album reviews

Hassan I Sabbah- Discography
maybe it's just me being incredibly biased towards having the pleasure of speaking to this band's former members over the internet, but i personally think that this is the single most cathartic band in hardcore. albeit being underrated to the 9th degree, i believe these guys deserve more recognition than they get. the lyrics are very symbolic and the vocals carry an air of anger and frustration unequaled by anybody in within this type of hardcore. the drummer himself is very very good, ending up in bands like the Red Chord. the guitar and bass work are not over the top, but provide an integral characteristic to the band. the ability to convey desperate messages without appearing too cheesy or without sounding like a whole bucket load of false angst is something incredibly hard to pull off right. if you find these guys anywhere on the internet, send them a message and thank them for making all these songs. it might take a while for them to respond, but they always do, and it always makes them feel better.

Religious Nightmare- the Junkyard of Infinity
quoted for truth, i never noticed these guys were Filipino until i read about them on Incidental Afterthought. i could safely say they are now one of my favorite grindcore bands both here in the country and abroad. i have no idea how it came to the point where merely saying the word grindcore drew responses that referenced pig-squeal vocals and crappy chug-chug death metal, but if there is one thing i know, it's that this band isn't one of them. imagine a screamy beast on the level of grindcore legends like Brutal Truth with a Discordance Axis-esque aesthetic (see their cover art and their song titles) i usually don't want to name-drop, but i'm only stressing the point that these guys should be way up there in terms of quality grindcore. the drumming is perfect. the guitar and bass work is perfect. the vocals are perfect tortured screaming at its' finest.

Phoenix Bodies- Raise The Bullshit Flag
nudity, thrash, hardcore punk, grindcore and two crazy dudes moving around like deranged psychopaths. that's basically Phoenix Bodies in a nutshell. they are working on releasing a few new splits, but till then, let's pay our respects to this awesome album. athletic thrash drumming, punky and chaotic guitarwork, no bass, and two vocalists who do an amazing job of contrasting each other. their lyrics deal with practical issues like consumerism and the progression of society with a tongue-in-cheek demeanor. this is a perfect album if you're looking for a good time. everything on it is just right. Derek is a cool guy too, very talkative guy.

C.C.C.C.- Love And Noises
noise is a genre often reserved for people who wear robes while prancing around in the woods or pretentious art kids saying music is overrated. there are only two people in this band. an ex-porn star and some dude. whatever they do to make their band sound like this is fucked up, but it works. this kind of noise strikes me as very cerebral and maintains a very cathartic feel up till the end. i'm not sure if half the things i hear in it are actually there or are effects of the noise setting up such a tense mood. GET THIS ALBUM

EPIC FAIL, EPIC WIN

Caitlyn Bailey's set

the Saydee's Kitchen/City Of Thornz launch show last December 7 was sort of a disaster due to the fact we spent about thrice as much as we spent, but it was great, lots of people, lots of energy, but a lot of the people who came spent most of the time outside. to whoever paid the door fee, thank you so much for proving you support the Davao City Hardcore scene. there will be more pics, vids, and details from the show this monday. till then, just sit tight for more news.

xfrancisx

Saydee's Kitchen and updates

we fixed peter's garage a few days ago and quite frankly, i see a lot of potential in it. Saydee's Kitchen will go a long way, i just know it. we got some utensils, we cleared out the garage, we started building our own DIY reading library, so yeah, we're almost there. here are some pictures of what we've been up to.





as you can see, we're very serious about this, and we plan to do our best to keep it together. also, there will be a show this friday at the Elevation Bar along Jacinto Extension, the bands stated to play are Anxiety To Hysteria, As A Whole, Caitlyn Bailey, Clobberin' Time, Fast Move, On Burial Grounds, and Struggle for Equality and Culture (S.E.C.). entrance is p20, so bring friends. there are only a few conditions though.

click on picture to show big poster

• bring fun
• bring fun
• bring fun
• no violence
• no assholes

well, that's it. till next time.
xfrancisx






p.s.

YES, that's me on the poster for Locked And Loaded. i'm such a whore, aren't i?

