MOBCHARGE "Self-titled" tape, 1997

Well, well, well. Unless you are as thick as a log or you got into punk just last week after watching Turnstile's latest video (if you haven't and if you are above 20, you might want to abstain, it's unsurprisingly absolute dross), this review will be about a d-beat band. They called themselves Mobcharge for a reason and didn't want to mislead the punters: "Mob" because Mob 47 and "Charge" because Discharge. Life can be simple sometimes. Of course, form the perspective of 2026 such unsubtle linguistic combination meant to appeal to the members of the punk sect are not, by any means, unusual. Just think of all the Dislickers, Shitcontrol or Wolfcharge of this world and the staggering need to "refer to" that plays such a huge part in modern DIY hardcore these days. It could be seen as a global movement that extends far beyond the punk wasteland. Are we Stranger-Things-ing punk-rock and thus ourselves? Is it reinvention or musical cosplay? Should I care as long as the D is good? Should I stop dicking around and get to it already?

Mobcharge was a project based in Spain, around Barcelona (the band's address is located in Barna indeed) active in the mid-90's but they somehow crawled from their grave in the late 00's too - no doubt due to popular demand. If you have been around and care to dig a little you will realize that the mobchargers have been involved in about as many bands (if you can call some of them "bands") as you have had showers since Covid. The band proved to be one of the many sonic ideas of the Becerra brothers Tonio and Chico who played in the excellent old-school DIY grindcore band Violent Headache which I have always rated highly and is exactly my kind of grindcore: punk, non-technical and cave-compatible. Mobcharge wasn't the insatiable brothers' first attempt at beating the D in an orthodox fashion since they had already done Angry Mob a couple of years prior starting Mobcharge. While the moniker was not as Dis-oriented, on their crowing "glory" 1996's The Genocide Contiues Angry Mob sounded arguably even more like the most faithful Discharge followers. But that band, in an even more primitive form, was in fact created as a two-piece in 1989 by the aforementioned infernal duo (before singer Jordi joined in 1991 in time for the 100% Nordico tape) and a few songs can be found from this period. In a time when so many bands buy pedals and struggle to sound raw and crudo, this earliest Angry Mob recording proved that you just have to be motivated, possibly bored, punky teens to achieve the quintessential, genuine, stripped down Dis (granted, Spain already had a tradition of rough, chaotic, angry hardcore bands in the 80's so it was not illogical or that much of an anomaly).

But let's get back to Mobcharge a band that relied on a very similar basis and walked the same ground as Angry Mob, namely the first d-beat wave and 80's Swedish hardcore (I was once told that at that time in Spain, in the late 80's/early 90's the term used to refer to what we now call käng was "el ritmo Sueco"). Beside the Becerra brothers (Tonio on the guitar and Chico on the drums), Mobcharge included Avellano (who was also growling in Proyecto Terror at the time) on vocals and Peña (who did L-ctro Pills with the three scoundrels) on the bass. This Mobcharge tape was released in 1997 and included the band's second (B side) and third demos (A side) recorded in 1995 and 1996 respectively and if you are interested in the band's even rawer first recording adventure you can find songs off the first demo on a split tape with Anti-Clinex if you dare (yet another scandicore project from the Becerras with an unfortunate but ultimately pretty funny moniker).

So yeah, there is a lot of dis love on these demos, the earlier one being expectedly a bit more direct and rawer, although to the uninitiated they will just sound like a lot of noisy bollocks anyway. Fundamentally Mobcharge - and indeed Angry Mob - should be seen as pertaining to the first d-beat wave, that pivotal time in the 90's when vintage Discharge (let's pretend 1984 and beyond never happened) turned into a passion with a legitimate blueprint and its own subgenre with its strict and admittedly limited set of specific rules. In the present tape you can hear some demo quality early Dischange or Disclose and some 90's Uppsala käng like Time Square Preachers but the recordings also convey a rawer 80's hardcore vibe like Shitlickers or Violent Uprising (and let's throw MG15 for the sake of it). Very angry-sounding and highly self-aware at the same time with covers of Varukers, Shitlickers and Discharge if you need to be reminded of what's happening. The kind of d-beat bands that you just have to play on tape if you know what I mean. This one was released on HFN/IMA (a small label run by a member of Grito de Odio) and Squeal Records. In 2008 Mobcharge recorded again and two years later a full Lp entitled Apocalyptic Horror was released by a handful of labels. The band had certainly not gone emocrust but if it delivered the typical goods, I miss the rawness of the early stuff as any self-respecting nerds should claim.

