard for me to make it all the way through if I’m being honest.

CEREMONY ROHNERT PARK LP (2010)

Like Foundation, if this record connects with you I can totally understand it being top 10, 5, or even #1 on your list. It just doesn’t hit for me but it was definitely a phenomenon at the time and a big reason why this band is so revered. A lot of that is because they successfully pulled off maybe the hardest thing a hardcore band can do: change your style without embarrassing yourself.

HARM’S WAY NO GODS NO MASTERS 7” (2010)

A few people mentioned this record and a couple mentioned Harm’s Way in general with no record specifically mentioned. I was honestly kind of surprised that Isolation wasn’t mentioned at all since in my opinion, it’s one of the better heavy hardcore records of the last couple decades and “Breeding Grounds” is just a next level track. I had this 7” at some point but sold it, but always held onto Isolation.

HOUNDS OF HATE NO REDEMPTION 7” (2011)

A couple people mentioned this record and another person mentioned the demo. Pretty good 7” but solidly outside of my top 100 cuz it lacks the intensity of the best roots hardcore of the era.

INCENDIARY COST OF LIVING LP (2014)

I think maybe I had only ever checked out the LP that followed this, Thousand Mile Stare. I like the cover art on that one a lot so it drew me in. Musically, it was definitely not for me. It’s hard to parse out how I’m a big fan of goon mosh but totally averse to metalcore, but it is what it is. I’d put Thousand Mile Stare over the line into metalcore but this one, at least on cursory listen, sounds more like a straight mosh core record. I may have dug it if I jammed it at the time that it came out, but I don’t see myself spending any time with it now since there is just so much music out there. Regardless, I see the appeal of it so this was a good suggestion.

MAGNITUDE TO WHATEVER FATEFUL END LP (2019)

This is one that Kev said needed to be on there and this is a band and record I’ve tried to like a bunch of times. They sound like Strife and Trial mashed together so there’s a shot I could really dig this. I think it’s the stuff that they sprinkle in to make them stand out from their source material that I’m not a fan of, like the beginning of “Vital Emergence” or how there is a lot of subtle melody tucked into the fast parts.

Like Foundation, I think this is an objectively good band who put out a very well crafted LP which is hard to do, so I can see how this could go super high on some peoples’ top 100s or even be their favorite record of the decade. But the way I see it, there’s a balance in hardcore punk between well crafted and YOLO/DGAF. For my personal taste, I just need a little bit more from the acronym bucket.

URBAN BLIGHT TOTAL WAR 7” (2010)

Multiple people mentioned this one and at least one person suggested a record of theirs from the previous decade. I think it’s a fine record, but I also think those suggestions came from either Canadians or folks who lived close to the border. The production this band opts for is definitely intentional but not my preference, especially when compared to the other roots hardcore stuff of the era that sounds phenomenal.

VEIN ERRORZONE LP (2018)

I respect the fervor in which people put forward this suggestion, but those people have obviously never listened to the pod or read this blog. This is one of my least favorite styles of music since some dude invented the guitar, so I don’t even have the palate to say if it’s good or not. I can’t make it through 30 seconds.

WICCANS SAILING A CRAZY SHIP LP / FIELD II LP + UNSPECIFIED

Multiple suggestions came in for Wiccans with zero consensus on the record, but specific records were mentioned which I think is a good sign of merit. This is a band that I’ve never spent much time with. I think I peeped every single record when it came out, gave it the Larry David pretty, pretty good and never went back to them. I jammed Sailing A Crazy Ship this week and I can totally see the argument for it making the list…maybe it would if I redid this in a year.

ABUSE OF POWER WHAT ON EARTH CAN WE DO? LP (2019)

This sounds like a band that would open for Foundation and Magnitude.

BACKTRACK DARKER HALF LP (2011)

Someone mentioned this specific record and a couple people mentioned the band with no specific record. Backtrack was a 2010s powerhouse who put out solid releases and pounded the pavement big time. I think if we were doing a top 100 bands of the 2010s they’d be a no brainer for sure, but all three LPs would be significantly better as 7”s.

DAWN OF HUMANS SLURPING AT THE COSMOS SPINE LP (2015) / BLURST OF THE BIRDFISH 7” (2012)

Both of these got suggested. I can respect the game, but let’s be real…this is the egg punk version of raw punk.

EXIT ORDER SEED OF HYSTERIA LP (2017)

This is the first suggestion that would’ve made the list for sure. I think it’s a super cool, unique record that deserves accolades. This was just pure oversight…my bad!

FORSEEN HELSINKI SAVAGERY LP (2015)

Fitting album title cuz this record is definitely savage, but it’s way over the metal line for the list.

GREEN BERET STANDING AT THE MOUTH OF HELL LP (2016) / VIOLENCE IS THEIR CURRENCY 12” EP (2012)

Each of these records got mentioned. I had peeped Violence is Their Currency and maybe the 7” that followed back when they came out and thought they were pretty good. Neither would’ve made the list. I don’t know if I had ever jammed Standing At The Mouth of Hell before. On this listen, it’s excellent and definitely could’ve made the list. It’s making my record want list for sure.

KREMLIN DRUNK IN THE GULAG LP (2013)

This was a good suggestion and a killer record. One person mentioned this specifically and another simply mentioned the band name. I remember listening to one of this band’s earlier tapes or maybe the 7” when it hit a blog back when it came out and I didn’t care for it much. This LP rules though. It does a great job of being schizo on one end but super in the pocket on the other, and while the recording is intentionally lo-fi, they found a nice balance so it doesn’t seem LARPy. If I spent more time with this, it could definitely make the list. Another one added to my WL!

MINORITY UNIT - NO RECORD SPECIFIED

Minority Unit was a great live band. My band, Retaliate, had the pleasure of following them after they played their “last show” set at Sound and Fury 2012. That was a bummer of a slot but it was great watching them absolutely annihilate. Both 7”s are good but wouldn’t make my personal top 100.

MINUS HARD FEELINGS 7” (2011)

I got a couple mentions that I should’ve slotted this Minus 7” from 2011 over their 2019 LP, Compulsion. I like this 7” too but Compulsion is a trimmed down package that’s way gnarlier sounding. Plus it’s so sick that that their best record came out a decade after their demo. Speaking of, someone shouted the demo too but that’s 2009.

Someone mentioned this record and someone else mentioned the band without a specific record. The songwriting is good here but it’s held back by production that sounds like it’s a practice room demo.

Only one person mentioned this record and one other mentioned Power Trip without a specific record. I knew I was going to post this list on Reddit, so I had anticipated a large outcry of folks upset that Turnstile and Power Trip weren’t on the list. Regarding Power Trip, I mentioned on the podcast that I’m not really a fan of crossover in general, but like with anything there are exceptions. I think crossover lands one of two ways: leaning thrash metal or leaning hardcore. Bands who made the list like Take Offense and Mindforce land on the hardcore side. A band like Power Trip most definitely lands on the more thrash metal side musically, lyrically, and with the length of their tunes.

Hey, Maury said it not me. Now do eight songs in 34 minutes.

S.H.I.T. - NO RECORD SPECIFIED

A couple people mentioned that S.H.I.T. should’ve been included. I think their whole catalog is good and I spent some time with their prolific 2010s catalog trying to decide which one to include. I couldn’t really nail it down so they were omitted. This band put out a record as recently as 2024 that was killer and are a great example of what a good hardcore band can be.

SICKOIDS - NO RECORD SPECIFIED

Sickoids were mentioned by a couple people with no record specified. Their 2013 12” No Home easily could’ve made it for sure. It’s excellent and way better than the 2012 record. I just don’t know what I’d pull out to get it in there. This singer puts on an absolute clinic on this 12” and the drumming is great.

SQRM RODEO LP (2010)

I don’t have the ear for this stuff so I can’t say if it’s good or not, I can only say it’s not for me.

STICK TOGETHER SURVIVING THE TIMES 7” (2012)

Someone mentioned this record, another person mentioned the band with no specific record, and Kev had originally wanted the demo on the list. All the records have their moments but the top 100 is a pretty tight list. Think about it, we did a top 50 from 2025 and number 50 was a good record. Doing a top 100 for a decade is basically like doing top 10s for each year. If you’re a troo youth crew head and not an asshole elitist like me, I can see how this can make it high on your list but it’s not making mine.

TERCER MUNDO S/T 7” (2012)

A couple people shouted this 7”. As a total package, it would be an excellent inclusion. Its subject matter coming from the people singing it, backed with the all-time layout is really an impressive piece of hardcore punk.

TURNSTILE NONSTOP FEELING LP (2015) + UNSPECIFIED

Like Power Trip, I was surprised there wasn’t more of an outpouring of love for Turnstile. If you love this stuff, I get if it goes high on your list. No doubt, it’s a well executed and put together record. It was just never for me as I am militant in my clean vocals stance on hardcore records.

WAR HUNGRY S/T LP (2013)

Two people called out for this one and it was super high on Kev’s list. I think Kev has excellent taste in music so I jammed this a few times hoping I could like it enough to get it onto the list, but I just couldn’t. Heavy music with singing AKA stripper metal just isn’t my thing, but I fully get the appeal and it’s obviously a well executed album. If this came on while I was at Charlys Bar (RIP) in Ensenada working on my 2nd cubeta, I wouldn’t be mad at it.

WILD SIDE WHO THE HELL IS THE WILD SIDE? LP (2019)

How can you name your band this and then still get bodied by the song?

Hit it, Mick!

That’s it for bands/records that got at least two mentions. Here is a list of other records that got suggested. I’m not looking them up, this was just the info given. My notes are in parenthesis if necessary.

