AFRICAN GUITAR vol. 1

Made a trip to Oakland's Contact Records a couple of weeks back while the wife was getting her eyebrows done. Tiny ass shop near MacArthur BART, but absolutely fukkn rammed with gems. I was pleasantly surprised at the amount (and quality) of punk bangers in a store whose focus is concentrated a little deeper and a little further back. I snagged a few slabs, was introduced to Catherine Ribeiro (thank you), and impulsively grabbed two cassette volumes of African guitar music on my way to the register. It was a good trip. The two tapes are a booted version of Mississippi's brilliant but prohibitively expensive 5xLP box set and the title pretty much sums it up. Artists from Kenya, Sierra Leon, Congo, Zaire, Uganda and Zambia fill almost 90 minutes with sounds that are so clearly from another world. Early blues roots ooze through some of the tracks, tribal mesmerism, subdued psychedelic freakouts...just pure and beautiful sounds. Perfect lazy listening - and yeah, Volume 2 will be up here eventually.

AFRICAN GUITAR vol. 1

TAPE #55

You should just be able to read the spine on this one and know what's up. The HOMO PICNIC and 7 SECONDS sets are from around 1985 (they play "Just One Day" from New Wind, but it definitely seems like a new addition to the set), and it's good to hear HOMO PICNIC taking some jabs at the headliners between songs...7 SECONDS are straight fire on this recording by the way, positive and earnest and very fukkn real. CRO-MAGS demo has made the rounds forever (I honestly only included it here in the interest of presenting the cassette in its entirety); the URGENT FURY tracks are from the 1985 demo, one of the most underappreciated NY bands that I know of (these five songs were the A-Side of the Demos 1984-86 10" that Broken Rekkids reissued in the early '90s - highly recommended and still readily available in bargain bins around the US); and the BORN WITHOUT A FACE tracks will save you a cool $50 unless you need to hold the OG wax in your hand (and I kinda do). A relic from the tape trading days of the 1980s, collections like this used to be how people found new bands...you got one of these bad boys in the mail and you listened front to back, soaking everything in a mentally categorizing what clicked and what didn't to help guide you deeper into the unknown. The Unknown is good - it's full of wonder and discovery. And its way better than brainlessly filling up your hard drive....

TAPE #55

MAGGOT MINDED

Hard to comprehend that the seeds of the current (and now, I suppose, recently past?) crop of mutant hardcore in and around Olympia, Washington were planted more than a decade ago. But alas, it was 2006 when we shared a mobile home with WHITE BOSS at a show that ended with a massive trash fire out back and chants of "MEGA! MEGA! MEGA!" as freeks threw compressed combustibles into the blaze. Low fidelity reality from the radical libertarian void, circa 2007: SEX VID, SISTER, FUNEROT, HIV, HORRIBLE, and LOOSE CHANGE. Pull up your trousers.

MAGGOT MINDED

IZGUBLJENA ALTERNATIVA

If this isn't what you want, then I don't really know why you bother paying me a visit. 1985(?) Yugo comp featuring UBR, QUOD MASSACRE, DISTRESS, NECROPHELIA, SOLUNSKI FRONT and DVA MINUTA MRĆ»NJE.....if you monkeys want something better than this....? Fukk, I don't know what to tell you. 

IZGUBLJENA ALTERNATIVA

For what it's worth and/or extra encouragement, there are eight tracks of primitive live/demo shitcore mania tacked onto the end of this tape that are not credited on the insert...to some ears, these might be the finest (read: shittiest) ten minutes on the entire cassette. So if you are feeling jaded but still think you are brave....? Well, then there you go.

CHAABI MUSIC FROM al-MAGHRIB

I just want to say that the motherfukkrs from Mississippi Records do the fukkn thing right. Keep dropping collections like these and fools like me will stay hungry for the unknown  and under the radar until the day I die. Featured artists include: NOUAS, L'FARKA CHAABIA, KHIRA BZIOUIA and  NASS al-GHIWANE (whose "O Human Being" is the most deadly track on this collection). I don't know fucking shit about this music, but I know what I like when I hear it, and I have listened to this tape countless times since I picked it up over the summer, and that is worth something...right? If this is what Morocco sounds like, then sign me up....

