Scum of Society "Violenza legale" Ep 1997

This will be the last post of the year 2013. The last 12 months saw countless brilliant records being posted on Terminal Sound Nuisance and, thankfully, there will be even more samples of my flawless tastes on the blog in 2014. You have been warned. So, in order to bring some sort of closure to this year, what could be more appropriate than a rather unoriginal and yet totally relevant 90's crust record with a lot of heart and guts? Because that's what TSN is all about and I gladly leave pointless quests for originality to others with a more artistic mindset than mine.

I have already talked about how I love 90's eurocrust (90's crust in general really, even the Japanese bands of that genre no longer seem to attract that much attention, which unfortunately doesn't mean I can afford to buy their records... yet!) and how I think it is being gravely under-appreciated right now. Bands like Hiatus, Homomilitia, Sarcasm, Proyecto Terror, Subcaos, Embittered, Enola Gay and so on. It is not all grim of course, and there are a number of bands still flying the flag but it certainly doesn't garner as much interest as, say, 10 years ago. But anyway, while crust punk spread like wild fire all over the world during that decade, one European country with a very strong punk tradition strangely seemed to ignore its greatness: Italy. Of course, there was the amazingly unique and genre-challenging Contropotere who incorporated elements of crust music, but, as much as they escaped easy classifications, I always saw them as being essentially an 80's band in spirit although they did record some brilliant stuff in the 90's. Besides, Contropotere sounded like no other band (were they even a band or more a collective?), so it might not be relevant to use them as a point of comparison. Italy had fast and furious hardcore bands, grindcore bands, all sorts really but crust (apart from Jilted who fitted the tag). How odd is that? The 00's fortunately saw a lot more enthusiasm towards loud dreadlocked noisy bollocks with bands like Campus Sterminii, Giuda, Berserk, Cancer Spreading or NIS.

Scum of Society musy have formed around 1995 or 1996, judging from their discography. I don't know what the band took in 1997 but in that year only, they managed to put out two Ep's and one split Lp. In 2002 (or 2003?) they released a split Ep with Full of Hatred and that was basically the end of the band. Musically, Scum of Society were nothing special I suppose: just straight out, bass-driven, raw crust punk along the lines of Hiatus and Doom with shouted rather than gruffy vocals so that you can understand what they are on about (assuming you speak Italian). The recording is a bit rough and ready, if not sloppy, but there is an undeniable urgency to the sound and there is actually some degree of variety in the song structures with metal or hardcore breaks and even a couple of blast beats for good measure. In terms of music, it is everything you can expect from mid/late 90's DIY European crust record.

As was often the case, crust bands were more directly political in those days or at least they showed it more. The record comes with a 17-pages booklets, no less, with lyrics and artwork and even some political writing and a list of active squats in Italy! From what I can gather, Scum of Society must have been involved to some extent in the squatters' movement at the time. There are staunch "DIY and proud" ethics at play in this Ep and radical politics are being worn unashamedly (they even borrowed the "proud to be punk"logo from Riot/Clone!). Lyrically, any anarcho-oriented punk will find him/herself in safe territories: an anti-nazi song, an anti-coppers song, an anti-rockstars song, an anti-alienation song, two anti-war songs and a song about how the poor are the scum of society in the eyes of the authorities. The perfect soundtrack for the party you will throw for New Year's Eve, isn't it?

The texts included by the band are probably better clues of the actual politics of Scum of Society. The first one is about the importance of staying DIY and what it means to them. In 1997, they were already pointing at the absurd prevalence of form over content:

"we think that the music, the attitude, the fashion, in the magic world of hardcore-punk has became more important than the spirit. So we confirm one more time that for us to be punx means self-production (DIY), political action, communication, in short the creation of physical and mental situations of freedom, alternative and antagonism to the power that oppress us all. We produce and distribute DIY stuff as a part of a project of self determination of our lives".

A good statement indeed. The second text is about submission and resistance to the different tricks of the State as it tries to mold us into good law-abiding citizens and the band is right in sending a healthy and hearty "fuck off" to all the armies, be they the official ones serving our current masters or the non-official ones serving our masters of tomorrow. The third text is about the oppressive power of the family unit and how it works as the first level of alineation in order to produce "normal" children. Finally there is the aforementioned stuff about squatting which, in addition to providing an exhaustive list of active squats, also briefly tells the political motivations of squatters, why they do it (to live and/or to organize things) and how they choose to live their lives according to their own rules. Some smart words about the dangers of being a legalized squat which would create a "good squatters/bad squatters" dichotomy (the good ole Victorian values of the "deserving" versus the "undeserving" poor).

