Birds In Row play at the dirtier end of the hardcore pool, with a sludgy, noisy sound that is full of hooks. While not quite as discordant as noisecore, their sound is distinct enough to draw the interest of people who like their hardcore offbeat and raging.

Opener “Among The Ashes” mines a dirge-like groove, until it detonates two minutes in and continues its frantic pace until it ends. “Word Of Astaroth” mines a pummeling mid-paced bass and drum groove before the guitars kick with their noisy, angular viciousness, while “Ace Of Fools” is an up-tempo, frantic number. The band throws the listener a curveball with “Cottbus Outro,” in that it relies on acoustic guitar, handclaps, and stomping percussion to obtain an edgy, old-time blues appeal. The interestingly titled “Die, Testosterone, Die!” rages, while “Phoenix” breaks into fiery bursts of energy to close out the set.

At present, the band is recording a full length, so it’s worth discovering (or rediscovering) this band with this reissued and repackaged set. It contains some urgent and excellent music, and the deluxe packaging is the cherry on top.

(Vitriol Records, 6015 Sheridan Way, Buena Park, CA 90620)

• Heavy Cream by Leigh Metzler

• Odd Future by Suzi Pratt

• Atari Teenage Riot by Mat Hayward

• Bumbershoot by Mat Hayward

• Pentagram by Mat Hayward

• Pentagram by Mat Hayward

• Devo by Leigh Metzler

• Peelander-Z by Shahab Zargari

• Yeasayer by Dave MacIntyre

• Amon Tobin\'s ISAM Live by Heather Schofner

• Monotonix by Chad Elder

• Title Fight by Chad Elder

• Occupy Wall Street by Jammi York

• Lily Verlaine Burlesque by Mat Hayward

• The Kills by Cayte Nobles

• Matt and Kim by Suzi Pratt

• Lemuria by Diana Guay

• Dum Dum Girls by Leigh Metzler

• The Joy Formidable by Cayte Nobles

• Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros by Kevin Rafter

• New York Food Film Fest by Ryan Howell

• Primus by Kris Arnold

• Rage Against the Machine by Suzi Pratt

• The Sounds by Cayte Nobles

• Queens of the Stone Age by Cayte Nobles

• Secret Chiefs 3 by Kris Arnold

• Sick of It All by Peter Borghard

• Tamaryn by Timothy McLaughlin

• The Tubes by Mat Hayward

• Dropkick Murphys by Mat Hayward

• The Devil Wears Prada by Elizabeth McClay

• Mirah by Heather Schofner

• The Jukebox Romantics by Peter Borghard

• Wild Flag by Cayte Nobles

• Yelle by Mat Hayward

Check out some of the amazing photography we’ve featured this year! Impressive, to say the least.

So here you have two versions of the same record to pick over. Disc one has the rawer, more “punk” rock mix — murkier than the version on disc two, which has vastly improved sonic clarity. Personally, I prefer the rawness of disc one, though which mix you favor will depend on your opinion of what a hardcore recording should sound like.

Regardless, this is a seminal piece of hardcore. Coalesce were on the more “arty” and experimental side of the 1990s hardcore equation, trailblazing new and interesting ways to pummel you into submission.

There are Sean Ingram’s vocals — more than just shouting, at times he sounds like a wounded bear, and gets even more interesting when he breaks into one of his David Yow-esque tortured vocal turns. He comes off sounding more like a tortured loner than someone who is a cheerleader for the scene. Guitarist Jes Steineger plays notes in odd time signatures, and is not above tossing some good old fashioned feedback-laden grenades into the mix. This style made Coalesce darker, dirtier, and far more interesting than many of their peers who were doing the cookie-cutter “chugga-chugga” breakdown thing. Coalesce must have seem like they came from another planet — I guess for some people, Kansas City is close enough.

This is a great time to pick up this seminal record and revisit the beginnings of one of the true monster bands of modern hardcore. Plus, the CD package includes liner notes from Steineger, which adds perspective to the record.

