Why new years is awesome

It's nearly xmas but more importantly it's nearly new years! so I thought why not tell all you people why it's way more important and why you should DEFINATLY party on new years eve

Don't be all 'ooooww i thought all your posts were of important things' THIS IS IMPORTANT when has letting loose and causing mischeif never been an important thing to do? all year round were told how to behave, how to spend our money, what manners to have and how to talk to people and the world has this one day that is accepted as the norm, where all of that goes out the window!
pretty much everything goes on new years unless your a dick and the dick population is a small one, and if one of them say...... a member of the police and they try to stop you or does stop you then you've just been unlucky, actually saying 'try to stop you' is an awesome thing in itself because you've managed to get away and so is now funny instead of lame like getting caught!
getting caught doing what you say? getting caught doing whatever the fuck you want, run down the street naked, crash house parties, piss on peoples things, meet people you dont even know and let them take you to a party, kiss girls/men, steal peoples shit, vandalise peoples stuff and if your the one whos getting vandalised or stolen of then allow it becouse its the new year fool! just steal and vandalise someones else's shit to continue the cycle

don't try to apply logic to this, dont anaylise everything i just said in the last paragraph, i was just listing things thats happend to me/friends on new years over the years! I know it sounds primitive but who cares, celebrate your life, another year under your belt that you've been lucky enough to experience, if its been a bad year then fuck it celebrate how good the new ones gunna be! sure if the world did run on this mindstate all year round it would probably be too much of a crazy place to live BUT it dosn't so just go nuts for one day this year at least

im not saying you should only party on this one day, definatly not - you should try and party and have a good time at least once a week, everyone should carry the new years mentality in their head all year round but they don't....but they do on the 31st of december and so that is why you should celebrate on new years if you don't do crazy shit on new years then your not taking advantage of how much fun you could be having. fact.

peace and thanks!

bandS, top nine to check out my best of 2010!

ok so heres a little introduction, I decided to make a list of my favirote releases this year and a little description of what it sounds like who they are etc, not all these releases will be releases that were released in 2010, just the top ten releases ive dug this year............RELEASES! i know you wanted to hear that again
ok so here goes, in no order of awesomeness.....

1: Everyone everywhere s/t
sweet mathy funky midwest style emo from philly. Like snowing and the promise ring. in fact id go as far to say as i probably prefur this lp over any promise ring lp....I can see this record being a classic emo record in the future. every song flows sutley into the next. with cute simple lyrics that stick in your head all day long. you can pick it up here: http://www.banquetrecords.com/TEEE


2: daylight - sinking
This awesome ep came out early this year and is another emo record (ill stop soon promise) you should defiantly hear this. it dosn't have such classic definitive attributes like other bands of the genre... meaning if you don't really listen to emo then this is a record that is easily approached. it has lots of fast emotional songs with awesome rough deep vocals and catchy sing-a-long parts.
you can pick it up here:
http://cityofgoldrecords.bigcartel.com/product/daylight-sinking-pre-order


3: Go it alone - histories
This was released all the way back in 2007 and is considerd the lesser of the 2 lps released by go it alone but to me personaly its my favirtoe. Go it alone give you that almost classic earl 2000 hardcore sound that is missing in todays world. emotional songs, political songs, this bad has both and will please you whichever you like to hear when you listen to a hardcore record. their songs are full of passionate fast furious anger with some of the best riffs ive ever heard a hardcore band produce, this album is almost certainly art to me with lyrics that will stick with you for life.
pick it up on ebay or on rivalry records

5: well...5 is laura viers - july flame but i have a whole post on that before this one because its so awesome



6: Del the funkee homosapien - i wish my brother george was here
This del the funkee's first debut album released in 1990 i belive. Del is the most orginal mc i have ever heard and has the most orginal beats ever made. his flow is unique and so is his voice, you will never hear another hip hop artist like him. This album is also co produced by is cousion, ice cube so you know its gunna have the funkiest bass lines and guitar samples. you can probably pick this up on tape for a few pounds on ebay, i did and its my favirote hip hop album.

7: matt pryor - confidence man
This is matt pryor's debut album released last year, Matt pryor if you didn't know is the singer for the infamous get up kids and is one of my favirote voices to listen to. Now recently the get up kids have been active but their new release did kind of not live up to my expectations BUT this defiantly makes up for it. this whole lp is beautiful and matt pryor shows us he defiantly still has the talent for writing intricute soft heart felt songs. although i wouldn't call this emo it definatly has a get up kids feel. maybe its his voice, but everything this man does on this lp is excellent and gives me the same smile that something to write home about does.


8: Tegan and sara - sainthood
This album delivers awesome indie female poppy tracks that are awesome to dance to. Tegan and sara stop using their guitars alot more in this album and start using synth keyboard and piano again which this time (unlike this business of art...sorry) is a good thing! theres not one bad song on this lp and they all are blessed with sweet electric synth and drums etc with the beautiful tegan and sara's voice laced over the top. This in my opinoun is probably their best release and belive me they've hade some awesome albums. these girls are great song writers aswell so every song fits great and sounds pretty much perfect of its genre!


