Lost Tribe Podcast: Episode 4

Lost Tribe Podcast: Episode 4

Lost Tribe – Ep. 4: On this episode the boys discuss everything from grindcore to gangster rap to Carly Rae Jepsen. There is also further discussion about how good Black Hole of Calcutta is!


Download it here or on iTunes.

Review: BOXER - Undertow

BOXER

Undertow

Reveille Records

“Been digging this grave for 20 years now…”

I’m a sucker for melodic hardcore records. Always have been, can’t imagine that’ll change soon. And frankly, if you’re like me, this is not a bad time to be a fan of the genre. Bands like Title Fight, Such Gold & their ilk have taken up the mantle admirably. The last few years have been an embarrassment of riches for dudes like me who like their punk records fast and loose and catchy and featuring vocals delivered with reckless abandon.

If I have one problem with all this, it’s separating the wheat from the chaff. There’s just so much of this stuff out there right now that it gets tough to zero in on what’s special and what can be skipped.

BOXER, representing Richmond, VA, have an EP that displays the potential to put them squarely in the first category. While there is definitely room to grow here, when they connect, they hit hard.

The opening track, Anagram, balances the balls out, dual vocal, speediness of the first Title Fight records with what I’ve always described as “the slow, pretty parts.” This is definitely the choice cut here, though I would like to give a shout out to the speed and brevity of 20/20. That’s good shit, too.

This same momentum is maintained throughout the remaining songs here. The whole thing wraps itself up in about 10 minutes with my second favorite song on this thing, Medicine Cabinet.

Overall, BOXER have delivered a solid EP. The best thing about this is the fact that they can only go up from here. There aren’t a ton of things that I like more than a first release that shows potential.

This is a band that I will be looking forward to hearing more from.

Thumbs Up.

Bandcamp (Free if you want... But toss 'em a buck.)

New Podcast Graphics

Lost Tribe Podcast

So apparently if you get an actual artist (and Lost Tribe Podcaster) to do the logo for the podcast it can turn out incredibly bad-ass.  Who would've thought?

Review: Propagandhi - Failed States (Single)

Propagandhi

Failed States(Single)

 Epitaph

Ok, so it may be slightly ridiculous to review a single song, but a while back we reviewed a 2-song Fucked Up release and no complained, so why not?  Plus, this is really just an excuse to gush over Propagandhi and what a monumentally important and incredible band they are.

 First off, "Failed States" is the title track of the new Propagandhi full-length that comes out in September (also called Failed States).  For many, Propagandhi was a Fat Wreck punk band with catchy little tracks like "Ska Sucks" and "Anti-Manifesto".  While those songs still hold up, I know many people who didn't give them much thought after they had grown up a little and decided that ska-based fatwreck punk wasn't for them any longer.  While I find that sentiment understandable, in the case of Propagandhi it was a mistake to say the least.  Rather than sticking with tongue-in-cheek ska punk, Propagandhi slowly became masters of thrash-influenced punk, trading their teenage tirades in for expertly crafted and intelligent songs that appeal to any politically-minded music lover. 

In this regard, "Failed States" fits right into the evolution of Propagandhi.  Even more thrash-influenced than many tracks off of Potemkin City Limits or Supporting Caste,  this song melds metallic riffs with Chris Hannah's signature voice, using time signature changes and samples to fill out an already incredible song.  As always, Hannah's lyrics put most other band's to shame.  Writing politically meaningful songs isn't the easiest task, as many come off sounding juvenille, preachy, or an ungodly annoying combination of the two. Propagandhi, on the other hand, have figured out a way to sound earnest, honest, and well-informed without having to sacrifice content for the sake of making lyrics fit or sound 'right'.

In short, listen to this song and get very excited for the release of their full length on Sept. 4th.

Listen to the song "Failed States" here.

Pre-order the Failed States LP here.

Lost Tribe Podcast: Ep. 3 - Detroit is Terrifying

Lost Tribe Podcast: Ep. 3 - Detroit is Terrifying

In this episode the boys discuss how depressing/awful Detroit seems to be via the preview for the Cold as Life documentary, while taking some time out to discuss how awesome Max Payne 3 is.