It is definitely better you read it all for yourself anyway. And don't forget to listen to the record while you are at it. I found it in a 2 euros bin and so can you!

Violenza legale!

Filthkick "The Peel sessions 1989/1990"

Today's post will be an emotional moment for all of us (yet another one I hear whispering!). Because today I would like all of us to remember our fallen friends, those who did not make it through, who gave up living, for all kinds of reasons. This post is dedicated to all the fallen blogs, all the dead blogs that I used to visit daily and who are no longer with us. Is it because mediafire and co have become such a pain? Is it because of the apparent apathy of the blog-visiting population (myself included) who cannot be arsed to even leave a comment? Is it because sometimes we are under the impression that no one gives a damn about our rants and that what the punks really want is just the files and not the context? Am I being a cry-baby?

But anyway, more seriously, I would like to dedicate this post to a former blog called Panzer Badger that was done by an older bloke and documented very throroughly the mid/late 80's punk and metal scene in Norwich (among other things to be sure, but I remember it quite fondly for that). Of course you would find in the badger's hole (or wherever it lives) many unknown and obscure recordings of Deviated Instinct (from the very early stages to the later ones), a whole bunch of more or less listenable Rhetoric live recordings as well as many live tapes of big metal acts such as Venom or even fucking Metallica if I remember correctly. What I enjoy the most in Panzer Badger was the tone used, it was witty, informative, unpretentious and you could feel that the geezer really loves what he was writing about. Passion is what it is. For some reason, I never got in touch with him, assuming as we all unfortunately do, that blogs last forever and that bloggers won't get bored of getting little more than indifference. Panzer Badger was one of the blogs that prompted me to start Terminal Sound Nuisance. As a tribute to PB, and to all the other blogs that stopped breathing, I decided to make two absolutely crucial recordings that the badger posted at some point available again, two recordings that I had no idea existed but literally pinned me to the floor: the two Peel sessions that Filthkick did. I humbly thank the badger for making the world a nastier place by unleashing the sessions and the files that you can download from my post are originally his.

Filthkick should be a reference in hardcore punk today. Sadly, the are just "that band Extreme Noise Terror did a split with but I rarely (meaning never) listen to their side" and to be fair the songs on the aforementioned split are pretty average-sounding. Not that the songs are bad, on the contrary, the song-writing is strong, but you can hardly hear the guitar and the vocals are nowhere as mean and insane as on the Peel sessions. If you have always thought that Filthkick was an anecdotale band, be prepared to be refuted right now.

As you may or may not know, Filthkick was Leggo's ugly baby after he left Deviated Instinct and moved to Brum. The first Peel session of Filthkick was recorded in 1989 with the first line-up (the band has had a tumuluous, if short, existence it appears) that also included Jim from Ripcord (and much later on the brilliant Warprayer). In 1989, Filthkick must have been the meanest, most ferocious, aggressive, obnoxious-sounding hardcore punk band around in England. Influenced to a large extent by Poison Idea and possibly some Japanese hardcore bands, their music is like a sonic spit in the face, an nihilistic but smart embodiment of "fuck you". Don't expect childish provocation and fake misanthropy here, as Leggo can write good lyrics, a bit hopeless perhaps, but always snotty and quite smart. The seven songs of this first Peel session (among them a Poison Idea cover) will feel like being trampled to death by a rabid fox: fast, short with gnarly and ferocious vocals. Listening to this I cannot help thinking that Leggo should have used this style of vocals with Deviated Instinct at the time, because he does now and it sounds absolutely perfect. Missed opportunity I guess.

The second Peel session, just one year after, sees a different Filthkick in the BBC studio. Only Leggo remained from the old line-up as Pete from Doom and two blokes from death-metal band Obliteration now made up the band. Actually, in only three years of existence, more people came and went in Filthkick, among them future, current and future members of Acrasy or Policebastard. The fast and bitingly direct hardcore songs have not disappeared but you can also find heavier, venomous mid-tempo numbers that are probably my favourite songs from them. You have the same nasty voice, it is still bass-driven, still antagonistic but now aimed to pound you to the floor with a more crushing and groovy (dare I say crusty?) feel to the songs without going metal. Just terrific stuff.