9: Battery - until the end
This is my favirote hardcore record........ever, released in the good ol 90s this album delivers amazing inspirational lyrics with awesome passionate youth crew, influenced hardcore..dont get me wrong they are not your typical youth crew band, the riffs dont rip off youth of today and the vocals arn't done in a funny voice ha but these songs have deliverd really strong issues to me and made me it makes me think a whole lot about life everytime i listen to it and i only fully aprechaited it this year. so if your into hardcore please do give this a listen. they are an underdog band but they are a gem in the rough

FLEX YOUR HEAD - A tribute to minor threat

I know how generic this could seem and how cliche this could seem but fuck it. See im playing a cover show with other cover bands(ramones, weezer and descendents) and was thinking today about how I feel about playing this set and I found myself pretty stoaked that I finally get to pay a good tribute to such a ground breaking and frankly revolutionly band so I thought why not write about it..just in case your not going to the show or maybe don't even know of this band who knows?

Whys this band so ground breaking? well I think I can speak for a lot of people when I say that for a lot of kids who grew up listening to 'punk' bands like the exploited, the casualties and clit 45 etc it was an easy transaction to make. they had relatively the same sound except when you actually listen to minor threat's lyrics you can actually identify with them a lot more than songs about hows sencless nihilism and having a mohawk will create a anarchistic society. thats how it came to be with me anyway. Minor threat pretty much indroduced me to hardcore, through them I wanted to find more bands that had something to say that wasn't generic 'punk' dribble and so I did, and then I learnt that there was a scene invovled today and although the sound had changed a lot with it some of the time the ethics still held true...with most bands anyway.

In laymens terms Minor threat are like the sex pistols if it played if they played faster and more agressive, thought about what they were doing and saying and then read some books instead of jacking up....but obviously there so much more than that

I met friends through this hardcore scene that I got invovled with because i was enspired by this bands. some of my best friends, probably some of the best friends ill ever make. And ive had countless memorble times aswell that have built up my life - of which im very happy with. And I feel in a sence that I wouldn't be the person I am today if i never listened to this band. would I like this music? would I still have an alcohol problem? would I eat meat? what sort of friends would I have?

I just think its amazing that after 30 years a band like this can still make people think, how they made me think and how they still make kids think. So I just wanted to pay homage to that and I can't wait till i get to play all the songs live that made probably one of the biggest changes in my life! if your intrested in coming to the show then heres the flyer!




Just in case you can't read the writing in detail, its on sunday 12th in kingston upon thame at the fighting cocks. 5 pound entry 7pm!

A band to check out! - Laura viers - july flame

So this album actually came out in 2009 (I think, i am so unprofessional) SO its relatively new but yeh 1 year old already. First of all I want to start of by saying she is probably one of the best songwriters ive ever listened too. Her music is described as beautiful and peaceful and fragile i geuss, music to sleep too. There's a certain genre of female fronted bands that play soft gentle music with intricute guitars, violins and snyth etc (think http://www.myspace.com/cmonmirah) - But laura viers, in my opinoun is the best at pulling it off.



July flame is follows up on the sed described greatness, every song is a masterpiece of sweet beautiful female vocals backed up with double bass, violines, piano, xylophone's and chimes. It baffles me how someone ensombles music like this and puts as memorble and as well fitting lyrics together like this. This is probably some of the 'nicest' music ill ever listen to. and when i say nice i mean i cant help but feel nice when i listen to it. when its snowing outside and your by yourself on a cold train with no friends to talk to, stick on this album and you'll suddenly be abousltely fine with that becouse it means you get to listen to this amazing and beautiful women (and her band) all the way home. you can pick it up on her website which is: www.lauraveirs.com Shes also coming to the uk in the new year, the dates on her website!
so i urge you all to take a secound out of your busy hectic lifes to sit back and relax with laura, im pretty sure its impossible not to when listening to her amazing sounds!

university - your not a loser if your not going

Ive been meaning for a while to write about this. basically this is just a article to show people who arn't going to a university like the majority of people there age around them will be doing, that there life isn't gunna go down the toilet because there not.

I look around me and it seems everythings telling me to go to uni, or its a good idea or its crucial for a sucsessful life. the tv, the news, advertisment and other people all around me. it seems that its unescapable. It tends to leave you feeling like that because your not going to uni your life is somehow gunna be worse and I think thats fucked up.
Im not usualy the sort of person to compare myself to others with things like this but after its shoved in your face constantly for years of school and college it becomes a problem. everyones telling you that uni is the good thing therefore not going would be the bad thing? - sounds kind of simplistic dosnt it? too simplistic.... I am never going to university simply because I feel I don't work well in that sort of learning enviroment. i never did in school, I did a little better in college but uni was just one step to far, if you feel the same then its perfectly normal and fine - stop listening to college teachers because there most likely only saying it to make their record look better - the more students they send to uni the better it looks on their cv - just remember that. and also remember that although you might not have any grades and you may be working a job you hate, this can be a long or short term thing and thats up to you

its sounds so lame but as long as your earning some sort of payment you can use that payment for something benefical. you can learn skills with that money, hobbies and travel. maybe even one of those skills could be your job too? then life wouldnt suck so much would it? - this is all possible

just because everyone else is telling you one thing it does not mean its for you. try not to compare yourself to people by grades on paper or the number of zeros on their paycheck because thats not what sucess is in this case. don't get to wound up with preparing for the future because its what we do now which matters. enjoy the moment and remember whats truly important in life and where your genuine prioties lie

Peace and thanksx

Tattoos dont ruin your life!

