Heavy Rotation: December 18, 2009

And here we are, back on track... Hit it up, fuckrazors.

Spleen Latifa:
01. Phobia - 22 Acts of Random Violence
02. North Lincoln - Midwestern Blood
03. Choking Victim - No Gods / No Managers
04. Insect Warfare - World Extermination
05. The Copyrights - Mutiny Pop
06. Infest - Discography
07. Bullet Treatment - The Mistake
08. Spazz - Dwarf Jester Rising
09. Tear It Up - Taking You Down With Me
10. Combatwoundedveteran - This Is Not An Erect, All-Red Neon Body

The Hellion:
01. Knights of the Abyss - Shades
02. Lewd Acts - Black Eye Blues
03. I Declare War - Amidst the Bloodshed
04. Crestfallen - Streaks of Terror
05. Mastodon - Leviathan
06. Skullflower - IIIrd Gatekeeper
07. God Equals Genocide/Shang-A-Lang - Split
08. Razor of Occam - Homage to Martyrs
09. Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas
10. Racebannon - In the Grips of the Light

Review Your Face Off: Lewd Acts - "Black Eye Blues"

San Diego is home to many things, most of which I can't think of right now. However, there is one important thing that comes to mind, and that happens to be the band Lewd Acts. I think you should know about them and their album on Deathwish Inc., so I'm going to give you the lowdown.

If you are a fan of raw and gnarly hardcore, then you need to set aside some time to rage out to Black Eye Blues. Lewd Acts isn't here to try and start a new scene or fit into the latest trend; these fellas are keeping hardcore true to its roots. This record is chock-full anthems for those with bleak views on pretty much everything. While other bands are pumping out crap that remains irrelevant to their audience, Lewd Acts manages to hit home with listeners by taking the time to show they actually give a shit about what they are putting out for consumption.

Most of the album keeps a fantastic amount of energy, but at times it does seem to get a little slow and even drag. It's alright though, because there is a lot more good on this record than bad. Songs like "Young Lovers, Old Livers" and "Wide Black Eyes" will bring you back to the times before hardcore was a fashion show. You'll be screaming along to this like you did the first time you heard Minor Threat (or The Counting Crows, depending on how you were raised).

So there you have it; this album isn't so sick it hurts, but it's definitely worth checking out.

Here's Lewd Acts live playing "Penmanship Sailed" off this album:

Heavy Rotation: December 14, 2009

It's been a long, long time since we put up a Heavy Rotation, but in case you haven't noticed, we're actually posting shit again. I know it's a Monday, so we'll post what we listened to last week. This upcoming Friday, look for another Rotation showing what we jam to in the days to come. Don't fret, these will be back in the normal Friday spot come the end of this week.

I would also like to make note of a new writer the Belly is proud to have. You might have noticed someone named Old Iron Blood has popped up on our contributor list. Yes, friends, we are expanding! If you remember back, we had an article posted about Unleashed's Midvinterblot, and now the man responsible for that article is here ready to rock with the crew. As usual, these are in no particular order, so let's get to it.

The Hellion:
01. Wolfbrigade - Comalive
02. Breathe In - From This Day On
03. Disfear/Doomriders - Split 7"
04. Sworn In - Sworn In EP
05. SS Decontrol - The Kids Will Have Their Say
06. Dimmu Borgir - In Sorte Diaboli
07. Behemoth - Evangelion
08. Origin - Antithesis
09. Me and Him Call It Us - Loss
10. Cephalic Carnage - Xenosapien

Old Iron Blood:
01. The Faceless - Planetary Duality
02. By Night - A New Shape of Desperation
03. Bloodbath - Unblessing the Purity
04. BloodStream Parade - The Apocalypse in Retrospect
05. Agalloch - Ashes Against the Grain
06. Dimmu Borgir - In Sorte Diaboli
07. Grand Magus - Iron Will
08. Vader - Necropolis
09. Katatonia - Night is the New Day
10. Gama Bomb - Citizen Brain

Spleen Latifa:
01. Pretty Little Flower – Pulverizing Lethal Force
02. Black Army Jacket – Closed Casket
03. Hellnation – Cheerleaders for Imperialism
04. Coke Bust – Lines In The Sand
05. Blotto – Get On Bored
06. XBRAINIAX – Hail Fastcore
07. Traitors – Traitors
08. Low Red Land - Dog's Hymns
09. No Comment – Discography '87-'93
10. Jawbreaker – Unfun

So Sick It Hurts: Low Red Land - "Dog's Hymns" and "Weight of Nations"

Ok, truth be told, this was just going to be a So Sick about Low Red Land's brain-flooring and practically pitch-perfect "Dog's Hymns"... but as I was refreshing my memory of the brilliance that is that record, I was reminded of the stepping stone brilliance that paved its way: their previous monstrous effort, "Weight of Nations". Perplexed with how to approach this gnarcolumn, not wanting to sacrifice any opportunity to turn any of you loyal Bellions onto ridiculously talented and masterful artists you might not have came across yet, I decided to make this So Sick more just about the band itself, since I'm including both their full-lengths, which to my knowledge is pretty much their discography. I promise to keep that a one-time occurrence, since we probably don't want this to evolve into just a mere gushing over a rad band, but rather keep it about an over-the-top sick record you need to own, like, yesterday.



