I HATE MYSELF

Band: I HATE MYSELF

Genres: Punk / Rock / Emo / Screamo / Sadness :( / Hardcore / Grunge
Related artists: Die Hoffnung, Burnman, Pung, Gunmoll and Stressface.
Country: Gainesville, Florida USA
Years Active: 1996-2005
Song: "Caught in a Flood with the Captain of the Cheerleading Squad"
Album: "10 Songs"
Year: 1997
Label(s): No Idea Records / Fragil Records / Belladonna
This post's artist is from the September 2014 Mix. This is track #13.
You can download the September Mix#9 right here or get the new October Mix#10 here.
For fans of: Four Hundred Years, Twelve Hour Turn, Die Emperor Die, Toru Okada, Saetia, September, Congratulations, D'Amore and Arrow In Flight aka PROPER SCREAMO.

I've had a fucking shitty week, so this seems like karma Kramer.

So they were dicks, apparently. And yes, the majority of their discography is passable. But when I HATE MYSELF hit their stride, holy fucking shit did they saunter and strut (whilst crying, mind you).

I HATE MYSELF played a very original sounding mid-western almost folky/grungy-sounding screamy hardcore with lots of slower pretty (but sad) parts. The lyrics and vocals really steal the show here, with frontman Jim Marburger's dealing with what sounds like some serious depression and they leave a pretty-yet-obtuse impression on the listener. The crooning sounds like Die Emperor Die mixed with Saetia but with a much better grasp of melody and the screamy parts also mirror those same two bands. The music itself lends more to bands like Twelve Hour Turn, Toru Okada and again Die Emperor Die, which is a lulling, dense and dark post-rock meets post-hardcore kinda deal, Like I said earlier I could (and do) easily bypass a good 75% of their material without a hesitation, but the following songs from the following releases really struck a chord with me over a decade ago and still do:

1996 - 4 Songs "One" and "Three"

1997 - 10 Songs "This Isn't the Tenka-ichi-Bud-Kai" and "Caught in a Flood with the Captain of the Cheerleading Squad"

2000 - 2 Songs "Drama in the Emergency Room" and "Darren's Roof"

Stream all of them with the youtube embeds below.

I think I HATE MYSELF broke up after their 2000 release but got back together to record '3 Songs' in 2005 which is by far the band's blandest material, but then again I dug the their earlier material more. Regardless, I'm sure many people will dig a fair number, if not all of their songs. Grab the discography here. Everything except for the Strikeforce Diablo split was transferred from my vinyls to digital format back in 2003.

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DISCOGRAPHY
Click )==>here<==( to download the band's complete discography in mp3 form.

1996 - 4 Songs 12"EP

1997 - 10 Songs cd/12"LP
1997 - Strikeforce Diablo split 7"

1998 - Twelve Hour Turn split 12"LP

2000 - 2 Songs 7"EP

2005 - 3 Songs 12"EP

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(1996) I HATE MYSELF - "One" (from '4 Songs')

(1996) I HATE MYSELF - "Three" (from '4 Songs')

(1997) I HATE MYSELF - "This Isn't the Tenka-ichi-Bud-Kai" (from '10 Songs')

(1997) I HATE MYSELF - "Caught in a Flood with the Captain of the Cheerleading Squad" (from '10 Songs')

(2000) I HATE MYSELF - "Drama in the Emergency Room" (from '2 Songs')

(2000) I HATE MYSELF - "Darren's Roof" (from '2 Songs')

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I HATE MYSELF out of print mp3 discography download

(download here)

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AHLEUCHATISTAS

Band: AHLEUCHATISTAS

Genres: Punk / Avant-Technical / Improv-Core / Math-Metal / Art-Damage / Noise / Post-Rock / Alternative / Ambient
Related artists: Doom Ribbons and Blind Thorns.
Country: Asheville, North Carolina USA
Years Active: 2003-2012
Song: "Lacerate"
Album: "On the Culture Industry"
Year: 2003
Label(s): Angura Sound / Noseater Failed Industries / Cuneiform Records / Tzadik / Open Letter Records / SAID Records / Gaffer Records / Hello Sir Records / Harvest Recordings
This post's artist is from the September 2014 Mix. This is track #3.
You can download the September Mix#9 right here or get the new October Mix#10 here.
For fans of: The Advantage, Hella, King Crimson, Wishbone Ash, Town Portal, Psyopus, Off Minor and Sacrifice Poles, as well as other crazy instrumental/noise stuff.

