01. In Battle There Is No Law 02. Challenge for Power 03. Forgotten Existence 04. Denial of Destiny 05. Concession of Pain 06. Attack in the Aftermath 07. Psychological Warfare 08. Nuclear Annihilation

It had been a long time since I last [...]]]> Artist: Bolt Thrower
Title: In Battle There Is No Law
Source: Vinyl 12" LP
Format: FLAC
Running time (h:m:s): 00:26:32
Size (mb): 193
Label: Vinyl Solution (defunct)
Year: 1988

01. In Battle There Is No Law
02. Challenge for Power
03. Forgotten Existence
04. Denial of Destiny
05. Concession of Pain
06. Attack in the Aftermath
07. Psychological Warfare
08. Nuclear Annihilation

It had been a long time since I last heard this album, but I was inspired to dig it out after listening to Sanctum's 'On The Horizon' LP and hearing something that struck a familiar chord. After a good clean, I threw it on the deck and sat back. What a difference many years (and some seriously upgraded hi-fi kit) makes.

Although I loved this album at the time, being a poor punk meant I didn't necessarily hear it at its best. That's now been remedied, and it's almost like I've bought a new record. At at time when punks were playing with the more extreme end of the metal scale, Bolt Thrower took the bull by the horns and produced this rumbling behemoth of a crusty grind record. The bass and drums thud like sledgehammers in the solar plexus, the guitars create the sort of noise you'd expect if you gave Slayer a gallon of scrumpy before letting 'em rip, while the vox growl with a menace rarely heard outside of an active earthquake zone.

BT went on to become doomy metal parodies of themselves, falling ever deeper into a world of Dungeons & Dragons-based nonsense and conforming to pretty much all of the stereotypes you'd expect from the pale-faced death-obsessed nerds who inhabit such realms. That doesn't detract from the fact that this is an almost faultless piece of genre-defining grind.

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Back in June of 2009, the St. John's-based band Class War Kids recorded several cover songs before going on tour, but it wasn't until the recent earthquake hit Haiti that it was clear what to do with those recordings. As of January 28, these tracks have been released on an EP [...]]]> Received in the post today:

Back in June of 2009, the St. John's-based band Class War Kids recorded several cover songs before going on tour, but it wasn't until the recent earthquake hit Haiti that it was clear what to do with those recordings. As of January 28, these tracks have been released on an EP entitled Twinkle’s Last Stand. All proceeds from its sale are going to the Batay Ouvriye Haiti Solidarity Network.

"Originally it was going to be a free download EP to say thanks to our friends and fans for their support over the past two years – that or they were going to be used as exclusive tracks to an upcoming Rebel Time Records compilation," said the band's guitarist/singer, Patty O'Lantern.

O'Lantern was listening to CBC on the night that the tragedy happened and felt compelled to assist in Haiti’s relief efforts.

"I remembered Propagandhi helped out after the WTC (World Trade Centre) fell during 9/11. They were out giving blood the next week and encouraged everyone to do the same," O'Lantern recalled. "We are a political band. I wanted our music to do something rather than just say something. It's funny because a week or so before us, Propagandhi announced they were releasing a digital EP for Haiti. I actually wrote (Propaghandi member) Chris Hannah and told him we were stealing his idea."

"It just made absolute sense to do something like this," explained Randy Rebel from the band’s label, Rebel Time Records. "I would imagine that we will leave the EP up for sale/download indefinitely and rest assured that any monies coming in, no matter when they come in, will be forwarded to Batay Ouvriye. It's not like the crisis in Haiti will be over in a week or a month or a year, so the needs for funds and fundraising will continue."

The Class War Kids are asking for a minimum donation of $3 for the four song digital EP or if you just want to download a song or two, a dollar for each track.

"This way if people want to donate more they can, and if they can't afford much they can still have a copy," said O’Lantern. "We try to keep everything we make as inexpensive as possible. We're not in it to make tons of cash; we're in it to make a difference…I want it to be accessible to kids."

The album is available on bandcamp and includes the Class War Kids' take on songs by some great artists such as the Weakerthans and Joe Strummer.

"We can play a ton of covers 'cause it's fun to throw something into the set when you get bored of the same set list; thus we just chose our faves – ones we kinda really put our own twist on, made them our own and recorded," said Davey Brat, singer/guitarist for the Class War Kids.

The band hopes that with a little effort, the sales of the EP will help make some difference in Haiti and offer support in their time of need.

