Concussion 13

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Portland, p. 82

Live reviews, p. 93

Josh Mattson, p. 61

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Seattle, p. 36

Jesse Hotchkiss, p. 80

Scraps, p. 76

Heli-Shreddin’, p. 64

Aaron Horkey, p. 84

Duane Peters, p. 100

Surf, p. 66

Random Polaroid Spread, p. 88

Non-Pool Party, p. 56

Flaming Tennis, p. 112

Fresno Road Trip, p. 42

Oakland Hills Fire, p. 48

Random Skate Spreads, p. 72

Tony Hawk Demo!, p. 60

On the Cover: Let’s hope Charlie Middleton likes our choice of spot color on the cover, because we got a big, messy bloodstain on his nice photo of Steve Roche smith grinding the hip at the Pear.

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Editorial Rant - the dirty little secretSo there’s this dirty little secret in the skate and surf industries. As magazine editors, we’re really not supposed to tell you about it, but since we’re honest and have a hard time keeping secrets (wanna know about a new pool?), we’re going to let the cat out of the bag. Ok, here it is: Not all of the photos you see in this magazine, or any action sports magazine for that matter, were landed. Many are bails, some are potential slams. Remember that Big Brother cover of Cardiel going through the rafters at Wiggy’s? Yup, never pulled it, he landed on the deck.

The reasoning goes something like this: if the photo looks good, who cares if the guy landed the trick or not. It is especially applicable for kickflip photos, since everything is all up in the air and the person’s board is upside down, etc. You can’t even tell if they landed it half the time, even when they did in fact land the trick.

Now there’s a sub-set of rules that go along with this; if you have 20 photos of some guy doing the same trick, and the one that happens to be the best exposure or the most in focus wasn’t actually landed, but the guy landed it later that day, then it’s ok to use the photo. Sometimes the rationalization goes a little further to be something like, “Yeah, sure he didn’t land it that day but I’ve seen him stick that trick a million times” or some shit like that. And sometimes the guy has never landed the trick but since Joe Photographer needs to sell some photos, he’ll straight up lie and say the guy landed it.

Sometimes photographers just submit a bunch of photos, some of them bails, and don’t say anything at all, and hope that the magazine editors are too naive or distracted to bother looking closely. But we often see through their clever ruses, because as they say, it takes one to know one. One of our main contributing photographers, Bruce Rodela, has a whole bag of tricks for this kind of thing. First, he tries submitting his photos to the people across the street at Thrasher and SLAP, and 10

after they’re done picking through them, maybe choosing a few prime shots, he is still left with 3/4 of his latest work. He never tells them which ones were bails (or slams), including the rad photo of Kevin “Kat” Taylor dropping in at the tennis court banks skatecamp, that they printed full page about nine months ago. Ooops, guess we just let the cat out of the bag, shhhhh! So anyway, Bruce is usually left with a few sketchy sequences of dudes doing kickflip manuals to noseslide where the guy puts his wheels down for one frame, and maybe a few questionable stills of some guy grinding a handrail. By this time, some of the sequences have been cut up, reorganized, and maybe a bailed sequence has turned into a good one frame, shot, where one cannot tell the guy bailed the trick. He shops his photos around a bit more, sending them down to the kooky guys at Strength or maybe over to the Euro mags, before they make their way to Concussion.

The thing is, we have no qualms about whether the photos are bails or not, as long as the photographers are straight with us, which Bruce is. We can work with that, and have been known to acquiesce to requests to leave a frame or two out, and other shady things. But don’t get us wrong - we would like nothing better to print 100% makes, no sketching out, no questionable sequences, no Photoshopping video goons out of the background, but that’s not always the way it is.

So the next time you see a sketchy sequence in an advertisement, or a still of a surfer doing a backflip ten feet out grabbing both rails, don’t assume they landed the trick just because the photos made it into the mag. Everyone in the surf/skate/etc. industries claim that they have this unwritten code of honor that bail shots will never get published, but it is total bullshit, and nothing gets in the way of a good photo, not even a bail. So there you go, we’re not going to lie to you, it’s just another one of the dirty little secrets in this wonderful industry - The Editors

Concussion Staf f Class of 2001 Jonathan Hay

Senior Editors Davoud Kermaninejad Art Editor Le e Charron

Photographers Jason Murray Bruce Rodela P atrick T refz

Photographers Not Pictured Dave Nelson T erry Roland Joel Chavez

Contributing Photographers Bryce Kanaights Charlie Middleton Joey V enezia Nate L awrence Death W easel Films Rob Brown Bro ok e Lober Steve Crovo Strider

V ideo Go on Dave Amell

W riters Sick Boy T ony F armer Royce Nelson Eric White Sean Oloughlin Dave Amell Simon Hay Frank Gilbert Eric L arson Jeremy Fish

Artists Le e Eschliman Bob Brown CONCUSSION MAGAZINE IS COPYRIGHT © 2001 BY CONCUSSION PRODUCTIONS. NOTHING FROM THIS PUBLICATION MAY BE USED IN WHOLE OR PART WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION FROM THE PUBLISHERS OR COPYRIGHT OWNERS.

Concussion Magazine PO Box 1024 Santa Cruz, CA 95061-1024 www.concussion.orG 831.471.0501 / 510.236.3922 12

CONCUSSION AND THE CONCUSSION SKULL LOGO ARE TRADEMARKS OF CONCUSSION MAGAZINE DISTRIBUTED BY DESERT MOON PERIODICALS, SANTA FE, NM. - WWW.DESERTMOON.COM DISTRIBUTED TOWER RECORDS, WORLDWIDE - TOWER.COM OUR WEBSITE: WWW.CONCUSSION.ORG SEND ALL CORRESPONDENCE TO: PO BOX 1024 SANTA CRUZ CA 95061-1024 OR EMAIL CONCUSSION@CONCUSSION.ORG. DOMESTIC SUBSCRIPTIONS ARE $20 PER YEAR UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED, AND INTERNATIONAL SUBSCRIPTIONS ARE ALWAYS $35. SINGLE ISSUES CAN BE ORDERED THROUGH THE MAIL FOR $5 IN THE CONTINENTAL U.S. OR $10 ELSEWHERE. FOR ADVERTISING RATES, PLEASE CALL 510-236-3922 OR 831-471-0501 OR VISIT OUR WEB PAGE AT WWW.CONCUSSION.ORG FOR MORE INFORMATION. ANY SIMILARITIES BETWEEN FICTITIOUS PERSONS MENTIONED IN THIS MAGAZINE AND REAL PERSONS LIVING OR DEAD IS PURELY COINCIDENTAL.

L ett ettE R S send your rants, ravings, and really stupid ideas to: Concussion PO Box 1024 Santa Cruz CA 950611024 or better yet email concussion@ concussion.org and then we don’t have to type it. typing letters sucks.

I was hyped today when I noticed that Concussion Magazine was finally available at my local Border's Bookstore here in Tampa, Florida. Browsing through issue #12, I saw many fine photos of excellent skateboarding. Now, I realize that your target audience is, more than likely, teenage boys, but being a female, I didn't appreciate the negative images of females depicted in your magazine: The first offensive image that I saw was a Concussion logo with a cartoon female with large breasts, covered by stars. I picked up this magazine because of the skating, not to see naked cartoon characters. The second was the inclusion of a quote, "This cover's gonna get me laid."

Sorry, the soul purpose of my life is not to have sex with the person who landed a cover on a magazine.

The third depiction was in an interview, when the interviewer asks who the girl of the crew is. If this guy is like some of the girls that I know, he is a gifted skateboarder, and he is also attractive, nice, intelligent, and hard as nails, as opposed to "a little bitch," as he is referred to in your magazine. I think it's awesome that you have a female on your writing staff. I am a writer as well, and I know that is can be hard to keep a reader's attention without asking questions based on sex. I appreciate what you are doing for skateboarding, but I was offended by those comments, as I'm sure other girls were, too.

Whitney Meers Tampa, FL

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Dear Concussion, You guys suck. Last issue (#11) was all frontside airs, what’s up with that shit. My nine year old brother can do frontside airs, why would I want to see 20 pages of frontside airs? I’ve been working on my switch nollie heelflips, almost started to stick them. Now that shit is tight! Better shape up or I’m letting my subscription to your mag expire.

Shape up or fuck off, Jerry McDermott

stoked on the mag. since the first viewing. I heard a rumor that you guys didn’t want to print anything with San Diego or its skaters in your mag. Well, you did print Bailey and Transplant Texas Dan. Cool, not that any of this will have a effect on my life. You guys would probably think that I am lame because I wear full Pro-Designed pads, wrist-guards and a helmet on vertical. The beauty of it is that I can still skate at my age and I don’t give a f—- what anyone thinks. As far as limited or no S.D. coverage, I don’t give a f—- about that either. I skate with some of the best people in the world on a regular basis and I have never claimed to be pro. It’s cool. Matt Dyck for skater of the year. I hover at the very edge of gnarliness, as far as the skating I witness on a average day, yet I don’t claim to be gnarly at all. Face it, It’s a rare day when a 35 yr. old is more radical than a 25 yr. old skater. The gnarliest guy I have skated with recently is 20 yrs. old. If you ever want to cover some of the gnarliest pool/pipe skating performed by skaters you have probably never have heard of, you can contact me. Your mag. is bad ass.

I haven’t heard of any new pools and I don’t know were any pools are. I also haven’t been invited to a new pool less than a half-mile from my house today. I rarely get to see your mag.

Black on,

Hi Concussion, My name is Darrel Delgado. I am a 36 year old skater.

The first issue of your mag. I have ever seen was the Bailey/Texas Dan high school yearbook issue. I was

Darrel Delgado

PHOTO : LANCE HAMMOND

If your local shop doesn't carry Beer City, you can buy direct! Send 2 bucks for sticker & catalog or 15 bucks for catalog, sticker, pin, patch, poster, Pool Dust Zine & T-Shirt. Add $10 for a banner.

P.O. BOX 26035 MILWAUKEE, WI 53226-0035 414-257-1511 (FAX) 414-257-1517

For some reason my literary skills aren’t coming to life at the moment. To be creative with a park review gets kinda tough, you find yourself repeating what’s already been written a million times. I mean How many times have you heard this before: “Gardnerville fuckin rips! It boasts an hour glass shaped bowl with good coping and wonderful hips, I could see Chris Senn flying like an airplane through it! The rest of the park is just as killer - plenty of 1/4 pies from 2 1/2’ to 7’ high, a butt load of ledges, nice rails for little Johnny to do his switch krooks on, gaps of love, whoop de doo’s, flat banks, and a super gnarly wall ride that Dan Drehobl would fall in love with. Not to mention this place is big as fuck, hardly no kids and plenty of red neck girls that just LOVE them city boys....did I mention no pads?”

How many times have you heard that before kiddies? I could bitch about the fact that this park is in the middle of fucking no where and it’s better than 90% of the Nor Cal parks, but that’s not going to get me anywhere (even though it is very true)!

So I am stuck - and I thought to myself, “What is the most cliché way to do a park review?” Well of course it’s the wonderful concussion skull rating! I believe Davoud and little Jonathan use 5 skulls right?

Well that’s what I am going to use, but I am going to take it to another level. Davoud and I don’t see eye to eye on skate spots- I like everything (positive hippy kook) and Davoud is picky (negative grumpy type) so I’m going to rate it from not only my eyes but from what I think Davoud would rate for the more discriminating skater. that way it is like 2 people went and you will get better idea of the parks worth. I will go as far as to even say what I think Dagwood would say about the place something like this: “Dude, that shits too far away. It’s not worth driving to a place that has a bowl that’s not deep enough (only 7’) and a so called street area that is laid out kinda wacky (no Davoud style speed lines). The wall ride is cool but I could just shoot another Rector ad at big fat stinking Sean’s place if I wanted to ride a wall. Whatever, it’s cool but I wouldn’t travel back there. I give it 2 out of 5 skulls dude.”

Sounds about right to me!

Here’s my version: “I like skateboarding, I like this park! I’ll give it 4 out of 5 skulls bro!”

I hope this helps you in your decision on visiting this park or not. It was a fuckin bitch to write. - Bruce Directions: Ballistic Skate Shop 775-783-1003

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The annual Berkeley Demo at People’s Park came and went again. The demo, put on by the nice people at 510 Skateshop (as opposed to the kooks from Wicked) is usually pretty fun, but it is more fun if you can skate the obstacles they build. Personally, I can’t skate a fun box to save my life, and I’m not much better on flat bank kickers either. But there were a ton of people who showed up who could actually skate the obstacles and made me feel stupid. Even old Jake Phelps could skate the fun box better than I could.

So I decided to trade my skateboard in for my camera and joined the hordes of video goons and wanna-be photographers who always come out for the demo. The media frenzy is always in full effect, with 5-10 video goons with fisheye lenses camped out near the big kickers. This year was no exception, and I kept getting my shots ruined by assholes who needed to be two feet away to get their shot.

