Potential friends

I was just about to put up a mix of songs by another one of my favorite long-disbanded bands from the Northwest, State Route 522, when I saw that Status is putting out a retrospective CD with all of their recorded material. So go check out the mp3 posted on their site and buy the CD; I promise it's going to be worth every penny of your money.

We're going to stay in the Northwest for this update, though. In 1997, photographer and zinester Carrie Whitney put out an amazing compilation CD called All About Friends. Lovingly put together, the record features original material and cover songs from almost all of the most prominent bands from the area at the time as well as some other bands she was friends with. By the way, Carrie also appears in Dave Larson's movie Edge of Quarrel. I don't know what she is up to these days, but hey, if you're reading this, I hope you're well and thanks for all the rides!

The CD is long out of print - there were a thousand hand-numbered copies, packaged in a beautiful stapled cardboard cover with a 30+ page booklet - but you might still be able to get it from some distros. At least half of the songs - among the exceptions are Botch's Rock Lobster, a B-52's cover, CR's Moss and Indecision's Slave - were not re-released in any other format, to the best of my knowledge. That still leaves us with a great pool of material, and what the hell, I'm going to put up the Botch song, too, because you need to hear this.

Botch are easily one of my favorite bands ever. If you haven't, you need to buy all of their records, because they were one of the most original and innovative hardcore bands this country has seen, period. This cover song provides ample testimony; it's a great example for a band taking music that has already stood the test of time and turning it into something utterly new and unpredictable. Botch were masters at their craft in that respect - just listen to their covers of Carl Orff's O Fortuna or the Sabbath cover they did for Hydra Head and you'll know what I mean.

Below, you'll also find an original song by San Diego's Impel, my favorite of theirs, as well as a song by Seattle's Screwjack, Dave Larson's band that I'm pretty sure broke up by now, though they did release an LP on Excursion a year or two ago, as well as Trial's cover of Iron Cross's Crucified - with a straight edge twist.

Botch - Rock Lobster
Impel - Call it what you will
Screwjack - Artifact
Trial - Crucified