GENITAL DEFORMITIES - "Profession Of Violence" demo (UK, 199?)

Unlike the name suggests, Genital Deformities is far removed from a Carcass-like gore grind combo. Not sure exactly when this demo was recorded/released but I somewhat remember getting it in the mail circa 1990, or maybe '92, though this is a rough guess. Hazy memory doesn't get better with age. I'm pretty sure it follows the "Shag Nasty" LP, and it is also heaps more appealing if you ask me. It's dirty, grinding (not in a "blast beat" grind way though), political, guttural metallic crust/punk, the way only Brits know how to churn it out. Mandatory anti-Poll Tax song included! Not sure who these guys were but there was at least one Excrement Of War member involved. This tape was reissued a couple of years later on vinyl as a split LP with Nuclear Death (the Polish one, not Lori Bravo's infamous pioneering US death metal band). Do yourself a favor and check it out if you like your crust punk ugly and metal ridden… I know I do, and this bloody little ripper has been a personal favorite for over two decades.

GENITAL DEFORMITIES - Profession Of Violence demo (UK, 199?)

HIATUS / HEALTH HAZARD - "Don't Think With Your Dick…" split live tape (Belgium/UK, 1994)

Two of the most popular '90s "Euro crust" bands gathered on one tape, both recorded live in the South-West of France in 1993-94 and released by Utopia Tapes, a cassette label run by Fred a.k.a "Tony", also drummer for Enola Gay, Vomit Yourself, and Disbeer. I got the opportunity to see both bands on stage at the time and they were super solid, as those recordings can attest. The Hiatus side was recorded in Auch on August 17th 1993 and the sound quality is excellent. Soundboard recording. I really had a soft spot for this band, they always killed it live and were our own French-speaking, heavy drinking, continental answer to Doom. Talking of which, the tape ends with Hiatus' hilarious studio rendition of Doom's "Relief" taken from the split 7" shared by both bands. The Health Hazard side has a much rougher audience recording (Toulouse on February 22nd 1994) but is still totally listenable. The UK band logo was (and still is) on a lot of patches and shirts, for good reason. Blazing fast thrash/crust with raging female vocals. Ex and future members of just about every band in the UK ever, an attempt at a family tree would give even the most die-hard genealogist a headache within minutes. There's also the Not Just A Nightmare EP as bonus material to top it all off. The tape came with a really cool booklet featuring lyrics, pictures, collages… They don't make them like this anymore.

HIATUS / HEALTH HAZARD - Don't Think With Your Dick… split live tape (Belgium/UK, 1994)

DESPERDICIO - "Maqueta 2010" demo (Japan, 2010)

Japanese punks master the art of paying tribute to their favorite bands from far away lands. We've all heard bands ape the Finnish (Poikkeus, Lakaus…), Swedish (Frigorä, Ferocious X…), Italian (Tantrum, Isterismo…) and of course UK sound, singing in broken languages they don't really speak at all. And I'm in no way blaming them: many more non-anglo saxon bands are guilty of this when they sing in English, mind you. Desperdicio hail from Sendai, a city hit really badly by the 2011 tsunami, and you can tell they're trying to emulate the "ramshackle d-beat" sound of more recent Spanish bands like Destrucción, Firmeza 10, Semen… Though when I asked him, their sempai singer Tsuyoshi confirmed that he didn't speak a word of Spanish. I saw them live in Tsuyama less than two months after the March 2011 tragedy, and they had insisted on driving 15 or so hours just to play this show, even if everybody was still in shock. Only in Japan! This is a short tape, only 4 songs including a Varukers cover. They released a 7" on Overthrow Records shortly afterwards.

DESPERDICIO - Maqueta 2010 demo (Japan, 2010)

DEATHLESS BASTARDS - Demo (France, 2012)

Straight out of Brittany and featuring former/current members of Warkorpse and Necrowretch among others, Deathless Bastards play rocking speed metal punk that has Motörhead written all over it – loud, crusty, heavy and metallic. The sick riffing on the last track reminds me of good ol' Acid (Belgium), but this should also appeal to Inepsy and Midnight fans. Really catchy stuff, looking forward to hearing more from this band! The cassette should still be available from Impious Desecration so support them and order a hard copy if you liked it.

DEATHLESS BASTARDS - Demo (France, 2012)

EXTINCTION OF MANKIND - "Without Remorse" demo (UK, 1993)

Extinction Of Mankind don't really need an introduction, do they? Anarcho metallic crust punk from the UK heavily influenced by Antisect as the lettering/artwork suggests. They must have quite a massive discography by now. Saw them live a couple of times in the mid '90s but they never appealed to me much I'm afraid… This is their first recording, a lengthy 10-track tape that reeks of cider breath and filthy black rags. I've seen a different version of this tape with an alternate cover so I'm guessing it had been reissued at some point, but I got this copy straight from the band upon its release so I guess it's as authentic as you can get.

