Hello and welcome to this week’s Foundation Vinyl newsletter!  As well as some splendid new records to discuss, there also some thoughts on the final Static Shock Weekend and on Dawn Ray’d, who called it a day last week:

• Featured New Arrivals from Uzu, Devour, Water Machine, and Saidiwas
• Ethereal Aggression, Elegant Moshing
• Farewell to Dawn Ray’d
• Shows and Tours
• Coming Soon

And so it came to pass, the final Static Shock Weekend.  And if Saturday night’s show is anything to go by, it was a fittingly euphoric send off.  At a festival so regularly packed with fine bands, choosing what night to go is often the biggest challenge.  Preference is for the smaller venues (so definitely New River Studios over The Garage), and logistically for Thursday or Friday nights, which typically work better.  So yes, I plumped for the Saturday night show at The Garage, for the simple reason that the bill that night looked positively stacked.

And so, it proved.  I managed to squeeze in just as Tramadol kicked off (although the balance of this piece does not follow a strictly chronological order).  They laid down a furiously discordant wall of noise which, when the band surged together as one, segued into a series of brutally heavy breakdowns, ensuring a venomous start to the evening.  As ever, Es brought their insidiously danceable, dystopian synth-punk to the table, with Everything Is Fine proving a particular highlight of an excellent set.

Poison Ruïn, meanwhile, locked into a punishingly precise groove straight from the off – Pinnacle of Ecstasy was particularly vividly rendered, but the most visceral reaction of the night was reserved for set closer, Not Today, Not Tomorrow.  Powerplant are currently building quite the head of steam and went down a storm, but I must admit I’ve never quite clicked with them.  But I did like their crow mascot.  I’m a big fan of crows, in fact, of all members of the corvid family.

Prior to the show though, there were two things I was particularly keen to see.  Firstly, how would Belgrado’s electronic reinvention translate to the live environment?  I must admit to certain doubts when I heard that the band’s first LP in seven years, Intra Apogeum, would see their cold austere guitars and jazz-inflected drumming replaced by synths and drum machines.  That said, this courageous reimagining proved quite the triumph.

Playing live would, however, inevitably pose a whole new set of challenges.  Although, having had the pleasure of catching Fatamorgana (an electronic side project of vocalist Patrycja and new bassist Louis) at the DIY Space For London back in 2019, I had few doubts that the band would overcome these.  And (bar the yearning spiritual chasm of where the drum kit should be!) Belgrado did so with impressive aplomb.  Perhaps inevitably their set veered closer to the theatrical performance of pop – a charismatic vocalist backed by three essentially static band members – than I am naturally comfortable with.  But the punk heart that still beats within the band was palpable throughout.  Not least when Patrycja leapt into the crowd to create one of the most elegantly joyful mosh pits I have ever seen.

And the second thing?  To see Spirito Di Lupo (SDL) full stop.  SDL’s cracking debut LP Vedo La Tua Faccia Nei Giorni Di Pioggia has rarely strayed far from my turntable since it landed earlier this summer, and I couldn’t wait to see the fresh dynamics that the live setting would spark.  And they did not disappoint.  Sonically, their live sound was cleaner, less scuzzy, than I had anticipated, the guitar taking on an almost psychedelic edge, the bass and drums locking into a powerfully infectious underpinning rhythm.  An almost ethereal aggression.

But the key to SDL’s sound, perhaps, lies in their fiercely dualling vocalists.  Throughout the album they clash and complement in equal measure, a taut yet almost chaotic interplay, separate but seemingly also organically as one.  Difficult to recreate live?  Not a bit of it.  The more deadpan shouts of Francesco and the energetically impassioned yelps of Vittoria are superb individually, but when they come together in unison, they pack a truly visceral punch.  A brilliantly invigorating set and definitely my highlight of the evening.  Hopefully, it won’t be too long before they return to these shores again.

So, all in all, quite the send-off for the Static Shock Weekend and a big thanks to everyone who worked so hard to pull it together.  Now, we’ll just have to look forward to Damage Is Done IV, heading our way next March!

