Go It Alone - East Bay Communique

Betrayed
Go
It
Plus Reviews and more of:
Jedi Mind Tricks
Converge
Lewd Acts
Righteous Jams
Ambitions
Reserve 34
Is Nothing Sacred
Alone
Writers:
East Bay Communique
Jordan Mills, Max Montez, Kyle Shapiro, Jason Sitek, Randy Staat, and Brandon Wark
Photography and Photo-Editing: Feel free to contact us at:
[email protected] or
Lydia Hamilton
myspace.com/eastbaycommunique
Cover design by Dustin Cox
News
by Max Montez
Brief
Pound SF officially Upcoming
Shows
shuts its doors November 8: Death Threat, Alcatraz,
On October 22, San Francisco hardcore, metal, punk, and indie venue, The
Pound, held its very last show. Seize
the Night, Animosity, Carved In Stone,
and a few other bands played a five
dollar show with an unlimited guestlist
to commemorate the end of an era.
Unfortunately,
according to
Pound promoter and booker, Jesse
Robeck, “the venue was not savable
by any means, no amount of money
we could of raised would get the
Pound back. The lawsuits as well
as late lease payments would have
taken years of shows to make up.”
The Pound got a notice on October 18 requiring the venue to shut
down and move everything out by 6:
01 am on October 25. The Port of
San Francisco seized the property.
Robeck, who put on many of the
shows at the Pound over the past year
and a half has decided to start putting
on shows at The Balazo Gallery and
The Egg at The Academy of Art and
is also looking for a larger warehouse
to use for shows in San Francisco.
Colin of Arabia, Mean Strets, Worlds
Apart, Skare Tactic @ The Padded Cell
November 10: Lights Out, Have
Heart, Go it Alone, Sinking Ships, Lions
of Judah, and Time’s Up @ Gilman
November
11:
Agression,
Verbal
Abuse,
The
Sick,
Troublemaker, Psycho 78 @ Gilman
November 11: Hoodsfest with Death
Threat, Hoods, Life Long Tragedy,
These Days, Colin of Arabia, By My Will,
xThe Wrathx, Before I Wake, Living
Hell, No Truce, more TBA @ The Cave
November
18:
Comadre,
Is
Nothing Sacred, Red Handed, We
All Fall Down, Aegis @ Lucky’s Pizza
November
24:
East
Bay
Communique
Issue
Release
Show with Ceremony, Trash Talk,
Time’s Up, Red Handed, Heads
Up, Mean Streets @ Balazo Gallery
December 1: At Risk’s last show At Risk, Killing the Dream, Set Your
Goals,. Dispute, Good Neighbor Policy,
Dukes Up, These Days, Modern Eyes,
xThe Wrathx, No Truce @ 418 Project
December 8: Iron Age, Cold World,
Never Healed, more TBA @ Gilman
Classic Corner
Reserve 34 - Everything
SST 1982
by Randy Staat
Reserve 34’s Everything contains
literally everything the band has ever
written, which includes 39 songs of
fast, energetic, and melodic hardcore
and an interview with the band.
Reserve 34 is the band responsible
for the incredibly melodic sound that
almost every well known Vancouver
and North West hardcore band
seems to have. 40 songs, over
one hour of music, and not one of
these songs loses the intensity that
the album starts off with. The band
started in 1996 and played many
shows until their break up in 2002,
after this members went to form
bands such as Go It Alone, Shook
Ones, and Blue Monday, which are
carrying on the passion and melody
LOCALS
that Reserve 34
started.
Two
of their songs
can actually be
found on the Go
It
Alone/Blue
Monday split released earlier this
year. Blue Monday covers “Rum
Tum Tugger” and Go It Alone covers
“Daylight”. There’s not much else to
say about Reserve 34 besides that
they set the standard for Vancouver
hardcore. Reserve 34 knew how
to
write
positive,
passionate,
melodic songs, free of the “tough
guy” attitude. If Reserve 34 was
still around, they would be one of
the biggest acts in hardcore, and
it’s a shame that not many people
have ever even heard of them.
