unfinished biz

hey everyone. heres the unfinished product of what was supposed to be think clear fanzine. i slacked off on that and i even slacked off on this "blog", just goes to show how strong my work ethic is hahaha. the only thing i got together was the interview with Lifers which was the 2nd post on this blog. that interview is now a year old, sheeeeesh... if you look at the intro i had way bigger plans in mind for this. also that thank you list is very outdated to say the least. regardless i hope you enjoy. click on the pages to see them fullsize.

WISDOM IN CHAINS / GRAVE MAKER / BACKTRACK / EXPIRE / HARRIERS / HEAD CHECK IN MTL: A REVIEW.

i went to Berri metro to meet up with Victor, while waiting for him i bumped into JF Pepin (of Mental Crew Canada fame) and we chit chatted for a little bit. he had just bought a ton of records and was catching a bus back to Sherbrooke. anyway Victor ended up showing up and we made our way to the venue. when we got there the doors were just opening, i said what's up to everyone as i made my way inside. there was like 6 bands and i don't have the best memory but i'll try to wrap this up real quick.

Head Check played first, they're a relatively new band and they play a 90s nyhc style with some other influences. anyway they were pretty good, the guitars sounded a bit thin and out of tune at times but it was a fun set, kids were moving a bit. good way to set it off. oh yeah those dudes are all like 15-16 so they're only gonna get better. im stoked to see what this band will grow into.

next up was Harriers, another newer band from Montreal. they have a more modern sound, alot of breakdowns, a lot of mid tempo parts and some fast parts too. they sounded fucking great, their set was tight. you could tell a lot of people were there to see them because the room felt a lot more packed when they started, as soon as they began their first song kids started moshing immediately. some even knew the words to the songs. it was dope to see. another good addition to the MTL HC scene.

Expire got up on the stage after, i saw them in Philly at This Is Hardcore this summer and they were pretty good. last night was no different, they play a hard style of NY influenced HC while incorporating other things that make them a bit more distinguishable. a couple kids were into it, for their first time in MTL it was awesome. oh yeah and they covered Hatebreed - Empty Promises. sweet.

Backtrack were next, opening with Killing Time - Backtrack. i dunno what's wrong with people here but me and victor were the only two singing along and moshing to it. oh well. they played a couple of new jams from their upcoming LP as well as the 7", demo and AHC comp songs. i've seen them a handful of times now and last night is definately up there. nothing else to say about them except lots of fun.

i had to catch my breath so i went to the store to get a water after. i didn't really feel like watching Grave Maker (im sure they were good, just not my cup of tea) so i ended up chilling outside talking to some people about bands when this drunk dude that stumbled out of the bar across the street asked us what we were talking about, then went on to say he loved Iron Maiden (awesome) then told us how his left ear has been ringing ever since he was 17 along with some other shit i can't really remember right now. we went back inside and hung out in the staircase (the best inbetween from the heat of the venue to the freezing cold outside) were a bunch of us just shot the shit for a while. we made it back upstairs to go watch Wisdom In Chains.

now i'm not too familiar with their material and i hardly ever listen to them, but i gotta say that they are definately awesome live. Joe shouted out Yan and Alexa for  travelling to see them all the time which i thought was dope. i was hanging out on the side just watching but did end up in the pit for "Die Young". lots of pile on and sing alongs, it was cool. after it was all done we hung out there for a bit then took off. last night was La Nuit Blanche which meant there was shit going on all night and the subway ran around the clock as well, so there was tons of cops and people all over the place. there was a toilet on a street corner, i took a picture sitting on it for lolz then we got in the metro. there was this girl passed out face down on the floor, probably from mixing pills and booze... welp. some other dude had gotten into a fight. the night was just getting started when we all got on the Green line going towards Honore Beaugrand toward a good night's sleep. 

