human crush recordings

Panzram tour May 2011

2011-04-25T22:41:00.000-07:00

Here's the tour schedule thus far - if anyone can help with any gaps we'd be much obliged. Thanks to everyone that's been helping with the booking of the tour. Really looking forward to a lot of these shows and playing with Escalator night after night.

The test presses of the 7" have come in - 50 - and the 10"s are all assembled, pictures to come soon. Look below for sound files.

APRIL 29TH - Gainesville, FL@Wayward
APRIL 30TH - Athens/SC - help?
MAY 1ST - Raleigh, NC@Kings Barcade w/ Shoppers, Shards & Stipmines
MAY 2ND - Lexington, KY@Hammerhead House 230 Kentucky Ave. w/Asadachi & Elsinores
MAY 3RD - Washington DC @Everlasting Life Cafe 2928 Georgia Ave. w/ Spirals
MAY 4TH - Philadelphia@1264 Ringgold St. w/Dopestroke, Biblethumper, Disturbed
MAY 5TH - NJ?
MAY 6TH - NYC @Stolen Sleeves 538 Johnson Ave. w/Cervix, Natural Law, Slobs, Syphilitic Lust
MAY 7TH - NYC @The Acheron(57 Waterbury St.)w/Crossed Stitched Eyes, Brain Killer, Lost Tribe, Nomad
MAY 8TH - New Haven, CT@FDZ 74 Dwight St. w/Escalator, Napoleon Complex, Denihilation
MAY 9TH - Boston, MA w/Escalator-something's brewing...
MAY 10TH - Portland, ME@The Aphodian 176 Coyle St. w/Escalator,Grist Mill, Dunno Kiddo, A Primitive & Savage Land
MAY 11TH - Easthampton, MA@Flywheel 43 Main St. w/Escalator & Curmudgeon
MAY 12TH - Recording@Dead Air
MAY 13TH - ?
MAY 14TH - Cincinnati, OH@1202 Main St. w/Escalator@Goetz Alley
MAY 15TH - Grand Rapids, FL@The Thunderdome w/Escalator, Cloud Rat, Nothing But Weeds
MAY 16TH - Chicago, IL @2323 N. Albany w/Escalator, Raw Nerve, Boilerman & South Side Strangler
MAY 17TH - St. Louis, MO w/Escalator, Yeung, Shaved Women@Cranky Yellow 2847 Cherokee St.
MAY 18TH - Nashville, TN w/Escalator @Little Hamilton Collective 1318 Little Hamilton St.
MAY 19TH - Birmingham, AL@God's Butt:1715 11th Place South w/Escalator & Black Hole Kids
MAY 20TH - Tallahassee, FL @ Farside
MAY 21ST - Tampa, FL@Heinrich's

Panzram REFORM and Single

2011-04-06T14:56:00.000-07:00

Long overdue, here we have two brand new Panzram releases in time for tour. The first is the "Reform" 10" released by IFB Records. Seven songs that were recorded at Heinrich's and Unit 19 in Tampa by Carson Cox & Pat Brady.

Side A

Side B

The cover image(above) is all we have available as we are still screen printing these. The jacket is a pretty neat-o design courtesy of the True Daddy Of Rock and Roll, Joe Lachut - kind of a gatefold-envelope sleeve? When the packaging is all done I'll upload some photos. In the meantime, enjoy the sounds, these are the final digital masters, courtesy of Lucky Lacquers. The vinyl does sound much better, however(based on the test presses). These should be all set in time for tour- which will be discussed in a super soon-to-come post here - but the OTHER record will be a different story...

Here is the newest material yet(until we record with Will at Dead Air on May 12th during the tour) from Carl Panzram & the Bungalow Beach-outs. It must be noted somewhere(here) that Carson did a fine job on this recording(same session as the 10") and patiently assisted through several mixes. Two originals and a cover, the A side being a longer jimmy-jam.

A Side: A New Mental Disorder For Youth In Disapproval

B Side 1: Aborted Man

B Side 2: Fall(Psychedelic Furs)

Again, these are the masters by Lucky. Chris Donaldson(Drugged Conscience) is helping us with this one, to the point that he's enlisting 50 test presses to ship in time for tour. The packaging will be a screenprinted envelope sleeve with the Snazzy-by-Lachut design above. Again, once all is assembled, I'll provide photo documentation. We're racing against time with this one, tour kicks off April 29th and we're hoping to have the 50 test presses in time. Packaging for the tests will be the same, just no label design on the records as is custom with the test-press. We'll be scribbling and stamping on them instead. Thanks be to Chris for rushing this and Lucky for mastering the tracks in a hurry. So, this will be with us in time for tour in the form of test presses. The reg'lur record will come some time later.