Concussion’s own videographer, Dave Amell, was not innocent either; he probably ruined about half of my photos that day, that asshole. He would wait to step in front of me until the last second, just in time to get in the way of a flying Sean Stockton, Jud Hertzler, or one of the other rippers I was attempting to photograph.

But the “shredder of the demo” award has to go to Jay Moody. Shit, they might as well have just called it the Jay Moody demo, he pretty much schooled everybody else who showed up, and sealed the deal by kickflip meloning the flat banks, even with a flatbed truck gap between them. It was pretty sick. See you next year. - DK For the video goon perspective of the demo, go to concussion.org, and click on the “video” link.

Left: Jay Moody skys a melon grab over the flat bank kicker. Photo: DK Below: Straight out of Richmond, Paul Aliva turned it up a notch and transferred from the vert to the sketchy mini quarter. Photo: Rob Taylor

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Fresno is truly a hell-hole, probably one of the most rotten cities in California, but if you can look beyond the economic depression, the intense and sometimes unbearable heat, and all of the sketchy crank heads and other lurker types, there is a whole lot to appreciate. The first, and most obvious advantage to Fresno is the incredible amount of empty pools that are there. Just driving around randomly you are likely to see a few empty ones, although you will not necessarily get to skate them, as they may be guarded by sketchy meth dealing motel managers. But with such a high abundance of potential terrain, all you need is a little skill and maybe a bit of luck and you’ll be set with more pools than your sorry ass can handle.

The second good thing about Fresno is the extremely inexpensive, yet extremely delicious Mexican food, which is also in abundance. Two dollar burritos are just the beginning, you can get a feast for two for under five bucks.

The third good thing about Fresno is the cheap rent. Probably one of the most inexpensive places in the state if you can handle the heat. Lincoln and his crew live in an apartment complex for cheap, and have a sick drained pool (the Pear) in their front yard. This is not uncommon, and rent on a house with an (empty) pool in the back yard is not too far fetched of an idea either. Just ask Fresno Matt. d to g you can hold your nee It’s fun to see how lon y to Fresno. wa the on s pis a e tak

Despising hot weather, I have always been hesitant to make the 3-4 hour drive dow n to Fresno to skate more pools than my sorry ass can handle. But I final ly got the opportunity to take a few road trips down there, and let me say I am kicking myself for not having hooked that shit up sooner. Why do you think Farm er is always down there, to put up advertisements in front of liquor stores?

I think not. But making it to Fresno is worth it for the Vagabond alone, but if you can hook up with a few of the local s to hit a few more pools then you’ve got yourself a recipe for a cheap weekend road trip at the least, and an epic, skate -as-many-pools-as-you-want super session at best. Just make sure the car you take has air conditioning. - dk

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At 43, Joel Chavez has skated longer than most of you little punks have been alive. The gnarly facial on this frontside grind pretty much says it all.

Jacob Tillman, roll-in at the Peac h Pit, sans Brandon, Dylan, Kelly, and the rest of the gang.

Sorry, bad joke.

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Even the unbearable Fresno heat can’t stop Tillman from getting his shred on. Perfect execution of a lien air at the Vagabond.

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Clockwise from left: Yeah the exposure is sorta shitty, but so what, can you do backside bonelesses over the steps into the shallow end like Pete? Didn’t think so. Farmer hits a grind at the Pear.

Despite the heat and his jacked wrist, Pete still Smith grinded the hip. Royce generally has more rad regular-foot lines than anyone else, as evidenced by this frontside grind over the deep end steps, which is probably just a set-up trick. Check the style in this Smith over the steps into the shallow end. Royce is the man. Pete Koff was hiding a golf ball in his ankle, that sure sucked. All photos by Davoud except the bottom sequence of Royce, which is by Charlie Middleton. And so what if almost every photo on this page is a frontside grind.

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So Pete the Ox got married recently. Congratulations Pete! As you may know, one of the prerequisites for getting married is having a bachelor party, and for Pete, that meant a skate bachelor party. Tony Farmer’s original plan was to hold it up at the Strawberry Bowl (also an excellent place for a skater to get married, since they have weddings up there, and you could skate the pool in a tux during the reception!), but that didn’t work out due to scheduling conflicts with the lodge or some shit. Fresno was chosen as the alternative, and it was truly an acceptable alternative, although I would have liked to see Pete skate the Strawberry Bowl too. So anyway, carloads of skaters from all around California converged on Fresno to bake their brains in the sun, shralp some grinds, and celebrate with the Ox. To me, it was pretty fucking hot, but the Fresno guys were seriously saying that it was only warm that weekend.

Still, it was so hot at the Vagabond, the designated meeting place, that it was difficult to take two runs in a row without drinking half a gallon of water or pounding a beer. Nonetheless, the boys killed it, and the session was dominated by the usual people who dominate pool sessions, mainly Royce Nelson, Farmer, and the Ox. Steve Roche and some of the SCUM crew drove up from San Diego, and was also high on the destroyer list. That dude can do frontside air disasters in any pool, I swear to god. This crazy Australian kid Dean who skated barefoot was also killing it. Skating barefoot is the only way to go in Fresno, as was demonstrated by Lincoln, who was hitting frontside grab and grinds over the hip wearing only shorts. I was bummed all of my photos of the Fresno crew came out shitty, since those dudes deserve some serious props. Sorry guys.

Farmer snuck off with Fresno Matt to skate a few other pools, oops, I mean go to the liquor store. He did come back with beer though. By this time it was getting too hot to skate, and everyone retreated to the hotel to swim in the pool and drink beers. Pete Koff, who blew out his ankle after five minutes at the Vagabond, donated his board to the (full) pool session, and we all had a blast grinding or tailsliding the super painted coping and then riding into the pool. That was probably the funnest session of the day, until Farmer got a little too uppity for the pool and ended up getting racked and scraping his chest all over the coping. Royce supposedly has it on video, maybe it’ll make it into a future Concussion video, it sure was funny. After the full pool session, everyone went over to Lincoln’s apartment complex to skate the Pear, and another awesome session went down. Royce frontside grinded over the steps first try, as evidenced by this sequence below. The session went on late into the evening, and many cases of shitty beer were consumed. All in all, it was a great weekend, but you don’t need an excuse to come to Fresno and skate.

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Photos by Bryce Kanights except where noted

The Oakland hills firestorm occurred on October 20th 1991. Over 1,800 acres burned, destroying 3354 single family homes and 456 apartment units. Losses were estimated at 1.5 billion dollars.

Tragically, 25 people lost their lives, including one firefighter and one police officer. It has been known as the most destructive wildland-urban fire in U.S. history.

Wesley Wong

In all, 23 swimming pools were drained and skated. They were as follows: the Black Bottom, the Bowling Pin, the Fig, the Roman, the Dirty Peanut, the Football, Big Nasty, the Perfect Square, the Boot, the Cancer, the Brick-Laden Kidney, the Hot Dog, Cups, the Egg, Mini Egg, Shit Square, Perfect Square 2, Green Kidney, House Bowl, Tri-City Bowl, the Elbow, Perfect Kidney and the Megaphone. Today, the neighborhoods stand nearly rebuilt. Maturing foliage blurs the lines between the old and the new. Most of the pools have been destroyed, though a few have been restored (Cancer, Big Nasty). The Black Bottom lies buried. As of this writing, only the Hot Dog remains empty and skatable. Get it while you can.

“Curtis saw the sparks that traveled over the freeway and caught the hillside, came back and told us about it.” – Joel Chavez

I watched the Oakland hills burn from my living room in San Diego, knowing full well that there would be pools to ride. I had met Royce, Neeley, and Eric White while riding backyards down south, and figured they’d get it going as soon as things cooled down. Sure enough, come spring of ‘92, I made two road trips north and managed to get into 11 different holes. It was an amazing scene. Where just months before had stood a community of beautiful hillside homes, now nothing remained but empty slabs of concrete, tombstone-like chimneys, and the blackened skeletons of trees. At the same time, amidst all this destruction, the earth was literally springing back to life. Greenery was everywhere, as grasses, weeds and wildflowers covered the ashen slopes. It was truly beautiful, set beneath blue skies and overlooking the San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate. For the next few years, it was a skater’s paradise. People came from all over; Southern Cal, the Northwest, Mid-west, East Coast, Hawaii even. They’ve all got their own stories about the hills, the people they met, pools they rode, friends they made. Unfortunately, I missed out on a lot of the action.

By the time I moved to SF in early ’95, only 3 pools remained; the Boot, Cancer and Hot Dog. I met Rube at the Cancer, and Curtis at the dog.

The crazy thing about the Cancer, had it not been empty during the fire, it would have been the best bowl up there. But as luck would have it, a pool being empty was a bad thing, and the fire’s intense heat (over 2000 degrees) destroyed her fragile surface. Nevertheless, Cancer sessions raged as the Boot fell to the blade, and the Hot Dog lay buried in muck. Big Sean had practically resurfaced the Cancer by the time it got shut. Now it sits pristine, black bottomed with round brick coping. As for the Hot Dog, it currently stands alone as the last of the fire pools. It’s been on for over a year now, still serving the best of us with it’s ultra tight lines and defying lip.

However, word has it that the property has recently been purchased and is planned for development. The dog’s days are numbered, and soon not a single pool will remain. R.I.P. Oakland. It was a good ride.

- Tony Farmer

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Harold Adler

“There was a pair of rubber safety goggles hanging on my mailbox, probably three feet away from my house. The wind had such an impact on what burned, it was amazing. When I returned to see what was left of the house, everything was burned to the ground. There was twisted, melted metal everywhere, everything was ashes, and yet because of the wind, the goggles were still hanging on the mailbox.” – Oakland Hills Homeowner

The October 1991 firestorm in the Oakland hills was an adrenaline shot to the heart for a group of skaters suffocating under the weight of a mass media concocted skate movement. Skateboarding was being marketed to the masses as more of fashion conscious rap-based sporting event than the soulful lifestyle that drew so many creative individuals to it in the first place. Almost on cue, by way of death and devastating loss, a scorched vertical paradise was born. As urban youths kickflipped, manualed and nose blunted their way around the Embarcadero to hip hop beats, across the bay, a lucky vert-starved few were carving corners, grinding death boxes, and airing deep ends to the sounds of speed metal. Saved.

The shapes and lines were seemingly endless, the sun was shining and the busts were minimal. Carloads of skaters would swarm from pool to pool like so many pollinating bees. When something got too crowded, you’d just zip over to something else.

Eventually, the greenery started to come up through the black ash and you couldn’t help but think we were breathing life back into the hills through our skating.

We’d been sessioning for close to 2 years when Vibe magazine, a new anchor of street and hip hop culture came out with their premiere issue. They included an article about skateboarding titled SLAP! where they pitted the “new school” street skaters of the EMB against the “old school” vert skaters of the Oakland hills. The familiar mass media pattern was to suck the essence out of urban centers and regurgitate it to the general public in the form of pop culture. In this case, they planted their feet firmly in street skating and declared it the future of skateboarding. Fine. We certainly weren’t rolling around these dirty pits for fame.

Throughout the years the pools have dwindled and street has continued it’s death march toward mass market nirvana. Was it ever street against vert?

Or street against pool skating? No. Backyard pool riding is an intrinsically underground activity and always will be. Even when it peaked in the Bay Area and was glimpsed by the masses it slowly ebbed back into the collective unconscious of the few who practice it’s discipline and reap it’s rewards.

The average Joe can look at a picture of a beanied skater nose grinding a ledge with big pants and gold chain and say, “Wow, that guy’s with it.” They can look at a picture of Tony Hawk doing a huge 540 and say, “Wow, that guy’s good.” But what can they say about a picture of someone like Curtis Hsiang frontside grinding a gnarly hip in a charred landscape?

Who cares?

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Harold Adler

Two things come to mind when I think back to the early days of the Oakland Hills fire, three incredible pool riders and the twenty three pools that they destroyed. I’m speaking of Ruben Orkin, Matt Neeley, and Curtis Hsaing. Their style of skating was as one of a kind as the pools they rode. Whether it was Rube flying out of the cup onto a three foot stand up grind in the shallow end of the Black Bottom, or Matt backside grinding the un-grinable in the Boot, or Curtis going for his ninth roll-in attempt into the pitted deep end of the Cancer Bowl. Their unique skating will always be remembered by those of us who were lucky enough to share some of the best pool sessions ever.

Although there is still one pool left, our three friends are no longer here. Riding pools will always be my favorite aspect of skating, but it will never be the same.

- Royce Nelson

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Joel Chavez on why the why the perfect square was so perfect:

davoud

“This guy Sal, was maybe a three year rider and had never done a corner air before, and I just coached him into it. He was going from the center of the face wall to six feet past the corner, just bombadeering it. I couldn’t believe he was doing it. I think somebody did a corner ollie too.”