Just a quick note to say cheers to Dawn Ray’d, who announced that they are bowing out last week.  Not only for eight years of incendiary music and some truly fierce live shows, but also for their commitment to discussing political ideas and promoting community action.  Quite the legacy, some of which was discussed in our very first FV newsletter, From Liverpool With Anarchy

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.

20^th September Lasso, Skitter, Catastrophe, Shade (New River Studios / UK Tour)

22^nd September Louse, Brak, Casing, Hellish Torment (New River Studios / UK Tour)

22^nd September Morus, Haavat, Disciple BC plus more (New Cross Inn)

22^nd September Final Dose, Layback, Graven Image plus more (Moor Beer Vaults)

24^th September Dropset, Without Love, Hell Can Wait plus more (New Cross Inn)

3^rd October As Friends Rust, Calling Hours plus more (Boston Music Room)

3^rd October Smirk, Eel Men, and Morreadoras (The Waiting Room / UK Tour)

7th October Three Swords Fest (The Engine Rooms / including Change, Cruelty, and Odd Man Out)

26^th October World Peace, Xiao, Trading Hands plus more (New Cross Inn / UK Tour)

28^th October Home Front plus support (New River Studios / UK Tour)

13^th November Madball, Ironed Out, Rash Decision, False Reality (The Underworld / UK Tour)

18^th November Axegrinder, Civilised Society?, Zero Again plus more (New Cross Inn)

18^th November Chain Whip plus support (New River Studios / UK Tour)

21^st November Slapshot, Death Before Dishonor plus more (New Cross Inn / UK Tour)

24^th November Bob Mould plus support (The Garage / UK Tour)

24^th February Fiddlehead, MS Paint, Wrong Man (The Garage / UK Tour)

1^st – 3^rd March Damage Is Done IV (Various Venues / including Fugitive, Quarantine, and Illusions plus many more to be announced)

Advertisement ‘Escorts’ 12-inch (Feel It)

As Friends Rust ‘Any Joy’ 12-inch (End Hits)

Corker ‘Falser Truths’ 12-inch (Feel It)

Damien Done ‘Total Power’ 12-inch (Mind Over Matter)

Habak / Lagrimas ‘Split’ 12-inch (Persistent Vision)

Optic Sink ‘Glass Blocks’ 12-inch (Feel It)

Private Lives ‘Hit Record’ 12-inch (Feel It)

The Cowboys ‘Sultan of Squat’ 12-inch (Feel It)

Hello and welcome to this week’s Foundation Vinyl newsletter!  And there is plenty for us to get stuck into again this week:

• Featured New Arrivals from Catharsis, Blind Eye, and Hope?
• A Vitriolic Morphology (featuring Ghostlimb)
• Shows and Tours, including new shows from Fiddlehead, Lasso, Layback, and Chain Whip
• Coming Soon

Now the lifespan of your typical hardcore record label is rather longer than that of your average hardcore band.  But, nevertheless, a healthy turnover is inevitable.  Labels not only come and go, they also shift in productivity, and in their own preferences.  Some labels, however, develop a vitality that sustains their longevity, making them a much more permanent feature in our listening lives.

For me personally, one such label is Vitriol Records.  Come next year, the label will have been releasing very fine records for fifteen years, and they still define themselves by a simple statement of intent: ‘Write what you want to read, play what you want to hear’.  The label’s back catalogue is brimming with stand-out records from the fierce political hardcore of Reivers to the rollicking vibrancy of Everybody Row.  While notable releases this year include the crushing, hardcore-infused death metal of Neolithic (Shattering Vessels) and the swaggering, strutting punk rock of Daisy Chain (The World Is Not Spinning).

But, of course, the bedrock of Vitriol’s output has always been the bands of Justin Smith, who runs the label.  Some are now gone (Dangers and Buyer’s Remorse), others are coming to their end (Graf Orlock, who have just released their thunderous final EP, End Credits), while some build ever-increasing momentum, such as his newest venture, Sweat (whose recent brilliant split EP with Negative Blast is their most fully realised release yet).  However, as great as all these bands are / were, the stand-out for me has always been Ghostlimb.

