Days N’ Daze formed in 2008 in Houston and they play a mix of folk (yes folk) and crust, there is a weird and interesting combination in the same time, but hey this is music about, experiment to make something good. Show Me The Blueprints DEMOS will be out in May at our friends from SBAM Records and Flail Records. The band is signed with Fat Wreck and the original album was a blast for them. But as Jesse said: “For over a decade I recorded Days N’ Daze on a Tascam board through a single Sterling ST-55 with no DAW in a closet at my folks place in Houston, TX. I’ve never really known much about recording, mixing, and mastering. Always kinda just did what I could with what I had and understood to get a sound closest to what was in my head. Needless to say, flyin’ out to California to record an album for Fat Wreck Chords in an actual studio with computer screens, more than one mic, and someone who actually understands what all the little bips and bops on a soundboard mean was a pretty big step out of our comfort zone” so in short this version is one with the demos as they were recorded before the album was out on Fat. 15 tracks to listen loud and check them out HERE
Oi! you, from the Greater Wallachia region in Romania, all the way to Aztec land, I received the StrgOI fanzine. It is hard for me to write an objective review as I’ve known Cezar for a long time, back in the days when we were exchanging lists of music on ODC and having MySpace, but I will try to write something honest. The name Strigoi refers to a type of supernatural creature or undead being, often associated with vampirism or revenants. The concept of Strigoi varies in different regions of Romania, but generally, they are believed to be souls of the dead who have returned from the grave, possessing some form of malevolent intent. Cezar is also known for his old fanzine: No Bollox Just Oi! and Strigoi brings the same Oi, Punk, and metal music back into the center of attention.
The package came with the first 2 issues, both of them with hard covers and nice black and white prints. Both issues have some beautiful A3 posters made by Cristina (MissRhyne). The first issue has 70 pages and features interviews with: Karloff (punk and black metal from Oldenburg, Lower Saxony), Plakkaggio (punk and black metal from Italy), Hardsell (streetpunk/oi, hc from Austin), Coro from Axa Valaha (booking and underground promoter from Romania), Scandal (streetpunk/oi from Romania/UK), NapOI!ka (streetpunk from Czech Republic), Rotheads (death metal Romania), The Unborn (horrorpunk oi from Italy), Mendeku Diskas (distro and mailorder from Basque Country), Collision (postpunk oi from France), Sasha from Wrong Turn (hc/punk band tattoo artist from Romania), Toro Bravo (oi from Lithuania), Leather Brigade (fast metal from Romania), and Eroszakszervezet (punk from Hungary).
It also includes a short history of Iulia Hasdeu Castle in Campina, Romania, and an amazing artwork for the back cover made by Cristina and a nice poem. Number 2 came out this year and has 90 pages with a hard cover B5 format. It features interviews with: Live By The Sword (oi/metal USA), Trespasser (black metal Sweden), Grinder (thrash metal from Romania), FC St. Pauli (interview with the firm), The Dead Ceausescus (punk from Romania), Real Enemy (skinhead fanzine from Slovakia), The Uncouth (oi from USA), Terror Art (post-punk legends from Romania – interview in Romanian and English).
There’s also a nice article about How To Live With Death in the Wallachian style and another article about Romanian venues (Bucharest part 1). The fanzine also has some nice artworks by the same MissRhyne: The Adventures of Strigoi and Friends, and another kick-ass back cover artwork with a poem.
Both issues have the interview written in English as well as the articles. Cezar did a great job with the questions, really personal some of them, covering political issues and football among other cool subjects. Being myself a huge collector of fanzines (both printed and digital), I must give kudos for the huge work that they did, as both of the fanzines are looking professional and of nice quality print. I like the A3 poster for the second issue so much that I ordered a frame to have it on display in my office. I also love that both issues have a nice layout with 2 columns and nice photos; all interviews have different feels and like I said, really crafted questions.
As a small critic, I must say that 2 interviews were a bit hard to read as the background artwork with the black text didn’t go well together, but all in all, this is something to have for any fanzine lover out there. Please do check them out and order directly from them this amazing zine.
From the underground of New York, here comes Demoted. 9 tracks under the name of Shit For Brains, really fast, short and angry. In the mix of hardcore and punk that will remind you of Minor Threat. This is true DIY from the band released on CD and old school on tape. Fast riffs and guitar distortion and adrenaline, good to listen to your gym sessions. Also a nice cover artwork in the old school punk art mood. Check them out on their official web https://www.demotedband.com/
mpty zine 