CHAABI MUSIC FROM al-MAGHRIB

11.11.16

I made this mix tape for a friend. I thought I did a pretty good job making everything flow, then got to the end of Side B and perfectly timed the remaining space to a weird CHARLIE TWEDDLE track (as any tape maker knows all too well, timing the end of each side is key, and we always keep an arsenal of short, poignant numbers up our sleeves for mometnts just like these). Boom. It was about to be done. So I dropped the needle, I unpaused the recording and I went to pop open a celebratory beer...because a good mix tape is an accomplishment worth celebrating. And then an enemy known only as "auto-reverse" reared its head, and before I knew it, the first 10 minutes of the Side A had been replaced with the gentle crackle of a needle knocking at the matrix...fuck. Normally, I could have just recreated the first few selections, but I had started this particular mix with a self-edit of PHAROAH SANDERS' "The Creator Has A Master Plan" (a controversial tape making tool, but one I am comfortable utilizing when appropriate) and it would be impossible to nail that timing again...so I started over. Many of the same tracks found their way back into the program, but offerings by SCREAMING TREES, PTARMIGAN and BEHAVIOR didn't seem as appropriate to the overall vibe and were replaced with WAYNE NEWTON, THE BODY and BRUCE GILBERT. I am very pleased with the tape, and have listened to it many times since (re)completion. While it brings me pleasure to share this here, and I hope that it brings you pleasure also...nothing can compare to the feeling of packing up a tape to mail to someone far away. Imagining it reaching their hands and then filling their ears...it's why we do this. And sometimes it's our very reason for existence. 

11.11.16

NEMA VOPIA NEDELJOM UVECE

Blistering 1986 Yugoslav comp featuring S.D.T., PROCES, YUGOSLAV SUN (this ska track breaks up the hardcore, and almost ends up being my favorite song on the tape), IDIOTI, OPASNE IGRE, PATARENI and others. Noisy, chaotic, raw bursts of punk and hardcore from a time and place that is long gone.

NEMA VOPIA NEDELJOM UVECE

PUNISH OR BE DAMNED

I know that when I posted Vol. 2 a few months back I asked The Cassette Gods to place a copy of Vol. 1 in my hands. So anyway, Cassette Gods, I just wanna say thanks. Just like the (sub)title suggests...."38 AntiSocial Punk Songs With Synth or Keyboards"....I'm not sure what more you need to know. From C.C.T.V. (2015, Indiana) to ROCK BOTTOM AND THE SPIES (1981, Los Angeles) to MIZZ NOBODY (1979, Sweden) and KAOS (1982, Yugoslavia)....yeah, you shouldn't really need any more convincing. The shit is straight gold.

PUNISH OR BE DAMNED Vol. 1

ALIVE FROM INSIDE CHAPEL OF THE CHIMES

Nasty garage hardcore, noisy pogo punk, blown out distortion fests, angular no wave...what the fuck do you want that this compilation doesn't deliver? Sandwiches? Well those don't come in plastic shells (at least they shouldn't) so eat these tracks or no dessert. CUM, SPETSNAZ, FLEXIBLE AMMUNITION BELT, CHEMOS, THE OINTMENT, MPK, FRANKY...and some guy named Steve. 

ALIVE FROM INSIDE CHAPEL OF THE CHIMES

Link repaired...thanks to all who let me know I fukkd up. It happens sometimes....

ЯКУСКИЙ ПАНК // ĐŸĐ›ĐžĐ„ĐžĐ™ ПАНК

Three bands from Yakutsk, capital of the Sakha Republic in Siberia - a city of 300,000 isolated motherfuckers who are starting to drop some really compelling punk and hardcore bands.  ĐšĐĐ Đœ ĐĄĐĄ were here recently, but this other shit....? I'm just saying you need to get amongst the Russia Train now to avoid being left behind, because that shit is leaving the station and it's standing room only. Đ–Đ•ĐĐĄĐšĐĐŻ ДИСГАРМОНИЯ, DEAD BIEBER'S, and йАРМ ĐĄĐĄ make some seriously engaging racket on this comp...raw and discordant punk and hardcore shits to share with all your friends. Can you believe that Matt just didn't want this anymore and gave it to me? Shit - I couldn't believe it either.

ЯКУСКИЙ ПАНК // ĐŸĐ›ĐžĐ„ĐžĐ™ ПАНК

YOUR KIND OF SOUND

Any frequent (or fervent) Escape visitors will know the name Dan Riffe. Oklahoma stalwart, member of ILLEGITIMATE SONS OF JACKIE O and former bandmate of mine in ANCIENT CHINESE PENIS and BRUTAL GARDENERS, and the source of my introduction to a lot of killer music. Perhaps I didn't fully realize how influential the dude actually was until I started doing this blog thing - between bands we were in together, bands he was in that I dug, and tapes he made me....shit, that monkey was responsible for a pretty huge chunk of my initial introduction to The True Underground. How can one man be responsible for turning a twenty year old onto WRETCHED and JAD FAIR? Exactly. In case you are wondering, only one of those two is on this tape - but he did drop an S.O.B. track from Gates Of Doom on this one, and who the fuck was blasting death metal S.O.B. in Oklahoma 1993? Seriously. That's my point. And this tape was my introduction to LAST EXIT, who are from another planet. So yeah - instead of telling you all the things that are on this tape, I'll just tell you that it opened my mind and my eyes to tons of shit (and helped me find other shit through that shit) and I still cherish it more than two decades after Dan made it for me. Thanks, dude.

