Suckerpunch

Alright, I've finally got some time for a proper new post... lately I've been revisiting a bunch of Ebullition records and related releases - 1990's "emo" influenced hardcore and the like.  Suckerpunch was one of those sort of bands and appeared on the great "Give Me Back" compilation that Ebullition issued (and which I posted a while back here).  While I think their track on that comp. (Religious Phallos) is their best song, their other material is definitely worth a listen.  Collected here for you is their self-titled 10" and their side of the split flexi Ep with Born Against - fair warning, my copy of the flexi is relatively degraded and the sound quality is pretty terrible.  It appears that the band only released one other split Ep before calling it quits.  For those unfamiliar or who haven't heard their contribution to the Give Me Back comp., Suckerpunch had a relatively metallic HC sound which is in keeping with Ebullition stalwarts like Downcast and Struggle but which also brings to mind East Coast bands like Citizens Arrest or Rorschach, though not quite as heavy.  Lyrically and aesthetically they were firmly in the Ebullition style as well.  Anyways, check them out and hope you dig this relatively overlooked group from the 1990s California HC scene.

Suckerpunch - s/t 10" and Split Ep w/ Born Against   

Undone

OK, sorry for the silence... its been fairly busy around here and several projects have been taking up my time as of late, though I'm trying to get back into posting more regularly soon.  For now, here is a quick re-post of some more French emo hardcore... Undone were another of those groups from France in the mid 90s who took their cues from Dischord bands like Rites of Spring and Embrace as well as early Ebullition Records hardcore.  On Stonehenge Records, along with the likes of Fingerprint and Ivich, Undone mixed chaotic tempos, quiet intros and bombastic crescendos with impassioned screaming vocals.  This post contains their "Dark Future" Lp and their two 7" Eps, the majority of their recorded output. 

Undone - Dark Future Lp and two Eps

Finger Print - Discography

OK, this post is a response to a request, of sorts, from a commenter.  Noisenoisetom wanted to see material from the great French HC label Stonehenge records posted... as I told him, Batguano over at Fugitive Equilibrium had already uploaded quite a bit of that stuff already.  However, when I went back to his site I saw that some of the links are now dead so, in the interest in keeping this great music out there I'm going to repost some of it - starting with perhaps the best band to come out of the 1990s scene in France; Finger Print.  Fugitive Equilibrium still has a great write-up of the band on the site and there's not much I can add so I'd suggest checking out the original post.  I'll just add that when I heard Finger Print for the first time in the mid 90's it was quite a game changer... "Emo" was definitely in the air (in its early form, more related to hardcore than pop-punk) but Finger Print had ratcheted up the speed and power in a way that a lot of the "screamo" stuff that came after obviously tried to emulate, however much of it couldn't quite reach the same heights.  That's my two cents anyways, download and check it out for yourself!

Finger Print - Discography CD 

Wardance Orange

All right, sorry for the delay... I was a bit under the weather last week.  Anyways, I think I'm going to stay in Richmond for a minute and post another 90's Virginia band called Wardance Orange.  I saw these guys a couple of times back in the day in my travels up and down the East Coast to see shows.  I don't know much about them but, though being relatively short-lived, Wardance Orange put on a great live set.  They only released one 7" and a split Ep and to my mind neither does their live presence justice.  Still, their self-titled Ep on Tribal War Records is a solid mid-90's hardcore record.  There's tons of influences in the music - from metallic hardcore (particularly Rorschach) to early emo (Moss Icon or Rites of Spring).  This one might be more of a "you had to be there" kind of post, but hopefully it at least provides more insight into the East Coast HC scene at the time...  Along with the self titled 7", this file includes the split Ep with Atlanta emocore band Ex Members Of...

Wardance Orange - s/t Ep and Split Ep w/ Ex Members Of... 

The End of the Century Party - Isn't It Perfectly Fucking Delightful To Be So Goddamn Certain Lp

Next up I've got the sole Lp from Florida's End of the Century Party.  Hailing from Tampa in the mid to late 90's, End of the Century Party were part of the same scene that produced legendary thrashers Asshole Parade, and the slightly less legendary, but still killer, Palatka.  Always a bit of an anomaly in a region that seemed to be defined by No Idea records and Gainesville bands like Hot Water Music, groups like Asshole Parade, End of the Century Party and Palatka coexisted with the relatively lighter and poppier bands that populated the Florida scene at the time.  End of the Century Party played fast and furious hardcore infused with a myriad of tempo changes, intricate guitar work and intensely screamed vocals.  This record brings to mind contemporary bands like Rorschach or, most especially, South Carolina purveyors of "emo violence" In/Humanity.  EOCP's drummer, B, now pounds the skins for the amazing No Statik, out of San Francisco - if that helps provide a frame of reference.