EXTINCTION OF MANKIND - Without Remorse demo (UK, 1993)

LEBENDEN TOTEN - 8 Tracks Demo (USA, 2002)

I don't think I need to hear another single "noise punk" band at this point in my life. Call me old or jaded, but this subgenre has gotten so redundant and sterile it's probably the "screamo" of the '10s and it's only a matter of months before that shit floods second hand bins. I love noise and feedback as much as anyone, but I also need riffs, hooks, and song structures in my punk. Lebenden Toten is one of the very, very few bands of the genre I can hang with, even though they really started to shine later on in their career (I suggest checking out their 2nd LP and 8" first thing if you've never heard them.) They hadn't really found their trademark style on this demo yet – even Chanel's vocals sound pretty different from the distinctive singing style she's known for. 

LEBENDEN TOTEN - 8 Tracks Demo (USA, 2002)

KONTEMPT - "The End Of The Destructor" demo (Canada, 2004)

The Kontempt 7" released on The Total End Records in 2006 survived a few record purges over the years at the Kängnäve HQ with its brand of brutal and downtuned Swedish-style hardcore. Hailing from Montréal, Canada, they also released this 9-song tape a couple of years prior with a slightly different line-up – the most noticeable difference being the vocal duties on this demo handled by Chany of Inepsy fame! I'll admit to liking the 7" more, but the tape is worth a listen anyway.

KONTEMPT - The End Of The Destructor demo (Canada, 2004)

MIDNIGHT - demo (Portland, 2002)

Not to be confused with the Cleveland metal band of the same name, this very Midnight was from Portland, OR and called it a day before they even got the chance to release the debut 7" that they recorded shortly after this demo. They had members of all the usual suspects and more (From Ashes Rise, Atrocious Madness, Hellshock, Warcry, Lebenden Toten, Limp Wrist…) and played catchy heavy hardcore/punk with Japanese HC and heavy metal overtones, topped off by super brutal female vocals (I didn't realize it was a girl singing until someone told me!) This 5-song tape still sounds great more than a decade later so do yourself a favor and check it out. A "discography" LP featuring this demo and the unreleased EP has been in the works for a few years, let's hope it sees the light of day soon!

MIDNIGHT - demo (Portland, 2002)

OTAN - "Jodeles" demo (2003)

Otan was one of those bands that helped put Barcelona back on the punk map in the mid '00s. Not that the scene over there was dying or anything, but this new breed of angry anarchist hardcore/punk bands caught the attention of many punks abroad. They released two 7"s and this 11-track demo, which may well be my favorite of the bunch. I bought it at a show in Barcelona in 2005, the same night that I met their singer Teodoro for the first time, struggling to communicate in broken Spanish. A truly unique character, this hombre! Otan has featured members of Destrucción, Invasión, Firmeza 10, or Absurdo among others.

OTAN - Jodeles demo (2003)

KULTURO - Live @ Planet X, Liverpool, 13th April 1991

I don't know much about Kulturo other than the fact they existed from 1989 to 1991 and featured two ex-members of Antisect. They had a pretty experimental approach to music — loooong songs with elements of Hawkwind, Killing Joke, post punk, heavy metal… kinda like a prog version of Zygote maybe? They never released any studio recording. I've heard rumors of an unfinished demo but I have no idea if any of it is true… Or am I confusing this for the infamous incomplete 2nd Antisect album? Either way, I have 4 different live sets on cassette and picked this one pretty randomly as the sound is good (soundboard recording) and I happen to have the flyer for this specific show.

No tracklisting available so this is just one big soundfile.

KULTURO - Live @ Planet X, Liverpool, 13th April 1991

DISTURD - "Studio Trax" demo (2012)

Yes, the name Disturd is abysmal but blame it on the bad Engrish spoken by most Japanese punks and get over it 'cause this band rages harder than your own shitty band anyway. Formerly from Kobe but relocated to Tsuyama (or is it the other way around?), they're very similar to the almighty SDS (Societic Death Slaughter), churning out apocalyptic metallic crust to perfection— think late Antisect, Axegrinder, Sacrilege, etc. There's no info at all on the tape besides an email address, but I believe this 2-song cassette is only sold at shows. Even though I met their guitarist in Japan a couple of years ago, I never got to see them live, but my friend Momo was nice enough to grab this tape for me at a recent Disturd gig in Kyushu. It has a harsher recording than their recent 7"s, but it sounds damn great. Buy their records too!

DISTURD - Studio Trax demo (2012)

ANTI-CIMEX - Live @ Leeds, UK 2nd July 1986

It is no secret that Anti-Cimex is one of the coolest punk bands ever. I endorse their entire discography, save for that terrible song "Scandinavian Jawbreaker Part 2" (what the hell were they thinking?) From their infamous 1986 UK tour, here's a rough audience recording of the Leeds gig. Jonsson sounds pretty drunk at times and I don't doubt he was. This is mostly for Cimex completists and die-hards. Bootleggers fuck off!

