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What’s up Sorry Staters?
It’s so funny that Daniel and I both wrote about the Stains last week. It was definitely kind of a face-palm moment for me. Especially because Daniel’s assessment of the hysteria surrounding the reissue was constructed much more eloquently than my usual sub-level-IQ ramblings.
This week, I think I’ve got something a little different. I’m even gonna talk about some Sorry State releases of years past! Sorry State has a work chat which we sometimes use for the sole purposes of bullshitting about music and turning each other onto new records. Former SSR employee, buddy, and all-around legend Seth still chimes in on our thread every once in a while. Recently, Seth brought up the UX Vileheads 7”, which admittedly I hadn’t listened to in yeeeears. I dug my copy out of my 7” bins and threw that sucker on and MAN, I forgot how good that record is! Listening to the record though, I can safely say that not only has it aged well, but it’s amazing. This made me feel… well, not nostalgic exactly, but listening to UX Vileheads made me want to revisit some other records I hadn’t listened to in a while. I just got a lil flutter in my stomach remembering being a teenager and loving hardcore circa 2007 or whenever it was.
I think about this all the time, but there was really something special going on with hardcore in the Scandinavian region during the early-to-mid 2000’s. I still listen to those Regulations records on the regular. And when I talk with friends of mine, it seems like Amde Petersen’s Arme has reached legendary status. But when I was breaking out my old 7”s the other day, I had forgotten how much I love those Instängd records. I listened to all 3 of them in a row the other day and was just raging in my living room. Funny enough, I’m pretty sure the band featured one of the dudes from Refused. But I remember Daniel telling me that conceptually, the band was formed with each member purposefully playing an instrument they’d never played—or at least playing the instrument they were least proficient at. And you can totally tell. Those records sound so sloppy, urgent and raw in the best possible way. I dunno man, I think about this a lot. Sometimes when punk bands are too good at their instruments, it reads as more stiff than it does exciting. The way those Instängd records sound is so intense, in part because it feels so primitive and like the band might fall apart at any second. It’s so awesome. But I think the main aspect the band did have going for them is they wrote really cool songs. Simple, but also fresh and with songwriting ideas that catch you off guard at times. On their first 7” Mitt Svar På Ingenting (released on Sorry State Records in 2007 😎), the first song “Vansinne” opens guns-a-blazing with this kinda nasty, hap-hazard guitar lead. And while I love the first 7” so much, I will say my favorite is probably the 2nd EP, Konkret Och Brutal. The opening riff on the title track just sounds like classic hardcore, but still played with that explosive, but cavemanish ferociousness. So damn catchy, too. I think all 3 of the bands 7”s are like modern classics.
You can still find these records used out in the wild for just a few bucks. To me that’s a more-than-worthy investment. I’ll probably be spending my weekend drinking beer and revisiting more Swedish punk of yesteryear and totally loving it. Hope you take some pride in your favorite dollar-bin 7”s this week as well. Who knows? Maybe one day those records will be hard to find.
Anyway, that’s really all I’ve got to say. As always, thanks for reading.
‘Til next week,
-Jeff