Harold Adler

Joel Chavez On Royce:

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“I witnessed Royce riding the bowling pin, and we were struggling to do anything because of the crazy kinked transition, just trying to get to the top, you know, and Royce was just destroying it. He was going a zillion miles an hour, whipping through the shallow end and coming through the canyon; he had this line where he would whip out of the shallow end and just crail slide the entire deep end, as far as you could go from one side-wall all the way around to the other side-wall. There was no coping with just a broken up edge with tile and shit. It was gnarly. And I heard he did the same thing at the Football, crail slid the Football.“

Joel Chavez

Will Louviere

Will Louviere

Disasters happen leaving death and destruction in their wake. Or a left-hand kidney, stairs offset towards the hip, death box to the right of the face wall light. Seven to eight feet deep, with just enough vert on the face wall. The rocky coping would spark, and there was a completely grindable shallow end with a nice little pocket hidden in it. To bad the pool was empty when the fire came through, leaving huge craters that would fuck your wheels up; trails of urethane would be left in your path. Throughout the years repairs were made, but the Cancer always remained.

Driving by it on the way to the Hot Dog, looking up the big wall, knowing that the pool has been completely redone, I was left wondering what it would take to be able to ride the Cancer again. - Sean O’Loughlin

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Yeah so what if this is a butt shot. I don’t see you doin’ backside ollies in the sweet pocket of this pool. Tillman rules, you suck. Photo: Hay

So Farmer sends me an email one day saying he’s heard about a pool party going on the next weekend.

Some guys had a drained pool in their backyard and were throwing a party. He didn’t have much info about the pool, or about the people who lived there for that matter, but he had heard about it from some of the Fresno guys and it sounded like a go, so we told a bunch of people who were also interested in this sort of thing.

When Sunday finally rolled around, various heads got together and all met up at this house, which was in the hills and required very precise directions to get to. I arrived by myself, but expecting a party, I had brought a twelver of beer and some food. The place was relatively deserted, but on the way in I ran into some guys standing by a truck. They said, “Oh, you’re here for the party,” to which I replied, “That’s right, am I early?”

They then proceeded to tell me that there was no party, and were rather confused about how I found out about this supposed event. Since Farmer and Tillman were already there, skating the pool, I dismissed these comments and went on my way to skate.

Turns out it was true - there was no party, and we just showed up randomly and imposed on these people’s weekend. It was classic. Whatever name the Fresno guys had given Tony as the name of the guy who lived there, did not live there and they’d never heard of him. The guy who owned the house said something like, “Yeah, you guys can skate for a while, but I think we’re all going to take off in a little bit, and you should probably take off then”.

The request sounded reasonable, but as the day wore on, more and more of our friends showed up, the session got bigger and bigger, and it became harder for us to want to leave, and harder for guys who lived there to kick us out and be on with their day. The funniest thing was, the only people who were showing up for this “pool party” were people we had told.

The guys who lived there turned out to be pretty cool, and even took some runs. Eventually, after Farmer and myself had left, the Fresno guys who had told Farmer about the party in the first place finally showed up. They didn’t know anyone who lived there either.

Ha ha. - Davoud How to have your own non-skate party: - Find someone, preferably whom you do not know, who happens to have a drained pool or ramp in their back yard.

- Tell 15-20 of your friends, and make sure to tell them to bring beer, and something to barbeque.

- Show up at noon and say you’ve heard there is a party at your house.

- Hope they don’t tell you to beat it.

Go to concussion.org for the “Non-Pool Party” Quicktime video, which is better than this spread.

Jonathan must be taking his film to be processed at the same place that Bruce is, cuz his photos are scratched to shit as well. Bay Photo sucks! Tony Farmer rules!

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When Davoud asked me if I wanted to go with him to the Tony Hawk Giant Skatepark Tour Demo, I thought he was fucking with me; after all, an event sponsored by ESPN doesn't usually warrant a Concussion presence. I knew he was fucking with me, when on the day of the demo, he told me he couldn't go, but that I should go anyway. So, off to the Rucks’ Grand Prix Skatepark I went, video camera in hand.

The park had been transformed into a concentration camp-esque circus, with ESPN employees playing the part of the Nazis. Nevertheless, after much weaseling, I scored the three pieces of ID necessary to film and made my way past the dozens of security guards to the top of the vert ramp. Now secure on the deck, I took advantage of my new title as an official member of the media. I threw on the death lens, which not only allowed me to get sick footage of Tony Hawk and Sean White killing it, but also allowed me to piss off the ESPN crew by leaning into the ramp and in front of their cameras, making the demo that much more enjoyable. From my prime filming position by the channel, I got a lot of good footage of Hawk doing 720's, flip grabs and other shit, but you can see that on ESPN. Instead, here's a sequence of Hawk bailing a backside air. - Dave Amell Rucks’ Grand Prix Skatepark is a lot more fun when Tony Hawk isn’t there.

Call (916) 564-4653 and go get some.

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The Eagle has landed

Before this spring, I was a virgin.

I was used to driving long distances to the mountains, paying for over-priced one-day passes and sharing the slopes with the physically challenged masses. I liked the uncertainty and excitement of having to seek out stashes in the trees by my lonesome. I liked the challenge of navigating cluttered trails just to get that one extra turn of freshness before reaching the bottom.

A few months ago and many $$$ later, all that changed. I can never go back to sitting in lift lines. The thought of having to share somewhat snow-filled slopes with the general population getting in my way most of time horrifies me. I sound like an arrogant prick, but heli-boarding changed my perception of what real snowboarding is all about – the simple act of riding. No crowds, no tracks, no guides putting up ropes telling you where you can

and can’t go. No traffic, no freezing on the lift and no $10 dollar shitty, uncooked hamburgers. It’s just you and the mountain. You simply drop the bird on whatever peak you wish and down you go. See you at the bottom. It’s that simple. It is the essence of snowboarding.

You get more turns in a three-day trip than you would in an entire season. Yes, it costs and arm and a leg but so does almost everything that’s worth a damn. Don’t get me wrong, there’s something to be said for doing things the old-fashioned way. It is not that I don’t like or respect hiking and earning my turns, it’s just that I would much rather save my energy for going down.

If you ever have the option to fly, don’t hesitate. There is nothing better than being deflowered.

- Words and photos by Jason Murray

Twitty scores the catch of the day

Eckert minds the gap

Don’t try this at home. 0-95 in three seconds

Smokey the Bear 64

Murray score's the fruits of no labor. Photo: Strider Houston, we have freshies.

Only 200 more to go

Fire is cool

You won’t find this at home

So are dead animals

Anywhere will do

Apocalypse Pow

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72 middleton

73

middleton

74 hay

75

middleton

I quit !!!

Dan Drehobl - No run up, fucked up ground, shitty angle and a super far ollie can’t keep Dan from Smith grinding this rail in the ghetto streets of Danville. Why didn’t it go some where else? A tad bit too dark for those other cool guy mags, yet perfect for Concussion!

I realize this sounds a bit dramatic but I am completely over skate photography - dealing with 16 year olds who can’t make their tricks in 50 tries, while my friends are skating some new killer pool just isn’t cutting it any more. And even if the kid makes it and the photo comes out good, dealing with photo editors, company owners, international mags, and team managers is even worse than dealing with a 16 year old - far worse!!! And if the other two fucking horrors of dealing with skateboarders and industry types goes good, when the check arrives 2 months later for your work, it makes you want to either laugh or cry- pitiful!!!! And as if this isn’t enough (and it is), the fact that most skate photographers are kooks makes me not want to even be associated with the losers. So what does this mean to the loyal Concussion reader? Not much! I have enough scraps left over for at least 4 more mags, and after that Concussion will probably be out of business any way, so enjoy my gay photography while you can. I’ll be skating and drinking over at Charlie’s ramp!! - Bruce Rodela

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Danny Fuenzalida - Big ol’ kick flip, Walnut Creek, CA - I gave a photo of Danny to Concussion last time that wasn’t technically a “scrap”- it could have been used for something else but I wanted concussion to have some skaters in it that kids actually care about- not just hairy acid takin’ assholes from Berkley - so I am doing the same thing this time - Danny rules by the way!

Joel - Noseslide in Danville, CA - Two tricks total were done on this rail - a 5-0 by the homophobic and racist Corey Duffle and this noseslide by the talented Joel Jutagir - the problem with this shot I was told, was that Joel wasn’t popular enough with the kids to be showing his handsome mug in the mag. Who cares if no pros (and I took plenty) would even consider trying this rail out (way too steep for their pampered asses) –Joel is a no name who is better than most pros, therefore he is in Concussion! By the way this rail is over, so your shot at one upping Joel and k.k.k. (Korey killed his karrer) won’t happen.

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Steve- nollie flip @ the famous Roseville triple set - I have no idea who this guy is except for the fact that on this particular day he skated far harder than any one I was with.

This guy is no joke! He skated so tuff even the burnt out, old pool skater farts that read Concussion would appreciate his style. I didn’t give this photo to any of the big homo mags because no one ever has done a nollie flip here- and I hope this pisses them off!! Definitely a Concussion first.

Brannen Fitzgerald- Kick flip, huge fucking gap, Phoenix AZ- As you can see there seems to be a couple of frames missing from this shot - well they aren’t actually missing, I took this with my old camera that just wasn’t quick enough, at least that’s what a cool guy photo editor told. I mean who cares if NO ONE ELSE has come even close to doing a kick flip here, my camera just wasn’t quick enough. (Editor’s Note: And the photos are scratched to shit!) Dammit I am a loser!

Joelv Jutagir - Kick flip nose slide, Alamo, CA - I was trying to shoot a very hung over Jerry Hsu on the infamous Alamo ledge with no luck at all. I looked over to my left and everyone else we were with had built a launch ramp to a filing cabinet and were ripping it up. Knowing Jerry was too queasy to land his maneuver I packed up and went to where the action was - Dave R. did a kick flip b/s lipslide and Joel did thisDave’s trick got used somewhere else and Joel once again becomes a scrap for you to enjoy.

There are too many stereotypes in the sport of skateboarding. It seems that if you don’t fit these molds it’s hard to be recognized. Jesse, gets totally radical unlike any other cool dude. His unchallenged freshness will match any color-coordinated warm up suit, and his unbeatable gnarl-ometer will skate-dance all over your hometown. His wild antics translate into the visual arts as well. He can make pretty pictures of cool stuff, on stuff. When he’s not carving lines on pavement or paper, he might be found in the company of Trashy Lou, the good folks at 510 and Satori, or plotting terror with the SPB. So the next time you need some fresh, gnarly, radical dude, come to San Francisco and scream, "Fresh, gnarly, radical dude" until he comes running. - Jeremy Fish

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The unofficial premiere for our long anticipated Amnesia video was held at Lemmy’s warehouse near the Oakland / Berkeley border, which happens to have a ramp and a video projector in it.

It was also Big Sean’s birthday so he sprung for a keg of Guiness, which was a nice addition, because we certainly did not have any money to spend on booze. It was funny watching people try to give donations for the beer to Sean’s friends, who would just pocket the money and give out cups.

Since we cleverly decided to hold the premiere the night after the REAL premiere, lots of people from out of town showed up. Notable “stars” in the video who were in attendance included Eric J, Pete the Ox, Tony Farmer, Jacob Tillman, Tim McKinney, and a whole bunch of other people.

There was a lot of good skateboarding going down on the ramp, and it was fun playing with Lemmy, feeding him sausages, and making him chase shadows. I don’t think we sold more than a few videos that afternoon, but Jonathan managed to separate his shoulder, which was notable. And then Mikey told him that maybe he just dislocated his shoulder, and helped him try to pop it back in.

I wish I hadn’t already left, because that sure would have been funny to see. Buy our video, it’s the greatest thing ever. - dk

Top to bottom: The scene. Sean didn’t really skate too much, but he did manage to throw up a few nice frontside airs, including this one that Rob Taylor captured. House local Chris Romero makes an effortless transfer from low to high (and to grind, perhaps?).

Photos by Jonathan except that one of Sean, which is by Rob.

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Concussion Reader Survey

Ok punks, this has been a long time coming, this “reader survey” which is in front of you. See, Jonathan and myself are constantly arguing about the content of our beloved magazine. Jonathan wants to fill it up with surf spreads and I want to fill it up with skating, and it’s a constant push-pull-tug-yell argument between us as we try and claim that we both know what the readers want. Which is difficult, since Jonathan lives in Santa Cruz and is surrounded by puffy-chested, small brained, big mouthed surfers while I live up in the East Bay and am surrounded by dirty, smelly, drunken, tattooed skateboarders. This is not a marketing survey for our advertisers cleverly disguised as a reader survey - we already have enough bullshit to give advertisers - this is an honest to goodness reader survey, and if you actually bother to fill out this thing, tear it out and mail it in to us, your opinions just might actually influence the future content of our magazine. Just maybe. And if that isn’t enough incentive, 10 of you lucky little bastards will receive some free shit from us. The rest of you will have your names and addresses sold to direct marketing companies so plan on receiving lots of junk mail and unwanted phone calls. Ha ha.

