- REACT! IN 2009
- MINDSET, “R E A L P O W E R” UPDATE
- BREAKTHROUGH UPDATE
- CARRY ON, “IT’S ALL OUR BLOOD” VINYL ISSUE
- GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN JOIN THE REACT! CREW
- EFFORT FANZINE

REACT! IN 2009

HAPPY NEW YEARS and best wishes to all of you! Here’s hoping that the last year was a great one for you, and that the new one will be even better. 2008 was by far one of the most challenging years of my life and while there was a lot of headaches and uphill battles, I also had a chance to learn some important lessons and prepare myself to meet 2009.

There’s A LOT of crazy stuff coming down the pipes for REACT! this year. Some of it I’m going to get into in this update and the rest will be announced in the spring. As it stands now we’re about to get our third release out to you and by year’s end I’m hoping we’ll have gotten another six (or more) out. It’s a high bar to set for a small label, but with all of the great bands and people that are working with REACT! I feel a lot of excitement to meet the challenge.

Thanks so much for all your support (and patience) in 2008, you guys have all helped make this label something that I’m proud of!

www.myspace.com/itstimetoreact

MINDSET, “R E A L P O W E R” UPDATE

For those of you lucky enough to catch Mindset on their winter tour you probably noticed that they had copies of R E A L P O W E R with them. Well- we have the vinyl, but a screw up with the plant has left us with messed up inserts and delayed covers. Why does this keep happening to us? No really I’m asking you, the guy on the corner, Tre, and the universe in general, “Why does this keep happening to us??” Anyway, I talked to the plant and everything is getting sorted out this week and we’ll be able to get all the pre-orders and merch shipped no later than the end of the month. Sorry about the delay but when you see the package and hear the record you’ll be stoked! We went the extra mile on this one, and included some VERY cool extras.

If you have yet to order R E A L P O W E R then get on it! Lyrically this unbelievable four song EP focuses on topics of self-motivation and compassion, and encourages self-empowerment as a means to creating change. Musically Mindset draw from classic bands like Youth of Today, Gorilla Biscuits, and Warzone while still managing to have a personality and style all of their own. The cover art, which was designed by Evan Mindset in collaboration with the McMahon family, as well the new song BE THE SPARK have been posted on the REACT! page so please check them out. Each record comes with a free digital download and we have less than 200 copies left; both white and black vinyl are still available so order now or be a slave to the Ebay machine.

www.myspace.com/mindsetsxe

BREAKTHROUGH UPDATE

Next up on REACT! is the long awaited BREAKTHROUGH EP!!!! This is a vinyl version of the legendary, and now out of print, Breakthrough demo. All of the tracks have been re-mixed and re-mastered by our good friend Ian Love (Rival Schools) and the EP includes an extra song OUR PERSPECTIVE which was recorded during the additional demo session but didn’t have vocals until 2007. We’re expecting to start taking pre-orders in February and you can check out the new song OUR PERSPECTIVE on our myspace as well as the complete BxT demo on their myspace page:

www.myspace.com/breakthroughstraightedge

CARRY ON, “IT’S ALL OUR BLOOD” VINYL ISSUE

Right on the heels of the BXT EP is going to be something that's been in the works for years- the vinyl version of the Carry On, "It's All Our Blood" collection. Going against the grain of the then popular "metal" sound of the early 2000's, Carry On took a more traditional, yet creative, approach to song writing that literary changed the face of the West Coast hardcore scene. Their blisteringly fast and aggressive songs, in-your-face lyrics, and intense live show not only set them apart from any other band of the era, but have also gone on to be the stuff of legend. Carry On was a band that was part of a time and place that I'll never forget and it's an honor to be a part of releasing one of their records.

Appearing for the first time as an LP "It's All Our Blood" compiles both, "The Line is Drawn" and, "Roll With the Punches" EPs, and features art from the one and only Scott MaGrath. This project is a split release with Youngblood Records and I can't tell you how psyched I am to work with a label that continues to put out great records, and is ran by one of the best guys in the core. This will be a one time only pressing with each label having one exclusive color and then a black vinyl version as well. If you have yet to hear Carry On, or to check out Youngblood records, then stop by their myspaces:

www.carryxon.com

www.myspace.com/youngbloodrecords

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN JOIN THE REACT! CREW

I’m excited to announce that Seattle’s Gone But Not Forgotten have joined the REACT! crew. In 2008 long time friends Face (Get the Most), Paul DC (Sinking Ships), and Jamie King (giant dude) decided to start a new bad that focused on writing fast HARDcore in the vein of Floorpunch, No For An Answer, and the almighty Brotherhood. Rounding out the line-up with Kyle (Get the Most) and Garret (The Answer, Vanguard) GBNF entered the studio and recorded the 8 song, “Seattle Crew” demo.

The demo is available for free on-line but due to the serious awesomeness of it we’ve decided to do a one time only TAPE pressing of it. Don’t have a tape player? Me neither, but consider buying one just to jam this because the tape will be made in VERY limited quantities and will come with some cool extra stuff. There will be a package deal available for both a shirt and a tape or you can just get the tape and pre-orders will start at the end of January. Both the demo art and the song UNFORGIVEN have been posted on our myspace so check it out. If you have yet to hear GBNF then check them out at:

www.myspace.com/gonebutnotforgettenhc

EFFORT FANZINE

Taking cues from classics like Boiling Point and Schism, as well as current mainstays like Start Today, long time friends Kalle (Go for Broke, Send in the Clones fanzine) and Ulf (Balance, Go for Broke, Changes fanzine) teamed up to create Effort fanzine. Setting the bar high in regards to both content and aesthetics, Effort delivers thoughtful and insightful documentation of our scene and our ideas. But, unfortunately a lot of people missed out on the first issue due to the high cost of postage from Europe so I’m excited to announce that REACT! has partnered up with Effort to release issue #2 here in North America.

Issue #2 is 76 pages and includes interviews with Mindset, Anthony Pappalardo, The First Step, and Justice as well as articles, reviews, opinions, and tons of great shots. Pre orders will start at the end of January and there will also be a package deal available for both a zine and REACT! shirt. Please check out Effort at their mysace:

www.myspace.com/effortfanzine

That’s it for now- thanks for all the support!

CAN’T JUST SIT BACK, IT’S TIME TO REACT!