Let's get real, Mobcharge is for the diehards but they, along withAngry Mob (these people do like mobs, don't they?) did pave the way for the typical Spanish raw d-beat style that bands like Destruccion or Regimen de Terror today went on to repeat and popularise although it might have been an indirect influence. At the end of the day, Mobcharge belonged to this category of bands I call "posers detectors". If you see a so-called self-proclaimed d-beat fan covering his or her ears when Mobcharge is playing then you know they are either an undercover cop or worse a fucking poser. In both cases to be disposed of as fast as possible. 

Charged Mob  

Live by the Crust, Die by the Crust: Neverending Mind War "S/t" one-sided Lp, 2020

I will try to keep this one short and sweet in accordance with the bloody racket that this ill-humoured three-piece is bent to unleash on our tragic world. With everyday life sometimes feeling about as exciting as a dad dancing contest or a a mobility scooter race, bands like Neverending Mind War sound strangely fresh and invigorating. They remind you that, if there may be no light at the end of the tunnel, there is always the slight hope of getting battered by shock waves of noisy grinding stenchcore from times to times.

I have already written enthusiastically about Philadelphia's brilliant bursts of crust/mangel/d-beat in the 2010's on three occasions in Live by the Crust, Die by the Crust (for a Pollen Ep, the Mortal War demo and an Alement tape) so there is little point in showering everyone with praises once again. Just know that NMW was (I don't know if that one survived the pandemics) made up of members of the aforementioned Pollen and Mortal War, but also Arseholes, Weald and possibly others that I have not even heard of. It is a common phenomenon but you will notice that, if the number of good band has been solid in the past decade, they were often created by the same limited group of people so that the impression that Philadelphia is overrun with tasteful punks might be misleading. I mean, it's not like their mayor wears crust pants or anything. But you could say that the said bunch of punks was motivated and keen on getting up their arse to play good music, which certainly contrasts with some local scenes that are made up of admirably lazy and morose bastards whose sole purpose seems to get a discount on the entrance fee because "the bands only play short sets so it's not value for money" (true story that).

I first became aware of NMW's existence because of an internet rumour. Words of a new American hardcore punk band replicating the raw sound of Scum-era Napalm Death were circulating among the most prestigious and elite crust circles. Not that the open worship of Scum or the 1986 demo is original in itself, far from it, as there are probably tons of grindcore bands trying to do exactly that, but NMW was said to be significantly different as the band did not sound like a grindcore act and instead focused and built on the 80's UK hardcore aspect of Napalm Death. That immediately caught my attention since I am a sucker for the '86-'87 period of the band. I cannot claim that early grindcore is my forte but to me the pioneering Brummies were originally a thrashing noisy crust hardcore band, an approach that is relevant if you do not take into consideration what they did from 1988 on. If they had not grown to be this legendary and well-respected extreme metal band, I am convinced that ND would mostly be talked about as a proto-grind noisecrust hardcore band in the same breath as Sore Throat or Electro Hippies and would be thought to be a perfect illustration of the early Peaceville/Earache sound. And this vision centred on hardcore instead of metal of the early ND sound is the specific foundation of NMW since they don't go beyond 1988 and stick to the pre-grindification of the band.

