Death Pill (https://www.facebook.com/deathpillband) are a hardcore punk trio (Mariana, Anastasiia and Nataliia) from Kyiv, Ukraine. I first came across them couple of years ago when they released an explosive Self Titled album. I played a few tracks on the show and then last year I also played their split single Monsters which as recorded in collaboration with Shooting Daggers.
Today sees them release ‘A bold exploration of personal empowerment’ in the form of new album Sologamy. It's every bit as powerful as previous releases and it's available on vinyl, cd, cassette and digital download : https://deathpillgrrrlz.bandcamp.com/album/sologamy
I just noticed they recently released a split ep with a band called No Guard (please listen to Love Song by No Guard and let me know if it's a cover as not only is it great, it's bugging me as I'm sure I've heard it before! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRfhb0iMDY4).
So, after a night out in the pub I awake at 8.45am. My day is my own. I decide to make a cuppa and have one last look around on the internet to see if I can find anything good enough to squeeze onto the playlist for this evening's Just Some Punk Songs show. I also make the mistake of browsing Twitter to see if anything's been happening whilst I slept. Damn it's depressing on there. Why are so many people horrible shits?
But it wasn't a completely down heartening early morning. I was on a different site and stumbled across a band from Glasgow that brightened things up. They're called KUTE (hopefully it's pronounced Cute as that's what I'll be going with when I play them on the show) and they announced themselves with a demo single a couple of years ago https://kutetheband.bandcamp.com/album/demo
The 2 tracks from it have been redone and are now on the band's debut album along with 8 more songs. The album is titled Intrigue/Fatigue and it's been attracting the attention of BBC Radio 6. You can check it out here : https://neversleeplife.bandcamp.com/album/intrigue-fatigue
The band, Amy (Vocals), Fletch (Bass), Kenni (Guitar) & Matty (Drums) will be embarking on their first UK Tour this month supporting Fentanyl so watch out for them if they're playing near you.
This is the song that first made me sit up and take notice. It's called Man On The Street...
Trinidad and Tobago probably isn't the first place that comes to mind when you're thinking of great punk rock bands but that's where Anti-Everything (https://www.facebook.com/antieverythingtt) hail from.
They've been around for a decade and a half now. You may have caught them on their recent UK tour (which included an appearance at the Manchester Punk Festival of which Chris Oliver commented "My highlights include southern-Caribbean band Anti Everything, who communicate the anti-fascist and anti-globalisation message with an exceptional mix of laser-pointed rage, powerful music and thoughtful persuasion").
They've also recently released a blistering new album titled True Love. It's 11 bursts of energetic hardcore that not only has something to say but brings steel drums to the punk rock party. You can check it out here : https://antieverything.bandcamp.com/album/true-love
This is the opening track. It starts off in a restrained fashion before bursting in to glorious noise. It's called Crime Factory Model...
Now listen up my friends, sit down, together we go tell a story Of how the nation came to be corrupted and modelled on a factory It gets set up in communities, and fueled by political means To produce money, violence, and power, in this colony
Keep people in destitution, no support or intervention Contracts are exchanged for votes and mobilisation The profit is an input into criminal operations As gangs displace the role of community organisation
Mass produce human suffering To commodify civil suffrage There’s no space for human dignity In the nationalised crime factory
It is in d party’s interest, to keep yuh in dependence We can come into power on a platform of vengeance Capitalise on retribution, rather than offer solution Because solving this problem breaks the very market we rely on
They've not been overly prolific as of late, I see news of the occasional gig but their last release was 2001's Ghouls Night Out single.
But now they're back with a new single. Nothing much seems to have changed, their sound is still as powerful as ever and they still write horror themed lyrics. The only surprise is that this time around they aren't releasing at Halloween (their favourite time of the year). This time they're unleashing the single to coincide with their appearance at this weekend's Manchester Punk Festival.
It'll also be available on vinyl next month via a bunch of different labels - Belgium : Loner Cult Records - France : DON'T TRUST THE HYPE recordz - Germany : Spastic Fantastic Records - Hungary : Drinkin' Beer In Bandana Records - Lithuania : PASIDARYK PATS records - Spain : La AgonÃa de Vivir - United Kingdom : TNSrecords - USA : No Time Records Tape version on : - France : Dispear Records and DEAF PUNX records - USA : NO TIME records
This is Bedtime For Diplomacy...
