Exo - S/T 12"

Exo are a three piece band from New York.

Members have been in Nandas, Dame and Exit Order and I believe more likely a lot more!

This is their demo tape which originally came out on Roachleg Records back in 2024, now pressed as a 12" by La Vida Es Un Mus in 2025.
Only difference is that in the B-side we get an extra track, the near 15 minute 'Mermaid Legend'.

Really strong demo I think, the 6 original tracks are some really nice dream pop/synth punk. 

Butterfly is such a catchy tune, whereas the extra track is a class sound collage of more dream like sounds with wonderful weird bits that kind of reminded me of the film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. 

Which is sort of fitting as in that film there is a lot of insects and I have read this demo is a bit of a concept album about insects...

Looking forward to hear anything new they may do, if I had heard the demo back in 2024 it would have been in my top releases of that year!

Funeral Diner/Ampere split 9"

Interesting split 9" record here, B-side is etched and the 3 tracks are on the A-side, that has the tracks split with more etchings.

A real pain in the arse to photograph, but it does look wonderful!

Ampere play two screamo songs, ex-Orchid so fast, loud and noisy good stuff!

Funeral Diner's track is probably my favourite Funeral Diner track, I Was the Sword. Funeral Diner were part of the screamo scene back in the early 2000's but this track is more lighter then some of their other stuff.

200 copies came on green and 800 were on black, and was a split release between Clean Plate and the Electric Human Project, released back in 2007, believe Funeral Diner split the year after!

Artwork for this release (and the etchings?) were done by Mark McCoy from Charles Bronson/Das Oath....

Have seen some chancers trying to sell copies on Discogs for $250. Think some copies came warped due to having no centre labels, have read that the centre labels can help prevent warping in records. Lucky for me, my copy hasn't warped! In the Youtube video below, you maybe be able to make out the etchings on the A-Side...

 

Coffin Mulch - Supposed to Rot 7" Flexi

Death metal from Glasgow, Scotland.

This release is a one track blue flexi limited to 500 copies, released back in 2021 on singer, Al's label At War With False Noise.

It is a cover of Supposed to Rot by Entombed/Nihilist, to which this release is dedicated to L.G. Petrov of these band who sadly passed away from cancer on 2021.

I'm not a massive death metal fan, but this is a decent cover like, plus Coffin Mulch are also very good live and worth checking out with their other releases.

Another thing about this release, when they put it up for sale, they informed that all proceeds from the sale would be donated between Ayrshire Hospice and Marie Curie, Edinburgh to help with their invaluable work in end-of-life care for those affected by terminal cancer. Absolute belting thing to do, and think they did manage to get quite a bit to donate to the charities.

Can check the track on their bandcamp here.

pH People - Demo Tape

Short lived band from Newcastle, played a few shows then called it a day as one of the members moved to Leeds for University.

Really great noise rock/hardcore and I always got a Drunk with Guns/Flipper feel to them.

Demo came out in 2022 on Urticaria Records in France (limited to 70 copies). I found that a bit weird, that a label in France put this out, but guess with the modern age on music being online it is all more accessible to hear stuff then it used to be.

Either way a great 5 track demo from a band I wish had did more!

 

Blood Robots/Reality Control - Within These Walls - split 7" Flexi

Self released 7" flexi by these two North East bands released in 1984

Blood Robots were named after the Androids of Mu LP of the same name or so I have read. They were around for about two years from 1982 to 1984 and were an anarcho punk band.

Track on this sounds a bit post punk. Blood Robots broke up later in 1984 and members have been various bands over the years int he North East.

Reality Control were also an anarcho punk band who were around 16/17 years old and were putting out some really good stuff! Were a round a bit longer than Blood Robots, going from 1980 to 1985, there is a really good Discography release out there for them, Document: 1980 - 1985, a hidden gem of the UK Punk scene that I wish more people would give  a listen to!

This release was intended to be a one sided release but the songs were too long so became two sides. Comes with a lot of inserts which explains this and why it costs 40/45p!!!

As mention Reality Control have a discography release out and so does Blood Robots that came out back in 2014 on a German label called Thought Crime Records.

Can't find one video of both tracks together so there are two separate videos below of the tracks on this release.

Alerta Roja - Punk Rock En Dictardura 7"

Alerta Roja were a punk band from Belgrano, Buenos Aires in Argentina. They existed between 1981 to 1987 and are considered the first Argentine punk band to release a record and seen as one of the most political groups from the early punk movement in Argentina.

This release was originally put out as Desocupación/Hippie Japa on the band's own label, Pelmaso in 1982. A true punk rarity in that there was only 50 copies made as an Acetate 7". The reissue came out in 2022 on Esos Malditos Punks and Exabrupto Records and has 3 extra tracks, "Estado de Sitio", "Delito", and "Robots"

More like first wave UK/European punk than hardcore but really decent stuff and worth tracking down if you can. There is a CD discography that came on in 2013 which have these tracks and two unreleased LPs.

 

Ataque Frontal - S/T 7"

Ataque Frontal were from Lima, Peru in the mid to late 80's.

Raw hardcore punk that pulls no punches, there is something about South American punk/hardcore that does seem to slap harder, maybe it is the many civil wars, dictatorships and poverty that has instilled rage and anger in the youth to speak out about the injustices they face?

This was originally released in 1988 on New Wave Records in France and a repress came later in 1989 with a different cover.

Burrito Records release is the red cover, black cover is the original.

The copy I own is from 2005 and was put out by Burrito Records and has one extra track that was on the original release.

It has had another 7" reissue in 2025 on Impulso Ruin from Peru as well as a CD and Cassette over the years.

The band wasn't around long but this 7" is definitely a banger to get a hold of.