Now We Rise And Are Everywhere

here are some pics and stuff from Now We Rise And Are Everywhere.

personally, i think we could've done better as organizers, but since it's a first for us to organize a show like this, i guess it'll pass. i can't avoid feeling awkward there given that everybody knew everybody and i was sort of "the new guy", but the people there really kept the hardcore spirit alive by welcoming me into the fray. thanks to everybody who's been nice to me and to the rest of Limp Cat and Caitlyn Bailey. thanks to Peter for sharing advice and remembering my band's name, Denver for showing interest in the band, TJ for letting everybody know, and everybody who came to watch.

we had lineup changes, btw.
this was the lineup for the two days:

Day 1

• Anxiety To Hysteria
• Caitlyn Bailey
• Damosa Crew
• As A Whole

Day 2

• Cut The Chains Of Sin
• Stolen At Gunpoint
• Go For Devotion
• Kill Thy Arrogance

thanks to Anxiety To Hysteria, Caitlyn Bailey (duh, us), Damosa Crew, As A Whole, Cut The Chains Of Sin, Stolen At Gunpoint, Go For Devotion, and Kill Thy Arrogance. to everybody who wasn't able to play because Kano was sick (Strength Through Vengeance, Ambulation, Path Session), you'll get to play next time.

P.S.
MAD PROPS TO PAOLO OF THE DURIAN BAR FOR LETTING US ORGANIZE THE SHOW THERE. IT MEANS A LOT, SRSLY.

first night

Anxiety To Hysteria- powerful DC metalcore
truth be told, these guys were amazing. brutal, in your face metallic hardcore. i'm really happy as fuck for inviting these guys because they really got the crowd going. plus, denver's hair is so fucking metal.
















Caitlyn Bailey- Davao City skramz unit
yup, i'm the asshole on vocals. we play hardcore influenced by the apocalyptic Canadian style played by Union Of Uranus with hints of Ebullition and Level Plane records.















Damosa Crew- 7 man NYHC
an awesome set which had a cover of Path Of Resistance's Who Dares Wins and Skarhead's Kings At Crime. props to TJ for inviting everybody and for having a fucking pit boss for a vocalist.












As A Whole- DC hardcore punk/powerviolence
socially aware hardcore played by really nice dudes. peter was really friendly and supportive of the show regardless of how inexperienced i was in handling it. much thanks guys, you are now officially my heroes in the DC scene.






























second night

Cut The Chains Of Sin- really dark metalcore
CTCOS basically play a really chaotic metalcore cocktail with keyboards to make things sound more evil. i had apprehensions about these guys at first considering all of their friends had you know, "the look". but that all changed when they started playing. i swear, i was floored by these kids' intensity. still can't get over the stickmosh though.






























Stolen At Gunpoint- modern sounding metallic hardcore
Stolen At Gunpoint play modern metallic hardcore sort of like the Acacia Strain, yeah, sort of like that. but the great thing about them is they don't really sound like anybody. these guys are really fucking creative when it comes to writing, a powerful rhythm section paired up with two awesome guitarists and an incredibly flexible frontman make for a great band to watch live.






























Go For Devotion- idunno?
they're popular among some of the kids who frequent the Kaiban Circuit so they sorta have fans. they raked in a lot of Cut The Chains Of Sin's friends too.

















Kill Thy Arrogance- nostalgic moshcore
alright, something i'm used to listening to. they came late, as in end of the show late, but i let em play because i wanted to have a little consolation for how i felt for day 2 (which i think was a near total bomb if it wasn't for these guys and Stolen At Gunpoint.) i wish all of Kano's bands would've played day 2 because these guys sorta went out of place when we went nuts trying to look for bands to fill the shoes left by the three bands who couldn't play. i absolutely loved these guys especially since they covered a few old Victory Records songs. (the days when Victory was good) i really gotta invite em next time.

article 001: for the love of matthew shepard

see that picture above? that's a picture taken at the funeral of Matthew Shepard. out of curiosity, you might ask what this has to do with all of us especially when we live half a world away in some far-off southeast asian country? well to tell you quite frankly, it has more to do with us than you think.

now, just who is Matthew Shepard and why are there people picketing his funeral?