This time it's sure.
The limits are crossed.
each of your actions,
Just makes me sick.
each of your words,
Just reminds me...
how stupid you are.
Now stop talking.
Bedtime for diplomacy.
Bedtime for diplomacy.
Can't take it anymore.
Bedtime for diplomacy.
This has been goin'for too long.
for too long
for too long
One fuckin'more time.
Once too often.
You're drooling acid.
And you don't think.
We tried too many times,
to explain to you.
You don't wanna hear.
And we warned you.
Bedtime for diplomacy.
Bedtime for diplomacy.
Can't take it anymore.
Bedtime for diplomacy.
This has been goin'for too long.
for too long
for too long
This is the end of the fuckin’line.
It's been 14 months of doing a weekly check on the Helta Skelta Records Bandcamp page hoping for a new release and today it's paid off. And as the cherry on top of the cake it's a new release featuring the distinctive vocal talents of Ashley Ack!
And that's her position, front and centre, with a new band from Perth called AMEROL. She's joined this time around by guitarist K-Hole (he also featured with her in Cold Meat), Morgin (bass) & Jay Hell (drums).
They've a Demo cassette due out in a few weeks boasting "six tracks of flat out high energy fucken hardcore." If a few weeks seems a long way off, a couple of the songs are on Bandcamp : https://heltaskeltarecords.bandcamp.com/album/demo-cs-5
This is one of them, it's called Security Breach...
They're big advocates of animal rights but aren't as keen on fascists and capitalists. Many of their songs deal with these topics and you can always rely on them to combine heavy, pounding riffs with intelligent lyrics.
Their new album is no exception to this rule. The album's titled Carnyx which led me to check out what Carnyx means. Google reveals "The Celtic Carnyx, an ancient wind instrument used between 300 B.C. and 200 A.D., produced eerie, resonant sounds that echoed across battlefields. Historian Polybius noted its ability to rally Celtic warriors and instill terror in Roman soldiers who heard its haunting tones before combat." Hopefully this album has a similar effect on those huntsmen, fascists, capitalists and general wrong 'uns that the band are rallying against.
I should really be highlighting Hidden Face as the band have gone to the trouble of releasing a very classy video for it (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBg91oKvOLY) but being somewhat of a contrarian, I'm going with something different. This is about how corporate power can bring about Teflon coats. You can get away with pretty much anything if you grease enough palms. It's called Nothing Sticks...
Serial Pest are Mal Come (Vocals), Rob Myers (Guitar), Mishu Bari (Bass) & Dave Bate (Drums), a "four piece punk band harnessing the chaotic sonic assault of hardcore." They're from Sydney and a year ago they released an ep titled Hot Breath https://serialpesthc.bandcamp.com/album/hot-breath
It passed me by at the time but I did catch up in October when I played a single by them on the show. It was called Vulnerable (https://serialpesthc.bandcamp.com/album/vulnerable) and it was a teaser for their 2nd ep which they mentioned was scheduled for release early in 2025 (so it should be imminent?).
Today however I was browsing the Noise Merchant Bandcamp page and noticed they'd just released the debut ep on cassette so I thought I'd highlight it on here. It's 11 tracks of short, aggressive punk that's well worth wrapping your ears around.
Do a Google search for grassy knoll and you'll get a lot of search results pertaining to the "small green space marking the spot where John F. Kennedy was fatally shot in 1963." Hopefully if today's band fulfil their undoubted potential they'll soon be also prominently featured in those search results.
Grassy Knoll are a new punk band from Pittsburgh who've just released a cassette titled Hardcore '24 (10 punk songs. Yeah it's called Hardcore '24 even though it came out in '25, who cares?). They're a band that are reminding me of Night Birds (https://night-birds.bandcamp.com/) both for their energetic hardcore infused music and their lyrical content.
There's a couple of songs on the ep dealing with the JFK assassination but this one touches on another pivotal 60's event, the murder of Sharon Tate and her unborn son by members of the Manson Family cult. It's called Who Killed Sharon?
There's a hippy murder cult living on death ranch
The men don't surf at muscle beach, the girls are in a trance
One night we sent a squad car out to see what they were up to
What we saw was so disgusting that I fuckin threw up dude
Who killed Sharon?
Who? Who killed Sharon?