A small run of tapes with the above material will be pressed by Sacred Tapes in time for the tour also. Thanks to Chris Sommer for that! Next update will be a tour rundown/plea for mercy and assistance.

PANZRAM "RESTRAINT" cassette

2010-10-24T20:26:00.000-07:00

Finally, another small Panzram release. Below is the complete download of the tape, and here, a photo demonstration of the packaging. Joe screenprinted the cases, tapes and booklets and they look quite nice. Our friend Luc recorded this in Joe's sound bunker in the clutches of North Fort Myers a month or so ago. This tape basically was created to demo some of the songs which we're planning to release on a 10" with IFB records...sooner rather than later.

What we have here is four new songs, some odd pauses and a cover to cap it off. Enjoy.

PANZRAM - RESTRAINT

1. Bad Teeth
2. The Lie
3. Two Men
4. King of Clods
5. Fall(Psychedelic Furs)

Stock Update

2009-12-09T23:39:00.002-08:00

Just an update on the availability of releases and trades:

HCR006 DIVISIONS "Fin" Cassette is completely gone.

HCR005 DIVISIONS s/t 7" EP: 18 copies

HCR004: PANZRAM Demo Casette: 25 copies

HCR003: WE NEED TO TALK "It's Not Us, It's You": 91 copies

HCR002: BUCKSHOT FACELIFT "Demo" 7" EP: 5 copies

HCR001: DVD-R Bootleg is completely gone.

Trades: Slave Scene/MLU Live Tape: 2 copies

Eating Machine 7" EP: 5 copies

Any available items are 5 bucks ppd: fahy_john@hotmail.com

In other news, PANZRAM will be recording for a few different releases soon, one being a 10" that may be at least partially released on Pickle's IFB Records - www.ifbrecords.com

A few exciting releases have been put on hold or postponed, but in their place...we will update as things come together.

,

Change Of Pace

2009-10-11T03:56:00.000-07:00

I listen to quite a bit of post-punk, probably as much as hardcore. "Post-punk" can be interpreted broadly, the kind I'm usually into most is on the darker side; the kind that took direction from Joy Division liberally. What a lot of the bands I like have in common is that dark as they may seem, the songs they've written are still ultimately pop songs. Below are a few selections...

Children's Hour, from New Zealand, wrote an EP which was released in 1983 that contained the following song, "Go Slow." The lyric about someone mentioned in the song being a "member of the Ku Klux Klan" drew racist skins to their shows for a time, even though the band were not nationalist/fascist whatsoever. The band reformed much later and are now currently writing and recording.

Children's Hour - Go Slow

The Sound, from London, survived from 1979 to 1988. In the time between, they were helped by their friends, Echo and the Bunnymen to get a 3 album contract with a Warner subsidiary, Korova. Their first two albums were well received critically but did not bring in the big dollars for Warner; the band were pressured to have their third record sound more commercial. The band rebelled and went further in their own direction with their last major label album, "All Fall Down." This is probably their best record and the song below, "Red Paint", is a track from the album. Afterward, the band signed with an indie and went on to record a few EPs and another album but the band was finished after singer Adrian Borland began acting oddly and ultimately suffered a total nervous breakdown. Eleven years later he killed himself when by hurling himself in front of a train at Wimbledon.

The Sound - Red Paint

The Chameleons, from Manchester, released three albums on Statik records before disbanding after their manager's death in 1987(They released an EP, the title of which is a dedication to him; "Tony Wilson Walked On Water"). Their first record leans more on the dark, post-punk side, while their later albums veer more towards dream pop. The song below is from their first album, "Script Of The Bridge."

The Chameleons - Less Than Human

PANZRAM TOUR

2009-07-18T11:19:00.000-07:00

Joe and I will be leaving for Panzram tour on Tuesday. We will be going to these places and playing with the following bands:

July 21st - St. Augustine w/ Tourist Trap & Civilization
July 22nd - North Carolina@Lunchbox Records w/ Relics
July 23rd - Baltimore@Charm City Art Space w/ Republicorpse
July 24th - Either New Brunswick w/Zhenia Golov or Brooklyn w/ Punch...hope to know soon!
July 25th - Manhattan, NY@Abc No Rio w/ Disnihil, 76% Uncertain, CIA, She Rides!
July 26th - Hartford, CT@The Whitney House w/ Relics, Yak Snot, Afflictions
July 27th - Washington D.C. w/Foreign Objects, Commie Pinkos, I Decide, Transgression, Just Die!
July 28th - Tallahassee @Coolifornia House w/ Tonnn, The Catalyst, Words Defy The Plan, Give Up, The Stillmen, High Allmight
July 29th - everybody says "play Gainesville"....BANNED IN GAINESVILLE.
July 30th - Tampa@Unit 19 w/Big Rats, Murder-Suicide Pact...maybe Horrid Cross.