ONLY
Is Nothing Sacred
2006 Demo
by Kyle Shapiro
Bay Area Metalcore’s Is Nothing
Sacred has done quite a lot in their
three year lifespan and their new demo
shows positive growth in their talent as
a band. Their Between the Buried and
Me influenced sound is much cleaner
now and new vocalist, Andrew Jones,
has added a brutal strength on their
lyrical front. Is Nothing Sacred also
has a new guitarist and bassist, but
fortunately the technical guitar work
is just as good as it has always been.
The new song “Anchor Away” is heavy
hitting, in your face metalcore and
also included on the demo is another
rendition of an older song, “The
Battles Already Won,” now called “A
Surrender Song.” Subtle changes
are made to this song, but it still
has the same sound as before. Is
Nothing Sacred is still going strong
and this new demo is genuine proof.
Betrayed
by Jason Sitek
What
first
inspired
you
to
get
into
hardcore?
Um… I was a skateboarder, and what
I loved about skateboarding was um…
like no rules. You know? It was your
thing, you weren’t a team player, you
just did your thing. I was never really
good at like working, like having like
a coach or someone like that telling
me what to do. I could never really
handle people telling me what to do.
So I got into skateboarding because
it was just my own thing. And I used
to read, uh Thrasher really religiously.
And through Thrasher I used to see
interviews with bands like Youth of
Today and those types of bands.
I used to hide that from my mom!
Yeah!... totally. And uh… I got into
bands like 7 Seconds, stuff like that.
And what I’d do is buy a record from a
band; I remember the first punk record
I bought I was like “Ah I’m so bad!” You
know, like I’m such a rebel. I got it, and
I mean… fuck I can’t even remember
what it was, it was something like Bad
Religion or whatever it was. No… I
think it might have been something
like DRI actually. Whatever it was,
I was like 14 years old. Got it, read
all the lyrics, read all the thank you
lists, ran out the door and bought
every record I could find of that thank
you list. And from those thank you
lists and then just went from there.
Do
you
remember
the
first
show
Interview with Betrayed
vocalist,
Aram
Arslanian
you
ever
went
to?
Yeah I do (laughs)… it was DRI, I was 15
years old, and I remember because I
begged my parents to let me go. I got
to go, and I was moshing to the first
band, and by moshing I mean I was
like 15 years old, little skateboarder
with like huge skater bangs so that
I could barely see anything. And I
was moshing with a bunch of gnarly
headbangers, and uh I was in the pit
for I think maybe five songs and got my
nose brutally broken. First hardcore
show, went to the hospital, and made
it back in time for the first song of DRI
and watched the entire DRI set with
an ice pack all over my face and blood
all over my shirt. And from that point
forward… I was completely hooked.
What do you think about where
hardcore is going today? Where
do you think it’ll be in say, 3-4 years
from now as opposed to where it
was in 2000? What have you seen
since you really came into the scene?
I think my answer to that question has
changed recently. Um… for a long time
I was really OK with the whole cycle,
like hardcore’s got a cycle, like what’s
popular now, whats popular then.
And then of course beliefs go along
with that, too. Like, Straight Edge is
huge one year and then next year it’s
a joke. Being like, a redneck hardcore
guy is really cool one year and then it’s
a joke. I used to be OK with that, just
realizing trends come and go and just
everything… but lately I’ve just been
really… and I don’t want to use the
term disillusioned and I don’t want
to use jaded because I think those
are weaknesses. I think people allow
themselves to become that way and
it’s just not who I am. But I’ve been
very weary of letting myself become
that complacent about that stuff. I’m
just sick of it, I’m sick of the bullshit,
I’m sick of how fake people can be
about music and about ideas. And…
where will it be in a few years? I don’t
know, I don’t know what the future
is of hardcore. If you seriously had
asked me this last year I would have
been able to give you this nice, well laid
out answer. And now I’m just more
like dude… you know where I hope it
is? I hope it is either fuckin’ burning in
flames or the best it’s ever been. But
the best it’s ever been with bands that
have something to fuckin’ say, good
musicians, good songs, good ideas,
and people challenging things. And I
don’t just mean challenging from my
point of view, like things that I think
are OK… like I mean fuck it, if someone
doesn’t agree with me, challenge me.