YOUR KIND OF SOUND

WE ARE ALL POSITIVE

1999 compilation of four Russian bands with varying degrees of association with the then-new straight edge scene. Extensive liner notes (in English and Russian, all included of course) address which members are (and were) edge, and give a little background on the bands and their scenes...all of which compliments what is already a pretty strong collection of tracks. The opening eight bangers from ĐžĐąĐšĐĐ­ Об НАСИЛЯ are probably my favorite on the comp - unhinged hardcore punk with overbearing gruff vocals and a perfectly tinny fuzzed out guitar...the tape is easily worth holding onto for these tracks alone. ĐŸĐžĐĄĐĐ”Đ˜Đ› ДЕРЕВО play more straight up metallic hardcore, chug riffs, guitar wanks, all presented in moderate fidelity (can I start calling things mod-fi?) and passion. Another eight from CITA ATTIEKSME, the most basic punk outfit of the bunch, flirting with earnest DC hardcore. The tape closes with an ominous offering from SKYGRAIN - fast, heavy, inadvertently distorted hardcore made more bombastic than it actually is simply by the presentation. A compilation that's good for the tunes, but surely made better by the context.

WE ARE ALL POSITIVE

NUEVAS GENERACIONES

Collection of eight hard hitting hardcore bands from 1990s Argentina. Personal faves are DIVERSÍON SUBURBANA, XAUTOCONTROLX, OPCION CRUCIAL, and PODER NEUTRAL, probably because these seem to fit more into traditional DIY hardcore confines. TOTUS TOSS sound like a metalcore PANTERA but way unhinged, CONFORT SUPREMO are full on 90s HC chug and harmonics, PENSAR O MORIR almost come off like commercial alternative music before they launch into knuckle dragging metalcore, and they need to lay off the slap bass (sadly, they are not the only offender on this tape, just the most egregious one), FUERZA INTERNA sound like later INFECTIOUS GROOVES-era SUICIDAL but with hardcore vocals - and a warning that several of the tracks on this comp venture into proto-nĂŒ metal territory. But it's a time and a place thing...so you take the good with the bad. And if you like deep hardcore cuts that make you want to put your head through a wall, then you're welcome.

NUEVAS GENERACIONES

GATEWAY JAZZ

The title of this comp couldn't be more appropriate. Gateway Jazz is a brilliant collection of tracks from mandatory starter artists like DAVIS, COLTRANE, MINGUS, MONK, COLEMAN presented alongside deep cuts from MULATAS ASTATKE, JACK McDUFF, COLEMAN HAWKINS, LAST POETS and more. Prepared by one of my pals and presented by another one, this tape was much anticipated at TEHQ, and expectations were surpassed. There's a reason why people think making a mix tape is an art...and there's a reason why some people are revered as artists.

GATEWAY JAZZ

LOS LOCOS

Killer collection of Latin American punk rock and dark punk. Heaps of bands I was unfamiliar with (8 BOLAS, TODOS TUS ROUERTOS, POLO PEPO) and some that most studious punks will be familiar with (INOCENTES, AS MERCENARIAS, LEUZEMIA, ALERTA ROJA). Top tracks: LUXURIA's "Luxuria Insatisfecha" and the hopelessly out of tune untitled creamer from SIZE. First side is punk, and then the flip ventures into the new wave/goth sounds of the '80s...this is why mix tapes (still) rule.

LOS LOCOS - A Latino Punk Mixtape For The Punks

STREBERS // BLANDAD PUNK, HC & KÄNG

My introduction to STREBERS was on my first Euro tour, when RĂŒlle told me they were his favorite band and was more than excited to show me how great they were. Their approach is as infectious as relentless, starting with the impossibly catchy chorus to "Sanningen" inserted into the track's all out hardcore burn. Comparisons to contemporaries are not out of line, but the '80s Swedes had an uncanny ability to make that fist in the air hardcore that was still catchier than any of the pre-landfill pop drivel that denizens of the rest of the planet were regurgitating at the time. The 1991 collection Kaos & SkrĂ„l is a pretty perfect place to start, with EP tracks and some solid bangers from STREBERS' first 12" platter from 1986...and someone was kind enough to slap the thing onto cassette so I could share it with you.

KAOS & SKRÅL // BLANDAD PUNK, HC & KÄNG

And speaking of kind, that same someone filled the B-side of that STREBERS tape with a starter kit titled Mixed Punk, HC & Crust. Essential rippers from ANTI-CIMEX, EXTREME NOISE TERROR, YOUTH OF TODAY, NO SECURITY, and because so few homemade compilations are truly perfect there are a few tracks from the debatably interesting but often unlistenable then-future commercial juggernaut TEDDYBEARS from when they were just a kinda weird rock band (be careful, the internet suckhole related to this band can be detrimental to any kind of constructive activity and may adversely affect your opinions of humankind in general and pop culture specifically). But on a positive note, it had been a while since I had blasted ENT and that band still crushes so hard. The B-side of this tape is an excellent primer for the uninitiated and a ripping refresher for those already in the know. Quality.

