ENCORE FOU

Band: ENCORE FOU
Genres: Punk / Hardcore / Emo / Screamo / Skramz
Related artists: Cracsi Acidi, I Fichissimi, I Treni All'Alba, Rudimentiand, Cornucopia, Molto Rumore Per Nulla, Disco Drive, and His Clancyness.
Country: Turin / Aosta ITALY
Years Active: 1999?-2001?
For fans of: Carol, Acme, One Eyed God Prophecy, Lost Kids, Akephal, Hamilton, Lakme, Union Of Uranus, and Neuman Portentum.
Label(s): Shove Records

     Originally released on cd in 2000, this five-piece Italian band recently had their full length 'Il Numero Undici' reissued and remastered on vinyl and cassette. The original release was Shove Records' second release, and if you don't know Shove Records you should get on that. With ZBR I only trade with maybe 4-5 labels, and they are definitely one, as they put out incredible/obscure stuff that I would be completely unaware of if it wasn't for them. That being said, 12" order plug -> ZBR U.S.A. / Canada+International / Shove Records (Europe)

     The album is quite decent and holds up as a cool hardcore/screamo/Bremen mixture that most screamo people will enjoy. Opener "Crocifisso in sala mensa" begins with a spooky audio clip intro that transitions halfway through to One Eyed God Prophecy worship and includes a bangin' final 30 seconds. If you want the band's sounds in a single track then "Terra" is what you need, as hardcore, Bremen nods, and screamo are all encapsulated on this jam. "Cotidie Mori" has a lot more variety and melodic undertones, most likely due to a two-note guitar wail, and definitely has more in common with early 2000s screamo than the Bremen hardcore heard on preceding two jams. "Il modo, il motivo, il fine" clocks in at a mere 1:47 but the introduction to the song alone should give you a good feel for the explosiveness to come because this is definitely not an instrumental interlude, it's a fucking banger. "L'una o l'altra" rides a righteous bass riff and is more of a basic hardcore track than anything else. "Uomo qualunque" returns to the Bremen hardcore sound that is both dark and dirty. "Due grammi di rivoluzione" is probably the most powerful and densest song the band ever wrote and it even includes dual vocals. Closer "Ogni mio gesto" might be my favourite of the bunch with slightly progressive and very epic instrumentals mixed with their most urgent of screams, and a cool/weird droney midsection that really adds an aura of mystique.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2000 - Il Numero Undici cdLP

2022 - Il Numero Undici (remastered) cassette/12"LP [buy from ZBR in the US here / Canada+International here / Shove Records in Italy here]

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(2000/2022) ENCORE FOU - "Ogni mio gesto" (from 'Il Numero Undici')

https://youtu.be/AlTOxk1zKsY

(2000/2022) ENCORE FOU - "Il modo, il motivo, il fine" (from 'Il Numero Undici')

https://youtu.be/eSob16Ie6jU

(2000/2022) ENCORE FOU - "Due grammi di rivoluzione MAYBE PUT THIS 1st" (from 'Il Numero Undici')

https://youtu.be/ugdn2-48o4c

(2001) ENCORE FOU - live

https://youtu.be/ZICD5cXpdaQ

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ENCORE FOU additional links

Bandcamp (Shove Records)

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*** TELOS 'Delude' exclusive album premiere ***

TELOS

'Delude'
exclusive album premiere

For fans of: Hexis, We Are Among Storms, Demersal, Malevich, Plebian Grandstand, Rorcal and I Am A Curse

Bandcamp
Facebook

Orders open on March 18th at 4am PST / 6am CST / 7am EST
via

Tomb Tree, Head Records, Vinyltroll Records, Pasidaryk Pats Records, Nothing to Harvest Records, 5FeetUnder Records, and Maniyax Records.

     So I've been following TELOS for a few years now and have collaborated with members through other projects, primarily Demersal and Regarding Ambiguity. When my friend Viktor Ravn from the former sent me the new TELOS album I was definitely caught off guard as I knew it was going to be good, but good lord this is beyond good. This is amazing. An easy early entry into the best of 2023 category.

     Viktor even gave me a few words about the album to post with this review:

‘Delude’ has been in the works since 2019 and was worked on throughout the pandemic. While writing the album we went through a big line-up change, and had to re-invent our way of writing as a group and our way of being in a band together. We wanted to keep the raw and chaotic energy that the band always stood for, while simultaneously embracing new sounds and styles that the new faces brought to the table. I would say that ‘Delude’ is even darker and aggressive than our previous releases but also way more emotional and melodic at times. It’s definitely the most diverse record that we have released thus far. Circumstances out of our hands kept pushing the release back repeatedly, but now it's finally coming and we're really excited to finally get it out and into the hands of people around the world.