(Relapse Records, PO Box 2060, Upper Darby, PA 19082)

“Mouth Breather” from PROTECT benefit album

“Have Patience” from Give Them Rope

“Although this is a sad time, we couldn’t be more thankful for all the love and support we received from all of the bands, record labels, publicists, distribution companies, and hardcore, punk, and metal fans from all over the world,” says Mitchell in a released statement. “Without your strong support we wouldn’t have been able to make it as far as we did.”

The 11th issue remains unreleased. It was to have featured stories on Slayer, Megadeth, and Testament from their 2010 tour. According to Mitchell, potential plans of releasing a digital version of the issue remain uncertain.

There’s no room for irony in rock and roll — I wish someone had told that to the bands in Austin for South by Southwest last March. It was the last Saturday of the festival, and I was suffering through a set by some “side project” band on the back stage at the Hole in the Wall. When I finally got up to leave, I was completely bludgeoned by the band on the front stage by the door.

They played their melancholic and poppy hooks heavy, loud, and sludgy. The drummer bashed his kit, and the bass had a punchy, clean tone usually reserved for pop-punk. The front man played fuzzed-out and distorted melodic lines and power chords as he sang his pleas of heartache straight and clean. I had discovered New Orleans’ Lovey Dovies, and they kept me glued in front of the stage for the rest of their set.

The Lovey Dovies were formed in 2009 when singer/guitarist James Hayes asked his friends in the New Orleans punk scene (bassist Isidore “Izzy” Grisoli from Big Baby and drummer Dan Fox from Hatchback) to help him realize his vision and play his songs. After releasing their eponymous debut in 2010, they took to the roads of South America for their first tour. They’ve toured the States a couple of times and they’ve recently expanded their lineup. Dan Fox has moved to second guitar, and Eric Rogers (Empress Hotel) has been recruited to play drums. They’ve sold out of the initial pressing of their first album and are slated to return to New Orleans’ Living Room Studios to begin work on their second.

They were back in Austin recently, debuting their newest lineup and headlining a bill with the Sour Notes at Spider House. We hung out and discussed their influences&direction, their life out on the road, and their enduring friendship and love of music they’ve been playing since high school.

I recently read you guys described online as “hardcore pop.”
Izzy Grisoli: That’s because we wanna play poppy music, and that’s what we’re trying to do, but it’s gonna come off with a hardcore, sludgy, or distorted sound.
James Hayes: A New Orleans sound to it, yeah.
Izzy: We’re from New Orleans. We’ve seen a shitload of Eyehategod shows, you know, just a ton of metal and punk all around.
James: In New Orleans its jazz, metal or…nice, really “pretty” indie rock stuff, and we have nothing to do with any of those things.
Izzy: As far as musical intent, we have nothing to do with those things, but [it does influence us]. We’re like dudes that listen to REM but hang out with the Melvins.

James, I hear a real vulnerability in the way you sing, [the way] your lyrics [interact] with the melodies. And that vulnerability comes off as strong; it comes off authentic when it’s in the middle of all that tumultuousness and sludge. It’s not sappy.
Dan Fox: Well, that shit’s just real. You know, James lives a pretty intense life and the rest of us do, too, just doing things like going to South America and touring. To a certain extent, that just comes from how we live. That shit’s not made up or anything.
James: I really don’t like it when bands, like, sing about just fucking bullshit, stuff that isn’t really real, [just forming] words that fit together and sound nice and that’s basically it. I don’t see why you can’t just say what sucks about your life in an eloquent and cool way.
Izzy: Like the song “Comfort Zone” — written on tour about being vulnerable outside of your comfort zone. It’s interesting that you bring it up; we are vulnerable because of our intensity. We get up in front of a bunch of people that have never heard us before, we play way too loud, and they all go running outside, dressed so nice. We just wanted them to stay in and hang out with us, make us feel cool. No, they leave and then we’re on our fucking own in a strange place, just trying to do what we love. You know, “Sorry we’re too loud.” We don’t know any better — this is the only way we can feel it.
James: We’re not a metal band, and we’re definitely not a punk or a hardcore band.

The only way I would compare you to punk rock is in spirit.
James: That’s the founding issue. How do we grow old and be “punk” and not bore ourselves to death with punk rock music? Because I don’t wanna play that.