108 - 18.61

2x4 - Eight Song 7”

Alpha & Omega - Life Swallower

Altered Boys - S/T 7” (2012)

Anxiety - S/T 12” (2016)

Armor - Some Kind of War

Asocial - Dod At Kapitalismen LP (2016) (I need to check this…big fan of the Religion Sucks 7” from ‘86ish")

Aspects of War - Presence of Death

Axis - Show Your Greed

Back to Back - Flesh and Bone 7”

Bad Choice - Demo

Beta Boys - Late Night Acts

BIB - Moshpit

Big Laugh - Demo CS 2019

Big Zit - Electric Zit Vol 1

Bitter End - Guilty As Charged / Illusions of Dominance (Only one mention for each. I was surprised they didn’t get more shouts. Solid records, but just outside of my top 100)

Black Breath - Sentenced To Life LP (2012)

Blotter - Demo (2012)

Brain Killer 7” 2012

Burning Love - Rotten Things To Say

Cadaver Dog - Dying Breed

Caged Animal 7”

Citizens Arrest - Soaked in Others Blood 7”

Condominium - Warm Home

Criminal Damage LP

Culture Shock - S/T 12” (2017)

Dangers - Messy, Isn’t It?

Davidians - City Trends

Dead End Path - Blind Faith

Deathbed - Reduced to Nothing

Deathcage - Plague of Rats LP

Deathraid - All Life Ends

Deflect - Mass Delusion

Depths of Reality - S/T EP

Desperat - Hardcore Deluxe 12”

Detain - State of Emergency EP 2014

Double Negative - Daydreamnation LP

Down To Nothing - Life On The James

Eden’s Demise - Tower of Vanity (never heard of this but it sounds terrible)

Fire & Ice - Not Of This Earth

FocusedXMinds - Stay Focused

GOON - Natural Evil

Heavy Discipline - EP or LP

In School - Praxis of Hate 7”

Insist 7”

Intent - No Rules demo

Iron Lung - Savagery (2014)

Lebenden Toten - Mind Parasites

Lifeless Dark - Demo

Lose Lose 12”

Lumpy and the Dumpers - Huff My Sack LP (2016)

Mastermind - Bad Reaction 7”

Men’s Interest - More War 7”

Modern Life is War - Fever Hunting

Modern Pain - Pain Delusions

Modern Problems - Foolish Times

Mystic Inane - Ode to Joy

Nemesis - Dou-Koku 7”

New Brigade - Join the Brigade

New Lows - Harvest of the Carcass

No Class - First LP

No Time - You’ll Get Yours

Noose - Demo

OHYDA - S/T

PEARS - Green Star LP 2016

Protester - 2015 7” or LP

Protocol - Bloodsport 12” EP 2019

Pulling Teeth - Funerary

Put To Death - Separatist 7”

Ratas Del Vaticano - Rafagueados

Raw Nerve S/T

Red Hare - Nights of Midnight

Response - There’s No Choice

Rot In Hell - As Pearls Before Swine

Sabertooth Zombie - Human Performance Collection

Salvation - Mortality Interactions

School Jerks - Control 7” (2011)

Selfish - Life Has No Vacant Time LP

Shipwrecked - The Last Pagans LP

Sludge - Conduct LP

Sniper Culture - Combat Rock 7” 2019

Soul Search - Intolerable Weight

Step 4 Change - United Step

Suburban Scum - Internal War

Surroundings - S/T

The Rival Mob - Mob Justice

Tragedy - Fury

United Nations - Never Mind the Bombings

Vacant State - Fill The Void 12” (2011)

Vile Gash S/T

Violence to Fade - Unstoppable Force

Violent Future - Either 7”

xElegyx - S/T

These bands were mentioned once with no record specified: Anasazi, Bane, Berthold City, Demolition, GAZM, Hank Wood and the Hammerheads, Inclination, Invasión, Leather Daddy, Living Laser, LOTION, Orden Mundial, OTAN, Perdition, Ramallah, Sex Prisoner, Slices, Sudor, The Coltranes, Trap Them, Trauma, True Love, Wasted Time, Xibalba.

No one mentioned Retaliate or Somali Pirates….SHAME ON YOU ALL!

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1. Spread the word

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Thanks for the support!

Hardcore rules - peace!

- ZN

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The 2010s were a great decade for hardcore, maybe even better than the 2000s in the sheer amount of quality releases. Boston dominated the beginning of the decade with bands like The Rival Mob, No Tolerance, and Boston Strangler cranking out future classics. In the middle of the decade, the UK rose up and Violent Reaction, The Flex, and Arms Race were consistently putting out some of the best hardcore on the planet. By the end of the decade, the big tent of hardcore seemed to be completely dominated by heavy bands but some newer, interesting bands began to emerge like Never Ending Game, Mindforce, and Restraining Order, all fresh with their own styles. And through it all, timeless hardcore bands like Terror, Trapped Under Ice, Inmates, Framtid, Tragedy and others continued to put out banging records that stood tall next to anything that the newcomers were kicking out.

This list was put together by me with lots of help from Kevin Hare. On the podcast we went through a couple handful of records that he thought should be on here but I vetoed, so don’t get at him. If by chance you’re reading this blog for the first time, you’ll tell by the list that my taste in hardcore leans towards more 1980s inspired roots hardcore and all its various offspring. The faster side of things dominates the list because that’s what I personally think is the best style of hardcore. Some major records of the decade are omitted here, those slots were simply filled by better hardcore records, in my opinion of course.

In previous lists, we combined punk and hardcore. For the 2010s, the picks are 100% hardcore. It made it easier to whittle the list down to 100 but some of my favorite stuff from the decade like Masshysteri, Neon Piss or Dark Thoughts aren’t on here.

To get into the stats, the USA dominated the list with 72 records. The next most well represented were the UK and Sweden, both with six each and Japan with five. City wise, Boston totally dominated with 11 of the 100 records on the list. If you zoom out to Massachusetts as a whole, the state has 14 records on here. As for years, there was no super dominant year. 2013 had the most with 14, 2014 has 13, and 2010, 2015, and 2019 all had 12. The thinnest years were 2017 and 2018, both with just six.

The Pushead list is the gold standard of top 100 lists. Even with his, I probably only agree with half of it and I might only agree with like 20% of Prank’s top 100 of the 1990s. Still, these lists create a roadmap to check things out, see where our tastes lie and which paths we want to explore. I wrote about every record in this post so whether you agree with 80%, 50%, or 10% of the list, at least you’ll be able to see where I’m coming from.

Let’s get into it…

100. WETBRAIN S/T LP PAINKILLER RECORDS (2014)

A raucous record brought to you by the, well, raucous side of Clevo hardcore. With dudes from Gordon Solie, H-100s, Inmates, etc. you know it’s going to rip, but this one also dips sometimes into an unexpected snotty (and sassy?) tunefulness.

99. AJAX S/T 7” STATIC SHOCK RECORDS (2015)

Ajax put out two 7”s in back to back years. Both rule. I guess really either of them could’ve made it on here but I went with this one cuz there’s no intro. Some accents and we’re straight into some no frills, mean sounding hardcore. I hate the phrase but if we’re going to use it, coincidentally “Appeal to Heaven” is a God-tier track.

98. NAYSAYER DOWN BUT NOT OUT 7” REAPER (2011)

Naysayer bring the pain with their 2nd 7”. It’s tight, riffy, and most importantly they blend in good fast parts that make the breakdowns feel even bigger. That mosh on “Your Fate”…goddamn.

97. STIGMATISM S/T 7” STATIC SHOCK (2018)

Stigmatism’s 2023 LP is their best record but they were sick out the gate here on their first release. It’s obviously a love letter to 1983 NYHC, but there’s more to it than that—some of the fast parts sound more UK82 than USHC, giving it its own flavor.

96. RATED X DEMO ‘19 TAPE RAIN ON THE PARADE (2019)

The Abused meets Confront meets No Tolerance. Furious, no-frills hardcore that cranks out four songs in under five minutes.

95. INSTITUTION DOMEN ÄR SATT LP DE:NIHIL (2012)

Dudes from Totalitär and Herätys come together to create a ripping, powerful record that sounds a lot like the later era Totalitär. You know what to expect and it delivers with zero clunkers, pretension, or bullshit. Havoc Records rereleased this the following year.

94. DOWNFALL DEAD TO ME 12” EDGEWOOD RECORDS (2019)

Excellent meat and potatoes, ‘90s NYHC style hardcore from this Richmond, VA band. It starts with one of the best intros of the decade then smashes through five killer tracks.

93. LOW THREAT PROFILE PRODUCT NUMBER ONE 7” DEEP SIX/DRAW BLANK (2010)

Members of Crossed Out, Infest, and Lack of Interest come together to put out this ripping hardcore record. Yeah, with those dudes you’re going to get your fix of powerviolence parts, but half the record is just straight up short hardcore songs. In that way, it almost comes off as much like the Protes Bengt record than any of the members’ classics and I ain’t mad at it.

92. TRAGEDY DARKER DAYS AHEAD LP FERAL WARD (2012)

It’s kind of unfair when a band puts out a record so classic that the rest of their catalog gets graded on a curve against it. In Tragedy’s case, they put out two stone-cold classics to kick off the 2000s, their self-titled LP and Vengeance–the Mount Everest and Kangchenjunga of their catalog. People were let down by their 3rd LP, Nerve Damage, and I never really understood why. It sounded like a Tragedy record. Maybe most Tragedy fans were just posers of the genre like me and two LPs was enough stadium crust in their diet.

Their 2012 LP, Darker Days Ahead was widely considered a return to form and people seemed to enjoy it a lot. I don’t disagree…it sounds like a Tragedy record, and that means it’s worth spinning for the production alone. Maybe if I were a super fan it would make the top 10 for the decade but as a casual, I’m looking for a “Vengeance” or a “Confessions Of A Suicide Advocate” level hit and it just doesn’t come.