You know? Fucking… get the guts, get
the courage if you believe in what you
believe in, then fuckin’ say something.
And that’s what I want, you know and
like… I don’t want it to be some huge
PC regime, ‘cause it’s supposed to
be FUN, too you know… but it’s like
I just want more a return to just
people fuckin’ caring. Caring about
what bands have to say and what
they care about… and what they’re
doing in their lives. So yeah… I guess
in a year… fuck man… I wanna see
people energized, I wanna see bands
meaning what they say even if what
they say is “Have a great fuckin’ time.”
You know, I just wanna see bands
sometimes… it’s like they’re only
lookin’ for how crazy people are going
to their band or how much merch
they’re selling, and I just don’t care.
I just don’t care. I want intesnsity.
Over the past few years, there has
definitely been a resurgence of shoes
in hardcore. What’s your opinion?
Whatever. Obsession with shoes,
obsession with vinyl, it’s the same
bullshit. I mean of course I have an
obsession with vinyl, let me just say
that I am a crazy record collector…
but, I have been wearing the same
type of shoe since I was 14 years
old which is low-top Converse AllStars, black. They’re the shoe of
champions… literally. But you know, it’s
just… whatever… whatever floats your
boat. Like… I love fucking records and
I will talk your ear off about different
presses and different colors and
different covers and different labels so
you know… who am I to trash on other
people? I just think it’s weird because
it has nothing to do with the scene,
but at the same time, not everything
has to revolve around one thing.
What has your favorite tour been?
I was just talking about this today. My
favorite tour out of any band, ever…
Betrayed European Tour with FVK.
It was so much fuckin’ fun, and then
um… we did a week after that with
No Turning Back which are, like some
of our best friends. And it was just
like, perfect crew of dudes, perfect
time… we had one of my best friends
from Austrailia this guy named Pete
O’Bordy, he’s in a band called No
Apologies, he was our tour manager.
Dude… it was awesome. Every show
was great, and when we landed in
Europe no one had ever heard of
Betrayed, but by the end of the tour
which was you know, about a month
long tour, by the end of the tour we
had a group of about 20 kids following
us to every single show. And it was
awesome…. I felt like we’d gone over
there and made… a CHANGE. Like
changed things. Like really… not on a
radical level, on an intimate level where
people are like… “Fuck yeah… this is
the real deal.” And it was awesome.
I’ve never felt like that before.
Do you see any differences between
American crowds and European
crowds in terms of they way they
dance or just the way they get into it?
Yeah… oh definitely. Europeans are
not afraid to be really critical of you,
which irritates me but was also good
because American-North American
crowds are very placating, you know
they’ll mosh at the mosh part, sing
along at the sing-along part and
stage dive at the stage dive part.
And everyone will tell you that your
band rules and that your records
are awesome, and then they’ll go and
talk shit about you on the internet…
anonymously.
But Europeans
will just walk right up and be like
“Your band is terrible” (said with a
German/French accent) you know
they’ll just say what’s on their mind.
THAT’S RAD!
It’s not always rad, ‘cause sometimes
you’re like “Fuck you, man!” But you
know, it’s kind of funny because hey,
you know what? These people aren’t
here for some kind of popularity
contest, they’re here ‘cause they
love music, And they don’t buy your
record if they don’t like it and they
don’t buy your t-shirt and then sell it
on E-Bay. It’s not this bloated fuckin’
beast of a punk rock economy, I think
it’s a little bit more pure. Which is
cool, like, you know what I mean? So
yeah sometimes I get insulted when
fuckin’… some dude in Germany tells
me my band sucks but at the same
time it’s like… cool because no one
would have the balls to do that here.
Who do you think is the best
up and coming band right now?
Um… I have a lot of different answers
for that because I value different things
in different kinds of bands. Um… Have
Heart is an incredible band. I really
dig them, and I really like the lyrics, I
like the ideas. Like I love Pat (Flynn,
vocalist), I love the energy he puts into
a show, the ideas he’s putting out. I
don’t want to minimize Have Heart
to being one person, because it’s a
whole band, I just use him as the guy
I happen to relate to the most. But
I really, really fuckin’ love that band.
