Sorry state newsletter: August 21, 2025
This week we have a brilliant Record of the Week from Barcelona's Ayucaba and a ton of other punk rock rock records from all over the globe!
New and Recommended Punk & Hardcore Ragers!
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Las Ánimas Del Cuarto Obscuro: S/T 12" (PRE-ORDER)
- Vendor
- La Vida Es Un Mus
- Regular price
- $25.00
- Sale price
- $25.00
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Traidora: Una Mujer Trans Sin País 12" (PRE-ORDER)
- Vendor
- La Vida Es Un Mus
- Regular price
- $25.00
- Sale price
- $25.00
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Various: Weird Scenes From Inside The Droll Mind 7"
- Vendor
- Celluloid Lunch
- Regular price
- $12.00
- Sale price
- $12.00
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Champ Gauche: Protection Du Voisinage cassette
- Vendor
- Contact Minimal Records
- Regular price
- $10.00
- Sale price
- $10.00
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Gentleman Jesse: I Wonder if You Would Even Notice - Singles and Rarities 12"
- Vendor
- Beach Impediment Records
- Regular price
- $18.00
- Sale price
- $18.00
Recommended Reissues
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Quite Ridiculous Nonsense: A Failure... 7"
- Vendor
- Celluloid Lunch
- Regular price
- $12.00
- Sale price
- $12.00
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The Apostles: The Acts Of The Apostles In The Theatre Of Fear 12"
- Vendor
- Acid Stings Records
- Regular price
- $20.00
- Sale price
- $20.00
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K2 / K. Kusafuka (草深公秀): Re-Musik 12"
- Vendor
- Bitter Lake Recordings
- Regular price
- $30.00
- Sale price
- $30.00
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K2 / K. Kusafuka (草深公秀) & Techno Menses: Requiem In The Sun 12"
- Vendor
- Bitter Lake Recordings
- Regular price
- $30.00
- Sale price
- $30.00
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Descendents: Milo Goes to College 12" (gray vinyl) (PRE-ORDER)
- Vendor
- Org Music
- Regular price
- $28.00
- Sale price
- $28.00
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Descendents: Milo Goes to College 12" (Punk Note Edition) (PRE-ORDER)
- Vendor
- Org Music
- Regular price
- $28.00
- Sale price
- $28.00
recently restocked
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Frenzy: Beyond The Edge of Madness 12"
- Vendor
- Distort Reality Records
- Regular price
- $20.00
- Sale price
- $20.00
more of this month's best sellers

- Regular price
- $8.00
- Sale price
- $8.00
two new releases on Sorry State up for pre-order
Illiterates: No Experts 12" (Sorry State Records) The “dumbest band in hardcore” returns with twelve more rampaging tracks. While Illiterates’ last record, 2023’s No Experts, trimmed their compositions to the bone, Does Not Compute widens the scope just a hair, making room for anthemic mid-paced parts (see “Remember When” and the epic title track), blazing Straight Ahead-esque crossover rippage (“Sustainability”), and even a touch of trad youth crew (the Can’t Close My Eyes influences were all over No Experts, but “No One Wants To” is pure Revelation Records circa 1988). Illiterates have also added a new guitarist since the last record, which they’re so excited about they wrote a song about it (“Hig Champion”), though they tastefully limit themselves to just a few eruptions of fret-melting lead licks. And while Illiterates insist they’re dumb, their lyrics are full of wisdom you don’t get at the library, like the anti-pretension anthem “Read the Room” (my favorite lyric: “one thing school didn’t teach you is how to read the fucking room”). Hair-splitting aside, Does Not Compute is another great hardcore record from one of the best bands in the game right now.
Knowso: Hypnotic Smack 12" (Sorry State Records) Hypnotic Smack is the new album from Knowso, the Cleveland punk duo featuring Nathan Ward (Cruelster, Perverts Again, the Carp) and Jayson Gerycz (Cloud Nothings). If you’ve heard Knowso’s music, you know they’re spiritual children of Devo, both in their proclivity toward dense and nervy rhythmic experimentation and in the way their lyrics turn a cracked, distorted mirror at the world and its many absurdities. Like the Fall’s best records, Hypnotic Smack attacks the body and the brain simultaneously, your hips jerking uncontrollably to the robotic pulse of “You Climb the Sphynx” and “Club Music is the Soundtrack” while your brain chews the koan-like cud of lyrical nuggets such as “every boss in America is a real estate agent.” Ward’s cryptic lyrics reflect the psychedelic labyrinth of horrors that is your daily doomscroll, but it’s OK… we can still dance the night away to “Panopticon,” the goth club dance anthem no one predicted Knowso would write. The world is full of punk bands that are great at pummeling you, but Hypnotic Smack is the rare punk record that beguiles and entrances.
Recommended books, zines, and other reads
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Radio Silence: A Selected Visual History Of American Hardcore Music book
- Vendor
- Revelation Records
- Regular price
- $35.00
- Sale price
- $35.00
new on la vida es un mus and sealed records

- Regular price
- $25.00
- Sale price
- $25.00
new arrivals
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Traidora: Una Mujer Trans Sin País 12" (PRE-ORDER)
- Vendor
- La Vida Es Un Mus
- Regular price
- $25.00
- Sale price
- $25.00
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Las Ánimas Del Cuarto Obscuro: S/T 12" (PRE-ORDER)
- Vendor
- La Vida Es Un Mus
- Regular price
- $25.00
- Sale price
- $25.00
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AFI: Silver Bleeds the Black Sun 12" (PRE-ORDER)
- Vendor
- Run For Cover Records
- Regular price
- $25.00
- Sale price
- $25.00
latest used items
new on sorry state
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Sorry State Records has the best selection of DIY punk and hardcore vinyl in the world, with well over 2,500 unique titles currently in stock. We're a great music discovery tool, with blogs and other features to help you discover great new music you'll love. We have the fastest, most professional mail order service in punk, with most orders shipping within 24 hours. We're also a great brick-and-mortar record shop based in Raleigh, NC, specializing in collectible and hard to find titles in all genres.