So if you have tattoos your more than likely to of had the 'you wont get a job' or 'you'll get into fights' or even 'its against my/our relgion to mark ourselfs' - from your parents or other members of your family..or even sometimes members of other people's family. - this is all a standard because there from a different generation where tattoos were about, but not as popular as compared to todays world. this is no new news but what truly is rediclious is people in our generation trying to expose people with tattoos in a negitive light. As a new generation we should carry with us a new exceptance for new things become the norm. - why cling on to old traditions of non exceptance that have tierd with age and make no sence anymore?

stepping back a bit its obvious that its vital that for us as a race we advance our sence of right and wrong with every new born (im not going off subject i promise!) for example: you will find that a lot of older people at the moment will have a causual racist/homophobic mindset, well actualy dont take that too seriously as im just making this generalisation on all of the old people ive met in my life so far. I say most(not all) because the numbers of imagrents and mixed raced communities has risen (this is a good thing) and its something new that we have adopted to accept because its right to do so. - because we would only be going back on ourselfs and dating our social acceptances through judging someone by having tattoos. and an argument against that might be 'well they wern't born with those tattoos, you cant compare that to racial skin colour when it comes to societies accpetance' and i would say that in this new world we should all have the right with how we want to look because society should of granted us this freedom by now and to deny that person of acceptance or lack of employment is taking away that freedom.

we are the future polotitions, employers, preists and parents and we must do our best to make this a better tommorow by throwing away old outdated traditions or we will never make positive progress.

sorry!!!!

sorry ive been totally neglecting this blog. people have came up to me and asked why i havent been updating it, people whose opinounds matter! so sorry! im gunna get on it tommorow with a new post and keep updating this spot promtly untill then sorry sorry sorry!

peace and thanks!

a band to check out! - penpal

If your a fan of atmospheric, emo - hell i could even broaden it to if you like relaxing music then you WILL love this band. to best describe their sound id say they take a big influence from american football, emo played with intricate guitar parts. but that description doesn't give them justice these guys are pretty much geniuses at writing music they have a full lp at the moment and are just now getting a new 7inch pressed which im super stoaked about as these guys are probably one of my favourite bands as of right now.

every one of these songs on this self titled lp is written with such care and precision you can tell they sat down when making each song and perfected each one second by second. this whole lp is just a masterpiece of relaxation and genius and beautiful guitar and song structure and this whole lp is free! - Going back to mention how this band do have similar sounds to american football I Personally would go as far to say that they have advanced on that sort of sound and brang something new to it.

i urge you to download this as you will certainly not regret it!

http://www.mediafire.com/?5ymnmnem5zm

http://www.myspace.com/penpalil

http://penpalmusic.com/

also check out Marquette its basically their previous band which is a little more poppy emo and less atmospheric - there also really really good! snap!

peace and thanks

A band to check out! - the ergs!

ok so these guys have been around for ages, i know. but i don't really care cause they deserve to be listened to for a very very long time

these guys are basically your neo descendants without being a complete rip off. they have some 7 inches which sound like minor threat and some material that is cool geeky pop punk that isn't cheesy or cringe just simply sing along posi.....ness.

the majority of their stuff is pop punk - and im not the biggest fan of pop punk and im very particular when it comes to listening to it. if its just that bit too much corny of whiney sounding then in totally put off...well to be honest thats a contradiction because i do listen to whiney pop punk like the movielife, motion city soundtrack, the wonderyears and blink 182 etc but I dunno i geuss it comes down to personal preference on weather its that too much whiney and corney sounding to me.........anyway going off subject! these guys hit me in all the right places of good pop punk thats done really well which is a hard thing to do. I wish there was more pop punk like this - its not full on pop punk riffs, its kinda mixed with crazy riffs that kind of remind me of like how the descendants played their songs.

best way to understand what I mean is just to listen to a song..even though I should be able to but a sound in your mind with my amazing journalistic skills..........yeh right! heres a video of a song!

peace and thanks!

warehouse worker's guide to the factory!

So we all know work is hard to come by at the moment. and a lot of you may of heard of factory/line work jobs in factories given to people through temp agencies - this includes me.

so basically I have had quite a bit of experience working in warehouses now. im currently doing some in a parcel warehouse and used to work in a ice cream factory (isn't nearly as fun as it sounds) and have came up with a guide to working in one.

having one of these jobs can ether be a world of counting down each minute and constantly doubting your job status, or a world of easy straight forward work which can be a easy and doss way to get money. here are some of the main rules I've came up with to follow when working in one of these environments - ill develop on each one, in no order of importance -

- Make a playlist that lasts at least 3 quarters of your shift - you can check this on itunes

If your working in a factory which uses no machines or sometimes if you are you'll probably get away with being able to listen to your ipod or mp3 player etc. music is a great way to take your mind off of things and to relax and actually have a good time. if your someone who can just listen to music for fun then you have a big advantage when it comes to this sort of work. if you get so into your music and make a playlist that will last at least half your shift then you will find that time will fly!

- download free podcasts from itunes and put them on your ipod (if you have one) and make sure you have at least enough to last you half your shift

I advise anyone to do this if they have an ipod, even if you don't normally listen to podcasts then follow this it will help you so much, maybe even more than the music. go onto 'itunes store' on your itunes and then search through the podcasts. a good idea is to check out some of the best in forums on the internet then seek them out. listening to podcasts gives you the illusion that someone is talking to you. you often get ones which episodes last more than a hour so get a few - of course get them in the category of interest in which your interested about so its more interesting to listen to -interesting!