Name: Address: City: State: ZIP: Sex: M F Age: Phone: email: 1) I have been reading Concussion for: a) This is the first issue I’ve ever seen b) Less than a year c) 2-4 years d) I remember when you guys used to print at Kinkos 2) To me, Concussion is primarily a: a) Skateboard magazine b) Surf magazine c) Skateboard magazine that also has surfing and some other random shit d) Bruise to the brain, produced by a violent blow and followed by a temporary or prolonged loss of function e) I’m not quite sure, but I know I can’t spell it 3) Using the term “read” loosely, I read Concussion because I like:

e) Art-related articles f) Writing and/or shit talking g) Advertisements h) Fine how it is now 7) I think the quality of the paper Concussion prints on to be: a) Head and shoulders above the rest, like the paper art books are printed on, dude b) Looks about the same as Big Brother, minus the color of course c) Irrelevant to the quality of the magazine d) Too expensive and high-brow d) Too glossy, makes it hard to wipe my ass effectively 8) When I’m done with an issue of Concussion, I usually: a) Throw it out b) Give it to a friend to read c) Keep it on my coffee table until its get stolen or something gets spilled on it d) File it away in my extensive zine collection e) Smoke a cigarette 9) When I’m reading an issue of Concussion, I generally:

a) The wry humor and witty sarcasm which pervades your publication b) To read articles about places I will never go and things I will never skate c) To look at all of the pretty photos d) Something to keep me entertained while I poo e) Other: _______________________________

a) Look at each page closely, cover to cover b) Skip the advertisements, unless they have a cool photo c) Look for things that are skateboard related, and skip everything else d) Look at all the photos, but skip reading anything e) Am on the toilet f) Get stoked on the surf spreads, except I wish they said where those kill spots really are

4) I get my copy of Concussion from:

10) Pick the phrase which best describes you:

a) The local newsstand/bookstore/record store b) The local skate shop c) The mailman who delivers my subscription d) Randomly, steal them at friend’s houses e) Hell if I know

a) I am a skateboarder b) I am a skateboarder but I also surf c) I am a surfer d) I am a surfer but I also skate e) My boyfriend/girlfriend is a skater/surfer but I am not f) I am stuck in a Kaiser waiting room and don’t know how I ended up reading this magazine; thought I was getting medical information about Concussions g) I am a snowboarder and I live in Tahoe/Utah/Colorado, etc.

e) I am unemployed, and do not go to school f) I am independently wealthy g) Hey man, wanna score some green bud?

12) As far as skateboarding coverage goes, I like to see: a) Street skating, kickflips and the Muska b) Vert ramps, big airs, and Tony Hawk c) Pool skating, slash-dog grinds, and Pete the Ox d) Non-stop coverage of Derby e) A little bit of everything f) Anything’s better than surfing 13) As far as surfing coverage goes, I like to see: a) Photos of Ratboy and Barney at the Lane b) Big waves, Todos Santos and Mavericks c) Tan hunks with lots of logos on their boards and no shirts d) Sick surf photos from exotic places I will never visit because I am chained to my shitty job e) Sick surf photos, don’t care where from f) Less of it 14) As far as the artist interviews and art coverage goes: a) I could care less b) I like it more than the surfing c) I like it less than the surfing d) It gives me more to talk about at all of those gallery openings and suave art parties I go to e) It makes me feel alienated from the bourgeois who actually have time to discuss neo-classicism and post-impressionism in a casual atmosphere 15) Have you ever seen the Concussion website (concussion.org)? Circle one YES

5) I wish Concussion had more: a) Skateboarding b) Surfing c) Snowboarding d) Music-related articles e) Art-related articles f) Writing and/or shit talking g) Advertisements h) Fine how it is now 6) I wish Concussion had less: a) Skateboarding b) Surfing c) Snowboarding d) Music-related articles

11) Pick the phrase which best describes your “job”: a) I am a student b) I am gainfully employed in a blue collar field c) I am gainfully employed in a white collar field d) I have no idea what the difference between white collar and blue collar is, but I do have a job at the mall

NO

16) Do you care whether Concussion has a website? Circle one YES

NO

17) Have you seen the Concussion video, Amnesia?

Circle one YES

NO

18) Do you care whether you see the Concussion video, Amnesia? Circle one YES

NO

Tear this page out and send it to: Concussion Reader Survey POB 1024 Santa Cruz CA 95061-1024

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I was going to see one of the first punk bands that I had heard as a child. The infamous AGENT ORANGE were playing at a little college bar in Reno, Nevada. The minute they arrived I told them I wanted to sit and talk after the show. Mike Palm agreed to and asked for a copy of Concussion.

They went on stage and had the mostly young crowd, swirling in a pit of old classics and new ass kickers. I talked with Mike Palm and Angry John after the show. The drummer Dusty Watson ran off. So here is how that talk went: SICK BOY: OK, introductions.

MIKE: I am mike, I sing and play guitar.

ANGRY JOHN: I am Angry John and I play the bass.

DUSTY: I am Dusty and I, uhh, wack drums.

MIKE: Is this mag outta Santa Cruz?

SICK BOY: Yeah.

MIKE: Santa Cruz rules.

SICK BOY: So you guys are the new improved Agent Orange are you not?

MIKE: I guess you could say that. I am not new.

SICK BOY: Well, shit. You have been here all along. Where did you get that?

MIKE: From Chris (he is referring to an old issue of Slap Magazine.)

SICK BOY: Did he ever interview you?

MIKE: Yeah, he interviewed us in this issue. It is July of 1997. There is an old review of our last album in there.

SICK BOY: Oh, Virtually Indestructible.

MIKE: With Virtually Indestructible it was supposed to be a natural progression. You know, Living in Darkness, When you Least Expect It, This is the Voice, then Virtually Indestructible.

SICK BOY: That This is the Voice album was great.

MIKE: That record was a natural progression in the grand scheme of things. Unfortunately, we had a big falling out with our record label when the album was to be released, so there was a large gap between...

SICK BOY: Which label?

MIKE: Enigma Records. So then everything is going along fine and all of a sudden Poison came along and Stryper and Motley Crue and ruined it. (laughter) So all the promotional money went to those bands and we had a big falling out. See, there was such a long gap in between the last two records. If there wouldn’t have been such a hard time with the label and the music industry, that record would’ve come out a long time ago. So yeah, it’s a progression.

SICK BOY: How long was the gap when it was supposed to be released.

Mike: Like two years.

SICK BOY: It would’ve come out right before all those bands that try to emulate what punk rock was.

MIKE: God, that’s probably true, but I try not to think in those terms. See, when I write I try to write songs that will stand the test of time.

SICK BOY: Oh, and they do, they do.

MIKE: So personally I thought the two years wasn’t that big of a deal.

SICK BOY: I’ll agree.

MIKE: But, at the same time, I believe it’s impact would’ve been greater had the album been released on time. In the passing of time it probably sounds natural to anyone who listens to the albums in chronological order. This Is The Voice has more lyrics than any other Agent Orange record. I mean, if you pull it out and look at the lyric sheet it is unreal. I mean, when I look at it I am actually surprised that I wrote that many lyrics. I didn’t repeat any words or verses.

There are so many words, it is such a wordy record.

SICK BOY: Is every single song on that album yours?

MIKE: Yeah...well, I co-wrote with Brent who played bass with Social Distortion at the time. I co-wrote a song with him called broken dreams. He wrote the lyrics, but I kind of rewrote them a little bit. Reworked the melody.

SICK BOY: OK, here’s the thing, Jawbreaker, you’ve heard of them, well they have a lot of influences from you guys.

At least I hear it. It’s all drawn from This is the Voice. It’s that really emotional intensity.

MIKE: Ah, This is the Voice, really?

SICK BOY: Yeah, because of the emotion in that album. That is the album that I feel you said here’s my heart do with it what you may.

MIKE: I don’t know that I would recognize it because sometimes when you are that close you don’t see it. I mean, even if it was blatant I probably wouldn’t see it. You know what now I’m curious to go back and listen to their stuff more.

SICK BOY: Yeah, Bivouac. Bivouac has some song there that I can hear you in. The funny thing about that is when

people usually talk to me about music they ask me what does this band sound like? I say they have a big of Black Flag mixed with Blitz.

MIKE: Right.

SICK BOY: BUT, I SWEAR TO YOU I HAVE NEVER SAID THIS BAND SOUNDS LIKE AGENT ORANGE. MIKE: Oh, god! Are you talking about before us?

SICK BOY: No. After.

MIKE: I have one for you. Have you ever watched the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer?

SICK BOY: Yes. MIKE: Nerf Herder totally ripped off my style.

SICK BOY: The band from Santa Barbara.

MIKE: Yeah, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer theme. That band sounds more like Agent Orange than we do.

SICK BOY: So that’s the only thing you’ve heard then right?

MIKE: Well yeah, pretty much. I had heard of the Van Halen song and stuff, but I hadn’t seen the TV show. Then when I heard them I put two and two together. So I wouldn’t mind going back and listening to their old stuff.

SICK BOY: They do play some funny shit.

MIKE: I think it’s really great they have a sense of humour.

SICK BOY: I appreciate the fact that you dedicated a song to Dennis (Dennis Danell from Social Distortion who is dead and gone).

MIKE: Well, you know what? It was a real big shock for us when it happened. We were out of the road, we were on the East Coast or something when we heard about it.

SICK BOY: I was pretty bummed out.

MIKE: Yeah, I walked around shell shocked for like a week.

Dennis is the last guy you would expect to drop like that.

He was such a good guy.

SICK BOY: You’d expect Mike (Ness) to go before him.

MIKE: Well everyone was surprised Mike survived the first year, you know? But then there are so many survivors. I mean, look at Duane (Peters). He’s a survivor, there are so many survivors. There are guys who just dabble in drugs that are tweaked. You just never know who’s going to go.

You never think it is going to happen to a guy like that. I mean, Dennis for the last few years had been living clean and really healthy. So it’s a shock when things like that happen. All the way back at the beginning of the Orange County scene. Dennis was a big part of the forming of style and helping create the sound of that time. He was the kind of guy who didn’t take a lot of credit for his actions. He would kind of stand back and just enjoy what was going on around him. Definitely, one in a million.

SICK BOY: What about Todd (Barnes) from T.S.O.L.?

MIKE: What’s going on with that?

SICK BOY: The jocks got off completely.

MIKE: No way!

SICK BOY: No Shit. Then we lost Wendy O. Williams (Of the Plasmatics), Phil Schomel (Naked Aggression), Todd Barnes, and Dennis Danell. I was going to sleep last night and I was watching S.L.C. Punk.

MIKE: I haven’t seen it yet.

SICK BOY: It is a funny movie. There is a bunch of bullshit in it, but I connected with some parts of it.

MIKE: I haven’t seen it, but those are the kind of movies that they’ll have a scene trying to recreate our youth. You’ll be watching a part and you’ll go no way, I actually said that or did that. That’s what makes those movies interesting.

(Mike had to take off to help load up his equipment Angry John and I started talking).

SICK BOY: We’re talking Angry John current bassist for Agent Orange, former bassist for Down By Law. I am curious how you guys came up with the name PUNKROCKACADEMYFIGHTSONG. ANGRY JOHN: Alright, we were all writing names down on this piece of paper on the wall in the studio, you know.

While we were recording PUNKROCKACADEMY. We didn’t know what it would be called yet. Some of the names were Bupkiss Alley, Fuck This Circus, and a couple of other doozies. Then Dave came up with PUNKROCKACADEMYFIGHTSONG after a few weeks of fighting over the name.

There were a bunch of screwy names like that and another one was “Ebola Ain’t Shit”.

SICK BOY: That’s sweet. The beauty of that album (PUNKROCKACADEMY) is that it is so diverse. There are a lot of different styles of structure to each song.

ANGRY JOHN: The writing on that album was mostly Dave and Hunter. Yeah, Hunter wrote “The Flower Tattoo” song and others.

SICK BOY: So you were on All Scratched Up...

ANGRY JOHN: I was on PUNKROCKACADEMY, All Scratched Up, and Last of the Sharpshooters.

SICK BOY: Alright.

ANGRY JOHN: Yeah the last one has “No Equalizer” on it.

That’s one of my favorite songs.

SICK BOY: Hell yeah. I hear Stiff Little Fingers in Down By Law. ANGRY JOHN: Dave is a huge S.L.F. fan.

SICK BOY: I can tell. So how did you get hooked up with Mike?

ANGRY JOHN: Well, I met mike when I had a band with Dave Smalley in ‘93. It was called, “33 Revolutions”. It was like mod rock. Mike came to one of the shows and I’ve known him through the years. At the end of the year when their bass player kinda went haywire. Mike called me and asked if I wanted to fill in. I’ve done a bunch of shows with them and I love it.

SICK BOY: So you’re happy?

ANGRY JOHN: Yeah. I like playing with them and hanging with them. They are great. I grew up listening to Agent Orange. I would’ve never thought I’d be playing with Mike.

MIKE: Yeah, we were 17.

SICK BOY: No, 19 right?

MIKE: Maybe 18, I know we had to be legal to sign with Posh Boy. SICK BOY: Posh Boy was a dirty word back then. Still is, isn’t it?