BRITISH AIRWAVES

I think that my vinyl copy of this release was the product of an expedition to Tulsa in the late '80s (teenage Wizard was neither adventurous nor mobile) and resulted in my discovery of 18 then-new-to-me bands (which is precisely what a comp is supposed to do). That said, the 1000 MEXICANS track gets stuck in my head at least once a month (it's that damn bass line), THE RENEES are killer, THE THREE JOHNS track is mediocre but resulted in several of their records in my arsenal, and this JAZAWHAKI tune is as infectious as anything I can imagine.In addition, you get burners from THE GLOBAL INFANTALISTS, HAGAR THE WOMB (my first introduction was this track), THE MOODISTS, NIKKI SUDDEN, and THE RENEES ("Drink Problem" seemed so racy as a 16 year old...) among many others. I think the motivation for this comp was financial, as British Airwaves seems to have been compiled and released by a label hoping to break UK post punk/new wave acts into the US market, but I can't really see anything here that we Americans ever gave a shit about aside from NEW MODEL ARMY....though this is still my favorite NEW MODEL ARMY jam. But seriously, "Last Pop Song" is beyond devastating....turn and face the lights.

BRITISH AIRWAVES

Turn up the music, one last time // This is the last pop song, come on and sing // This is the last pop song, it didn't mean a thing...

NO JUSTIFICATION !!

"Be" by THE VERNON WALTERS is one of the coolest songs I've ever heard. It's all of the things that were great about tuneful and catchy punk when it was still punk as shit - even the lilting vocals are undoubtedly earnest and intense and the hooks just make me wanna play the shit over and over. No Justification II is packed with bands I've never heard of, but the whole hour is top fukkn noth international hardcore punk. Five bands on this 22 track comp - the thing is set up like others from the series, and the level of quality is similarly high. Metallic hardcore from FORTHRIGHT, snarky UK punk ala-BUZZCOCKS from HUMIDIFIER, while ALGKVARN can't shake 7 SECONDS comparisons. SEVEN SIOUX are kinda hitting that same VERNON WALTERS "remember back when melodic punk was cool" vibe ("Doubt" is an absolute killer), and I keep listening to this comp. Over and over. Not surprisingly, I suggest that you do the same....

There are other comps with the same presentation - all awesome and all packed with bands I was not already familiar with, which is exactly what I want They appear to all have been animal rights benefits (something else that I want) in the late '80s. That time was not a waste, my friends, so much quality like this:

NO JUSTIFICATION II

CAN'T STAND // IT CAN BE ALL RIGHT

Near the end of 2014, I went on a short tour from Austin to Mexico City. At our second show, a nice gentleman told me that our driver was probably gonna listen to shitty music and he handed me this mixtape for our first drive (which was 20+ hours). We never listened to the tape on tour (I don't think Mapex has a tape deck in his Renault anyway...), but I popped this baby in when I got home, and it seems that, in addition to being thoughtful, motherfukkr knows how to make a killer comp. Full power ass shaking punk, with an emphasis on bands with saxophones. ESSENTIAL LOGIC, BLACK RANDY & THE MEETROSQUAD, CONTRAZIONE, TIPEX...solid bangers placed with care. There are the "cool down" tracks (STOOGES, 39 CLOCKS, KLEENEX, RITUAL) and there are straight burners (I had never heard DEBIELE EENHEID's "Million Volts Anal Vibrator" before this tape), and an appropriate smattering of newer bands (MALLWALKERS, PUFFY AREOLAS) that never fuck with the flow. The deep cuts (and there are many) aren't pretentious "neener neener, look how much underground music I know about" tracks, they're just good ass songs on a really good comp tape...and the inclusion of "Grim Reaper" from SIEGE is a bold (read: perfect) move. Everything is presented in raw fidelity, perfect for blasting out your car window while driving down the highway....which is exactly the point.

CAN'T STAND // IT CAN BE ALL RIGHT

ROTCORE

Shockingly stacked upstate New York comp from the mid-'00s. Sloppy snarky punk shits, pissed in your face hardcore shits, lots of raw and lots of punk. Bands you might have heard of include WARSQUAD, THE DENTS and BLÜDWÜLF. Bands you've never heard of but should get familiar with include BOB BARKER + THE WOMANIZERS, THE END, NOBODY CARES and 17th CLASS. Regional compilation tapes kinda rule.

ROTCORE