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Hello and thanks for reading. 2024 was a complete shit year. I did some cool stuff, but the state of the world consistently weighs on my mind. I find it hard to enjoy stuff to the fullest or embrace the rewards of an accomplishment. I don’t want to dwell on that though, since you came here to read about records. There were a lot of great new releases in 2024, as well as some well-needed reissues. I managed to cross off some serious wants in my world of record collecting. Maybe I will share some of that later. Looking back on the year, it’s always hard to remember every single record I really enjoyed. Of course, there are things that instantly come to mind, but there is always a record or two I played pretty heavily ,but it escapes me as I do a year-end review. I try to keep all the records I got together over the year as I buy them, but inevitably I must do some filing away or my shit gets outta hand.
I don’t really like doing a traditional year-end top 10, where everything is ranked in order. It’s cool when people do that, but I don’t think I can effectively score things like that. I also don’t like to narrow it down to just ten records. I decided not to include tapes, though. Looking back to the start of the year, PHYSIQUE’s Overcome By Pain 7” was one of the first records I bought. I’ve been spinning it again more recently and I still think it’s a monster of an EP. I am pretty sure they made my list last year with their Again 12” as well. This band is absolutely punishing live as well. I can imagine whatever they release will always be up for review in my year-end lists, haha. It looks like we don’t have any copies of this one in stock currently, but we have Again.
THE MASSACRED is another band that has grabbed me since their debut. Seeing them live really solidified my love for them. It’s funny, I used to associate them with a super UK82 sound, but after a revelation at my mate’s house I now hear a serious HEADCLEANERS influence. I had a lot of anticipation for Death March. The label dealt with like two years of delays with this pressing. Naturally, it was well worth the wait. You know I didn’t even realize until today they had an LP come out just a month or so ago?! I can’t wait to hear it. I know we will get distro copies of it like all ACTIVE-8 titles.
I know it’s probably a tacky look to choose a Sorry State or my own label’s releases as a chart-topper, but I don’t care. If the record hit me hard, I wanted to include it. PERSONAL DAMAGE’s Violent Ritual was one of a few Sorry State releases that really hit the spot for me in 2024. These tracks were actually put on a cassette in 2022, but Daniel gave it the proper vinyl treatment it deserved. I think I wrote about this as a staff pick upon the release. Not only are the songs excellent, the recording itself sounds so damn good. The band really sounds like they could be from the ‘80s, and that is no easy feat. The last song of the EP, “Banned From Society,” is one of those you can seriously listen to on repeat. It was awesome they came over and played the Sorry State 10th Year Anniversary weekend.
When it comes to chart-toppers, INVERTEBRATES’ Sick To Survive 12” is a no brainer for me. These mofos rip so hard live it is nuts; riff after riff of high-threshold hardcore. Jeff and I had a special version of this LP on BPDT. That was super cool of the band and Mark from Beach Impediment to orchestrate. I feel like this band is on everyone’s radar, so I don’t need to say much.
Sticking with the theme of not saying much, PUBLIC ACID’s Deadly Struggle 12” is obviously on my list. I feel like you must be sleeping under a rock to not know how hard they rip. Sometimes when bands get popular, they are just all hype. But that is not the case here. They’ve been putting in the work for well over a decade, and it really shows on this record. A while back, I gave a brief ‘history of’ the band, with their roots dating back to Greensboro, North Carolina. I don’t think Jeff had joined the band when I wrote that, though. This is the first record he plays on and obviously adding Chef Jeff to the equation spiced things up a bit. The packaging on this record is awesome, just as one would expect. I appreciate how the band really intentionally makes sure there are hand-touches with every release, like screen-printed covers, etc. Maybe one day the band will grace BPDT with a record ;)
NUKIES’ Paralysis of Fear 12” is a record that came out pretty recently, and god damn I think it rules. Oddly enough, I don’t think enough of my friends like this record and I don’t understand why. I’ve enthusiastically written about both of their records in staff picks, so you could probably expect to see this 12” in my year-end review. NUKIES are from Stockholm, and I am 99% positive that they worship TOTALITÄR and HERÄTYS just as much as my band does, haha. One of my friends said our bands sound the same, so naturally I took this as a compliment. I mentioned this in my staff pick recently, but I really love the dirge-y track they threw on this one. It really shakes things up. I feel like everyone follows the same formula for having a slower or mid-pace song, and they stand out a bit from the rest with a track like that.