The trio and eventual duo that AHLEUCHATISTAS play a very cool instrumental jazz/rock style that only a few other bands can manage, as they straddle melodic mathy parts that will leaving your head spinning alongside mind-numbing weirdness like a goddamn champ. A seasoned veteran who is actually seasoned in cajun. Imagine Mario and Luigi snorting coke and then rocking the fuck out. Seriously take "Rpg2" for example. It's so The Advantage, with an amazing bass riff/spacey start that unfortunately closes out with an actual Mario-esque riff which leaves me salivating on the floor. So my wife will pop on "Al Jazzeera" which picks me up like some French slap in the face with all that chaotic plucking mashed together with some serenading melodies. "Lacerate" is probably my favourite song by the band as it boldly struts into Off Minor/Saetia (aka Jamie Behar) territory with some really cool rolling bass lines and the fantastic dancy/dreamy closing that starts at 1:48 and blasts in with some crazy drums that are layered over yet another amazing bass riff.

To be honest, I didn't know the band had material after the first 2 albums until a few weeks ago and I haven't really delved into those yet, but from what I've personally heard it's way more experimental and less rock, perhaps because of member changes. They are working on a new album and have posted a video from their side project on their homepage here.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2003 - On the Culture Industry cdLP

2004 - The Same and the Other cd/12"LP (download here)
2004 - Friendly Bears split 7"

2006 - What You Will cdLP w/3 live videos

2007 - Even in the Midst... cdLP

2009 - Of the Body Prone cdLP

2010 - FAT32 split 10"

2011 - Location Location cdLP

2012 - Heads Full of Poison cd/2x12"LP

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(2003) AHLEUCHATISTAS - "Lacerate" (from 'On the Culture Industry')

(2003) AHLEUCHATISTAS - "Al Jazzeera" (from 'On the Culture Industry')

(2004) AHLEUCHATISTAS - "Rpg2" (from 'The Same and the Other')

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AHLEUCHATISTAS mp3 download / additional links

'The Same and the Other' cdLP (download here)

Bandcamp

Band Page

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***TOP 20 CANADIAN BANDS that influenced OMSB***

The TOP 20 CANADIAN BANDS that influenced (((((OPENmind/SATURATEDbrain)))))

These are not the best Canadian bands ever to exist or any grandiose and all-encompassing blanket statement like that. These are the bands that influenced my musical direction and therefore led me to where I am today. These were difficult to number because the bands had different influential impacts on my growth with music, some quenched a basic need and others expanded my mind. A few bands on here are very new to me, and I have taken that bias into account.

I have included what I would generally consider to be the bands' defining songs.

If you think I've missed some great Canadian bands, please post them with links below so everyone can check them out. Here we go:

1 Choke

(circa 1999) mathy, snotty, metal-influenced skate punk

2 Propagandhi

(circa 2000) abrasive, metallic, political hardcore w/myriad of vocal stylings

3 Alexisonfire

(circa 2002) mathy and discordant screamo w/clean vocals

4 Van Johnson

(circa 2004) spastic screamo with speedy, melodic and European tinge

5 The Mark Inside

(circa 2003) amazing sassy garage-rock with a heavy/spacey feel - my hometown friends (bias irrelevant!)

6 For The Mathematics

(circa 2005) phenomenal/unknown sassy, mathy post-hardcore/rock At The Drive In worship band...but better (and I have an ATDI tattoo!)

7 Protest The Hero

(circa 2006) metallic/skate-punk turned futuristic hardcore/metal from my bro's friends (bias irrelevant!)