The sound is not crystal clear as it was recorded directly from the radio I suppose). But really, who cares when the music is that good? This deserves to be reissued properly along with live recordings from the band as well (the badger had some cracking ones on his blog).

Filthkick         

Passion Killers "They kill our passion with their hate and wars" Lp 2010

Last week, I posted an utterly terrible reissue and emphasized its many flaws (I'm still thinking about its qualities to be honest). Today, however, I am going to talk about a top notch reissue, a record that is not only great music-wise but exemplifies how it should be done: with love, care, fun and snot. When I hold such records in my dirty hands, I realize how much I love punk-rock, how worthy it is and how tedious and miserable a punkless life would be. Call me a soft bastard but I am almost getting emotional.

Where "Oi! Sound of UK" (the name makes me cringe each time I type it) was a stale, passionless, heartless object, this Passion Killers record contains everything you need to know, not only about the recording and its creative context, but also about the band, its history and the scene it grew out of. Passion Killers is a little-known band that might have sunk into total obscurity if it were not for its strong Chumbawamba connections. In fact, it would be irrelevant to talk about PK without talking about Chumba. There is a brilliantly written history of the band in the thick booklet but let me give you a little information for the laziest ones among you.

Although very connected to Leeds, PK were actually from Barsnley, a Yorkshire town located between Sheffield and Leeds (that makes one dream, doesn't it?). You could say that PK was something of a Northern small-town punk band, a condition that often proved to create great punk bands in England. I am not sure why they picked such a moniker though. It may have sounded like a great idea at the time, back when the lads were 16. But anyway, if there is one band you must not judge on the name it chose, it is the Passion Killers (and while you're at it, try to ignore the broken heart on the cover as well). But back to the history of the band. Influenced by the motivations and DIY ethos of Crass and the first "Bullshit Detector" compilation, PK sent their demo to Crass and the song "Start again" ended up on the second volume, alongside bands such as Omega Tribe, Anthrax, Naked and... Chumbawamba. After the release of "Bullshit Detector Two", the people from Chumba wrote a letter to all the bands included on the compilation in order to strengthen the DIY network (or something). PK actually replied and they lived happily everafter.

Throughout their rather short career, PK sort of moved to Leeds, where Chumbawamba lived and were extremely active in anarcho squat scene, and they started to gig together regularly. In fact, they even released a split demo tape entitled "Be happy, despite it all", which saw PK using a more folk music-oriented sound (whether it was intentional or because they couldn't afford proper instruments, I am not sure). At some point, Mave from PK moved back to Barsnley in order to achieve some mischievous political activities (you know, the miners' strike and all that) which pretty much marked the end of the band. Fortunately for all music-lovers, they managed to record a demo, originally entitled "Motion... yet motionless", released in 1983 on a tiny DIY tape distro called Peaceville Records and reissued in 2010 on vinyl. Mave and Daz moved back to Leeds and ended up joining Chumbawamba, hence some vocal similarities between both bands and, I like to believe, their distinct pop sensibility as well, because, if anything, Passion Killers was an anarcho pop-punk band (I know it sounds terrible but it is literally true).

If you like Chumba's poppy punk but always found that they experimented too much with instruments, paces and genres (that's called being original apparently), then Passion Killers is for you. If you like the first wave of punk-rock, back when singers actually sang but always found the lyrics and the cocky behaviour a bit insulting to your intelligence, then Passion Killers is for you. If you love Naked, Toxik Ephex, Omega Tribe, Instigators, Shrapnel and you have a soft spot for Beat music, although you would never ever admit it, then Passion Killers is for you and you are my new best mate. Take the most tuneful, genuine, heartfelt, passionate (easy one) side of first-wave punk-rock, dip it in the anarchopunk scene for the anger and relevance and add some unashamed Beat music sensibility to the mix (yes, I mean Gerry and the bloody Pacemakers or Herman's fucking Hermits). That's Passion Killers. Sounds terrible? Wait until you listen to it. Every single song is an absolute hit and will stick in your head not for hours or days, no, they will stick for months, years, they will haunt you till the day you die for your greatest pleasure.