‘…Mediation does not exist, common ground does not exist, infrastructure breeds separation, a policy of pacification, to question the lines of a so-called inclusion, a policy to estrange…’ (Saltaye, Bearing & Distance)

Ghostlimb formed in 2005, before playing their first shows and releasing their self-titled debut LP in 2006, followed by Bearing & Distance two years later.  From the band’s outset, the aim was for Ghostlimb to focus on playing melodically inclined heavy music, a conscious contrast to the more discordant leanings of Justin’s other band, Graf Orlock.

It was also to be lean, aggressive, and delivered in short bursts of fury – the latter ‘temporal constraint was only to last through the first and second records, but the initial commitment to a wholly unsustainable framework is admirable’.  The result is a darkly metallic hardcore, imbued with an intrinsic melancholic melodicism, and enriched with stylistic flourishes that draw both on thrash metal and melodic punk (the band covered both Leatherface and Hot Water Music) in equal measure.

‘…We don’t even know if it’s the stick or the carrot we’re being beaten with, can you quantify your use or qualify your subsistence…’ (Reduction, Infrastructure)

Fiercely disciplined hardcore and skilfully constructed song structures define Ghostlimb’s sound.  The band relish interweaving their rampant assault with infectious melodies, and brief passages of more contemplative reflection, that serve to both amplify and leaven the band’s otherwise brutal intensity.

The weighting of these qualities oscillates throughout the band’s discography, from the surging melody of Infrastructure (2011), sweeping back into the much darker actualisation of Confluence (2012), before the rawer, more experimental explorations of perhaps my favourite Ghostlimb LP, Difficult Loves (2016).  Their most recent album, The Only Measure Is Labor Done Not Days (2019), proved in many ways to be the crucible in which these different interpretations and emphases were honed into their most singular configuration to date.

‘…As often as I recommit readily, to what I still hear and read and see, that life is still worth living, without gods or masters or heroism…’ (Brushfire, Difficult Loves)

There is also a lyrical weight to Ghostlimb’s endeavours as they seek to examine contemporary society through politics and history.  Across their discography, the band engage thoughtfully with a broad range of socio-political and ecological themes, frequently animated through literary and academic exploration (from Italo Calvino to Mike Davis via Cormac McCarthy).

But two broad concerns are consistent throughout.  Firstly, the structural nature of socio-economic inequality and our continual resistance to addressing its causes, over blaming those exploited.  Secondly, a preoccupation with the intersection of urban theory and social history.  As a sphere of particular personal interest, it is always a pleasure to see the band explore themes that revolve around the politics of the built environment and the neglected importance of social infrastructure.

‘…The question as a weapon is more power than a thousand blazing suns, any real evidence of life is but politicized opinion, always and forever the skeptic, the question our only weapon…’ (Nocked Blade, The Only Measure Is Labor Done Not Days)

And it is the fusing of these two aspects – the visceral musicality and the lyrical semantic substance – that render Ghostlimb such a powerful force.  It is after all what all great hardcore should seek to achieve – intellectual engagement and the desire to hurl yourself off a stage.

I last had the pleasure of catching them on their 2016 European tour at the former DIY Space For London in Bermondsey.  It was a sweltering August evening, one of those when South London feels like a primed powder keg that has yet to quite decide whether to party or to riot.  But this was nothing compared to the ferocious intensity that Ghostlimb unleashed that night.  And it appears that life is once again stirring in the Ghostlimb lair so, hopefully, that might not prove to be the last time…

(Non-lyric quotes are taken from the very nicely put-together ‘story of the band’ booklet, written by Justin Smith, which is included with The Only Measure Is Labour Done Not Days vinyl release).

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.

14^th – 17^th September Static Shock Weekend (Various Venues / including Belgrado, Es, Indre Krig, Poison Ruin, Spirito Di Lupo, Tramadol plus many more)

15^th September Cinder Well plus support (Moth Club / UK Tour)

20^th September Lasso plus support (New River Studios / UK Tour)

22^nd September Morus, Haavat, Disciple BC plus more (New Cross Inn)

22^nd September Final Dose, Layback, Graven Image plus more (Moor Beer Vaults)

24^th September Dropset, Without Love, Hell Can Wait plus more (New Cross Inn)

3^rd October As Friends Rust, Calling Hours plus more (Boston Music Room)