Me and the hippy murder cult are living on death ranch
Eating lots of acid, it puts us in a trance
Society doesn't understand us, we're living on the fringe
We're eating out of garbage cans but we're planning something big
Who killed Sharon?
Who? Who killed Sharon?
Life is nice out in the canyon, Roman's shooting overseas
Far away from the city's pain and the homeless in the streets
Growing in my stomach now, a son or a daughter
The sun reflects of the pools cool crystal water
Who killed Sharon?
Who? Who killed Sharon?
Attaxia (https://www.facebook.com/AttaxiaBand) are Emoeba (vocals), Davey (bass/vocals/trumpet), Chris (guitar) & Myko (drums), a powerful anarcho crust quartet from Cleveland, Ohio.
Back in July, they released a new album titled Sharpen My Teeth which I missed at the time but am acquainting myself with now. There's 15 tracks, mostly short angry blasts of anger delivered against religious wars, billionaire media moguls, brainwashed army veterans, A.I. etc...
If you collect vinyl, they'll be releasing 11 songs from the album on 7" vinyl (you can pre order on Bandcamp).
This track adds a bit of a crack rock steady vibe to the mix, it's called Warrant...
They're calling me on my phone Leaving me a message saying I've gotta go Down to the station and tell them what I know Don't they know that's against the code?
Cause I know that they don't have shit Just out on a fishing trip Want me to rat on one of my friends I don't even know what I said
Cause I'm lying to the police No officer I haven't seen him in weeks Lying to the police I didn't see a fuckin thing
They've got a white van across the street Binoculars staring at me Shut all the blinds, turn out the lights Barricade my door tonight
Cause I see them following me Trying to make me snap That happened years ago There's nothing left for me to crack
It featured on the blog back in May. It's by a band from Los Angeles called Slaughterhouse and it's great.
As is the new single by the band. The single being the title track for an upcoming ep on Pirates Press Records. The ep will be out on February 7th and will feature 4 original songs plus a cover of Black Flag's My War. I'm listening to it as I type and can confirm that it's not just the title track that kicks ass.
As for the title track, singer Meriel O'Connell says it's a more personal song; “You get a lot of people talking in your ear about what you should do, say, look like, how you should behave…I don’t think we’re put on this planet to try to make everyone happy or feel comfortable.”
In the last few years the "Female Fronted Hardcore" genre has really exploded. With new bands seemingly appearing every other week. There are definitely some incredible bands out there including SCOWL, Pest Control and GEL & Poison IV from my homebase here in New Jersey.
Well last week a new album dropped by a band from Austin, Texas called "Mugger" that just set the bar even higher. After only a demo tape they have unleashed what is easily THE Hardcore Record Of The Year with "Luck Forever" https://mugger-tx.bandcamp.com/album/luck-forever.
From the opening intro right into the first song "Crank It Up" it's time to hold on tight. 15 songs that just never let up. Every instrument is pushed into the red and lead singer Lisa Alley sounds like she was BORN to spit these lyrics. There is no other HC album I've heard this year that matches this level of intensity. I love when a band just comes out of nowhere and levels the entire field.
There's pre-orders for the awesome green/black vinyl but they're not shipping out until February so we might have some time.
I know I'm gonna grab one. It's not easy to pick a favorite on this stacked album but I'm going with the video they did with the one & only John Brannon (Negative Approach) for "Find Out"...
from Burning Kross II, 2024, Autoreverse Records (Europe, LP), Seats of Piss Records (Asia, cassette), Culture Desert (US, cassette) & Icepicks At Dawn (UK, cassette).
2 years after their vinyl debut, we're treated with a new release from one of Belgium's hardest bands.
Burning Kross are no rookies, the members have earned their chops in various bands in the past: Cheap Drugs, Permanent Debt, Black Haven and more.
While these new tracks blow the dust out of my speakers, I recognize the powerful aggressive voice of the singer Tom (otherwise a real gentle bloke) and the drums, bass and guitars are so clear, a fantastic production in all. Well now I read more about this release, it's obviously a Studio 195 recording effort.
The best place for punk bands in the low-lands (and beyond) to go record.
8 tracks, loud, sharp like knives and aggressively clocking in around the less than 2 minute barrier, leave me no choice to run through them several times. 1 track gives us some breathing space, a 4 minute slower song about oppression in Algeria during the French colonisation and its independence war. Speaking of Algeria, and as a matter of fact, French/Algerian bloody history are featured in the lyrics in most if not all tracks. Which makes this a conceptual album.