91. TRAIL OF LIES FEARLESS 7” TRIPLE-B (2019)

Two song banger 7” from this Syracuse hardcore band. Hatebreed meets Path of Resistance. “Fearless” is harder AND catchier but “Strong Willed” is fast. I can’t decide which I like more. Dude’s voice is so blown out and awesome. Oh, yeah…and it has one of the best album covers of the decade.

90. UNIFIED RIGHT S/T 7” TRIPLE-B (2015)

Seven rippers and a dragger that they mercifully put last on the record. Killer, Straight Ahead/Youth of Today inspired roots hardcore that brings the heat on 7 outta 8 songs.

89. DIVISION OF MIND DEMO CASSETTE SELF RELEASED (2017)

Division of Mind’s first recording is one of the best moshcore records of the decade. The production isn’t as big as their LP, but it still sounds savage and every second on this demo is vital unlike subsequent releases where the In This Defiance style vibe setting seems to be just as important as the tunes.

88. DEATH THREAT / RUDE AWAKENING SPLIT LP TRIPLE-B (2013)

Death Threat teams up with Rude Awakening for their final recorded output. “Only The Lawless Remain” is probably their heaviest song since Peace & Security. Nice Side by Side cover too. On the flip, Rude Awakening bring the pain with rugged Terror/Trapped Under Ice hardcore stylings.

87. ACUTE 殺人予告 CD-R SELF RELEASED (2012)

The follow up to their 2009 7”, 猟奇と幻想, and the only CD-R release in our list. It’s missing Chippe’s vocals that made the first record unique, but bass player Yuzo-C takes over and has his own great flavor. Musically, it’s raw but it still has the extra flourishes that you get in a post-Burning Spirits Japan, both in the leads and with some unique choruses. This was released as a 12” the following year on Sweden’s SMRT Records.

86. GOD’S HATE MASS MURDER LP CLOSED CASKET ACTIVITIES (2016)

A masterclass in brutality that pulls influence from the hardest records of the ‘90s. Truth in the Age of Lies? Yup. Master Killer? Yup. Hell On Earth? Yup. The soundtrack to Sasquatch eating a wild boar like an apple.

85. FREEDOM PAY THE PRICE 7” BACK TO BACK (2013)

Eight song, ten minute record on hardcore’s spiritual format, the 7”. It’s Droppin’ Many Suckers for a new era.

84. BLACKLISTED WHEN PEOPLE GROW, PEOPLE GO LP DEATHWISH (2015)

This is Blacklisted’s 4th and final LP, following six years after 2009’s No One Deserves To Be Here More Than Me. When People Grow, People Go is a bit of a return to earlier form, although they don’t return all the way to being a Terror/American Nightmare hybrid by any means. In a world that made sense, this would be the 3rd LP and No One Deserves… would follow it, but have you read Blacklisted lyrics, dude? I don’t think the world makes sense to them. In a way this is the perfect long form stamp on their musical career but in a way it’s disappointing because who knows if this record got as many looks as it deserved?

83. PHYSIQUE PUNK LIFE IS SHIT 12” IRON LUNG (2018)

The first 12” from these Discharge-worshiping tone beasts. Oylmpia, WA’s answer to Disclose, Krömosom, and D-clone. Punishing.

82. DISTRICT 9 SOUTHBRONXMEMOIRS 7” DIGNIFIED BASTARD (2013)

The final District 9 record featured re-recordings of “Fool” and “Victim” from the NYHC documentary soundtrack and “Think About It” from the first 7”, along with a new track called “The Letter” which is good enough to get it on this list. That track is an all-time D9 song, on par with anything off the first 7”, and with lyrics that could only be delivered by Puerto Rican Myke—a true wordsmith and hardcore personality. RIP.

81. EYES OF THE LORD MISERY FEELS LIKE HOME LP (2019)

The 2nd and superior 12” from this band that combined the original 100 Demons singer, Bruce LePage, with the Young brothers from God’s Hate/Twitching Tongues. A heaping platter of riffs served up to one of the best voices in heavy music who knocks it out of the park. The star of the record is the track “Seventeen.”

80. NEEDLES DESEPERACIÓN 7” IRON LUNG (2012)

The third and final 7” from this Berkeley, CA hardcore band might be their best. Needles was a hardcore band fronted by Martin Crudo that he did with a couple dudes who were in Talk is Poison. It might be the most underrated band in his catalog cuz every piece of music goes hard and I never hear anyone mention this one. It’s all killer, no filler—just top shelf roots hardcore with one of the best voices in hardcore’s history over the top of it.

79. KIELTOLAKI VAPAUDEN ILLUUSIO LP FERAL WARD (2015)

Kieltolaki is carrying the weight for a nation here with the Kohti Tuhoa 7” from 2014 and the Kylmä Sota 12” from 2010 landing just outside of the top 100. The second LP from this band outta Turku, Finland follows in the footsteps of their Finnish hardcore forefathers like Kaaos, Riistetyt, and Rattus. It’s ripping, thick, and has a great, clean recording so you can hear everything and that makes the ARRGGGs and AHHHHs sound extra urgent. Excellent drumming, pummeling bass, and little guitar licks are littered all over this thing.

78. HÄVITTÄJÄT S/T 7” HARDCORE VICTIM (2014)

Pummeling raw punk outta Australia that’s sung in Finnish. It’s as much Olho Seco or Chaos UK as it is Tampere SS or Rattus, but that combo is what makes it stand out. They follow this up with an LP that’s also excellent.

77. FRAMTID THE HORRIFIC VISIONS 7” BRAIN SOLVENT PROPAGANDA / LA VIDA ES UN MUS (2016)

Most folks would probably pick for the best 2010s Framtid record would probably be Defeat of Civilization, but they’d be wrong. The Horrific Visions is leaner, tighter, sounds better and it’s the closest they get to Under The Ashes in their later catalog. Plus “By Any Reason” is just straight up diabolical.

76. ELECTRIC CHAIR PERFORMATIVE JUSTICE 7” IRON LUNG (2019)

At its core, yeah…it’s ‘80s style hardcore roots hardcore, but really it’s so much more than that. It’s rare to see a young band settle into a unique-to-them sound so early. They’re as unhinged as you can be while still staying mostly inside that first wave USHC lane. When it does step out it’s only briefly veering over to early ‘80s Austin to see what the Big Boys and Dicks were up to.

75. TØRSÖ SONO PRONTA A MORIRE LP SORRY STATE / AGIPUNK (2015)

Members of Punch and the Neo-Cons come together to make an album of full Totalitär style kängpunk worship blended with a healthy dose of modern USHC stomp. A relentless barrage of D-beat fury with a singer where you can feel the vocal chords shredding as the lyrics unfurl.

74. KNIFE FIGHT ISOLATED E.P. 7” PAINKILLER (2010)

Their final 7” capping a flawless catalog of mean, roots hardcore. On this one, I dunno if Knife Fight dropped their tuning a half step or someone got a new guitar pedal, but this record sounds heavier than the rest. Don’t get it twisted though, it’s still the same Knife Fight—fast and gnarly with Westbrook tucking in vocal hooks to make the songs stand out.

73. FIRMEZA 10 EL GRITO DE LA TIERRA LP SELF RELEASED (2010)

When it’s at its best, D-beat can work an abstract balance between being pummeling and hypnotic. El Grita De La Tierra took the Discharge blueprint and reduced it down to its rigid structure, very similar to how Spain’s D-beat forefathers MG-15 did on their 7” 25 years prior.

72. CHAIN RANK UP AGAINST THE WALL LP SELF RELEASED (2015)

Timeless, roots hardcore extending Boston’s epic run from the turn of the decade into the 2nd half. Toss it right in the mix with all the heavy hitters (Boston Strangler, Rival Mob, etc.) and it’s holding its own.

71. MURO ATAQUE HARDCORE PUNK BYLLEPEST DISTRO (2017)

Muro’s debut LP sounds like everything and nothing all at once. Their raw sound blends early ‘80s Finland, Brazil, Italy, and the UK seamlessly, making it feel like it’s something all their own while strangely feeling so familiar. You can tell they are true hardcore heads with massive collections, stitching together every influence they can to satisfy that insatiable urge to make memorable hardcore music. Respect.

70. CROW 眩暈 / 占領下日本 7” PRANK (2010)

This is a two song 7” by Japanese hardcore legends Crow, who put out their first record in 1985. In a total hardcore anomaly, I like this more than their debut 7”. It’s thick, pummeling and each song has a nice lead on it. I’d go as far to say that this might be my 3rd favorite Crow record behind 2006’s Bloody Tear and Last Chaos from 1987.

69. TALK IS POISON S/T 7” SELF RELEASED (2010)

The comeback Talk is Poison record, over a decade after their last 7”. I dunno if this is sacrilege to say or not but this might be my favorite one. It sounds like they came back with a purpose. Like maybe this dude was gonna go postal or some shit if he couldn’t get the band back together. Seriously, it sounds like he needed this.

68. HORRENDOUS WAR IS STILL HORRENDOUS 12” BRAIN SOLVENT PROPAGANDA (2015)

Another modern classic from Jonas Silverå (Herätys / Infernöh) but this one is straight Discharge worship…or perhaps Discharge worship-worship. It sounds more in line with England’s Disaster or fellow Swedes Dischange, Discard, or Meanwhile. Those bands are the best of their genre so that should be taken as high praise.

67. REGULATE YEARS OF RAGE 7” EDGEWOOD (2016)

District 9 is one of the most underrated hardcore bands ever and it’s mostly cuz of how funny they were in different ways on the NYHC documentary. Their big personalities kinda outshined their music to folks who were probably looking for an excuse to write them off as goons anyway. The thing is, D9 were able to tap into some tempo changes and rhythms that other bands didn’t—parts that make you go stinkface when they aren’t even tuned down to C or some shit. Think about “Fool” or “Behind Red Tape” or “The Letter”.