"We hope to help alleviate some of the suffering and turmoil that is going on right now down in Haiti," said Brat.

They chose The Batay Ouvriye Haiti Solidarity Network to donate the money to because they trust that it will get into the right hands with their assistance and actually help Haiti in rebuilding.

"I was excited to think that not only was the money being used to help the people of Haiti but that it was for the poor and working class to organize themselves against the multinational corporations that have helped to solidify the poverty that Haiti is buried underneath," said O’Lantern.

"One of the biggest issues that the Haitian people are going to face in the wake of this disaster is the cost of rebuilding their country," said O'Lantern. "When tragedies like this strike, there is a small window between aid pouring in and the voracious feeding frenzy that follows with companies looking to be contracted to rebuild decimated countries. Natural disasters, much like wars, are fantastic for business. The last thing the Haitian people need is to be driven further into the red by greedy North American contractors who will spare no expense."

It’s clear that this is something The Class War Kids are passionate about, and they really want to make a difference.

"I am hoping that our contribution, however small, will help the working people of Haiti to rebuild their own nation so that they don't end up incurring a disgustingly large bill from us that they'll never be able to get out from under," said O'Lantern.

by Christa Cram, The Troubador

This is yet another blinding piece of pure punk rock from TCWK. They've taken some classic tunes and given them a great makeover that's guaranteed to make your body jerk in a very pleasant way. The fact that every cent raised is going to a genuine grassroots organisation already operating on the ground in Haiti is an added bonus. Not buying this is not an option.

OP's opinion: @@@@@

If you want a clearer idea of the problems and challenges that are being and will be faced by Haitians over the coming months and years, here's the appeal put out by Batay Ouvriye:

For us, the Haitian people, the earthquake in Port au Prince, on 12 January 2010 hurt deeply. In fact, apart from the destruction of the public buildings most of our neighbourhoods were destroyed. Not surprisingly they are the most fragile and the most unstable: the state never gave them any service, any attention or helped them consolidate. On the contrary, we need to be able to move, so we have neither time nor capacity to be able to consolidate our position from being precarious.

Meanwhile some capitalists are trying to force the workers back to work in damaged factories, owners of large businesses are opposed to distributing their goods and sell them at a high price, the state proves again, as always, by its absence, its incapacity and incompetence (the only thing they do is steal and maneuver, supporting the landlords, the bourgeois and the multinationals), the national police are absent (they only know how to repress the people) and the imperialist forces are clearly taking advantage of the aid they give. They intend to establish a clear and definitive control over factory workers, workers of all kinds and the suffering masses in general, who are extremely dependent, with this disastrous situation.

Some of the press develops a progressive part of their work as their representatives help coordinate on the ground, several people’s committees are working consistently and relentlessly, giving all their energy for rescue and survival. But! They lack the means and capacity of intervention! Truly, this earthquake, besides having thoroughly physically and morally shaken the population, far exceeds the abilities of people to intervene.

In Batay Ouvriye, even though the majority of our organizers are living, many have lost family, homes and their meager possessions. Many are injured and, while we have to bury our dead, survival is almost impossible.

To the extent that it is possible, we refuse to go through official government channels. But the situation becomes impossible to sustain! So today, we launch an appeal for solidarity to all factory workers, all workers, all progressive people worldwide to help us out of this disastrous situation.

According to an inventory done so far, here are our needs:

Houses destroyed U.S. $50,000.00
Lost Property 20,000.00
Injured 10,000.00
Surviving for now 30,000.00
Solve it for the dead 10,000.00

What is needed U.S. $120,000.00

To which must be added by 40% due to rampant inflation and we do not know how high inflation will go. Then a total approximately U.S. $170,000.00.

After the last major mobilization around the minimum wage, we developed several new contacts brave and consistent worker comrades. They live in different neighbourhoods, sometimes far apart. We also need to reach them with our active solidarity. This substantially increases costs. Moreover, in areas where our members live, there have been some common solidarity actions amongst in the communities. We need to get more involved in them and to take energetically the necessary measures. And, as soon as possible (that means being able to concretely and practically intervene) take new initiatives (where possible) to build resistance to forms of reconstruction proposed by the dominant classes. This will also require money. When considering these types of actions and solidarity, we can say that what we need now is a sum of: U.S. $ 300,000.00

That is what will allow us to survive for now, help other fighters and conscientious workers to try to solve some specific life problems and build a political leadership in the class struggle that is organizing in the rubble. This latter aspect should be developed where possible from the start towards gaining a maximum possible force against another type of catastrophe that awaits us: what the imperialists and the ruling classes and their reactionary state are preparing for us.

