A slightly more poppier sound makes this their catchiest record.
“I heard your name / And it’s nothing but a dream again / Forget your face and it carried all of me.”
Not much is left. When One Stop Closer started out as a straight edge band back in 2017, all of the members were still in high school. The band rapidly grew, signed a deal with prime hardcore label Triple B Records, played shows with scene legends like Have Heart or Turnstile and continued a journey that would lead them around the world in the following years. Seven years after their formation, One Step Closer are releasing their second full length “All You Embrace” on Run For Cover Records. Not only the members grew and changed a lot (only singer Ryan Savitski and guitarist Ross Thompson are left of the original line-up), but also the band’s sound.
Many hardcore punk bands changed their sound once their popularity grew. The best example are the just named Turnstile. While their first EPs are undeniable pure hardcore punk records, they more and more drift towards the pop genre nowadays, incluing shows at huge festivals like Coachella. One Step Closer are going on a similiar path with “All You Embrace”: While their debut EP “From Me To You” was an enormuos hardcore punk blast all set up with sing-a-longs and moshparts, their first full length “This Place Yo Know” already incoporated clean vocals and more melodic guitar work. On “All You Embrace” you have even more of that: Some songs are made purely out of clean vocals, while others can be described as pop punk anthems with a huge earworm potential.
Best example for that change of sound is “Blur My Memory”. The follow-up to the great and incredibly catchy lead single “Leap Year” can be described as a classic mid 2000s emotional pop punk song. A little mix between Set Your Goals, The Starting Line and a tiny little blend of Blink-182. With it‘s huge anthemic refrain, “The Gate” also stands for a new era of One Step Closer which singer Ryan describes as “100 per cent ourselves and as authentic as we could possibly be.” So maybe this is excactly how One Step Closer should sound?
Photo: Spencer Chamberlain
The question if this anthemic, sometimes pop punk influenced songwriting of One Step Closer is how the band should sound, is nearly impossible to answer. It‘s a fact that “All You Embrace” has not much left of the late era Turning Point-sound One Step Closer worshiped on “This Place You Know” and last year‘s EP “Songs for the Willow”. “Leap Year” and opener “Color You” are maybe the last things we‘ll hear from the old hardcore punk One Step Closer.
The mix of musical styles on this record, from (post-)hardcore over pop punk to a bit of shoegaze in album closer “So Far From Me”, makes it easily the most dynamic record in the bands still very young career. If you would listen to songs like “Orange Leaf” or “Esruc” (which is amazing by the way) blindfolded, you could easily think that this is a b-side of the latest Movements or Trophy Eyes record. And then there is “Your Hazel Tree”, a song that has some serious Title Fight-vibes just like the pre-released single “Giant’s Despair” (you bet these vibes are intentional since Title Fight are also from Wilkes-Barre). It kicks you back to 2012, no doubt.
The new sound of One Step Closer is defintely not everyones piece of cake. Yes, it fits the band pretty well and “All You Embrace” has quite a few big hitters on it (“Leap Year”, “Esruc”), but it may be not enough to keep all the old fans tied to the record players. Everything has to change from time to time, things evolve. That‘s natural. And this record seems to be the natural way for One Step Closer to grow — away from their youthful hardcore punk days to a more mature and softer sound. You can accept that or just keep listening to their older records. If “All You Embrace” had been released somewhere between 2005 and 2010, I bet you could find it on top of the billbaord charts alongside “Mutiny!” by Set Your Goals and “Coming Home” by New Found Glory and see One Step Closer playing the Warped Tour all summer long.
Welcome to this Spring’s Demo Spotlight! This article shows you some of our favorite demos that have been on constant rotation for weeks. Please note that these demos must not be released in the past weeks, they could as well be a bit older. Nevertheless, they are great and you should check them out. We always include the bandcamp links so that you can directly support the bands/labels if you like what you hear.
Spiral
One of the most anticipated demos of the last months comes from these young german lads. Have Heart meets Turning Point. DBNO Records stands for a lot of quality, so be sure to check this one out if you dig the just named bands. The tape is already sold out but just buy it on bandcamp if you like what you hear.
Lead Spirit
This is already half a year old but it caught my attention recently because they are on tour with Wreckage (who are one of the coolest bands around at the moment). Moshable but still emotional hardcore from Nevada. Reminds me a tiny bit of Fastbreak and Insted, what is always good.
Preemptive Strike
Not much to say here: Five tracks of fast and stomping straight edge hardcore made somewhere in the middle of Germany. If you dig Brotherhood, this one is definitely something you should check out. It’s a solo project, what is also impressive, and STTW Records are always putting a lot of effort into their releases. Full support!
Justify
This is coming from the same spehere as Wild Side and Mil-Spec. Classic late 90s hardcore in the vein Ten Yard Fight if you ask me. The intro definitely kicks ass and it‘s cool to see another new promising band coming out of Canada. They’ll also got some sick first shows with Grand Scheme and Instill coming up.
Finest New York Hardcore made in Cologne, Germany.
“Moving the scale / Of what’s wrong and what’s right / Reproducing the things / That you set out to fight.”
Back in 2022 Echo Chamber‘s demo made big waves in the European hardcore community. With their modern interpretation of green pants New York hardcore (think of early Sick Of It All, Breakdown or The Icemen) they not only impressed a lot of people, they even got the chance to play selected shows in the United States alongside firestarters like Wreckage and Burning Lord. Not many german bands got the chance to play overseas in the last years, so that’s really something special. Two years after they dropped their bomb-ass 6-song demo, Echo Chamber are finally back with their self titled debut 7″, a joint venture between DBNO Records and Scheme Records.
The german hardcore scene is alive and well. Bands like Mortal Form, Subject, Spiral, Phase, Fragment, Conceal and Spiritual Law are breathing a lot of fresh air into the community lately. Since 2021, Echo Chamber are standing at the forefront of a new wave of german hardcore, that, despite its long heritage with bands like True Blue or Ryker’s in the late 90s and AYS or Black Friday 29 in the mid 2000s, was not making big waves around the globe until very recent days. With their tracks on the Scheme Records – Until It’s Your Reality Compilation from last year, Echo Chamber (and their peers in Mortal Form) are drawing the attention on german hardcore again, 20 years after its initial heights.
