stumbled upon this gem today...this is the original demos for DESCENDENTS everything sucks album when it was supposed to be an ALL album, so it has chad price on vocals. check it out.
8.31.2009
8.28.2009
TOP 5 w/ JAMES CARROLL FROM MAKE DO AND MEND
james is the singer and guitarist from connecticut's own MAKE DO AND MEND. here is his top 5 bands right now...
1. TOUCHE AMORE
2. HOSTAGE CALM
3. TRAPPED UNDER ICE
4. DOWNPRESSER
5. MY HEART TO JOY
8.22.2009
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
do yourself a favor and go see it. some of tarantino's best work, inspired me to watch grindhouse today. dont go in expecting an action film though, its still very much a tarantino film, so heavy dialogue comes with the territory.
interview with nate from AT HALF-MAST coming later this week, as well as the WITHDRAWAL 7" review.
-ian
8.20.2009
LOWBROW - BROKEN SPEECH 7" REVIEW
today we have the debut 7" from charlotte, nc's own LOWBROW entitled broken speech. this ep clocks in at a little under ten minutes, the perfect length for a 7" honestly. these guys play angry hardcore how it should be - fast.. this band is definitely circle-pit friendly. one of my favorite aspects of this ep is how its heavy but not in a "mosh" sense, but just in how it sounds and vibes, definitely a good thing. the mixing and production is top-notch but not over the top, its dirty when it needs to be but not a unintelligible ball of sound when everything picks up. influences seem to range from everything from black flag to converge to everything in between. unfortunately i can
see this release getting lumped in with bands such as ceremony, but this seems to have a lot more going for it than ceremony has had in years. the guitar work is very solid and holds the band together perfectly for a 4-piece, along with razor-sharp drumming. the subtle and tasteful use of effects is just right for what these guys are going for. all in all, i dont have a single bad thing to say about this record, if youre into fast and angry hardcore punk with something to say, you wont be disappointed. stop by their myspace or the self-aware records page to pick one up because unfortunately these dudes are on hiatus until their guitarist returns from studying abroad. do yourself a favor and check them out when they start playing again.http://www.myspace.com/lowbrownc
http://www.myspace.com/selfawarezine
coming later this week, holy terrorists WITHDRAWAL new ep review
8.19.2009
OUR CROSS TO BEAR 2009 DEMO REVIEW
OUR CROSS TO BEAR is a hardcore band out of middletown, new york playing early a more modern sounding early-2000's inspired hardcore. one thing right off the bat, the name doesnt do it for me. it would definitely make an awesome album name, but as a band name its not working. but onto the music: the first thing i noticed about this demo is that its well produced and high quality, mixed very well for a demo which is awesome. the vocalist seems to be an angry dude, but sometimes his gruffer yelling approach doesnt quite fit the music. i will give him points for not succumbing to a typical vocal style and for not going for straight "wes-worship," which with this style of hardcore would be easy to fall into. maybe this is his first time doing
vocals, maybe not, but with a little work he could really bring a lot more to this band, because his vocals are good, they just need some work with this particular project. some of the gang vocals sound a little stale and unnecessary, but they work perfectly in the track "leave mine to me" which is styled a little more like a hardcore punk anthem, it works out awesome (EDIT: "leave mine to me" is a bad religion cover and im a total tool for not realizing that and just thinking it was familiar-sounding for no real reason. LOL@me). my only REAL qualm with this demo is sometimes the guitar leads can go a little overboard. dont get me wrong, they are cool a lot of the time and add to the songs, but i think taking it down a notch would actually up the quality of the songs as a whole.all in all, this is an awesome 3 song demo. if youre into AN or carry on, you would definitely be into this band. with a little work, this band could definitely turn some heads, ill keep my eye on them. check our their myspace and grab the demo at the mediafire link below.