- don't think about your job. don't compare yourself to anyone who your working with

From first looking at this title you might think it seems kind of snobby or anti social. well you'd be partly right it is anti social - but these jobs usually are hence why its good to have the 2 rules above this one!

what I mean about not comparing yourself to others when working this - all different sorts of people usually work these jobs. you'll see teenagers, adults and people of all ethnics and origins but what you must remember is that this does not put you all in the same boat and noone aspires to work this job. everyone's doing this for the money. so what I mean is don't compare yourself to everyone else in these sort of jobs because everyone's working them for different reasons. people got their in different ways. noones a loser or has fucked up at life they just want the money like you. there is no ''I work in a factory therefore I have failed at life'' persona so don't let yourself slip into that.

- pick easy, time consuming jobs or try to work by yourself

Factories and warehouses always have many many jobs you can do. there will always be certain sections which rely on group work but if you look around hard enough you'll probably be able to find a job that is unmanned and you can do by yourself. usually these jobs are quite lax and of course because its unlikely anyone will be watching over you, you can take your time and not work your ass off. keep doing your job there but do it at your own pace - I mean if that job was left unmanned then it can't be on that you'd have to work hard and fast on, unlike something like line work.

- learn fast and try to blend in

DO NOT follow these rules straight away. the first thing you should do is learn how to do your job in your factory or warehouse. seeing as the work usually is pretty easy it can be picked up fast and understood easily if you listen well when first being taught. However although these jobs usually are pretty easy they do have rules and if you break these rules then it will most likely be found out and noted. you don't wanna loose a job like this because its a blessing in disguise if you follow these rules

IN CONCLUSION

Like I said last these jobs can be a blessing in disguise if you follow these rules. don't let yourself have this misconception of these jobs being the bottom of the barrel because there not. compared to the stories I hear from my friends working in brand stores my job sounds awesome. if you need work and money really badly at the moment (who doesn't?) then go to a temp agency in your town/city and apply for factory jobs cause here's the long and short of one of these jobs

• flexible hours
• good money (im getting 5.80 per hour)
• doss work
• music

UPSIDE DOWN CROSSES ARN'T COOL

so the last year or two its all of a sudden became cool to write mxxmxcx or whatever it is

or print upside down crosses about. guess what your not cool or alternative. your not shocking

anyone. you aren’t doing anything new. you probably just heard a burzum record and though you

are now 'well into black metal' and your a regular church burner. cool....maybe in your head.

in reality all your doing is making yourself and possibly those who oppose religion, look like fools.

if you detest religion why not give the people you detest a educated informal explanation as to why your

so against it, not just shout hail satan and try to offend them. i mean even if your shouting hail satan

- that implies that there’s satan and therefore a counter part to god which means you believe there is a god

which is surely what you oppose seeing as your so anti religious right?

in truth this is just a stupid phad. leave it to slayer or someone to shout hail Satan at least then its funny

n they've even said themselves they treat it as a joke. its just another way to try and make yourself look cool

it will come and go. religion to me and many people i know is a very important issue/problem and would like to demonstrate

to the world how it is not needed. the only way that’s ever going to happen is for kids to get informed, know their shit

and actually give explanations that make sense and make people open their eyes oppose to those who just plaster a fucking

upside down cross everywhere and Wright mxxcxxxcxxfuckyouxxzx

peace and thanks

poem - 3 quarters full

I like writing poems, who knew? expect more...


day after day
week after week
we search our mind but do not know what to seek
a space is missing, in life's jigsaw a piece is gone.
its a tricky one. a piece may fit but wont agree with the picture.

do I seem dull? incomplete? not myself?
That would be normal that would make sense
im still unhappy I haven't found my piece
I've looked everywhere. irationality takes over
paranoia becomes a friend to help me look

I found out a shop sells my missing piece
only to find its another which just fits
it fills the void but dosn't belong
This is why I act so wronged

im puzzled and puzzled and puzzled again
untill I find myself shopping without money
for something that can't be bought
untill I find myself waiting without sleep
for something that can't be found

straight edge - my personal opinions

so ok please don't judge before you read. this isn't gunna be a standard rant about how Im angry at the world cos Im straight edge.
I've been this way for a couple years now and over these years my opinions have changed yeh I used to be a charged kid full of anger, listened to all the positive hardcore music about community and positive outlook within the scene. but over the years i've developed my own definition. its slowly became a day to day personal TOOL I use from day to day, its slowly became something about other people, a community, to something so personal and so kept to myself.

What im trying to point out here is that there is so many documentaries with guys from bands stating the obvious shit about sxe, 'it was originated in dc in 80s, pure mind and body' blah blah blah and also in these documentaries they often point out the counter attitude in the scene, sxe crews who beat up on kids drinking, smoking etc, making it a war on the street. I know kids who are both like this, But what im trying to point out is that I think there is also a silent group of us who just don't give a shit anymore, fed up with the stereotypical examples of a straight edge kid cause in the media your ether a preeching do gooder or a gang related bully. but I find myself to be neither of these and i wouldn't doubt for a second there are many like me. its became so personal to me now that i've often considered not calling myself sxe anymore because to share the title with so many others who sometimes demonstrate in in such a different way compared to me seems wrong sometimes but I still do because I still love and respect the roots from which it came from, the music.

Going back to the media aspect I hate the fact it gives people watching one of these documentaries the interpretation that this is all we can be. A positive sxe kid or a negative one. I am not a angel or a saint who knows how to live your life the right way, straight edge has not let me see the light or taken my wisdom to a higher level and its also not a weapon I have learnt to use or a direction to aim my hatred. like I said before it is simply a tool for me. Straight edge is a huge part of me but apart from when im seeing bands I can relate to or playing in a sxe one im in currently my passion and feelings for it aren't going to be on show.