    'Delude' mixes raging hardcore, black metal, and some of the deepest, darkest, heaviest, blackened shit I've ever heard. Imagine Hexis' violent and unstoppable barrage with the weight and epicness of I Am A Curse and you'll be in the ballpark. It releases tomorrow March 18th at 12pm Danish time (which 4pm PST / 6pm CST / 7am EST) on grey (and release show exclusive red) 12"s and three very rare cassette variants.

(2023) TELOS  'Delude'

https://youtu.be/goeivvWZKE8

1 - "Within Reach"
The opener begins with isolated guitar that sounds like you're about to get a face-full of black metal, only to dip in and out of cavernous, blackened, metallic hardcore with multiple vocalists and one helluva harrowing conclusion.

2 - "Bastion"

This was the lead single from this album so you've likely already been smacked in the head by it, as the heavy/chunky nature of the instrumentals combined with those incredibly versatile vocals is a recipe for destruction.

3 - "Never Me" (music video linked here)

The third track and second single is another shot to the throat, boasting throat-wrenching screams and pulverizing stop/starts that made this a no-brainer to release before the album with an equally jarring and disorienting music video.

4 - "I Accept / I Receive

Normally the longest track goes at the end, but the band has a very clear plan in mind and that's blatantly obvious once you officially finish the album. Because of that, I love the placement on this behemoth with no unnecessary filler. If I may liken the song to a prodigious great white shark (and I think I can), the first two-thirds is the teeth, all sharp, violent, gnashing, and bloody, whilst the last third has a slower Eyes/Ken Mode/Converge feel that simultaneously grooves and thrashes around like a tailfin.

5 - "I've Been Gone For So Long"

The band comes back to the gas pedal at the beginning of the b-side which has a distinctive Denmark style (yes, I'm looking at you Hexis) with a rager that pushes the four-minute mark and includes very interesting/amazing instrumentals that would ruin people in a live setting.

6 - "Lapse"

The second shortest, but fastest, and angriest song here is "Lapse" and it's easily one of my faves. If  I may pull out another analogy, TELOS writes music that is a tightly packed snowball. That shit can smash windows and fuck you up if you get a head shot. Now imagine that snowball shrunk down to an ice-ball. Absolutely lethal.

7 - "As Atlas Stumbled"

The penultimate closer begins as the softest, most subdued track with an isolated guitar that quickly picks up and collides with the remaining members. This song in particular shows the band evolving with further experimentation on instrumentals within the band's own sphere of heaviness but maintains utterly crushing sound that is TELOS.

8 - "Throne"

What the fuck? Talk about an all-emcompassing, epic, progressive, and just plain phenomenal conclusion to a spotless album. This closer goes full-on in their shift to a remarkable, epic second-half that weaves a wonderful melodic riff through it like a helix from a dna strand. A cherry on top, this song is the perfect ending.

ADDITIONAL LINKS & WHATNOT

Metal Epidemic video review

https://youtu.be/m0teZ7cdH_k

"Helios" music video

https://youtu.be/1wyuz9irzJE

"Immersed In Green" music video

https://youtu.be/WcS_H1tgIyo

PODCAST #112 Hetta

     What was my favourite release of 2022? Well it was HETTA's 'Headlights' of course! After releasing it on tape I hooked up with them again for a brand new thing coming out in less than a month. Then the entire band did a podcast with me. So that's where we're at. I love HETTA. Holy shit. Also in this podcast: the difficulty of finding a band name and the meaning of "hetta", an At The Drive In tangent, the effects of Led Zeppelin and Guns'N'Roses, the formation of HETTA, peculiar hiatuses, 'Headlights' reception and the Bandcamp Daily feature, how much is too much for digital releases?, the brand new 4-way split that releases April 10th and how the songs differ from the debut EP, the Life In Vacuum split that almost happened, what's next, etc. Bands played in this podcast: Bain De Sang, Borf, Bright Calm Blue, Fuyajoh, Hallam Foe, I Have Feelings, Linger, and The Only Traces Left Of Sunken Ships. Listen to podcast #112 which is available to stream and/or download for free via this link.

