Saturday 31 August 2013

Surviving The Games

Weird. When I picked up Stick Together - Surviving The Times last year I could have sworn I'd blogged about it, I mean why wouldn't I? I really liked it. In fact even now as I write this I'm sure I did it before...


So in a belated fashion long after everyone has heard it and blogged about it here it is. Only the black version I'm afraid out of 924. Really good stuff though and I'd love to hear a full length from these guys. The whole packaging of this thing looks great actually.


 
Anyway, the reason I bring this release up now is that ever since buying it I've been on the look out for the bands earlier release No More Games. I hadn't been able to find one on these shores though until a few weeks ago when I finally scored it from eBay.
 
 
This release is quality too, probably not quite as good as Surviving The Times but there's not much in it. Because of my late purchase (this came out in 2010) I knew I was probably only ever gonna score a black version of this. This is the Control records release.
 
 


Monday 26 August 2013

Stab Guidance

Two UKHC records right here. The first I've been sat on for a while now and am only just getting round to blog about it after a few of my fellow bloggers have already managed to do so.

Stab - Blindness and Lies

 
This is Stabs 3rd release I believe and is brought to us by Quality Control a label making a bit of a name for themselves at the moment. The label also brought us the European releases of Violent Reaction and Stab are cut from a similar cloth to them and other bands of that ilk at the moment like The Flex. Stab also do the 80's hardcore salute thing albeit possibly putting a more scuzzy spin on it than the two aforementioned bands.
 
Really nice packaging on display here this is the red vinyl version of 200 with another 400 being on black.
 

Next up another UK band that I actually hadn't heard of till Chris over at Unwavering Spirit blogged about. I took a quick listen and quickly purchased Guidance - Age Of Vice


Out on Anger Battery Records, Guidance are another cool band from these isles although a very different animal to the other bands that have been making a stir here recently. Guidance are more early 90's youth crew than 80's hardcore. In places they remind me a little of Inside Out.


This is the pink pressing of 100 with another 200 on black. Chris managed to score a nice record release cover version and I agree with him that the record release covers are actually better than this cover.

Saturday 24 August 2013

A Less Common Cause

A quick post as I never seem to be able to find a decent window of time at the moment and I've got loads of records to post up here. How the guys who blog nearly every day manage it I have no idea. Anyway...

A while ago I wrote very briefly (here) about the Common Cause 7" on React! I'd picked up whilst trying to bolster my order when I bought the Gypsy Giants Despair record. At the time I said I'd only had a brief listen and hadn't yet formed an opinion. Well, since then I've gone on to really like this band and release.

Common Cause - S/T


At the time of course, I wasn't even remotely bothered that I'd only scored a black vinyl version of the record but on the listens since I've made a note to self to correct this if the opportunity arises and recently it did.


I managed to pick this red vinyl version up on eBay. This version is out of 200 and it's another record of the invisible mental list. Great record, check it out if you haven't already.


 
 

Monday 19 August 2013

Far From The Last Chance And Thats The Bottom Line

Ah yes I'm back with another of those 'random record' posts that I really dislike (mainly because I never have a lot to say). I'm not even gonna apologise anymore just sit back and peep these 7"s. All but one of these where from the same seller on eBay, dude was selling off a pretty great collection actually and I managed to snag these.

Far From Breaking - Made My Choice



A record that came out in 2001 so of course I didn't pick this up on vinyl first time round. I always liked this band though. This is the Yellow vinyl version of 300.

Far From Breaking - The Identity E.P



Far From Breaking's second and as far as I know only other release on Youngblood Records. A good double swoop in picking up another Far From Breaking and another Youngblood release at the same time. This blue vinyl is of 350.
 
The Last Chance - The Last Chance
 


I had the bands Dead and Gone release and can now add this Anger Management release to the collection too. This is the European Tour sleeve version numbered 87 of 100. Saw this band a couple of times back in the day and thought they were quality.

Bottom Line - No One's Safe



This is the Limited Pre-Order Cover version of the record numbered 97/100 on Stab and Kill Records.

Break It Up - Demo '04


I've had this sat on the side for so long I can't even remember where I got it. Only previous Break It Up stuff I had was the No Sides album on CD so this is nice. White vinyl version that also has a bit of black marbling in it. Don't know how many of these were made.

Tuesday 13 August 2013

Snake Eyes

Sometimes bands just pass me by, it happens, so much so that I was surprised that I'd never actually heard of this band. Snake Eyes - S/T . What makes this even more surprising is the personnel involved, former members of Carry-On and future members of Terror.


I spotted this on eBay a few weeks ago and was pulled in by the other bands listed in the title so I made a blind bid of a small amount and won. It was only once this had arrived and put it on to my turntable that I actually researched who the band were. This is good stuff. Released on 1917 Records in 2007 this is the clear vinyl version of either 103, 352 or 570. The 1917 website discography has the numbers just not which version relates to which number. (Thanks to Willem I now know the clear version is out of 103)


Monday 12 August 2013

Birthday Records

It was my birthday recently, whilst I might be past the point of really wanting to 'celebrate' this fact, it does of course mean I have every excuse to land myself some records.
Me and the good lady had a weekend away and of course I used the opportunity to hit up a couple of record stores. Now I've said it before and Tino said it in his last post too but when you're in a physical record store itching to make a purchase or two you'll buy just about anything that takes your fancy.