10 speed bicycle free demo download!

So I have a project with a few friends, its a emo poppy band - influences from cap n jazz, grown ups, penpal, snowing, American football etc etc. were based in the uk. this is a free 2 song rough e.p email me at tommynormanx@hotmail.co.uk if you wanna know about dates were playing! enjoy! (hopefully)

here's the 1st track

http://www.mediafire.com/?nynmzhzqq2n

and here's the second

http://www.mediafire.com/?jmznmzmyum

if the downloads don't work then just email me on the adress above and ill be happy to send you them your way

hip hop compilation

here's a link to a playlist I made on youtube of real hip hop. some of the truly best artists and my favourite. the playlist is in the top right corner of the screen on the page on this link :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6CfC3Iax-Q&feature=PlayList&p=7B056EDF07B1657A&playnext_from=PL&index=0

News on gorillabar being printed

so I decided to make the 1st issue without the interviews I was hoping to get I mentioned last month For a couple of reasons really, one being im really impatient and can't wait a few months for dates to pass so I can get the interviews. However I still will try my best to get the interviews I did mention but I will be posting them on here instead of in printed form. The first issue will be a fresh batch of basically what you read on this blogspot. Thoughts, ideas, places to check out in the uk, current issues and probably some show reviews of some sort To be honest I don't know completely what it will include yet fully. you'll have to find out I guess.

Anyhow I aim to print it in at least a month. asap. Further notice will be given when I have them on sale or to give out or whatever. stay tuned!

peace and thanksx

A band to check out! - Nana girzol

Nana grizol..what can I say if your familiar to no idea records and bands and artists from bloomingdale and your a fan of these then you WILL love this band. pretty much the best band I have came across with that sort of sound. kinda like indie pop mixed with folk roots - but only mildly, don't get my wrong this isn't folk band, only a hint of it I can tell is a influence to the sound because the music is really unique. There pretty upbeat and gentle sounding, great for bad days or when your feeling tired. just stick these guys on and it. Its a great mix of trumpets, catchy clean riffs and lyrics which are easily remembered. bands similar would include: Paul baribeau, lemuria, andrew jihad jackson and against me's old stuff, mix them all together and you still wouldn't have it because this band still don't sound exactly like any of the bands just mentioned, there something special and strangely not that well known for some odd reason. They have two albums out 'ruth' and 'love it, love it' you can get them here http://www.orangetwin.com/nanapg1.html I really advise you get this or at least check them out, I personally think this is a really special band. You seem to get a lot of bands from that no idea records area that sound alike, which is not a bad thing but this bad stands out immensely

here's a song Just incase your too lazy to search for their myspace on google! haha
feel good music :)





PEACE AND THANKS!

Racial difference + religion + Ignorance

Hey so I have been thinking over the last few weeks about the EDL (English defence league) and if you don't know who they are here's a bi-est information opposing them: http://www.uaf.org.uk/search.asp?search=edl and here's bi-est information supporting them: http://www.englishdefenceleague.org/

Why have I decided to post something about this? well because 1 there coming to my town on Saturday to protest and 2 everyone should be aware of it anyway. So what do I think of it? well I'm confused mainly, Im confused about why they describe themselves as a 'counter jihad movement' and also that 'all races and religions are welcome in the edl' when there has been factual proof that there are many racists in this group, and if you are not a racist yet your in this group because you are scared/angry about extreme terrorism and you know that there are racists in the edl, why do you affiliate yourself in this group? Ive read about protests and the aftermaths of these protests, vandalising, spray painting racist remarks on mosques, members of the edl giving nazi salutes and not talking about what they stand for. just marching about shouting EDL and destroying things.

There's so much I don't understand with this group. for example I don't understand how your supposed to stop terrorism from mainly another country by marching about in your own. yes there are people from all sorts of nationalities and religions in the UK but The edl states that everyone is welcome in the group. so how would these protests stop anything? I'll tell you what I think, because this isn't just about terrorism if at all. there are many reasons why I think people have joined this group. I think its made up of people With immigration issues, bonehead racists and BNP/ukip voters.

To the people there because 'you want them out of YOUR country taking YOUR tax money' and all that shit I say your totally contradicting yourself because its costing 30 grand just for the police protection not even counting all the damage which WILL be made by the bonehead racists. So take that away and you just have the racists and to them, well the whole world should say that racist attitude is fucked up and its not welcome on this planet.

And if you are in it because you are scared or angry about terrorism and the war with iraq. then why not just enrol in the army, im not trying to promote it but if your so keen to 'fight terrorism' then you can actually go and fight it face to face, its free aswell!

in conclusion this march is fucking up everyones day in my town, and will probably make future racial tension where I live just so they can get their day or glory.

peace and thanksx

SHOW REVIEWS 2 IN 1: big takeover 5 and Voorhee's reunion show, nowhere fast's and braindead's last show in leeds

So as these events were in the same weekend I decided to put them in the same review, the big takeover 5 was on friday and the Voorhees show was on Saturday so lets start on the first!




If you didn't know big takeover put on arguably the best hardcore punk shows around and in London, usually in squats and underground venues and big takeover 5 did not fail to please! first ill start with the venue that was situated in hackney. from the outside it looked like some sort of catholic church style building and as I entered I was even more impressed, A huge floor, no stage and lots of different kinds of people. you'd think by the huge space (about four fully sized basketball courts) that it wouldn't make for ever good crowd to band communication and reaction but you'd be completely wrong! from crusties to arty kids to punks to usual London hardcore show-goers it featured a lot of different faces and a awesome mix of different types of people.

