Best Of 2013

I feel like the "Best of 2011" list was a lot easier to write. I've been working on this thing off and on for a couple of weeks and ended up checking out shit so good that it bumped stuff off the lists (Sorry Down To Nothing). I've linked a lot of these to make it as easy as I could for you to check 'em out. And be sure to check back as I have a few more posts coming up in the next few weeks.

LP

1. Seizures - The Sanity Universal
2. Hayden - Us Alone
3. Incendiary - Cost Of Living
4. Ruined Families - Blank Language
5. Illustrations - In Vain
6. Drug Church - Paul Walker
7. Empire Of Rats - S/T
8. Criminal Damage - Call Of Death
9. Hoax - S/T
10. Dreamdecay - N V N V N V

EP

1. Glass Lungs - How To Deal With Feeling Alone
2. Self Defense Family - The Corrections Officer In Me
3. Nobody, Ever - This Wall Is Dedicated To Liam And His Mates
4. In Between - Still
5. World Collapse - Frost/Casket
6. Vulgar Display - Under Darkness & Prayer
7. Hammer And The Nails - Rome Is burning
8. Bloody Knees - S/T
9. Twin Steps - Plague Songs
10. Blind To Faith - Under The Heptagram

Splits

1. Self Defense Family/Goodtime Boys
2. Martyr's Tongue/Benchpress
3. Self Defense Family/Axis
4. Withdrawal/Young And In The Way
5. Martyr's Tongue/Ablaze/Avalanche
6. Feral King/Lonely Ghost Parade
7. Old Wounds/Trenchfoot
8. Death Threat/Rude Awakening
9. Old Flings/The Fake Boys
10. Ancient Shores/Cynarae

Demos

1. True Love
2. Wolfnote
3. Hired Goons
4. Fade
5. Burden
6. Assault USA
7. XRepentanceX
8. Lies
9. Semper Eadem
10. Heavy Chains

Shows

1. Cold Existence/KDC/Keepsake/Mental Prison @ Eastside Joes (Las Vegas, NV) (11/16)
2. Narrows/Lies @ Vacation Vinyl (Los Angeles, CA) (11/2)
3. Hoax/Gods America/Nests/Value @ Kramer's House (Las Vegas, NV) (9/1)
4. Illustrations/Value/In Fugue @ Shaman Thunderdome (Las Vegas, NV) (12/21)
5. Twin Steps @ Artifice (Las Vegas, NV) (8/15)
6. Alkaline Trio/Bayside @ Fremont Country Club (Las Vegas, NV) (4/27)
7. Fucked Up/Tony Molina/Gods America @ Backstage Bars & Billiards (Las Vegas, NV) (10/16)
8. Street Dogs/Old Firm Casuals/Death March/Bricktop @ Las Vegas Country Salon (Las Vegas, NV) (8/7)
9. Black Antler/Nemesis @ Kobo (Columbus, OH) (3/13)
10. The Casualties/Negative Approach/MDC @ Las Vegas Country Salon (Las Vegas, NV) (11/8)

Best Of 2011

Pointless, out of date but with a little foreshadowing. This list was put together over a few cold Zanesville nights two years ago. I'm only really posting it because my Best of 2013 list will rear its head soon. After both are posted you will see a few bands go between the two. And even a few that either became Head2wall Records bands or people from those bands started new bands that did so (or will have records coming out next year). I'm not sure why I didn't put these in actual order, maybe I just couldn't do it at that point. Its easier to put things in order when you know where to start. 2013 seems to have been an easier year with that for me. Also I had yet to go to either of the American Nightmare reunion shows and rather than trying to figure out what to take off I would rather just post this list as it was.

