Another year - will these words go unheard like all the ones that came before? will these words fall on deaf ears? i'll scream it louder until you can hear, the echoes we hear can't be ignored, look to the past for what's in store, accepting less while wanting more, will we make the impact that we strive for? efforts to make this a threat again, figure out where to begin, leave behind where we have been, out of sight, out of mind, we enter... another year, and i watch it all regress, into the things that i detest, i'll watch one come and another one go, a dream we'll want but will never know, more than music, are those days long past? radical views free from mainstream cues, ideas and actions against distractions, put our goals above the fashions, once full of vibrant minds, sold as a commodity to empty minds, we've set the standards low and ignored the bar, is this really what we've been striving for? efforts to make this a threat again, figure out where to begin, leave behind where we have been, out of sight, out of mind, we enter... another year, and I watch it all regress, into the things that i detest, i'll watch one come, another one go, a dream we'll want but will never know, another year, will we move forward and progress, away from the things we should detest? it's time to stand our ground or we'll watch it all dragged down... the revolution summer that came and went sparked a new beginning for a scene that had been spent, marred by violence and apathetic attitudes, in this new age a rebirth of cool is what is due, will this be our time? can we breathe new life? or will we stand aside and watch it die?

Thoughts that fall onto paper that end up on lyric sheets and shouted at the top of our lungs in hopes of making some sort of impact. In the time I was coming up in hardcore it felt urgent and important. Recent times have proved that those words fell on a lot of deaf ears. Watching a scene that was involved, supportive, aware and conscious...digress into fasion, violence and apathy. The societies that we were so desperate to set ourselves apart from, are merely a reflection of what hardcore has become.

In 1985, often refered to as "Revolution Summer", Rites Of Spring set out to change the things that they had problem with in their scene. Refreshing new ideas introduced to combat what was growing and becoming counterproductive to what they had intended their music to be a background for. 1957, Miles Davis released "Birth Of Cool". Unlike anything that was coming out at the time, it was groundbreaking in that it didn't follow the traditional rules of jazz. I reference both Rites Of Spring and Miles Davis because I find inspiration in that they didn't go along with what was surrounding them, they chose their own path and created music that brought forth change.

We can't reinvent the wheel, but we can introduce new ideas and challenge ourselves more than we are. Hardcore is in need of revitalization and new ideas. There's a lot of bands around right now that are pushing the envelope, but hardcore is more than just the bands...it's about the kids within the scene doing their part too. The potential to keep hardcore relevant is still there...that's why I'm still here screaming.

A Blind Eye - young man, born out of sin, a life of abuse and battery are the gifts you were given, no sentry to ward off the demons that slept in your bed, cover your scars, wipe the blood that you've bled, relied on substances to subdue the pains, left out on the streets, another human stain, clinging to life, praying for death, the promise of a kingdom is all that's left, keep your faith, in this lonely place, give thanks for god's constant... old man, the lights grow dim, a life of turmoil and pain are the gifts you were given, constantly struggled and broke your back on the wheel, barely made it from meal to meal, kept your faith through a life of strife, you even gave thanks for the cancer that took your wife, clinging to life, praying for death, the promise of a kingdom is all that's left, keep your faith, in this lonely place, give thanks for god's constant grace, who's watching over you when you sleep at night, when your stomach is empty and your mouth is dry? for your pain and suffering there's no relief in sight, prayed for salvation, nobody's listening, just turned a blind eye. praying, hoping, enduring, waiting, it's part of the grand plan, you'll be tossed a bone and things will work out, scraping, starving, crawling, waiting, putting your faith to the test, will you be like the rest, allegiance to a god that's just turned a blind eye.

At the age of 11 she slipped into a diabetic coma. The parents of this 11-year old girl sat at her bedside, refusing to take her to a doctor. Instead they prayed for healing. They placed complete faith in their God to heal their child. God didn't answer their prayers and the girl died in pain.

My grandfather served in World War II, a Christian man whose faith in God was unwavering. After his tour of duty he returned with a different perspective on life. As a child, he'd tell me stories about what he'd seen on the battlefield. He had witnessed men tearing each other apart, how he'd watch as his friends would burn and die right beside him. Horror stories that had instilled hatred and sadness in his eyes. The war had changed his perspective on life, as all wars will do to someone. The one thing he never understood was how a God could allow such violence and pain towards the ones he supposedly loved. He stopped attending church and refused to believe that there was anyone watching over us. If there was...they had most certainly turned a blind eye to all that we endure.