Um… what other bands do I really
fuckin’ dig on now? There’s this band
from Australia called Mindsnare ,
they’re just incredible. They’re like
Converge-esque but more hardcore,
like Converge meets the Cro-Mags.
Fuckin’ awesome. They’re really good.
They’ve been a band for about… 10
years. I mean the new Converge
record is amazing. And that’s the
thing, is I’d really like to see people get
their fuckin’ priorities straight. Like
“Oh what? You like Youth of Today
so you can’t listen to Converge?”
What are you, a fucking idiot? What,
you only like one flavor of ice cream?
What’s wrong with you, you know
what I mean? Are you insane? And
that’s just really to the whole point
of… people don’t stake down because
they don’t allow themselves to enjoy
hardcore or enjoy punk rock… or be
a punk or be a part of the hardcore
scene. They allow themselves to be a
part of the hardcore scene, like a little
section, and be this little… someone
who wears this little costume and
feels like, you know they have their
X-Swatch and their fuckin’ Nikes and
their mesh shorts like they’re down.
And that’s cool, but like you’re not
really part of the hardcore scene
you’re part of this little thing. But
other bands… fuck I’m really into that
band Shipwreck from uh… the East
Coast, they’re awesome. I like this
band Meltdown from the East Coast.
Really, really fuckin’ good. Man there’s
a lot of good bands right now. I mean
I’m always stoked on IA. They just
played a new record and it’s KILLER.
Well… there’s just a lot of really, really,
really good bands. I love Lights Out…
man I was just talking about how
much I love one new band today… OH!
I love Resist, which is Wrench’s new
band. They’re really good. They’re
from the East Coast. So I’d say yeah,
there’s a million more bands. OH!
Pressure, too. I fucking love Pressure.
the time this is published The First
Step might not be a band anymore; I
might not be in the band just because
that’s how music is. I don’t really
know, I kinda feel like backing off a little
bit for a while, …(muffled recording)…
like I’m still gonna be at shows, Xing
up, moshing, buying records, you
know… like supporting something I
believe in. I think hardcore has given
me so much… it always irks me when
dudes just leave the scene as soon
as their band breaks up, because
it’s like you just take and take and
take, get all the glory and then leave.
Hardcore’s done a lot of incredible
things for me, and the people in the
hardcore scene. So… I’m DEFINITELY
gonna be around. Forever, hopefully,
but I think I might back off for a while.
I don’t really feel a need to be in a
band right now, because I’ve been in a
band for a long time, and I don’t want
to break it down to “I have to be in a
band so I’ll be in a band” like that’s the
guy I am. Because that’s just pushing
it. I’ve been writing a lot of songs,
lately, which is cool, because I haven’t
really been into writing a lot, but I’m
psyched on it. I’ll probably have to be
in another band in another couple of
years, but I’m givin’ myself a break,
I’m gonna be getting married next
year so I just want to focus on that…
Congratulations!
Thank
you,
thank
you.
Where do you see yourself
in
the
upcoming
days
as
Betrayed comes to an end?
Alright in a sentence or less,
sum
up
Aram
Arslanian.
Um… well I’m still playing in The First
Step, and you never know what’s going
to happen with any band. I mean, by
(laughs) Straight Edge, old dude, that
cares and doesn’t have an attitude
that’s gonna push other people away.
Go
by Max Montez
it
Alone
Interview with Go It Alone
vocalist,
Mark
Palm
How
with
did the
Ceremony
summer tour
come about?
We’ve known a couple of the guys in
Ceremony for quite some time now.
Their guitar player, Toast, is closely
related with Rivalry Records, who’s
put out or last couple records. So,
we’ve known him for awhile, and
we’ve known Ross for awhile; we
always see him at our shows every
time we come down to the Bay Area.
And, we like the band, so it made
sense to go on tour with them.
You seem to always talk about
the song “A Constant Refrain,”
what’s
the
song
about?
A book actually inspired me to write
that song, Stonebutch Blues by Leslie
Feinburg, it’s an autobiography.