Like the track I've taken: the lyrics deal with Maurice Papon who was a French civil servant and Nazi collaborator who was convicted of crimes against humanity committed during WWII at a very (too) old age. The mind blowing fact that this man could continue crimes (in the name of France) much longer after the world war and got away with it for a long time struck when reading a bit more background info. Find some of it here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Papon
Sometimes great punk music has the power to get you to read more for your awareness.
Haywire are on the blog today with a track from their new ep. That's Haywire the Boston hardcore band not Haywire the UK anarcho punk band from back in the day or Haywire the Canadian rock band or anyone else who may have been called Haywire.
Now we've clarified that, let's get on to the ep. It's titled For Better Or For Worse and it features 4 tracks, one of which is an acoustic version of Love Song (the original was a collaboration with Chubby and the Gang https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KqKdpLyrx8). Elsewhere, Feeling Depressed and Ox Must Plow are songs that bruise and pummel their way into your hearts. The other track, my favourite, features below. You can find the ep here : https://dazestyle.bandcamp.com/album/for-better-or-for-worse
Clocktower Place is a love song with bite. It features Fizzy from New York glam punks Loosey and it's the sort of song that you start listening to whilst trying to put together a playlist for the next show and by the time it's finished you want to listen again. So go ahead, listen, then repeat...
FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE
I LOVE YOU SO MUCH THAT IT HURTS
ALL THE THINGS I SHOULD HAVE DID
YOUR ABSENCE IS MY REGRET
I THINK ABOUT YOU ALL THE TIME
EVERY NIGHT AND EVERYDAY
I CANT GET YOU OFF MY MIND
I THINK THAT IM GOING INSANE
IF I I HAD ONE WISH
I WOULD TAKE YOU AWAY FROM THIS
YOU CAN TAKE YOUR TIME
ILL BE YOURS FOR MY WHOLE LIFE
I THINK ABOUT YOU ALL THE TIME
EVERY NIGHT AND EVERYDAY
I CANT GET YOU OFF MY MIND
I THINK THAT I AM GOING INSANE
I THINK ABOUT YOU ALL THE TIME
EVERY NIGHT AND EVERYDAY
I CANT GET YOU OF MY MIND
IM SORRY FOR ALL THE PAIN
He told me "Hi Mick, I hope you're well. I got quite angry this year and I wrote some hardcore songs and formed a hardcore band with a dumb name! These things happen."
So I checked out the band's newly released debut ep, Rise From The Rubble, and I was blown away.
As well as Josh on vocals, the band also feature members of Uneven & Crippled Old Farts; Drums by Ricardo, Bass by Guillaume & Guitar by Jeremie. They make angry songs in angry times. We're all stumbling towards an uncertain and terrifying future but Ultra Lead won't go quietly.
This is the lead track, it's about indoctrination and how easy it is to lead people down dark paths. It's called Put Garbage In Get Garbage Out...
Put garbage in Get Garbage Out
Put garbage in.
Get garbage out
Put garbage in
get garbage out
Put a load of stupid shit in their heads
ya get garbage out
Put a bunch of racist shit on the news
Ya get garbage out
They invite their way in your head
With just one bit of truth and a whole lot of bullshit
FAR RIGHT ON THE RISE!
Propaganda works on the minds of the dogmatic and the conservative
FAR RIGHT ON THE RISE!
Their aim is to divide us in order to keep power in the hands of a small elite.
FAR RIGHT ON THE RISE!
Neoliberal politicians choose fascism
Everytime!
Neoliberal politicians choose fascism
Everytime!
Neoliberal politicians choose fascism
Everytime!
Neoliberal politicians
Motherfuckers!
Hot damn! That's some selfish thinking!
TAKE TAKE TAKE!
Hot Damn! That's some wishful thinking
TAKE TAKE TAKE!
TAKE TAKE TAKE!
Put garbage in
Get garbage out
Put garbage in
get garbage out
Teach them to compete in hatred
Get garbage out
Tell them that their nation’s sacred
Get garbage out
They push people towards extreme doctrines that provide clear ????
FAR RIGHT ON THE RISE!
Making them susceptible to toxic forms of authoritarian ideologies
FAR RIGHT ON THE RISE!
Neoliberal politicians choose fascism
Everytime!