6 songs at a total length of 14 minutes can be heard on Echo Chambers self titled 7″. Two tracks off it, opener “Contact” and closing track “Life Disintegrated”, were already released in September last year just in time for their short East Coast run of shows in the United States. The remaining four tracks are exactly what you expect from the Cologne based outfit: From “Burning Pyre” to “Sacrosanct” (in which you can hear a nice sample taken from The Exorcist III — which was also used by Jarhead Fertilizer on their latest LP by the way), Echo Chamber are devilering passionate and moshable tunes inspired by the 1989 New Breed Comp. “Dying Beat 24” is taking inspiration from Skaggs, a hardcore punk and UK82 inspired project of Fabian (vocals) and Yannick (guitar), which released music between 2013 and 2015. The name giving line “marching to a dying beat” stems from the 2013 promo tape Skaggs have released for their UK tour. A nice little reminiscence to days long gone.
Echo Chamber are proving that the sound of late 80s / early 90s NYHC has stood the test of time and they do it with a lot of passion. No wonder: the band is made out of people who are active in the german hardcore community for years. They used to play in bands like Spark, Tides Denied or Coldburn, and they know what they do. This record is the culmination of a lot of hard work and it pays off. Alongside Spirit Crusher and Force Of Denial, Echo Chamber are defining what german hardcore (or Deutsch HC, as some might call it) will sound for years to come.
After they’ve released the demo of the year two years ago, Echo Chamber managed to keep up their work and released one of the best hardcore records of 2024. If you’d told someone that this record is out of New York, I bet he or she wouldn’t even question it. Echo Chamber’s self titled 7″ sets the bar for every hardcore record that will come out of Germany in 2024 and there’s no way around it. Simple as that.
A career-defining record between emo angst and powerpop drive.
“Everything’s the same ordinary / But that doesn’t explain / The way that I’m feeling.”
Combining different musical styles from grunge over powerpop to hardcore punk, Glitterer‘s third full length “Rationale” might be the projects career-defining record. Started as a solo project made purely out of synth-pop earworms by Ned Russin of Title Fight and Disengage back in 2017, Glitterer has become a full band with their last full length record “Life Is Not A Lesson” three years ago. Glitterer’s lo-fi days are clearly over, Russin has left his bedroom, in which the first songs were written and recorded seven years ago, has shared the stages around the world with Turnstile and Fiddlehead, and now has a proper band in his back. Glitterer always had the potential to be more than just a simple Title Fight sidekick, and with “Rationale”, Russin and his friends Nicole Dao, Jonas Farah and Mike French prove that there is no need to mourn anymore.
Opening track “I Want To Be Invisible” tries to capture the energy of a live performance and succeeds: It’s gripping, driving and shows Russin at the peak of his vocal performance. He has never sounded so confident, not even on Title Fight’s prominent record “Floral Green”. With Russin still playing bass guitar and handling the main vocals, you immediately get the feeling of listening to a new Title Fight song. I don’t want compare Glitterer to Title Fight that often, but they are one of the most influential bands in alternative music of the last decade and can not be thought away, especially if one of their members is putting out new music.
“Rationale” is continuing a trend within the discography of Glitterer: With “Looking Through The Shades”, the projects first proper full length record after two previously released EPs, Russin started to play with crunchier sounds borrowed from genres like grunge and indie rock, taking the project to the next level. “Rationale” now takes everything another small step further sounding like late Brand New on one hand, and like old Raw Power-era Stooges on the other. Threading together sounds from different genres and times isn’t as easy as it might seem. It takes a lot of creative and often hard work. While Glitterer’s early work was based around catchy, simple refrains, synthesizer rhythms and songs that were sometimes not longer than a minute, “Rationale” proves that Russin and his band managed to successfully developing their own and unique sound that stands out in the punk subculture, separating them from not only Title Fight.
Photo: Anti- Records
While “Just A Place” is the graceful balled of the record in which Russin sings about living in different places his whole life, “Plastic” resolves around the basic problems of being a human: To find meaning and purpose. Only three tracks on “Rationale” are longer than two minutes and with the final track “Half Truth”, being over, something has cracked. Even with now three full length records under their belt, Glitterer are not slowing down. “Rationale” is energetic, infectious and the band’s career-defining record. They never sounded so good and it feels like Russin’s voice will never sound better than on this record. And no, the crisp production of Arthur Rizk (Ghostmane, Code Orange, Power Trip) has not done a thing to it.
It’s hard to categorize the sound of Glitterer. When Russin started his project, he managed to make synth-pop sound like punk. On “Rationale”, it seems that Russin has turned his tumbling thoughts into sound. It’s relating clearly to his old stomping ground on which he walked with previous projects like Bad Seed, Disengage and Title Fight, but still sounds fresh and captivating. You can’t get bored of this record, not only because the songs on it are short, but because they are full of creative energy even being lyrically made out of angst and vulnerability.
Everyone is complaining that Title Fight aren’t making music anymore, so why not listening to Glitterer? The music might be different to what Title Fight have done, but the energy is the same. “Rationale” is one of the best records Russin has ever done, it might even be on the same level as “Floral Green”. It’s a shame that some people still mourn about Title Fight not touring and making music anymore instead of just be grateful for the amazing music Russin still puts out into the world with Glitterer.
We had a chat with the young metalcore band from Switzerland about veganism and the scene in their home country.
It’s been quite a few years since metalcore bands like xRepentancex or xElegyx caught the attention of the hardcore scene worldwide with theirnew interpretation of a genre that seemed to be lost. Hardcore and punk have been connected with veganism and straight edge for over three decades, but both bands turned them into parts of their music that could not be thought away. Divine Sentence from Zurich are taking notable influences from these two bands. Despite being a very young band, they already turned heads in the european hardcore community. We had a chat with them about their plans for the future, the importance of veganism and the hardcore scene in their alpine home country of Switzerland. Their new promo tape is out on Side2Side Records tomorrow (16.02.24), so better check that out! (All photos taken by Greg Hall, @tofeelhealed)
If you have to introduce your band to somebody who haven‘t listened to it before, what would you say?