The bands!

CLEAN SLATE
so I think this was their first show, new band featuring Dirty moneys vocalist. Admittedly I did catch these guys halfway through their first song but I caught the rest of the set, they bought a very surprising sound. a mix of old school think negative approach mixed with pissed off angry mid tempo beats. Front man Graham Delivers an energetic angry performance that gets you Just as involved emotionally I found myself clenching my fist and nodding furiously without realising, keep an eye on them.

DEAL WITH IT
After a break Deal with it started and the regular London hardcore show-goers as I mentioned above started moving a lot to their set which was easy to understand. catchy melody's with lots of funky rock n roll chords. lots of moshy nyhc style beats and sing melodic singing a lot like cro mag's alpha - omega. As it happens they also cover World peace by cro-mags in their set which gets at least 70% of the room moving and singing along which was great, a good set

ARK OF THE COVENANT
Ark of the covenant Are the third band up And bring a type of music I haven't seen before - a mixed sound of 90's hardcore and death metal mix unbroken and disembodied and you'd have a similar sound to this band, there from Wales and there pretty recently formed expect to see new things from them soon, people are reacting to the band well. kids are throwing fists and feet in every direction they can, its violent and heavy and I think they do it well. they also did an arch angel cover to finish off.

NOWHERE FAST
Finally its nowhere fasts turn to say goodbye to London as its their last show down south. I have to say that this set in particular was maybe one of the best sets I've witnessed a hardcore band play ever. its in the top 5 at least! the band take no time in setting up and get straight to playing their angry straight to the point 80's influenced hardcore. The crowd are responsive in a mad chaotic blur or kids flying about, shouting lyrics back to the band. they include three songs in their set, ss decontrol - boiling point , minor threat - I don't wana hear it and void - my rules. each of these covers adds to the anger and energy you only get with that 80's hardcore sound, the drums are falling apart, the singers red in the face with anger, frustrated and pissed of kids are just as involved with the band as the band is involved with the kids, I looked around at the venue im in, the band playing and the kids here and I realised that this was truly a hardcore punk show. the real deal, no bullshit, straight from the 80's. Amazing.

In general I loved this show, make sure you get to future Big takeover shows they are not to be missed! http://www.bigtakeover.co.uk/





Voorhee's reunion show was at the well in Leeds. I had seen Braindead a long time ago in high Wycombe and decided I had to make it for the last show, Also it had a great line up and I was still stoked from nowhere fast's set the day before, this was to be their last show as well so I wasn't missing it!

The bands!

TORN APART
I had seen torn apart only a few weeks ago in high Wycombe and was impressed then as I was again this time, delivering ultra fast power violence with screaming vocals the crowd looked bewildered and confused as a wave of pure anger and hatred washed over them but they had some guys at the very front liking it and head banging Their set was tight, super fast and aggressive Judging by the night that followed I think the crowd might of been a little more responsive but that's the curse of being the opening band, but they pull of a good set and I'm left with the same positive thoughts about them I came in with.

NOWHERE FAST
Nowhere fast were awesome, again bringing the 80's fast paced 3 - chord play as fast as you can energy as the night before. the crowd were a lot less into it compared to last night and with that in comparison it wasn't as good to me personally. But don't get me wrong they were still excellent. once again bringing out the ssd, minor threat and void covers they put on a good show and it was a good send off for the band. the singer and guitarist has a new project called amateur video so look out for them!

DEAL WITH IT
Once again deal with it give us a entertaining and good set. they got lots of kids moving and singing along. again they covered world peace by cro-mags half way in their set which once again got the majority of the room moving and singing. I also found the front man entertaining, gyrating his hips and slagging off art students. its good to see a band have fun on stage when playing serious sounding music.

MOB RULES
I hear a lot of good things about this band so I was keen to watch their set. they started their set with a collection of pissed off and very dark sounding songs with aggressive low tone vocals. the lead singer seemed to be extremely angry as he told camera men to fuck off while pacing around the stage like a tiger in a cage. I don't blame him the cameramen at this show where just shoving their lenses in bands face's.
they then, halfway through their set played a song that lasted for about 8-9 minutes which varied stuff up a bit, reminded me of black flag, it was a slow song littered with chaotic solos and chords. At the end of this song the sound engineer decided to add a little strobe lights and the whole band stopped. the front man shouted abuse at the sound man and then the band continued . overall their set was a dark angry powerful set and also entertaining. sucks to be that sound man!

BRAINDEAD
Braindead hadn't been playing for a year or two admittedly and their snare drum was also stolen by an idiot but that didn't stop them from being what I thought the best band of the night. Their whole set was an awesome rush of blast beats and doom-y riffs. the crowd were as violent as the music and I was impressed how this band pulled off such a good set after not playing for so long, they also included a DYS song which was awesome. A great last show for a great Uk band

THE HORROR
I didn't catch all of the horror's set but I heard the majority of it, They play a fast paced angry hardcore type of hardcore with a few rock n roll chords chucked in as well. I don't know if it was from me being tired from the trip to leeds or whatever but I wasn't into this band as much as most other bands of the night, never the less they played a good set and it wasn't bad at all

VOORHEES
Voorhees took a long time setting up and I was getting really tired But everyone was sticking it out to see them. They had a mixed audience of young and old as this band had been going since the 90's. Closures bassist was filling in on bass for them at this show. so they started playing but only slightly, the drummer played a beat on the lower tom for a long time, about 2 minutes and then a guitar riff was played a long with it for about 2 more minutes then the vocalist appears from somewhere and they begin their set. the set is fast, a lot like negative fx, they had a very old school sound with elements of power violence as well personally I wasn't that amazed and I also heard the singer smashed a beer out of a guys hand into his face which is kind of stupid but yeh everyone goes nuts for them and they have a good reunion full of angry kids singing along.