Look, that’s all a big windup to say that this Regulate record tapped into a lot of the best shit that D9 did better than any other band I can think of, especially on “Zero Toleranxe” and “On Sight.”

66. HARD STRIPES S/T 7” GRAVE MISTAKE (2014)

Hard Stripes’ 2nd 7” is late ‘80s NY meets Think I Care’s Mongrel LP with a healthy dose of 86 Mentality worship—the perfect soundtrack for a bald dude busting through a wall.

65. KATASTROF S/T 7” BEACH IMPEDIMENT (2017)

Another one-and-done record from this posse of Swedish all-stars, including our boy Jonas Silverå who seems to be on almost every Swedish record that I like from the decade. I’m leaving the Larma LP and the Stress SS 7” off this list just so it doesn’t seem like I’m his clandestine publicist. This rules.

64. GAS RAG HUMAN RIGHTS EP 7” BEACH IMPEDIMENT (2013)

Unhinged, raw hardcore punk that’s in and out and never overstays its welcome. Minimal distortion on the guitar makes you feel every strum, drum hit, and bass pluck. It doesn't necessarily sound like Die Kreuzen, but it reminds me of Cows and Beer in the way it pushes up against the boundaries of what first-wave USHC was, yet you could never accuse it of being anything else.

63. SAVAGEHEADS S/T 7” X-PLOIT / TWERP (2014)

Some of the best UK82 style hardcore punk ever played by dudes who spell “color,” “humor,” and “poser” the right way…and their 2022 LP is even better.

62. BOOTLICKER NUCLEAR FAMILY EP NEON TASTE (2019)

This hardcore band from Western Canada really carved out their niche piece of the D-beat sound. They dial down the six-string distortion while cranking it on the bass and record the cymbals in a way where they’re absolutely peaking. They take it to the brink on this EP but hone it in and perfect it for their 2021 LP.

61. CIVILIZED CHOPPING BLOCK LP YOUTH ATTACK (2017)

Ripping, straightforward hardcore that sounds more like Youth of Today or label mates The Repos than what you’d expect from a label known for “mysterious guy hardcore.” Relentless.

60. CAREER SUICIDE MACHINE RESPONSE LP STATIC SHOCK / DERANGED (2017)

With Machine Response, Career Suicide returned with their first LP in over a decade. It garnered press all over, including NPR featuring a song and Pitchfork giving it a 7.5! Well shit, I gotta say it’s pretty well deserved here. They’re way better musicians on this record than they were on the first LP but it doesn’t seem like they have lost any of the fire. It’s still well executed early ‘80s hardcore, now just diced with a bit more of what was percolating in ‘78/’79.

59. FREE SPIRIT FREE YOURSELF TRIPLE-B/LOCKIN’ OUT 7” (2010)

A serious contender for the best record with the worst art title. Even conceptually, I dunno how free I’d feel floating around 3000 feet up in a death basket. One time I went parasailing and that shit sucked so bad cuz it somehow managed to make me feel bored and scared at the same time. How does that even happen? I think it would’ve only been enjoyable if I was super stoned and had “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” on in my headphones or something. Trust me, if I ever have to go up in a hot air balloon for an anniversary or some shit, I’ll be prepared this time.

But about the tunes…dude, it’s Boston in 2010. You know it’s fire. This record is on the level with all the classic shit of the era (Boston Strangler, Rival Mob, etc.). Essential.

58. TOZCOS EXISTENCIA ATURDIDA 7” VERDUGO DISCOS (2015)

Santa Ana’s Tozcos blend UK82 with the more tuneful side of early ‘80s Scandi punk like Appendix, Svart Framtid, and Bannlyst. A lot of this sounds really similar to those first Rixe 7”s that came out at the same time, so maybe there was just something in the air whispering to chosen ones across the globe to lay down some chunky, bass-driven modern classics.

57. GLUE ENEMY 7” KATORGA WORKS / VIDEO DISEASE (2014)

The singer sounds like a rabid dog foaming at the mouth over these mostly mid-tempo hardcore punk jammers. This 7” is just memorable riff stacked on memorable riff—look no further than the first track, “Enemy.” There’s not a second of filler on here from the guitarist who always seems to be pushin’ it forward. On the flip, Side-B hits you with some speed for good measure.

56. CRAZY SPIRIT S/T LP TOXIC STATE (2012)

When I used to drink, my preference was three fingers of booze in a short glass with a regular beer back. Three fingers of Glenlevit with a Boddington back? Righteous. Tres dedos de Tradicional con un Dos Equis Ambar? Buenisimo. This is all a bad setup to say that my hardcore preferences are pretty much the same—nothing fancy. So when someone is coming with some Sangria ass shit—a blend of things that I don’t really want mixed together—sometimes I look at it sideways.

Crazy Spirit might be the ultimate Sangria ass band of the 2010s. Sometimes it feels like the first Minutemen 7” with more noodley guitars. Sometimes those noodley guitars stretch out into some more Wipers-eque madness. Then you have the vocals which are more Darby Crash than anything and everything is backed with production that The Mummies would say HELL YEAH to. I dunno how, but it’s just one of those weirdo records that works.

55. THE REPOS POSER LP YOUTH ATTACK (2016)

It’s nearly impossible for a hardcore punk band to put out multiple great LPs and the magic formula is almost never, “Let’s make the next one more rock ’n’ roll.” Well, rules don’t apply to The Repos and The Repos don’t seem like dudes who follow any rules anyway. They got a lot of that Youth of Today out of their system on the old records and are back with a Pick Your King meets Confront hybrid and a guitarist who plays like he’s probably in a cover band on the weekend.

54. PRAISE GROWING. CHANGING. HEALING. 7” REACT! (2010)

This is probably the only record that could be categorized “melodic hardcore” that I’d ride for since Faded Grey’s 2001 LP A Quiet Time of Desperation. Straight up, “Caught in a Cycle” and “I Believe” are the best two melodic hardcore songs of the decade and two of my favorite songs in that timespan, period. The whole record rules. It’s super sincere but not corny, kinda like Until The End by Battery but this record has better drumming.

53. INMATES S/T LP PAINKILLER (2014)

Full throttled, diabolical hardcore punk from Cleveland, OH’s bastard sons. The Inmates are a mashup of that ‘90s Clevo H-1000s/Gordon Solie Motherfuckers sound sliced and diced with ‘80s Japanese bands like G.I.S.M., The Swankys, and Lip Cream. A solid ass record right in the middle of their catalog and it kicks off with one of their most classic tunes.

52. SYNDROME 81 DÉSERT URBAIN 7” DESTRUCTURE RECORDS (2015)

Syndrome 81’s first proper 7” brilliantly juxtaposes street grit with beautiful flowing melodies. It's like a pair of worn out steel toe boots planted in the middle of a waterbed dressed in 1,500 thread count sheets. Underneath the duel between rugged and senti, there’s an unyielding rhythm section that pushes the whole thing forward. And then there’s “Traitre”—a bonus hardcore rager sitting right there in the middle of the record on a sick little misfit island.

51. LONG KNIFE MEDIATIONS OF SELF DESTRUCTION LP LONG KNIFE RECORDS (2014)

Raging hardcore punk for those who prefer to walk in the gutter instead of on the sidewalk. Is it lazy to compare this to their fellow Portlanders, Poison Idea? Probably, but let’s just say this: Poison Idea is one of the greatest hardcore bands of all time and one of the hardest to replicate cuz you have to knock every element out of the park. Your drumming is mid? Fuck off. You can’t solo? Get outta here. Your singer is a shy boi? C’mon, dawg. Even if you pass those requirements, you have to be able to write memorable songs that rip on a casual listen and pop off the page when analyzed on a deeper level. Long Knife delivers not only on this record but across their whole catalog.

50. TERROR KEEPERS OF THE FAITH LP REAPER RECORDS (2010)

This record was a phenomenon at the time. For a band that owned the 2000s, their 2008 LP seemed to be a big letdown to some fans and made folks question if Terror could return to past glory. It seemed like the band took that personally and made it a mission to remind everyone that they weren’t just one of the best hardcore bands in the mix, they were the best hardcore band, period. From the combination of HC classics they’ve written over the years combined with their live gig, that’s definitely an argument that can still be made.

And about those classics, this album, their 5th 12”, added to that treasure trove big time. “Stick Tight” might be a top five Terror song and the title track remains their biggest anthem over 15 years after this album was released.

49. BE ALL END ALL OBJECT TO PERSONA LP TRIPLE-B (2019)

Thick, fast, modern hardcore that switches up fast beats as much as mosh tempos. Spastic at times with memorable grooves in others. It’s a hardcore record where it evokes a strange desire: wanting to play it twice. At least one dude from this band went on to be in Collateral, which is one of the best bands of the 2020s.

48. PRISONER ABUSE S/T LP PAINKILLER RECORDS (2012)

Boston hardcore circa 2010 with four heavies handling business. If you thought this was the one that might miss, you were wrong.

47. GULCH 2019 PROMO CASSETTE CREATOR-DESTRUCTOR (2019)

Gulch had put out music before—both the 2017 demo and the 2018 7” were good. But both songs on this two song promo were a level beyond, blending what Hoax was doing while mixing in more blatant moshcore on one end and some almost-black metal riffery on the other. Backed with a big recording, their unique style was unstoppable. Both these songs were on their LP the following year which was one of the biggest records during the Covid-19 lockdowns.

46. HOAX S/T 7” DERANGED (2011)

Rough, raw, and stompy tunes with a purpose. You can’t have a song title like that first one and come with some bullshit, right? They didn’t and Hoax would end up being one of the most influential bands in the underground to this day.