To make it quick and simple: End-90s/early-00s-inspired metalcore with a vegan message. For people that have no idea, loud and angry music about the suffering of animals including songs about politics and overall injustices in the world.
It’s been over a year since you’ve released your demo and things seem to be pretty good for Divine Sentence because you’ve played shows all over central Europe in 2023, including the infamous Halloween Mosh in Hannover, Germany. How do you feel about the way your band grew in the past year?
Honestly it’s a little crazy, we certainly didn’t expect to get the reactions we did for our first shows and the demo. It shows that the scene is alive and healthy and our message is one that resonates with a lot of people. Or maybe they just like panic chords and breakdowns, who knows?
What was the best show you’ve played so far?
Franz: That’s hard to say and depends on your definition of a good show. Some would call a show the best in which they played every note perfectly, or the one that had the highest attendance. For me, the show in Paris with Magnitude, Force of Denial and One Step Closer was certainly a special one, for many reasons. That evening, I feel like we were able to bring our message across very well to an audience that was very receptive to it, and it was the first time I realized that people actually gave a shit about us.
Sofia: I’d have to agree with Franz on this one. It’s a show I will never forget and it was also one of the first one’s we’ve played! The energy in the room was insane, it was a real sense of unity in Paris. But honestly almost every show we’ve played was amazing. Even with all the struggles they come with sometimes.
You have played a lot of shows in Germany, do you already feel like you are more likely part of the German scene instead of the scene in your home country? For some bands it’s very difficult to play shows in other countries but you’ve already been to France, Germany, Italy and Belgium from what I know. So it seems that you’ve gained access very very fast.How did you manage that and do you have any tips for newer bands who want to play shows in other countries?
Franz: It certainly helped that we already had good connections with a lot of bands and promoters in Germany from some of our other projects. A lot of what happens in hardcore is still based on word of mouth and friendships between people in different local scenes. For example, one of our first shows outside of Switzerland happened because my other band had already played there, and I knew the promoter loved metalcore and was passionate about veganism. So when I told them I had a new vegan metalcore band, it was a no-brainer for them to book us, even if our demo hadn’t been out yet. For new bands, that’s not easy to replicate. It does come down to luck sometimes, the right person stumbling across your band and giving you an opportunity, but at the same time your band also has to be good enough to justify those opportunities.
Divine Sentence live, photo: Greg Hall
Your demo came out on Bitter Melody Records and Dropping Bombs Records in the United States. How did that pairing come together since both labels are based overseas?
After we dropped our demo digitally, we got a bunch of messages from different labels for a physical release. BMR, DBR and BBMA (Bound by Modern Age Records) got together to make that vinyl release happen. And we honestly would’ve never guessed that it would happen so soon. We are very grateful for the guys. The tapes went through Final War Records by the way!
Animal liberation and veganism are things that seem to be pretty important to all members in Divine Sentence, which is pretty cool. When did you decide to make both things an essential part of your music with lyrics resolving around them? Was it already set in the beginning?
Franz: It was the idea from the start. After a rehearsal with one of our other bands, Basil and I talked about how cool it would be to start a vegan metalcore band. Luckily, we already knew Sofia and Noah as dedicated members of the scene who cared about animal rights, and they were stoked to join the project.
Sofia: The whole idea is veganism and will forever stay in the limelight, that’s why we are a vegan band and not just a band with vegan members.
I’m pretty sure that not every person who listens to Divine Sentence is living a meat and cruelty free life. I see more and more people switching to an omnivore lifestyle again after being vegetarian or vegan for years. How do you feel about that?
We think a lot of people decide to adopt a plant based diet for the wrong reasons, for example for their personal health or the climate or something. But veganism is more than that, it’s a philosophy. Animals aren’t ours to enslave and exploit, and if that realization isn’t part of your veganism journey, chances are that sooner or later you’re gonna quit being plant based.
“So I repeat these words / A divine sentence must be served / This is my very first cause / A divine sentence must be served.”
Divine Sentence: Fleshbound
Your music is clearly influenced by xRepetancex and xElegyx from what I’ve heard. Are there any other bands that had an influence on you music-wise and maybe personal?
Everyone in the band listens to different genres, I think that’s what makes our sound so unique! We have influences from Hardcore, different kinds of Metalcore eras, Death Metal, Screamo, even classical music to Punk. Of course xRepentancex and xElegyx are the pioneers of the sound we make right now but our goal is to go beyond that! We also have influences from Arkangel, Tears of Gaia, Day of Suffering and so on. One guy on reddit said “FFO: Hellfest 06-08” which is pretty funny and kinda true. I think overall this kind of music had an influence on all of us. It brought us closer to the topic of veganism and eventually made us go vegan. The more this topic gets brought up, the more the chances are that people are gonna care and think about it.
I really do not know much about the hardcore scene in Switzerland and I think I speak for a lot of people out there. Can you tell us a bit about it and name a few bands to check out? Is the scene limited to bigger cities like Zurich or are there shows in smaller, more rural areas as well?
Switzerland has a fairly small scene these days, but we’re very dedicated and there are a good amount of bands. One thing that’s a little unique about it is that shows in Zurich, the biggest city, are often not as fun and crazy as shows in smaller places. For instance, Solothurn has had a strong local scene for many years now thanks to the kids from Deconvolution and related projects such as Fever Dreams and Excoriated. Shows there often draw bigger audiences than in Zurich, even though it has like 1/10th of the population.
What does the future hold for Divine Sentence? Do you have more releases or shows planned?
We’re excited to finally release our Promo ‘24 which has been in the works for a while now. It’s out on 16.02.2024. Thank you Side2Side Records for making a physical release possible and the amazing xRepentancex shirt rip off. And you know what a promo means *wink wink*. Also of course we got some shows in the works. Lots of “Animal Liberation, Vegan Domination” stuff going on this year! Keep your eyes peeled.
Which records do you have on constant rotation right now?