http://www.myspace.com/ourcrosstobear
http://www.mediafire.com/?sharekey=9ad0accaec1d641e9bf8d6369220dcab60e4f483a7eae3ec5621d66e282a0ee8
TRACKLISTING:
1. the chin
2. underground
3. leave mine to me
8.18.2009
AUGUST 10TH SHOW REVIEW
AUGUST 10TH @ THE BASEMENT in MYRTLE BEACH, SC - HOSTAGE CALM, AT HALF-MAST, WHERE IT ENDS, CONQUER ME, OVERLOOKED
okay so i booked this show as well as played it, so it was definitely a fun/stressful evening all around. the basement is a cool venue, its (surprise) the basement bar-area of a bar called crazy j's sports bar. its a tiny space so every show feels pretty intimate and less venue-like and more house showish.
first up was my band, OVERLOOKED. im not going to sit here and tell you how we played or didnt play or whatever because im biased and know that we are the next KISS so you dont wanna hear me talk about it. no but seriously, this was our first show, kinda sloppy but a lot of fun. we played a suicide file cover and i saw some people moving their lips even i t
hough i wished they would have punched me the in the face and moshed me.
CONQUER ME was next and they are probably the heaviest band in north or south carolina. modern, angry, heavy hardcore that makes you want to fight your children. they opened with a leeway intro and i think i punched a brick wall and didnt feel it because of how the heaviness took over my body. they played a solid set, band needs to put out a demo because kids would eat it up. regardless though, these guys are having fun and always play a solid set.
WHERE IT ENDS played next and from what i recall it was essentially the same set as the night before. i still stick by my claim that their new stuff is worlds better than their older material. they have a new song that slows down and seems like its about to end, then it picks back up into a closed highhat mosh part...so good. supposedly they are doing a split with florida's BATTLE! which should be awesome. keep an eye on this band.
due to being ahead of schedule and some last minute decisions, HOSTAGE CALM from connecticut played next. early 90's inspired melodic hardcore, sort of in the vein of fugazi and dag nasty. they definitely have a cool sound and played a solid but pretty short set. no "grayscale" to many peoples dismay. this band gets tighter everytime i see them it seems like. i bought their LP at this show and it hasnt left my turntable since.
now since we were running ahead and i was feeling nice, DEAD HEROES from alabama who had previously been on tour with AT HALF-MAST jumped on and played a short set. not too familiar with their material but they are loud and heavy. very head-bangable for sure. seems like they have the right idea, check em out.
finally, the one and only local heroes AT HALF-MAST played their return show. these guys went to europe for about 3 weeks, came home for a couple days, then played about 55 shows on a full US...fucking animals. solid mix of old and new to a packed house. awesome set, nate had awesome things to say. people really need to start taking notice of this band, because they are awesome. new 7" coming out soon will blow everyone away who didnt already know.
hopefully some demo reviews coming up soon. send me some stuff.
-ian
okay so i booked this show as well as played it, so it was definitely a fun/stressful evening all around. the basement is a cool venue, its (surprise) the basement bar-area of a bar called crazy j's sports bar. its a tiny space so every show feels pretty intimate and less venue-like and more house showish.
first up was my band, OVERLOOKED. im not going to sit here and tell you how we played or didnt play or whatever because im biased and know that we are the next KISS so you dont wanna hear me talk about it. no but seriously, this was our first show, kinda sloppy but a lot of fun. we played a suicide file cover and i saw some people moving their lips even i t
hough i wished they would have punched me the in the face and moshed me.CONQUER ME was next and they are probably the heaviest band in north or south carolina. modern, angry, heavy hardcore that makes you want to fight your children. they opened with a leeway intro and i think i punched a brick wall and didnt feel it because of how the heaviness took over my body. they played a solid set, band needs to put out a demo because kids would eat it up. regardless though, these guys are having fun and always play a solid set.
