Question: Im wondering about this as I saw it noted in a coment about one of your questions, What did you think of The holy terror hardcore bands back in the day? I thought they would be your thing because of the japanease punk influence bands like Integrity, Ringworm, VVEGAS, GEHENNA and from manchester Rot In Hell. Im just curious to your opinion of that scene as i thought something influenced by SOB and GISM would be your thing. From:
Answer: There are a lot of bands and scenes around which barely flick onto my radar, and I only had a fleeting interest in bands like Integrity, Ringworm etc. By the way, I don't recall the scene being called 'Holy Terror Hardcore' at the time, even though that is Integrity's own label name.
Looking back, I reckon Integrity and others were'nt metallised enough for my tastes. After a certain point, straight-up hardcore bands, even if they were super speedy and sang about serious pissed-off themes, they just weren't doing it for me as a listener, fan or as a label. They lacked heaviness and power- and that downtuning of guitars and crushing riff-power was what made the grindcore/DM bands so different to anything else around.
By the mid-late 90's, straight-up, straight-edge US Hardcore had veered way off my listening radar and Victory Records was the one label who to their credit, had stuck with it, and that label eventually popularised the earliest form of metal-core with the staggering sales acheivments of the debut Hatebreed album.That album sold over a 100,000 copies which was seriously insane amount of records at the time. Needless to say, the band showed their gratitude to the Indie label by immediately taking measures to wriggle out of their deal, and go sign for big money elsewhere. Happens all the time in this Industry.
I loved Hatebreed from the minute I heard them, also around that time I was pretty much into Snapcase aswell, although both sounded different, both bands brought an extra something to their hardcore. Hatebreed brought the metal and growly vocals, Snapcase the off-kilter,Fugazi elements, later to be identified as "Emo".
You could argue that Victory invented the Metal-core and Emo-core scenes in the mid-late 90s with those bands, and you'd be exactly right.
European labels played their part too- Good Life Records out of Belgium put straight-edge metalcore on the EU map in the late 90s with bands like Congress and Arkangel (who I loved).
I really don't hear much SOB or GISM influence on the bands you mention. And both of those Japanese legends were far from straight edge bands. GISM were notable because they were playing a form of hybrid metallised hardcore punk at least 5 years before it became widely acceptable, and mainman Sakevi is notorious for being an extremely violent character in the Japanese scene.
Bit of trivia for ya- GISM logo is seen on the leather jacket worn by Lady Gaga in the video for Telephone (100 Million views and counting)
Another bit of trivia: Totsuan, singer of SOB, committed suicide in 1995 because he had been caught by Police smoking weed. Unlike in UK/USA where a caution and maybe small fine is the only outcome, any drug use is an immensely serious crime in Japan which has strict laws governing illicit drugs. I believe he was overcome with shame and anxiety because of the impending court case, and was worried about the disrespect it would bring to his family, because the drug-trade in Japan is closely allied to the gangster-infested underworld. He threw himself under a train.
When I met Totsuan during the first Japanese tours of Cathedral and Brutal Truth, he was an incredibly sweet dude, who hardly even drank, never mind do any drugs. Looking back, its obvious he had been influenced by, and perhaps tried too hard to ape his heroes Lee Dorrian and Kevin Sharp, who were both serious pot-heads during that period.
Another bit of trivia: Integrity mainman Dwid had a hardcore electronic side project called Psywarfare in the 90s, which is a fact I find fascinating.
INTEGRITY - Bloodlust
GISM- Endless Blockades for the Pussyfooter (Live)
12 comments:
Only Pot, Dig? Mick Harris told me (maybe I'm wrong but it is what I remember) that Tottsuan was involved with heroin, and I vaguely remember hearing about him being involved in actually owing money because of that.
I understand cultural differences but it can't be that to this day smoking a joint will actually threaten your whole life and future?
Having been in a popular "Holy Terror" hardcore band in the late 1990s, I don't hear the SOB or GISM influence either, which is not to say we didn't *like* those bands, we did (our singer was especially fond of GISM). As a band, we were more influenced by goth/post-punk, black metal, and post-rock. I'm pretty sure our singer is credited with coining the term "Holy Terror" as well.
And as for Hatebreed leaving Victory, I don't blame them for leaving for greener pastures. Back in the 1990s Tony Brummel (aka Tony Victory) was notorious for not paying bands on his label and being a total jerk. I can't speak for his reputation now, as I don't really follow the hardcore scene on that level anymore.
I remember Integrity being probably the heaviest of all the bands on Victory Records at the time. I bought all they're early 7" when i used to love a lot of that SE stuff. I remember buying a Insight hoodie and Tony Victory send me a letter asking if i could distribute for him in Uk/Europe around 90/91. Turned it down being on the dole at the time at not much experience in that dept.
Tho i been listening to a bit of SE shit recently, and tracking down off blogs records/demos i used to own.
Before you ask the statement relating to gism and japanease hardcore was based on somthing sean from rot in hell said in an interview "We listen to the wisdom of Sakevi Yokoyama and Pentti Linkola, not the fripperies of Belladonna and Mustaine"
full interview avalible here
http://apocalypsewestcoast.blogspot.com/
Infact on the same blog mentioned above in the interview with dwid he mentions gism as an influence as well.
Integ/gehenna/vvegas/rih jap tribute 7" with the new bloodbook. Rih doing SxOxBx...
actually no one of the members of catharsis(amazing) coined the term holy terror.. And fuck victory! People give labels way too much credit, half the bands out there would do just as good or better if they did everything themselves.so remember that when your fat/bloated/drug addicted & sitting in your moms basement filled with your bands l.p.'s that didnt get pushed like they should of..or maybe its cause your band eats ass and your too busy wondering what defines "holy terror" as a genre..it was a joke term to sell records to kids that are mad at dad..
First off you misspelt FAGazi. You are however dead on comparing Snapcase to them. I don't really understand what bands with boyscout slogans have to do with Integrity minus Victory. The content in which you choose to answer the question with is boyish. (probably explaining your obsession with the previous bands) It obviously shows your lack of knowledge on what you're talking about with your selection of Integrity's song as well. Sometimes when I am asked questions about ground breaking metal acts that I never had the chance to sign, I usually respond by starting off with throwing cheap shots at their tuning preference, then I compare them to bands who were just watered down commercial versions of their act, and then I follow that up with namedropping and telling a story that is leakier than a civ....
is Daryl still not satisfied (even after the trick you turned for him on the '95 euro tour) that you have to keep his cock in your mouth into this century too? you think the internet in the last decade would have finally washed away all the remnants of 90s boyscouting.
should have just signed snapcase to Queerache. i'm gonna go ride my bike peace
hahaha snapcase heavy? no wonder earache sucks these days! if you think snapcase are heavy!
Of course you don't hear any similarity between GISM/SOB and Integrity if Closure is the Integrity record you are listening to... Try some of the more recent records. Very clear Japanese punk/metal influence.
Hello folks Im from Mexico and I write for a alternative punk magazine from Guadalajara call it ANORMAL over here G.I.S.M. got some hardcore fans and Im wondering if some of you got some lirycs of the band, whe are tremendously intrigated for the lirycs here and I will be eternally gratefull if you guys help me to discover that treasure,
I can prove to you that Im a dedicated fan if you look my video on youtube of deathly fighter solo cover that i made or you just can search on youtube with the words deathly fighter solo cover and im the only one there https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aidLlnFzt1U
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