MIKE: Very dirty!

SICK BOY: What’s up with Timebomb Recordings?

MIKE: Well, Social D’s manager is who owns Timebomb. I think he used to be a V.P. at A&M or something. He knows what he’s doing.

SICK BOY: Your first show. Who did you play with?

MIKE: First show?...Middle Class.

SICK BOY: They were the hardest fuckin’ band back then.

MIKE: Yeah, to this day they are one of the hardest bands.

SICK BOY: Had you guys done any movies back then?

MIKE: Yeah, we did one called, “Pale Blood”. It was a cheesy Vampire movie. Agent Orange played the Vampire house band.

SICK BOY: Have you seen “Love & a .45” yet?

EVERYBODY: No. SICK BOY: Oh, go see it. It is great.

MIKE: Let’s talk about skateboarding.

SICK BOY: Alright. Did you bring your board?

MIKE: No, but I would like to get some time in on the mountain.

SICK BOY: Is that in the schedule.

MIKE: Yeah, we will be playing up in Tahoe this Saturday.

SICK BOY: So have any of you had a Concussion?

MIKE: Many, I’m a skateboarder!

ANGRY JOHN: Yeah, but my back fuckin’ hurts right now.

SICK BOY: Any last words?

MIKE: Skate and listen to Punk Rock.

ANGRY JOHN: I’ve got to get to the hospital.

(Agent Orange in their current form are great. Even though the drummer Dusty was out and about, I can tell you, he is a cool guy and he tears the fuck out of those drums.)

- SICK BOY

There’s a bar right across the street from this place. The bar is called, “The Hideout”. I hang out there a lot.

Pool tables, punk rock jukebox, cool bartenders, so it is fitting for there to be a venue right across the street. I missed the Shook-Ups. Went over with Headgrenade and watched them tear the place up. They are all friends of mine, but I like this band beyond friends. They are a great hardcore band. I’ve heard them referred to as sounding like Poison Idea, Nashville Pussy, R.K.L., and others of this ilk. That isn’t bad company to be in. I see them more as a Germs band. The fact is the lead singer is chaotic and drunken. He can drink a beer through his entire set, never putting it down. Headgrenade rocked the place and put people into a frenzy. Lastly, the briefs got on with all the theatrics that add to an already great band. The drummer was wrapped in medical tape and wore goofy glasses, as did the rest of the band. I spoke with these guys at length about what the next step is.

They will probably be picked up by a known label by the time you read this. They have a sound similar to the 78 era bands, yet, they mix in hardcore, pop, and minimalist guitar blasts. The songs, “rotten love”, “poor & weird”, and “I’m a raccoon” are anthemic and catchy. All their songs are like this, but these three get you spinnin’. They rocked the place and left. if at all possible check out both the Briefs and Headgrenade. You will truly be pleased. Rock’ n’ Roll will never die. - Sick Boy

Perhaps it was the terrible sound inside the House of Blues, Maybe it was jet-lag, maybe it was just too early in the P.M. for them to get their “evil” on, but Dimmu Borgir live were totally wack. To be fair, it must be said that we were all going to this show with incredibly high expectations and Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia is still the best metal record of the year.

Needless to say, Cannibal Corpse stole the show. This was the first time I had seen them without Chris Barnes (Six Feet Under), so it had been a while. All that needs to be said is that George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher can also grind a whole show with no effects on his voice. Classics like “Fucked with a Knife” and “I Cum Blood” were rocked with fist-in-horns and foot-on-the-monitor authority. - FG

But what is it with these Norwegians and their stupid synthesizers? This is rock, fool! I want to feel the KACHUNK of muted down-picking way down in the depths of my colon, so fire your keyboard player! I mean, if you can’t afford to bring the orchestra guys on tour with you, at least you can keep the samples in the back of the mix.

I was truly excited about this show. I mean, we’re talking about the original Dr. Know here. These guys are legend in the punk/skate scene. They are from Oxnard and perpetuated a great sound. First up at the show was Sucka Punch. I paid no attention to them at first. I had seen them a few months earlier and it had been patented ska/punk/pop. I have no interest in that stuff. So I’m sittin’ in the back drinkin’ when I hear this decent hardcore coming from the stage area. It was Sucka Punch with a new sound. I liked it. It was melodic hardcore done pretty well.

Then came Headgrenade. Yes, they are a better hardcore band than the previous, but they never finished their set. I guess the sound man was rude to Glenn, the lead singer and Glenn told him to fuck off. He walked off the stage and so did the band. When Dr. Know got on stage the pit was full. They played through everything. All of the old classics and then went into their new material. The new stuff is good, but a bit too fast for my tastes. Brandon Cruz was very talkative and festive. I danced and took pictures. There weren’t very many boneheads in the crowd. The few that there were got scared off by the lady punks that were not shown their respect. It was a great show.

A group of us went to this. We purposely missed the first two acts. We were there to see Murphy’s law and Murphy’s Law alone. Yes, we are picky. Now being that Jimmy Gestapo is a friend to most old punks, he, of course, was going to come out and party with us. First he needed to rock the crowd, which he did with absolute power and control.

This is a hardcore band that has been around for a long time. They never really made it big, though they should of.

Go pick up their first album and tell me they don’t rock your noggin’. The pit was fierce, but respectful. Jimmy gets off on the crowd, so as the pit swirled the music got more intense. We sang along and danced. They ended the set with “Somebody’s gonna get their head kicked in”.

Everybody went apeshit, as did I. My girl got a bit too drunk and I had to leave to take care of her. check out Murphy’s Law and understand what is hardcore punk. - Sick Boy

I talked with Brandon and the band after the show. They had excepted an offer to go play a short set at another venue. So I went and watched them there. That small show was the best of the two. The reason being there weren’t many people and as I said it was small.

Great fuckin’ sound ! - Sick Boy

Ws e v I E Ws Vi V i D E o R ev Ecuador Nichols/Charnowski 2001 The Ecuador video was a pleasant surprise in our mailbox, to say the least. On the heels of their acclaimed “Fruit of the Vine” video, Buddy Nichols and Rick Charnowski followed a group of skaters down to Quito, Ecuador, which is home to a bunch of gnarly cement skateparks, almost all of them coming complete with full pipes.

The crew included Bailey, Peter Hewitt, Al Partinan and Scott Smiley, so you know the skating was going to be gnarly. And besides, there aren’t too many other crews you could bring down there who could actually skate that shit. Unfortunately the entire video was not shot on 8mm (I guess you can’t have Addidas pay for everything), although some of the artsier “area” shots were, as well as some, but not all, of the skating. Since I was so stoked on “Fruit of the Vine” being entirely on film, regular video tends to be less desirable, but it’s cheap while film costs an arm and a leg. Still, the footage is rad, it’s artsy, and it gives you a genuine feel for Quito. The guys attempted to go street skating, but the harsh sidewalks and lack of spots shut the boys down and sent them

back to the giant snake runs and crazy parks.

These parks are super gnarly and have lots of steep hips and big cracks. “Don’t come here unless you like to go fast,” Hewitt advises. Many of them look like gritty, overgrown versions of Derby with full pipes thrown in for good measure.

Divided into a series of segments, Ecuador flows well and has a brutal slam section, letting you know that skating this stuff ain’t not joke. Al P. probably eats the most shit, but everyone paid their dues and left some skin behind at those parks. I don’t know how easy this video will be to find, but if you’ve ever seen any of the coverage Thrasher has given the parks in Quito, it will be well worth your time to view this video.

But really, the moral to this story, as Hewitt says repeatedly in the video, is “you really have to go there to know what it’s all about.”

He’s right, of course. Checkout this video, or go down to Ecuador and see for yourself, that’s what I’d like to do. Either way you can’t lose. dk - ps no cover was available.

Foundation Art bars 2001 Foundation Art bars and subtitles I would say the most popular thing in my household is Jack Daniels. My housemates just love the stuff and I was sure that nothing could ever come between them and their old friend Jack. That was until the release of the newest (not-sonew now) Foundation video. This video got way more play than Jack for at least 2 weeks. And why not? The first time I saw it I was totally boggled, the skill level is insane. I guess I would say that Justin Strubing's part is the best, maybe because I know Justin and I know that he rules anyway, but the guy just hauls ass and pulls everything with tons of style. Daniel Shimizu made me jump up and shout "GOD DAMN!!" with flawless frontside hurricane grinds down 10 stair handrails. Jon West had a great part as well and his movie after the movie was sheer genius.

Markovich shows the kiddies that he still has what it takes and also receives the Concussion "Not afraid to bust your ass" award.

Jud Hertzler skates super strong and Danzig, oops I mean, Ethan Fowler's part is totally amazing too. Who else?....uh.. oh ya, Justin Roy, hoo-boy that kid is crazy, with his backside kickflips to frontside sliders down like a twelve stair handrail. Fuck, this video is great, if you haven't seen it already, get with it. - LC

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Label Kills Black Label 2001

REAL to REEL Real Skateboards 2001

I was probably looking forward to seeing the Black Label more than most skate videos lately, which probably explains why I paid for it, instead of waiting around to maybe get sent it for free. But paying for videos lends an honest, consumer’s point of view to the review, and this is what you’ll get.

There was a lot of hype behind the long anticipated, recently released REAL to REEL video, and for the most part the boys at Deluxe pulled it off. The premiere was so crowded I couldn’t see the bottom third of the screen (the part where the skating is) and so I couldn’t really evaluate the video based on the premiere. But then I got a copy and actually got to watch the video, and it’s pretty good.

New REAL pro Nate Jones starts things off and kills it by doing all kinds of shit over SF street gaps. He’s got a nice style, has a big pop, and catches his 360 flips super smooth. I appreciated the fact that the soundtrack was not 100% hip-hop, and they even threw in some Motorhead. For the most part the REAL team kills it, although I must admit that I was not that thrilled with some of their newer riders as I am with the older dudes. Max Schaff, the only vert dude of the bunch, has been pretty much destroying things lately and is always a pleasure to watch, especially when he does backside tailslides. Matt Field and Huf have really strong parts, and I must admit that Cairo’s part lived up to the hype about that guy. The Gonz’s part, as expected, was pretty sick, and he does all of his signature crazy jump-through-bars tricks and even lets the groms know that the Gonz can also do eggplants and skate vert.

All in all I must say that I enjoyed watching the new REAL video, and it was cool that they managed to weasel the first footage from Ripon into a video. This video is definitely a must watch. - dk

The Death of Rachel Dir. Mike Finch A Stationwagon production Bootsy and Rachel continue to get rolled up and beat down in The Death of Rachel.

This is the final installment of Mike Finch’s skate trilogy that began with Sk8 or Die and also features Booty BBQ. This time we see the thug protagonists battling other criminals and peddling bootleg copies of Tekken for Playstation.

The Death of Rachel opens with the boys ripping up the new Chicago skatepark. In between runs they hear about a hippie skater that has been stealing manpurses and fencing them to Bohoosh Blahoot, the Man-Purse Czar. Bootsy vows to kick the hippy-skater’s ass, and only finds him when his own purse is snatched.

In the ensuing scene, the film reaches edge-of-your-seat, battle-insanity; the fight choreography is interspersed with photo stills that emphasize punishing kicks and punches as well as wild facial expressions, all sequenced to the impact of the blows. Imagine if Rudy Ray Moore’s Dolemite fight scenes were even more spastic and set to Drum and Bass.

The Death of Rachel is arguably the best in the trilogy because it involves intertwining narrative, tricky plot developments and way more violence.

The only thing some viewers might be disappointed at is the lack of love scenes, especially when you’re all hyped at the prospect of Bootsy and Rachel hooking up with some ladies, and then it cuts to Rachel waking up hung-over in bed next to an empty 40. - FG Order the whole trilogy online at www.swagon.com

Label Kills is a pretty damn good video, I’ll say that. Black Label has a huge team, and this is a long video, probably the longest of all of the team videos that have come out lately. It’s so long that it’s hard to sit through the whole thing, but most of it is pretty worth it.

Like I said, Black Label has a big team, and all the dudes have parts.

Jason Adams probably had the best all around part, and for sure the best trick with the curved ledge sliderooni. Omar rips, and shows that he can skate street just as well as he can rip pools. Wade Speyer’s part was pretty good, he had a rad grind to ollie over the channel at Ripon, but it seemed a little short. Grosso finally learned McTwists, is skating very well and still doing 10’ madonnas, which is probably one of my favorite tricks of all-time to watch. Neal Hendrix had a pretty good vert part, except that they never showed a full line. Vallely’s part was pretty lame, which was about what I expected from him. I wasn’t too impressed with Salman’s part until I realized that half of the tricks he was doing were switch!? Sick! Matt Hensley is still skating curbs, and his part was pretty sketchy except for the playing pool footage which was sick. And Lucero’s part at the end was epic, and included bottom turns on a mini ramp.

