SOCKFOOT - "MILK MOON / LOW DOOM" album download

SOCKFOOT - "MILK MOON / LOW DOOM" (2016)

beautiful lo-fi minimal folk with personal/political lyrics to see the end of winter through. light a candle, draw a bath, smoke some weed, turn up the heat, cuddle yer cat & listen.

download here.

NEW HFX PUNK/HARDCORE FREE DOWNLOADS

RAKINS - DEMO (2015)
raccoon fronted burn out kill yerself punk. members of eekum seekum, half/read, 4-lom...








GRUMP - NORTH END GENERIC 7" (2015)
grump still doing their thing, rad weird punk, their first 7".









UNREAL THOUGHT - AMATEUR COMFORT (2015)
goth/post punk. perfect for the autumn. members of abject pax, negative rage...

Filthy Liars - "If All Else Fails (Cry & Cry Again) Download & Review

FILTHY LIARS - "IF ALL ELSE FAILS (CRY & CRY AGAIN)" (2014)

Wow, what a terrible winter. Thankfully this record got me through the last stretch of it. Actually, the first time I listened to it was stoned walking up Agricola in a downpour that washed away all the piles of snow haunting the sidewalk. This felt appropriate to me since the songs all have a theme of "well, everything is terrible now but maybe it won't be someday?"
Anyways, this is the second release by former HFX kids, Filthy Liars, & their first as an electric band.
While I loved their acoustic demo & everything about it, I'm also excited about their new, adapted sound. It's rough, melodic pop punk with a bunch of mid 2000's emo influences in there. What's cool though is that even though it's sappy, sad & catchy, it's also pretty punk & scrappy most of the time. When there are brief screamed vocals, the band sounds more like Witch Hunt than Finch. I keep imagining a shaky snare stand & cans of soda falling off of little borrowed practice amps in a damp Vancouver garage.
A couple of the songs are old acoustic ones reworked, & the rest are new. For the most part, I prefer the originals from their stripped down demo, while other times, like on "Bags & Bottles", a song which I fucking love, the electric switch only makes it better. I no longer want to cry on the floor, instead I want to rip open my ribcage & start throwing my insides around. The new songs pretty much all slay & have that epic scream along capability in them constantly. The lyrics are 100% this bands strongest point sung in beautiful harmonies that feel like a knife in the stomach from someone you really care about.
Super impressed! & they're coming out east on tour in May so you'll be able to pick up a cassette at a show soon. Until then, the record is online @ http://filthyxliars.bandcamp.com/

ABJECT PAX - 7" (2013) REVIEW

ABJECT PAX - S/T 7" (2013)

Abject Pax have been around for a few years now. They are heavily influenced by 80's uk peace punk but with a sound all their own. I was so excited to hear their new 7" and was not at all disappointed. The sound on this release is a little more clean then their demo and with a few new tracks. This album is good all the way through. The guitar is haunting and mournful sounding and the vocals are powerfully executed. The track that really stuck out to me on this new release was Mind and Body. The backing vocals really make this song. Pick this album up if you haven't. I would assume they're going to sell fast and if you haven't got the demo try and get your hands on one of those too. By far my favorite Halifax band! Looking forward to hearing more from them in the future.

LISTEN HERE.

ROOT ROT - DEMO (2012) DOWNLOAD

ROOT ROT - DEMO (2012)

root rot were around for a little while between 2011 & 2012, playing sporadic shows that often felt like they were on the verge of falling apart... they were special though & this tape, although only a handful of copies were made is one of my favourite demos from any halifax band.
luckily popular american punk blog, remote outposts ripped it & threw it online, & now whoever didn't grab the last copies from the sad rad distro can hear it in all it's shambly anarcho glory.
root rot are going to be playing a few shows coming up soon after a long hiatus so look out for those details.
you can download the tape, & read the little nice anecdote & review on remote outposts here.
GET IT!