We thank in advance all those who intend to contribute. The moment calls for international class solidarity. It takes a character of an additional approach, a further step in our common struggle.

To help you with money, our bank account is:

Bank Name: City National Bank of New Jersey

Bank Address: 900 Broad Street, Newark, NJ 07102

ABA Number: 0212-0163-9 City of Newark NJ

For further credit to:

Account Number: 01 000 98 45
Account Name: Batay Ouvriye
Account Address: Avenue Jean Paul II, # 7

Naturally, we will publicly let everyone know the amount of money we received from time to time, and the cost of each activity or action taken.

(The UK-based anti-sweatshop campaigning organisation No Sweat (which has been in touch with Batay Ouvriye in the past) will forward donations to Batay Ouvriye:

Account name: No Sweat
Account number: 20106269
Sort code: 08-60-01
Add reference: "Batay Ouvriye"

No Sweat will forward all funds received in this way to Batay Ouvriye via the New Jersey account listed above in late February)

01. Intro (War) 02. They (The Eternal Myth And Paradox) 03. Tortured And Abused 04. Yet They Still Ignore 05. Education Or Indoctrination 06. The World's Biggest Runt 07. In Darkness 08. Heresy 09. The Buck Stops Here

I could've written a blinding piece about [...]]]> Artist: Antisect
Title: Live In The Darkness
Source: Vinyl 12" LP
Bitrate: V0 VBR
Running time (h:m:s): 00:33:23
Size (mb): 68.7
Label: Clown Discs (defunct)
Year: 1991

01. Intro (War)
02. They (The Eternal Myth And Paradox)
03. Tortured And Abused
04. Yet They Still Ignore
05. Education Or Indoctrination
06. The World's Biggest Runt
07. In Darkness
08. Heresy
09. The Buck Stops Here

I could've written a blinding piece about this record, but someone far more intimate with it than me has already done it:

The only release on the Clown Disc label run by Pete Alberto, who was originally from Ipswich, but at this point in time was living in a house in Wood Green, London, N22 with Penguin and others. Pete did the running around, Lippy from Antisect listened to, and chose his favorite tape (Brighton Richmond 02/02/84). Bully from Bristol (one time member of the H.H.C. [Hackney Hell Crew - ed.]) supplied a rather nice picture of an English football hooligan as the opposing centre label to the 'Celtic Skull' design on the other side of the record. Penguin stumped up the cash (or most of it!) for the pressing up and printing costs. This was a very pretty release. The grey Celtic cover in reverse board, the record's a nice grey marble vinyl and all limited to 900 copies [although mine's numbered 0285/1000 - ed.]. This release took about a week to sell out and is so rare it is not listed on any Antisect discographies! The LP came out some time before the live release on Vinyl Japan, which by comparison is not as good as this lovely item. I may well be biased though!

Biased my arse! I was there, it was fucking awesome! For a recording from 1984, this release does an amazing job of capturing some of that power. Play it loud, and you'll feel exactly what I mean.

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The problem is, strawberries need space (albeit not much), and space is at a premium in my garden. [...]]]> I love strawberries. But only fresh picked and in season, when they're absolutely bursting with juice and flavour. Not only are they at their most pleasing on the mouth, they're also the perfect additive to a fine vodka*.

The problem is, strawberries need space (albeit not much), and space is at a premium in my garden. I've tried growing a few plants in the gaps among the herbs, but they've not done brilliantly well. So I looked at getting a strawberry planter, a particular kind of pot for growing strawberries vertically. The problem is, anything half-decent (in size and appearance) is expensive. And I'd rather save the money for a good vodka to infuse with the strawberries.

So I had a quick think about it, hit Google, and found a pretty elegant solution that was along the same lines as what I was already contemplating. The best part is it cost me less than six quid. Simply get three terracotta pots of different sizes, fill with compost, and stack them up. Sink each smaller pot just under halfway into the soil in the larger pot and you're good to go. I've used 33, 23 and 15cm pots, with 4 plants in the biggest, 2 in the middle and 1 on top. With a heavy-cropping variety, these will be all I need to indulge my taste buds and liver.

