Podcast: Ep. 38 - Don't Be a Sperm Jacker

Lost Tribe Podcast

 

Ep. 38: Don't Be a Sperm Jacker

On this weeks episode the boys talk about GI Joe, growing up in the country, and all of the fucked up things that come with growing up in the sticks.  We discuss the types of things we'd do for cash when we were little, and a few disturbing things that have happened to us with social workers...and it's not what you think.

Get it on iTunes or here.

Review: Call of the Void - Dragged Down a Dead End Path

Call of the Void

 Dragged Down a Dead End Path

Relapse Records

Relapse Records has always been my favourite place to go for one-step-above-indie metal.  That kind of metal that isn’t going to fill arenas, but that also wasn’t recorded on someone’s four-track and then distributed on a cassette-only label out of Denmark.  This in-between level is by far my favourite, with the likes of Pig Destroyer and Fuck the Facts confidently leading the Relapse line-up (on that note, why the hell is Fuck the Facts so criminally underrated? ...I’m sure I’ll write a separate post about that some day).

So when I caught an animated banner on some metal forum promoting Call of the Void’s Dragged Down a Dead End Path I took notice because Relapse was putting it out.  Now, I don’t love everything I hear coming from Relapse, but I always feel that I owe each band at least one listen, and it’s times like this that it completely pays off to do so.  Previously known as Iron Horse (a band name that I like more, but I’m sure they had to change it because of some other band threatening a law suit or some such shit), Colorado's Call of the Void delivers an impressive mix of metal/hardcore/crusty d-beat that bands like Rise and Fall have popularized. What makes this group stand out are the riffs that they use throughout this record.  A lot of bands playing this style of metal/hardcore always seem to favour a barrage of sound over distinctive riffs and an element of groove and dynamics.  Call of the Void recognizes the need for a little variety and it really helps shape each track and gives the entire album a more diverse and less monotonous feel.

This album is dirty, mean, crushingly heavy, and impressive from start to finish.  Songs like “The Liar’s Heart” and “Bottom Feeder” stand out as particularly great songs, but there really isn’t a significant low point on this album.

In short, you should buy it here.

Podcast: Ep. 37 - In Defense of Seth MacFarlane

Lost Tribe Podcast

 

Ep. 37: In Defense of Seth MacFarlane

In this episode the boys discuss The Bronx, The Swarm, and how postal rates are crippling the hobbies of certain podcasters.  The voluntary surrendering of DNA is then both simultaneously endorsed and condemned, as are shitty 'late night comedies' that litter Netflix.  Discussion of Kevin Smith comes up again and disagreements arise regarding whether Seth McFarlane was a great or horrid Oscars host...but everyone agrees that regardless of who hosts the awards aren't worth watching in the first place.

Get it on iTunes or here.

Review: Hoax - Collected LP

Hoax

Collected LP

Adagio830

At this point it really feels like an endorsement of Hoax is on par with an endorsement of Taylor Swift (which we’ve done here) or Die Hard (also on the podcast...you should really be listening to that thing), but I figured I would throw my hat in the ring anyways.  Hoax seemingly came out of nowhere, with a killer 7”, a maniac singer, and one of the best songs of the year (Faggot).  From there they got all internet famous, but strangely enough they actually seemed to deserve it.  Subsequent 7”s proved that they weren’t just one-trick ponies, and a seemingly-constant touring schedule helped demonstrate to anyone that cared to watch that the chaos that they put on wax could be duplicated on stage every time.

In other words, Hoax seems to actually be worth the hype.  The only problem was that, up until this point, they just had a gaggle of 7”s floating around.  Now, I love a good 7” more than most, but I understand that for those outside of the record-collecting world, it seems like a ridiculously small amount of music.  Fortunately, some guy (or gal) in Europe got his/her shit together enough to put everything that Hoax has released onto one LP.  And listening to it all together really is the way I now prefer to listen to this band.

As for the actual music, I can’t stress enough that you just have to listen to it.  It’s raw, it’s catchy-in-a-hardcore-way, it’s hate-filled, it’s filled with themes of alienation and violence...do you really need more incentive then that?  No, you don’t.  So listen to it.  And then send us your thanks.  We deserve it.

Buy it here.

Podcast: Ep. 36: PS4 News #Dogs of Instagram

Lost Tribe Podcast

 

Ep. 36: PS4 News #Dogs of Instagram

In this episode the boys reminisce about living in London, ON and all the ridiculous of growing up in medium-sized city that thinks it's a small town.  After the nostalgia wears off discussion turns to product launchs, specifically the Playstation 4 and the Blackberry Z10....and how awkward these 'media events' can be to watch.  Finally, the boys reveal themselves to be old as fuck by failing to understand, and then bitching about, instagram.

Get it on iTunes or here.

Podcast: Ep. 35 - The Pope Gave Up and Red Dawn was Good

Lost Tribe Podcast

 

Ep. 35: The Pope Gave up and Red Dawn was Good

In this episode we finally get the ol' gang back together and discuss what was missed during the past few weeks.  There is talk about the meteor, comics, and other topics that were discussed in the last few episodes.  Once new topics are brought up there is lots of questions about how the hell you quit being the pope and how it will not affect our lives in any way.  At all.  Following this, there is much debate over the show Girls and what year the Sidekick phone came out.  The show 24 is held up as an impressive series and the remake of Red Dawn is given waaaaaaaay too much thought (but it's good, we swear!).

Get it on iTunes or here.

Review: Ruined Families - Blank Language

Ruined Families

Blank Language

Adagio 830

Sometimes the world is a terrible, dark, shitty place.  Wars, famine, McDonalds putting tomato on my burger no matter how many fucking times I tell them that I don’t want those disgusting things anywhere near my food, and other such tragedies are all too commonplace.  As a result, it only makes sense that certain art is created to reflect the lowest, dirtiest, and rawest parts of this tomato-filled experience we call life.  Ruined Families is a band that specializes in this type of art.

I first heard about Ruined Families when the band contacted Lost Tribe to review their self-titled 7”, and quickly fell in love (read the review here if you don’t believe me.).  With a healthy mix of sludge, crust, hardcore, punk, and black metal, these Greeks (phrasing it like that sounds bigoted to me for some reason, but I can’t put my finger on why, so it’s gonna stay that way) show everyone how it should be done.  They have the intensity and hunger of a young band, but none of the usual trappings.  Their songs sound well-crafted, interesting, diverse, and forceful, and the lyrical subject matter is as bleak and dark as you might expect.

Songs like “Easy Livin’” and “Human Fence” sound killer but leave me pissed off that I may never get to see them performed live, as they have that there-is-broken-glass-and-blood-on-the-dance-floor feel that I’ve always appreciated in a live performance.  In fact, there isn’t a single track on this album that relents in any real way.  It’s a non-stop wave of depressing, punishing blackened hardcore.  In other words, what’s not to like! 

I think someone (not me) should give Ruined Families airfare to come tour North America.  I think they would do nicely opening for the likes of Wiccans.  Just a thought.

Either way, a solid fucking album from start to finish.

Buy it from here (I don’t know if they have N.A. distro yet)