As if the music was not such a treat in itself already, there is a thick booklet packed with pictures, gig posters, flyers (Passion Killers got to play with The Mob, Lost Cherrees, Systematic Annex, Fallout, Anathema, Karma Sutra...), interviews, band history, drawings and, of course, lyrics about the indoctrination in the capitalist system, coppers and how our own lives belong to us not them. Naive maybe, sloppily played at times but undeniably genuine and heartfelt (and a bonus, you've got a proper Yorkshire accent). You can hear the passion (I know, I know), the love and the frustration in these beautiful songs. The booklet looks brilliant and is obviously a labour of love, just like the other Demo Tapes releases (A Touch of Hysteria, The Mental, Solvent Abuse, Violent Uprising and Blyth Power, all signs of a great taste if you ask me). For some reason, it has been a few years since the last Demo Tapes release (I had read rumours about upcoming Alien Kulture and Warwound reissues but that was a while ago) but I sincerely hope that the hard bloke behind it has not given up. I very much doubt he takes request but Systematic Annex and Awake Mankind would deserve the great Demo Tapes treatment. The world must know about them.

As a conclusion, if you ever come across this baby on a distro, do yourself a favour and get it. That is not optional but mandatory.      

They kill our passion

"Oi! Sound of UK" compilation cd 2005

I have always been a sucker for reissues. When I was a teenager I would buy discography cd's of all the UK82 bands, crammed with songs (a lot of them mere fillers, let's face it), cheesy pictures of the boys before a brickwall and the history of the band told by either the singer or the guy from the label. It mattered to me because it made me feel that, through such discographies available to my generation for a decent price, the old bands also belonged to me: they were part of my history and I was part of theirs. It sounds really naive but I still get the same feeling when I get a good reissues with lyrics, pictures, liner notes, gig posters, all the artwork, a proper orgy of information. I know the trend today is to reissue records exactly as they were released the first time around. While I get why people would want that, isn't it just to recreate the illusion of the past in our current context? Just make-believe? The epitomy of nostalgia? But anyway, I won't talk about class reissues today (but there will definitely be a time for that). No, before one can spot top reissues, one has to know shitty, rip-off, idle, taking the piss out of you reissues first. And "Oi! Sound of UK" is possibly - and hopefully - the most terrible reissues I will ever own (yes, even worse than the crappiest cd bootleg I happen to have).

First, with a title like "Oi! Sound of UK", what do you expect in terms of content? You are entitled to expect Blitz, the Rejects, The Business, some shitty live recordings of 4-Skins and a demo version of Infa-Riot. You would be very wrong to expect this kind of line-up (and who needs yet another oi compilation anyway) since "Oi! Sound of UK" is actually a late 80's British hardcore compilation and the bands included are very far from boots, braces and hard-looking baldies. In fact, this cd is a reissue of a 1988 Lp compilation entitled "Airstrip One UK". It was released on notorious American hardcore label Mystic Records, probably as a means to promote the British hardcore scene on the other side of the Atlantic. While the original Lp looks quite good and seems to have at least some pictures and contacts, Mystic decided to reissue it changing its name to the pathetic "Oi! Sound of UK" with a fucking Union Jack on the cover and including absolutely no information whatsoever. Inside the "booklet" (assuming a sheet folded in two actually deserves the name that is...), you will only find ads promoting how fucking brilliant Mystic Records is, has been and will be. Not a word about the bands or even the original compilation.

I initially got this cd because I was flabbergasted when I saw what looked like your average dodgy oi compilation (the cover, as you can see, is not ironical in the least) with Deviated Instinct, Napalm Death or Karma Sutra on it (I was less surprised to see Oi Polloi, since, even 30 years after they stopped playing oi music, even 20 years after the "Whale song", a lot of people still think they are a oi band and not an anarchopunk band). I actually had to start a thread on he now defunct Profane Existence message board to ask about that piece of plastic. But anyway... In addition to the original line-up of bands that you can find on "Airstrip one", "Oi! Sound of UK" also contains 8 live songs from the Instigators. I have no idea why, when, how or what for, but here you are. Judging by the songs, this a late 80's live set from the Instigators, a time when they no longer were the catchiest band political band of the North and played rather bland US-influenced sticky melodic hardcore (not really our cup of tea at Terminal Sound Nuisance).