PEACE AND THANKS!

SCHOOL: A PLACE OF LEARNING OR A PLACE OF DEGRADING?

So me, like many other people was a student at school who found it incredibly hard to fit in and be 'successful' in the eyes of teachers. I've recently Just realised how mad school is. they put you all in the same uniform, order you to abide by the same rules and if any disagreement or even a question about the way things are in the school is raised to a teacher you are automatically assumed to be a trouble maker or the '2% or students who leave here with nothing' this, to me is mad. they stamp out any sort or creativity and label it as failure, apparently to the school system your all meant to fit in to the same mold. the same uniform. the same person. your supposed to leave all being the same, the perfect mold for society, apparently. but I disagree, how they can expect for every kid to fit into the same way of learning is beyond me, yeh the majority do but for the minority who don't there's no other option than to crash and burn and as your doing this in the four years from year 7 to year 11 you just constantly get E minuses and 0 out of a 100 and being told that you'll amount to nothing until you star believing it yourself. so in the end you leave with no or little grades and some fucked up mental attitude that your just a dumb person and unsuccessful. For me personally to this day when someone says to me something like 'Ah im working my ass off right now cos im going to uni next year' I automatically reflect on myself and think hmm im not going to uni, im not having any tests right now so Im less successful and not living my life properly - fortunately this motion only lasts a second with me because I have awesome friends around me to remind me of who I am and what the real deal is. but I fear for the kids, the 2% that were a 'failure' in school. will they go a whole lifetime in self doubt? hating themselves? Im sure some do. now and then I even do if im being honest, and THAT is not right.

so what could we do to stop this? well I think an obvious one would be to make classes more varied, its so obvious that some people would learn so much better in a creative way then just sitting in a row listening to someone and writing down in their text book. I suppose schools and teachers would probably argue that, that would take up time and money. but it should be the schools duty to ensure that the kids learn in anyway or form and they have failed at that. They should Stop the rows, throw away the uniforms and should not employee staff who tell kids they will amount to nothing. it would be really awesome to see kids learning like this. fuck if they did learn like that I would probably want to be a teacher. for all the 2% reading this I just wanna say don't loose hope, don't give up on something, don't compare your life to others, concentrate one what is important to you, set your own goals and live at your on pace. and you are NOT alone. peace and thanks

UPCOMING SHIT!

ok so for the people that do actully read this heres some things i hope to do with gorillabar in the upcoming months

may/june - i hope to get interviews from Death is Not glamorous and deny everything

Im also guna ask if abolition(www.myspace.com/xabolitionx) and Neverxagain(www.myspace.com/neveragainxxx) want to be interviewed for it too, there all nice guys so there probs down for it but nothings 100 percent right now. will be in a few months. all of this will be printed on a physical zine instead of on here as that was my main goal in the first place. although ill probs feature a lot of it on here just for the hell of it. the zine will also feature random stuff, like on this blogspot, some of the stuff used in this blogspot might be put into the zine, maybe not, who knows. they'll be on sale for 50p. im gunna ask all ages records in camden,london if theyd sell some for me(http://www.allagesrecords.com/) again, they'll probs do it cos there all cool, so they should be on sale there and also ill be selling them at any shows im at, and you can find that out by emailing me at tommynormanx@hotmail.co.uk

BUT remember non of this is for 100 percent certain yet, just wanted to give you something to expect ! peace and thanksx

why the descendants rule!

So its 3 in the morning. im an frequent insomniac so I decided to try to convince you(if you dont already) why you should listen to the descendants Why not!?

So this is descendants, there is so much to say about this band. some people say there over-rated but I say there under-rated as one of the best early punk/hardcore bands and as one of the first punk bands to introduce an element of pop into their punk! when you listen to this band's first records i.e 'milo goes to college' and 'I dont wanna grow up' next to other classic 80's American punk bands your immediately hear a difference, its like the other bands accept it has some crazy chaotic melody to it with lyrics which were a a lot more singy compared to your angry pissed off bark you got a lot from bands around then(which isnt a bad thing!) Dont get me wrong I consider the earlier lps hardcore punk records, it dosnt sound different enough to be labelled pop punk with these albums but defiantly has enough difference in it to tell these guys were bringing something new to the table of punk rock....nerdcore! And if your one of those people, (like i am) that needs to be able to relate to a band to really get into it them and fall in love with the music well if you've ever felt like an underdog been bullied or felt out of step then these guys will be the anthem for you! to demonstrate my point here the song 'im not a loser' from milo goes to college!