Seasons

"the summers wind came blowing in" and i can still recall the tremble in your voice and your dissent into the upcoming fall, despair and fear kept bottled inside, you held them so tight they just burned you alive, and I remember the days of smiles on our lips and feelings that couldn't be replaced, and i remember the days when promises we made, we thought we'd never break, now all that remains are the words we spoke on cool summer nights, the fever in your voice and strength in your heart, you never gave up a fight, the setting sun so far in the distance couldn't keep you warm, it just left you cold, and i remember the days of smiles on our lips and feelings that couldn't be replaced, and i remember the days when promises we made we thought, we'd never break, and the seasons changed,... then came the rain... struggle with the thoughts of you no longer in sight, on through the chill of fall, into the freeze of winters call, the memories of you in springs thaw, these memories you still haunt, i counted the days waiting for you to come back, i counted the days and i just lost track, and the seasons changed, then came the rain, and the seasons changed, then came the pain...

To find the right words to explain what this song means...I don't know if I could put it into words. This song was written in memory of a close friend that committed suicide in the year of 1999. Although it's 9 years later, I'm still haunted by the memories of laughter, late night talks, hand shakes and summer hang outs on the block. One of the warmest people I had ever known, one that could always bring a smile to my face. The memory of my friend Juan Parlan is one that I live with on a daily basis. I regret that I couldn't be there for him in his most desperate and lonely time. I would have given anything to be there for him the way he had been there for me. If he had only called me back.

The Blazin Stache

Party Time, what's for sale?
Spitshine that ol' coal of mine
Baby I won't tell, put that cash in my hand
Feel me rock you, feel the heat
Ridin' dirty on sleazy street

Grease the stache and let it ride
Just $5.00 and you'll be fine
Am I tipsy? Yes I am!
Born of fire...let me kick the jam

I told you once, now I'll tell you twice
We dance with the devil, we own the night
Grease the stache and let it ride
Let's get nasty...let's freak out!

Grease the stache and let it ride
Just $5.00 and you'll be fine
Am I tipsy? Yes I am!
Born of fire...let me kick the jam

In Deuchland times with Danzig mimes
Grease the stache and let it ride
Ride my face like Satans....Satans Bride!

THE BLAZIN STACHE!!!

(Obviously, these are joke lyrics that our friend Brian Redman wrote for his band Dirty Knockers. Timm thought it would be funny to use them as an April Fools joke because they were just too ridiculous to be left alone. Hope you enjoyed the song, we'll put up a real song soon.)

The latest news.

We began recording our record in January...unfortunately...things didn't work out the way we had hoped. The recording was a mess and we scrapped the whole thing after about 8 days of non stop rockin. I guess it wasn't really rockin since the end product wasn't anything we were proud of. The opposite of rockin.

Moving away from that recording, we began recording again about a week ago. Things are going awesome and the previous recording mess turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It's living up to our expectations so far and we're excited to finish the record and get it out. Should have some new tracks to share with everyone in a couple weeks when everything is mixed and mastered. We'll also be announcing the labels that will be releasing the record. We're pretty excited about working with our main label and the affiliates that are going to be supporting us as well.

Other news is that we're booking some tours right now. We've started booking our West Coast Tour from May 23rd - June 8th and our U.S. Tour June 24th - August 12th.

If you can help out in any of the cities below, please get in touch and let us know. Our contacts are limited so any help is appreciated. Thanks everyone.

May
23th Seattle, WA
24th Sacramento, CA
25th Berkeley, CA
26th Santa Cruz, CA
27th Fresno, CA
28th Lancaster, CA
29th Six Flags
30th Ventura, CA
31th Corona, CA
June
1st San Diego, CA
2nd Phoenix, AZ
3rd Las Vegas, NV
4th Reno, NV
5th Salt Lake City, UT w/ The Golden Age
6th Boise, ID w/ The Golden Age
7th Portland, OR w/ The Golden Age
8th Seattle, WA w/ The Golden Age

Thanks everyone! See you soon!

P.S. Pick up our 7" from Catalyst Records to tide you over until our Lp is out.


Get it from Catalyst Records, Panic Records, RevHQ, Interpunk, Refoundation (europe).