RIVAL MOB / FREE SPIRIT / COKE BUST / VACCINE / LIBYANS / GIVE / MOB MENTALITY / STICK TOGETHER IN MEDFORD MA: A REVIEW.

it's been a few months since i've updated this. i wish i had an excuse but im just fucking lazy. who cares. i'll try to update more often though

anyways! so just looking at the title, you could guess there was way too many fucking bands playing this gig. but it's all good. there's a couple i didn't watch cuz i needed to snack and get a cold drink and shit but i'll do my best to review this. off we go... oh yeah, go check out pics of the gig on Future Breed.

so heather and i got to the venue around 7:15, the show was supposed to start around 6 so i was kinda illin' cuz i figured we'd be late. i also thought we were lost + didnt end up at the right spot but when i saw people walk around with guitar heads i figured we were at the right place. we got inside and stick together was setting up cuz some of the bands from DC were late or something. i had time to say what's up to some buds and shoot the shit with everyone for a bit before it started so that was cool.

so stick together kicked it off with X treatment, and everyone got moving quick. i still had my jacket on but made the wise decision to chuck it halfway thru the first song. i might retire from varsity jacket moshing unless it's at edge day. anyways, i don't really have much to say about their set except the banter between songs was funny as usual, everyone moshed and everyone had a good time. most people knew the words to both the demo and 7" songs so it was a pretty constant sing along up front. they covered ssd - glue and side by side - living a lie. word. and of course they had some ill merch.

mob mentality played after, i never heard of em but i thought they were pretty cool. i was hanging out on the side cuz i was already winded and it was hot as fuck in that place. + the fact that i didn't have water and ate like crap before the show didn't help things much. anyway i thought their set was pretty cool, a couple kids were moving around too but i think the heat was alredy starting to suck everyone's energy out. i dunno how to describe them but check em out, it's worth a listen.

give got up on stage after, for those who haven't heard them, keith summed it up as "if swiz and supertouch had a baby". i can't help but agree. for their whole set everyone was just chillin' in front of the stage bobbing heads and having a good time. i can't say i'm very familiar with their material but last night was definately a good incentive to check em out in more detail. i caught word that theyre playing with Mindset in toronto in the spring, so im gonna try to go out there and check that gig out.

after their set me and a couple others decided to go where the concession machines were in some other building, and basically it was a pain in the ass to get our shit cuz one machine didnt work at all but gave change (basically spit out dimes and nickels), one other machine didnt work either, one was fine and the last one only had diet coke left... but after figuring out logistics i managed to walk away with my bag of nacho cheese doritos and a bottle of diet coke. drinking something felt good. we all just hung out there for a while, shooting the shit, talking about sneakers and other random stuff which caused me to miss the two next bands.

when i went back to the venue vaccine was just wrapping up their set and coke bust were about to play. im not usually a fan of really fast shit but they do it right and they were fucking cool last night. not a band i'm very familiar with but they had some cool songs, i was just hanging out on the side watching. people got into them and shit so that was cool.

free spirit played after, it was basically what i came to expect and a bit more. good songs, people moshed, everyone had a good time. they played a Rampage cover, that was fuckin cool. they played the intro from the demo which i was stoked on. asides from that it was a blend of demo and 7" songs. again, a good time.

rival mob wrapped up the night and i was chillin on the side of the stage for the first half of the set trying to recoup from what was a pretty hot/long night. i did end up in the pit after tho. anyway, unless youve had your head up your ass for the past two years you know what the fuck they sound like. it was a average rival mob set: funny shit being said between songs, jabs being taken on BOLD*, people going off hard and the band being mad tight. nothing else to say about this. awesome as usual.

so after a long night of pitting, snacking, singing along and some other things we picked up, said goodbye to our buds and left. we put in denny's in her gps but i guess her thing is outdated cuz we ended up at a pub 99, which was closed. with no dennys in the immediate vicinity we settled on burger king. i was a bit skeptical at first cuz the veggie burger in canada is mediocre to okay, but the one in the states is made with a morning star patty. it was probably the best veggie burger ive had in a while so i was stoked on it. we put gas in the car, i got a gatorade and we hit the road, back to her house. i crashed immediately.

p.s. stay away from McDonalds Ice Cream. 
p.p.s. *i love BOLD

CRUEL HAND / BACKTRACK / BORN LOW / REVENGE IN HOLYOKE MA : A REVIEW.