This is one of the more 80's sounding tracks And not a great example of the chaotic melody-ness i was on about but fuck I love this song. i wish i saw it live just so i could shout IM NOT A LOSER! with the all nerds haha. Later on as the years passed the band developed more on the melody punk singey -ness and basically released records which are way more pop punk, with the odd old school tracks thrown on them. records like 'everything sucks' and 'cool to be you' are basically these records, i mean they had records out before this like 'enjoy!' and 'ALL' but I find em kinda odd, enjoy is basically the descendants fucking about which is fun to hear ha and ALL as some crazy songs on it but there's a few that are my favourite, I think 'clean sheets' off that album might be my favourite, you should check it out cos it is awesome somewhere in the middle of punk rock, pop punk and some bits even sound like the smiths? ha thats just my opinion you may disagree! BUT yeh went off track a bit there, the two records cool to be you and everything sucks are defiantly best described as pop punk, to new listeners of the band it will proberbly sound pretty cheesy to you but once you get your head round that there just songs which make you feel good and posi. as all pop punk should!

The band still randomly play shows but theres always off an on and have been for years. also if you do like these guys check out the band ALL, a side project of the descendants, it basically sounds like them accept a few albums has the dag nasty singer fronting for it, which is awesome! so basically if you love pop punk, if you love old school hardcore punk get into these guys cos there really something! here an awesome video of them playing their later stuff and a interview so you can make a comparison of the video before PEACE!

THE WORD FAG OR FAGGOT OR DYKE

nowadays I see these stupid moronic word being used really casually and I really dont get it. I mean it is a discriminating slur you call a homosexual a fag, you call a lesbian a dyke and you are degrading them, labelling them and segregating them from what is conceived as a 'normal' person And not even if you say it to a homosexual or a lesbian, if you call anyone this word you might as well say its ok for the word to exist in the first place. and to be honest I know a lot of people will say these words and have no hate for gays or lesbians but still everyone should think about what comes out of their mouth and how it can hurt and discriminate others. Faggot and dyke are just fucked up words that are used to discriminate others for what they are very much like the word negro, and im sure lots of people who use these words wouldn't use that term lousily as a joke. Im not trying to preach but simply point out what is plain wrong. I hope that anyone reading this upon hearing anyone using this word in any situation will stand up and tell that person(s) to stop promoting homophobia its fucking lame were all just people trying to exist the way that's right for us.

A movie to check out! - the time machine (1960)

So im not usually a fan of movies this old. I dunno why, maybe its cos next to the graphics and filming of advantages of today it makes movies this old look dull and boring on sight, but this movie is actully pretty good and an interesting concept. basically a scientist makes a time machine and travels way into the past and future of the planet earth, sounds like a basic idea right? but its actually pretty interesting. I saw it today after I woke up on channel four. because during weekdays channel four does usually randomly play these old movies. basically after meeting his best friends father and future son and documenting things which are happening to the world. like future wars and new technology he gets stuck in a cave in, I cant remember why (bad reviewing!) but he has his' travel machine in this cave also, so he decides to travel so far in time that the rocks around him erode and he is free. anyway he ends up going into the year 8053495 or something rebellious and sees the whole world he knew destroyed and turn into some sort of paradise-jungle. eventually he finds some sort of of what seems to be a society. but its different as noone works because they have no need to. mankind has reformed into some sort of caveman stage except not as primal and uneducated (probably because that would fuck up the story line as he falls in love with a member of this new society and it would probably be impossible for a modern man to fall in love with a cave-women because of obvious differences ) he then after asking questions like 'is there a government here?' and 'is there a form of money in this time?' finds out that there are two groups of people on this earth. these neo cavemen/women and 'morlocks' which are basically humans that live underground. the whole movie climaxes to questions about the society we live in today. how in the future the sacrifices of man, the legends and heroes of our time wont even be memories as all documentation will be destroyed along with our civilisation, has this already happened? was there a society before our history records it that did great, amazing things which have gone forgotten? maybe. I say probably. Anyway check out the movie. I wont tell you the end but it involves lots of fire!

A band to check out! - psyched to die

Psyched to die are a 80s punk influenced band with a skate punk and very slightly garage sound from jersey and also features mickey from the ergs! the bands been around 2008 and since then released an e.p - 'sterile walls' which was bought out last year in July on dirtnap records and a demo from 08 and also a full lenth- 'the impulse of international' and another e.p - 'scatterd brained' I seem to have a nack for finding bands out just after they've broken up so im really happy I found out these guys before they died. but yeh awesome band. if I had to compare them to any 80's American punk band, which I have to do cos these guys have that sound down so well! it would be the circle jerks, the vocals are definitive enough to stand out and combined with the awesome fast passed angry 3 chord play-as-fast-as-you-can south coast sound this band is not one to be missed! but not only have they got that sound as well it also has some of those classic songs with sing a long punk anthems like black flag's Jelous again or ssd's police beat. So yeh If you combined cloak/dagger with circle jerks throw in some style songs of the songs mentioned above then you'd get this band and if your a fan of any of the bands just mentioned your gunna love this band! you can buy their releases here: www.dirtnaprecs.com

and heres a video of them supporting the germs last year!

First post. what is gorrilabar?

Hey my names Tommy Norman and I was going to start a fanzine called gorrilabar about general things like music, band reviews, show reviews and just random columns about idea and thoughts I had about...well anything I thought was important or I found interesting. So a few things you should expect when you read this is the obvious stuff about music I think everyone should check out and columns about shows I went to and thought were awesome but hopefully the rest shouldnt be so obvious becouse I hope to cover something different a few times every week or so I hopefully this will lead to a good read that hopefully makes you think, induces a few cool bands to you. Im based in the south of the U.K so expect a lot of the show reviews to be from around there but hopefully I should vary it in time. If you have any questions or anything you think would be cool to cover in this email me at: tommynormanx@hotmail.co.uk thanks for your time!