3^rd October Smirk, Eel Men, and Morreadoras (The Waiting Room / UK Tour)

7th October Three Swords Fest (The Engine Rooms / including Change, Cruelty, and Odd Man Out)

26^th October World Peace, Xiao, Trading Hands plus more (New Cross Inn / UK Tour)

28^th October Home Front plus support (New River Studios / UK Tour)

18^th November Axegrinder, Civilised Society?, Zero Again plus more (New Cross Inn)

19^th November Chain Whip plus support (New River Studios / UK Tour)

21^st November Slapshot, Death Before Dishonor plus more (New Cross Inn / UK Tour)

24^th November Bob Mould plus support (The Garage / UK Tour)

24^th February Fiddlehead, MS Paint, and Wrong Man (The Garage / UK Tour)

1^st – 3^rd March Damage Is Done IV (Various Venues / including Fugitive, Quarantine, and Illusions plus many more to be announced)

Advertisement ‘Escorts’ 12-inch (Feel It)

As Friends Rust ‘Any Joy’ 12-inch (End Hits)

Corker ‘Falser Truths’ 12-inch (Feel It)

Devour ‘Flowers of Fire, Walls of Water’ 12-inch (Ugly & Proud)

Optic Sink ‘Glass Blocks’ 12-inch (Feel It)

Private Lives ‘Hit Record’ 12-inch (Feel It)

Saidiwas ‘Saidiwas’ 12-inch (Refuse)

The Cowboys ‘Sultan of Squat’ 12-inch (Feel It)

Uzu ‘Self-Titled’ 12-inch (Symphony of Destruction)

Water Machine ‘Raw Liquid Power’ 7-inch (Upset The Rhythm)

Hello and welcome to this week’s Foundation Vinyl newsletter!  We are back, after our brief August break, with a great line-up to kick things off again:

• Featured New Arrivals from Men As Trees, Ostraca, Rigorous Institution, and Turquoise
• Optimistic Daisies and Gothic Lullabies: A Particular History of Static Shock Weekend
• Shows and Tours including new dates for Change, Home Front, and Smirk
• Coming Soon including As Friends Rust, Blind Eye, Catharsis, Devour, Hope?, Saidiwas, Water Machine, and Uzu

So, it comes to pass, the final ever Static Shock Weekend lands next week.  This festival has, of course, been a landmark of the London hardcore punk scene since its first iteration in 2012 and (almost) annual renewal ever since.

I must admit I’ve never been entirely in love with the concept of festivals.  The timing / spread of the shows means you will almost certainly miss some of the bands you would like to catch and there is also the venue inflation generated by the need to use larger venues to ensure financial viability, and to cater for the inevitably larger turnouts.

But to be fair, these small gripes are far outweighed by the benefits that festivals as well put together as the likes of the Static Shock Weekend and Damage Is Done festivals bring – diverse line-ups that touch pretty much every sub-genre, attracting bands to these shores who might not otherwise make it, and generally acting as a focal point for the city’s hardcore punk community.

It was those features that I most enjoyed about past Static Shock Weekends – yes, getting to see bands that I already loved, but also being introduced to quite a few that might otherwise have slipped under my radar.

And, while it is sad to see Static Shock Weekend come to its end, 11 years is a pretty decent run (and an awful lot of hard work for its organisers!).  So, rather than dwell on its demise, I’d rather celebrate the highlights.  I attended shows from each of the festivals, with the exception of the first in 2012 and then 2015 and looking back what is immediately apparent is not only how many good bands I caught, but also just how many I missed!  But three performances stand out very clearly in my memory to define a rather personal Static Shock Weekend history.

First up is Give, they of the colourful ‘G’ daisy motif, in 2014.  In fact, Give were my gateway to the festival itself as it was this band who first tempted me down to T-Chances that fateful November.  They headed into the Static Shock Weekend on the back of releasing five great two-song singles on labels ranging from Deranged to React, Youngblood to Triple B (collected together as the ‘Singles Going Confetti’ LP) and with a follow-up LP on Revelation Records slated for the following year.  Musically, Give explored ‘Revolution Summer’ inspired hardcore. Now, clearly, this is a style that many have sought inspiration from, but often find themselves struggling to match the underlying intensity and energy that originally fuelled this sound in mid-1980s Washington DC.