There was a lot of street skating in this video, ie rails and ledge skating. Some of it was good, but after a while, being the old guy that I am, I was pretty over it. Some of the dudes ripped, but it seemed like the street skating was simply inserted to keep the kids interested. Still, all of the dudes get worked on the rails and down the stairs, and it was rad to see them get racked and have the double head-smacks on the cement. That shit is gnarly. Svitak probably got worked the hardest, and had a bad-ass part full of slams. Pat Smith is always down to get worked, and I discovered that he and I both hang up on frontside disasters the same way. Pat rips. That Jub dude also had a sick part, and he seemed to be pretty much one of the best street dudes on the Black Label team aside from Melcher and the Kid. The other dudes I could have done without, as I could have done without half of two different angles for most every trick. Once in a while is fine for a sick trick, but bringing two filmers with you to every session, come on. Anyway, I’m being really picky, but that’s because I paid for this video. It was rad, don’t get me wrong. The editing and production were excellent, one might even say it was over the top. The soundtrack was moderate-to-good, filled with 80’s Brit-punk/pop, and the skating speaks for itself. - dk

Revelation DVD Bill Ballard Billy Goat Productions I was pretty much claiming this video as soon as I saw the cover. Finally, all my favorite surfers riding waves I’m not bored of watching. The filming is really clean and the video is shown mostly at realtime speed which is a nice change. The footage covers the Irons brothers battling and ruling it, Wardo playing with 8 foot J-Bay, Occy and Sunny in the Mentawais, Slates, Kalani, Mark Healey and various other legends ripping some sick waves. The Teahupoo segment is especially nice. Bill Ballard must have weasled all the other boats around to get this insane filming position super close to the pit. The shots he gets make the wave look heavier than I’ve ever seen it. Once you’ve watched Revelation, the DVD menu offers you a bunch of additional segments and another full-length movie to choose from. The ability to skip to any segment on the DVD makes this a perfect tool for pre-surf amping. Overall, the Revelation DVD was very refreshing. Two horns up. - Eric Larson

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Concussion Long Sleeve shirts and T-shirts make excellent rags for drying a pool, mopping up blood, or cleaning up a spilt beer.

Choose from 3 cool styles, the “Junkie Longsleeve” ($20), “Cannibal Logo” or “Classic Logo” (both $10). Shipping is included in the price. We also have an assortment of stickers available for $2. Send a check or money order* to the address below and be sure to specify style (1-6), color, and size (M, L or XL.) Longsleeves are in limited supply and only available in L and XL, so order now.

Check concussion.org for our lame-ass online store!!

Concussion Merchandise PO Box 1024 Santa Cruz, CA 95061-1024 Please allow 2-3 weeks for delivery * Make checks payable to Concussion

US Bombs Covered Wagon Saloon 3/29/01 So I was stoked cause I heard the Bombs were playing at Stinky’s Peep Show, this had to be good. We started around 7 drinkin Pabst and skating Sean’s ramp in the East Bay. Suckin down beers, grinding pool coping, and then it was off to the city to raise hell (except for Robnoxious who was already done). So we get there and we suck down a few more, we got the whole crew together, raging. Next is a little back room T and A action, good deal. The Reducers play, they get it going.

It’s starting to get pretty packed and there’s not even a bunch of Oi dorks in their suspenders hangin out, alright! ‘Round midnight or so, Duane and the rest of the Bombs come on stage and start fukkin shit up. Duane’s got some military beret on and he’s doin his DP dance. They’re playin’ some new shit and it sounds fukkin good. A little action in the front starts goin’ on, they bust out with “Skater Dater” and we’re up there havin’ a good time when some tough guy cracks Big Sean in the nose. Some koook tryin’ to keep the peace is holding ‘em apart so I yank him out of the way and give Sean a crack at this idiot, the bouncer gets adrift and he’s out. The Bombs are ruling, people are goin’ off. Couple more drinks, get back in the thick of it. Duane loses the beret to reveal full head tattoos and busts his on the knees double mike style, ruling. They finish it off with the anthem Jaks, “Go 45 mph, Go downhill on a skate”. Good night. - Kevin Torrey photo by Rob Taylor

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Drunk Horse Live in small clubs 2001 It was either Noel or Ethan of Comets On Fire who first told me about Drunk Horse. "This band out of Oakland, they used to be called The Pants, just drunken, sloppy garage rock." This turns out not to be true at all. Jennifer suggested Like if you locked a Southern band in the garage and made them listen to a lot of Sabbath. Which gives you some idea if the record player in this garage is on 78 rpm and the band is beltbuckledeep in a substance which confers speed, power and agility. Silk of webs. They share Sabbath's love of songs based not on the solo but on the riff, writing less doomful, more adrenaline ones, ZZ Top Tres Hombres humid with a sweatier swagger, at a chrome tailpipe, white line pace; less explicitly blues inspired, more complex and layered, and huger, like standing behind a jet; with metal precision. They're Champs tight, but less robotspider juggernaut, more it's a Tuesday night, it's 1978, you're riding in the back seat, some halfcrushed empties roll between your Converse, you shouldn't even be out tonight, it's a school night, you don't even know the guys in the front, they're your brother's friends. You know the guy next to you though, he's your pal, you just passed it to him when this sound comes snaking for you out of the screen of static. It sinks a fang between your hips and keeps moving, a bolt you're riding past blurred tighty whities and bikes. A sphere eclipses. The seed of sex and death. You're staring at the 12:34 on the dash, luminous through the smoke. Thinking How can it be so good? The riff to Temperamental Woman kicks in and blows your mind out the roof of the green Dodge Dart.

There should be three or four bands you can liken them to. In fact Drunk Horse is the essential 70's riff rock band; other bands are likened to them.

They just somehow, like Billy Pilgrim, came unstuck in time.

And they're not from Oakland. They are from the Ukraine.

To find out when you can see with your own eyes go to drunkhorse.com.- Graham McGrew photo by Brooke Lober Drunk Horse and Tanning Salon/Biblical Proportions, on Man's Ruin "Records," available everywhere; watch for the 7" of Prince covers.

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Record Reviews The Black Hand Pulling Your Strings Scorched Earth Policy This is the first record from this French Canadian powerhouse featurning ex Ire members. Super heavy hardcore, with crazy metal riffing. Excellent personal and political lyrics as you would expect from these guys. This is the german release, a 10”, it’s was also released in North America as a cd. - SH Bouncing Souls How I spent my Summer Vacation Epitaph It sounds like the Bouncing Souls spent their summer studying the art of generic punk rock. Like most Epitaph releases, this album lacks energy and passion. The music is a collection of 13 predictable songs with fast paced power chords, West Coast/Fat Wreck style beats, and plenty of “whoas” and “ahhs”. The album is clearly missing the humor of previous Bouncing Souls albums.

Where’s the “I like your mom” on this album?

Greg’s vocals are indecipherable as ever, subscribing to the vocal styling made so popular by East Bay pop punk bands. How I spent... seems more about making money than having fun. Maybe the Souls have grown out of their humor days but this is by no means a release of maturity. If you’re a huge Bouncing Souls fan, you might take pity on them and check this out. But for my tastes this album is too glossy, too produced, and above all, boring.

And by the way, fuck Epitaph records for ruining too many bands. - MJ Brassknuckle Boys American Bastard Haunted Town Records Midwest (No Coast) Working Class Street Rock ‘n’ Roll is what they claim to be. Well, I must say they seem pretty legit. Apparently the singer, Mark Dacey wrote most of the songs while in prison (for a warrant he didn’t know he had). Old school political punk/oi rock n’ roll, with lyrics about being the working class poor, and fuck the rich who get off their crimes with their stinkin’ money, while the poor unjustly get thrown in jail for shit they didn’t even do. They remind me a bit of US Bombs with a hint of Social Distortion, but with more “ooooohhhhh aaaarrghhs”. They cover Johnny Cash and Hanoi Rocks and they’ve got the sick twanged out guitar solos, common to a lot of this style of punk. Good shit.

High energy punk with a message, and a story about growing up on the streets with nowhere to turn. - JH

Broke Americans Self Titled Industrial Strength These guys used to be known as the Assholes, but I know them as a really shitty version of Murphy’s Law. This album sucked, and I was not into it at all. It is unfortunate that the late 80’s/early 90’s genre of thrash-funk or whatever you wanna call it has resurfaced, because most of that shit sucked back then. Still does as far as I’m concerned.

Sorry. - dk Bruisers Better Days Taang! Records If you like punk, Oi, or rock n roll you already like the Bruisers. One of the original American Oi bands. Ol’ Al Barr now sings for the Dropkick Murphys. He’s alright with them, but he was better with his band. Quit reading and go buy it. - SB C Average Second Reckoning Kill Rock Stars From the first note to the last, this record is pure metal revival. C Average is composed of two members. And although it sounds like an arsenal of guitars there is only one guitarist. This kind of reminds me of something that might go over well at a biker bar in rural Indiana. I even had to double check the liner notes to make sure Eddie Van Halen is not in the band. These guys clearly show their talent through the speedy double bass drum beats and perpetually wanking guitar. At times this has an old school Metallica feel to it, but is not quite as catchy (and could never be as metal). The songs are mostly instrumental which seems to be positive as the vocals just aren’t metal enough. This whole album has a kind of fantasy/adventure feel to it.

With song titles like “The Witch” and “Prolock, The Protector”, Cathedralesq packaging, and recurring images of swords it almost seems more like a game of Dungeons and Dragons than a rock album...

-Mike Jirkovsky Cell Block 5 Push It Industrial Strength Records I had never heard of these guys previous to listening to this disc. I like them a lot. They have the right blend of 50’s rock and 80’s punk. They aren’t Rockabilly, nor are they some other genre. This is punk buy it, enjoy it, destroy it ! - SB Chemical Generation Self Produced Fast, riffy, metal power chords with lyrics about not doing meth, and being a loser. Very positive lyrics, about not self destructing

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the Concussion’ P “ ick of the Litter” The J.J. Paradise Player’s Club Wine Cooler Blowout Tee Pee Records Let's get this out in the open right now, I am a huge Unsane fan. If you don't know who the Unsane are, well forget it, you might as well close this magazine and shoot yourself. So, with my confession out of the way, it's safe to say that any projects that involve members of the Unsane are usually great albums. For instance the Cutthroats 9 release on Mans Ruin Records was so good I practically wet myself, some of the Concussion staff may say different, but, fuck them. The J.J. Paradise players club is made up ex members of the Unsane as well as some other bands and these guys are amazing.

It's definitely not an Unsane rip off these guys have moved on to create

yourself. They even say to not do drugs and go surf, skate or play music on the back of the liner notes. Chemical Generation fall somewhere between Bad Religion and the Fat Wreck sound, but not so over produced and generic. Nothing amazing stands out here, but the songs are put together well, and have a steady rocking flow to them, and they’re not cheesy like a lot of newer school punk rock bands. - JH Chemo Kids Raditation Generation Pelado Records I like it. I like it. Punk Rock, snide, attitude, and well done. - SB Cocksparrer England Belongs to Me Taang! Records There are few bands that rank with these guys.

Sham 69, The Clash, Skrewdriver, and the Sex Pistols. These guys began in ‘74 and still play and have been playing. Talk about devotion. I can’t say enough good things about Cocksparrer. This is a collection of all their old singles. It has all the hits.

The people at Taang! keep putting out solid records. Get this now! - SB Conflict Only Stupid Bastards Help Go Kart Records This is a sampling of Conflict songs through their albums. I myself have never really liked Crass, but this is a better Crass band. It is hard like the new kids wish to be. The name is a take on the old Conflict album,”Only Stupid Bastards Help EMI”.

What was once old is new again. - SB The Criminals Extinct F.O.A.D. Records The cover to this looks emoish. so I thought The Criminals might have lost their edge. Trickery is what it was. They still rock hard as ever. They cover AC/DC at the end. Now that is hard rock.

Get this. - SB

some heavy kick ass rock and roll. At times I think they sound like Fugazi and at times I think they sound like Lynyrd Skinnard. They hail from NYC, yo, and this foursome seriously tears shit up. By far my favorite track has to be Rubber Innertubes, it truly gives me faith that good music is not entirely dead. So for all you kids rockin' the newest Limp Bizkit, wake up, get your head out of your ass.

Buy this album.- LC

Dead Guy I Know Your Tragedy Hawthorne Street Records I don’t know a great deal about Deadguy, although, having read the insert to the CD. I do know a lot more. I like these guys even though I would probably never buy one of their CDs myself.

I do enjoy hearing their sound when I do. Solid thrashy punk from the east coast. Evil power ! - SB Deviate Time is the Distance Epitaph Records From the first note to the end this is old Pennywise and old Offspring. Go figure though, it is on Epitaph. Call me old fashioned , but I still like Bad Religions “Suffer” album better than all the copycats after it. - SB The Dimestore Haloes Long Ride to Nowhere and Revolt into Style Pelado Records I have been praising the Dimestore Haloes for sometime now. I do it because they are truly talented. Any band that causes me to feel what they are feeling just by listening to them are doing it right. The feeling of this band is a little hate, a little angst, and a little brokenhearted love. Chaz Matthews is sincere in his delivery. The newer of these two, “Long Ride to Nowhere”, has a song that just kicks my ass. It’s called,”Death is a Star”.