45. PARANOID DESTROY FUTURE LESS SYSTEM 7” KONTON CRASHER (2014)

Yeah, it’s the best drawn album cover of the decade—that’s getting it on the list alone, but the tunes back it up big time. Destroy Future Less System is raw, blown out hardcore with some minor black metal flourishes. All that plus it has a killer recording, so this thing totally surges in your speakers.

44. BIG CHEESE AGGRAVATED MOPERY 7” QUALITY CONTROL (2018)

It seems like sometimes bands from over the pond just do that late ‘80s NYHC sound better than their US counterparts. In recent years, you have bands like Echo Chamber and Wits End but at the end of the 2010s, one band stood above the rest: Big Cheese. Aggravated Mopery is a brilliant distillation of a post-Age of Quarrel world where that pri-core-dial soup was cooking up classics like Brightside and Born to Expire.

43. NAILS UNSILENT DEATH LP SIX FEET UNDER / STREETCLEANER (2010)

You’re out having a nice day hiking by yourself when suddenly you feel something give on your right side. You look down in horror. Your foot is sliding away from you. You try to hurl yourself the other way to avoid following its downward trajectory. You fail. You’re sliding now on your side. You should’ve worn pants. Weeds and dead brush fucking hurt. You’re going too fast now…this is fucked. You begin tumbling and get banged over what you think are a couple smaller rocks. Is your arm broken? You feel everything and nothing all at once. Your vision is now only darkness and brilliant flashes of light. You’re only halfway through the title track…are you going to make it through the end or succumb to your injuries and give in to death’s warm embrace?

42. SEED OF PAIN CHAMPIONS OF CHAOS LP PLEASE YOUR CASE (2018)

Humanity is the Devil, In This Defiance, and Truth In The Age of Lies boiled together to create a ‘90s hardcore-inspired gruel. Non-posers line up to say, “Please, sir, I want some more.”

41. LINE OF SIGHT DISSENT 7” YOUNGBLOOD (2018)

There was a time in the 1990s where the youth crew revival was one of the most vital components of what made up the broader hardcore scene. Since it flamed out in the year 2000, there have been a few bands who have popped up to carry the torch here and there throughout the years but never a full on scene. Most notable of those bands would probably be The First Step in the early/mid 2000s, and Mindset in the early/mid 2010s. In a post-Mindset world, this Line of Sight 7” probably represents the best of the style—fast songs played with purpose and filled with the one element that third rate bands of the genre always lack: anger.

40. KING NINE SCARED TO DEATH LP MASS MOVEMENT (2013)

It can’t be a coincidence that the first bass notes lurking beneath the feedback that opens this record sound like a more ominous “It’s Clobberin’ Time.” You know, those notes that whenever you’ve heard them throughout your life, you knew that as a self respecting coreman that it was time to enter thy pit. This moment is no different given that Scared To Death is the premier moshcore record of the decade. The bat signal is up and it’s about to be a warzone for the next 28 minutes.

39. MINDSET LEAVE NO DOUBT LP REACT! (2012)

In a post-Youth of Today world, youth crew hardcore is generally always best on demo tapes or 7”s. So the fact that Mindset was able to pull off a great LP is a feat cuz in this style, you’re great or you’re ass. The tunes on Leave No Doubt are fast and aggressive, the playing is tight, and the lyrics are well crafted. Most importantly, the drumming is ripping and can stop on a dime. Oh, and it has a perfect album cover to match the vibe/style.

It seems like whenever I mention bad album art, I’m always served up the response: what, you just want a live photo of the singer yelling on the cover or something? Dude, yes…yes, I do. Exactly.

38. BLAZING EYE LONELY CORPSE 7” LA VIDA ES UN MUS (2016)

Blazing Eye have a flawless catalog but the final song on their final 7” is their masterpiece. Musically, “Lonely Corpse” is so grim, raw and chunky. It makes you feel like you’re stumbling home alone from the bar, bull-in-china-shopping anything in your way when something tells you to stop, so you do. You look down and are confronted by your own mortality staring back at you. Who’s this guy? Where did he come from? Why did this happen? Does anyone care? Who will bury this lonely corpse? You stumble on but can’t get him out of your mind. It’s now 10 years later and you’re still thinking about him.

37. DOWNPRESSER DON’T NEED A REASON LP 6131 (2013)

My personal favorite moshcore record of the decade. Riff stacked upon riff, stellar drumming and one of the best lyricists in the entire big tent of what we call hardcore styling on top of it all.

36. ARMS RACE NEW WAVE OF BRITISH HARDCORE LP LA VIDA ES UN MUS (2016)

Mean, gruff, over the plate hardcore punk. It’s a bold move to call your album something like The New Wave of British Hardcore. You’re setting yourself up for a The Shape of Punk to Come sad trombone ass failure if you whiff. Arms Race didn’t. If this is the one record that folks pick up to get an idea of the mid-2010s roots hardcore revival from Dan Sant's motherland, I think they'd get a pretty good understanding of what it was all about.

35. D-CLONE CREATION AND DESTROY LP AGIPUNK / 540 / MOUSE (2012)

By far the gnarliest sounding record on the list. Pummeling D-beat played at the most breakneck speeds while using the most savage tones in the toolbox. The soundtrack to being the first dude to face an MG 08 on the battlefield.

34. BLOOD PRESSURE NEED TO CONTROL LP BEACH IMPEDIMENT (2016)

An avatar of the blistering Pittsburgh scene from this era. Not unlike what was going on in England at the same time, it’s fast, over the plate hardcore with gruff vocals and a bit of boot mixed in. Combine that with a great recording and a killer album cover to top it all off. Hell yeah.

33. TAKE OFFENSE TABLES WILL TURN LP REAPER RECORDS (2011)

With their 2009 7”, Peace In Death, Take Offense had begun to carve out their own unique brand of crossover—part Venice, part NYC, but always waving the banner for their hometown of Chula Vista, CA. With Tables Will Turn, they dropped an LP to present their sound to the world. “Power In Our Hands,” “No Tomorrow,” and “Walks of Life” are unmatched crossover classics of the modern era.

32. VIOLENT REACTION CITY STREETS LP QUALITY CONTROL / PAINKILLER (2013)

This Violent Reaction record was the first full length released out of the scene dubbed “The New Wave of British Hardcore.” The history of hardcore tells us that the 7” to LP jump is a daunting task that is mastered by few. For Violent Reaction, it was a success. Their blended sound of old school hardcore mixed with boot sensibility worked in the longer format, and this LP gave a more heightened legitimacy not only to them but their scene as a whole.

31. SLANT VAIN ATTEMPT EP 7” IRON LUNG (2019)

Slant’s masterpiece is their 2021 LP but goddamn, this 7” goes too. How does a band from South Korea do the Boston 1982 meets Boston 2010 style hardcore better than almost anyone? Who fuckin’ knows, but it’s a helluva thing to witness.

30. ROTTING OUT STREET PROWL LP 6131 (2011)

Rotting Out had already been a good band for years by the time they released their first LP, but with Street Prowl they became a beast. The riffs were better; the drumming was tighter. The recording was perfect for the album with the bass sitting so nicely in the mix, shining in the small moments when it needed to. Musically Street Prowl blended modern roots hardcore with what the hardcore-friendly EpiFat bands like Good Riddance and AFI were doing in the mid ‘90s, but Walter’s lyrics and delivery made it 100% hardcore.

29. OUT COLD A HEATED DISPLAY LP PAINKILLER (2013)

Out Cold’s catalog in the 1990s and 2000s is one of the most consistent in the history of hardcore, putting them in the conversation for most underrated HC band ever. It’s a dartboard discography—choose one and put it on, it’ll be good. The band broke up in 2010 when vocalist Mark Sheehan died but at some point the rest of the band gathered old recordings they did in 2005. They began to add to them and eventually recorded vocals with their original singer, Kevin Mertens. This record came out in 2013 as A Heated Display. It rules.

28. WARCRY SAVAGE MACHINERY LP WARCRY RECORDS (2012)

These Portland lifers don’t skip a beat on their final 12” that came out 10 years after the first. Track after track of fresh sounding D-beat (how?) and mid-tempo bangers that all bring the heat. This team must own a riff bank in the Cayman Islands or some shit.

27. THE COMBAT ZONE S/T SIDE TWO LP

UK82 meets Detroit/Lansing ‘82 with a mean ass voice on top of it. Great riffs, tones, and militant drumming. One of the most underrated LPs of the 2010s. If someone has an extra, I need one.

26. PEACEBREAKERS EVERY DAY BATTLE 7” ROCK ‘N’ ROLL DISGRACE (2013)

A mash up of Choke’s 1982-1988 catalog. HELL YEAH.

25. OMEGAS BLASTS OF LUNACY LP PARTS UNKOWN / HARDWARE (2011)

Blasts of Lunacy builds off the resurgent sounds from the No Way era (Direct Control, Government Warning, etc.) while pushing the boundaries of a throwback style. There’s an unmistakable swag on this record too, like they knew during the writing process that they were in the middle of making something special and weren’t too bashful to strut it. So while musically Blasts of Lunacy may pull more musically from the Bad Brains, in terms of pure unadulterated confidence, maybe it has just as much Dead Boys or Richard Hell and the Voidoids in it.

24. THE FLEX WILD STABS IN THE DARK LP VIDEO DISEASE / MILK RUN (2014)

Your corneas burn; your prefrontal cortex is overloaded. It’s unadulterated, blistering hardcore that mixes white knuckle fast parts and mid-tempo waffle stomp. It’s probably the best British hardcore LP of the era.

23. PURE DIGUST S/T 7” FLOPHOUSE (2014)

Dude, just listen to the 2nd riff on “Denied.”

