STREAM: Fucked Up - Chinese Zodiac Singles
For how hardcore and totally fun Fucked Up can be, they also have a staunch dedication to weirdness that's endearing. Example? Well, since 2006, the band has released a 12-inch single for Chinese New Year and is gearing up to drop a new edition February 21 that features Jim Jarmusch, Austra, Annie-Claude Deschênes of Duchess Says and a whopping 15-minute run time. Let's get you caught up, though. Check out all the previous editions for years dedicated to the dog, pig, rat and ox via Matador.
DOWNLOAD: Give Up The Ghost - Love American
Give Up The Ghost, a Boston hardcore band originally known as American Nightmare, broke up in 2004, leaving fans devastated. Recently the group announced they would reform for two reunion shows in NYC and LA this December. Along with those shows, the band will reissue two of its seminal releases, 2001’s Background Music and 2003’s We're Down Til We're Underground, via Deathwish. “Love American,” a typically thrashing hardcore punk number, comes from the second of those reissues, reminding us why this aggressive band was so engaging and, honestly, how upset we are that those reunion shows sold out in mere minutes.
Give Up The Ghost - Love American
DOWNLOAD: This Is Hell – Salt The Earth
For fans of heavier music: This Is Hell, a hardcore band from Long Island that formed in 2004, crafts thrashing, aggressive numbers prime for moshing. “Salt The Earth,” a cut from the group’s fourth effort Black Mass, which came out recently via Rise Records, is a viscerally intense track all the way through – its surging riffs, pummeling drums and singer Travis Reilly’s guttural yelps nearly smashing you in the face. It’s no frills hardcore, which is really the best kind.
DOWNLOAD: Rational Animals - Guess What? (Crunch)
Ponies, beer, snow and metal—you’d be hard-pressed to sum up Rochester, NY much better than that, folks. Hailing from up north and bestowing us with the benefits of a lot of time indoors, Rational Animals has arrived with a big debut. Bock Rock Parade manages to put a modern dent on hardcore rooted firmly in the past, successfully steering a love of Black Flag into an inventive and riff-filled record. “Guess What? (Crunch)” has enough harmony beneath its armor to hook even the staunchest anti-metaler, so grab the LP now on Brooklyn’s Katorga Works.
Rational Animals - Guess What? (Crunch)
DOWNLOAD: Wiccans - Crust Royalty
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Lending a musical touch to the don't mess with Texas sentiment, Denton's Wiccans has arrived with debut LP Skullduggery. It's catchy hardcore with guitar lines fans of any genre would be remiss not to enjoy, and "Crust Royalty" prime evidence of such. A clean punk undertone with vocals reminiscent of early Fucked Up, it's the 26-minute refresher course for a world that's gone rock opera. Skullduggery is out now on Katorga Works.
DOWNLOAD: CREEM - I Hate You
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You know that sinking feeling when you listen to music from a different decade and realize it will never be made again? If your listening should include early 80s hardcore (as I hope it does), here's a treat for you. CREEM is the meeting of two excellent Brooklyn hardcore outfits Nomos and Natural Law, and "I Hate You" is the Boston-tinged torchbearer for their Blitz-fueled tracks. Grab it along with A-side "Good Riddance" on the group's debut 7-inch from Katorga Works.
DOWNLOAD: Capsule - Outline + Slow Caps
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With the exception of Gainesville, I had always just sort of associated Florida with grandparents and Art Basel (or, you know, Flo Rida). I have Capsule to thank for my awakening, the Miami hardcore veterans who just released their latest LP on Richmond's Rorschach Records. While "Outline" goes a bit sludgier and "Small Caps" the way of thrash, both display the band's knack for actual melody alongside their riffage. Check out No Ghost, or catch them on tour now on the west coast.
DOWNLOAD: Caravels - Dream Beaver
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It's a good thing everything that happens in Vegas doesn't stay there, because Caravels is honestly making some great music. Heartfelt hardcore with screamo, post-punk and all kinds of nasty guitar thrown in there, you don't have to love any of the aforementioned genres to get into this one. "Dream Beaver" is from the band's self-titled 7-inch on Topshelf, which you can also grab on iTunes along with LP Floorboards.