WOOLWORM - DEMO (2013) DOWNLOAD

WOOLWORM - DEMO (2013)

solo project, lo-fi noisy weirdo punk from truro with really delayed vocals.

download/listen here.

SICK CHILDREN - S/T E.P. (2013) DOWNLOAD

SICK CHILDREN are a newer garage punk four piece made up of members of Milk Moustache, Grump, Mean Mug & many others. They musically remind me a bit of the Nymphets & also on the third track, Dead Kennedys with the surfy guitar leads. Really distorted screechy vocals with a lot of high pitch yelps in there too.
This e.p. is available on cassette from the band but you can download it here.

UNCLE - TOUR TAPE (2013) DOWNLOAD

UNCLE are getting ready for another Northeast Tour this September & have just released a new tape for it. It's fucking gnarly, fast, complicated & doesn't wait for you to keep up at all. Super sick.

LISTEN/DOWNLOAD HERE

You should check out their upcoming tour dates as well & for sure go out & support them if they're coming to your city.

TOUR DATES (SEPT 5TH - 23RD)

CUS - III (2013) - DOWNLOAD

CUS - III (2013)

truro punk provides once again!

"we're a two piece and we'd like to play some shows so we need at least one more member...preferably two. if people are interested they can get in touch through the bandcamp. we recorded the songs ourselves on a 4 track and might put them out on a tape at some point."

DOWNLOAD HERE.

BAD EDUCATION - DEMO (2013) REVIEW & DOWNLOAD

Bad Education is a new two piece band. I love two piece bands.  I think they almost always have a more raw, stripped down sound and Bad Education is no exception they are noisy and Chaotic with Driving bass lines and pissed off Screamed out Vocals. They have a different fresh sound. This demo is worth checking out.

DOWNLOAD HERE.

-Kailey

Hex Partners - S/T (2013) - Review and download

HEX PARTNERS - S/T CASSETTE (2013)

Hex Partners is a coming together of two incredibly talented individuals to wordlessly express, process and expel the darker parts of all of us.
Each song on this demo grabs me by the hand and leads me comfortably and safely into myself to explore and grow and heal.
So rarely does music resonate so deeply. Hex Partners takes so many elements of music I look for and appreciate and dynamically weaves them together.
With parts ranging from dark acoustic, doomy black metal inspired chaos, to grimey ass fiddle with beautiful and contemplative interludes.
I would recommend checking this demo out to anyone regardless of your usual musical interests just because I feel like it has something important to offer anyone who hears it.

-J.J.

Download here.

Primary Stress - Demo (2013) Review and Download

PRIMARY STRESS - Demo (2013)

It’s been said a lot lately, but the punk scene in Halifax has been cranking out a ton of great bands, and those bands have been producing some pretty great demos. Primary Stress’ new four song tape is no exception. With a pedigree including Eekum Seekum, Vixens, Life Chain, and Hex Partners, this band stands apart from their other respective projects with equal parts crusty heaviness and black metal inspired melodic riffage, with pounding drums and dual vocals. I’ve used this description a couple of times already, but “early-Darkthrone-meets-early-From-Ashes-Rise-or-other-heavy-yet-melodic-90’s-Prank-Records-band” is one comparison that could be made. Epic blackened leads with blasting drumming descend into fist-pumping thunderous breakdowns. The sound quality is raw and punk as fuck, which suits Primary Stress perfectly.
The lyrics to the opening track, To Whatever End, betrays a love of JRR Tolkien, using references to Gondor and its mad ruler to discuss loss and longing for a loved one far away in battle. The rest of the songs deal with pain and depression (Isolated Existence), animal abuse (Corridor), and mysterious hiker deaths in the Russian wilderness (Dyatlov Pass).
Do yourself a favour and pick up a copy of this tape right away. Just do it. It is a decision you will not regret.

Listen here.