22. MINUS COMPULSION LP THE FERAL PLANET (2019)

One of, if not the most underrated hardcore LP of the decade. Minus merge savage, breakneck hardcore with stompy mosh creating this timeless slab-o-wax. It’s a nihilistic sounding record, but pull out that lyric sheet cuz Travis is one of the better lyricists in the game. “Action” an all-time MTB.

21. COKE BUST CONFINED LP GRAVE MISTAKE (2013)

Confined is noisy, tight and can blast off into hypersonic speeds in the blink of an eye. This record was too punk for the straightedge kids and too straightedge for the troo punx, but it’s perfect for those who know what’s up.

20. G.L.O.S.S. S/T 7” TOTAL NEGATIVITY / NERVOUS NELLY / SABOTAGE (2015)

While bathing in feedback, G.L.O.S.S. unleashed their mission statement in the first 20 seconds of this record before unloading into an eight minute barrage of rowdy, hardcore punk. Lyrically, the record tackled issues that the transgender community still faces while existing in an intolerant country. Sonically, it’s a mashup of the first two Los Crudos 7”s with the first couple Hoax 7”s. Crucial.

19. HERÄTYS S/T LP NOT ENOUGH (2010)

When I think about Swedish D-beat in the 1990s into the 2000s, I think of big, savage recordings from drop-tuned, heavy bands like Disfear, Wolfpack, and Skitsystem. This Herätys record flies in the face of all of that and falls more on the Totalitär side of things, but it’s kinda even more minimalist than that. There’s barely any distortion on the guitar which gives you a clean look at the left hand speed of the riffs. It’s like harDCore 1981 mashed up with unhinged mangel madness. Totally bitchin’.

Buuuuuut…visually, we gotta call this one out as another contender for the best album with the worst art championship. Even Rick Grimes thinks they could’ve come up with something better.

18. KRIEGSHÖG S/T LP HG FACT / LA VIDA ES UN MUS (2010)

The first Kriegshõg LP is a pummeling, blown out D-beat hardcore assault that pounds you out with an unstoppable auditory onslaught. That is, until you give into the madness and let it wash over you. Bathe in it, let it seep into your pores. Then it becomes a hypnotic beast. You start to notice how crucial the mix is with the bass driving everything. Riffs start to stand out. They lodge into your hippocampus. The recording stops sounding like an abrasive wall of noise and emerges as more purposeful. The tracks flow perfectly from one to the next, and then it’s over. Time to take another dose with a fresh needle drop.

17. WARTHOG S/T 7” BEACH IMPEDIMENT (2016)

Think about when Fear played SNL in ‘81 and you had Ian Mackaye, Harley Flanagan, and John Brannon all slamming together to “Beef Baloney.” How sick was that? Everyone loved Fear! Are there even any consensus bands that everyone loves anymore? Warthog might be one of the closest things we have, and their 3rd 7” from 2016 is one of the main reasons. It sounds like Poison Idea mixed with the meaner side of the Burning Spirits scene but the end result is a distinctive sound that’s totally singular to them.

16. VAASKA TODO CONTRA TODOS LP BEACH IMPEDIMENT (2015)

The 3rd Vaaska 12” is their best record—Discharge meets 1st wave Finnish hardcore. The recording is monotone as fuck in the best way that highlights the relentless D-beat riffing, while the vocals masterfully dance over the top. The guitarist can shred but tastefully hangs back unless it’s go time. The tunes are catchy even if you don’t know Spanish. It’s the best straight forward American D-beat LP of the decade.

15. FURY PARAMOUNT LP TRIPLE-B (2016)

Fury’s 1st LP is a beautifully sculpted record. It feels like they went over every inch of Paramount with an attention to detail that no other roots hardcore band has before. In that way, along with their subtle use of melody, it’s quite a feat that they can walk all the way up to the amazing-core cliff without ever having a toe slip over.

This LP feels like it’s born out of the spirit of “Too Deep Until Now.” It’s a powerful, masterfully constructed record with big hooks, great drumming and little guitar licks sprinkled throughout. But it’s exceptional cuz it never strays too far from their backbone which is, forgive me…the fury.

14. THE RIVAL MOB HARDCORE FOR HARDCORE 7” SIX FEET UNDER (2010)

“Hardcore for hardcore, what the fuck else?”

Thank you for saying what needed to be said. And no, Terry Funk, I will not take it easy, man.

13. RAT CAGE CAGED LIKE RATS 7” LA VIDA ES UN MUS (2017)

The first Rat Cage 7” was half NWOBH and half unbridled mangel along the lines of Totalitär or Krigshot. They can still UK82 (“Wasted Time”) and MTB (“Caged Like Rats”) with the best of them, but the different approach to the fast side of things made this record stand out from the pack to be the best UKHC record of the decade.

12. RIXE COUPS ET BLESSURES 7” LA VIDA ES UN MUS (2015)

Thundering, bass-forward tunes flush with memorable riffs and hooks that burrow into your temporal lobe on the very first listen. All three Rixe 7”s from the decade were classic but Coups Et Blessures is the one that knocked everyone on their ass first.

11. BLOODKROW BUTCHER ANTI-WAR 7” SIDE TWO (2012)

Lo-fi D-beat that pulls more from the GBG 1982 7” than anything else. The results are similar—a flawless hardcore 7” where every song is urgent and memorable without a single second of fluff.

10. TRAPPED UNDER ICE BIG KISS GOODNIGHT LP REAPER (2011)

Trapped Under Ice came out the gate with an unmatched swagger that I’d never seen before in my time in hardcore. Maybe if I was around for Leeway in its demo era or if I was at the first Crown of Thornz show that would’ve been different, but I wasn’t. Enough people say that the TUI demo changed hardcore completely that I’m not going to argue it, and I’ve seen tons of people over the years saying they peaked on the demo…I’d argue against that for sure. The first 7” was better than the demo, the first LP was better than both and Big Kiss Goodnight is neck and neck with that as the best record on the catalog.

If you’re a 2010s hardcore kid looking at the first four songs of Side-A, it probably looks like how the four songs on Side-A of Filler looked like to people from another generation.

Depending on who you are, you probably think this is righteous or totally ridiculous but it doesn’t really matter cuz it’s spot on. These songs are bonafide modern classics that transcend the stupid barriers which exist in the hardcore scene. They’re songs so loved that they turned TUI into a legacy band who can pick their spots while the members are still in their prime. They can sell out most rooms or headline any hardcore fest and it’s all cuz of timeless hardcore tracks like Side-A of Big Kiss Goodnight, tracks 1-4.

9. FORCED ORDER ETERNAL WAR 7”MASS MOVEMENT (2014)

The hardcore battlefield is littered with bands that tried their hand at Integrity/Ringworm-style Clevo-core, only to be cut down in a hail of shame bullets when they couldn't solo or came with some soulless, copycat bullshit. Eternal War might be the 2nd coming of In Cold Blood’s stone-cold classic, Hell On Earth, in the way that it can break out and shred at any time but the backbone is unchecked aggression and savage hardcore. This dude can shred, and does, but there’s no wanking, no dragging things out—every song is a honed bayonet, fixed to take out all survivors in the most brutal way possible.

8. NO TOLERANCE NO REMORSE, NO TOLERANCE 7” YOUNGBLOOD (2011)

Modern straightedge hardcore reduced to its best core elements. Rage. Slam. Rage. Slam. Plus a 6th song that harnesses that Get It Away-esque surging power.

7. CONCEALED BLADE DEMO 2015 7” BEACH IMPEDIMENT (2015)

1st wave Boston Hardcore meets Youth of Today meets Chris Smith with a whammy bar addiction. Every song rules—just untouchable.

6. THE IMPALERS CELLAR DWELLER LP STATIC SHOCK / 540 (2017)

The soundtrack for the descent of man from upstanding citizen to deranged berserker. In a style known and loved for repetitive bludgeoning, The Impalers pushed the whole D-beat sound forward a couple centuries and created a frenetic slab of wax where you never know what’s lurking around the corner. There are hits all over this thing but it’s best taken in as a sum of all parts to see what it truly is— a psychotic, surrealistic masterpiece.

5. INFERNÖH 7 SPÅR E.P. 12” D-TAKT & RÅPUNK / DISTORT REALITY (2013)

Mangel. Kängpunk. D-beat (D-takt?). Raw punk (råpunk?). Staffan and his uncle don’t make it easy to keep up with all the labels. It doesn’t really matter cuz this is straight up one of the best HARDCORE records of the decade. If The Impalers were forging new paths for the subgenre, Infernöh was taking a tried and true style and blasting it from the Northern Peak of Kebnekaise.

A lot of what makes this record great is the recording and tones. How can it sound so heavy without coming off metal at all? It’s the ultimate white whale. Those first tom hits sound massive and then when the fast beat kicks in, it’s a tidal wave of kängpunk history surging right at your ass. Headcleaners, check. Anti Cimex, check. Mob 47, check. Avskum, check. Totalitär, check. It’s the best combo of the raging fast D-beat with that super active left hand, all backed by a massive recording that captures every perfect piece of madness and buries nothing.

4. MINDFORCE EXCALIBUR LP TRIPLE-B (2018)

Crossover had a big moment in the hardcore scene in the 2010s, mostly kicked off by Take Offense and Power Trip at the turn of the decade. Power Trip’s swelling popularity leading up to their 2nd LP and the acclaim upon its release boosted their notoriety higher than many imagined possible. More bands formed trying to chase that glory, but the problem with the mid bands of crossover and/or thrash metal is that their songs often lack any direction or dynamic. It’s just riff on riff—a rudderless boat heading down the river. Sure, it can be a thrill when you hit some rapids but it’s mostly just the same old boring shit: looking at rocks, water, and trees. Yawn.