ANTI-CIMEX - Live @ Leeds, UK 2nd July 1986

SEMEN - "Masas Obedientes Individuos Dominantes" demo (2009)

¡Joder! I was lucky to witness Semen live on their home turf of Bilbao, Euskadi (that's Basque Country for you) in 2009 right before they broke up, and they kicked ass. Sloppy, straight forward, d-beat driven hardcore punk in the true tradition of Discharge-worshipping Spanish bands — MG-15 or Destrucción being the obvious suspects here. The Destrucción comparison is especially true, as the demo ends with a cover version of their classic tune "Makineros Hijos De Puta", and the artwork featured in the awesome booklet that came with the tape is somewhat reminiscent of Teodoro's drawings.

SEMEN - Masas Obedientes Individuos Dominantes demo (2009)

NEKROFILTH - "Filling My Blood With Poison..." demo (2008)

I can't really hang with Nekrofilth's piss-drenched atmosphere — too much fecal matter and sexual perversion for my own good, although I expect GG Allin fans to be all over this. The music, on the other hand, rips. This three-piece from Cleveland, Ohio has a couple of recordings under its belt. If you ask me, this is not exactly their strongest release. If you're new to the band, I'd suggest you check out the Worship Destruction 12" and split LP with Nun Slaughter first (both of which were originally issued as demos I believe?), two releases reminding me heavily of proto death metal gods Slaughter (Canada) with some Repulsion thrown in for good measure. If the GBH cover song isn't indicative enough, Filling My Blood With Poison is probably their punkest recording. This is a 2013 limited reprint on Home Taping Cruelties from Germany. Dog knows what the weirdos behind the label drenched the cover in (goat blood? puke?…), but I'm not sure I wanna know: this shit smells like hell. Thankfully this digital rip will save me from pulling it out too often and getting sick from the stench.

NEKROFILTH - Filling My Blood With Poison... demo (2008)

LOS CRUDOS - Live @ Bordeaux, France. 13th Dec. 1996

This one's for the diehards. Or the locals. A very rough audience recording of Los Crudos' show here in Bordeaux, France back in 1996. This tape hasn't be heard by more than a handful of people so far, for good reason I guess. Martin's vocals are way too buried in the mix... and barely audible by the end of the tape. But I swear you can hear me talk between songs at some point. Haha. The tape stops during the first encore song too, sorry about that.

Local heroes Öpstand opened for Los Crudos that night, and they even got to play twice (in case you wanna know, that's because the Crudos guys were wandering in the streets of Bordeaux while Öpstand were playing. Back to the venue they were super pissed they missed them and urged them to play again). I have both sets on that same tape, one of which ended up on the Öpstand discography CD. The other set is basically the same songs, but if there is demand I'll be happy to digitize it some day. This line up of Öpstand with Bruno (ex-Aspro 5000) drumming never recorded anything and didn't play more than a couple of shows.

But I digress... I didn't take the time to figure out the setlist so that's one large soundfile. Feel free to break down the tracklist if you feel like it, I'm sure some people would appreciate.

Last but not least, I'm proud to say that more than 16 years later, some friends and I are still booking DIY hardcore punk shows at this same venue. Old punks never die.

LOS CRUDOS - Live @ Athénée Libertaire, Bordeaux, France. 13th December 1996

SAUNA - "Ei Leiki" demo (1991)

 
Sauna was an early '90s Swedish käng punk band. All I can remember is that one member (Pjär) went on to join 3-Way Cum, although I'm sure they must have shared personnel with other bands. They did a split LP with Disrupt but this demo is their true gem, much heavier and far more punishing. This downtuned aural assault is in league with the most brutal Swedish hardcore bands of yesteryear such as Svart Parad or Bombanfall, with vocals bordering on death metal growls. Coincidentally there is a Two Moons Rising cover song on this — Bombanfall if you prefer. The demo was released on Crash Mag Records who also released a couple of very underrated EPs in my opinion (Bombraid, No Admission...)

The tracklist displayed on the demo cover is wrong so I fixed the song order.

SAUNA - Ei Leiki demo (1991) 

CALL THE POLICE - "World Crashing In" demo (2002)

Call The Police was a short lived hardcore punk band from Portland, OR, USA that released a solid LP on Feral Ward, although this demo was their best material in my opinion (a few tracks were re-recorded for the LP.) The song title "1984 In 2002" is probably a nod to Special Duties and gives an insight of what the band was heading for, taking inspiration from UK 82 punk from the Riot City / No Future roster but also adding a fair dose of old American punk — check out the intro to "Grind To Freedom" and tell me it doesn't remind you of one of the most famous US punk songs of all times! For the record, the band had both Burdette brothers (of Tragedy and a million other bands fame) on guitar. The female vocalist was recently seen in Salted City (also featuring Grant of Talk Is Poison/Warcry) whose 7" from a couple of years back I urge you to check out – it's pretty similar in style and drive to Call The Police.

CALL THE POLICE - World Crashing In demo (2002)