LPs

Adele - 21
Backtrack - Darker Half
Cold Cave - The Great Pan Is Dead
Fireworks - Gospel
Foundation - When The Smoke Clears
Full Of Hell - Roots Of Earth Are Consuming My Home
Omegas - Blasts Of Lunacy
Pala - We Don’t Exist
Ringworm - Scars
Scapegoat - S/T

EPs

Another Mistake - Lies For Lust
Damages - Unlucky Love In Lonesome Twenty-Something Hell
End Of A Year (Self Defense Family) - Island Series Volume 1
FocusedxMinds - Stay Focused
Moutheater - Colonial
No Tolerance - No Remorse, No Tolerance
Sacred Love - Dividing Lines
Sixes - Morning
Triceratops - Beeple Beeple Whomple
Twin Steps - Serial Parade

Splits

Dropdead/Converge
End of a Year (Self Defense Family)/Fires
Full Of Hell/Goldust
Kill Life/33
Parasite/Vermapyre
Ringworm/Mindsnare
Rot In Hell/Horders
The Saddest Landscape/We Were Skeletons
Withdrawal/Mellowharsher
Written Off/Out Crowd

Demos

Beware
Creem
Dead Weight
Drug Church
Empire Of Rats
Life After Death
Mugger
New Brigade
Phantom
Vice

Live Bands

All Else Failed @ This Is Hardcore
Foundation @ This Is Hardcore Pre-Show
Life After Death @ Summer Of Hate
Ringworm @ This Is Hardcore
Make Do And Mend @ Strip Club
Noose @ The White House
The Ropes @ The White House
Sacred Love @ The White House
Triceratops @ The 15th House
We Were Skeletons @ The Legion Of Doom

Things that should have been

Empire - 7"
Eternal Sleep - Demo
Hard - Demo
Life After Death - Full Length
Light Years - 7"
Mind Crimes - 7"
Ryan Gosling's Joystick - Anything
Rancid - Eighth Studio LP

I saw Fucked Up last night (In Review)

I would like to start by describing the venue itself. After asking around it was verified by several people that BBB (Backstage Bars and Billiards) is owned (or partly) by DJ Lethal. My curiosity was spiked by all the House Of Pain plaques and gold records along the walls. Now this place was dark, small (not too small) and open. Just as more venues should be. The stage was about a foot and a half off the floor and it had a decent amount of room in front of the stage before the obligatory support poles start breaking up the room. And as far as sound goes the place had some of the best I've heard at any show space.

The opening band God's America (of A389 Records fame) played as a two piece as their drummer couldn't make it. That being said as heavy and aggressive as the band normally is none of this was lost with the band only being a drum and bass act. They played a short but sweet set. I've seen them three times since I moved out here to Vegas (Oh yeah I moved across the country) and this was my favorite time seeing them.

The next act up was Tony Molina (who I couldn't remember the name of for the life of and kept calling Bob Dobalina). From the first song I knew what I was in for. Super short songs in the vein of Weezer. Think of them as a grind band thats only musical reference point was Weezer. I feel like no song was over a minute and a half. Some felt like they couldn't have been over forty five seconds. It was great. One drawback was the singer was chewing gum the whole time (or has a tick that makes him look so) not my thing. I've always had a problem with this even with my "too cool for school" rock acts. All and all I loved them though and would go see again for sure.

Now for Fucked Up (or "FU" as the marquee read). They started out blasting through several songs before any of his famous stories began. His stage presence is a little different than I remember also he had shrunk down about a hundred pounds. But since I only see this band every five years I shouldn't be surprised over changes like these. He seemed happier, more giggly. Often posing as if he was a child Christmas morning or pulling his basketball shorts well over his belly button and dancing around. Later into the set he admitted he was intoxicated and to "medical marijuana" for his weight loss transformation. A few times during the set he left the stage. To dance, to hug, to interact with the crowd. They ate this up it seemed like the crowd couldn't take their eyes off the man. He mesmerized, he enchanted and I would honestly say embodied what I love about the band. They are who they are. They play hardcore music to crowds sometimes only a quarter full of anyone still with in a "scene", to anyone who knows who No Warning is or has ever read a zine in their life. And it doesn't feel fake or forced just raw. On my favorite parts was him telling a story about the first time Fucked Up played Las Vegas. It was at Punk Rock Bowling and after their set he was invited to party with Fat Mike (Of NOFX) where he got to watch him receive a rim job. Another was when they played a "new one" entitled "Year of the Dragon" hopefully you are familiar with their other zodiac epics ("Year of the Pig", "Dog" "Rat" ect.). I would have to say this is my favorite Fucked Up song yet. It seemed to go on forever but I wasn't bored for a second. Not many bands sets should be as long and could keep my attention like this track did, its a "banger".

Its been a long time coming

The return of.

Its blogtime bitch.