Something To Forget

Despite my obsession with trying to collect every piece of Revelation Records vinyl, at some point i decided that I wasn't interested in collecting multiple copies of the Texas Is The Reason 2xLP. But then a year or two ago there was a new pressing on purple vinyl, and I made the decision to buy it, and I effectively decided to carry on trying to collect this record, despite having intentionally avoided a few pressings of it. Recently I picked up two more copies from different sources.

First up is a brown vinyl version. This was the most recent pressing from 2024, but I'm not sure how many were made.

The second version is this clear yellow pressing. This was from 2022, and was the third clear yellow pressing (although the first pressed at RTI after Rainbo closed down). Given that I don't own any of the older yellow vinyl copies, I'm not sure if there is much difference, although I'm pretty sure that the only way to tell would be to compare the matrix on each record.

The pressing info on this record makes it pretty much impossible to collect at this point. There were about four different orange vinyl pressings and three yellow. I'd probably collect them if I could be certain of which was which, but I'm not sure how to figure out which is which. The main one I know for sure that I am missing is the red vinyl pressing, but I'm sure that I will eventually find one of those. If anyone can help with next level detail about the orange and tellow pressings, please get in touch.

Boston, Don't Wait Up

I went to see Bane play in London a couple of months ago. It had been ten years since I had last seen them play, and in betweem they had played a last show and broken up for good... and then got back together a couple of years ago. Following their reformartion, Equal Vision have been busy repressing their records, with three of their four albums having been repressed on multiple different colours of vinyl. There were so many copies of the the first two LPs made that I took the decision to not bother trying to collect them. And just like that, twenty five years or so of trying to collect every version of every Bane record came to an end. However, that doesn't mean that I'm never buying another Bane record. Far from it...

When I saw that the city series 7"s had been pressed as a 12" for the first time, I decided to pick up one copy and leave it there. The decision on which version to pick up was made pretty easy, as the band had some copies for sale on tour, so I just grabbed one at the London show. It was sealed, and you can probably imagine my thoughts when I opened it up to find this crazy colour combination.

I'd arranged to do a trade at the show with Ralf. Well, not so much a trade, but an exchange. I'd been storing a few items for him at my house, and he had repaid the favour, and there was an opportunity to exchange everything at the show. I'd actually forgotten that one of the records I was getting was another Bane record, being a test press of the ten year anniversary pressing of the fourth LP, 'Don't Wait Up' on End Hits Records.

I'm pretty happy to have this one as I have somehow managed to lose the original test press of this one on the same label. I don't think that I have ever lost any other record other than that one, and over the last few years it has driven me absolutely crazy. I'll probably never know what happened to it, so this is a fair replacement for that gap on my shelf.

Said And Done

Despite my best efforts to stop buying reissues or represses, I am always finding exceptions and buying more copies of the same record again and again. The latest example of my inability to follow my own rules is yet another copy of the Negative Approach 'Tied Down' LP, this time on orange vinyl.

One of the things I really enjoy about the different colour represses of this record is that they change the colour of the sleeve to match the vinyl. The first colour repress was green vinyl, then we got purple vinyl.. but both of those colours were pressed to match the sleeve colours that had previously been made and issued over the years since the LP first came out in . This orange pressing is the first time that the sleeve has been turned orange, and this makes it a cool pressing in its own right.

Of course, now that they have taken the step of issuing this in a completely brand new sleeve colour, there are no limits, so it wouldn't surprise me if this eventually gets pressed on every colour under the sun, but I wonder at what point I would stop buying them?

Fuck Around

I picked up the latest Scowl LP ('Are We All Angels?') a couple of months back, and this set me off listening to their older stuff, which of course then lead me on a shopping spree. Ok, so maybe 'spree' is a slight exaggeration, but I ended up finding a 1st press copy of their first record for a fair price in the UK which I could not resist.

This orange vinyl version is the more common version of the first pressing, although the rare colour looks like shit, so this was the one I always wanted. Back when this came out, the entire first press sold out insanely quickly and it eluded me for a year, at which point I had to settle for a second press yellow vinyl. Finally I can upgrade.

Having suffered from Scowl overload the last year or two, I hadn't played this in a while, and despite recently thinking that the latest album and its 'grunge' sound is better, when I listen to this one I'm not so sure. I guess the reason I was suffering from Scowl overload is because they are absoltely everywhere... which is because there is a lot of interest in them... because they are really good. And this early sound is what projected them into everyone's line of sight. So if anything I'm just guilty of forgetting how good this is.

If anyone wants the second press yellow vinyl copy, get in touch.

Damage Control

If you read this thing with any regulatory then you'll know that I enjoyed the 90s era of music, and also that I enjoy test presses. So it will be of no surprise that a combination of the two things is always something that I am excited by.