I will have all the Human Crush releases with me, and Nevin and his IFB distro will be with us as well. See some of you on the road!

Demo mp3s are below.

Panzram Demo Cassette - HCR004

2009-06-04T19:01:00.000-07:00

Joe Lachut and I have been playing music since a little before Merkit got started up and I always felt like we both knew what each other wanted a song to become when writing. As Merkit's slowed down in recent times we decided to start another full-time band with just the two of us, called Panzram. We both had the same idea of what we wanted the band to sound like; noisy, heavy, off-kilter and with personal lyrics about genuine experiences and ideas that are ugly by nature.
Early on in the band, maybe even before we played a show, while recording the Merkit split with Resurrectionists(coming out very soon on IFB Records - http://www.ifbrecords.com/), Joe and I recorded a single Panzram song for Chris "Heavy D" Donaldson's tape compilation that should be out soon too.
After playing some shows and writing a bit more we put together enough for a demo and went to Lady Godiva's Operation to record with our friend Carson from Divisions. We sent the recording off to National Audio Company to have them pressed professionally with grey shells and artwork on both sides. The covers will be silkscreened, with a photocopied booklet attached to the J card. Tapes are available for 5 bucks postage paid at the usual contact... Send cash, check, paypal etc. to: John Fahy/ 15011 Lakeside View Dr. / Apt. 2402/ Fort Myers/ FL/33919 or fahy_john@hotmail.com The tapes will be available in a few days.

We felt like Panzram was an apt name, after the infamous murderer and criminal from the early 20th century, which Joe and I had begun reading about constantly. Carl Panzram 31614 is not considered a serial killer or a mass murderer - he didn't kill for sport or because of a sudden outburst of anger. His hatred for humans spread throughout the course of his life, and he simply killed anyone who crossed him. He was executed after committing his life's events to paper in one of the most honest, disturbing autobiographies ever written. Carl Panzram created havoc in retaliation for the torture the prison system put him throughout his life and when he was freed he saw fit to wreak upon life as it had wrought on him. At the end of his life he admitted the ugliness of his nature but set out to prove that all humans were as evil as him at their core, and that the planet would be better off without mankind - especially himself. Proving himself right became much more important than his own life and he sought the satisfaction of making his point known until his last days. His sanity and intelligence were unquestionable; he simply committed crimes because he did not see them as wrong, he saw them as just. He tricked the legal system in Kansas into making his execution - to hang until dead - irreversible to guarantee his own death after proving to legal and medical authorities that he was not in any way insane or mentally ill. He ran to the noose on the day of his execution, stopping only to glare at the media that had gathered to watch his death. After spitting at both left and right viewing galleries, he bounded up the steps to the hangman. Asked his last words as the executioner fumbled with the rope, he said, "Hurry it up, you Hoosier bastard. I could hang a dozen men while you're screwing around."

Below the whole demo is linked in mp3 files, I had them up as wav files before and it was a pain in the ass.

A side:

1. Needy Divas

2. Hidden Knives

3. Blockhead

4. ...Life Deals Another Hand

5. Exposed

6. Tunnel Vision

B side: Untitled

We will be touring this summer, it may be just in the southeast, possibly up the whole east coast.

Divisions "Fin" Cassette - HCR006

2009-06-04T18:02:00.000-07:00

Below are two tracks from Divisions' final recorded material, a cassette entitled "Fin". The band and I split released the 5 song pro-cassette, which comes with a sticker, button, silk-screened covers, and a bullet. The bands' sound was becoming more textured, songs were lengthened, but the raw power of this band never wavered from start to finish.

Tapes can be gotten from me at fahy_john@hotmail.com or John Fahy/15011 lakeside view drive/ apt. 2402/ Fort Myers/ FL/33919. Paypal, cash, check, whatever.

I saw an early incarnation of Divisions, when they had an additional member and were called Fratricide for the first time at a show in Tampa, (I think Merkit may have played as well) and it was also the first time I saw Cult Ritual. This show made me realize that both Tampa bands, even at their earliest, were trying to push things as far as they could. Cult Ritual still is, and Divisions did throughout the course of their tenure. All of the Divisions kids will make music in other bands, but Divisions will be missed. They did something original and unique; they took some of the trappings and sounds of black, death and thrash metal and fused them with raging, heavy hardcore. They never forgot that heavy metal was at it's most potent when it was... you know, heavy. Their artwork was great, the lyrics were scathing, and the live performance was devastating. Their last show was played against the wishes of Tampa's police, but the door was locked and the set was played in its' entirety and it was fucking excellent, the perfect way to go out.