Have I felt deeply ripped off when I received this cd? Do I need to answer this? But enough bitterness and let's have a look at the songs. There are 16 songs and 17 bands (as if the horror wasn't already complete, the Karma Sutra song is split in two on the cd, so it stands on two tracks instead of one). First is Visions of Change, a band I have always enjoyed (not as good as their Depraved era if you ask me although this song sounds exactly like a Depraved song) with a warm, rocking, melodic music and great vocals. A smart band too. Next is Oi Polloi with a song from their - arguably - best period, when they tried to emulate the sound of Antisect, Anti-System, AOA, even Sacrilege. The guitar is distorted and thrashing, you have terrific solos all over the place, harsh, angry vocals with a long anarcho spoken part and a drummer dreaming he is with Discharge during the recording session of "Hear nothing". Cracking song, cracking band. A short live burst of vintage Napalm Death is followed by a too melodic a song from HDQ. I don't dislike HDQ, far from that, and I like tunes in punk-rock but I much prefer Hex because they still kept a distinct anarcho flavour in their blend of hardcore.

Deviated Instinct's "Mechanical extinction" proudly carries the crust banner on the next track. They hardly need an introduction from me as I have already written at great lengths about them in a previous post. Fantastic band and a top song from an excellent recording session (the so-called "Return of frost" third demo from 1987). Next is Offspring. Yes, Offspring. From the UK though but that's all I know about this band. Sonically they remind me of HDQ or Eyes On You, pretty typical of these British bands who tried to emulate a certain American sound but couldn't really help bringing typically British-sounding tunes and song-writing on the table (for my greatest pleasure). Cowboy Killers follow, the craziest Welsh hardcore band with smart, provocative lyrics, a instinctive approach to fast punk music and a distinctive singer who can both sing and sound pissed off. Not bad at all.

The ever-underestimated Decadence Within have their song on this one too, and a really good at that. While I don't enjoy their US crossover period, Decadence Within strikes me as a genuine, honest band that were not the best around but worked hard. Their song sounds a bit transitional as you will find traces of their more traditonnal (and amazing!) anarchopunk sound with the female singer as well as fast and punchy hardcore punk. I strongly recommend getting their double-cd on Boss Tuneage Records and reading Glasper's books. The next song (the two next tracks to be accurate) is the real standout song of this cd to my ears: Karma bloody Sutra. I'll grant you that they should have picked a more decent name but their Lp is everything a real lover of punk is bound to expect from a record: it is original, powerful, there is variety, there are tunes, there are real politics and above all honesty. I have no idea when "Crisis? What crisis?" was recorded but, judging from the pervading postpunk anarcho atmosphere, shortly after the album sounds correct. It is mournful, emotional, you can feel the frustration and the beauty pouring through each notes. It is just perfect.

Next are The Instigators in their not-so-good period. Still a decent song I suppose (the chorus is great) but give me their 1984-85 anytime. I am a bit harsh but when you have recorded songs as good as theirs, it is a bit disheartening to hear what followed them. Ripcord is next and I don't think they need much of an introduction. Famous Boston-influenced hardcore that left a strong mark on the British hardcore scene. They used to cover "Breakout" from Anti-System in their early days and ended up covering Siege, I guess that will give you an idea of what they sound like. The great Dan are next with energetic hardcore punk with a lot of hooks and top female vocals, not unlike A-Heads in a more American hardcore mood. Great band with a top notch double cd discography released on the ever-reliable Boss Tuneage. Eyes On You follows and again, an HDQ-type band to my ears, very tuneful in the American sense of the term.

Next are Autonomy, not the rarest moniker for a punk band and a band I know close to nothing about. The song is a bit sloppy but fits well with the other songs of the compilation: I hear American hardcore, a bit of thrashing here and there and a vocalist who tries to sing in tunes. Not bad but probably slightly anecdotal. Feed Your Head follow and that's more my cup of tea. They have this intensity that you cannot fake and proper tunes as well. Quite a unique band for its time I guess. I am not sure what they really intended to sound like but the addition of some synth at the end of this beefy punk-rock song definitely wins my heart (I must be the exception here, but you cannot change an old Amebix fan like myself!). Then you have another short burst of vintage Napalm Death. Finally, a classic song from the great Civilised Society?, also known as "and what if Chumbawamba had been into early thrash metal?". I have already ranted about CS? in the same post as Deviated Instinct so I won't start again. But they are great, they really are.

A word of conclusion? Don't ever buy this cd.

Oi! Sound of UK... for fuck's sake...

PS: the original cd was burnt very chaotically as you will hear so that you sometimes have the last seconds of a song overlapping onto the first of the next. Are they taking the piss? Yes, they are, thank you very much. Still, sorry about that but that's the whole point of my demonstration.