However, there were no such misgivings with Give.  There was always a clear authenticity to this band, who displayed not only an innate understanding of their inspirations, but also a distinctive take on them.  This was abundant to see that night as lead vocalist, John Scharbach, took to the floor in front of the stage (which always seemed disproportionately high to me at T-Chances), and the band unleashed a vibrantly powerful set.

My next stand out memory is of Exit Order at the 2017 festival.  Exit Order hailed from Boston and in the space of four years released an excellent demo in 2013, an explosive self-titled EP on Side Two Records in 2015, and a brilliantly realised LP, ‘Seed of Hysteria’, on La Vida Es Un Mus Discos / Side Two in 2017.  On some levels, Exit Order’s raucous sound could be mistaken as relatively simple, by the fact that it had the singular intent of wanting to make you pogo with reckless abandon.  But, in reality, the skill that went into delivering this infectious sound was not to be underestimated.  The guitars hit you in waves before honing into the defining riff, while the rhythm section literally bounces with vitality, yet is underpinned by surprising complexity, while the vocals are unyielding, not gruff but bristling with intent.

Now in the live environment, bands can sometimes morph into rather different propositions.  Exit Order on the other hand were a living embodiment of their recorded persona – vocalist Anna Cataldo was literally a whirlwind of perpetual motion, as the band locked into a relentless groove.  Various members went on to play in sonically quite different, but uniformly excellent bands, Dame (Beach Impediment) and Innocent (Side Two).

Then in 2020, Murderer.  Now Murderer have only ever released one record and were never a band who toured widely (indeed, I think I recall that the Static Shock Weekend was their first, and may remain their only show outside of New York).  Now, I really enjoyed ‘I Did It All For You’ (Toxic State) – a darkly irresistible LP of gothically sinister almost-lullabies.  But, live, their stripped-down sound took on a whole new dimension.  Their sound became bigger, burlier, even more mesmerising in its insidious repetition, and they had soon swept the crowd up into their joyously black embrace.  Little did I know as I headed back to Seven Sisters tube that this would prove to be my last gig in 18 months as the UK’s first Covid lockdown kicked in just a couple of weeks later.

And, as for 2023, who will be the band to embed themselves in our collective memories?  This is, of course, impossible to call with so many great bands due to the hit stage.  But I am very much looking forward to catching Spirito Di Lupo whose debut LP, ‘Vedo La Tua Faccia Nei Giorni Di Pioggia’, is really rather special.

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.

8^th – 10^th September Chimpy Fest XI (New Cross Inn / including Coke Bust and Failure)

9^th September Big Brave, Dawn Ray’d, Ragana, Jessica Moss (Bush Hall / UK Tour)

14^th – 17^th September Static Shock Weekend (Various Venues / including Belgrado, Es, Indre Krig, Poison Ruin, Spirito Di Lupo, Tramadol plus many more)

15^th September Cinder Well plus support (Moth Club / UK Tour)

22^nd September Morus, Haavat, Disciple BC plus more (New Cross Inn)

3^rd October As Friends Rust, Calling Hours plus more (Boston Music Room)

3^rd October Smirk, Eel Men, and Morreadoras (The Waiting Room / UK Tour)

7th October Three Swords Fest (The Engine Rooms / including Change, Cruelty, and Odd Man Out)

26^th October World Peace, Xiao, Trading Hands (New Cross Inn / UK Tour)

28^th October Home Front plus support (New River Studios / UK Tour)

18^th November Axegrinder, Civilised Society?, Zero Again plus more (New Cross Inn)

21^st November Slapshot, Death Before Dishonor plus more (New Cross Inn / UK Tour)

24^th November Bob Mould plus support (The Garage / UK Tour)

1^st – 3^rd March Damage Is Done IV (Various Venues / including Fugitive, Quarantine, and Illusions plus many more to be announced)

As Friends Rust ‘Any Joy’ 12-inch (End Hits)

Blind Eye ‘Wasting The Time’ 7-inch (Scene Report)

Catharsis ‘Light From A Dead Star I’ 2×12-inch (Refuse)