But anyway, once I got the confirmation of the name (which sounds like the title of a Prophecy of Doom song or perhaps a nod to the little-known Psychotic Mind Battle?) and understood that the workforce was made up of people from Pollen and Mortal War, the aforementioned approach made sense and I knew I was going for a treat. The two demo tapes (from 2017 and 2018 respectively) were very limited pressings and therefore I was unable to get the physical versions and had to make do with the bandcamp streams. So when Regurgitated Semen Records (I think I will never get used to that name which is really not a bad thing) reissued the two demos on one Lp, I was quick to act and jumped on it like a hungry vegan spotting a generous discount on some overpriced and usually unaffordable soy-made cheese, only without the disappointing outcome. 

The Lp looks gorgeous with a red obi strip, pretty much the equivalent of honey for hardcore nerds. The two demos last about ten minutes in total and fit on one side, which is convenient, although I suppose the whole thing would have fit on an Ep. The first demo is a bit noisier and more blown-out, with more distortion, which makes me think that Zyanose could be an influence too, especially when the Osaka nutters go full speed, but it could also just mean that both bands worked on a similar materials (given the popularity of Japanese noisecrust in the States, I would personally vote for the first option especially with the typical crasher-styled introduction to the first recording, "Nightmare"). The second one is a little clearer but also rawer, but I am splitting hair here. Dare to face a relentless and vicious noisy proto-grind hardcore crust tornado. 

I love the harsh gruff vocals and the old-school stench-oriented mid-paced metallic breaks while the guitar sound is perfect, aggressive, thick but filthy and with just the right amount of distortion for the style, more would not work as well. The earlier era of fast Napalm Death (the From Enslavement to Obliteration '86 demo especially beside the legendary Scum Lp) is clearly the band's obvious basis, but the first punishingly savage steps of Heresy (the '85 demo) and the great Electro Hippies definitely have to be mentioned here and I am also thinking about other lesser-known vintage UK raw fast crust like Mortal Terror or Senile Decay, not an irrelevant comparison either but it has more to do with the creative context of UKHC with bands sharing similarities at the time than a probable influence on NMW's music. As mentioned before, the faster side of the Japanese crasher school is my final ingredient to the recipe but there could be also be elements that I don't recognize because of I'm lacking in crossover hardcore. In any case that should undoubtedly be a success at your colleague's leaving do. 

Given the chosen template, NMW were perfect, I would not change a thing to those recordings.   

Neverending Crust War

      

Haywire "Blood money" demo 1988 + "Freedom?" demo 1990

Today, it is not one but two demos you are getting on TSN. In fact, the two demos of great anarcho-punk band Haywire. I got to see Haywire play 5 years ago in London and to be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect. The few doubts I might have had were soon to be blown away by their amazing performance. They were energetic, powerful, the set was made up of older and newer (well, less old) songs, and above all they really looked like they believed in what they were singing and their enthusiasm was obvious.

But enough arse-licking and to the point. In fact, Haywire formed in 1984 when they litteraly just kids and they took their time to record their first demo, entitled "Blood money", in 1988. Like many punk bands of the era, there is a definite metal influence going on, but have no fear, there are no lengthy guitar solos (I don't think they could play well enough) or high-pitched screams here (and I doubt there were many tight leather pants either as the band has always been adamant about animal rights). Though metal-tinged, the guitar riffs have this punk simplicity and the drumming is decidedly in a binary mode. Somewhere between early Concrete Sox and AOA probably with some Icons of Filth as well (especially the vocals). It must be said that the recording is quite rough but on the whole it is very much enjoyable. As previously mentioned, Haywire firmly believed in animal rights and no less than four songs of the demo deal with animal abuse. My personal favourite is "System's grave" though, a rebellious song against the class system. On the whole, a great slice of sloppy metallic anarcho punk.