8 Our Lady Peace

(circa 1996) progressive grunge band whose early work is fantastic

9 Buried Inside

(circa 2003) massive amalgamation of everything heavy, mostly post-hardcore, thrash, doom and metal

10 Desiderata

(circa 2007) ridiculously good Q And Not U/ska-influenced screamo with dual vocals

11 Belvedere

(circa 2002) technical skate-punk with dabblings in hardcore and metal

12 Rusty

(circa 1994) dirty, raw punk/grunge with catchy vocals that shift from gruff to clean

13 Moist

(circa 1995) raw grunge from out west, my rock first cassette purchase, led to Nirvana

14 Animal Faces

(circa 2011) angular, dark and danceable screamo 3-piece

15 The Holy Shroud / North Of America

(circa 2005 / 2001) mathy indie/garage rock, both bands shared the same 2 primary songwriters

16 Mare

(circa 2004) the densest, most varied and internationally renowned/influential heavy band Canada has produced thus far

17 Life In Vacuum

(circa 2014) grunge, rock and post-hardcore with sassy screaming and one hell of a rhythm section
The Edge of Boredom or Van Life

18 Titan

(circa 2012) crushing, epic, metal influenced post-hardcore with some sick double bass

19 Congratulations

(circa 2014) my current infatuation with 90s influenced emo/screamo with amazing pop and ambient elements came to fruition with this band

20 Foxmoulder

(circa 2014) amazing dark screamo band/people that are active in putting on shows and running labels

***

Honourable Mentions:

Age of Electric

Atsuko Chiba

Big Dick

Black Love

Chixdiggit

City And Colour

Creeper

Death From Above 1979

Despistado

Grade

Jon Lajoie

Ken Mode

Mahria

Milanku

Moneen

Nous Etions

Rayleigh

Sloan

Tel Fyr

Tempest

Union of Uranus (indirectly)

JUNE PAIK

Band: JUNE PAIK

Genres: Punk / Hardcore / Emo-violence / Screamo / Powerviolence / Ambient / Skramz
Related artists: ?.
Country: Donauwörth, GERMANY
Years Active: 2004-present
Song: "Performers in Handing Out Quietness"
Album: "June Paik 7inch"
Year: 2004
Label(s): Self Released / Sons of Vesta / React With Protest / Parade of Spectres / Forged in Iron / Utarid Tapes / builtonfriendship Records
This post's artist is from the September 2014 Mix. This is track #1.
You can download the September Mix#9 right here or get the new October Mix#10 here.
For fans of: Swan Of Tuonela, Angel Eyes, Totem Skin, City Of Caterpillar, Anger Is Beautiful, Jungbluth, AmenRa, Storm The Bastille, Dolcim, Neil Perry, Joshua Fit For Battle, Under A Sky So Blue, Kodan Armada, Easy Lover, Love Lost But Not Forgotten, Tentacles, Old Soul, Welcome The Plague Year, Battle Of Wolf 359, Ampere, Storm{o} and Tetola93 aka PROPER SCREAMO.

JUNE PAIK is band I got into because of my own enigma of a hero, Adam Ohnono from Quebec. That guy brought his distro to a Hot Cross/Holy Shroud show in Toronto back in 2004 and he recommended The Flying Worker, Ruhaeda and this band to me. I fell in love hard and fast, and still do to this day. It's so heavy and screamy, and then the band breaks out a really thick, dense, atmospheric glaze over the dark/dank instrumental interludes that I would have to describe as doombiance. These Germans are excellent at structuring some long, epic songs with both slow builds and crushing speed. I could go through and describe each song but I can't keep doing that or my baby will starve.

My favourite release would have to be the band's first 7" from 2004 and the succeeding self titled 12" from 2005 (there are 4 self titled releases, so it gets confusing). "Performers in Handing Out Quietness" from the 7" is definitely my favourite JUNE PAIK song, and was obviously the reason I put in on the OMSB mix. Those vocals at the beginning are so throaty and screamy which lead to my favourite slow, dreamy and dark trip before they bang through the next minute and then jump into Joshua Fit For Battle and Neil Perry territory...you know, my favourite territory.