Punk started in part as a pushback to how bloated rock ‘n’ roll had become. It was as much a regression as it was the start of something new. In that way, Excalibur is one of the most punk records of the 2010s. Guitarist Mike Shaw is as much a sculptor as he is a shredder, and on this record he carves the often overextended crossover song into palatable bursts for even the most A.D.D.-riddled listener. That reduction highlighted the big moments littered throughout the LP, often through Shaw’s Chuck Schuldiner-esque guitar work or vocalist Jay Petagine’s generational howl that always seemed to land at just the right moment. Songs like “Destroyer,” “Nightmare,” and “Excalibur” are modern classics for a reason.

3. RESTRAINING ORDER THIS WORLD IS TOO MUCH LP TRIPLE B (2019)

By the end of the 2010s the dominant style of American hardcore was most definitely the heavy shit. Really it’s probably been that since the Firestorm 7” came out in 1993, but in 2018/2019 it really felt like everything popular was drop-tuned mosh music. However, at the very end of the decade in late October of its final year, a glimmer of hope was unleashed.

Sonically, This World Is Too Much wasn’t too far off from the British stuff from the middle of the decade—mean, over-the-plate fast songs mixed with a healthy dose of No Future-inspired boot music. But there was something about this record that made it a little different. Perhaps it was a bit cleaner than the British records and maybe that aspect made some of the hooks bigger. Maybe it was just the total package: the tunes, the perfect sequencing of the songs and the all-time album cover. As a sum of all parts, it has to be considered the gold standard for roots hardcore records of the era.

2. NEVER ENDING GAME JUST ANOTHER DAY LP TRIPLE-B (2019)

The first four songs of this record are the best hardcore record of the decade. It’s prime Madball meets Terror meets TUI, all shaped into a style all their own. The riffing is sharp and biting, the tones are thick, and the drumming is tight. But most importantly there’s a big chorus in every song, reminding everyone that even the hardest songs can have big hooks.

Really that’s something we gotta give credit to the three aforementioned bands for…they all had the balls to go for the big chorus in a hardcore song when most bands are too timid and just hide behind the mosh. NEG follows in those footsteps and knocks it out of the park in each one of these Mt. Rushmore tracks. That’s not to say the back half of the album doesn’t have moments too, it does…but those first four mostly carry the weight for how great this thing is.

1. BOSTON STRANGLER PRIMITIVE LP FUN WITH SMACK LP (2012)

If Restraining Order’s This World Is Too Much was the gold standard for roots hardcore records at the end of the decade, Primitive takes it for the first half. In the 1990s, the ‘80s style throwback bands were great because we couldn’t have that. They were good enough, especially compared to metalcore, but there wasn’t a single one as good as the original thing. At some point in the mid-to-late 2000s that changed, mostly because a handful of people figured out how to record hardcore music themselves and finally had access to the equipment to do so.

You had a choice to make in the ‘90s—you either went to a decent studio where the engineer either wouldn’t know how to record hardcore or would think it’s morally wrong to make an album sound like The Kids Will Have Their Say or Brotherhood. Your other option? Go to a dude who knows what’s up but didn’t have the equipment to pull it off. Sometime in the 2000s, people started getting it right. It’s the main reason why all those Boston albums circa 2010, the British records circa 2015, and the Pittsburgh records from the end of the decade all hold up.

The record that put it all together the best came out in 2012. The band was Boston Strangler. The album was Primitive. It had the tracks, the tones, the recording, the voice, the authentic swag, the album cover…shit, it had the best band name. It’s not just great cuz it’s the best there was in 2012—if it came out in 1982 or 1983, it would be standing tall, right there with the best of the era.

My band Subversive Intent released a our debut LP in May on Rebirth Records. Order it here and while you’re waiting for it to come in the mail, jam it here, here, here or wherever you stream music.

Next gig:

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Thanks for the support!

Hardcore rules - peace!

- ZN

185milessouth.com

It took seven seasons but Zack finally convinced Dan to watch the best reality tv show in existence: Love After Lockup. The two break down the first episode of the season and introduce the characters. Is this a new low for the pod? Possibly, but we did make pro wrasslin hardcore bands before, so who knows?

Note: technically this is Season 7, Episode 9...we are skipping the inferior prelude “Love During Lockup”.

We’ll be recapping every few episodes, so watch along on WE TV.

Info here:

https://www.wetv.com/shows/love-after-lockup--1044408

Paid Substackers, the episode is below. Patreons…check the Patreon portal for the episode.

Read more

Killer episode this week on the pod. Check it out here, here, or here.

This post may be too long for email so open it in your browser.

Next month we will talk all our favorite music from the first half of 2026. Has it been a pretty light year so far? Maybe….but here are a couple of releases from the last month or so that Kev, me, or both of us enjoyed and you should check out:

American hero, Bob Wilson, brought back the Rebirth Records Showcase for its second edition. Kev was in attendance and gave us his breakdown of the festivities from when he wasn’t making gear runs or nursing pit injuries. For all fest culture gets wrong, this one seems to always get it right—a plethora of young bands playing roots hardcore with a legendary band or two tucked in for good measure. Righteous.

On May 14th, my band Subversive Intent did the record release show for our new LP at Red Brontosaurus Records in San Diego, which is owned by Davey from the band Tiltwheel. You might remember them as one of the best bands on the Cinema Beer Goggles VHS tape that Hopeless put out in the ‘90s. It was a killer night, every band brought the heat, and it was over by 9PM for the olds (represent).

By the way, if you haven’t bought the LP yet, you can get it HERE or HERE.

One of the most fun parts of doing a record release show is the limited cover, right? So for this one we wanted to do a tribute to the one So Cal album cover where it’s impossible to tell what the weather like was on that day:

You know what time it is…Nemesis Records #1: “Badge Happy Cop,” “Those Drugs,” “Theft of the Age”…you’re slamming. Our bud Ben Nahoum took the shot and Pappalardo helped us with the text. The end result?

Sick, eh? So there we were…content with our record release covers, ready for the gig, when a friend shoots me a screen shot.

Let’s take a step back here. Last year me (Camel Clutch Records) and the dudes from Human Future Records put together a local San Diego hardcore compilation and pressed 50 copies on cassette. As a tribute to an old school tape comp from SD, we updated the old Our Blowout comp from 1983 to Our Blowout 2025. Normal punk shit, right?

Shit, let’s take another step back cuz this all goes to a bigger point about the local punk scene in general and is probably relatable to many of you across the globe. Diehard fans of this blog will remember one of my early posts from December of 2023 titled Old Dogs, New Rules where a local newjack tried to gatekeep me from making flyers for local gigs.

Yes, seriously.

Now with this old school barnacle getting butthurt over Our Blowout 2025, I’m getting shit from both sides of the age spectrum. DA FUQ? When these nuisances happen, it makes me step back and think that if dudes are getting super outta pocket with me, how are they treating actual new kids who are thinking about making their first flyer, booking their first show, taking their first live band photo, etc? How many kids are actually gatekept from doing creative things in the underground because they’re scared of the reactions from other kids who have either been around for like two years, or bisabuelos getting crabby on the internet? It’s a bummer to think about.

Back to the barnacle. He singled out Human Future Records, but really it was my idea so I reached out to him on the app where boomers dwell, Facebook.

This was all kind of a bummer. Cliff is a legit SD legend, putting out a comp in ‘83 with Battalion of Saints, The Injections, Personal Conflict and 5051 solidified that. He also played in that band Social Spit on Mystic Records and even played on the Struggle 7”s in the early ‘90s. Nice run, so why not have some self confidence and just be cool? The Human Future dudes put on multiple gigs monthly and have put out a whole slew of releases for bands who may not have put out a physical release otherwise.

Anyway, let’s get on some yin yang shit, maaan. If one side is gonna blow their top and start yelling out “cocksucker” on the internet, we’ll hit ‘em with more kindness. So as tribute to our new Facebook friend we made a 2nd limited cover, available only to punks over 50 with valid ID.

Shoutout to one of the worst punk LPs on Mystic (quite a feat).

By the way, you want to know how Visual Discrimination reacted to their tribute cover?

Respect.

A couple days later, we went up to my hometown of Oxnard to play a gig. Was it worth spending eight hours on Southern California freeways? Hell yeah.

The time has come. We busted out the final three rounds and crowned a winner in the best USHC 1981-1983 7” tournament. No spoilers—tune into the pod to find out who won.

Filler vs. Pick Your King in the quarters was some shit!

Jackal from YDI joined me for the interview. We sang the praises of YDI big time on episode 281 so check that out. Thanks for Jason from Parts Unknown Records for his help setting this up.

Do you know some OLD SCHOOL folks who we should get documented on the pod? Get in touch with me and let’s make it happen: 185MILESSOUTH@GMAIL.COM

If you enjoy the podcast or this blog, here are the ways you can support:

1. Spread the word

2. Like/rate/review the podcast wherever you listen to it

3. Become a Patreon. The patreons have been keeping this project a live for over seven years.

4. Become a paid member on Substack. I get it. You’re loyal to Substack and Patreon feels OnlyFans-adjacent. Supporting on here also gets you access to all the archives (anything over a month old).

5. Recurring payment-adverse? There’s always this.

6. I play in a band called SUBVERSIVE INTENT. Listen to our record here or wherever you stream music and buy the LP here.

Thanks for the support!

Hardcore rules - peace!

- ZN

185milessouth.com

Here’s the first edition of Six…No Skips. I’ll tread through the 50 years of punk and hardcore history to pluck out some records that I think are good enough to merit you giving them a spin. ‘70s punk singles to ripping modern metal punk—I got you.

These selections don’t mean you won’t skip any tracks, not every record can be Victim In Pain. Shit, most albums can’t even be Age of Quarrel (one skipper), but in my opinion these are all records warrant a listen from you. Let’s get into it…

INFO / LISTEN

1. FILTH – DON’T HIDE YOUR HATE 7” (1978)

Here’s a killer first wave punk single that mixes the brevity of something like The Dils mixed with the sound of some of the Belgian bands of the same era (The Kids/Chainsaw). There was once a time where I was pretty obsessed with the first four Killed By Death compilations. This song along with “No Productivity” by The Subhumans were probably my two favorites across all of those. It’s short, catchy, and harnesses the attitude of early punk. The b-sides are pretty good too, but that a-side is an all-timer.