we left Worcester at like 4:30. before the show we went to bueno y sano in northhampton before the show to get some grub. i got a  grande seitan burrito with extra cheese, it was great but it messed with my stomach pretty bad. anyway after that we made our way to the venue, it was early (6:30) but there was alredy a lot of kids outside. the venue was cool, good sized stage but it was really long so everyone was in the back, almost no dives, bummer. im sure its awesome for bigger shows. also the people working security are hardcore kids too so they know what's up. anyway i didn't watch the first couple bands attentively cuz i was catching up with some buddies and i was still recovering from that burrito (that shit was the size of a small child) so bear with me. the first band was called swamps, they were young and sounded like trash talk/ceremony. not my vibe at all but kids dug it so that was cool. it seems most people that were into em didnt stick around for the rest of the gig... it was a school night after all.  then Lifeloss played, from what i heard it kind of sounded like AN/Panic. they were pretty tight too. again not exactly my jam but i can appreciate it. revenge got up there next, you could tell it was their hometown, kids were going nuts. they were supposed to play DYS wolfpack but one of their guitar players didnt know it, bummer. their set was really hard though. born low played after, i watched from the back with Keith and Zach and at one point the pit was wall to wall stage to sound booth. that was awesome. not much else to mention about them, they have that reaper records style which is cool. backtrack hit the stage after, they opened with the first song off their 7", i started moving but kids were burnt out at that point, that's what happens on 6 band bills. they played most of the 7", a few demo cuts and their song off America's Hardcore. no complaints, great as usual. they're coming up to Canada with Expire, Grave Maker and Wisdom In Chains in February apparently, that should be pretty neat. Cruel Hand played last, they played a lot of tracks off the new LP, which i find is dope. i notice they have a sweet thrash vibe to them now, that's awesome. they also played an old track, Under The Ice, which remains a favorite of mine. overall cool gig, we drove Keith back home then went back to Worcester and crashed.

KEITH ALERT - INTERVIEW.

 

Keith is a cool dude. I met him and all the Alert dudes at This Is Hardcore 2009 and we've bumped into each other at shows I trek to ever since. When i started this thing he was one of the first people I wanted to interview, so here it is. Enjoy.

interview done over AIM November 2010.

Karl St-Pierre: ok imma make questions up as we go. you ready!?

throwingxbricks: yeah

Karl St-Pierre: ok state your name, age, place of living and the band/bands you play in.

throwingxbricks: I'm Keith, 22 years old. I live in Springfield, Mass and I play in Alert, and another band I'd rather not mention haha

Karl St-Pierre: word. what do you play in alert and that mysterious band you won't talk about

throwingxbricks: Bass in both bands. I also play guitar in a band called Use Your Head! but I'm not really sure on the status of that band

Karl St-Pierre: aight so how exactly did it begin? what was your first show and first record?

throwingxbricks: For hardcore? First show was kind of mixed but this band from New Hampshire called Mercury Switch played here and that was pretty cool I guess. Not really into them now but it was all new to me so I got hooked on going to many local shows after that. First record? It's hard for me to remember it was either Bane - The Note or the first Suicidal Tendencies record which my friend's mom gave me

Karl St-Pierre: thats cool. so as far as i know alert is a straight edge band, how long have you been straight edge for exactly?

throwingxbricks: Going on 5 years I think. Once I found out what it was I was all about it. I've never really done any drugs or anything before stumbling upon hardcore.

Karl St-Pierre: what's the status of alert right now? who's in the band at the moment and are you guys playing any shows? what's in the future?

throwingxbricks: Puffer on vocals, Kyle on guitar and Brendan on drums. We're basically in the process of writing a couple more songs for a 7" that should be out this winter on Six Feet Under Records. Once we do that I'm not really sure what the future has in store but I know we're all really excited to be doing this record.