They were also on most of the React With Protest 'Emo' Destruction series with band's doing 30-second songs. I'd say the closest thing out there to JUNE PAIK should you (and you should) have the itch to get similar stuff were the now defunct Angel Eyes (long epic screamo/metal) and newer stuff like Swan Of Tuonela (abrasive and ambient emo-violence). But let's be honest, there's only one JUNE PAIK, and they fucking own. I think a few of the records (the 2013LP, at least) might still be for sale so pick them up. Thier stuff is amazingly packaged and gets rare quick! Oh, and the music is unreal.

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DISCOGRAPHY
Click )==>here<==( to download the band's complete discography in mp3 form.

2004 - Demo cdrLP
2004 - June Paik 7"EP

2005 - June Paik cd/12"LP
2005 - Emo Armageddon 7" comp (contributed "Cocoon")

2006 - Emo Apocalypse 12" comp (contributed "Himmelfahrt")

2007 - Titan split 12"EP

2008 - June Paik 10"EP
2008 - Emo Annihilation 6" comp (contributed "Kriechtierkonvent")

2009 - Discography cassette compilation

2010 - Battle Of Wolf 359 split 7"

2013 - June Paik 12"LP

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(2004) JUNE PAIK - "Performers in Handing out Quietness" (from 'June Paik' 7")

(2004) JUNE PAIK - "Swallow All; It Runs Too Deep" (from 'June Paik' 7")

(2005) JUNE PAIK - "Grobes Rund" (from 'June Paik' 12")

(2005) JUNE PAIK - "Cocoon" (from 'Emo Armageddon' comp")

(2007) JUNE PAIK - "Schlittschuhlaufen" (from 'Titan' split)

(2008) JUNE PAIK - "I" (from 'June Paik' 10")

(2010) JUNE PAIK - "Grenzwert" (from 'Battle Of Wolf 359' split)

(2013) JUNE PAIK - "Traufe" (from 'June Paik' 12")

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JUNE PAIK out of print mp3 discography download / additional links

(download here)

Facebook

Bandcamp

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ATTACK IN BLACK

Band: ATTACK IN BLACK

Genres: Punk / Rock / Indie / Garage / Alternative / Country
Related artists: Daniel, Fred & Julie, Baby Eagle and The Proud Mothers, Marine Dreams, City And Colour, Grey Kingdom, A Day And A Deathwish and Black Lungs.
Country: Welland, Ontario CANADA
Years Active: 2000-2010
Song: "Hunger of the Young"
Album: "Marriage"
Year: 2007
Label(s): Self Released / You've Changed Records / Dine Alone Records / Hassle Records / Zeitstrafe
This post's artist is from the September 2014 Mix. This is track #9.
You can download the September Mix#9 right here or get the new October Mix#10 here.
For fans of: Waxwing, Criteria, Modern Rifles, Canvas, Hot Water Music, The Weakerthans, Make Do And Mend, The Tragically Hip, Sloan, Blue Rodeo, By Divine Right, Odds and City And Colour.

ATTACK IN BLACK sound like what you'd expect Hot Water Music 'A Flight and a Crash'-era mixed with the pop sensibilities of The Weakerthans. I didn't care much for the slow and monotonous 'Years' album (and haven't followed the band since), but 2007's 'Marriage' is an all-around winner in my books. I'm not usually one for country or folk but the slight tinge on this album really compliments the band and the music.

"Come What May" has a strong chorus built around a really good backup vocal line of "but nothing matters and nothing's wrong" is the definition of catchiness. "Young Leaves" has a great "na na na na" chant. "Hunger of the Young" is my choice track and reminds me a lot of a more aggressive Waxing, with really thick instrumentals during the verse with a nice guitar flare and a very engaging chorus. "Inches and Ages" has some great vocal melodies, even during the country as hell part after the 1:30-mark. The title track "Marriage", "Broken Things" and "Husbands" are also more than decent songs worth checking out. The best thing about this album are the vocals. The singer can really go from rough clean to beautiful in a heartbeat. Fantastic.

