RECORD COLLECTOR CORNER: Marina Yurcheva, Berlin
Show booker and journalist Marina, originally lived in Moscow before moving to Berlin where she has been booking hardcore shows and collecting even more records, so here are some top picks from her stash!
Social media algorithms getting in the way of knowing what's going on in European hardcore and where the releases and shows are at? Recently, Marina and friends started a new European Hardcore message board: http://theintromosh.proboards.com
Top records of 2018 so far?
Deadlock EP: A release that was nearest and dearest to my heart this year. I’m always there for fast and straightforward hardcore punk referencing early 80s DCHC, and it’s a shame that this style hasn’t been done much lately. Plus Tom Pimlott brings a bit of Violent Reaction to this EP with his vocals.
Diztort 'Hell Is' 12": A record that I’ve been listening to non-stop since it dropped. It’s hard and heavy, mid-tempo slowed down to a point where it’s almost monotonous. All songs sound pretty much the same and I, for one, wish they never ended.
Stigmatism EP: Despite one of the songs going ‘you don’t know the first thing we’re about’, if you think for a moment about the band’s name, you will know exactly what they are about. As someone for whom United Blood/Victim in Pain is the ideal sound and era of hardcore, I appreciate the worship done good and authentically. I still can’t get over how clever the band name and the cover art are.
Existence 'Into The Furnace' 7": Incredibly groovy hardcore with breakdowns for the moshers and memorable riffs. When I think of the best European hardcore bands at the moment, Existence is the first thing that comes to mind.
Warthog 4th EP: One of my favorite current hardcore bands returns with their signature and beloved sound, Larry never disappoints.
Ekulu 'S/T' EP: I include this EP because of this one song that is nothing short of significant.
Fave records that you own? Definitely the Abused Loud and Clear reissue from Radio Raheem. It comes with a booklet of Kevin Crowley’s original flyers and scans of some other band memorabilia from the early 1980s and it’s like holding a piece of nyhc history in your hands. Crowley’s artwork is still unbeatable in my opinion, so having a collection of these flyers put together is a value of its own. Another one is the 4 Skins From Chaos to 1984 Live released by Syndicate Records, I got the 1984 original and it has notes in pencil on the sleeve, I assume from a previous owner, I will never know.
Your top want ever?
Rampage unreleased LP to be released as a physical copy.
What's the best thing about vinyl? The experience of getting to listen to the record in its entirety, with the songs in order that the band put them in. Ima keep it real here and admit that I’m absolutely impatient and if the first ten seconds of the song don’t hit me, I will most likely skip it and not go back to it for a long time. Listening to vinyl is a sit down experience for me, I don’t get to skip or replay, so it’s the best way to get a wholesome impression of the record.