Sand in the Face - Music Made to Riot New Jersey Hardcore 1982-1983

Music Made to Riot collects the very earliest recordings of Montville, NJ's Sand in the Face. Largely recorded at Boonton, NJ's Mix-O-Lydian Studios. The same studio that had already given us The Misfits "Walk Among Us".

The demos within feature the pre-LP lineup of  Pete (Aaron) Wegele,
(bass, vocals) Paul Schraft (vocals, guitar)  and Mark "Munk" Lombardi, who sadly died of cancer in 2010 on drums.

I found this to be a fun and quick listen.
A good time capsule highlighting the first wave of  NJ Hardcore (Something I believe to be criminally overlooked.) Overall the tracks are what you'd expect from a young band getting to know themselves in the early days of Hardcore. A trio of high school kids getting to know their sound while working in the studio for the first time.  Snotty, mid to fast paced teenage anthems A sound akin to such contemporaries Adrenaline O.D. and Bedlam. Music Made to Riot compiles eighteen tracks in all and detailed liner notes written by Wegele himself. His dedicating the release to his departed friend and band mate is, to say the least, touching. Limited to 600 copies. My one complaint, if any, is that this did not come with a digital download. Something that would have come in handy when compiling my New Jersey Hardcore mix tape. James Damion

http://www.matwrecords.com/

Archie Alone, Polyphony and International Override play L.E.S. Stronghold ABC No Rio

While many of my friends and contemporaries were getting their groove on at either the Black N Blue Bowl or the countless other shows that were scheduled around the tri-state area. I decided to take the more relaxed approach and head to one of my old stomping grounds to catch a handful of Jersey locals play their first sets at the Lower East Side's Punk Rock holdout ABC No Rio.

I got to ABC around 3:00 (The time the show was listed to start.) and there was not a guitar, amp or snare to be seen. So with the help of ABC kingpin Escheider, I finally got the keys to ABC No Rio's zine library. Over the years I had heard of this massive archive of fanzines but having gone to shows there for over twenty years and having been friends with just about anyone and everyone involved in putting on shows there. I'd pretty much regarded it as myth. Likening it to that of Bigfoot or The Life cereal kid dying from an overdose of
Pop Rocks. As I stood amongst the endless bookshelves of zines I thought thought
"I can kill an hour or a decade up here." It was insane.

After a couple of years of not seeing or hearing much from New Jersey's Polyphony I've been experiencing a renaissance of sorts with the band in 2013 with their recent series of shows at Montclair's hole in the ass The Meatlocker. The band plays a mix of screamo and hardcore that I really enjoy. Their live sets alway seem to always ignite the crowd and get everybody moving. Marshall and Cameron (Polyphony's singer and guitarist) provide energy and a sense of anything can happen unpredictabilty while drummer Wiggins and bassist Ariel seem to anchor the bands sound. It's really great to see the progress these kids have made over the past couple of years. After the show the band jumped in their go karts and headed south to Philly for their second show of the day. Impressive

Polyphony

Clifton New Jersey's International Override played an excellent set of punk that fused elements of soul, funk, punk and even 90's revivalist ska. They totally had the uplift mojo party plan in check. International Override

If you've been reading my recent show reviews you are well aware of how much I've grown to enjoy Archie Alone. The self desribed Pop Punk band from Jersey deliver their sound with a lot more kick and power than that sub genre might limit them too. The more I get to hear them the more I'm reminded of former Jersey noise makers Kid Dynamite. Their set had a ton of energy. Keeping everyone in the room on their toes.  Archie Alone

I was in a pretty bad mood due to a lack of sleep and an overabundance of clashes with local junkies in recent days. However, despite the weather, the turnout and the fact that I decided to forgo a huge Hardcore show in what was this years Black N Blue Bowl. I really enjoyed seeing some new favorites play a venue that for me, holds a lot of good memories. Thanks to Polyphony, Archie Alone and ABC No Rio for reminding me that life is always about the little pleasures. James Damion

Ressurection - I Am Not Discography

I can go all the way back to the days of 

My Space being a relevant networking site (Maybe four or five years) when I first heard chatter about a possible 

Ressurection Discography. 

As more and more time passed my excitement, along with my hopes, faded. Now, thanks to Deathwish Records, 

"I Am Not" Ressurection's complete discography is finally here. The bands entire output has been remixed and remastered. Something their album
"I Refuse" was in desperate need of.
The sound is excellent, bringing new life to a lot of the songs. Aside from the album, the bands S/T and Culture EP's, Compilation, Radio and other live tracks are included. Ressurection hailed from New Jersey and featured former and future members of 108, Lifetime, Deadguy,
Kid Dynamite, Paint it Black, Texas is the Reason, The Van Pelt, Jets to Brazil and others. As the band and its sound evolved they went from a more traditional HXC sound to a darker, heavier, more Metal influenced sound. It was  an interesting and extremely influential evolution.  The X2LP comes on white vinyl with a gatefold cover. 

The band has reunited to play a handful of shows including This is Hardcore in Philly over the summer. 

You can find more listings Here. You couldn't possibly ask for more. James Damion


Buy It Here
Related Interviews:
Norman Brannon  Unite
Tim McMahon  Unite