If you are a fan of radio-friendly rock with a unique twist and bands like The Weakerthans, Modern Rifles, Criteria and Make Do And Mend then check these guys out.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2005 - Attack In Black cdEP

2006 - Widows cdEP
2006 - Northern Towns 7" (all acoustic)

2007 - Marriage cd/12"LP (download here)
2007 - The Curve of the Earth 12"LP

2008 - Fall Tour split 7" (w/Shotgun Jimmie and Ladyhawk)

2009 - Years (by One Thousand Fingertips) cd/2x12"LP
2009 - Baby Eagle split LP

2009 - Fake Love Songs cassette EP

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(2007) ATTACK IN BLACK - "Hunger of the Young" (from 'Marriage')

(2007) ATTACK IN BLACK - "Young Leaves" (from 'Marriage')

(2007) ATTACK IN BLACK - "Come What May" (from 'Marriage')

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ATTACK IN BLACK additional link

Marriage cdLP in .wma format (download here)

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DEERS!

Band: DEERS!

Genres: Punk / Hardcore / Emo / Screamo / Skramz / Emo-violence
Related artists: Matsuri, No Tongue and Megan and Amelia.
Country: California, USA
Years Active: 2007-2011
Song: "Part One"
Album: "Discography"
Year: 2010
Label(s): Bear Records / Unity Through Harmony / Gafas Del Rigor
This post's artist is from the September 2014 Mix. This is track #5.
You can download the September Mix#9 right here or get the new October Mix#10 here.
For fans of: мища, Leer, Birthday Boyz, Wolverines, Logs, Die Emperor Die, Youth Novel, Lion Of The North, Innards, Means To An End, Mustaphamond, Yusuke, D'Amore, Eyes Of Verotika and Caught In The Fall aka PROPER SCREAMO.

DEERS! were an amazing 3-piece band out of the US that flew pretty much under the radar for some odd reason. They played 2 styles that they kinda mashed together, groovin' and bobbin' screamo mixed with crazy мища-esque clusterfucks. Seriously, grab this disco pronto.

Just listen to one song, that's all you need to realize the amazingness of DEERS!. Start with "Part One", as its sugary sweet intro dances and shuffles around for a minute before the dual screams pour down and remind me a lot of Die Emperor Die with a harder edge...maybe Youth Novel? At the 2-minute mark the bass jumps in and the band takes a very Leer approach...although this came out well before Leer. The dual screaming from 2:22-2:36 takes a Birthday Boyz stab at shredding high-pitched back and forth that this guys right is a huge sucker for. Seriously, this song is so fucking good it's damn near perfect.

Oh, and other good songs are "Parts Two and Three", "I Eat Happy Memories" which is much more of an emo-violence track (think Yusuke) during the first half and more like subdued midwestern emo (Die Emperor Die, bam), "Martinez is a Shithole" is a noise track that sounds a hell of a lot like it belongs on an мища record, and finishing with "Failed Missions to the Moon I'm Getting Really Sick of Sand" which is reminiscent of the first song and plays more on dynamics and shifting grooves instead of outright craziness.

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DISCOGRAPHY
Click )==>here<==( to download the band's complete discography in mp3 form.

2008 - Demo cassetteEP
2008 - Matsuri split cd

2010 - 5-Way (w/ColorChromatic, мища, Animal Lover & Pansori split 12"LP

2011 - Discography cassetteLP

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(2010) DEERS! - "Part One" (from '5-Way' split)

(2008) DEERS! - "I Eat Happy Memories" (from 'Matsuri' split)

(2008) DEERS! - "Failed Missions to the Moon I'm Getting Really Sick of Sand" (from 'Matsuri' split)

(2011) DEERS! - "Martinez is a Shithole" (from 'Discography')

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DEERS! out of print mp3 discography download

(download here)