Karl St-Pierre: what should we expect for the new record?

throwingxbricks: Definitely expect a similar sound. We didn't do anything groundbreaking or very different that our usual stuff, but I think these songs are more solid and I definitely think this record will be better than the demo. For sure

Karl St-Pierre: word. i dig the demo alot so i'm stoked to hear the 7". how did Alert start and how many OG members are left in the line up?

throwingxbricks: We started summer 08. I had met out original drummer Will earlier that year as well as Kyle and found out they were interested in starting a band influenced by that whole Youth Of Today era sound. Wide Awake, Judge, Side By Side, all that stuff, so everyone got together though at the time no one knew each other except through me. The rest is history. Last winter Will left us to pursue other things and we picked up Brendan.

Karl St-Pierre: you guys were supposed to play This Is Hardcore this year, what happened to that?

throwingxbricks: Hahahaha yeah we were supposed to play a couple songs but it was supposed to be a surprise I guess and some friends found out and posted it on a message board. No more surprise so we didn't play. Not that big of a deal, though.

Karl St-Pierre: is anyone in the band vegetarian/vegan?

throwingxbricks: I'm vegetarian and Mike is vegan. Kyle and Brendan aren't but when we had Will he was also vegetarian

Karl St-Pierre: word. staying on this topic what would be your favorite vegetarian song

throwingxbricks: No More. Awesome song and music video

Karl St-Pierre: definately. that video is also the epitome of style, no doubt. in a normal week, approximately how many hours do you lurk ebay for gear?

throwingxbricks:Honestly I haven't lurked ebay for a while. I just don't have the funds for that anymore, though I once in a while glance to see if I can find that Wide Awake red Schism shirt I've still be trying to track down

Karl St-Pierre: who's your favorite band in 2010 so far?

throwingxbricks: Does Sick Of It All count?

Karl St-Pierre: no.

throwingxbricks: It's really hard then because so many current bands I like a lot. I'd probably have to go with Waste Management or Step Forward

Karl St-Pierre: 1982 or 1988?

throwingxbricks: 1988. most of the bands i like are a lot are from that era, and if i could grow up in any era in hardcore it'd be in nyc between 1987-1991

Karl St-Pierre: nikes or vans?

throwingxbricks: nikes. grew up with nikes all my life and only owned like 2 pairs of vans ever

Karl St-Pierre: Stop And Think demo 1 or 2?

throwingxbricks: 1st

Karl St-Pierre: the way it is or new breed

throwingxbricks: fuuuuuuuck. the way it is. but it's close.

Karl St-Pierre: i think that about wraps it up. anything else you wanna add?

throwingxbricks: Keep an eye out for that new record and for all the youngins reading start bands, make zines, and keep on supporting hardcore bands. Keep this shit alive! XXX

http://www.myspace.com/alertstraightedge

THE RIVAL MOB / FREE SPIRIT / STICK TOGETHER / OVERPOWER / PLANET DANGER: A REVIEW.

 

Chris, Victor, Danielle, Paula and yours truly left Montreal around 9am. Spoiler was supposed to roll but was tied down with a cold or whatever he had told me haha. anyway the drive down was pretty uneventful. we made the traditional Brockville Harvey's stop to chow down on some veggie burgers, got into town around 3 or so and just kicked it and ate food. Chris got a haircut.

we made our way to Rancho at around 8:30 or so, i met up with some of my buds that came up from Buffalo, and went to say what's up to everyone til the gig started. as Planet Danger were setting up i made my way up the stairs and changed into my newly acquired lime green Stick Together shorts (it's like a sauna inside rancho. no way i was wearing pants all night) and hit the pit...

 

Planet Danger from Barrie Straight Edge opened the gig, they have a hard sound reminiscent of what's coming out from the Reaper roster. they are MUCH better live than on their recordings. their crew were definately representing on the floor, i thought that was cool. i couldn't help but get in the action myself at some points. Bob shouted out MTL SXE and was wearing a Plus Minus shirt. that's what's up.

i didn't watch Overpower, i heard they opened with NA ready to fight. thats cool.