HETTA

Bandcamp
Facebook

1 Two Sides of Punk

BORF "State" (Simão)

BAIN DE SANG "death trap" (Dave)

2 The Formation of Hetta

I HAVE FEELINGS "Fuegote" (João)

FUYAJOH "Blue Gaze" (Dave)

3 'Headlights' Reception

LINGER "Grave Pact For The Meek" (João)

HALLAM FOE "Kemungkinan Mungkin Memungkinkan" (Dave)

4 The New 4-Way Split!!!

THE ONLY TRACES LEFT OF SUNKEN SHIPS "I Always Die At The End" (Alex)

BRIGHT CALM BLUE "A Tongue to Taste [demo version]" (Dave)

~Dave

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PODCAST #112 linked here

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*** PODCAST #111 Drew Slavik (See You Next Tuesday) ***

     SEE YOU NEXT TUESDAY (known as SYNT for the rest of this post) returned just last week with a brand new record after a decade-long release silence. So speaking to founding member/guitarist Drew Slavik was a no-fuck-brainer. To hear the trajectory of his life leading up to and obviously including SYNT is a helluva journey. I wanted to note that it's extra cool to have a podcast with someone you've never talked to and come out of it with a new friend, as is definitely the feeling I have here. Thanks Drew!!! Also in this podcast: too much snow and being a postal worker, metal over hardcore, second-wave of myspace, Botch reunion, praising Victor Wooten and the double-thumb, double saxophone solos, pre-SYNT bands Alagon and Point Of Delay, learning guitar, the beginning of SYNT, signing to Ferret, personal and stylistic shifts, getting dirty, dominos of shit leading to hiatus, screamo crossover and props to Envy, overcoming demons and swimming in sobriety, future plans, etc. Bands played in this podcast: Billy Strings, Louise Cyphre, Manelli Jamal, Trauma Bond, Venns, and Wiegedood. Listen to podcast #111 which is available to stream and/or download for free via this link.

SEE YOU NEXT TUESDAY
Bandcamp
Facebook
FFM linktree

1 I hear something simple in something that is complex.

BILLY STRINGS "Turmoil & Tinfoil" (Drew)

MANELI JAMAL "Mov. I - Norym" (Dave)

2 Musical Circus

TRAUMA BOND "A Hollow Bed Awaits" (Drew)

VENNS "Foul" (Dave) -> music video linked here!!!!!!!!!!!!

3 In the Ferret Nest

WIEGEDOOD "Carousel" (Drew)

LOUISE CYPHRE "Never Stop" (Dave)

4 'Distractions' From Demons
~no music

~Dave

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PODCAST #111 linked here

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KING'S GIRLS

Band: KING'S GIRLS
Genres: Punk / Hardcore / Post-Hardcore / Emo / Screamo / Skramz / Emo-violence

Related artists: Frail Hands, Bluebird, Proper Suggestions, Unreal Thought, Washing Machine.

Country: Halifax, Nova Scotia CANADA
Years Active: 2013-2014
For fans of: Blind Girls, Pique, Sometimes Walking Sometimes Running, Tunes For Bears To Dance To, Heisse, Hawak, Matsuri, Innards, Conrad Veidt, Caught In The Fall, Eyes Of Verotika, Cape Light, Angry Son, 5000, Beau Navire, (early) Loma Prieta, Jeromes Dream, Senza, Commuovere, Aokigahara and Gossip.

Label(s): Self Released / Parking Lot Records / Pint Sized Records / Aught Void

    KING'S GIRLS made a quick entry and exit from the screamo/emo-violence scene back in 2013-2014 when this blog first began, so I've been well aware for quite some time, but after failing to get an okay to do a discography tape I think it's time to share the band through this medium instead.

    The four-piece play jangly, noodley, playful, feedback-soaked, screamy, emo-violence jams over two EPs. The early stuff from 'Numbers' is much more shrieky emo-violence with the final EP 'King's Girls' being closer to Matsuri, Tunes For Bears To Dance To, and Pique. The latter even has a Death Note reference.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2013 - Numbers cassetteEP (stream/donate/download here)

2014 - King's Girls digitalEP (stream/donate/download here)

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(2014) KING'S GIRLS - "jake" (from 'King's Girls')

https://youtu.be/eg0BfZpXbfI

(2014) KING'S GIRLS - "shinigami" (from 'King's Girls')

https://youtu.be/CIE2YNiLBM0

(2014) KING'S GIRLS - "5-10" (from 'King's Girls')

https://youtu.be/PKsYbgtt3DA

(2013) KING'S GIRLS - "VII" (from 'Numbers')

https://youtu.be/Hqg6KK0LQBg

(2013) KING'S GIRLS - "IV" (from 'Numbers')

https://youtu.be/tYkgOXnyHns

(2013) KING'S GIRLS - "V" (from 'Numbers')

https://youtu.be/QhFLYe8z99k

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