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DANSE MACABRE

Band: DANSE MACABRE

Genres: Punk / Screamo / Emo-violence / Metallic Hardcore / Skramz
Related artists: N/A.
Country: Trier, GERMANY
Years Active: 2001-2010
Song: "Es Ging Mir Schonmal Besser"
Album: "Synkopenleben, Nein Danke"
Year: 2005
Label(s): Electric Human Project / React With Protest / Totenschiff / I've Come For Your Children
This post's artist is from the September 2014 Mix. This is track #8.
You can download the September Mix#9 right here or get the new October Mix#10 here.
For fans of: Virginia On Duty, The Flying Worker, Ravin, Jeromes Dream, Mr. Willis Of Ohio, Gas Up Yr Hearse!, Saetia, Neil Perry, Beau Navire, Mahria, The Truth About Dreaming, La Quiete, June Paik, Utarid, Rayleigh, Loma Prieta, Dispensing Of False Halos, Resurrectionists, A Fine Boat That Coffin, Улыбайся Ветру/Smile To The Wind, A Company Of Heroes, Love Lost But Not Forgotten, Orchid, Killed By Malaise and Am I Dead Yet? aka PROPER SCREAMO.

DANSE MACABRE was a band from Germany that I followed throughout their decade long tenure as a band. In that time they went through many shifts, with the strongest material landing on 2005's 'Synkopenleben, Nein Danke' cd/12"LP that was released on the amazing labels Electric Human Project and React With Protest. They had a lot of material and I can't cover it all so here are some musings on a few of my favourite tracks. Basically, if you dig thick, metallic, screamy hardcore European-style (aka Reach With Protest) with some clean screamo parts akin to Mr. Willis Of Ohio, La Quiete and June Paik. Okay let's go.

"Further Research is Needed" is easily one of the band's best, as it blasts forward right out of the gates and harnesses some deep, screamy as well as back-and-forth vocal work later on ala Virginia On Duty and Joshua Fit For Battle.

"Eine Frage der Opportunitätskosten" has some nifty Portrait-esque guitars layered beneath the heavy layers on top, not unlike Mahria.

"Ich Habe Keine Ansteckende Krandkheit Auber Besoffski" jumps right in with a nifty hardcore intro amid some sweet palm-muted riffage before A Fine Boat That Coffin.

"Gregor" reminds me of older La Quiete before they really settled into grooves and lighter stuff (relatively speaking) like on the LP.

"Ein Eiser Tod" screams Jeromes Dream vocals (ha) and has some great twinkly parts.

Some songs really have a deeper scream going on, such as in "Phoenix", which is blasty European screamy, emotional hardcore. This then bleeds into an awesome 90s midwestern remiriffent (aka reminiscent riff, boo urns, David)  I Hate Myself before delving back in Dispensing Of False Halos territory. "Le Zero et L'Infini" has a serious Dispensing Of False Halos  outro, which is very heavy/metal influenced son of a bitch.

"Es Ging Mir Schonmal Besser" screams Orchid and The Flying Worker and newer stuff like Улыбайся Ветру/Smile To The Wind, Virginia On Duty and Ravin. Really heavy, more technical with much more polished recordings. The part from 1:10 onwards is so The Flying Worker you're going to shit your pants, if you like that band..or awesome European screamo with a bit of synths.

"Syntax Error" is another song that layers a cool, melodic riff under screaming and heavy riffage. Such a good song. Screamo enthusiasts that haven't heard this band should be losing their minds at this point.

All in all, they weren't the greatest band in the world  but they definitely left us with some amazing songs and cool releases. Grab that complete discography yo. Where? Here.

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DISCOGRAPHY
Click )==>here<==( to download the band's complete discography in mp3 form.

2002 - Die Kritik Ist Keine Leidenschaft Des Kopfes... 7"EP

2003 - Killed By Malaise split 7"
2003 - Sounds of Awareness comp cassette (contributed "Untitled")

2005 - Synkopenleben, Nein Danke cd/12"LP
2005 - The Emo Armageddon comp 7" (contributed "Merci Beaucoup, Warenform")

2006 - Her Breath On Glass split 7"picdisc

2007 - Am I Dead Yet? split 7"

2009 - Einerseits/Andererseits 10"EP/LP?