Converge - Caring & Killing


I'd eyed up this reissue of Caring & Killing in the store before but had sherked at the price (£23 which isn't even that much but when other records are priced at £10 it seems alot) and also the fact that as it was sealed I presumed it was just on standard black vinyl, but with money to burn and scant pickings in front of me I opted this time to pick up the compilation of Converge' early work.


And would you believe it wasn't on black vinyl at all but instead this rather sexy clear with black splatter double vinyl. As usual with Converge this package is on the whole really good, even if I'm not entirely sure what's going on with the cover art. (The sticker on the front was actually on the shrink wrap but I thought it was too cool to not carefully peel off and stick on the cover).


The original release just had some live show type photos on it and whilst not in keeping with the bands later releases I think an updated version of that might have looked awesome here. Anyway, this clear with black spatter version is I believe of 700. How 90's is the kid on the inner sheet? dreadlocks, baseball t-shirt (maiden at that) and bead chokers...Awesome!


I also picked up two more records. First up between the buried and me - S/T


 
or is that betweeen the buried and me? I didn't realise until after I'd bought the record and got it home and checked the pressing info on discogs that it has a spelling mistake on the front.
 


 This is a 2012 repress of the bands 2002 debut on Lifeforce Records. I couldn't even remember if I'd heard this before or not but being a fan of the bands 'The Silent Circus' and 'Alaska' records I picked it up.


White vinyl version of 1037 copies. Lastly I picked up a record I'm fairly sure I'd have never picked up if I wasn't in a record store. CodeOrangeKids - Love Is Love//Return To Dust
 

Terrible band name aside I'd heard this band mentioned a lot and checked out a track and thought it was okay and definitely fitted in with that noisy 'Deathwish sound' that I'm in the main a fan of.
 

I've only given it a couple of spins but I'm pretty non-plussed about the record but hey, dems the breaks! You never know though I might eventually listen to this and think it's great.


This Opaque Yellow vinyl version is a second press of 1799 copies.

You Can't Go Home Again

I never got into Have Heart's second album 'Songs To Scream At The Sun' as much as I had 'The Things We Carry', it's not that I disliked it, it just didn't get as much play time as maybe it should have done. When I saw this 7" a few weeks ago 'You Can't Go Home Again' though I couldn't help but pick it up as it looked cool and the yellow vinyl pulled me in.

 
I don't know what it is about listening to the two tracks on offer here but I finally get it. I think reading the story from Patrick on the inner sleeve of this record about where the songs came from and also hearing the two together like this out of context of the rest of the LP just suddenly brought them errrm home.
This is on yellow vinyl of 1000 copies




Thursday 8 August 2013

Background to Lifetime

A few months ago I wrote about two really great records from Lifetime - Hello Bastards and Jerseys Best Dancers (here) and a little later out of curiosity I picked up and wrote about the bands later LP (here). Well that's three of the bands four albums and you know what that means? Yep, it was incomplete. I've rectified that recently though. Lifetime - Background


I spotted this on eBay and put in a small bid thinking there wouldn't be many people out there keen to pick up Lifetimes debut record on New Age Records. I was right, I was only out bid by one person but luckily for me it seems they flaked on the deal so I was offered a second chance bid and picked this up for next to nothing. It's not brilliant as record goes and by the time the bands next two records roll around they are pretty much a completely different band with only a few lasting echoes of this early sound. But I didn't have the record and now I do so it's all good and I've scratched that missing LP itch at least. Standard black vinyl, I'm not sure if this was ever released on colour vinyl or not.


Monday 5 August 2013

Caught In A Bear Trap Again

Last year I picked up a Euro copy of Bear Trap - Nailed Shut, it's a fast, angry, pissed off little record that I enjoyed so when I was looking around eBay the other day and spotted a different version for peanuts I had to strike. Original Post Here


My main reasoning for picking this up (you've gotta justify it to yourself right?) was that the first version I got was just on black vinyl, where as this one is on a grey, although you can also see traces of the other pressing colours of green, red and white. No mention of black which is a bit odd.
 
 
Once again this is on a good looking screen printed card. There are four different versions of the cover each being out of 50. My other copy is hand numbered but as you can see this one appears to have been missed.
 
  
The actual pressing info for this appears to be:White cover with Black Vinyl /45
White cover with Grey Vinyl /5, Grey cover with Black Vinyl /45, Grey cover with Grey Vinyl /5, Red cover with Red Vinyl /45, Red cover with Grey Vinyl /5, Green cover with Grey Vinyl /41, Green cover with Green Vinyl /9