Basil:
Piri Reis – Ritma Vibora – Zaldi Beltza Cauldron – Suicide in the city
Noah:
Demonstration of Power – Five eyes Worst Doubt – Immortal pain ZOUS – No ground to give
Franz:
Seed of Pain – Flesh, Steel, Victory High Vis – Trauma Bonds
Sofia:
Divine Right – Salvation Ends JEZTER – For The Amusement Of You Force of Denial – Times of Strife
Thanks for the interview! The last words are yours.
Going vegan is absolutely necessary, and if you can’t see that, you’re either willfully ignorant or just plain selfish. Our planet is on the brink of environmental disaster and you’re sitting there munching on your meat like it’s no big deal. Livestock farming is a major contributor to deforestation, water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Do you not care about the destruction of our precious ecosystems or are you just too blind to connect the dots?
Animals are subjected to horrific conditions in factory farms, all so you can enjoy your precious steak or bacon. It’s downright cruel and heartless. Can’t you feel an ounce of empathy for these innocent beings? Going vegan isn’t just a dietary choice; it’s a moral obligation to stop contributing to the suffering and exploitation of animals.
And let’s not forget about your health. Consuming meat and animal products has been linked to numerous health issues, including heart disease, cancer, and obesity. Why would you willingly jeopardize your well-being when there’s a perfectly viable, plant-based alternative?
So, wake up and smell the devastation you’re causing. Going vegan is not just some trendy lifestyle choice; it’s a damn necessity if we want to salvage what’s left of our planet, show compassion for other living beings, and take control of our own health. The clock is ticking, and your ignorance is contributing to the ticking time bomb of environmental catastrophe and animal suffering. It’s time to make a change, and it’s time to do it now.
It’s about a society on its way down. And as it falls, it keeps telling itself: “So far so good… So far so good… So far so good.” It’s not how you fall that matters. It’s how you land.
When you think about important movies of the 90s with a huge subcultural impact, you always think about Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Heat, The Shawshank Redemption and La Haine. The latter, first aired to public in May 1995, is often considered as one of the most important films made by french cinema in the last 20 years. It was the breakthrough for actor Vincent Cassel, who nearly a decade later would be become known by a wider audience for his roles in Ocean’s Twelve and Ocean’s Thirteen as well as in Black Swan, and also for Saïd Taghmaoui. Taghmaoui is mostly known for roles in Vantage Point or famous television series Lost. Director Mathieu Kassovitz, who had is cinematic debut wih La Haine, later directed The Crimson Rivers(2000) and Gothika(2003) and became one of the most successful french film makers of the early 2000s.
Completely shot in black and white, La Haine tells the story of three friends, Vinz (played by Vincent Cassel), Hubert (played by Hubert Koundé) , and Saïd (played by Saïd Taghmaoui), who live in a rather poor suburb of Paris. The film takes place over the course of 24 hours following a violent riot sparked by the police beating of a young Arab man named Abdel Ichaha. Vinz, who is of Algerian descent, is filled with anger and a desire for revenge after Abdel’s brutal treatment. Hubert, who is of African descent, is more calm and tries to keep Vinz out of trouble while Saïd, who is of North African descent, is caught in the middle, trying to maintain peace between his friends. Throughout the 96 minutes of La Haine, the three friends navigate through their neighborhood, encountering various characters and situations that highlight the social and economic inequalities they face as of their social background. They are confronted with police brutality, racism, and the lack of opportunities that plague their lives.
As the plot progresses, tensions rise, and the friends find themselves in increasingly dangerous situations, for example when the trio is confronted by some nazi skinheads at a shopping mall or when they encounter sadistic plainclothes police officers. Vinz, in particular, becomes obsessed with finding an abandoned gun to seek revenge for Abdel’s beating. The film builds towards a climactic and tragic ending that leaves the audience questioning the cycle of violence and the systemic issues that perpetuate it.
La Haine ends with a scene set in the early morning the day after the riots. The three friends are returning home with Vinz handing over his gun to Hubert so that he can take care of it. Shortly afterwards, Vinz, Hubert and Saïd encouter a police officer. The officer seizes Vinz, threatening him with a loaded gun. As a reaction to that, Hubert is pulling the gun Vinz handed to him a few moments before. Overwhelmed by the situation, the police officer accidentally fires a shot, which leads to tragically killing Vinz. As the scene fades out and the movie ends, a voice-over of Hubert can be heard saying “It’s about a society in free fall…”.
Photo: Le Studio Canal / MKL Distribution
Mathieu Kassovitz had the idea for La Haine after the tragic death of Makomé M’Bowolé, who was killed by a police officer while being in custody in April 1993. The majority of filming was done in the Parisian suburb of Chanteloup-les-Vignes in 1994 with some scenes borrowed from footages of riots from the late 80s. Kassovitz wanted to shot the movie at a few different locations around France but prior to the filming a bunch of local councils refused to allow the film crew to film on their territory because they feared that the filming could actually cause riots.
La Haine had production costs of around 2,6 million dollar and a box office of 15 million. It was one of the most seen movies in France in 1995. Alain Juppé, who was french prime minister from 1995 to 1997, commissioned a special screening of the film for the french cabinet, which ministers were required to attend to learn about what was going on in their country. According to The Independent, Juppé said in an interview that La Haine is “a beautiful work of cinematographic art that can make us more aware of certain realities.”[Source] Another important fact about the movie is that real police officers were highly offended by how their police counterparts were portrayed. Some officers even demonstrated during the premiere of La Haine at the 1995 Cannes film festival.
With a score of 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s clear that La Haine is a must-see. Ultimately, Time Magazine ranked La Haine as one of the 50 best movies ever made what manifests the impact it still has as of today. Even though it was released in 1995, it still rings true to this day. La Haine is a grim, unsettling flick with plenty to say and a fresh way of saying it. It’s very intense because it was filmed entirely in black and white and sometimes makes you feel uncomfortable in your own skin. No matter where you live, the abuse of power remains and that’s why it is still relevant.