Stick Together came on next, as usual they brought it, sans Ned who was on tour with Title Fight. if you haven't heard them, they remind me a lot of Release and harder sounding YC bands from '88. played Breakdown and CW gonna bust as well as the demo cuts, a few new songs to come out on a 7" and another song that will come out on a SFU comp that talks about racism in hardcore, "i dont care if some people wanna go in corn fields and burn crosses and shit, but if you see that shit happen at a hardcore throw those people down the stairs" or something close to that was what hoodrack said before playing the song, awesome. near the end of their set one of the overhanging speakers' chain got off somehow so the speaker was only hanging from one chain instead of two. the soundguy got a little heated, but it's to be expected when that stuff happens. to the delight of most the front monitors were gone, i still have no idea why they keep them there. anyway fuck all of that, Stick Together ruled. WBSE.

Free Spirit played after, and by now the people who didn't know, know. solid both on record and live, they opened with the first track on their 7", played the song they have on AHC and a handful of others, but mostly 7" and demo material. they played a NA cover i didn't recognize at all and closed with Straight Ahead... THAT was awesome. "because i care, i'll take a fucking stand!"

then Rival Mob came on... shit got crazy real quick. i picked my spot on the side of the stage, at that point i was pretty winded so i just wanted to watch and sing along. tons of dives, tons of pitting, great stage banter as usual, no YOT cover, i was kind of bummed but what are ya gonna do. i think they played their whole HC4HC 7" and a few tracks off the 12". kids were really going off, for the first time when i said "im gonna take it easy during RM tonight" i actually did. kids were asking for another song but they weren't having it.

i really can't say anything else about this show, again lots of dives, lots of pitting, a handful of drunk idiots tryna sweat people on the floor but it is to be expected at shows in a bar. peace to Greg, Vik and Mike le Mosheur for setting this thing up. it was around 1 when we rolled out of there, we decided to hit the town and get some burritos... just so happens the joint was smack dab in the middle of the clubbing area of the city, it made for some pretty good laughs. on the real though Toronto has amazing food and the place we went to was a good example of that (i think the girl taking the orders was having a bad night but that's another story). we went to brie's to crash for the night, got up around 9:30 and went to Sadie's, another TO tradition, for breakfast. Chris and i got awesome vegan chocolate chip pancakes, they fucking ruled. we took off not long after that, dropped D'Arcy, Brie and Danielle off at the TTC station and went home. the drive back was pretty boring too, i ate doritos, m&ms and got a couple of cream cheese bagels at tim hortons. it'll feel good to eat real food later tonight...

 

a la prochaine,

-Karl.

REVIEWS.

EASY WAY OUT - DEMO

those dudes are from the niagara region, i met some of them at TIHC fest this year. anyway i ended up DLing the demo. right when the first note hit, i noticed the production sounded really raw and powerful, something which in my opinion lacks a lot in newer HC demos. good riffs, there's a clear Lockin' Out/NYHC influence but those dudes manage to maintain their own sound without completely stealing riffs. the only thing i could comment on is, the vocals should be a bit more amped/intense but on the real tip, one of the better demos i've heard in 2010. hopefully those dudes continue in the same direction they're headed and play shows around.
http://www.myspace.com/easywayouthc

DISENGAGE - LOOK BACK
a new band from wilkes-barre featuring the dudes from bad seed/title fight, disengage dropped their look back e.p. in the late summer on back to back records, and let me tell you, it's a total banger. it sounds like a mix of warzone and insted, yes that's awesome how this 7" is. my favorite song on this is the self titled one, especially this line: "i have faith in this hardcore scene, cuz it depends on you and me!". i also really dig the Magnus cover, it even features Dan CW on guest vocals. i love songs about being angry and shit as much as the next guy, but posi edge shit was my first love and it's nice to hear a band execute that perfectly.
www.myspace.com/thewilkesbarrestraightedge

WRITTEN OFF - DEMO
 yo, from the birthplace of the Slugger comes Written Off, and they dropped their Louisville Straight Edge demo last summer. an obvious LOC influence, i'm really digging the re-emergence of this style. they kick things off with a pretty decent intro, the first few songs are pretty cool but i really prefer the second half of the demo. the vocals are pretty good, i wish the guitars were louder but aside from that i really can't complain. 10 minutes of chill mosh. if you got down to Jungle Jamz you'll definately dig this.
http://www.myspace.com/writtenxoff