- Dan Hayward

tиаматдепрессии - "beneath the weeping willow tree" (2013) album preview

TIAMATDEPRESSION - "BENEATH THE WEEPING WILLOW TREE"

17 year old DSBM artist from Nova Scotia, Canada, first track on second album "Beneath the Weeping Willow Tree" which is yet to be released. Artist who did the only painting of this video is a personal friend Sean Purt, who also goes by "Pawo Trungpa."



listen to more here.

subspecies - demo (2013) - download

SUBSPECIES - DEMO (2013)

AUTONOMOUS PEACE PUNK
recorded analogue at the Murderhouse March 2013
-soon to be released on cassette. write for copies-
kindred.adam@gmail.com

DOWNLOAD

jakery & shay - split (2013) - download

JAKERY & SHAY - SPLIT (2013)

there's this idea that past trauma lived by our relatives can carry on through generations & affect those of us around today.
jakery explores this concept on his side of the split, titled "centuries of winter". quiet, epic & sorrowful lyrics about generational pain & suffering.
shay's side of the split are three spoken word pieces & readings about grief, bdsm & being fed up & depressed about how fucking terrible this city & world can be.
brilliant folks doing profound, awe inspiring art & expression.

DOWNLOAD JAKERY

DOWNLOAD SHAY

filthy liars - "hfx demo" (2013) - download & review

FILTHY LIARS - HFX DEMO (2013)

this is the most sincere, honest & self reflective music I've heard in so long. part boy band, part acoustic emo punk.
were you obsessed with bright eyes & dashboard in high school? you'd probably love this record...

"when you cannot recognize what is genuine, ingest these poisons just to lower your defenses for awhile, but they take what's worth sharing from you, so fuck that."

"I won't stop fighting as long as I'm breathing. I'll find what works if I keep believing. I remember how it felt when I said & I meant that your head on my chest made my history hurt less."

these are the kind of beautiful heartbreaking lyrics that I would get tattooed on my legs.
filthy liars make me feel like I'm twenty one again. so much truth & beauty. even crusties cry right?

DOWNLOAD HERE.

grump - demo (2013) download

grump are a relatively new band that folks should definitely check out. their demo is one of my favourite tapes to listen to lately.
they are noisy & weird without being fucked & unlistenable & fast & pissed without being super aggro or macho.
grump are rad. totally a fan.

DOWNLOAD HERE.

the graboids - "back to perfection" 7" (2013) stream

the graboids are ridiculous.
they for sure have one of the most energetic live shows in our city, but unfortunately they are kind of a bar band, which sucks because I'm sure that middle school weirdo geeks would dig the shit out of them.
they've definitely built a neat little world around themselves that involves a lot of wild drunken antics & ongoing live wrestling feuds with gus' pub bartenders & other locals.

this 7" is pretty standard for them. the songs are hella immature, sometimes maybe too much. I still dig their first 7" inch the best but this one fits in well with their growing catalog. perhaps I just enjoy self deprecating songs about being a lazy drunk over tunes about mom's dating greasy dudes? regardless anyone who is into this band already will agree that it's a pretty solid 7" & you really have to applaud any local band who takes the time & effort to put out their own vinyl.
recommended for fans of all that totally great garage punk ramones worship stuff you hear on monday nights at reflections.

LISTEN HERE.

prsm - demo (2013) download

truro punk is basically it's own subgenre as far as I'm concerned.
PRSM are a newer band & although I don't know much about them, they really blew me away at the sad rad show they jumped on back in march.
the drummer especially... at one point I was basically staring jaw dropped at the drummer, unable to keep up or understand & looked around the room to see most folks also in a weird awe.
truro is weird. hopefully we'll see PRSM back in the city soon.

DOWNLOAD HERE.

weed thief - s/t (2013) download

is it just me or have halifax punks been totally embracing the heavy lately?
stoked abut this band. hella bass focused & sludgey.
super cool artwork too on their self titled here.

DOWNLOAD HERE.