The sound on this recording is much different than the 7" EP, much less clean. The cassette has four originals and ends with a Bathory cover. The two originals below are my personal favorites.

Song 1

Song 4

Remember this band.

WE NEED TO TALK s/t 7"

2009-03-24T23:07:00.000-07:00

Here, finally, are a few mp3s from the We Need To Talk EP. This record hits a lot of nerves; it has some powerviolence/sludge grooves and some LEFT FOR DEAD-style attack. It tops it all off with Scrotum Grinder-esque, loud, pissed vocals. Lyrically, this pulls no punches on personal and socio-political fronts. This band may not be around much longer so you kids on the Bayou better soak it in while you can. This was a 3 way split with IFB Records, Human Crush and One Eye Records. These records look great; letter-pressed covers and a huge booklet to boot. These are available from me for 5 bucks ppd. Paypal fahy_john@hotmail.com or send cash, check or money order to John Fahy/15011 lakeside view drive/apt. 2402/ Fort Myers/FL/33919

Songs:

"I'd Rather Die Twice Than Be Born Again"
http://www.box.net/shared/46xthzlkfj

"Riff Limit"
http://www.box.net/shared/bs66el2l19

"Unholy Outlaw"
http://www.box.net/shared/p24ecp45b5

Life's Blood - live

2009-03-04T05:00:00.000-08:00

This is Life's Blood's contribution to the 1988 New Breed cassette compilation; two live tracks from CBGB's in 1988. The band has no other recording that captures them as raw and vicious as they are here; the songs are played with a speed and volatility not seen on anything else in their discography. Speaking of which, Prank Records is supposed to be releasing the Life's Blood collection, hopefully before 2010. I hope also that these recordings make it onto the discography, perhaps even more from this performance if we're lucky. Aside from these tracks, the New Breed compilation countless other treasures; Raw Deal demo tracks(pre-Killing Time), Uppercut's take on straight edge, "Am I Clear?", Live and demo tracks from Beyond, Breakdown, Outburst and Absolution and a lot more miscellany. This comp really needs to be re-released - if it's not superior, it's at least equal in quality and impact as the "Where The Wild Things Are" New York Hardcore compiliation. On the miscellaneous side, there's another vicious track on the comp that I'll include, also sung by Life Blood's Jason O'Toole: Collapse's "Failure". This band to my knowledge only released one EP, but you can see the vicious vocal style O'Toole had developed in the Life's Blood live recordings stayed on for these sessions.

This is what I think of when I think of classic hardcore.

Life's Blood - "Maximum Security" - live
http://www.box.net/shared/hp9opklsu1

Life's Blood - "Youth Enrage" - live
http://www.box.net/shared/9ryxd3rng7

Collapse - "Failure"
http://www.box.net/shared/0ij0y54s5p

Divisions 7" Mp3's

2008-11-05T21:35:00.000-08:00

These are two mp3s from the 7", I've deleted the Demo mp3s because this is a better representation of the record. "Vomit Hounds" and "Blinding Rain" are the first songs on the A and B side of the record and are some of the most pissed off, heavy hardcore songs I've ever heard. Justin's vocals sound fucking poisoned and furious. This EP is available from me for $5 ppd, paypal me at fahy_john@hotmail.com or mail cash, check or MO to me: John Fahy/Human Crush 15011 Lakeside View Dr. Apt. 2402/ Fort Myers/ FL 33919.

I'm really proud of this record.

http://www.box.net/shared/yqydk39bgn - "Vomit Hounds"

http://www.box.net/shared/llj04pbbnz - "Blinding Rain"

In The Beginning...

2008-10-29T21:46:00.000-07:00

Hello. My name is John Fahy. I am in a band called Merkit, write a column for Maximumrocknroll, and am starting a small record label.

I started this blog to draw attention to some out-of-print records, tapes, etc. that fly under the radar and deserve to be dug up and listened to. I will also be putting up mp3s from anything I release on my label, Human Crush Recordings. First up will be the Divisions 7" which I just put out, then some older stuff.

I will also of course be doing the usual bullshitting about life, politics, music and everything else, as well as throwing out news about the label.

The point of the Human Crush label is to showcase bands that I feel are some of the best hardcore punk have to offer. Usually, I go for music that is ugly, mean, noisy, heavy, weird or interesting. Any bands that are talented and fit that criteria are what I seek out. I don't care if most people don't like what I'm doing, I figure if I listen to something and freak out about it, it should get a platform so other people have the opportunity to get the same reaction I did, however small their numbers may be. Music that is genuinely weird, violent, original and powerful usually doesn't get credit until much later than they should anyway.

2008-10-19T12:30:00.000-07:00

This is the first Human Crush Records post.