Foundation Vinyl Newsletter
Welcome
Hello and welcome to the latest edition of the Foundation Vinyl newsletter! And it is quite the line-up that we have for you this week. First up, Muro will send you absolutely reeling with their highly anticipated third full-length, Nuevo Dogma. Before you can catch even a breath, the self-titled debut LP from Savage Pleasure will stomp all over you without pity or remorse. As you try and regain your shattered senses, the new Yellowcake 7-inch, A Fragmented Truth, will steamroller you afresh. And then, the bittersweet power pop melodies of Cœur À L’Index on their debut 12-inch, Adieu Minette, will beguilingly coax you back up to your feet, just so that you can be flattened all over again.
There is also an updated London gig listing, including a new Hellscape date (29/11), and a quick heads up on some of the great records coming our way, including next week’s haul of Alambrada, Armor, Bato, Mižerija, and State Manufactured Terror!
Featured New Arrivals
Adieu Minette by Cœur À L’Index / Savage Pleasure by Savage Pleasure / Nuevo Dogma by Muro / A Fragmented Truth by Yellowcake (clockwise)
‘Se tranzan concienas, se pactan sobornost, las horas contadas, a quien obstaculiza el progreso voraz’ (Cultura Mercenaria) ‘Consciences are compromised, bribes are agreed upon, the hours are numbered, for those who hinder voracious progress’ (Mercenary Culture)
Muro return with their much anticipated third full-length, and follow-up to 2020’s Pacificar, and it has most certainly been worth the wait. The Bogota band’s fierce sonic impact is, as ever, shaped by two distinct qualities. Firstly, their innate ability to weave disparate influences – from Latin American to Italian traditions by way of the anthemic peaks of Burning Spirits Japanese hardcore – into a cohesive whole. And, secondly, their rare capacity to inject their recorded output with the utterly explosive, chaotic fervour of their live show, a skill that has eluded many fine bands.
And Nuevo Dogma (New Dogma) bears testament to this prowess. The recording itself is unashamedly raw and yet the band’s assured command of melody, as well as some seriously mean solo work, still cuts through the frantically suffocating atmosphere with invigorating verve, alongside the rabid Spanish vocals. Meanwhile, the rhythm section is utterly propulsive and provides remorseless traction for the wider onslaught. Stand-out tracks come thick and fast, but, for me at least, Fosas (Pits), Destierro (Exile) and Frustación Fabricada (Manufactured Frustration) capture Muro at their most instinctual – the relentless push-pull between dissonance and melody, the primal and the progressive.
However, Muro’s influence is not confined to their musical virtuosity. Perhaps, even more crucially, it is reflected in both the DIY ethos and political engagement that imbues both the creation and distribution of the album, as well as its philosophical core. Taking the physical record itself, it is only available in analogue form and the 1,000 run press has been drawn, printed, folded, and glued by the band themselves. As well as the album’s stunning artwork (there are four separate covers of which we have two, a black one and white one), each copy includes three posters and a Spanish language fanzine. The record has then been distributed on behalf of the band’s own label, Fuerza Ingobernable (Ungovernable Force), by a network of like-minded labels.
Now, to the ideas that shape the record, and the accompanying fanzine provides essential context to the album. The endemic violence and accompanying neoliberal economic turn that have shaped Colombia’s recent history, and their clear parallels elsewhere, provide Muro’s lyrical inspiration. The album’s narrative examines how perpetual notions of ‘crisis’ and ‘emergency’ are deployed to support increasingly authoritarian controls and economic exploitation. Covering how this exploitation fuels ever greater socio-economic inequality that in turns feeds the explosion in populist sentiment and the scapegoating of already marginalised communities.
It is easy to be overwhelmed with frustration and an acceptance that there is no other way. To their credit, the band passionately sketch out their own alternative, the Nuevo Dogma of the album title. A way of living that seeks to undermine the strictures of capitalism, and that is rooted in community collaboration, mutual aid, and autonomous networks to resist commodification and forge an alternative future. An everyday anarchy – the very principles that shaped the making of this record.
