Armalite - Humungous 7"

Hey now, new Armalite record!

I would have though Eric would have hipped me to this (or maybe even recorded it) but it appears to be a solid no on both points. Armalite is a Philly scene-as-fuck amalgamation of your boy Atom Goren (sans His Package) with Dr. Dan Yemin from PIB/Lifetime/Kid Dynamite, Jeff from AAJ and Mike from Kill The Man/Amateur Party throwing down the D4-tinged jams for your listening pleasure.

There are three of said jams this time around, two sang by Mike and one from Atom. All solid, although those unenchanted by Atom's voice previously will probably remain unmoved hearing him in a more hardcore aesthetic. That caveat extended, Humongous is still pretty fucking aces.

If you are a fan of any of the aforementioned acronyms and/or the players therein, you can't really go wrong with Humongous. Get it here from the lovable nerds at No Idea and keep track of all things band-y and Armalite here.

R

Paint It Black - Surrender EP

This the the second of the two EPs the band warned us would be coming out this Summer. The first, Amnesia, dropped about a month ago on Bridge Nine. This one is out today on Fat Wreck, but don't think PIB is jumping on the Lagwagon or anything. Surrender is pretty much a boot to the face for the average Fat Wreck /Warped Tour jocker. This is a fucking hardcore record. Listen to the bass on Worms are see if you aren't manifesting a circle pit in seconds. There are four songs in under seven minutes, each a short sharp shock that you would be a fool to dislike. Buy Surrender from the Fat Wreck kids here and then hustle over to Bridge Nine and grab Amnesia. They go together like straight-edge kids and self-righteousness.

R

Paint It Black - Amnesia EP

Lots of bands talk about 'keeping it real' in the hardcore scene, but very few maintain that realness on the level of Philadelphia's Paint It Black. Fronted by Dan Yemin of Lifetime/Kid Dynamite fame, the Philly foursome are as issue driven as they are anti-barricade. Their live shows are never a bad time, and their records are always great, something very few hardcore bands can muster.

PIB announced last September that they would be abandoning the LP format and heretofore releasing purely 7" EPs. Why? Because it's quicker, and more importantly, hardcore. The first of the two is Amnesia, and coming out on the bastion of East Coast hardcore that is Bridge Nine. It should sell a ton. It's got all the barked vocals, topical content and pick slides that you have come to expect from the gents. Five songs are just over a minute, with the last tune Bliss taking a bit of a Jawbreaker turn and weighing in at a seemingly epic three and a half minutes. Pick up Amnesia here from Bridge Nine, but be sure to clear the furniture and make sure the insurance is paid up before you listen in the home, as shit may very well get broken.

R

Live: Propagandhi with Paint It Black @ Highline Ballroom 3.12.9

(photo at left stolen from D.P. Rubino)

I hadn't been all that impressed by Propagandhi previously, but Eric had always been a big fan and his taste is usually pretty golden, so when I heard the boys were coming through town with Paint It Black, I made a point of getting tickets. It ended up being kind of a hot ticket, and Highline was pretty packed by the time I made my fashionably late entrance.

I crossed threshold and pushed my way in to find Yemin stalking the stage and attending to a small but exuberant copse of finger-pointers. Eric had staked out some good real estate stage right and we got a good earful of the time-honored Paint It Black Philly hardcore, including a handful of new tunes that will be recorded with Kurt Ballou at the end of this tour for their Bridge Nine debut. Save for the inevitable Paint It Black/H20 tour, it seems like the new label will be a win-win for all parties involved.

Propagandi were up in short order afterward. They are Canadian, and beer drinkers and, no doubt owing to their Fat tenure, attract many a drunken jackass. Two or three of the most flagrant offenders were bounced before Propagandhi even took the stage, but there were some closet heroes that showed their true colors in short order. The first song prompted a disjointed flurry of flailing limbs and high blood alcohol levels that was maintained for the duration. Despite the drum kit being a million miles back and the new guitarist being Danny Spitz short, the Propagandhi boys sure did bring it; Chris Hannah brought the noise in admirable fashion, tearing off ripping leads with wild abandon when he wasn't baiting NY hockey fans and dropping revolutionary politics. They played an hour or so, had Yemin come out for Fuck The Border and even played an encore. It's a show you should really check out. Propagandhi don't tour all that often, so you'd do well to work whatever hipster magic you can to check out the show at Music Hall Of Williamsburg tonight before they head back North.