Matthew Wayne Shepard was 21 year old political science student born in Casper, Wyoming on December 1, 1976 to Dennis Shepard and Judy Peck. according to what i got on the internet, he was also an all-around nice guy who basically got along with everybody. it is said he also had a passion for equality amongst different kinds of people regardless of beliefs, color, and the most important, GENDER.

yes, Matthew Shepard was a homosexual, but other than that, he was a good son, an intelligent student, and a person who stood for the rights of every human being.

on October 7, 1998, Matthew was brutally attacked by two men who robbed him, pistol whipped him, tied him to a fence, and left him to die. 5 days later, on October 12, 1998, Matthew died from the gravity of the injuries he sustained from the attack. later on, the two men were arrested and put to jail for murder after finding the bloody gun and Shepard's wallet in their truck.

the most disgusting thing about the murder wasn't the act itself, rather the motive behind it. at the trial, the girlfriends of the two men behind the assault testified and confirmed that the two spoke of intentions to rob and beat up a gay man.

as appalling as it may seem, this isn't where it ends. days later, members of the infamous Westboro Baptist Church picketed at Matthew Shepard's funeral with signs saying "God Hates Fags", "AIDS kills Fags Dead", and "Matt Shepard Rots In Hell" among others. this act is a clear sign that society still has a long way to go before the evils of division and discrimination could be a thing of the past.

personally, i see nothing wrong with homosexuals. i believe that sexual orientation should never be a reason to deny people of their basic human rights. i believe that regardless of the way you grew up or grew into the way you're wired now, you're still a human being, and that makes you no different from the billions of people here on earth. we only have one chance to live this life, and i believe we should all learn to love each other for what we are.

hatred and bigotry will bring nothing but suffering to the human race, and as long as i'm alive and breathing, i'll do whatever i can to ensure that the youth of tomorrow will not suffer from the same evil we saw in the eyes of Matt Shepard's murderers and in the teachings of the Westboro Baptist Church.

no matter what your age, gender, orientation, or beliefs may be, you still bleed the same red blood. THINK ABOUT IT.

THE INTRODUCTION

it's been a while and at long last, i've finally found enough time to actually start with running Limp Cat productions. anyway, for a little background check, Limp Cat basically started with some dumb kids who wanted to organize shows for people who just want to have good clean fun. Limp Cat in itself is a loosely connected group of friends and associates who seek to develop new patterns of thought within a society riddled with interpersonal conflict brought by varying circumstances and deficiencies. as for now, we're operating with little or now organizational structure in regards to people doing shit for us (yeah, when i say us, i mean me and some dudes i pull personal favors from by doing things i may regret for the rest of my life.) but hopefully, in a few months time, we may get to things like the distribution of some DC bands' demos and certain community projects aside from merely setting up shows and promoting bands.

alright guys, now that i finally got everything up and running. yeah, i'm about to go advertise shit about the show i'm organizing. it'll be a hardcore show so yeah.

YOU CAN VIEW THE FLYER HERE

now, here's the lineup for the two days:

day 1:

1. Damosa Crew
2. Ambulation
3. As A Whole (yet to confirm)
4. Path Session
5. Anxiety To Hysteria

day 2:

1. Stolen At Gunpoint
2. Cut The Chains Of Sin
3. Caitlyn Bailey (first and possibly last show, shit.)
4. Kill Thy Arrogance
5. Strength Through Vengeance

the show starts at 7:30 pm on September 14 and September 15.
Madrazo Compound (near the Venue), Downtown D.C.
entrance is Php30

now, i'm not entirely all too sure if As A Whole are gonna make it (peter has yet to confirm, i listed them because someone told me to.) but this is basically how the show's gonna flow. i'ma get to full swing promotion of the show by monday next week and hopefully, crowd turnout is gonna be sweet.

stay posted for updates and random ramblings from us.
-xfrancisx Limp Cat