The new lineup probably gives your melodies and singing more room.
James: Having a second guitar player just opens up the songs so much more, and it gives me more space to sing. I can pay more attention to the crowd and be more involved.
Eric Rogers: It gives me the opportunity to play with an intensity that I haven’t played with in a long time. It’s a lot of fun, and it’s a new experience for sure. I think James is a great songwriter.
Dan: What’s funny is Eric said he hasn’t played music like this since high school, and we never stopped playing the music that we played in high school. We’re pretty much still there.

Well, James, you spent your childhood in Chile, so when it came time to tour, you called your friends and booked the first Lovey Dovies tour in South America.
James: The South American tour was great. It was probably [one of] the most emotionally rewarding experiences I’ve ever had. It’s so different from the States. I was super pleased and honored to be playing for kids that had never seen an American band in their tiny, shit-ass, Argentinean barrio town ever before, and they loved it. We got to play community centers packed with kids, and kids were just stoked. They loved it.
Dan: Chile is a young country. There are a lot of young people, and they’re totally into rock music in a very unpretentious and unjaded way. I think in the States, a lot of people are just kind of over it. When you get to South America it’s almost like it’s 1992 or something.
Izzy: At this one show we played, there were girls screaming like it was a Beatles concert or something. Simultaneously, a massive pit started, and they just picked me up and I crowd surfed while playing bass.

From hanging out with you guys and watching you play, [it's obvious] there’s so much love there. You guys are good friends and have been for a long time.
Dan: We might get home and go to the bar and hang out. I know that’s special, when you can come back from a tour and still want to hang out.
Izzy: You just have to not stop being fucking friends. Anybody who says, “Hey, you’re an asshole. I’m not gonna be your friend anymore” is an asshole.

The album is really true to your live sound. Are you recording the next album in the same studio, Living Room Studios?
James: Everything we’ve done, ever, has been recorded there, and I don’t think that’s ever gonna change. I don’t see any need for it to.

What’s next for the Lovey Dovies?
James: We’re gonna go home and put out a really great record and just tour for two years straight.

The country?
Izzy: Which country?
James: Yeah, which country?

—

Jim Trainer is a singer/songwriter and freelance writer living and playing in Austin, TX. He can be reached at jimtrainer.net. Read more at jimtrainer.wordpress.com.

Dischord Records have come along way in  their 30-plus years in business, and Subject To Change is a refreshing take on the label and the intricate reworkings of the punk genre.

(Dischord Records, 3819 Beecher St. NW, Washington, DC 20007-1802)

Compared to some of the more established bands in the scene, Void was more chaotic and disorganized.  Void was not the most innovative hardcore artist of the era, but as one of the early imitators their sound still contained a bit of novelty.  In their later days they began to show a greater influence of metal in their music.  This was around the same time that Black Flag was producing My War.  Like My War, Void’s place in music history is perhaps most notable for their influence on the genres of sludge metal, crossover thrash, and grunge.

This record, Sessions 1981-83 chronicles Void’s entire career.  It includes their entire first recording session, previously unreleased.  It also contains several unreleased demos and outtakes, along with live tracks.  Most notably, there are multiple incipient versions of songs that became Void’s classics: “War Hero,” “Dehumanized,” and “Black, Jewish, and Poor.”   A cover of Black Flag’s “Wasted” is also quite entertaining.

(Dischord Records, 3819 Beecher St. NW Washington, DC 20007)

• Against Me!

• Against Me!

• Against Me!

• Against Me!

• Comadre

• Comadre

• Former Thieves

• Former Thieves

• Make Do and Mend

• Make Do and Mend

• None More Black

• None More Black

• None More Black

• Paint It Black

• Paint It Black

• Touche Amore

• Touche Amore

Art Hauser covered the 10th anniversary of The Fest for Verbicide and grabbed some great shots of Make Do and Mend, Against Me!, Touche Amore, Paint it Black, None More Black, and more.

(Lovitt Records, PO Box 100248, Arlington, VA 22210-9998)