A year or so back, Nico was in a record store and messaged me asking if I would be interested in a Die 116 test press. I had to ask which record it was, as the band had two releases and I already own a test of 'Dyna Cool', but by good fortune this turned out to be the one that I didn't have... the first record, 'Damage Control'. SO I asked him to grab it for me and then, a year later, he delivered it to my house. What a service!

The test came in a generic white sleeve that someone had written on. I dug out my regular copy to show the cover as it makes for a slightly more interesting picture.

This record was released by Wreck-age Records in 1994, and I bought it when it came out as the description I read at the time said that it contained members of Burn and it sounded like Burn. Back then that was a guaranteed way to get most hardcore kids to throw their money at you. The band had Gavin Van Vlack (Burn), Andrew Gormley (Rorschach, Kiss It Goodbye), Keith Huckins (Rorschach, Deadguy, Kiss It Goodbye) and a couple of other dudes. Their second record seemed to be pressed in higher numbers and better distributed, but it had a different sound and was in my opinion nowhere near as good as this debut five song 12". If you've not heard this record then it's well worth checking out if you like 90s hardcore and any of the bands mentioned.

Hard To Believe

A couple of years ago I picked up an LP titled 'Existing The Dream', the debut from Low Coast, a band fronted by by Jeff Caudill (of Gameface fame). Well, at some point a few months ago, the label put some test pressings up for sale, and even though I can't remember whether I got an email to tell me about it or saw an instagram post, I bought one immediately.

The record was released by Spartan Records, and the test comes in one of their standard test press sleeves, which I have to say looks great.

The name of the band and record is hand written and numbered at the bottom of the front cover. I got number 2 of 10.

I still isten to this record often and recommend it highly if you enjoy Jeff's voice. I really hope that they get around to putting something else out in the near future.

I Don't Like Anything

The seventh and final post in my series of recent Indecision Records releases, and I've saved my favourite until last. 'I Don't Like Anything' is the first full length by Ursula. The band hails from Southern California, and I first heard of them a couple of years ago when I picked up a bunch of Indecision 7"s. Their 'Meet Is Murder' 7" was an interesting record, and I have listened to it quite a bit over the last couple of years, but this LP really takes it up a notch.

I'm not sure why, but I love the front cover art with the skull and flowers, and I love how the splattery vinyl seems to nicely complement the flowers. The whole thing looks very pretty, which is in stark contrast to how this thing sounds.

Ursula have a sound that is hard to describe. The music straddles a few different styles, but the songs are short and generally fast and heavy, with a ferocious female vocal over the top (well, apart from the last song which is a really catchy pop punk song - apparently its a Green Day cover). Without doubt this will be in my list of favourite releases of the year, if I make one.

With Every Passing Moment

My 6th consecutive post about semi recent Indecision Records releases is a 12" EP by a straight edge band from Denver, Colorado called Time X Heist. I've started to notice a bit of a buzz around this band this year so I was keen to finally check out this record that came out last year, 'With Every Passing Moment', although my tardiness meant that the most limited colour of vinyl was already sold out.

It feels like a while since I picked up a record by a straight edge band, and this is like diving in at the deep end. The opening song starts slowly and the kicks into action with a yell of 'STRAIGHT EDGE!'... and then we're off on a 7 song ride, and whilst this isn't exactly covering new ground, Time X Heist do it really well. And let's be honest, there aren't too many bands doing this style these days, so somehow it sounds kinda fresh.

This gold vinyl version is the more common colour of the first pressing and is limited to 250 copies. I'm generally not a fan of this modern 'gold' vinyl, but this one gets a pass as it goes nicely with the cover art.

I also picked up a 7" by the same band, although I am slightly cheating by posting it here as it isn't on Indecision Records. Released by Heroes & Martyrs Records (which is the name of the ressurected label Martyr Records), 'The Unforgiving Minute' 3 song 7" came out earlier this year.

There are about 4 different colours of this 7", but this purple vinyl version (limited to 100 copies) is exclusive to Indecision.

Okay, so Time X Heist may not be the most original band I've listened to this year, but I'm really enjoying both of these records. Sometimes good old fashioned straight edge hardcore is just what the doctor ordered.

Nowhere Nearer

My journey through some of the semi recent Indecision Records releases continues with one that was a huge surprise for me. Yesterday I posted about the benefits of the Raised Wrong 12", today's post is another band fronted by John Pettibone which goes by the name of Heiress. The record is titled 'Nowhere Nearer' and is an interesting example of judging a book (record) by its cover and getting it all wrong.

When I saw the cover art for this and read the name of the band I immediately set expectations to low. I mean, based purely on these pictures, what would you think?