Blood money demo 88

Two years and a half later, in 1990, Haywire recorded their second demo, called "Freedom?". The tape cover with a picture of the riot squad doing their dirty job aptly emphasizes the question mark of the title and indicates that the band has left none of their anger. This second demo is definitely better than the previous one. For one, there is a different singer with a more aggressive voice that fits the music better (except on the song "Blood money" which has the same singer as the first demo's). Musically, the band seemed to have given up on becoming a metal band at this point, though there are still a couple of very effective chunky riffs here and there. This is fast, snotty and raw English hardcore-punk reminiscent of Insurrection or Dirge (for the pace) but also AOA, Exit-Stance and Anti-System as Haywire have that distinctive anarcho edge. The songs are quite varied as well (there's even an attempt at grindcore on "13 word"!) which makes for a very pleasant listening experience as rough and ready as the recording may sound. The band had also improved as far as writing lyrics was concerned. If animal rights songs hadn't left the picture ("Endangered species" is an anti-hunt song and "Whose coat?" is an anti-fur/anti-leather number), the band tackled more issues on this one: "Freedom" is about the fall of the Berlin Wall and how England is becoming a police state; "State of emergency" is about state racism and discrimination; "End products of imperialism" deals with the effects of colonization and Western imperialist economic policies; "Radiation nation" is about nuclear waste and how whole areas got contaminated because of them; finally, "Paranoid visions" is about fear of a nuclear war (surely their tribute to Discharge). An excellent demo that hints at what the band would do later on, the "Mad cow disease" Ep and the split Ep with Obliterated, both very good records.

Freedom? demo 90

Chaotic Subversion / The Disturbed split tape

As it has been a while since the last post, I have decided to offer you a double dose of amazing punk-rock. Two for the price of one. Believe me that's a quite a bargain you're in for.

On the first side are the grand Chaotic Subversion and not only did they have a terrific (and cheesy) name, but their recordings include some of the snottiest anarchopunk I have ever heard. Judging from the cover (yes, that's a poorly drawn cartoon of the band rehearsing), one can easily notice that these young lads were also influenced by the Bristol glue-sniffing brigade of Chaos UK, Disorder, Ad'Nauseam. But like other followers of this cider-drinking cult around Britain at the time (Dirge, Caustic Filth, Insurrection, Plasmid...), Chaotic Subversion had seriously angry lyrics (from what I can decypher) and belonged to the mid-late 80's Scottish anarchopunk scene. They even had an anti-fur song, "Why fur?".

Musically, the "Law and order" demo is very much in the UK82 tradition (think Court Martial, Instant Agony, Septic Psychos, Actives and so on) and although it may already have been 5 years too late, they did it with heart, spikes and teenage anger. The second demo recorded in 1987 is even better as Chaotic Subversion started playing fast, raw straight-up hardcore-punk. Bass-driven, distorted guitars, drum rolls all over, this will please the Chaos UK/Disorder fanatics who will also notice a European hardcore influence in the mix (Italian hardcore comes to my mind. Wretched perhaps?) and the seeds of what was to become the almighty Sedition. If the name of the song "Why fur?" hadn't rung a bell (yes, that was a clue), let me tell you that Chaotic Subversion was a pre-Sedition band, hence the presence of this song that will also find its way in the Sedition set (and later in the Scatha one) and the strong ressemblance with early Sedition recordings from the 80's. Sounds awesome, right? Their side of the tape includes their two demos and a compilation track.

On the other side awaits another Scottish band called The Disturbed and amusingly enough, this bunch also had people who would go on to play with Sedition, Disaffect, Scatha and even TRIBE. How incestuous can the punk scene get! If you want to know more about Chaotic Subversion/Sedition and The Disturbed, I strongly advise to read the chapters about Scotland in "Trapped in a scene" (I know this book starts to take on a biblical importance here...).

Back to the tape, you'll find The Disturbed 4th demo of 1987, a rough and ready practice of the same year, their 1988 Ep called "This is credibility" and a compilation track. Though some songs are reminiscent of Anti-System or AOA, the band played beefy, fast punk-rock in the Varukers/GBH/Broken Bones/One Way System vein, which made sense their singer also used to front Last Rites in the early 80's. Interestingly, it wouldn't be far-fetched to point out that The Disturbed were sonically not unlike how were to sound 90's British hardcore-punk bands. The songs are aggressive, the sound is raw but dynamic and you can even actually understand what the singer is on about sometimes (but still not too often). Again, lyrics are political and serious and deal with everyday life's hardships.

If you don't like this, you should give up on punk-rock.

Chaotic Disturbing Subversion