ugly & proud rec.: raindance/allocation split

raindance-allocation split 7"

since i fell in love with allocation's 10" 'corvus corax, corvus corone [soul birds]' i wanted the rest of their stuff available. speaking of that there was a split 7" with a band called raindance. just like the 10" i ordered this split directly from the ugly and proud bigcartel shop. the allocation songs are just lovely! dark, depressing tunes from these belgians. raindance is a band from massachusetts. they contribute only one song to this split and i don't like it. they are compared to strife and 108. i cannot endorse the comparisons made but i have to admit that i'm not too familiar with those bands.

again an allocation release comes with a nice artwork. it was made by a guy named volker henze. in regard to the name this seems to be a german guy. i googled the name and an artist from berlin was the first hit. couldn't find any link between him and that release so i can't be 100% sure. if you consider that this 7" is a co-operational release by ugly and proud and zwarte dood records this is an all international thing. a band from the states + a band from belgium + a label from bulgaria (ugly&proud) + a label from belgium (zwarte dood) + presumably an artist from germany.

this is the complete artwork unfolded. additionally i got a short note by niki - the guy running ugly&proud. i love stuff like this. makes you feel like being part of a big hardcore family ;-)

a pretty cool effect emerges when held against the light. nice marbled vinyl. 100 copies made. another 100 on clear vinyl. ugly & proud records/zwarte dood recordings. 2011.

ugly & proud records: allocation

allocation - corvus corax, corvus corone [soul birds] 10"

as i ordered this release of this fine belgium band i had some sort of flashback to a post by m@theendlessquest where he describes how he feels drawn to certain releases and how this interacts with cover artwork. 

i was checking the 6131 records store which was hosted by hellfish records store (and still is, i think but 6131 has its own by now). one thing led to another and i was checking the whole hellfish stuff and finding a 10" by a band unkown to me. only the cover artwork was striking to me and i was hooked. check the band's bandcamp site! you can download their stuff and if you're living in europe you can buy their music on vinyl at the ugly & proud records bigcartel shop (for lower shipping costs). if you like bands like converge, botch or integrity you might like this as well :)

the artwork reflects the musical mood to 100%. gloomy, melancholic stuff. on my vacation this year where i was in the harz uplands in germany i came across an information board of regional birds. corvus corax is the latin term for the common raven and corvus corone for the hoodiecrow. yes, education on holidays :) now the addition 'soul birds' makes sense. a i learned from the movie 'the crow' these birds are the carrier of unresting souls. yes, education through fantasy movies :)

held against the light a crazy effect literally comes to light. looks like a hidden continet on a globe.

i think there are 150 made of the orange version (another 150 on clear purple). released 2011. ugly and proud records.