Catharsis ‘Light From A Dead Star II’ 2×12-inch (Refuse)

Devour ‘Flowers of Fire, Walls of Water’ 12-inch (Ugly & Proud)

Hope? ‘Your Perception Is Not My Reality’ 7-inch (Symphony of Destruction)

Saidiwas ‘Saidiwas’ 12-inch (Refuse)

Water Machine ‘Raw Liquid Power’ 7-inch (Upset The Rhythm)

Uzu ‘Self-Titled’ 12-inch (Symphony of Destruction)

Hello and welcome to this week’s Foundation Vinyl newsletter.  A quick heads up that this will be our last newsletter for a few weeks, as the school holidays are now fully underway and I’m being run ragged!  Our next edition will be out Wednesday September 6th.

The store will continue to operate as normal, although please note that any order placed on, or after, Thursday 10th August, will ship on Monday 21st August.

With the housekeeping all done, here is our line-up for this week:

• Featured New Arrivals from Graf Orlock, Sweat / Negative Blast, The Toads, and Bait
• Our Most Popular Records Since Launch…
• Record of The Month: ‘In The Comet’s Path’ by Parallel Worlds
• Shows and Tours including the dates for next year’s Damage Is Done IV
• Coming Soon including As Friends Rust, Catharsis, and Saidiwas

We are three months old this week, so a big thank you to everyone who has been able to support us since we got underway!

And what better time to give a shout out to the best selling releases that we have carried so far?

1. Only Constant by Gel (Convulse Records)
2. Shattering Vessels by Neolithic (Vitriol Records)
3. Service To Your Country by Savageheads (Social Napalm)
4. Currency // Castration by Geld (Relapse Records)
5. Quiet Earth by Morrow (Alerta Antifascista)

Only Constant is currently sold out but we should hopefully pick-up a fresh batch of the second press and we have just reloaded on Shattering Vessels.   The Savageheads, Geld, and Morrow LPs are also still available.

And so to the inaugural Foundation Vinyl ‘Record of The Month’!

Selected from our impressive slate of Featured New Arrivals in July, it is the record that has strayed least from my turntable over the last four weeks.  Do not sleep on this one!

‘In The Comet’s Path’ by Parallel Worlds (Scene Report Records)

‘If not by the grace of god, then an accident of birth, if not by divine intervention, then a fluke, a whim, or something worse.  Right time, “right” place, “right” sex, “right” skin’.

Parallel Words are the Young Conservatives reborn, the name change heralding a recalibration in musical direction but no dilution in their political vehemency.  So, what is different?  Their previous straight-up hardcore punk has evolved into a more experimental direction, with fuzzed out guitars, chunky distorted basslines, and fluid percussion laying the bedrock.  And what is the same? Semi-shouted vocals still drip with fury and sarcasm in equal measure as they astutely dissect issues ranging from social conflict born of precarity and the myth of Britain’s meritocracy, to the desolation of the deindustrialised cityscape.  A burlier By The Grace Of God, with added dashes of Rollins Band groove, would be a pretty decent yardstick.  Thoughtful, impassioned hardcore and a very fine record indeed.

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.

13^th August DRI plus support (The Underworld)

14^th August Chat Pile, Petbrick, Dawn Ray’d (The Dome)

18^th August Cloud Rat, Bad Breeding, Golpe (Studio 9294)

23^rd August Bad Egg, Rough Gutts, Do One, Prey and more (New Cross Inn)

26^th August Spit, Mortsafe, Layback, Churchgoers plus more (New River Studios)

28^th August Slutbomb, Frisk, Frantic State plus more (New Cross Inn)

5th September Raw Brigade, Flesh Creep, Rifle plus more (New Cross Inn)

9^th September Big Brave, Dawn Ray’d, Ragana, Jessica Moss (Bush Hall)

14^th – 17^th September Static Shock Weekend (Various Venues / including Belgrado, Es, Indre Krig, Poison Ruin, Spirito Di Lupo, Tramadol plus many more)

15^th September Cinder Well plus support (Moth Club)

20^th September Angel Dust, Powerplant plus more (New Cross Inn)

22^nd September Morus, Haavat, Disciple BC plus more (New Cross Inn)