So anywho, where do I begin? Fuckin Low fuckin Red Land... Fuck... I will go out on a limb and say "Dog's Hymns" is probably one of the few records that I would truly refer to as a "cinematic triumph". No joke in the slightest. Each track after track just paint and evoke such vivid, and often haunting, representations of our most basic of feelings: be it despair, triumph, regret, optimism, loss, camaraderie, rage, nostalgia, sadness, etc. It baffles me how this band can capture more raw, gritty, aggressive emotion in one verse than some brutal bands can in an entire album, let alone their entire career. But this isn't even the clincher -- They can do it in a song that is most assuredly the opposite of brutal. Hell, they can even do it with just a fuckin banjo. And if you can make a banjo stir up such visceral feelings that can make a brain feel like it's on autopilot, lost in a movie scene directed by the accompanying tragic/inspiring lyrics, you win.

But don't get me wrong, these guys are not some sad-sack piece of shit weepy band... They construct every turn of their musical landscape with fucking teeth. They deliver those kinds of sentiments that can hit you in the gut like that first time you saw your tough as nails father accidently let a little of the waterworks show through his stonefaced exterior, to only choke it back down again into forgotten existence. Shit, I have never heard so many songs one after another that would be the quintessential soundtrack behind every shot in a movie where a character stands lips pursed staring off into space... I'm looking at you Gus Van Sant... And I haven't even begun to talk about the songs where the singers fucking YELL. These cats have shredded throats can peel paint off a '74 Dodge. The range of the tunes are seriously fucking batty. I dunno, I could totally be in the minority with these claims, so you'll just have to pick up these two records and decide for yourself. But seriously heed this call, cuz I really doubt you'll be disappointed in the slightest.

Low Red Land - "Dog's Hymn" (live @ Monkeywrench Books SXSW '08)


Low Red Land - "Dreams That Heroes Dream"

Dispatches from Powerviolence: Earth Crisis Post Entire Concert Online

Stumbling around the interwebs, I found some news that over at your friendly neighborhood UVTV, footage from an entire recent live Earth Crisis show has been posted online. And just our luck, the video happened to be gnar-embeddable, so you lazy bums don't have to travel too far to get your hungry meathooks on the vid... Oh, and say what you will about EC, their politics, or the vegan/straight edge movement in general, but there is no denying they had some fucking sick records back in the day. Who can deny that live cut of their cover of Cream's 'Sunshine of Your Love' from The Oath That Keeps Me Free? That shit fucking slayed tenfold... Honestly, I haven't delved into their newest record yet, so I don't have an opinion on where I stand with this current reformed Earth Crisis, but I'm adding it to my to-do list as we speak... jerks. So anyway, if you're a fan or even just mildly interested, pull up a chair, pop some popcorn, and enjoy the entire show while you floorpunch to your heart's content in the comfort of your own home or office.

Here's the setlist, in case you wanna be a dick and fast forward to your faves:

1. Against The Current
2. All Out War
3. Forged in the Flames
4. Wrath of Sanity
5. No Allegiance
6. Forced March
7. End Begins
8. To Ashes
9. Gommorah’s Season
10. Born from Pain
11. To The Death
12. Firestorm

Also, click thru to UVTV's site for the info to download this footage from iTunes... If that's your thing. Dirty fucks.

Featured Live Show: The Chariot / Horse the Band / Arsonists Get All the Girls

Tonight, there shall be distortion... And it was good.

The night in question was last night at Gramercy Theater (Blender Theater, if ya nasty)... Beards aplenty filed into the Manhattan club to boogie down with chaos engineers The Chariot, along with Arsonists Get All the Girls, Horse the Band... (and *sigh* Norma Jean)... After waiting in line outside the venue in the fucking freezing cold, stupidly wearing just fingerless gloves as my only winter accessory, I took a seat in the Old Man Section in the back of the club to rest my frail, aging bones and to get a bird's eye view of the audience in attendance. One thing I instantly noticed was the noticeably noticeable harsh divide of the crowd: either late-twenties-ish bearded and flannel-clad gentlemen or 14 year old scenester co-eds in neon-splashed graphic tees, graphic hoodies, and skinny jeans, with noses buried in their cellphones, no doubt twattering nonstop about how the show is going to be the most epically massive "evar"... I wept silently within... but not in a goth way... in a man way.