Neoliberal politicians choose fascism
Everytime!
Neoliberal politicians choose fascism
Everytime!
Neoliberal politicians choose fascism
Everytime!
Hot damn! That's some selfish thinking!
TAKE TAKE TAKE!
Hot Damn! That's some wishful thinking
TAKE TAKE TAKE!
Hot damn! That's some selfish thinking!
TAKE TAKE TAKE!
t's some wishful thinking
TAKE TAKE TAKE!
Hot damn! That's some selfish thinking!
TAKE TAKE TAKE!
t's some wishful thinking
TAKE TAKE TAKE!
Pang Pang records have been very productive lately. This must be the 5th release this year if I'm not mistaken. And again Tom from this rather recent label brings us a very nice Belgian product.
The band notes on bandcamp read: "A rötten stew of long forgotten hopes, dreams and love. Straight in your ugly git with some fast hot legs thrashy punk hardcore"
4 'dudes' from the Courtrai area that probably hang out at the world famous local venue called the Pits. There where all the greats of the underworld have a stop to play a show, what better learning school does one need?
The boys had a split 7" out last year together with other Courtrai locals Freddie & the Vangrails, on which Röt managed to pin 9 tracks on their side. And yet again this new 12" has 14 tracks of pure coolness on 1 side. You can find the album here : https://rotstewart.bandcamp.com/album/3-tattoos-a-road-tax-bill
The sleeve already tells you not to take thing too serious and FUN is the theme to expect. The unused side of the vinyl has a fantastic print that combines Mr Stewart's head with the Motorhead skull. Oooh, what would Rodney and Lemmy think of that?
Their songs sound like having a double dose of 80 HC injected into them, which definitely appeals to elderly persons such as me. They're short enough to not bore and have some funny atmosphere around them. Thinking of Attitude Adjustment when hearing the intro of Shitty City,
a song that moves to and fro from fast hc to punk'n'roll. Real enjoyable stuff this one!
Originally from Melbourne and relocated at a young age to Greece, Frenzee (https://www.facebook.com/frenzee.band) are a trio of siblings; Apollonia Xylouris (vocals), Antonis Xylouris (guitar) and Nikos Xylouris (drums).
They've been together as a band since 2020 and October 18th will see them releasing a new album titled What's Wrong With Me. It'll be available via Poison City & Ouga Booga on slime green vinyl, cd and digital download and it's going to be one of the most high octane releases of the year. https://frenzee.bandcamp.com/album/whats-wrong-with-me
The band are already making people sit up and listen, this single from the upcoming album will only ramp up expectations even more. It's called Pink Tax...
Pink tax
I can’t afford my pink tax
I’ve wasted all my money
Cause I’m a little girly
Day one
It always starts on day one
My toy is pink
But your son
Has a cheaper blue one
Techno
Don’t bore me with your techno
When I say no
It means no
I do not like prosecco
Blind eye
You’d rather turn a blind eye
Don’t wanna how or why
Would rather get high and die
Classist
You are a shameless classist
Proudly and loudly racist
A homophobic fascist
Sexist
You are so fucking sexist
Dobbed on you to my dentist
She wrote you on her shitlist
Simple
My words are very simple
Don’t make my heart rate triple
Offended by a nipple
Cappo
The end of us is cappo
Calling eachother ‘unit’
Advertising stupid
The Pist (https://www.facebook.com/pistpunks) are a hardcore punk band from Connecticut who were active in the mid 90's before getting back together again last year to write and record tracks which came out as a new album this January. It was called Is Risen and you can check it out here : https://thepist.bandcamp.com/album/is-risen
This track's been changed from the original version to make it reflect more the current state of the USA following the overturning of Roe vs Wade. It now features lead vocals by Janine St. Clair from Witch Hunt/The Brood/The Dissidents, Michelle Northam from Sick Fix, Jen Stephens from Vomit Punx and East Coast Panic, Rachel Courtney from the Dissidents and Jen Derise.
Here's one of the "hits" with the chatroom on last night's Just Some Punk Songs show...
Gen Gap are a hardcore punk quintet from Philadelphia who've just released a debut ep titled Hanging Out With Gen Gap. It's 9 tracks of fast & furious tuneage that, as is my preference, not only has power and pace but also has enough melody to latch onto your brain. The songs are of the blink and you'll miss 'em variety, prepare to be blown away.