At the moment, I'm growing Elsanta. This has got a bad reputation as the bland and ubiquitous supermarket variety but, grown with some TLC, it produces large amounts of luscious medium-sized berries that are loaded with taste. Next year, I may well try a more unusual variety, or even add a few 'perpetual' types that produce small but continuous crops from mid-summer until the first frosts. Seasonal strawberries in November? Yes please! I can't think of a better way of ignoring the impending winter months than stuffing my face with straight-off-the-bush summer fruit.

And once you've got a few plants established, you'll never have to buy any more. Apart from giving you fruit for a good few seasons, strawberry plants send out runners every year with new baby plants on (you can see them hanging over the edge of the pot in the picture). These will self-root once they come into contact with soil, a process you can help by using a u-shaped loop of wire to pin the runners in place. Once the plantlets have rooted, you can cut the runner from the parent plant and pot the baby up elsewhere. Care for it properly and it will be ready to replace its parent next year.

*Fruit vodka: simply fill an empty vodka bottle about one-third full with ripe strawberries or other berry-like fruit, add 2-4 ounces of sugar depending on the natural sweetness of the fruit, top up with vodka, give a good shake and keep in a cool, dark place. Shake vigourously every day for a couple of weeks, then shake every week or two for as many months as you can bear, but at least three. When it's ready, strain it through muslin or similar fine cloth and put into a clean bottle. If you can resist the temptation to drink at least some of it, place it back in the cool, dark place and try and forget about it. If you can wait until Christmas, you'll be well-rewarded.

Particularly good fruits for this include blackberry, raspberry, any of the currants, and sloes. Sloes should be picked after the first frost if you're in the northern hemisphere, as this is when they're at their ripest. Sloes are very sour, so use plenty of sugar for the best flavour. And prick them with a fork first to allow the vodka to really bring out their fulsome twang.

I've just made a batch of blueberry vodka (yeah, I know, imported produce is bad, but these were only shipped from Germany, are a rare treat and were on the discounted sell-by shelf in the supermarket for only 30p!). It's already taken on a deep purple hue and should be stunning come the winter solstice. That's just given me a thought – cranberries, like sloes, are also sour and cranberry drink makes a fine vodka mixer. I think a bottle of cranberry-infused vodka could very soon be on the cards.

Download the missing three tracks

I also received a lovely email from Chris Willshire (the force [...]]]> Ernest Embryo pointed out that three of the tracks in the 'You've Heard It All Before' compilation couldn't be opened because they were corrupted. So I've re-zipped these three tracks and uploaded them again for everyone that's had the same problem:

Download the missing three tracks

I also received a lovely email from Chris Willshire (the force behind the label) about the upload:

Thanks very much for adding the downloads to the Crass Covers compilation "You've Heard It All Before" (appreciate as I've no longer a copy myself other than on the DAT master and a shoddy cassette copy!!) – but, just to letcha know, the label Ruptured Ambitions ain't defunct! There's more on the way! Wonderful you made the suggestion of a Rape Crisis donation… love it. Cheers lots.
Love'n'Laughs,
Chris =:0)

Chris' website is currently down, but hopefully not for too much longer. There are some interesting plans in the pipeline from what I can gather.

01. Beware-Teddybear 02. Social Worker 03. It's a Scream 04. Big City Soldier 05. Parallel 06. Caught Up 07. Hidden Powers 08. Chainsaw Massacre

Hailing from Berlin, SM were part of the ferocious yet melodic Euro hardcore scene that was at its peak right then. Although maybe [...]]]> Artist: Squandered Message
Title: Life
Source: Vinyl 12" LP
Bitrate: V0 VBR
Running time (h:m:s): 00:39:01
Size (mb): 81.3
Label: Destiny Records
Year: 1988

01. Beware-Teddybear
02. Social Worker
03. It's a Scream
04. Big City Soldier
05. Parallel
06. Caught Up
07. Hidden Powers
08. Chainsaw Massacre

Hailing from Berlin, SM were part of the ferocious yet melodic Euro hardcore scene that was at its peak right then. Although maybe not quite as well known as bands like Jingo De Lunch, Life…But How To Live It? and Negazione, they exhibited a similar musical prowess and approach to their sound. If you like any of the bands from this era, there's a good chance you'll like this too.

To be honest, I never listen to this kind of stuff at home very often. I've always preferred this style in the flesh – watching the musicians play shit-hot licks while usually jumping around like kangaroos on speed is quality entertainment and you'll always find me in the thick of it (although maybe not for the duration these days). But when the mood takes me, taking myself back to this time of my life in the comfort of my living room works a treat. And I still can't help flailing about wildly when it goes mental.

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