Career Suicide hail from Canada and have released a string of 7"s and an LP that have all been acclaimed for their killer "old school" hardcore sound. Think Circle Jerks circa "Group Sex" meets S.O.A. with some vintage G.I. thrown in for good measure.
Career Suicide's modern hardcore has a retro sound and is seething with the same venom that fueled bands such as MDC, DRI and Black Flag. It's as if the band jumped in a time machine back to the days of Rock Against Reagan and Tim Yo rants in MRR.
Listening to Career Suicide's latest CD 'Anthology of Releases: 2001-2003' (Deranged Records), a collection of their vinyl-only releases, revisits the same excitement one felt when first discovering the underground hardcore punk scene.
Originally released as an EP in late 2003, the 'Sars' 7" is a great encapsulation of Career Suicide's blazing hardcore style. The songs are built for speed, the vocals are full of genuine angst and the key is the production, which falls somewhere between lo-fi and an upscale 8-track recording. While three of the four songs here are out and out thrashers, "Quarantined" sounds as if it could be culled from a lost Killed By Death 7" by an obscure SoCal punk band from the late '70s.
The band's self-titled 7" from early 2003 is hardcore heaven for those who like their punk angry, brief and shot from the cannon. "Brought to the Brink" sounds like it could have been lifted off any of the early Dischord 7"s and the band takes the tempo down just a notch on "Jonzo's Leaking Radiation."
The lengthiest effort here is Career Suicide's self-titled LP, also from 2003, which benefits from the clarity offered by compact discs and has superior sound to the original vinyl pressing. Unlike a hardcore band that gets slower with each successive release, Career Suicide manages to keep the momentum rolling forward, surging with blazing intensity on "Punitive Damages" while on "You Call This a Life?" the band makes its way through two verses, two choruses and a bridge in under 40 seconds.
Tacked on for good measure is the band's first demo from 2001, which has muddy sound and is noteworthy only for some numbers which were re-recorded for official release. The band's second demo from 2002 shows the band was well on its way to perfecting its hellishly hardcore attitude and ass-kicking sound.
The CD booklet has a band timeline, tons of cool pics and flyers and on the whole this CD leaves the listener with the sense that invigorating hardcore punk can still be made in modern times.
MP3: Career Suicide - "You Call This a Life"
MP3: Career Suicide - "Quarantined"
MP3: Career Suicide - "Brought to the Brink"
Official site (has MP3s): Career Suicide
Order direct from: Deranged Records
3 comments:
Man o man, that's some good stuff... reminds me of being at City Gardens (scenic trenton NJ) back in the 80s. Great old school punk recommendations on your site, much appreciated. I'm a big fan of the current band, Paint it Black (philly band on Jade Tree), they're pretty fierce and call to mind many great bands of yore. Check em out if haven't already.
jeff
Bands I saw at City Gardens: The Circle Jerks, Dirge, Adrenalin O.D., 7 Seconds, The Flaming Lips, The Angry Samoans.
saw a killer 7 seconds show there in the later 80s... Greatest performance I ever witnessed there... The Meatmen (probably 86-87), still the tighest band I've ever seen live. Descendents whipped up the crowd like no other. Got kicked in the head by Henry Rollins as he did a backflip on stage over his roadie (i was standing too close to the stage)... Murphy's Law, Underdog, The Vandals, Big Drill Car... ahhhh youth... in Jersey.
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