It’s the story of this young woman,
growing up and feeling like she never
quite fit in with here peers and those
around her and she never quite fit
in or felt completely comfortable in
her own body. It’s about her life and
coming to terms with herself, how
she viewed herself as far as gender is
concerned. The book is cool because
it’s not only about her battling with
issues within herself. It’s also about
her battling with those issues with the
world at large and struggling to exist
with a society that’s trying to make
her fit into a very restricted role.
photo by Lydia Hamilton
“Inheritance”
is
another
song
with
interesting
lyrics,
what
are
they
about?
I wrote that song about history and
the fact that history is written by
those with power. As a result, a lot
of people’s voices are never heard,
and a lot of people’s stories are never
heard; they’re just swept underneath
the rug. That song is about how
the history we’re taught in high
school, what we’re taught growing
up is very one-sided and very biased
and ignores a lot of reality of what
occurred in the past. For example,
in Canada and the States as well, all
of Canada is basically stolen from
natives. Almost complete genocide
occurred. But, that’s never talked
about in history classes in school.
It’s barley mentioned, almost as if it’s
something a long time in the past and
doesn’t have any relevance today or
have any bearings on the way things
are in our countries now. So that’s
more or less what that song is about.
Are there any big
in touring Canada
differences
and US?
We’ve never toured Canada, which is
kind of strange considering we’re a
Canadian band. But on this tour I think
we have eight shows across Canada.
That will be the first time we’ve actually
toured Canada besides playing shows
in Vancouver and on Vancouver Island.
One of the main reasons for that is
that it’s just so much easier for us to
go down the West Coast and tour the
States. That’s mainly because the first
big city in Canada next to Vancouver is
twelve hours away. Whereas, we can
just drive about two hours south and
play in Seattle. So that’s one of the
main differences. In Canada the drives
are a lot longer between big cities so
it’s a little bit more inconvenient. But,
with that said, I’m really excited to
finally get to play some shows there.
What’s
in
store
for
Go
It
Alone
after
the
tour?
We are going to start working
on the new LP when we get
home from tour this fall and
hopefully record it this winter.
Domestic
Violence
Awareness
Month
by Brandon Wark
October has come and gone
quickly and when I look back I wonder
how many other people knew that
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM). Most likely it was
overseen as it usually is, due to it also
battling for attention with National
Breast Cancer Awareness Month and
Halloween. Do I feel that breat cancer
isn’t a real issue? And do I hate childhood fun? Of course not but overlooking a huge issue doesn’t make much
sense considering domestic violence
is a crime that is so frequently unseen.
Despite being the most common type
of violence experienced by women,
only 20% of rapes and sexual assaults
and 25% of physical assaults against
women in the U.S. are reported to law
enforcement authorities. Globally, one
out of three women will be beaten,
coerced into having sex, or abused
in another form in her lifetime. To
me, this means that either my grandmother, mother, or sister before they
die will hae one of those three things
happen to her. Analyzing domestic
violence after knowing that makes
this topic and its consequences a
little more comprehendable. When
Continued
on
the
back
page
Reviews
Servants in Heaven, Kings in Hell
Jedi
Mind as well as personal and Vinnie Paz
Tricks are one delivers them with forceful vigor. The
of modern hip- single track, “Heavy Metal Kings” is
hops
finest one of JMT’s best songs yet and is
artists. Servants particularly catchy. Another highlight
in
Heaven, track is “Shadow Business.” This song
Kings in Hell is is slower than other Jedi Mind Tricks
JMT’s first release in two years and tracks, but shows off their various
not much has changed with what styles. Servants in Heaven, Kings in
fans have come to expect. The JMT Hell, however is flawed. Some tracks
formula stands true. This album still tend to feel long as well as softer than
has the heavy hip-hop beats laced JMT's previous albums. Servants is a
with classical music samples. One solid release, but does not do much
noticeable change to this tried and to achieve more than just being an
true formula is that most of the songs average album. Unfortunately, the few
on the record have a chorus. Previous standout tracks do not outweigh the
albums such as Legacy of Blood and more prevalent lackluster ones. Jedi
Visions of Gandhi were more free Mind Tricks’ innovation is definitely
flowing; however this new change noticeable, but they need
is not an unwelcome one. The lyrics to learn how to combine the
KS
have become more politically charged new and old styles effectively.