Within seconds of listening to one song online I was ordering a copy. This is an absolutely mammoth record. Without trying to draw any pointless comparisons to other bands, I'm just going to say that this sounds like the soundtrack to knocking your house down with a sledgehammer... slowly. I still have a couple more records to post in this series, but this is probably my favourite of the Indecision releases that I have picked up this year. And even though I had never heard of Heiress before this, and assumed they were a new band, I was surprised to see on discogs that they have been going since 2006 and have pumped out 4 other LPs in that time, which I am looking forward to exploring at some point.

There were only 300 of these made in total, with this version (clear with grey splatter) being the rarest colour out of 100 copies. There's also a less attractive grey with black splatter (out of 200), with both colours still available at Indecision store if you fancy checking this out.

Raised Wrong

Next in my series of semi recent Indecision Records releases is a 12" EP by a band called Raised Wrong. I'm not really sure whether this is a permanent band or a one off project, but no doubt that will become apparent in time.

First thing I really like about this is the 'basic' looking sleeve. I've always liked minimal designs, and the disco sleeve on this one looks great. But then I read on No Echo that they made this to look like an old Profile Records release. So there was a reason behind the design.

So this band features dudes from other bands who apparently came up with the idea for this band whilst playing the Indecision 30 year anniversary show in 2023. A year later and they recorded these songs. The band features John Pettibone (Undertow, Himsa) on vocals, Ryan Murphy (Undertow, Ensign) on drums, Ryan Donoghue (Ensign, Robot Whales) on guitar, and Dave Itow (Amendment 18, Berthold City) on bass.

Everything about this is great. John Pettibone rarely puts a foot wrong, so you know that if he's involved this is gonna be worth your time. Six songs that are around two minutes each, this could probably have been a 7", but then it wouldn't have looked quite as good in a smaller sleeve.

This Is Our Struggle

Next in my catch up of Indecision Records releases that I have been listening to lately is an example of the kind of record that I have been trying to not buy for the past few years... a discography.Or rather, as it is referred to here, an anthology.

The record is titled 'This Is Our Struggle' and is by an old San Diego band called Amenity. They were from San Diego and are regarded as the city's first straight edge hardcore band. I remember in the early to mid 90s I would see their 7"s in every record shop and everyone's collection, which was no doubt due ot the label that released them pressing lots of copies and keeping the records in print. Even though I own a couple of teir 7"s, I couldn't resist this slickly packaged 12".

Indecision pressed all of these on 'gold smoke' vinyl, which looks really nice as it was pressed at my favourite pressing plant, Erika.

This comes with a large glossy booklet with some words on the band by notable San Diego and Californian scenesters. What comes across clearly is that this band was hugely influential and important to people in Southern California who were (and still are) involved in the hardcore scene. And whilst the bookelt is well put together, but the content feels slightly limited compared to other similar projects.

This is a slightly odd record because an 'anthology' is not the same as a discography. This contains some (but not all) of the band's output, and what is here seems to be in a slightly odd order. But overall it's kinda cool to have an Amenity 12" on my shelf, as all their releases were on 7"s. The remastered songs also sound bigger and cleaner. If you've never listened to this band then listen to the song 'Breathe' and you will immediately understand why someone decided to put this together.

In The Meantime

Day 2 in my series of Indecision Records releases that I have picked up semi recently, and today I'm posting the debut full length from a Canadian band called Meantime. Whenever I hear that word in any context, I think of Helmet, but I have no idea if this was in any way an influence on their name choice.

This one came out a couple of years ago, towards the end of 2023. I remember meaning to check it out because of the band name, but I definitely don't remember thinking that waiting for the best part of two years would be the perfect time to give it a spin.

There were two colours, and this is the most limited colour of 150 copies.

This has been a really great find, and to me sounds a lot like it could have come out circa 2005. There are times this reminds me of Have Heart, but it mainly brings to mind Go It Alone, Champion and Strife. Definitely worth a look if you're into any of those bands.

Silent All These Years

My next few posts are me catching up on some Indecision Records releases that I picked up in the last few months.

I'm starting with this 12" EP by Crashing Forward titled 'Silent All These Years'. This actually came out two years ago but, as ever, I'm slightly behind schedule.

There were 300 of these made, all on this colour of vinyl, and the label still has a few left.

The band are from San Diego, and feature Oscar Paz on guitar (Impel, Kill Holiday, Hingada) and Ati Moran (brother of Rob from Unbroken) on vocals. To me this sounds vaguely similar to other San Diego bands, but also the guitar sound vaguely brings to mind moments of Black Flag or The Suicide File. This is actually really good and catchy and definitely a bit different to the average hardcore record. I think I read that they are now working on a new record and I will definitely be grab that without hesitation whenever it appears.