Jam these tracks: “Don’t Hide Your Hate”

INFO / LISTEN

2. CAMERA SILENS – RÉALITÉ LP (1985)

Rixe and Syndrome 81 are two of the best bands of the last decade, so at some point you may have asked yourself what were they pulling from? What is the roots of that sad boot sound that these bands can tap into better than anyone else and what makes FrOi! so special? I’d suggest you check out the 1983 compilation Chaos En France where flourishes of that sound are all over it. The best two songs in my opinion are Komintern Sect’s “Unis Par Le Vin” that opens Side B and Camera Silens, whose song “Pour La Gloire” kicks off the whole schebang.

Réalité starts with the title track that sets the mood for the record. It’s full on boot for sure, but it’s more somber than raucous. Maybe the tunes are just as much for a Sunday alone as they are for a Saturday night with the mates. Is it more strolling threw a dewy meadow than kicking in a skull? I dunno if I’d go that far.

The record dips a bit after the opener but really comes alive with the the last song on the A Side, “Classe Criminelle 1 Et 2.” If you haven’t heard it, you’ll probably think what I’m going to say next is a lie or that I’m just fucking with you but au contraire, or whatever. It starts with a dark bass line with some guitar ringouts over the top. Bring in the kick drum, then a tom build and boom—we’re in with maybe the most heartfelt lead in the history of punk…on a fucking saxophone. Am I supposed to slam, cry, or both? Of course there’s no question with the 2nd half of the song.

Side B is solid throughout, capping with a re-recording of “Pour La Gloire” which outshines the original.

Jam these tracks: “Réalité” / “Classe Criminelle 1 Et 2” / “Pour La Gloire”

INFO / LISTEN (starts at 7:40)

3. WARZONE – SPLIT W/ CAUSE FOR ALARM 10” (1995)

There’s a lot working against this record being great. They gave Warzone the B Side so there’s a fucking barcode on their side of the cover, and the bulldog for that matter. For some reason the record says “Punk Rock - Oi! - Hardcore and You" [Black and Blue and Still True] Volume 1” on it, whatever that means. There was never a volume 2. Raybeez, who some folks have based their whole style off of in years past, and the rest of the guys are wearing bowling shirts. Oh yeah, and Side A is not good. I’ve had this record for about 30 years. I’ve jammed the Warzone side at least a hundred times and the CFA side maybe five, one of those being about 20 minutes ago.

All that said, these four Warzone songs represent the best Warzone album other than their first LP, Don’t Forget The Struggle, Don’t Forget The Streets. All four songs are perfect. Yes, even “Skinhead Warrior Girl.”

Jam these tracks: “Bullshit Authority” / “Free At Last”

INFO / LISTEN

4. TOTAL FURY – COMMITTED TO THE CORE 7” (2003)

Agnostic Front’s first 7” United Blood has four of the greatest hardcore songs of all time on it, but that’s only half of what makes it great. The other key component is that they surrounded those four tentpole songs with raging sub-30 second blazers. Those tunes give the album an untouchable vibe and highlight the best songs instead of dragging them down.

It sounds like for Committed to the Core, Total Fury locked themselves in a basement and only listened to the non-big four United Blood songs. Maybe they were going more for early Outo or Systematic Death but my anglophile brain can’t decode that as clearly. Regardless, what you end up with here is seven songs, all under 30 seconds, all which sound like they have a purpose—to pummel. There’s nothing goofy or throwaway, it’s all just over-the-plate 1st wave style roots hardcore. It rules.

Jam these tracks: “Lost Cause” / “Attitude” / “Committed to the Core”

INFO / LISTEN

5. OMEGAS – BLASTS OF LUNACY LP(2011)

If Blasts of Lunacy came out in the mid-2000s, would it bump one of these monsters off the Mt. Rushmore of Mid 2000s Roots Hardcore LPs? There’s a chance. The record seems like a logical conclusion of that resurgent sound from the era—pushing the boundaries of a throwback style without becoming something different. There’s an unmistakable swag on this record too, like they knew during the writing process that they were in the middle of making something special and weren’t too bashful to strut it. So while musically Blasts of Lunacy may pull more from the Bad Brains, in terms of pure unadulterated confidence, maybe it has just as much Dead Boys or Richard Hell and the Voidoids in it.

Jam these tracks: “Modern Glory” / “Blasts of Lunacy” / “Absurd Visions”

INFO / LISTEN

6. TOWER 7 – PEACE ON EARTH LP (2021)

This is probably the best imaginable band name in a post 9/11 world, so respect. You’ll never know how mad I am at myself for naming a band of mine Somali Pirates when fuckin’ Tower 7 was on the table. We even had a line that mentioned Tower 7…goddamnit.

At least it went to a band that delivered. Peace on Earth is a full throttled statement on how good metal punk can be at its modern peak. It’s aggressive, but loose and raging. It reminds me more of early Pestilence than any crossover record, and the vocal delivery is more a less guttural John Tardy than anything thrash-centric. It’s obvious these dudes can shred (see the solo in “Green Piece”), but they know how to balance it and hang back for the sake of songwriting. And that mosh in “Black Site”—c’mon.

Jam these tracks: “Black Site” / “Delusion of Enlightenment” / “Green Piece”

For paid Substackers, the podcast lurks below the paywall. Patreons, it’s available in in the Patreon portal or in the RSS feed.

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Killer episode this week on the pod. Listen here, here, or here.

I found this topic super easy to talk about on the pod but a lot harder to put into written word, so I’d encourage you to check out the episode where Kev and I cover a ton more than I do here.

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1. THE VILETONES - SCREAMING FIST 7” (1977)

The Viletones got a bit sleazier and carved out a sound more of their own on their 2nd 7”, but their debut EP is just three straight up great songs of classic, Ramones-styled punk. The title track and “Rebel” are both full on wrist-burners that bring the heat. They surround “Possibilities,” a song that pulls a bit more from the Johnny Thunders style NY sound and gives the singer a chance to strut his stuff. Fabulous ‘77 punk.

2. THE NEOS - HASSIBAH GETS THE MARTIAN BRAIN SQUEEZE 7” (1982)

The 2nd 7” from Victoria B.C.’s The Neos, Hassibah Gets the Martian Brain Squeeze, was recorded just a week after the recording for the first one, End All Discrimination. With 14 songs in under 13 minutes, it’s a great representation of the first wave of hardcore. Speed-wise, they’re neck and neck with those Jerry’s Kids and Gang Green songs from the same year on the This is Boston, Not LA comp which gives them an argument for being the fastest band on the planet at the time. What makes them a touch different is the slightly more lo-fi recording, along with a vocal delivery that sometimes drifts into an almost Italian hardcore styled madness. Crucial. This got repressed on Rat Cage in ‘83.

3. DOWN SYNDROME S/T 7” (1984)

From the band name, you think Down Syndrome would sound more like The Neos or something more aggro, but they address their name choice in the liner notes:

"We are not called DOWN SYNDROME because of a man named Down who founded the genetic disorder, if that were the case, we would be called DOWN'S SYNDROME. Rather, the meaning of our name is derived from the direct definitions of the words in reference to humanity's condition."

Profound.

Musically, they sound more like Articles of Faith mixed with a bit of New Wind era 7 Seconds. Their songs are well crafted and are pushing a bit outside of the boundaries of what we would consider first wave hardcore, while still having one foot firmly planted in it. Really the only song that might be considered generic would be the last one on the record. My question would be: was it tossed on the end as an afterthought cuz it was an earlier song or did they want to make a stamp that they are firmly an aggressive hardcore band?

In a pretty cool move, they printed all the money spent associated with putting out this record. From the costs, you can tell they went to a pretty legit studio and you can hear it in the recording quality. Spending over $1,000 on the recording of a hardcore 7” in 1984 at the very least shows that they cared about their craft. Killer.

4. CAREER SUICIDE S/T LP (2003)

There’s only one Canadian LP on the Mt. Rushmore of Mid 2000s Roots Hardcore LPs and that’s the first LP from Career Suicide. On this slab, they rip through 20 originals and a Chronic Sick cover in about 20 minutes, delivering an unhinged yet laser focused slurry of ’80s styled hardcore. The foot not only has the pedal to the metal, there’s an unfortunate wad of Big League Chew stuck to the bottom of it. You’re fucked, but least you have a good soundtrack to your Thelma and Louise ass ending.

5. PUNITIVE DAMAGE - DEMO TAPE (2019)

I swear I’m not trying to be a hipster here and trust me, I take the whole ride with Puni D all the way through their most recent 12” that they put out in 2024. There’s just something about a perfect hardcore demo that’s untouchable in its own way. It’s exciting not only to hear a new band, but to get in early and witness how they progress throughout their musical journey. The demo represents the possibilities before a firm reputation or trajectory has been carved out.

Punitive Damage came out swinging with a perfect song, “Nothing.” Snare hits into a fast part before it moves up a step halfway through the verse. Then the drums cut out for a vocal hook over a single guitar (We’re nothing like you / we’re nothing like you / we’re nothing like you / we’ll never by like you!). Everything comes back in on that perfect uptempo-midtempo pace that’s more concerned with keeping the energy up than creating a predictable mosh. It breaks fast at the very end and we’re out. Hardcore perfection.

The other two songs that they squeeze out in under 90 seconds combined are great too. “No Compromise” shows more of a pounding rhythmic attack that one might associate with the 2nd SS Decontrol record and “Enough” is a midtempo banger. LFG!

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