Triphammer - Demo

I don't have any background information on this release but here is a rip of the Triphammer casette tape Demo in very good quality. Old Salt Lake Hardcore act that put out a cd with Life Sentence Records. Enjoy

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Triphammer - Demo

Lifeless - Demo / 7"

This is a brief history given to me by D. Black the guitarist in the late legendary Salt Lake Hardcore act "Lifeless". These downloads will include the two demo tracks spoken of as the songs "Stomp" and "Opened Up" they were poorly recorded onto cd from a tape a long while back but still very cool to hear, also will include the s/t 7" tracks but i will put the two in separate downloads for those who already have the 7" tracks and just want the "demo" tracks. Enjoy.

Lifeless had been together for a few months and with a few shows, a handful of songs and an offer from Dan @ Life Sentence we decided it was time to record. None of us had a lot of studio experience so we pretty much went with the first place we heard about that we could afford. It ended up being a little studio in some kids house over by Cottonwood Mall. It seemed ok to us at the time but, like I said, non of us knew any better. So with my amp in the laundry room and Taylors amp in a closet or some shit for isolation, we belted out our only official release as a band. The songs were No Time, Darkness and Zero. All lyrics were Al's. I wrote No Time and Taylor wrote Darkness. We both wrote Zero although the original idea was Tays. We went back to the same studio a few months later to record 2 more songs for a comp that someone was putting out. The first was an instrumental which we called "Stomp a Mudhole in Your Ass" It later was referred to as 'Stomp' for obvious reasons. The second song was called "Opened Up" The comp we recorded these songs for never saw the light of day for reasons that escape me... We were so excited just to be putting something out we though it sounded great and people seemed to like it. It didn't take much time and experience to realize that it was a rather crappy recording by many standards. I personally spent years loathing the music and the recording only to rediscover it after 7 or 8 years of never hearing it and realizing the rawness of the recording and the writing of the simple songs were the elements that made it appealing to a lot of people well after we had split as a band. I have since developed a highly refined appreciation for sub standard recordings after realizing that this can give you better understanding about how good the band really is... It is often much more rich and powerful to experience a band that has not been produced to death in a controlled studio environment. Its like seeing them live. The end of Lifeless was fairly sudden and totally unexpected. In February of 1997 we played a show at the Davis Co fair grounds with VOD, Climb and Clear. Seems like there may have been more but i can't recall who. It was a great show other than some gnarly fights broke out and Sean from Clear ended up getting sued because he was considered the promoter. About 2 weeks later Alex went to Denver to see his favorite NHL team, the Avalanche, play and on his way back to SLC with his girlfriend who was driving, he crashed on an ice covered road in Wyoming and crushed 3 vertebrae in his neck and back. That was pretty much that. I had started playing some of our old songs with Rob Hill and Nick Hardy in 1999. I was trying to get something going again with Alexs blessing but it was never able to maintain cohesion and Alex took his own life later that same year. I have current plans to get the old unreleased stuff out so people can hear it. Unfortunately our best stuff was never recorded. Recently I have started playing some of these songs with Rob again and I would like to record them at some point but Im not sure how I will do this. It seems the issue of Alexs voice is source of contention with many old fans but what ever. There will be no reunion of any sorts but I thought it was a shame to never do anything with our good old songs...

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Lifeless - S/T 7"
Lifeless - Demo

Holdstrong

Sorry for the delay in posts been a bit busy with some stuff in reflect but i'm just gonna post some music up right now and then hopefully come back to them sometime with a bit more personal insight on each one of the bands. This band was on Pin Drop Records back in the day and one of my all time favorites coming from this label. This download will include the releases "Nothing In Return" and the rare and hard to find final release from the band "The Color Of Old Memory" which happens to be my favorite release by them. The thing is in the beginning i think Holdstrong had a great sound but they weren't really anything new ya know? I mean i enjoyed the early material but the last album they put out was different, it had a sound totally of its own ihey found there sound and then they ended i think it is outstanding and its still on full rotation from the first time i heard the album 6 years ago. Such a brutal and breathtaking cd I mean the very opening song "Vanity Lay Dead" is so fast and loud Its hard to choose a favorite but if i was to pick one it would probably be the song "Crucible". Download this and Enjoy. Also forgot to mention "The Pursuit In The Face Of Misfortune" 7" is included in the tracks of the "Color Of Old Memory" album starting from the song "Left Outside" and on.