Anywho, it didn't take long into the show to see who these children were here for... judging by their attention to the Arsonists set that opened the night, they were definitely Horse/Norma fans. Don't get me wrong, I'm not here to shat on the headliner of the night or their direct support (I just honestly think someone shoulda stuck with their original vicious blueprint while someone else needs to start expanding on their schtick... respectively). In other words, these two will not be discussed here. Only the two I traversed midtown to go see...


(Arsonists)

As mentioned before, AGATG kicked off the night... and they did so with fuckin fire. This is only the second opportunity I have been able to catch these cats, and it has been a long time coming. The first time being at the New England Metal and Hardcore Festival two or three years ago when they were only a mere "I've heard a few decent things bout these guys, maybe I'll give them a passing listen for a song or two" blip on my radar. And ever since have grown into an act that always seems to find its way into my listening rotation, thoroughly pummeling my ear canal in some of the most wonderful ways possible... See the track "Shat Shart Tart" if you need an example... Anywho, their set paraphrased: ridiculously awesomely abrasive. My only slightly negative comment would be that they seemed cramped as hell up there with six members and what looked to be all the bands' gear for the rest of the night. But regardless, they still delivered the wallop, though I noticed they seem to be drifting in a more accessibly brutal direction, I hope which continues to be a positive thing rather than detracting.


(The Chariot)

And then it was time for the main event... Well, the main event in my personal opinion... And boy howdy, did they ever fucking bring the ruckus. Fucking A right, The Chariot NEVER cease to amaze me live. It just seriously never gets old. They fucking wail, and they're a cavalcade of cacophony, hellbent on obliterating every notion of a nice, calm rock show... Instruments thrown, abrasive lighting, alienating feedback, dizzying ragdoll antics by the members, and general disregard for any kind of structure or even fuckin safety, are all par for the course with the ones they call the Chariot... If you can't tell, I'm kind of a fanboy for these guys. They're like my little underdogs. Momma's special little guys... It was somewhere between the jarring mash of feedback and samples and the whipping around of a workshop hook lamp that I realized I wasn't going to do this set or any set of theirs any justice through verbally trying to describe it. You just have to do yourself a favor, tuck in your balls, and go see these delightfully damaging little scamps when they blow through your town... And do like I did, make sure you venture out of the Old Man Seats for these guys, cuz it's just a tiny bit better when a guitar neck narrowly misses clipping your ear. It always is.

And to send you packing with a smile, a splendidly beautiful representation of why The Chariot is one of the most INFUCKINCREDIBLE live bands ever... Go see for your damn self, ass:

The Chariot - Unofficial video for "Teach" (sick live montage):

So Sick It Hurts: Disfear / Doomriders - Split 7"

When I first got my grubby hands on this 7", I was happier than a frat guy with a garbage can full of jungle juice. Disfear is one of my favorite bands, and Doomriders never disappoints. Bellions, this is a marriage than can not go wrong.

The split contains one song from each band, and both are top notch. Disfear delivers a little number called "Fear and Trembling," and it is one of the best songs I have heard from the band. The Swedish D-Beat group decided to add a good amount of melody to this track, and it adds a new dimension of emotion that sits pretty with the usual urgency these guys are known to project in their music. Fantastic song on all counts. Any fan of the band needs to hear it.

While Disfear represents with ONE of the best songs they've ever written, Doomriders presents THE best song the band's ever written. "Crooked Path," which is also available on their latest release Darkness Comes Alive, is everything you could possibly want from these fellows. It too introduces a bit more melody than usual, but keeps the same edge you would expect. The first time I played this song, I had to listen again. Then I listened one more time. I'm sure this will rank in your top three Doomriders jams. If it doesn't, the Spleen will mail you ten bucks.

This record is a limited pressing, so pick it up as soon as you can. You can thank me later.

Disfear playing "Fear and Trembling" live:


Doomriders "Crooked Path" with a picture of the 7". (I hate it when people do this.)

So Sick It Hurts: Wolfbrigade - "Comalive"

When I first listened to Wolfbrigade's Comalive, I thought to myself, "Can an album be this fucking gnarly? Is it possible?" Yes, friends, it is possible, and I thank Satan himself for such greatness and for allowing us to rage this hard. I thank Wolfbrigade, too, but not as much.

Known as Wolfpack before the late 90's, these Swedes have continuously pumped out righteous D-Beat crust for our listening pleasure, and Comalive does not disappoint in the least. I seriously cannot stop listening to this record. Expect to see it show up on many "Heavy Rotations" to come, assuming we actually start writing them again. I suppose I just can't get enough of the pure speed and sonic mayhem, the crunch of the guitars that just beg for fist-pumping and generally debauchery, or the vocals that make me want to yell along until my throat feels like sandpaper (with blood on it, of course).