Staying in Stockhkolm, I have included SVAVELDIOXID’s Främmande Samtid Skrämmande Framtid 10”. Unfortunately, we are currently sold out of this one, but I feel like this is one we will restock next time we get stuff from Phobia. SVAVELDIOXID has been around for a long time, like ten years. While their sound has slightly evolved, their roots in traditional käng are strong. They’ve always reminded me of BOMBANFALL, but these days I hear some more death metal influence in their songwriting and I am all for it. I think that 10”s are a pretty unpopular format, so naturally it makes me like this release even more. I like when bands in our world do what they want and go against what is considered ‘cool’ by today’s standards. It hasn’t been properly announced yet, but this year there will be a split with SVAVELDIOXID and DESTRUCT. So sick.
Oh shit, that reminds me of yet another Swedish slab I was stoked on this year, PX-30. It looks like we are currently sold out of this one as well, but hopefully we can restock it from Adult Crash. Adult Crash also released the NUKIES 12”, by the way. PX-30 features a member of HERÄTYS on guitar. Need I say more? Haha. I am so happy we got to share a stage with them in Uppsala and I really look forward to what they record next!
Haha, so that brings me to the GEFYR / RAT CAGE split 7”. GEFYR is yet another Swedish band, while RAT CAGE is from across the pond in Sheffield. I feel like RAT CAGE has veteran status now, with their demo coming out in 2016. RAT CAGE is just one guy in the studio, Bry, and he has been putting in relentless work. The RAT CAGE sound has certainly evolved, but goddamn it stays unbelievably ripping. They were also on the Screaming Death compilation that Jeff and I released on BPDT. I really hope to catch them live one day. We played with GEFYR in Uppsala, the same gig with PX-30. Playing Uppsala is so cool to me. I know it’s just some nerd shit and not many people would care at all, but it is a historical place to me for hardcore punk. GEFYR is from a few hours north though, in Hudiksvall. Jeff and I heard them on their debut 12” and got really blown away. Jeff and I released this split 7” on BPDT. Again, it is probably tacky for me to have this one in my year-end review, but I don’t care. We operate a small label, and obviously I was super stoked on it since we released it in the States.
Alright, I just have a few more to mention and I am late for the submission date on this haha. YELLOWCAKE released a monstrous 7” this year entitled A Fragmented Truth. I thought their first 7” was good, but holy shit this one is really next level. I know they aren’t doing anything that hasn’t been done before, but the delivery hits so hard. We were lucky enough to have them in Raleigh, and they hold down that intensity live without a doubt. I remember when I wrote about them in a staff pick I mentioned how even though they don’t do anything that’s super crazy, I really appreciate how they don’t box the sound completely in with things I’d expect. On this record, they did several things I did not expect, things that wouldn’t typically ‘fit’ in this style, but they executed it well, and with authenticity. I can’t wait for their next record!
Next, I will write about ZORN, another Sorry State release from 2024. These guys have played here more times than I can count now, haha. It never gets old, though. Honestly, I think they just get better and better. Seeing them live really does it for me. I know they are gimmick-y with the coffin and chains, but if you stripped them of this stuff, the music would still rage so hard. They are so tight and locked in, it’s amazing. I am not really a fan of this style of music I guess, the metal-punk shit, but ZORN is a chart-topper in my book. If for some reason the gimmicks pushed you away from them and you haven’t checked this record out, please do cos I think it’s awesome.
Finally, I have saved the best for last with the LIFE / DESTRUCT split 12”. Just kidding. (Kind of.) The first press of this record sold out fast as hell, and for good reason. Luckily, Desolate put it right back in print. LIFE’s tracks on this record are absolutely nuts. They recorded at Noise Room and it sounds fucking awesome. The drums are compressed in this perfect way; it reminds me of the 90s/00s crasher sound but even better. DESTRUCT delivers some of their most intense tracks yet. That is probably no coincidence since they just appeared on a split with these Japanese crust veterans. I’ve talked about DESTRUCT so much, and I probably always will. I don’t think their style is for everyone, but I have yet to meet someone who has seen them live and doesn’t think they rip beyond belief. These guys stay super busy, and I know they’ve got some great stuff already planned for the year.
Alright, I think that about covers everything. I didn’t talk at all about record scores of the year. I certainly grabbed a lot of shit, and there are a few that come to mind as scores of a lifetime. Maybe I will write about that next week or something. It’s really cool how much Sorry State has grown over the years, and I am so grateful for my job here. We could not maintain an operation without the support of all of you. Thanks so much for support over the years. I hope we can all get something good out of 2025. I hope we can find the light at the end of this dark tunnel. Much love to everyone.