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Holdstrong - "Nothing In Return"/"Color Of Old Memory"

Motive

The history of according to Ryan the guitarist. Motive began in 1995 when Atif [originally on bass] and I (Ryan) [guitar] met Pete [drums] at a Hardcore show at the Huntington YMCA. Atif and I were looking to start a new hardcore band after being exposed to hardcore music in the senior year of our dead end william floyd high school senior year. We instantly clicked with Pete and he really was the perfect drummer as he was tight and played like a machine. Also he was already playing out the short lived LIHC band Derailed. Before playing with Pete, Atif and I played in a violent metal band Crooked Stick who unfortunately broke up. So it was great to meet someone new who was already a good drummer and start up a brand new project. I remember early on, we rehearsed in the Northport basement of of "Maxx the punk" and wrote most of our early tunes. The sound was a mix of old school hardcore with a biting metallic tinge. At first, we tried out friend Macky, but eventually decided to not work with him and kept looking for a vocalist....In walks Al. AL brought with him a wealth of knowledge and hardcore ideology on vocals that immediately fit in with our newly formed "straight edge" version of Motive. [Not Pete- he still smoked butts!] We recorded the first demo "Demonstration" at the old ARTI studio. Shortly after we also recorded 2 songs for the "516 Comp" on None of the Above Records and we instantly were playing shows in the thriving Long Island Hardcore Scene. Next was an ill-fated 7" "Underneath The Principleless Terrain" on the instantly defunct label Bittersweet Records where only 100 copies are said to have made it out into circulation. [The other 900 copies were rumored to have been destroyed.] The recording showcased the first sign of our advancing sound with dissonant chords, a boost of chaotic energy and Jay May at the helm at Outeast Studios. Unfortunately Al Carter (RIP) didn't work out (long long story) with our increasing taste for darker and acidic music and we decided to part ways with him. Somewhere around this time, we were picked up by the NYC label Exit/Wreckage. Atif took over on vocals and unleashed this insane roar that I swear could be heard without a fucking PA! What followed was a return to Outeast Studios and 3 new songs that were regarded by most as Motives finest hour: "A Doctrine of Scripted Torture". The sound was solidfied with a new bassist "Ballpoint" Pete who previously played with the LIHC band "the Motoba Erehwon Conspiracy". Constant intense live shows followed and we kept writing more intense songs. We were eventually tempted by the poisons and Atif and I "sold out" to our drug free life style. This happened to coincide with the release of "I Vs. the Beckoning of Darkness". We injected a huge new influence of technical and progressive metal guitar riffs and drumming with strong and increased dark texture topped off with depressing words of isolation screamed as intensely as possible by Atif. I think this record went over lots of peoples heads, including Wreckage, who hated our guitar solos and metal parts hahaha!. Clearly we made a decision not everyone liked, but back then we were damn proud of our sound because we regarded it as original and pure! We recorded the Album with Davide and Ian love in NYC. It was an awesome experience. I experimented with lots of guitar pedals and Atif had the time to really put alot of work into his vocals. This was the first time we were in a "pro-studio" so the sound sounds a bit "strange" when I listen back. Meaning: not exactly like we sounded live. Anyway, to our surprise, lots of people on Long Island embraced our progressed sound on the record and we played lots of great shows on LI and even a self booked US tour as well! We partied hard and eventually sobriety was now a distant memory. Motive progressed into a equal parts Metal band as much we were a HC band. Unfortunately, Ballpoint who was still sxe, could not tolerate us anymore, and we parted ways with him never to hear from him again. Due to our increasingly drunken/stoned actions and increased unpopular tech/death metal influence most Hardcore Kids wanted nothing to do with these long hair metal heads! After a failed attempt at recruiting a new bassist Ray, the new motive was further solidified with the addition of bassist "Dogmaster" Todd. Todd was a talented metal guitarist-turned-emergency metal bassist from our home town Mastic/Shirley. [also the singer and guitarist in crooked stick] Due to lots of fighting with the people in the LIHC scene we decreased in popularity and less and less people came to see Motive play. Yet.... we still carried on and wrote some of our most advanced songs ever. A harsher darker Motive emerged. We returned to Jay May in Laurel (!) and recorded the great yet unreleased 4 song demo "Fetus Shall Become Ash". Two songs off that "Fetus" demo got released out on some random compilations but eventually [more or less .. this time period is a bit blurry] motive went to sleep and the story fades...

This only includes the "I vs. The Beckoning of Darkness" and "A Doctrine Of Scripted Torture" 7". I was introduced to this band by a good friend of mine and was instantly impressed. I was reminded of a band from the same area called skycamefalling's early material. If your a fan of them you might love this band. Very dark and bitter sound. The first song on the " I vs. Beckoning..." release "The Dormancy Pill" is what caught my attention and i hope it catches yours. Enjoy.