Once you hear it you’ll understand. The lyrics are solid “the summer he thought suicide might be the only way, but radio clash, search and destroy, god save the queen and jetboy saved a life that was born too late held him close and blew him away” from Born too Late. I could keep writing about these guys and their music, but I prefer that you go get it and find out for yourself. - SB

Drowning Man Still Loves You Equal Vision Intense melodic hardcore, it is hard to believe that Drowning Man still love you, it seems that they want to kill you....but maybe not as brutally as they would have on their last release. This release will appeal to more of the people that wouldn’t have been able to swallow past releases, as they lay off the high speed screamings and beatings, and flow into slower melodys and guitar riffings. If you’ve heard the old Drowning Man, you’ll still like this newer stuff, but if you couldn’t handle the older stuff, you might just be able to deal with this new EP. Check it out and see for yourself. - JH The Drunks Ruin it for Everyone TKO Records Do you like Oi? Do you like drunk punk? You’ll like the light hearted lyrics. A song about their pride. These guys are fun Oi. They cover John Cougar at the end with “I Fought Authority”.

Another winner. - SB East Bay Chasers Self Titled Industrial Strength These guys are pretty rad. Rad album cover art with an evil skull which actually is on par with the music.

The singer has a really gravely voice and the chick on the back of the album looks like a junkie. Fuzzed out guitars, good bass lines and solid drumming make up the bulk of this disk, which at times sounded like Social D during their good years. I know Industrial Strength has some good bands on their label, and the East Bay Chasers are one of the best. Solid, no bullshit punk. - dk EL SECONDHAND/THE FALSIES SPLIT Demo The first band here is actually better than a lot of really popular bands out there right now. They play melodic punk and they do it pretty well. They are way better than Southport. The second band The Falsies are a bit harder. They have a bit of thrash going. The first band is the better of the two. - SB

The Gay Barbarians and or the Jaurwaurs I want it to Sound like a Monster or a Boombox Stereo Abuse Records

drumming, cheap guitars, a talk box, effects, moog, burps, and some other funky warped out shit.

These guys are serious music nerds who probably dabble in some hallucinogenic drugs and spend hundreds of hours in their little music studio creating their artistic masterpiece. Some tracks are reminiscent of the eclectic Opulence Records bands (Tricky the Cosmonaut and This Revolution), while others turn more techno (and no i usually don’t like techno), but with real drums mixing in with the drum machines and other stoney effects.

Overrall, this release is very original, I like it very much, and I’m not going to take it to Streetlight Records to sell it. - JH Hi-Life Rescue Dance Band Dance and Live Forever Platetectonic Records The Hi-Life Rescue Dance Band has come to save your sorry ass from the predictible, derivative music which floods the airwaves and our CD submission mailbox.

Straight out of New Orleans, these guys are classically trained in jazz, and play funk like they grew up listening to it, which no doubt they did. Opening with “We’re Party Robots,” the disk kicks into some deep, original grooves to get the booty shaking. Experimenting with various tempos and styles, the Rescue Dance Band players cross the boundaries of fusion, funk, and jazz. They’ve got a couple sax players who frequently take the spotlight and bust out with some improvizational solos, before returning into the groove to get the funk back on. Some of the songs strayed a little too heavily into the area of modern or contemporary jazz for me, but other than that this disk is the shit. So if you are a fan of original, jazz-induced funk, the Hi-Life Rescue Dance Band is for you.

You can check them out on the web at highliferescue.com. - dk Hot Water Music A Flight and a Crash Epitaph I got sucked into listening to this album by its nice cover art, but the music was not similarly up to par.

I don’t really remember what it sounded like, except that this CD didn’t last more than one or two songs before I turned it off, and did not make the cut. - dk JAKKPOT ALWAYS BET ON BLACK Royalty Records

Jaya the Cat Basement Style Gold Circle

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes Blow in the Wind Fat Wreck Chords

Sounds like Sublime, with a touch of Rage. A couple good lyrics, like, “If I find your SUV I’m gonna slash your tires, what the hell do you need that for when you living in the city”. Mostly reggae beats with a touch of rapping and a touch of “punk”.

They could be quite popular on LA “alternative” radio. I’m sure they are. Oh yeah, some songs remind me of OPM, you know, “Heaven is a Halfpipe”. - JH

Fat Mike and the boys cover a plethora of 70’s hits including Dylan’s “Blowin in the Wind”, “My Boyfriend’s Back”, by some 60’s or 70’s surfer band, and “All My Lovin’” by the Beatles. I always enjoy hearing other bands cover classic songs, so I’m into this CD, every once in a while. My one criticism, is that I don’t recognize half the songs, and they sound pretty kooky, but maybe you’ll know the originals, and appreciate them more than I did. - JH

Junction 18 This Vicious Cycle Fearless Records Hearing this makes me wonder Fearless’s intentions. I know now that “At the Drive in” are making it big. They were on Fearless. So are Fearless trying to create the next big over done Radioland band ? It’s been done and I’m bored with it. For those of you that like to fret over tying your shoes, this is your soundtrack. - SB Luck of the Draw 7” Bad, Bad, bad Squigtone records Sapphire blue vinyl rules. This is great rock n roll. It is country tinged Oi. If that sounds weird, it isn’t.

With band members with names like Quesa Diaz and Dan Halen you get the feeling they don’t take life too seriously. Great band. I hope to hear more of them. I’m going to listen to them right now. SB Luckie Strike Future is Turning Tomato Head Records You take a pop punk band and have some guy sing. You won’t get noticed too quickly. Take the same band and put a girl with a cute voice up there, boom you’re a contender. Like I said poppunk with a cute girl voice. They play here in Reno a lot. I’ve never seen them. I probably never will.

They get my attention for covering Elvis Costello’s “Radio, Radio”, though. - SB Mad Caddies Rock the Plank Fatwreckords By looking at the cover art to this I got the impression that this would be an album of pirate music. I have a friend who’s band is based around pirate music. They are called the Scurvy Bastards. They play pirate music well. The Mad Caddies on the other hand don’t. There is just one song on here that is reminiscent of pirate music. The rest is the same ilk you’ve been getting from these guys. I’ll pass, but you should look for Scurvy Bastards. I’ll review their album when it is out. - SB

Mongrel Music Self-Producted/Titled Fully instrumental mutt rock, Mongrel bring together styles across the indy-experimental-math rock audio spectrum. Gentle cooing guitars with the pitter patter of hailing drums fades into obscurity and then return with vigorous tweaked staccato riffings that ease back into the lovely, yet almost piercing tones. Influences I hear in these little bitches are Don Caballero & The Champs. This EP would have made a great soundtrack, replacing Queen, as the Hawkmen attack in Flash Gordon. Clocking in at barely over 12 minutes, the Mongrels leave you barking for more. mongrelmusic.com - JH The Moorat Fingers Schlitzed F.O.A.D. Records I saw this CD in the stack and immediately thought it would suck. It has a picture of some elf/alien creature with fire behind it. I threw it in the player and was caught off guard. These guys rock in the way only a punk could. Several bands came to mind while listening to them, but I couldn’t pin them down. They were all over the place. Mean, aggressive, drunk, and punk. Get this even though the art sucks. - SB Nerf Herder My E.P. My Records Santa Barbara rock with plugging bass and ooh ahh vocals. Nerf Herder, at least, has a sense of humor. Don’t take them too seriously because I don’t think they even care. Their lyrics are funny, especially the song about High School which is about all the stuff you wish you knew in high school which would have gotten you ALL the chicks. “Don’t call the head jock a fag, even if it’s true, And don’t hold out, for that one special girl, ‘cause she’ll never have sex with you...nobody ever got laid, ‘cause they were wearing a Rush tshirt”. Haha. Reminds me of some dorks I used to know. Iron Maiden shirts don’t get you laid either.

Well, Nerf Herder are mellow, watered down Ramonesy styled rock, and all their songs are about girls, which is fine with me. - JH

Jakkpot rock your ass! Seek it out and buy it. - SB

This is the third time in a row I’ve listened to this CD. Experimental bedazzlement has left me in an uneasy confusion. Synth sounds filter in with live

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Nerve Agents The Butterfly Collection Hellcat Records Judging by the cover, I wasn’t going to like this album. Since we at Concussion receive so many horrible music submissions, it becomes necessary to judge things by their cover to determine if it is even worth a listen. I know this is a horrible practice, but since nobody wants to help us out by writing reviews, that’s what it’s come down to. Anyway, I put this Nerve Agents album on and was actually able to tolerate it. Fast, angry punk played by young kids; usually that doesn’t fly with me, but somehow these guys pull it off, which is quite a compliment considering how many horrible, generic punk bands don’t last longer than one song on the CD player.

Good work. - dk No Motiv Diagram for Healing Vagrant records I heard these guys, when I was in the clink, on a compilation. I liked the one song that I had heard.

Now I realize that I only like them one song at a time. If I try to listen to the whole album I get annoyed. Too sappy, but one song at a time is just fine. It’s that melodic emotional sound that better bands created. - SB

One Percent Crime Angst for the memories Poopskin Records This is pretty run-of-the-mill skate punk stuff. 4 speedy cynical pop-punk songs. There’s definitely a metal influence here, but not enough to make this interesting. Honestly, the repetitive, self-loathing vocals got to be really annoying. I give these guys credit for putting out what appears to be a DIY record, but there’s nothing here to make them stand out. There just isn’t enough room for this played out, generic, rehashing of a style that has already been beaten into the ground. On the plus side, they thank Pabst Blue Ribbon in the liner notes, Classy. - MJ

Everything I’ve listened to from them lately has sucked to no end. The name of this CD sucks. The music on this CD is Welt’s new sound which is Farside’s old sound which was Rites of Spring’s one song on the first album’s sound. Do you get what I’m saying? They aren’t anything worthy of the BYO records I used to love, but they fit right in with the new crap. - SB Pintsize Collapse in Style Building Records It is sappy melodic hard rock. I’ve reviewed albums before this one that have the same sound. Go buy Dinosaur Jr. or Jawbreaker. They do it better. - SB

The Pinkerton Thugs End of an Era Go Kart Records

Powerball Opposing Furies Rat Town Records

I like Oi. Therefore, I like this. It is modern day Oi. The kids are still pissed. I have a friend that knows these guys and he says they are lame people.

Well, I think Lars Frederickson is lame, but I still enjoy his music. So as I said this is good. Buy it. SB

The people of Florida are pissed. Hot Water music, Panthro UK. United 13, and Powerball. They all are angry. It’s good to know the whole punk scene hasn’t turned into a bunch of hippies. This is pretty good. Not as good as the bands mentioned earlier, but from the same vein. - SB

Pinhead Circus The Black Power of Romance BYO Records

The Pushers Turnin’’ Blue Disaster Records

I used to look to BYO for great music, scratch that I looked to them for great punk music. Not anymore.

First off, the US Bombs rule. So if you agree with that you’ll like this. It is the group that started out

with Spencer from the old band, Shattered Faith.

Now Ricky Barnes is singing. yep, another pro skater singing in a 70’s style punk band. I love it.

There are a bunch of bands in southern California that are bringing back the skatepunk, beachpunk spirit of the early 80’s. The labels are Disaster, Hostage, Alive, Outsider, and Bomp. These are all probably connected somehow, because they all put out great music from the same area. I notice there are a lot of people down there that fight the heroin monster. The cover art for this CD has a cutie laid out on the floor turning blue with a needle hanging out of her arm. Great fuckin’ album. Go buy it. - SB Reducers SF Crappy Clubs and Smelly Pubs TKO Another fine release from TKO, these guys are definitely keeping it real.

And sure, maybe I’m slightly partial to SF bands, but whatever, these guys don’t suck and that is the point.

Fast punk, decent hooks, slightly reminiscent of the Replacememts, but maybe that’s because I’ve been listening to the Replacements again lately. Their liner notes have polaroids of all of the clubs and bars these guys play and hang out at, including such classy establishments as the Covered Wagon and the now closed Cocodrie. - dk

The Riffs Underground Kicks Pelado Records Good music! I’ve spoken about my affinity for ‘77 style punk. Hell, one of my favorite bands is the Clash. These guys aren’t like the Clash. No one is.

But they would’ve been put on the same bill with them back then. With songs like “Johnny won’t get to Heaven” and “Teenage Kamikaze”, it’s good to know there’s still a bit of nihilism out there. These guys are good. - SB Rise Against The Unraveling pat wreak whores It has a hardcoreish sound. I guess this is the direction new hardcore is headed. Cool you go that way and I’ll stay here. Have fun. - SB RX Bandits Progress Drive Thru records I don’t usually give simple reviews, but in this case....crap!

- SB Seismic Hog Swill Seismic Hog Productions If you aren’t totally out of it, you would have already heard a snipit of these guys in the intro to

the Concussion video, “Amnesia”. The first song Nexus 6 (which contains the concussion video intro) is the fastest song on the album, and one of my favorites, covering a lot of ground: thrash, guitar melodys, strange euphoric samples from sci-fi movies, metal, and general high energy mayhem.