WHERE IT ENDS played next and from what i recall it was essentially the same set as the night before. i still stick by my claim that their new stuff is worlds better than their older material. they have a new song that slows down and seems like its about to end, then it picks back up into a closed highhat mosh part...so good. supposedly they are doing a split with florida's BATTLE! which should be awesome. keep an eye on this band.
due to being ahead of schedule and some last minute decisions, HOSTAGE CALM from connecticut played next. early 90's inspired melodic hardcore, sort of in the vein of fugazi and dag nasty. they definitely have a cool sound and played a solid but pretty short set. no "grayscale" to many peoples dismay. this band gets tighter everytime i see them it seems like. i bought their LP at this show and it hasnt left my turntable since.
now since we were running ahead and i was feeling nice, DEAD HEROES from alabama who had previously been on tour with AT HALF-MAST jumped on and played a short set. not too familiar with their material but they are loud and heavy. very head-bangable for sure. seems like they have the right idea, check em out.
finally, the one and only local heroes AT HALF-MAST played their return show. these guys went to europe for about 3 weeks, came home for a couple days, then played about 55 shows on a full US...fucking animals. solid mix of old and new to a packed house. awesome set, nate had awesome things to say. people really need to start taking notice of this band, because they are awesome. new 7" coming out soon will blow everyone away who didnt already know.
hopefully some demo reviews coming up soon. send me some stuff.
-ian
8.17.2009
WELCOME/AUGUST 9TH SHOW REVIEW
so this is the first entry in hopefully a long run of entries that will be known as the seen&heard webzine...this idea started a few years ago and was meant to be in paper form but real life/band life/lazy life took over and made that a less and less realistic task to take on alone. this is me giving this a small shot, if not anything more than a place to hear about shows and whatnot.
i was re-inspired (if you can say that) to venture into this by a long conversation today with nate from at half-mast that was jokingly referred to as an interview multiple times by both of us. hopefully that can take place sometime in the near future, but until then here is my first shot at a show review.
this was a pretty big event, scottie p the promoter had been hyping this one up for quite some time, and with good reason to. a stacked lineup including one of the biggest hardcore bands ever, or at least of the past ten or so years. luckys is a relatively smaller venue as far as venues go so it wasnt hard to pack this one out, even though the amount of paying kids didnt break a hundred (EDIT: im a dirty fucking liar and was corrected, 130 people paid for this. fuck me right?). we came up in a packed car and made sure to get there early to catch our good friends at half-mast who were playing first. anyways, on to the recap...
AT HALF-MAST played first, this was their second to last show of an almost eight week full US tour that took them all over for the second time in the past year. in a word, they were TIGHT, playing together night after night for that long will do that to you. a good mix of the newest material with plenty off of their latest full length. nate has definitely found his niche as a frontman, not just with his stage presence but also with things to say. people need to take note of this band for sure, their new 7" will blow you away.
WHERE IT ENDS was up next, these semi-locals from columbia were on a short weekend and this was day number 2 i believe. new stuff is fucking heavy, this band used to remind me of in this defiance-era strife but they are definitely giving off a disembodied feel now, mixed in with a little later era NYHC. resonate isnt a bad ep, but it seems they have really found their sound and are writing their strongest material yet. anthony (the old drummer) made the switch to bass awhile back and is definitely fitting that part much better. never a bad drummer by any means, but playing a string instrument definitely seems to suit him much better. brandon the latest drummer seemed to fit in perfectly, shame that he will be moving and no longer playing with these guys.
SIGNS OF HOPE was up next. never got into this band and their revolving door lineup, paul is a nice enough guy but the whole played out youth crew thing never did anything for me.
ADVENT was up next, the christian heavy hardcore band featuring ex-BELOVED members from NC. i had never listened to or seen this band prior, so i went into their set expecting nothing and getting blown away. probably some of the best stage presence ive seen in a band in awhile. despite their beliefs they got on stage and did their thing, nothing but respect for this band. very heavy and very loud, a good mix of mosh parts along with experimental parts and the like. hard to pin a good description on these guys that wont give them too much credit or make me seem like im talking out of my ass...check them out, thats all i have to say.
THE CARRIER from boston was up next, and they are easily one of the best bands in hardcore. if you didnt know, they play heavier melodic hardcore with an emotional edge. they opened with a new song that was purely made to bang your fucking head to, and then ran through a slew of songs off the full-length, 7", and even the demo. incredibly tight, kids going nuts diving and singing along...exactly like a hardcore show should be. this is one of the best live bands out right now, even if you cant get into them on recording, do yourself a favor and catch them live.