Get it from iTunes or go here if you don't use iTunes.

Lost Tribe Podcast: iTunes

Lost Tribe Podcast - Now on iTunes!

As we mentioned earlier this week, we have started a podcast to talk about music, movies, comics, video games, and other forms of girl repellant.  If those are things you dig then it's definitely worth checking out.  And for all of you ipod/ipad/iphone users, the Lost Tribe Podcast has passed a rigorous evaluation process (submitting it and clicking two buttons) and is now available of iTunes. 

So give it a listen, download it, subscribe, comment, or do whatever it is you do with the interweb these days.  It's much appreciated.

P.S. Stay tuned for the release of Lost Tribe Podcast - Ep. 3: Detroit is Terrifying on Sunday.

P.P.S. As you can see my photoshopping (ms paint) skills have gotten very impressive, so if you want to hire me as a graphic designer just send me a message describing why I should lend my considerable talent to your project. Ha!

Review: To the Lions - Baptism of Fire

To the Lions

Baptism of Fire

Goodfellow Records

I first heard about To the Lions through the Goodfellow Records website.  I used to check it obsessively, believing (rightfully) that whatever that label put out was worth listening to.  While I loved most of what I heard, To the Lions stuck out more than anything else (except for Cursed).  Unfortunately, with Goodfellow Records and To the Lions now both defunct, all that can be done is a review of this underrated record.

To the Lions was a short-lived hardcore band based out of Hamilton, Ontario.  Despite only being around for a short time, their full length album Baptism of Fire definitely left a permanent mark.  Very much in the straightforward/insanely angry vein of dominated the earlier part of the decade, this album (if not so well executed) would’ve seemed out of place when it was released in 2007.  Fortunately, the band’s members (formerly of SeventyEightDays, Grade, and Chokehold [I think]), know exactly what they are doing when it comes to writing pissed off 90’s hardcore. 

Tracks like Born to Die, Nightmare Begins, and The Foresaken are about as nihilistic and violent as they come, and really lay the track work for an album that avoids becoming repetitive or boring, while still never straying from the musical path that the band became known for.  I can’t understand how this album didn’t earn a place in the ‘essential hardcore albums to own’ lists that are everywhere on the net, but it should have.  Every single song is catchy, well put together, aggressive, and stand the test of time.  I may be biased because this was the type of hardcore that I grew up listening to and playing, but even stepping outside of that dynamic, there really isn’t a bad thing that I can say about this album.

My only issue with this album is as follows:  They have a track called Nightmare Begins, which starts off with a great build up/intro, culminating with a furious scream of “And so it begins!”....and this isn’t the first track on the album!  Now, I’m not one for complaining about how an album is put together, but when a song with this name, structure, and lyrical introduction is track 5 I think a re-ordering should be considered.

So if you like well-written, well-structured 90’s-influenced hardcore then I highly suggest you find a copy of Baptism of Fire and give it more than a few listens.

As far as I know you can't buy this album anymore, but all of the remaining Goodfellow collection is found through Relapse Records, so have a look in their e-store I guess.

Lost Tribe Podcast - Ep. 1 & 2

Lost Tribe Podcast

Ok, so apparently getting to give our opinions through music reviews isn't quite enough for us here at the Lost Tribe family.  As a result of our hubris and the belief that you may want to hear our opinions on more than just hardcore/punk/metal, we have started a podcast!

While new and old hardcore, punk, and metal records are discussed on the podcast, we do expand our repertoire to include discussions on comic books, video games, concerts, tv shows, movies, and anything else that we may be interested in at a given time.

The podcast will eventually be up on itunes, but apparently that's a bit of a process, so we have made it available from another site for the time being.

The first episode is interesting and funny (at least we think it is), but we really started to hit our groove in the second one, so we've included the first two episodes right off the bat. So give them a listen, let us know what you think, and be prepared for a new episode every week.

P.S. One of us is an artist, so there will be a better cover/image for the podcast, but this one will just have to do for now.

Enjoy.

First Episode - Gay Batman?

Second Episode - Burning Love/Prometheus