xclaim records. x-4 / 10 tracks / 1983

RI (CD): taang. 176 / 11 tracks / 2006

+ lyric sheet. Reissued on Wolfpack LP. Feat. Dave Smalley (later in Dag Nasty and All). Cover art by Dicky Barrett (Impact Unit, Mighty Mighty Bosstones). No pressing info but I’ve heard both 1000 and 2000 copies, that range sounds reasonable. 2006 CD reissue on Taang with original title, sleeve art and one bonus track (“Wolfpack” from their previous reissue).

Boston classic, and one of my all-time favorites. Brutal hardcore with incredibly powerful guitars and vocals. Dave Smalley’s singing is a lot throatier than on his later recordings with Dag Nasty or All, sounds more like Choke of Slapshot. First side is slower and rocking, B side is fast and furious. If you’ve ever thought about putting an X on your hand there’s no way around this. [10]

Einer der Höhepunkte des leider viel zu kurzlebigen XClaim-Labels aus Boston; harter, schleifender Straight-Edge-Core mit dem brillanten Dave Smalley (später bei Dag Nasty & ALL) am Mikro, der damals noch dem gutturalen Boston-Sound a la Choke verschrieben war. Die erste Seite ist eher verhalten und zum Moshen, auf der zweiten geht’s dafür flotter zur Sache. Tracks wie “Limits” oder “Brotherhood” machen diese Platte einfach zu einem Klassiker, auch wenn sie nur 13 Minuten lang ist. Phantastisch.

Tracks: open up / more than fashion / circle storm / city to city / (the girl’s got) limits // brotherhood / yellow / stand proud / insurance risk / escape