For the 25th anniversary of La Haine in 2020, streetwear brand Carhartt WIP released a special collection of t-shirts and hoodies desinged by director Matthieu Kassovitz. In the movie itself, several actors can be spotted wearing Carhartt pants, jackets and hats.
La Haine is available to watch at Amazon Prime at the moment.
You don’t want it, but you get it: Memory Screen’s favorite records of 2023.
Another year down. As I wrote last year, Memory Screen is a project made purely out of passision for subculture and punk music in all its shapes. When a record really hits a spot, I write something about it; when a band seems interesting to me, I ask them for an interview. If there’s nothing interesting happening (which is rarely the case), there’s no new stuff the read on the blog. This year, there was a lot of good stuff coming out: LPs from Mil-Spec, Fiddlehead and Diztort, again a crazy amount of new and good demos but also a lot of things to do in private life. That’s why some of the records you’ll see in the list below haven’t got a feature on the blog. There simply wasn’t enough time to give every great band and record a credit on here.
I also want to give a shoutout to all the bands, labels, fanzines and promoters who keep the scene alive. A little reimnder: The hardcore and punk scenes lives from people who contribute to it: Setting up shows, playing in bands, writing zines. So if you want to do something, just do it. I know it sometimes takes courage or a huge ego to stand on a stage but if anybody can, you can, too. And if you don’t want to stand up front, write a zine or at least buy records or shirts and support what you hear and see. It’s still important. Don’t just listen on Spotify or Apple Music.
And now back to the usual stuff: As said, there is a whole lot of good records that came out in 2023, but let’s break it down to nine releases in total. The list of honorable mentions therefore is (again) quite long. As always, Bandcamp links are included so if you like what you see / read, you can directly buy it and support the artists and/or labels.
Song Of The Year
Mil-Spec – The Days Don’t End (taken from “Marathon”, out on Lockin’ Out)
This song is pretty much the perfect modern hardcore punk anthem. It’s slightly melodic, got thoughtful lyrics and makes you just feel in the right place. If I think about “The Days Don’t End”, I think about warm summer days, hangin’ around with friends and having the time of my life. This is easily on one level with Fury‘s “The Feeling” which for me is still one of the best songs ever written in hardcore punk music.
Demo Of The Year
Phase (Collective Memory Records)
At first I wanted to name the Dynamite demo as my demo of the year but than I choose the one from young German firestarters Phase instead. Why? Because it’s not done by the same four or five dudes who play in every hardcore band around. Seeing new & young people starting bands doing good stuff is always great. If you like hardcore punk the way that Youth Of Today and Bold did three decades ago, listen to Phase.
Honorable Mentions for demo of the year: Dynamite, Mortal Form, Colleteral, Face Your Fears, Matter of Fact
Records of the year
Diztort – Vengeance Is Mine (Advanced Perspective)
This band has the sickest guitar and bass tone in hardcore punk right now. It feels like “Vengeance Is Mine” was announced three or four years ago, but no matter how long it‘s been, it was worth the wait. Pretty sure that this record is one of the best hardcore punk records of the decade and will still hold iz p in a few years time.
Mil-Spec – Marathon (Lockin’ Out)
“Marathon” is a record that received the title goated nearly instantly after its release. Yes, it got the song of the year (“The Days Don’t End”) on it, but pretty much every track on “Marathon” is great. Mil-Spec really outdone themselves. I also shed a soft tear or two when I heard “Belle Époque” for the first time. Rest in peace, Riley.
Force Of Denial – Times of Strife (DBNO Records)
While the United States may have bands like Magntiude or Envision, we have Force Of Denial. Metallic straight edge hardcore done right. It‘s only an EP with four tracks, but I‘m sure these guys have a lot more in their pockets. Also one of the best live bands that Europe has to offer at the moment.
Militarie Gun – Life Under The Gun (Loma Vista Recordings)
Had this record on repeat in my car all Summer. I’m a huge fan of everything Ian Shelton has done in the past and with “Life Under The Gun” he really outdone himself. Yes, compared to the bands previous two EPS, it’s a little bit more soft and poppy, but I think at exactly the right amount. And it’s pretty sure that Militarie Gun have one of the most unique sounds in punk and hardcore at the moment.
Fiddlehead – Death Is Nothing To Us (Run For Cover Records)
Not much to say here. Fiddlehead are one of the greatest bands of the last decade and their third full length proves this status. It may have lost some of the wilderness and energy that “Springtime and Blind” had five years ago, but it’s still a record without any flaw.
Feverchild – Altering A Memory (Reignition / Sunday Drive Records)
Post-hardcore blended with some late 90s emo can‘t go wrong and so can‘t Feverchild. If you don‘t know this young Belgian band, you‘re definitely missing out. Reminds me a lot of Texas Is The Reason and I love Texas Is The Reason.
Restraining Order – Locked In Time (Triple B Records)
Fast and stomping hardcore really had a run in 2023. Think of Spy or Vantage Point. Restraining Order did everything right on their second LP and I love the artwork as well. If younlike your hardcore without any gimmicks, this is your new favorite record.
Scheme Records – Until It’s Your Reality: A Hardcore Compilation (Scheme Records)
The best hardcore compilation in ages featuring all the current bands you need to now from europe & the states, from Echo Chamber to Wreckage to Grand Scheme. If you haven’t listened to it yet, I’m sorry for you.
Tomb Mold – The Enduring Spirit (20 Buck Spin)
My favorite metal record of 2023. As the death metal hype of 2021/22 slowly fades, Tomb Mold came around with one of the most progressive records the genre has seen since the first Blood Incantation LP. Pretty much every track is a banger and if the band fires up the hype again, I wouldn’t even be mad about it.
Honorable Mentions
Broken Vow – Anthropocene (Triple B Records)
Koyo – Would You Miss It? (Pure Noise Records)
Narrowhead – Moments Of Clarity (Run For Cover Records)
Magnitude – Of Days Renewed… (Triple B Records)
Temple Of Angels – Endless Pursuit (Run For Cover Records)
Never Ending Game – Outcry (Triple B Records)
Envision – The Gods That Built Tomorrow (From Within Records)
Truth Cult – Walk The Wheel (Pop Wig)
Instill – Reasons To Remember (Extinction Burst)
Wrong Man – Big Plans (Sunday Drive Records)
WHAT TO EXPECT IN 2024?