‘Is it a dream or just an illusion? Engulfed by the fire and flames, Fallen dogs assail their masters, The end comes as foretold’ (The Sickening Fear)
New York’s Savage Pleasure have arrived, and their self-titled debut LP is an impressively realised one. By fusing crust-fuelled 1980s’ UK anarcho-punk with the primordial rawness of first wave death metal, the band have honed a battery of visceral ferocity. Eschewing grandstand moments, it is built through relentlessly skilful layering and fiercely crafted dynamics to create an utterly all-enveloping sense of the darkness descending.
Indeed, it is an album steeped in a darkly contagious sense of drama. The bleakly resonant bass and primitive-leaning drums provide a rock-solid base. The harshly dissonant rhythm guitars unleash swells of bruising, muscular riffage, with particular savagery on The Sickening Fear and The Glorious Descent. Meanwhile, infectiously melancholic leads are braided throughout the onslaught, most notably, perhaps, on The Blistering Plague.
Similarly, the coarse, guttural vocals roar their apocalyptic narrative with an unexpected dexterity, whether in the forlorn cry at the pounding climax of The Sentry or the snarled eruption during the groove laden The Reaper’s Scythe. Further texture is introduced through the dungeon synth and choral vocal intertwined intro track, The Shimmering Dark, and the sombre acoustic guitar and haunting spoken word laced through the crushing closer, Chasms Of Distant Dreams. A thoroughly savage pleasure indeed.
‘The system works for one not three, An end in sight, I cannot see…Manufactured disparity, You are you, And I’m not me’ (Blood Soaked System)
Following last year’s fierce debut EP, Can You See The Future?, Phoenix’s Yellowcake are back with another six tracks of rampant d-beat and, if anything, the intensity has been dialled up yet another notch. The guitars continue to balance cleaner, thashier riffs with discordant wall of noise eruptions and squalling solos, while the relentless, cymbal awash drums yield moments of satisfying deftness amid the wider onslaught. Rasping, delay saturated vocals explore themes of war, entrenched privilege, and unfolding environmental catastrophe with a desperate urgency. Stand-out moments include the absolutely searing Maelstrom, the swaggering Blood Soaked System, and the unhinged When Night Comes.
‘Revenir de loin, Lumière au bout du chemin, Je fais le point, Sans savoir où va demain, Choper un train avec un sourire en coin’ (Tomber De Haut) ‘Coming back from far away, Light at the end of the road, I take stock, Without knowing where tomorrow is going, Catching a train with a wry smile’ (Fall From A Height)
Brussels trio, Cœur À L’Index (Heart To Index), make their vinyl debut on Adieu Minette (Goodbye Minette) with a vibrant power pop album that calls in equal measure on influences from 1960s’ pop and 1970s’ punk. The jauntily infectious French language vocals are crystal clear, the rhythm section crisply punchy, and the guitar bright and clean with a hint of jangle as it teases out gently melancholic melodies.
It is, perhaps, though the skilfully crafted backing harmonies that steal the show adding a delightful layer of bittersweet complexity as each track unfolds. Indeed, they form an important bridge between the breezy yet tightly honed song writing and the rather more disenchanted lyrical tales of stale relationships, controlling partners, and drifting through life, with just the hint of better times to come. Personal favourites are the briskly bouncy Dernier Fois (Last Time) and the catchily sombre Minette.
Shows And Tours
The Attempting Something DIY music and noise weekender is fast approaching – to find out more, read here
This section lays no claims to being a definitive listing! It is simply gigs coming up in London that catch my eye and that I think people who read this newsletter might be interested in. I will always try and highlight where a show forms part of a wider UK tour.