7
No Heroes
Converge
is one of the
most innovative
hardcore punk
bands I have
ever heard. No
Heroes is the
follow up to their 2004 release You
Fail Me, and it picks up exactly where
it left off. Produced and Engineered by
recording genius Kurt Ballou insured
Converges new release No Heroes to
be nothing less than a masterpiece.
Some highlights of this album are
“Heartache”, “Hellbound” and “Trophy
Scars”. It would be an insult to
Converge if I compared them to any
other band. Their brute force and
discordant time signatures places
them on a pedestal all their own. This is
not just some recycled, and repacked,
run of the mill record you can find
being released on every hardcore
label. You can feel the emotion and
pure adrenaline throughout the entire
album. Jacob Bannon’s piercing
vocals and heartfelt lyrics complement
the music perfectly throughout
the entire album. If you are looking
for something original, something
profound, something aggressive, do
yourself a favor and buy
Converge’s No Heroes,
you will not be let down. JM
7
Question EP
Connecticut
and Rhode Island
are
producing
some of the
best
hardcore
acts today such
as Verse, With
Honor, and Hatebreed. These two
small states are creating their own
niche that will unquestionably stand
the test of time and soon be in the
ranks of East Bay Hardcore, Los
Angeles Hardcore, Boston Hardcore,
and New York Hardcore. Ambitions
is a five piece melodic hardcore
band hailing from Connecticut and
is composed of members from With
Honor and Shai Hulud. Their explosive
sound is comparable to Dag Nasty and
possibly Ignite. However Ambitions is
the ideal medium between the two
bands. The Question EP is Ambitions’
follow up to their demo, the No Limits
EP, which was released in 2005.
Question adds four more songs to
No Limits, but the album flies by so
quickly that its energetic force will
leave you pumped for more. Every
track on the album is spectacular and
has a good mix of gang vocals and
melodic sing alongs. After one listen
through you will be hooked on the
catchy lyrics, breakdowns, and gang
vocals. Ambitions’ is a breathtaking
band and the Question EP is one
“under the radar” release
that should certianly not
be missed by any means. KS
9
Business as Usual
If you like rock Usual. Righteous Jams lays down the
and roll riffs and rhythm for this release, and it makes
you like hardcore you appreciate the diversity there
hardcore, buy the can be in hardcore. Business as
new Righteous Usual is not quite a record
Jams
record, of the year, but it is a solid
Business
as record for your rotation.
JS
8
On Lonely Nights...
On
Lonely
Nights…
from
San Diego’s Lewd
Acts contains six
tracks of fun
yet angry and
sometimes even
brutal hardcore. All of this in just a bit
more than seven minutes of music.
The intro cleverly titled “EnterLewd/
Self Esteem Roller” is a great way to
start off. With lyrics like “1, 2, Get
lewd!” and “I feel like shit and look
the part” that is supported by an
intense 53 seconds of music, there’s
no reason why you shouldn’t like this
band. The song titles themselves, (one
which was already mentioned) are
enough to make me like this band, for
example “Time of The Month” and “San
Diego Transmitted Disease”. There
are even a couple of things that will
throw listeners for a loop; be prepared
for confusion at the end of the track,
“Time of the Month.” This release is
fun, to describe it simply,
and I’ve been listening to
this constantly ever since.
RS
8
Domestic Violence Awareness
Month (Continued from page 9 )
by Brandon Wark
its affecting people this close to us,
how is it overlooked, brushed off our
shoulders, and ignored? This is just
the tip of the iceberg, The subject of
child abuse has yet to be addressed,
the aforementioned statistics are
soley focused on women. In America,
50% of men who assaulted their
wives also frequently beat their children. Domestic violence can include
stalking and psychological abuse as
well as physical and sexual assault,
such as rape. 85% of the victims are
women and 95% of the perpetrators
of domestic violence against men,
women, and children are men. It is
often dismissed as a personal matter
because it takes place behind closed
doors, rather than the human rights
violation that it is. So this October
with all the pink ribbons, costumes,
candy, and TPing, I decided to take
a step back and realize this hidden
problem that is so often ignored.