If rumours are true, there will be an Echo Chamber 7″ out on Scheme Records in early 2024 as well as a Burning Lord full length on Streets of Hate. Both are some of my favorite newer hardcore acts so I’m pretty stoked to hear more from them. I also hope for some new stuff from Ekulu, at least a new EP or so since their last output, “Unscrew My Head”, get’s three years old in 2024. Spirit Crusher will also put out their second LP next year and that’s gonna be something to look forward to as well! One Step Closer and Fury have some new stuff in the pipeline, too that is gonna be pretty exciting I bet. For shows and tours, I hope I get the chance to go to more concerts next year. In 2023 I rarely got the chance to see some live acts besides the amazing Feverchild, Spy and High Vis.
Boston hardcore has quite a heritage. It all began in the 1980s with legendary bands like DYS, Negative FX or SS Decontrol and continued with acts like Stop And Think, Have Heart, Righteous Jams or Ten Yard Fight throughout the late 90s and 2000s. Since a few years, there are not many well known bands coming out of the so-called Cradle of Liberty on the East Coast of the United States. Some of the few that are still holding the torch are Move, C4, Chaos Cross and Vantage Point. The latter, founded in 2016, now released their debut full length “Against Myself” on Triple B Records.
Vantage Point are around for seven years but they are not well known outside of their local scene. After the release of their demo in 2016 and their debut 7″ “An Answer You Won’t Find” a few years later, the band played shows with Fury, Madball and Restraining Order and made their way down the East Coast together with Rule Them All for a short run of shows. With “Against Myself”, Vantage Point are putting out the big guns to bring Boston hardcore back on the map for everyone, everywhere. With short and energetic songs that take inspiration from the no-thrills hardcore of the 90s and bands like In My Eyes and Burn, this return to raise the BHC flag across the United States most possibly can be crowned with success.
Starting with the 40 second long rager “Amends” and the stomping follow-up “The Ask”, Vantage Point’s debut LP doesn’t push the boat out too far at the beginning. It’s exactly what you would expect from a hardcore band out of Boston: Taking inspiration from the classics, Vantage Point bring together fast and stomping parts with a great blend of emotional depth like Have Heart did on their genre-defining “The Things We Carry” LP. Take a bit of them, a bit of Burn and you get the sound you hear on “Against Myself”. But besides being inspired by the heroes of past decades, the songs are pretty catchy. A thing you can not take for granted when the average playtime doesn’t get over two minutes.
Photo: Spencer Chamberlain
“Against Myself” is a record about right and wrong descisions everyone makes in life. It’s lyrically introperspective and emotional rather than being over the top political. What is totally fine. Yes, hardcore is and was a politcal genre and so is music in general a highly political thing, but you can use it as an outlet for whatever you want. Anger, rage or life in general. “Slow To Fix A Feeling” for example takes exactly that lyrical approach. On “Not Much More”, Vantage Point take a little step away from the classic fast and hard Boston style hardcore and mix in a tiny bit of melody that reminds of the late Turning Point or current bands like One Step Closer.
Characteristic for a lot of hardcore records, “Against Myself” isn’t very long and therefore a very diverting experience. It nevertheless is a well rounded record and produced by Will Hirst of Restraining Order and Maniac at his studio in Springfield, MA. Hirst recorded a lot of great hardcore records in the last few years, from Worn to Mindforce – and Vatange Point are no exception.
East Coast hardcore really has a run lately. Think of Restraining Order’s new LP or bands like Mindforce. So Vantage Point are releasing their debut LP at exactly the right moment. If you dig Boston hardcore legends like In My Eyes or Have Heart mixed with a little bit of Burn and Turning Point, “Against Myself” could be the right record for you. What you should really appreciate here is the passion that Vantage Point are bringing to the table. They stand behind the music they are doing and the ethos they are preaching. “Against Myself” isn’t the most innovative or philoshopical hardcore punk record you can get, but it’s for sure one of the most honest ones of 2023.
“I’m asking you to smile because that’s what I like best.”
Revelation Records really had a run in the mid 90s. Think of bands like Ignite, Farside, Sense Field, Better Than A Thousand, In My Eyes or Texas Is The Reason. In this article, we will take a closer look at the latter: Texas Is The Reason were a post-hardcore and emo band formed in NYC in 1994 by two people who were part of one of hardcore punks most discussed subgenres. Norman Brannon, guitarist of Texas Is The Reason, used to play guitar in Shelter for a short time, while drummer Chris Daly can be heard on 108‘s debut record “Holyname” from 1993. Turning their backs on the very religious krishna-core movement, Brannon and Daly formed Texas Is The Reason together with their friends Scott Winegard on bass guitar and Garret Klahn on vocals. Klahn used to play in different hardcore and punk outfits from Buffalo before joining Texas Is The Reason, for example in Copper. With all of them having enough of the macho attitude that was very common in the East Coast hardcore scene of the early to mid 90s, they found a new home and musical outlet. The band name Texas Is The Reason refers to the Misfits song “Bullets” released in 1978 that resolves around a conspiracy theory about the death of John F. Kennedy (“Texas is the reason that the president’s dead“). They chose it after a little discussion with their early rehearsal room mates The Van Pelt about possible band names (it’s sadly not known to public which other names they had in mind).