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(2009) DANSE MACABRE - "Further Research is Needed" (from 'Einerseits/Andererseits')

(2006) DANSE MACABRE - "Ich Habe Keine Ansteckende Krandkheit Auber Besoffski" (from 'Her Breath On Glass' split 7")

(2005) DANSE MACABRE - "Syntax Error" (from 'Synkopenleben, Nein Danke')

(2005) DANSE MACABRE - "Es Ging Mir Schonmal Besser" (from 'Synkopenleben, Nein Danke')

(2002) DANSE MACABRE - "Ein Eiser Tod" (from 'Die Kritik Ist Keine Leidenschaft Des Kopfes...')

(2002) DANSE MACABRE - "Phoenix" (from 'Die Kritik Ist Keine Leidenschaft Des Kopfes...')

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DANSE MACABRE out of print mp3 discography download

(download here)

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HANK CHINASKI

Band: HANK CHINASKI

Genres: Punk / Post-Rock / Post-Hardcore / Post-Metal / Emo / Screamo / Hardcore / Doom / Ambient
Related artists: N/A.
Country: Jersey, Channel Island, UNITED KINGDOM
Years Active: 2013-present
Song: "Clown Shoes (Déjà Blues)"
Album: "Tales of Extraordinary Sadness"
Year: 2014
Label(s): Self Released
This post's artist is from the September 2014 Mix. This is track #12.
You can download the September Mix#9 right here or get the new October Mix#10 here.
For fans of: Hopesfall, The Solo Project, Hum, Arktika, Amber, Arcana Cain, Deftones, Milanku, Kaddish, Envy, Continents, Watch For Wolves, Okktonushi and Black Love.

In the last year and a half I've probably received about, ohhhh I don't know, maybe 150 submissions or so. I've posted a bunch (maybe 50-75) on the Zegema Beach Records/OMSB-Talent page (linked here) but only 4 or 5 (at most) have ended up on here thus far. HANK CHINASKI is one of those rare few bands (a 3-piece) that really grabs my attention. Sometimes it's because the style of music is something I crave (yep, you guessed it, European screamo) but this was because it was very different and combined a lot of interesting elements. And it's a fucking demo. Tom, thanks a million for sending this in.

"Horsebite (Tales of Extraordinary Sadness)" is a very two-faced song that switches between dreamy post-rock/alternative with shrill screaming and post-hardcore with clean singing. The singing has real potential and once the vocalist can really put oomph into the upper register parts might garner some serious attention. The melodic stuff here is still decent, but sounds a little flat at times. The screamy chorus is really good and very catchy, along with a really sweet guitar riff. The song is pretty long (almost five minutes) but the next song almost hits the 7-minute mark.

"Punching Inanimate Objects" is a very slow and dreamy affair. You can really pick up on the accent here, and I love it. There are parts that have vocals and instrumentals that should hook some Jesu fans. As strong as this track is for me, this song is still ranks last for me on the EP, but that's sayin' something.

This song is "Clown Shoes (Déjà Blues)", the best song on the EP that follows a different approach with slow, plodding post-rock and post-hardcore that reflects bands such as Hopesfall, Amber, Arktika and good 'ole The Solo Project. The vocals on this song have zero clean parts and are therefore all screamed with a tinge of batness. Yep, batness. Y'know how some vocalists have that high, shrill scream that sounds like a vampire, bat or banshee? Of course you do. Crestfallen, Converge, Mare, Between The Buried And Me and (early and still shitty) Avenged Sevenfold kinda deal. The way the vocals and lyrics jump and interplay instead of a swim a monotonous stream brings Kaddish to mind, as both can shift their timing around to make screaming pretty goddamn catchy and memorable.

I actually forgot that I reviewed this after hearing it once or twice. Read my initial reaction here.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2014 - Tales of Extraordinary Sadness EP (stream/free download here)

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(2014) HANK CHINASKI - "Horsebite (Tales of Extraordinary Sadness)" (from 'Tales of Extraordinary Sadness')

(2014) HANK CHINASKI - "Clown Shoes (Déjà Blues)" (from 'Tales of Extraordinary Sadness')

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HANK CHINASKI additional links

Bandcamp

Facebook

OMSB Talent Review

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