3^rd October As Friends Rust, Don’t Sleep plus more (Boston Music Room)

26^th October World Peace, Xiao, Trading Hands (New Cross Inn)

18^th November Axegrinder, Civilised Society?, Zero Again plus more (New Cross Inn)

21^st November Slapshot, Death Before Dishonor plus more (New Cross Inn)

24^th November Bob Mould plus support (The Garage)

1^st – 3^rd March Damage Is Done IV (Various Venues / including Fugitive, Quarantine, and Illusions plus many more to be announced)

As Friends Rust ‘Any Joy’ 12-inch (End Hits)

Catharsis ‘Light From A Dead Star I’ 2×12-inch (Refuse)

Catharsis ‘Light From A Dead Star II’ 2×12-inch (Refuse)

Saidiwas ‘Saidiwas’ 12-inch (Refuse)

Hello and welcome to this week’s Foundation Vinyl newsletter!  Plenty to be getting on with, so let’s dive right in:

• Featured New Arrivals from JJ And The A’s, Prey, Me Lost Me, and Gimic
• And The Dog Glanced Back…
• Shows and Tours
• Coming Soon

As I was spinning Discreet’s excellent This Is Mine LP, I was again drawn to its rather visceral artwork and again, I really wished I hadn’t been.  It just doesn’t work for me.  It’s not that the image does not in some ways resonate with the album’s exploration of addiction and trauma, but rather that it’s just not a particularly pleasant image to look at – flies gorging on a piece of raw meat.

This got me thinking as to the importance of cover art more generally, and what makes it more, or less successful.  The continued survival, indeed, renaissance of music in its physical form is driven by multiple factors.  However, one key aspect is people’s desire to enjoy its materiality – to hold the record, to place it on the turntable, to read the lyrics, and to enjoy the artwork.  The record is a physical embodiment not only of a band’s music, but also of its wider political and cultural values.

So, what makes a given piece of album artwork successful?  On reflection, I think it is driven by three characteristics that move from those of immediate pleasure, to those that grow in depth as you immerse yourself in the music itself.   First, it must have the visual clarity to impact and grab attention.  Secondly, it must be aesthetically thought-provoking, in other words, priming the listener to consider what the album will sound like and what its lyrical concerns might be.  And thirdly, it must speak to the artistic intent of the music that it visually represents, and that can, perhaps, only be fully realised once the listener is able to marry the art, the music, and the words together.

Each of these stages is important, and each develops a greater level of depth and appreciation for the listener.  But clearly, not all artwork can satisfy each level equally and, obviously, everyone’s interaction with it will be different by degree. You can have a striking piece of art that seizes attention, but ultimately it doesn’t feel organically connected to the music itself.  To be a truly successful album cover, I think the artwork must succeed on all three levels.  So, what are the album covers that, for me at least, achieve those three aims? Five, in particular, came to mind.

First up is Surf Nicaragua (1988) by Sacred Reich.  This is a record sleeve that is in many ways archetypal of the era. But it is a brilliantly executed example: with the shirtless, camo-clad figure surfing on a coffin lid whilst holding a cartoon bomb.  It would be hard to argue that it is not a visually striking design, but it’s also a well-judged blend of the satirical and the serious, and inspires interest as to what will emerge when the needle hits the groove.  And when it does, you’re not disappointed as the title track erupts and a keen eye is applied to US interventionism in Central America.

Our second stop is Lift Your Burdens High For This Is Where We Cross… (2004) by The Saddest Landscape.  The stark simplicity of the sketched trees, the glimmering blue leaves, the brown paper texture backdrop, and the understated band logo, all combine to quietly dramatic effect.  This in many senses is the perfect encapsulation of The Saddest Landscape’s music – explorations of dealing with life’s more overwhelming aspects, finding beauty in the everyday, and the cathartic pleasures of casting aside the weight of expectations to revel in the moment.  A beautifully evocative cover.