The End of the Century Party - Isn't It Perfectly Fucking Delightful To Be So Goddamn Certain Lp

Monsula

Here's one more early 90's Bay Area band for now... Monsula were another early Lookout! records group, but one that brought a significant DC hardcore influence to their sound.  This is most prevalent on their second LP, and final release, Sanitized.... there are some definite parallels to what Fugazi was doing at the time, but I also hear a good dose of Ignition and Soul Side, all with a Bay Area tinge.  All in all Monsula released one 7" and two LPs, all of which are included here.  The entire discography is great but my go-to record for them remains the final LP.  Check it all out below.

Monsula - Discography   

Frail - Make Your Own Noise

Here is the nearly complete discography of Philadelphia straight edgers Frail.  These guys were around in the mid-90s and in 1994 or so I happened to be in Richmond, VA visiting friends when Frail played a dank basement somewhere downtown.  They were great, of course.  I picked up their first two seven inchers at the show... these, along with their third Ep and a split 7" with Elements of Need are included on this disc.  Frail released a couple of compilation only tracks that don't appear on this collection but this CD covers everything else.  Their sound was definitely in the 90s emo vein, though, it seems to me, musically they bridged the gap somewhat between the metallic straight edge sound of contemporary bands like Unbroken or Catharsis and the early wave of French screamo - bands like Fingerprint or Ivich.  Members of Frail went on to found Ink & Dagger if that helps place their sound as well...

Frail - Make Your Own Noise CD 

Sleeping Body - Awaken Ep

This time out I've got the sole record from a Texas band called Sleeping Body.  It was released in the early 90s on the Vermin Scum label out of Maryland - home of Moss Icon, The Hated, Universal Order of Armageddon and others with a similar take on the punk/hardcore sound.  Sleeping Body immediately brings Moss Icon to mind with the singer's pained vocals and out of tune yelps (for a while after picking this record up I was convinced that Johnathan Vance from M.I. was the actual vocalist for this band...), as well as the spastic music, lurching towards vicious crescendos.  This band definitely had a Washington DC vibe and sound and this Ep fit right in on the Vermin Scum roster.  Records like this seemed to me to be a heavy influence on the rise of the 90s Gravity records "San Diego sound" and the second wave emo and screamo scenes...
      
Sleeping Body - Awaken Ep

Abyss - s/t Ep

So, in the early 90's many of my friends and I were pretty much obsessed with German metallic hardcore... and there was plenty of to be had.  Bands like Acid Rain Dance, ABC Diabolo, Acme, Carol and the like became relatively known.  Abyss was a short lived, lesser player in that scene but their 7" left me wanting a lot more.  Strained vocals, bordering on "emo" over vicious metal riffs, blazing fast parts and crushing breakdowns made for a great debut.  This one lies somewhere between the straight-up metalcore of a band like Carol and the French style emo-hardcore of Fingerprint.  Unfortunately, beyond this sole 7" they only seem to have released a split Ep with Iconoclast (the NJ emo-hardcore version... an apt paring I must say).  If you are into any of the above mentioned bands, definitely check this one out.

Abyss - s/t Ep

Unherd - s/t Lp

Here's another post from my neck of the woods, nearby South Carolina, USA.  Fugitive Equilibrium recently posted the 400 Day Headache comp. which features these dudes and someone in the comments requested this record, so I'm happy to share it.  Don't know much about this band, other than the fact that two members went on to form Assfactor 4.  This Unherd record, their only release besides a few compilation tracks, is some great early 90s emo-influenced hardcore.  Don't let the "E" word scare you, this record sounds like it could have come out on Very Small or Lookout Records or even Ebullition at the time.  They even do  Soup cover...  All in all, an underrated record that I happen to enjoy more than the more acclaimed Assfactor 4.  Check it out for yourself.

Unherd - s/t Lp

Various - Reconstruction Lp

OK, I've got time for one more post before the hectic holidays...  Here's one last record from France for now - the Reconstruction compilation from Stonehenge Records.  This one collects all the emo "heavy-weights" - Fingerprint, Vanilla, Undone, Ivich, as well as some grind (Ultimate Disorder, Co-Exist) and crust (Autonomia Indigena) to keep things interesting.  All the bands on this one deliver, with the exception of Cause & Effect... as much as I love their 7", their track on this one is little more than a throwaway.  A shame, too, since it's the only other song they appear to have released.  All tracks seem to be exclusive to this LP.  Check it out.

V/A Reconstruction

Undone - Dark Future Lp

For this week's post, here's another French band - one which leans more towards the "emo" side of things I suppose.  Undone were one of a few groups from France in the mid 90s who took their cues from Dischord bands like Rites of Spring and Embrace as well as early Ebullition Records hardcore.  On Stonehenge Records, along with the likes of Fingerprint and Ivich, Undone mixed chaotic tempos, quiet intros and bombastic crescendos with impassioned screaming vocals.  Beyond their French counterparts, this record brings to mind pre-"screamo" groups like Frail, Angel Hair and Inkwell.  As much as I like those bands, the French groups were always better at this I thought.  Undone had a couple of Eps as well and you can find them for download at Fugitive Equilibrium.  All of their material is out of print but Stonehenge continues to put out "anarcho-emo-punk" to this day.  

New link with corrected files!
Undone - Dark Future