expire - with regret (tape)

i was pretty wrapped up in metal in the span of a year or so. practically there was no recent hardcore release that really arose my excitement. i still rather listen to some death metal vinyl than to newer hardcore bands but since i started a new format obsession with cassette tapes recently i found a great way to buy releases for cheap that i was hesitant to get the pricy vinyl editions of. such was the case with the last expire record. i have the first two full lengths on vinyl but wasn't that thrilled for the third to order a lp copy from a distro. after i got my first music tape from a flea market and after i bought a tape deck used i was well equipped and ready for more additions to the starting collection.

it was real fun to search the mailorders and distros for available tape releases. at coretex records i came across a nice copy of expire's farewell album "with regret". eventually the time was right to get it and because it came on tape i even was really excited to finally listen to a newer hardcore release. well, expire is, or better was expire. fast and snotty hardcore, entertaining and with the right feeling for a break down. i love the look of the cassette edition. i was surprised that it is a full-featured release with lyrics, artwork and all. really cool. nice olive green shell out of 400 copies. bridge nine. 2016.

expire - pretty low

i know, i know, i am late. expire's first full length 'pendulum swings' was a real grower and i enjoyed this album very much. so actually i should have been all over the place when it came to the release of their new effort 'pretty low'. but at the time of its release onto the human race, my sole interest was drawn to metal. alot of mastodon, cattle decapitation and high on fire got in the way. and still is but not as strong. so after my holiday i had some money left to burn, and what better place to do so than burnout record store, hamburg.

i entered the store with a plan. included in this elaborate intend was the purchase of a record, i ignored for far too long. as i saw before on jake's blog, 'pretty low' was pressed on lovely split coloured vinyl and actually i wanted a copy of that pressing. problem as always were the limitations. the split colour was the medium limited colour-way, so it was unlikely that burnout would have it in store. but not impossible. with an optimistic state of mind i rushed to the hardcore racks and grabbed the first copy i saw. i opened it and luck wasn't my partner this day (how right i was - but read on - you will know why later on). the least limited colour-way staring back at me. i opened another with the same result. okay, whatever, i looked more closely at the record and thought, man, that white w/ black haze looks awesome! suddenly i wasn't that disappointed in my find and dragged it to the counter.

after that i went to saturn, hamburg to check the metal section. they have a good metal corner but the hardcore selection is, let's say, limited a.k.a. not existent. so you may understand my curiosity to find a copy of 'pretty low' among the alternative section. a bad feeling claimed place in my belly. i pulled out the vinyl just to see what it looked like. oh damn, of course it was the split colour. ah man, what to do now? should i buy it and try to give back the white copy and ask for the money at burnout? i was thinking to and fro but in the end settled with the copy i already had. and i'm fine with that. if i had really wanted the split colour-way badly, i would have gone the extra mile. the album, by the way, is awesome. expire didn't change much but i like this record a bit more than 'pendulum'. it sounds more like a union, one crisp chunk of heavy metallic hardcore. fantastic! more of this! bridge9 records. 2014.

expire - suffer the cycle

when i posted about expire's debut record called 'pendulum swings', i said the following: 'gotta look out for their 'suffer the cycle' 7". as you can see, i did. i bought this together with the grave maker record. as i searched my way through the hardcore 7"-section and stumbled upon this piece of vinyl, i was, not for the first time, tricked into thinking i scored something cool like a first press.

i didn't know anything about this record's pressing history. didn't know if there were more than one pressing and didn't know about colours. but what really counts is the music and i have to say that i'm happy to have listened to 'pendulum swings', which has really grown on me, at first. 'suffer the cycle' is good, no doubt, but i think it lacks a bit substance in comparison with the full length. but ultimately this is complaining on a high level. 'sleep lost' is a scorcher.

but now to the particular pressing i obtained at burnout store, hamburg. six feet under records did a third pressing recently and this is a copy of that press. 1000 on clear vinyl. so not really limited and 'cool' as i thought in the first place but that's ok. check numbers of the first and second press at the sfu page. six feet under records. 2011.

burnout store pt. 1/4: expire

at this stop at my favourite local store i was able to obtain some stuff i wanted all along. so i was real happy to get them without the hassle of having them shipped. i’ll deal with them in alphabetical order.

expire – pendulum swings

i’ve heard a lot good things about expire. that said of course i did check them out. in previous posts i also made clear that the first impression a band has on me isn’t always significant. when a band or particular record strikes my eyes with persistency i’m always open to change my mind. such was the case here. ‘pendulum swings’ flirted with me as i flicked through the racks and i thought i could as well give it a spin in the store.

i liked what i heard and so it was already mine. in the save environment of my home i spend some more time with this record. i think it’s a pretty good record. not overwhelming but solid definitely. i feel a strong backtrack vibe going on. not every song is a killer but some real crackers are among them. ‘anxiety’, ‘bark’ or the title track are awesome! gotta look out for their ‘suffer the cycle’ 7”.

love the artwork. the record comes with a nice fold out poster which has the lyrics and credits on the flip side. i could snag the second to rarest or second common colour of the first press. there were 1000 pressed on coke bottle clear vinyl, 700 on gold vinyl and 300 on coke bottle clear with black splatter vinyl. even a second pressing is available now – 1000 copies on clear purple with black smoke. digital download included. bridge9. 2012.