REIGN SUPREME played second to last, and while i am not really into the music this band makes, they are an extremely tight and good at what they do. very moshy heavy hardcore with pretty overtypical lyrics about unity and love and hate etc etc etc. moshlords were in full effect as expected.
last up was motherfucking SHAI HULUD who i shouldnt have to introduce or even describe at all. this band was incredible, played maybe 2 songs off of misanthropy pure and then a clusterfuck of pretty much their entire catalogue. set your body ablaze made me want to do just that..no words to even describe this band. perfect set.
august 10th review coming soon, probably tomorrow
-ian
i was re-inspired (if you can say that) to venture into this by a long conversation today with nate from at half-mast that was jokingly referred to as an interview multiple times by both of us. hopefully that can take place sometime in the near future, but until then here is my first shot at a show review.
AUGUST 9TH @ LUCKY'S PUB in WILMINGTON, NC - SHAI HULUD, REIGN SUPREME, THE CARRIER, ADVENT, SIGNS OF HOPE, WHERE IT ENDS, AT HALF-MAST
this was a pretty big event, scottie p the promoter had been hyping this one up for quite some time, and with good reason to. a stacked lineup including one of the biggest hardcore bands ever, or at least of the past ten or so years. luckys is a relatively smaller venue as far as venues go so it wasnt hard to pack this one out, even though the amount of paying kids didnt break a hundred (EDIT: im a dirty fucking liar and was corrected, 130 people paid for this. fuck me right?). we came up in a packed car and made sure to get there early to catch our good friends at half-mast who were playing first. anyways, on to the recap...
AT HALF-MAST played first, this was their second to last show of an almost eight week full US tour that took them all over for the second time in the past year. in a word, they were TIGHT, playing together night after night for that long will do that to you. a good mix of the newest material with plenty off of their latest full length. nate has definitely found his niche as a frontman, not just with his stage presence but also with things to say. people need to take note of this band for sure, their new 7" will blow you away. WHERE IT ENDS was up next, these semi-locals from columbia were on a short weekend and this was day number 2 i believe. new stuff is fucking heavy, this band used to remind me of in this defiance-era strife but they are definitely giving off a disembodied feel now, mixed in with a little later era NYHC. resonate isnt a bad ep, but it seems they have really found their sound and are writing their strongest material yet. anthony (the old drummer) made the switch to bass awhile back and is definitely fitting that part much better. never a bad drummer by any means, but playing a string instrument definitely seems to suit him much better. brandon the latest drummer seemed to fit in perfectly, shame that he will be moving and no longer playing with these guys.
SIGNS OF HOPE was up next. never got into this band and their revolving door lineup, paul is a nice enough guy but the whole played out youth crew thing never did anything for me.
ADVENT was up next, the christian heavy hardcore band featuring ex-BELOVED members from NC. i had never listened to or seen this band prior, so i went into their set expecting nothing and getting blown away. probably some of the best stage presence ive seen in a band in awhile. despite their beliefs they got on stage and did their thing, nothing but respect for this band. very heavy and very loud, a good mix of mosh parts along with experimental parts and the like. hard to pin a good description on these guys that wont give them too much credit or make me seem like im talking out of my ass...check them out, thats all i have to say.
THE CARRIER from boston was up next, and they are easily one of the best bands in hardcore. if you didnt know, they play heavier melodic hardcore with an emotional edge. they opened with a new song that was purely made to bang your fucking head to, and then ran through a slew of songs off the full-length, 7", and even the demo. incredibly tight, kids going nuts diving and singing along...exactly like a hardcore show should be. this is one of the best live bands out right now, even if you cant get into them on recording, do yourself a favor and catch them live.
REIGN SUPREME played second to last, and while i am not really into the music this band makes, they are an extremely tight and good at what they do. very moshy heavy hardcore with pretty overtypical lyrics about unity and love and hate etc etc etc. moshlords were in full effect as expected.
last up was motherfucking SHAI HULUD who i shouldnt have to introduce or even describe at all. this band was incredible, played maybe 2 songs off of misanthropy pure and then a clusterfuck of pretty much their entire catalogue. set your body ablaze made me want to do just that..no words to even describe this band. perfect set.
august 10th review coming soon, probably tomorrow
-ian
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