5th November Gillian Carter, Harrowed, Healing Wound (The Black Heart / UK Tour)
6th November Qlowski, Laggard plus more (The George Tavern)
8th November L.O.T.I.O.N Multinational Corporation, Petbrick, Stingray, Ekstasis, Traidora, Gilt (Number 90)
8th November Delivery, Marcel Wave, Eel Men (The George Tavern)
9th November Chalk Hands, Still In Love, Death Of Youth (New River Studios)
14th November Uranium Club, Hygiene plus more (Number 90 / UK Tour)
16th November Future Of The Left plus support (The Garage)
20th November Deaf Club plus screening of ‘Don’t Fall In Love With Yourself’ (The Black Heart)
21st November Undying, Cauldron, Sentience (New Cross Inn)
21st November Attempting Something Weekender featuring Brendan Wells’ Plant Music, Fiscal Harm, No Home, Megzbow And Vinegar Tom (Spanners)
22nd November Unbroken, Deaf Club, Shooting Daggers, Rifle, Eyeteeth (The Dome)
22nd November Attempting Something Weekender featuring Gimic, Gamma, Ritual Error, Sublux, Rubber (Avalon Cafe)
23rd November Deviated Instinct, Agnosy, Verrat, Rank, Traidora (New Cross Inn)
23nd November Attempting Something Weekender featuring R.Aggs, Holiday Ghosts, Dean Rodney And The Cowboys, Vaiapraia, Marcel Wave, Grazia plus more (Ivy House)
24th November Grief Ritual, Wreathe, Cady, Jotnarr, Grim Harvest (Signature Brew)
29th November Big Problem, Silica, Hellscape, Snub (The Shacklewell Arms)
29th November Pitchshifter, Black Gold, The Sad Season (The Garage)
30th November Poor Old Dogs, Dead Raze, The Fish Mittens, Inner London Violence (Magdalen Hall)
3rd December Coliseum, Harrowed, Ritual Error, No Bueno (New Cross Inn)
17th December Terror, Nasty, Combust plus more (229 / UK Tour)
17th January Reality Unfolds Weekender featuring Wristmeetrazor, Dry Socket, Long Goodbye, Vicarage, Hour Of Reprisal, Closed Hands (New Cross Inn)
18th January Reality Unfolds Weekender featuring Ringworm, Bitter Wood, Broken Vow, Malignant, No Relief, Impunity, Imposter plus many more (New Cross Inn)
19th January Reality Unfolds Weekender featuring Stormo, Sorcerer, Shooting Daggers, Perp Walk, Cassus, Hidden Mothers plus many more (New Cross Inn)
23rd January One Step Closer, Dynamite, Life Of One, Uzumaki (New River Studios / Sold Out)
24th February Love Letter, Heavy Hex plus more (New Cross Inn / UK Tour)
8th March Misantropic, Nujorvik, Wreathe, System Of Slaves, Traidora (New Cross Inn)
Coming Soon
Alambrada’s ‘Ríos De Sangre’ LP lands next week
Next Week
Alambrada ‘Ríos De Sangre’ 12-inch (Autsajder Produkcija)
Armor ‘Afraid Of What’s To Come’ 12-inch (11PM)
Bato ‘Human Cancer’ 12-inch (Not For the Weak)
Mižerija ‘Mižerija’ 7-inch (Doomtown)
State Manufactured Terror ‘The US Government Is A Kleptocratic Doomsday Cult’ 7-inch (Autsajder Produkcija)
Later In November
Faucheuse ‘Rêve Électrique’ 12-inch (Symphony Of Destruction / Restock)
Habak ‘Ningún Muro Consiguió Jamás Contener La Primavera’ 12-inch (Alerta Antifascista / Repress)
Human Trophy ‘Primary Instinct’ 12-inch (Iron Lung)
Inferno Personale ‘La Scelta É Tua’ 12-inch (Symphony Of Destruction)
James Jonathan Clancy Band ‘Sprecato’ 12-inch (Maple Death)
Love Letter ‘Everyone Wants Something Beautiful’ 12-inch (Iodine Recordings / 2nd Press / Restock)
Pest Control ‘Year Of The Pest’ 12-inch (Quality Control HQ)
Qlowski ‘The Wound’ 12-inch (Maple Death)
Rogo ‘Rogo’ 12-inch (Symphony Of Destruction)
Second Death ‘Second Death’ 12-inch (La Vida Es Un Mus)
Straw Man Army ‘Earthworks’ 12-inch (La Vida Es Un Mus)
Träume ‘Wrzask’ 12-inch (Quality Control HQ)
December
Bent Blue ‘So Much Seething’ 12-inch (Indecision Records)
Heiress ‘Nowhere Nearer’ 12-inch (Indecision Records)
Lasso ‘Parte’ 12-inch (Sorry State)
Unbroken ‘Life. Love. Regret. – 30th Anniversary Edition’ 2×12-inch (Indecision Records)
Undertow ‘At Both Ends’ 12-inch (Indecision Records)