Texas Is The Reason played their first show at the house of Youth of Today and Shelter frontman Ray Cappo in late 1994, followed by a couple of local shows in New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania in the following months in support of bands like Snapcase. In November 1995 the band released their self titled three track debut EP on Revelation Records which — nearly instantly — gave Texas Is The Reason a huge standing within the hardcore and punk community. In the years before, bands like Quicksand, Fugazi, Farside and Into Another already broke with the sound of traditional hardcore punk and gave life to the term post-hardcore with more melodic guitar work and softer vocals. Texas Is The Reason jumped on that little hype train and became one of the most famous bands of the movement because their music was way more accessible for a wider audience. Right after the EP was released, they toured the United States togeher with Shift, who released their debut record “Spacesuit” just a few weeks before on Equal Vision. While Texas Is The Reason’s self titled EP, as well as their split with Samuel, sounded much more like a rock band that has its roots deep in the hardcore and punk community, their first and only full length “Do You Know Who You Are?” is — despite noticeable influences from bands like Hüsker Dü — a more or less pure emo record. After its release on April 30th 1996 on REV (after turning down a deal with Atlantic Records), Texas Is The Reason embarked on their first ever European tour follwed by a full US tour with labelmates Sense Field throughout the Summer. Especially Garret Klahns voice and stage performance separated the band from a lot of their peers and made their first US headline tour a huge success in all possible ways: They sold-out pretty much every show for three weeks straight.
“This town was built on miles of hope And I dare you to give me one reason to stay.”
– Back And To The Left (Do You Know Who You Are?, 1996)
“Do You Know Who You Are?” not only became the best selling record that was ever released on Revelation Records to that point, it was later named by magazines like NME or even the Rolling Stone as one of the most influential emo records of all time alongside popular names like The Get Up Kids, Rites Of Spring and Sunny Day Real Estate. The album was recorded in December 1995 in Baltimore together with J. Robbins of Jawbox and Drew Mazurek, who today is widely known for his works for Linkin Park’s early recordings. The artwork was done by Glenn Maryansky who also did the artwork for “What Was Said” by Mouthpiece and “Sultans Of Sentiment” by The Van Pelt. Most people would say that “Do You Know Who You Are?” can be named as a blueprint for a midwest emo record — whatever midwest emo might mean. Texas Is The Reason weren’t even from the midwest of the United States. But released in the same era that bands like Braid or The Promise Ring put out very influential records — and with both of them being more likely from the midwest — it’s easy to put Texas Is The Reason in the same box with them, even when the music of Texas Is The Reason sometimes is more raw and edgy. Speaking of The Promise Ring: Their short tour with Texas Is The Reason in December 1996 to celebrate their split 7“ on Jade Tree would remain Texas Is The Reason‘s last US tour for nearly 10 years. In March 1997, while playing a show in Bielefeld, Germany on their second and final European tour, the band decided to call it a day because of personal differences.
The artwork of “Do You Know Who You Are?“
Despite calling it a day after just one full length record and after only three years of being a band, Texas Is The Reason and their full length “Do You Know Who You Are?” had a huge influence on what would become the genre emo(core) in the following years. But we have to be a little bit more precise here: Emo is not emo. Especially in the early 2000s after the success of bands like Taking Back Sunday, Dashboard Confessional and Saves The Day, emo became way more commercial and even poppier than it‘s been in the early to mid 90s. Myspace also did its thing to it. Texas Is The Reason, The Promise Ring, The Get Up Kids, Braid and also bands like Mineral and Christie Front Drive (I would also include Sunny Day Real Estate here, but that‘s worth a discussion) can be described as the most famous bands of the second emo wave that put the genre out of the underground. A thing that bands of the first wave like Rites Of Spring, Embrace and Drive Like Jehu have built the foundation for. It would be cool to see how Texas Is The Reason would have progressed if they would have been around a few years longer — maybe they would have signed a major label deal like Seaweed or Sense Field? The success of emo in the early days of the 21st century with bands of the third wave like Taking Back Sunday or Jimmy Eat World would have made them a big name in alternative and rock music, maybe in the same category of success as the just named Taking Back Sunday or even Brand New.
In 2006, nine years after their last show in Bielefeld, Germany while being on tour in Europe for the second time, Texas Is The Reason returned for a single show at the Irvine Plaza in New York City. The reason for the show was the 10 year anniversary of “Do You Know Who You Are?” as well as the fact that the band never played a final show in their hometown of NYC. They played their whole discography (which consists only 16 songs) on that evening. Between 2000 and 2003, Brannon and Winegard were part of the band New End Original together with Charlie Walker of Chamberlain and Jonah Matranga of Far. They were signed to Jade Tree and released one full length record in 2001 called “Thriller”. Klahn on his side started a musical project under the moniker New Rising Sons, which fastly signed a major label deal with Virgin but never had a big breakthrough. Daly joined Jawbreaker‘s Blake Schwarzenbach for his band Jets To Brazil and played drums on the legendary record trilogy “Orange Rhyming Dictionary”, “Perfecting Loneliness” and “Four Corned Night” until Jets To Brazil disbanded in 2003.
In October 2012 Texas Is The Reason returned again to play Revelation Records 25th anniversary in Los Angeles together with Gameface, Underdog and Shades Apart. After the huge success of that show, Texas Is The Reason decided to play a couple more shows in 2013, again at NYC‘s Irvine Plaza, as well as in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Chicago and Boston, followed by a handful of shows in Europe (Groezrock Festival, Wiesbaden, Cologne, Manchester and London) together with Into It. Over It. For this occasion, Revelation Records re-released “Do You Know Who You Are?” as a special edition double vinyl including their long out of print self titled EP as well as the tracks from their splits with Samuel and The Promise Ring, making it 16 tracks strong.
Flyers for Texas Is The Reason’s first EP as well as for one of their shows in 1995
As of today, Texas Is The Reason remain one of the most successful bands that ever had a record deal with Revelation Records (by the way, their record deal included a second full length that never saw the light of day or even been recorded). Many of today‘s bands like Basement or Citizen call Texas Is The Reason a huge inspiration for their music. “Do You Know Who You Are?” is a staple piece for every hardcore punk record collection, even if it‘s more or less an emo record. It has a lot of memorable songs on it and Garret Klahn’s voice definitely is something really, really special. If you want to add it to your shelf, you can get the 2020 repress for a regular price of around 30 bucks at nearly every mailorder around the globe. With a bit of luck, you can even get one of the 3000 black vinyl copies of the first pressing from 1996 for around 60 dollar. Yes, it‘s that cheap because basically no one cares about Texas Is The Reason at the moment — and because of the 2013 and 2020 represses on red and orange vinyl, that you can buy very easy on Discogs or at your local record dealer. A bit harder to find is the very limited second pressing that was released for their European tour in 1997: Only 100 copies were made on white vinyl by REV; one copy sold on Discogs for a huge amount of 350 euros in 2020. It’s also a bit funny that the cassette version from 1996 is listed for a higher price than the first vinyl pressing, but I’ve heard rumors that only 200 tapes were made back in the day.