Marathon

A few short years ago I really enjoyed 'World House', the debut LP from Mil-Spec. Almost two years ago they released their second LP, 'Marathon', and by the time I became aware of it the colour vinyl copies (on violet) were gone. So I decided to just wait it out.

A few weeks ago the band posted on instagram that there was some tour merch left, and in the picture I spotted a colour vinyl copy of the LP, so I went to the store and placed an order. This was also a rare opportunity to get something shipped to me directly, as this was being mailed from Canada, and it seems that their overseas shiiping price are stuck in the early 00s.

I'm pretty sure that I have never seen a record with a hexagonal label before, and it looks pretty cool. I like how they have built it into the cover art by using a disco sleeve.

Just like the first LP, this isn't the kind of record that hits you immediately. But over the past few weeks I have been playing this daily and it just keeps getting better and better. And included with the record I received a flyer to tell me that there will be a new Mil-Spec record coming in October 2025, so probably in late 2027 I'll be picking one of those up too.

Things That Make No Sense

A few weeks ago Nico stopped by for a short visit on his way home from a couple of days in the UK to watch a couple of HR (of Bad Brains fame) shows. Time passed way too fast and we ran out of time to get food, but it was a good couple of hours of record nerd chat... and a small exchange of records that we had been holding for each other for a few months.

One record that I was really stoked about was this test press of Dag Nasty's third LP, 'Field Day'. Apparently he offered it to me and I paid for it months ago, and I had absolutely zero memory of this, so it was a nice bonus.

This is a test press of the European pressing on We Bite Records, whiich is my third copy of this record (along with the green vinyl on We Bite Records, the green vinyl on Giant Records) and also the 6th Dag Nasty test press in my collection. I just need a test press of the Giant Records version and I will consider this collection complete.

Also, I know that this is their worst record, but I still find it odd that this record has never been reissued. I mean, surely it would sell based purely on the fact that its Dag Nasty. Is there a reason that it has been kept out of print I wonder? Anyone know?

Give Me Stabb Or Give Me Death

So a couple of months ago I spotted a colour vinyl Government Issue LP on eBay UK for what looked like a good price. Truth be told, this is not a band that I have ever really paid attention to or been particularly interested in. I'm not sure why. I think this just goes back years to pre-internet days when I would make judgements about bands based on band name, cover art or what the band members looked like which, over time, turned out to be mistakes. I think in this case it was the word 'Government' in the name that somehow made the band sound boring, which clearly makes little sense. But that's me sometimes I guess.

Well anyway, I checked the value of the record on discogs to find that it was a very good price, so I bought it. And wouldn't you know it, I instantly loved it. And then the seller listed another couple of GI records, so I bought those too. And then I messaged and asked if he had any more, and did a deal to buy a couple more. All of a sudden I had a small GI collection out of nothing.

First up is the band's first 12" record, 'Boycott Stabb', which was a split release between Fountain Of Youth Records and Dischord Records in 1983. I don't think that this pink vinyl copy is a first press copy, but it's a fairly early pressing. Sadly this copy is missing an insert, but this seems to be quite common. I'm guessing that not all copies actually came with one originally.

Next up is the 2nd LP 'Joy Ride' from 1984 on Fountain Of Youth Records. According to discogs (which is not completely reliable) this blue vinyl version is a second pressing from 1987, and it wasn't repressed again until Dr. Strange Records stepped up in 2010.

The 3rd LP from 1985, 'The Fun Just Never Ends' also on Fountain Of Youth Records. This yellow vinyl version appears to be part of the first pressing. This one was also repressed by Dr. Strange in 2010 and 2022.

Next up is a 12" 'mini album' titled 'Give Us Stabb Or Give Us Death', released by Mystic Records in 1985. This was also issued as a 7" with the same title. Oh, and there is also another 12" version which includes a bonus 7". I'm not sure which came first, but trying to figure this out in 2025 seems harder than it should be.

There were a couple more LPs sold that I bid on and didn't win, so I have a bit of a gap here. The next one I bought is the band's 7th LP 'Crash' from 1984 on Giant Records, and this clear vinyl version looks like a first press copy. This one has been repressed by Dr. Strange and also a UK label called Audio Platter. I think this is my favourite of the bunch, so far at least. It's very melodic and reminds me of Dag Nasty.

And finally, a live 2x12" titled 'Finale'. This was released by everyone's favourite european record label, Lost and Found Records, back in 1989. There seems to be a whole range of different colour combinations out there.

Truth be told, I don't like getting several records by a band at one go. I prefer working through them one at a time in chronological order, getting to know each one properly before moving on to the next. When I immediately have 6 new (to me) records by one band then if I don't pace myself it is more likely that I'll skip over one or two without giving them adequate time. So even though I have had these records for a few months, I have only managed to get through listening to half of them.