Intro / Credits

INTRO

Volos, Gr, January 18, 2021

- currently listening to ‘Cheer’ by Drug Church

2issues in almost 6 months?! That’s insane! But guess what… Soulcraft is back with its 3rd issue, and if this is not already a banger, there’s thoughts of transforming this fanzine in a biannual publication! Dunno if this will ever happen or if it takes 3 more years for issue 4, but I can assure you that I’ll try my best! At the Outro of the previous issue I wrote ‘let’s hope Soulcraft 3 will be released before my 40th birthday, that means before December 2022’ and I’m still 38 and it’s out baby! I made it!

Soooooo, not much happened from summer 2020 and on. I worked at a shitty, underpaid, job (in a courier service, delivering parcels) for 3-4 months, tried to move to Athens with my girlfriend Lina, stayed there till lockdown no.2 (which was in early November), got back to Volos, my hometown, one day before everything was closed once again, and I’m here since then. Worked a distance job which was pretty cool and paid well for a month or so and… that’s all. On the other hand, if all goes well, by the time this gets to the pressing plant I will have delivered / presented my master dissertation on ‘music movement of hardcore in Greece, etc.’, for which I’m pretty excited. I intend to release it in a small book or sth later in 2021, let’s see how it goes!

In other news, yeap, I’m still stuck in this shithole called Greece, trying to figure out what to do with my life and when I finally get that goddamn decision to move out of here to a more prosperous country and eventually settle there. Let’s see if issue no.4 will find me out of here… One thing’s for sure, times are hard and we have to take crucial decisions. To be honest, I hate living here and even though I get by financially (hustling a lot!) and I am trying to be as creative as I can, I really can’t get used to the mentality of this country, its government and first and foremost its people. Greece is a beautiful country, that’s all, no more, fullstop.

mention that 2020 was definitely a productive year for me, even if it sounds totally weird. Soulcraft 2 got out, started working on Soulcraft 3, and, last but not least, formed a new project / band, with some old and new friends (active in our local hardcore / crust / metal scene), called Ghetto Gospel (check us out at IG, bandcamp, FB, Spotify, etc.), that released a 9-song EP in early 2021. Got our name from the infamous 2Pac song, you fancy?! Besides that, my label, World’s Appreciated Kitsch Records, released 4 new records in 2020, the brand new 7”s by Barcelona’s Bait and north Greece’s Kemerov, the New Wave of Hardcore compilation tape (featuring the crème de la crème of today’s hardcore scene, sold out 100 copies in the blink of an eye) and the Yachtclubbaz tape (Nick and Jay of Mindforce delivering top notch instrumental hip hop for Polo RL lovers, check this out nowww!). And there’s plan for more stuff in 2021. Can’t stop, won’t stop motherfuckers! You can always follow my social media and get updates.

One thing that made me super excited the last bunch of months is the regeneration of hardcore zines, there’s tons of new hardcore zines from all over the world and 90% of them is quality stuff! Do me a favor and start more zines, especially right now, with the absence of shows, zines are vital for the preservation of the scene. Make sure to also check my sweet girlfriend’s, Lina, Self Love zine; it’s not hardcore / punk but it’s a must read, trust me! (selflovefanzine. bigcartel.com)

Moreover, TONS of good stuff (full lengths, EPs, singles, demos) were released in 2020; check out Pain Of Truth, Mindforce, Pillars Of Ivory, Chain Reaction, Leper, Age Of Apocalypse, Gag, Gulch, Dropdead, Big Cheese, Higher Power, Change, Xibalba, Drain, End It, Life Force, Be Well, World Be Free, Speed, Crush The Demoniac, Combust, Mutually Assured Destruction, Smash, Intimidation, Earth To Heaven, Mil Spec, Ecostrike, Manu Armata, Fuse, Nekra, Choice To Make, Three Knee Deep, Rain Of Salvation, Rated X, Heavy Discipline, Against All Odds (my locals!), the One Scene Unity comp… The list is neverending! What a great time for hardcore music! The scene is still US-dominated, but there’s also many great bands and individuals doing a superb job in the other continents, too. Try to scratch the surface and explore the depths of the scene, you’ll find diamonds!!!

So, enough with me babbling… There’s no interlude or even outro this time. ‘Nough said! Let the bands and the artists do the talk. This time, I included some of my favorite bands & people of the worldwide scene and I gave even more space to people that don’t necessarily play in bands but are very active in other sections like graphic designing, zines, graffiti, comics, photography, etc. After all, hardcore is a big big scene where everyone plays its part and all parts are equal and of great importance for the thriving of the movement! I wanna thank everyone that got involved (it exceeded my expectations this time; from all the people I asked to participate only 2-3 bands never replied, never mind, no hard feelings) and passionately supported SOULCRAFT.

Ultragrim did again his amazing job, taking care of the looks of this zine, while Mick Lambrou from Melbourne, Australia, designed the great cover!

Tons of thanks and hugs to EVERYONE that bought Soulcraft 2 and the remaining copies of the now sold out issue 1. The response was overwhelming and a great push for me to keep on doing this.

Hugs to all the distributors, the labels that placed ads and every single one that helped in any way; you know who you are!

Treat yourselves in the best way, love each other and try not to overthink everything, especially the shitty stuff. Peace homies!

Yours truly,

Apostolos Mokas

Artwork: Ultragrim | ultragrim.tumblr.com Cover: Mick Lambrou | instagram.com/micklambrou Contact: soulcraftfanzine@gmail.com Store: soulcraftfanzine.bigcartel.com Online: issuu.com/keepitreal

Thank you.