Besides playing in Texas Is The Reason, Norman Brannon was running a fanzine called Anti-Matter which has a legendary status within the hardcore punk scene. Between 1993 and 1998, Brannon released a handful of issues with interviews with bands like Judge, Samiam, Orange 9mm, Outspoken, Quicksand, Snapcase or Sick Of It All. There was an anthology of that fanzine released by Revelation Records in 2007 (which now sometimes re-sales for a whopping 400 dollar?!) featuring all nearly 30 interviews he did throughout the years as well as some essays on 250 pages. In July 2023, right in time for the 30th anniversary of Anti-Matter, Brannon created an Instagram page for his zine and even did some new interviews with Brandon Garrone of Incendiary, Kat Moss of Scowl and Ned Russin of Glitterer & Title Fight.
Brannon with his zine and a picture of issue 6 from Summer 1995
If you want to get more details about how it was to play in Texas Is The Reason, you can find an interview with Garret Klahn on episode 53 of the podcast Washed Up Emo that‘s available on Apple Music and Spotify. Klahn also released a self titled record in 2016 on Rise Records that remains his only solo output. Bassist Scott Winegard started his own restaurant business on Long Island which he runs until today, while Norman Brannon is touring guitarist for Thursday since 2018 and Chris Daly plays drums in High Discipline, a psychedelic rock band based in New Jersey. So besides Winegard, all the members still make music in some way.
I wish there was more to tell about Texas Is The Reason, but as the band just released 16 songs in total and only been around for a couple of years, there isn’t much more to say. Texas Is The Reason played shows together with all of your favorite hardcore punk bands, from Mouthpiece over Dag Nasty to Underdog. And did I even tell you that on their 2013 reunion shows in Boston and Philadelphia, they had Title Fight as a special guest because they are one of their favorite newer bands? Well, now you know. So, please listen to “Do You Know Who You Are?“, that’s all you need to do to get an idea how great this band was.
Texas Is The Reason in 2013, photographed by Lenny Zimkus
“Can’t we just go and start all over again? How will I know when our closure begins?”
I always had a soft spot for Belgium’s hardcore and punk scene. Back in the day I loved bands like Justice, True Colors and Rise & Fall. Sometimes I drove up to four hours to see them live. Those days are long gone and as you get older, things change. But what hasn’t change is my love for Belgium’s hardcore scene. I think it has something really special to it and always delivers some crazy good music, think of bands like Wrong Man, Mindwar or Feverchild. The latter not only released a very promising debut EP in 2021, but an even better mini LP this Autumn: “Altering a Memory”. And it could well be one of the best things you’ll hear this year.
I do call “Altering a Memory” an mini LP because I think the record really is inbetween an EP and an LP. It contains seven songs, five of them are new, two of them were released last year on a promo tape, and it clocks around 27 minutes in total (20 minutes if you exclude to two promo tracks). So the feeling you get if you’ve been following the band for a while is that “Altering a Memory” is more likely like an EP. Especailly when you think of the bands that noticeable inluenced Feverchild: Kill Holiday, The Get Up Kids and Texas Is The Reason. Their resepctive LPs count around 40 to 50 minutes. That’s maybe the next step we can expect from Feverchild. But for now let’s retrurn to “Altering a Memory”.
Emo and post-hardcore are genres that got some bad reputation in the last decade, at least since Myspace gave birth to some kind of mainstream bands like You Me At Six, Scary Kids Scaring Kids (what a name) or Hawthorne Heights (man, I loved “Ohio Is For Lovers”). But I’m sure you know that this is not the kind of music we are talking about. Our post-hardcore and emo came along quite a while before all those bands rose up on the internet. It came along in the middle of the 90s with Texas Is The Reason, Braid or Chamberlain and continued with Taking Back Sunday and Saves The Day in the early 2000s. And that’s the kind of bands where Feverchild got their inspiration from and which you clearly hear on “Altering a Memory”. It‘s guitar driven music, has a deep kind of emotion to it and it’s roots in the hardcore and punk community.
Photo: Tino Mortier
“Altering a Memory” starts, after a rather long atmospheric intro, with “City of Flowers”. “City of Flowers” is an aggressive song, sometimes straight forward (especially the last part) as you would expect it from a band with members from different belgian hardcore outlets. Same goes for the following title track which continues the slightly aggressive vibe that could as well animate some people to mosh (or let‘s rather call it dance) or stage dive. But as you might know, we are not listening to a hardcore punk record, even when the term post-hardcore might be right at some points. With the two in advance released songs “Coming Down” and “See Through Wedding Grown”, Feverchild are putting the raw vibes from the first two tracks aside for some real 90s emo stuff. Especially “See Through Wedding Grown” is an emo song par excellence: Depsite being quite upbeat, it tells an incredible sad story about a lost relationship: “And our hearts beat everywhere / But found a different home.” Emo‘s done right on here.
All the songs on “Altering a Memory” fit perfectly together. There‘s not a single track that stands out in a different way. The two tracks from last years‘s promo tape do not blur the whole picture, even when you know and feel that they were not recorded in line with the rest of the tracks. “Witching Hour” and “You Know I Can‘t” were incredible songs when they were released late last year and they still are, without a doubt. They are catchy and have guaranteed earworm potential as the band‘s smash hit „Stargazing“ from 2021.
If you like 90s midwest emo and bands like early The Get Up Kids or Texas Is The Reason or even more post-hardcore-ish stuff like Sense Field or Farside, you should definitely add this record to your collection. It’s not only crafted with a lot of knowledge about how post-hardcore infused emo should sound like, it’s also very catchy. There are not many bands that sound like Feverchild at the moment, especially in Europe. So make sure to give “Altering a Memory” a listen. You won’t regret it.
Memory Screen * 