D-Beat and crust punk is not about technicality and precision, but leaving those things behind opens the door for straight-ahead rock and roll. Wolfbrigade embraces this and delivers an album that just shreds the hell out of everything around you. Seriously, I just looked at my bed, and the whole thing was shredded. The beer can next to me? Shredded. The cats? Shredded to bits. The letter Wolfbrigade sent me saying they weren't sorry for shredding the fuck out of all the shit in my room? Completely destroyed. (It was shredded.) Don't get me wrong, this album isn't sloppy or something like that, it just doesn't pull any punches for masturbatory noodling. It's in your face like a zit in seventh grade. This album fucked your mom.

Buy this, but make sure to remove anything you want to keep in good condition from your house.

Check out the video for "Ride for a Fall" on Comalive below:

GnarVideo of the Week: The Bronx - "Knifeman"

It's been a while since the last GnarVideo, but fret not... we still love you. This week's installment of our column masquerading as a finger on the pulse of the music video scene comes from the swaggeringly vicious LA boys in The Bronx. Though their latest self-titled album, unofficially referred to as The Bronx III, had the kids divided, I still will always give these bruisers the benefit of the doubt. Also, anyone that's seen them live can attest to their devotion to the sound... the energy... the power... the heart... the sexiness... the sleaziness... and the violence. So arguments about the quality of the latest album aside, we bring you their video for the single entitled "Knifeman".

This is the second video from III, though I personally consider it the first... Since their first one was just a song over some weird wrestlers in S&M-ish Tron outfits and shit. And frankly, I consider any video that doesn't have the band in it (either just acting out a narrative or pantomiming rocking the fuck out) as a serious cop-out (with the only exception being that Pearl Jam/Todd McFarlane animated video, which was the tits... The video, not the band or the song). Anywho, this latest one, like almost all their videos prior, has a very clever catch to it. This time being: the band rocking the fuck out underwater, in a pool, with their instruments and whatnot... Yes. That simple. Yet it totally makes me smile like a grin like a fuckin dummy dumdum, and I hope you do to. Have fun.

The Bronx - "Knifeman"

Dispatches from Powerviolence: Maryland Deathfest Line-Up Posted

....... AND IT BE FUCKIN RIGHTEOUS.

I am seriously beyond jazzed after seeing this massive bit of news... Honestly, I had no idea how last year was going to be topped with the ridiculous line-up they had (Pig Destroyer, Napalm Death, Brutal Truth, Magrudergrind, The Red Chord, Trap Them, Rotten Sound, Weekend Nachos, Cephalic, Victims, Kill the Client, Venomous Concept, Bolt Thrower, Cattle D, Phobia, Birdflesh, etc etc ... just off the top of my head). But it seems the MDF braintank deserves yet another gold medal for bill-filling again this year, as the flyers below clearly show... Rhymes.

Last year was also the first to have indoor and outdoor stages, which helped a lot with not having to be velcro'd between two giant sweaty mouthbreathers in Pestilence and Mayhem shirts for 11 hours straight... so hopefully that stays the same. But holy sharkfuck, even the "pre-party" the night before is insane! All hail the 18 second song!

UGH... I'm seriously counting down the hours... Where to even begin??? Converge, Entombed, Capitalist Casualties, Total Fucking Destruction, Verbal Abuse, Magrudergrind, Trap Them, Birds of Prey, Iron Lung, XBRAINIAX, Pretty Little Flower??? I already have a grind/crust/violence/fastcore/hardcore boner. And it is good.

Official MDF VIII Site

Click the images to see them full size...

Dispatches from Powerviolence: That's Some Heavy Shit, Brah

We here at BFoH love some good old brutality, and we assume you do to. Because of this, I have a prepared a short list of insanely brutal jams to bash your head to. These might be heavy from start to finish, have crazy breakdowns, or just be so fast your they'll make your ears bleed. Of course there are many more intense songs out there, so these are just some off the top of my head, presented in no particular order. So have fun with these bad boys, ladies and gentlemen.

The Acacia Strain - Demolisher
From start to finish, this track with fuck your shit up. Not to mention, the breakdown is one of the best I've ever heard.

Carnifex - The Diseased and the Poisoned
This one will leave your body mutilated when you leave the pit.

Destroyer Destroyer - Horse Drawn
These guys are just completely insane.

Cephalic Carnage - Endless Cycle of Violence
Technical and fast as balls, this jam will make sure your brain doesn't work for the next 48 hours.

Ion Dissonance - OASD
Super technical. Super mathy. Super heavy.

See You Next Tuesday - In the End
Slow and monstrously heavy.

Me and Him Call It Us - Innocent Bystanders Watched in Horror as Peter Jennings Drew His Murder Weapon
Controlled chaos? Um, sort of...

Ani DiFranco - Red Letter Year
My friends, it doesn't get more brutal than trying to listen to this. Trust me.