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Motive - I vs. The Beckoning/A Doctrine Of Scripted Torture

Pushing Up Daisies

Posting this for all the local kids who never had a chance to witness the raw power of this band. One of the most unique and intense bands to come from salt lake in my opinion, the melodic yet eerie guitar mixed with pummeling beats and the strange atmosphere created by the keyboard sounds, vocals that just scream pain leave you clenching at your chest, i had the opportunity of seeing them play a few times before they had fallen apart for whatever reason there was. This cd has always been a strong favorite in my collection and i wish more people would have the chance to experience the bands presence. Here's an album review done by "allmusic.com" - "The phenomenally named Pushing Up Daisies hail from Salt Lake City, and their eponymous EP can best be described as new age hardcore (think Dillinger Escape Plan minus a few schizophrenic personalities and a more straightforward sense of songcraft). How else to explain the presence of a keyboard player within a hardcore band? But just when you think Pushing Up Daisies have utterly divested their interests in these hardcore credentials -- and numerous such moments are likely to occur in a short span of any one of their epic-length songs -- they suddenly make their way back to the style's unmistakable cues: raging guitars and screamed vocals. Especially elaborate examples include the two-part "Clipping Cupid's Wings," which starts on a Caribbean beat, explodes into hardcore fury, then relaxes into moody guitar echoes; and the nine-minute colossus "The Perfect Love," which coasts from outright grindcore to a haunting ballad in the span of seconds -- more than once! Opener "Bus Ride" is another highlight, its seemingly innocuous title and occasionally sprightly melodies belying its vicious explosions of anger and chilling lyrics taking you inside the mind of a Jew bound for a concentration camp. Let's just say there's enough variety of sounds going on here (try a theremin!) to keep even the most eclectic listener guessing, and praying for a follow-up. " - Did i mention this cd had some of my favorite album art ever?

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Pushing Up Daisies - Gunslinger EP

Countervail

Countervail was and still is one of those bands i can never just get out of my head the pure energy and compassion felt in the "Most abused Word" release on new age records is just pure bliss, i had the opportunity to see them play there reunion show at the first Coming of Age fest put on by new age and i was blown away, listen to the song "Arrow and Teather" ...just amazing, this is an article done by Skratch Magazine on a brief history of the band. This download will include all releases minus the limited double 7" they did on new age because i dont have anything to rip my records. Enjoy. Countervail started slowly in the late months of 1996 and had already done a full U.S. tour in the summer of 1997 with no releases to rely on. Countervail found great satisfaction in touring and sharing their deeply personal music with people all over the U.S. and Canada. They played over 100 shows in 1999, including a full U.S. and Canada tour, three West Coast tours, and a tour of Hawaii. Using the momentum from their debut EP (Words of War Records) and their second EP "An Empty Hand For A Heart" (Phyte Records), Countervail's strength and popularity as a band continue to grow. Their first full length CD, "The Most Abused Word,"(New Age Records 2000) was recorded with Eric Stenman (Will Haven, Far, Deftones, Training for Utopia) behind the controls. Countervail go beyond labels of hardcore, metal or emo having shared the stage with bands like Converge and Bane. "Countervail uses the metal overtones of Will Haven and Converge with brutally emotional music and vocals that grabs you by the balls."-Skratch Magazine

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Countervail - s-t/emptyhandforaheart/mostabusedword/eventunsheduledlanding

Seventy-Eight Days

Not much information can be found on this band but i feel the need to upload the releases i have of theres. The ex-singer of chokehold owner of Goodfellow records (taken, everytimeidie, seasonoffire) Chris Logan went on to form this band in the late 90's not much longer after chokehold ended. These canadians released a 7"/EP-cd on Trustkill entitled "Revolution Through Anonymity" my favorite release of the two and the final 4 song EP on Chris's label titled "Canvas". SeventyEightDays sound was much different than Chris's previous band, a sort of Snapcase inspired band with heavy but technical guitar riffs. The vocals in this cd kill it for me so much strain and power i was impressed how much emotion i felt listening to it. My favorite song out of both releases would probably be "Passerby" on "Revolution...". I'm not sure if they had a demo or any other stuff put out if anyone knows of any let me know or if you have any of it you could send me that'd be amazing. Otherwise, Enjoy.

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SeventyEightDays - "Revolution Through Anonymity" / "Canvas"