Disconnecting (2006) by Sinking Ships is next in line.  Now, I remember reading an interview with vocalist Danny Hesketh in which he expressed his disappointment at how Revelation promoted this record with quarter page advertisements of the album cover in the printed press.  I’m sure he was right on the money in terms of how ineffective that largely was, but it was oddly exactly how I discovered Sinking Ships.  Something about the sepia tinged black and white photography (an actual family photo rather than a stock image if I recall rightly) spoke to me and said you will like what this band has to say.  And, remarkably, my inner voice was absolutely spot on, and the artwork was the perfect visual realisation of the band’s stirring melancholic hardcore.

We then move to Abolition’s politically charged self-titled LP (2011).  Exploring themes of class dispossession, colonialism, and cultural commodification, Abolition burned briefly but brightly in the London hardcore community.  And I always felt that the album’s artwork of a man striding into the urban fog, his terrier glancing back on what is left behind, spoke eloquently to the band’s priorities – breaking the shackles of the past to march towards a new future. One that we don’t know exactly what it looks like, but recognising that unless we seize the chance to change things, we never will.  Admittedly, I’ve also always been a mug for a good picture of a lone man and his dog, but I like to think it goes a little deeper than that…

Finally, I will close with the cover from the Myteri / Procrastinate Split (2019) 12-inch.  I think aesthetically this is one of the most beautifully packaged LPs in my collection.  The level of love and attention focused on the artistic design by the labels (Alerta Antifascista, Halvfabrikat, Phobia and Nothing to Harvest) and the bands is pretty remarkable – even the etching on the B-side of a feathers and horns insignia works beautifully.  The cover captures a vividly realised stag and a pheasant communing with one another, their shadows captured in seeping watercolours.  Now both stags and pheasants are present throughout various mythologies, often used to denote immortality, and I think in this instance it is intended to represent the enduring friendship of the two bands, who toured extensively together.  Indeed, this split 12-inch was recorded by both bands simultaneously in Procastinate’s hometown in Greece, which invests it with an authenticity that split releases can sometimes lack.

And so, while the whole coloured vinyl fixation leaves me rather cold, I don’t think the value of well-conceived cover art can be overstated – it serves to animate, enrich, and complete a band’s wider artistic vision.

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.

4^th August Plastics, TS Warspite, Unjust plus more (New Cross Inn)

5^th August Knuckledust, Nine Bar, Fifty Caliber plus more (New Cross Inn)

8^th August Sacred Reich plus support (The Underworld)

13^th August DRI plus support (The Underworld)

14^th August Chat Pile, Petbrick, Dawn Ray’d (The Dome)

18^th August Cloud Rat, Bad Breeding, Golpe (Studio 9294)

23^rd August Bad Egg, Rough Gutts, Do One, Prey and more (New Cross Inn)

26^th August Spit, Mortsafe, Layback, Churchgoers plus more (New River Studios)

28^th August Slutbomb, Frisk, Frantic State plus more (New Cross Inn)

5th September Raw Brigade, Flesh Creep, Rifle plus more (New Cross Inn)

9^th September Big Brave, Dawn Ray’d, Ragana, Jessica Moss (Bush Hall)

14^th – 17^th September Static Shock Weekend (Various Venues / including Belgrado, Es, Indre Krig, Poison Ruin, Spirito Di Lupo, Tramadol plus many more)

15^th September Cinder Well plus support (Moth Club)

20^th September Angel Dust, Powerplant plus more (New Cross Inn)

22^nd September Morus, Haavat, Disciple BC plus more (New Cross Inn)

3^rd October As Friends Rust, Don’t Sleep plus more (Boston Music Room)

26^th October World Peace, Xiao, Trading Hands (New Cross Inn)

18^th November Axegrinder, Civilised Society?, Zero Again plus more (New Cross Inn)

21^st November Slapshot, Death Before Dishonor plus more (New Cross Inn)

24^th November Bob Mould plus support (The Garage)

Bait ‘Self-Titled’ 12-inch (World’s Appreciated Kitsch)

Cloud Rat ‘Threshold’ 12-inch (Artoffact)

Godflesh ‘Purge’ 12-inch (Avalanche)

Graf Orlock ‘End Credits’ 7-inch (Vitriol)

Sweat / Negative Blast ‘Split’ 7-inch (Vitriol)

The Toads ‘In The Wilderness’ 12-inch (Upset The Rhythm)