Punk rock. Hardcore. Everything else weird and fucked up along the way. Most people who are fans of this kind of music would agree that the golden years were somewhere in between 1977 and 1985, with so many records being made by so many bands, from so many different places. It's quite a lot to wrap your head around, let alone listen to it all. But still, there are those out there who need to know everything they can about it. There are people who need to hear it all, will dedicate so much of their spare time to it and yes, in some cases, there are people who must try to own it all. It's not something that everyone can understand, in fact unless you're spending your afternoon digging through crates of old 45s in hopes of finding that hidden gem you've spent forever looking for, i can bet "dollars to doughnuts" that you won't "get it". A record is a form of art. It's a document of time, a sound, history if you will and that record, an original copy in it's original form tells a story. Seam splits, torn sleeves, surface scuffs, stains etc. tell a bit of a tale, but more importantly, it's the singing, the screaming, the angry lyrics, the hopeful lyrics, the distorted guitars, the raging basslines and the drums that sound like buckets and cans. It's the weird sounding production that was done on a shoestring budget or recorded in the middle of the night at a studio where the engineer couldn't give a shit how this terrible band sounded. It's the makeshift artwork and the xeroxed lyric sheets. It's the sound, the sound that still will bring the chill down your spine. For some people, some records mean this much to them and more so that they are willing to sit down and do whatever it takes to find one. In the realm of punk rock, with the smaller and more limited pressings of so many no name bands, it becomes that much more difficult to find said records. But still, despite all obstacles, we try, sometimes succeeding and are rewarded with our favorite tunes in their original format, being listened to and presented the way the band wanted it to be. Totally fucking raging.
Flash forward a bit. Chances are, if you're still into punk as you read this, then you're just like me. I was born in 1984, thus missing this era of great music. That's not to say that nothing great followed those years, but most of it certainly (and still does) paled in comparison. However, that's a debate for another day. Like many people i know who collect punk records, the common phrase that i seem to always hear is usually along the lines of "I was born way to late to start collecting something so ridiculous" (thanks mr. negative tom) and in most cases, they're right. With the rise of interest in punk and collecting records along with more kids willing to drop big bucks on the classics, trying to track down originals of your favorites is harder than ever. Still though, the hunt is what keeps the die hards going and the hope that in the next box they might find something as minimal as the first Jam single or something as insane as a copy of the Subhumans "death to the sickoids", it makes people want to keep looking. Rare or not, it's always a great feeling to check something off your want list. I know this because i'm one of those nerds and have spent more than my good share of time digging around and searching for these records, sometimes striking flat black gold but more often than not, going home empty handed. This blog is basically a documentation of that and as i've stated before, i don't really expect everyone to understand. However, if you do then perhaps you'll find this at least half interesting as i go through some travels and talk about some killer bands and jams. Fuck rite on.
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