The band features two ex-Dojo members, and one song includes Mason from Herbert, but the influences of either of these bands isn’t too apparent, except in their general hard rocking heavy beats.

The CD is very well mixed with one song melding into the next. The strangest and most intriguing part of the CD is the first thrashy song melding into Wayne’s sitar laced version of Tom Petty’s, “Don’t Come Around Here No More”, that can’t go unheard.

Bands that come to mind throughout this release are Tortoise, a touch of Don Caballero, Ravi Shankar (just kidding), and that’s all I can think of. Guess that’s a good sign. Originality. If you can find this, it’s a worthy purchase. (for more info contact: hog@moonpatrol.com) - JH Sick on The Bus Set Fire to Someone in Authority Go Kart Records Real punk, from the cover looking like a picture of Sid Vicious to the beltings of songs such as, “You Lie”, “I hate you”, and “Brain Dead”, Sick on The Bus are for real. They’re from England so they

know what’s up with the early roots of Punk Rock.

They hate a lot of shit, rich chicks who think they’re too cool for guys with ripped jeans, girls that bitch and moan all day and bring you down, and the god damn pigs for pushing us around.

After the lyrics, each song has an explanation of what it’s about, in case you couldn’t figure it out yourself, dumbass. This is no rip off, fake punk, trendy bullshit. Play this music and listen to what they say, and try and relate. If you can’t, then you’re life must be just wonderful. “Don’t conform, do what you want; not what you’re told. Make your own rules, you brain dead fuckers”. - JH Slackers Wasted Days Hellcat Records I know I’ve said this before, but the Slackers are one of the most talented and underrated Ska bands in the country right now, and have been for the last five years or so. These guys are easily my favorite band in the Epitaph empire, and those fuckers didn’t even bother to send me the disk until I had asked for it twice. Whatever, I got it and it’s just as good as every other Slackers album I own. Slow tempo songs about jilted relationships or evil women are the main themes the Slackers tend to focus on, but their songwriting is very honest, and they manage to pull it off every time. A little rocksteady, dub, and even country slide guitar

infiltrate their music. Standouts include almost every song on this album, including the title track, “Wasted Days”, “The Nurse”, “Please Decide”, and “Dave’s Friend”. In fact this album is notable because there are actually one or two songs which I didn’t like, which is unusual for a Slackers album.

The sappy “Made Up My Mind” should’ve been straight out cut off the record, and I couldn’t stand their ska rendition of Bon Jovi’s “Wanted Dead or Alive”, but that’s because I can’t stand Bon Jovi period. All in all, Wasted Days is a fine, fine disk, and I highly recommend that you pick up this record. If you’re still in doubt then you should go see them play live next time they come to your town, and you’ll be sold for sure. - dk Southport Nothing is Easy Go Kart Records If you had someone really sensitive review this, you would have a total different review. Now since it is me, I say these guys need to toughen up a bit.

I feel that if they were to be bumped into at a show they’d probably start sputtering and cry. Too weak for my taste. - SB

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The Spooky Dawn of the Dead 7” Hostage Records I have always been crazy about ghoul punk. The Misfits will always be one of my favorites. The Spooky are similar yet unique. There are four songs on this. Each one solid, but “Chainsaw Wendy ‘O’“ is the song that fucks with my insides. It asks to get one last look of the t & a she offered in live shows, but it is done in such a manner that you back him up on the plea. Mike Monster (lead singer) brings you with him on his tales of gore & lust. Get everything they’ve done and more. - SB Squiggy/The Outsiders Split 7” Squigtone Records Great punk rock ! Each band has three songs on this. The cover art is cool as hell. Raw, real, rockin’. - SB Stack ..........konkret lichtgeschwindigkeit!

Scorched Earth Policy The final release from this great german band.

They managed to play hardcore that was super fast without being grindcore or relying on blast beats.

They also had the german hardcore sound without being super metal or emo, like a lot of the other bands from there. Basically this is just great hardcore/fastcore. There are some new songs on here and also some old ones re-recorded at the same session. There is also a cd of this, complete with everything else they did (a slew of split 7”s, a 6” and 7”). This 10” and cd is on scorched earth policy, also available from six weeks in the u.s. as a 12” - SH The Strange Perils of Time I’d have to say The Strange are the best band to come out of Santa Cruz since Herbert.

The first time I saw them they were damn good, but now they’re just insane. Probably the most intense band i’ve seen play in a long time with each member taking turns at screaming their lungs out with adrenaline pumping veins trying to burst out of their necks. The best time I saw them was at the Aptos Club during a “Vamp Magazine Battle of the Bands”, where they premiered the Concussion Video behind them. That was pretty intense, and it was also funny because Vamp were pretending to be our competition, so to play the Concussion video at a Vamp event is like the president of Trojan screwing his wife with Lifestyles. Anyway, back to the music. The Strange are super intense hardcore rock. There are a few different styles working together on Perils of Time.

From Heavy Metal tracks, like Inhale, to more hardcore tracks like the title track, The Strange has a variety of styles all very heavy and intricate.

They’re no 1:30 song band, in fact, they have 2 songs in the 10 minute range, and none of them

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are shorter than 5 minutes, quite impressive if you’ve ever tried to write a song. I’m not going to say anything more, except if you like intense, heavy, hardcore speed metal, The Strange are right up your alley. - JH Sucka Punch Demo Disc www.suckapunch.cjb.net Now these guys have been around for awhile.

When I was in the clink I heard one of their songs on a ski shop commercial. I thought that song was pretty good. Then I got out and was at one of their shows. They played a lot of poppunkska stuff. I paid them no mind ‘cause there already is a band in town that does that. Well when I went to the DR. KNOW show the other night this was one of the bands opening for them. I sat in the back awaiting the legendary dr. know and a riff caught my ear. It was sonic reducer by the dead boys. i thought anyone that covers the dead boys deserves some attention. So I watched the rest of their set.

They played a few good melodic hardcore songs.

They were way better and rougher than the last time I saw them. I talked to the guitarist? I think, and he gave me their new demo. I am pretty sure that they did a album before this. Don’t get that though. Wait until their new album comes out. It is melodic and a bit of ska, but it is a pretty good band for that ilk. Keep your eyes out for them. - SB Tight Bro’s From Way Back When Lend You A Hand Kill Rock Stars The first time I ever heard the Tight Bro’s was on a split 7” with the Champs. Anyone who splits a 7” with the Champs has to rock, and rock they did. A few days ago I had the luck of checking out two sick bands in Santa Cruz, Drunk Horse, and Tight Bro’s from Way Back When. Drunk Horse obviously rocked out hard, leaving a tough spot to fill, but the Tight Bro’s slipped right in their and rocked the fucking house. It was hard to say who I liked best, two different equally rocking styles, that worked well together. This new release from the Tight Bro’s mixes blues-styled punk with late 70’s Heavy Metal. Influences I hear are AC/DC, Zeke, Motorhead and KISS. They also remind me of Seattle’s early years of distorted grunge-blues, namely Green River and Monkeywrench, but faster and more riffy, rather than slow and dope and whiskeyed out. Rocking guitar solos, drum break downs, sing-a-longs, and general “We’re here to have a fucking good time”, is what the Tight Bro’s are all about. This is up there with the best new releases I’ve heard this issue. - JH Throw Rag Bag Of Glue/Devil Gone Good Kapow! Records Throw Rag were around in the early to mid nineties. They were good then if I remember correctly, now they are even better. It’s like when I heard Jakkpot for the first time or hearing Electric Frankenstien. These guys are great they have a whole album out called “tiki man” or something like that. Get it. - SB

Tsunami Bomb The Invasion From Within Tomato Head Records Tsunami Bomb doesn’t really play a style of music that I particularly care for (punk/new skool ska), but I kind of liked this album anyway. Maybe it’s because they are from Sunnyvale or something, I don’t know. They have a few women in the band, including the vocalist, which makes for a nice change. Pretty short, six songs only, but that’s probably part of the reason why I liked it. They have a cool name too. - dk The Unseen The New One BYO Records The truth to be told I stuck this CD in and listened to four songs. Took it out and gave it away. The person I gave it to said it sucked and tried to give it back. I wouldn’t except it. I did notice that they thank Conflict and Discharge in the linear notes.

That is what you get is that sound, but these kids have some stupid ass lyrics. If you don’t know what you are talking about then don’t talk. Stupid wannabe’s. Go die. - SB The Unsuspecting Public 7” Spoiled records I love hearing these kid punk bands. They are so full of angst and spite. Kids make me feel good about being active in this scene I am bound to.

Some kids suck though, but these guys don’t. - SB US Bombs 7” Great Lakes of Beer Beer City Records This is how it is done. You got a band that lives it.

A label that bathes in it and a singer that tells it straight. Two songs on here: “Great Lakes of Beer” and “The Critic”. Both of them were written in a few hours time and recorded in the first take. Sure they are drunk and spiteful. Isn’t that how it really is? Great ‘45. - SB Various Artists: Terror Firmer (Soundtrack) Go-Kart records I love B movies. So naturally I know who the Troma team are. It is good to see a punk soundtrack to another one of their movies. There is a bunch of shit on this disc, but it also has some great shit. Good stuff : Two Man Advantage, Gwar, All, Candy Snatchers, Under the Gun, and Entombed. The bad stuff: well, why don’t you buy the thing and tell me. - SB The Varukers How Do You Sleep ?

Go Kart Records This is the real deal. These guys have been around for years. Always delivering the hardcore. If you like Chaos UK, The Exploited, Discharge, and the like you will love the Varukers. Great stuff. - SB

Voice of a Generation Obligations to the Odd Burning Heart/ Epitaph Records The first song is good rock ‘n’ roll. Three songs into it they are still rockin’. It’s like AC/DC in the respect that it never lets up. In the tradition of The Bruisers and Anti-Heroes these guys are Oi music.

They are from Sweden, are pissed, anthemic,and determined. The cockney kids aren’t innocent anymore. - SB Welt Brand New Dream BYO Records This isn’t punk. It is radio rock! I’ve watched this band change their sound through time. I don’t know if they are trying to catch the popular wave or what. The thing that I know is this is not punk.

They try to pull you in at the end with a cover of misfits “Hybrid moments”. even though I love this song and one other song on here is decent they still don’t belong in the punk bin. - SB Workin’ Stiffs Tired...and Then Some TKO Records This was a good album; seems that despite the shitty music scene of recent, San Francisco actually has a lot of good, legitimate punk bands kicking around. The Workin’ Stiffs are one of them, and they play old school punk the way it was meant to be played, angry and drunk. - dk The Worthless Slow City Taang! Records At first look at the CD case I noticed Duane “master of disaster” Peters produced this. That gave them points right off the bat. I listened to it to find that they were very angry kids. I like anger! The style is very much similar to a lot of the Hostage Records bands. Pretty straight up beach/skate punk. They have a sound close to the stitches.

Which in my book is great. They bring violence into most of the songs and love is a fucked realm to them. I connect with these guys. I could tear a ramp/pool up to this album. Seek it out and be inspired, skatepunk. - SB Reviewer Key: JH - Jonathan Hay SH - Simon Hay SB - Sick Boy DK - Davoud FG - Frank Gilbert MH - Mike Hunt MJ - Mike Jirkovsky

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Clockwise, or top to bottom, or something. Figure it out: Tim McKinney was talking about the rad feeling he got when he did lipslides on the perfect trannies of the Robin’s Egg, but I don’t think this was the rad feeling he was talking about. Sequence: Amell. Emanuel Guzman stepped up and attempted to grind one of the rails up at UCSC, got his ass whooped, and still couldn’t wipe the smile off his face. Photos by Nate Lawrence. Bordercross gone awry. Sequence by Tim McCaffrey. Barney, going over the falls in a big way. Photo

by Trefz. This fucking guy had to show me his fake teeth at Ripon. Just what I wanted to see. Check out that scar on his head too.

Flaming tennis, as we have so unoriginally dubbed it, is great fun. It combines one’s love for tennis with their passion for pyromania, and combines it in an action packed scenario that is not unlike a Hollywood movie, or at least a cheesy tennis commercial starring Andre Aggasi. All you need is a few tennis rackets (which you are not too attached to), some tennis balls, and some gasoline. We tried other flammable substances, but gas seems to work the best. Try to not get too much gas on your hands, that shit causes cancer. All you do is soak the ball in gas, light it on fire, and start rallying. The ball makes a cool sound when you hit it, and sometimes when it hits the ground, flames explode everywhere.

Keys to success in flaming tennis include being able to keep the rally going, and keeping the ball lit. It helps if the people you play with can actually play tennis, too. Ideally you should not play in a court surrounded by dry brush, because if you hit the ball over the fence you’ll be in deep shit. So seriously, be careful when doing this, but as long as you are not too much of a jackass and don’t start any fires it is great after midnight fun. - Photos by J.Hay

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