As I Look to the Future

Artist: Various
Title: As I Look to the Future
Release: 1997
Label: Solution Records

Track List:
1. Capgun - Take a Hint
2. Bane - Lay the Blame
3. Driven - Fear
4. The Rolemodels - Messy

I bought this solely because of the track by Bane but I was surprised to find that The Rolemodels song was actually my favorite on this. From what little I can gather this compilation was put out around 1997, it may have been 1996 but I'm gonna go with 1997 since that's when someone on a certain message board says they remember buying it.

The Capgun song isn't anything special, pretty typical 90's hardcore. If you've heard anything from that era you've probably already heard this. Bane's offering to this compilation is apparently some of their earliest recorded output. It definitely sounds more youthful in comparison to "Give Blood", and that was nine years ago now! I'm not really a fan of the song by Driven. It's got some dude from Killswitch Engage on it, vocals I think. Not my style at all.

What is my style though is The Rolemodels. When I was looking over the inside of the sleeve I noticed that the address given for them was Denton, TX. I thought this was pretty weird since the rest of the bands were from the North East so with a little help from google I found out that their drummer was actually the drummer from The Marked Men and their bass player was one of the early bass players for The Riverboat Gamblers. It seems the drummer started The Rolemodels not long after moving to Denton from Connecticut. I guess it makes sense that I found a copy of this in Carrollton, which isn't too far from Denton. Pretty interesting connection between two far away (especially in the 90s) places if you ask me.

600 DPI scans of the sleeve included.

Download: As I Look to the Future (LAME 3.98r V0) Multiupload

Download: As I Look to the Future (LAME 3.98r V0) Mediafire

The Riverboat Gamblers/Electric Eel Shock - split

Artist: The Riverboat Gamblers/Electric Eel Shock
Title: split
Release: 2004
Label: Gearhead Records

Track List:
1. The Riverboat Gamblers - That's Entertainment!
2. Electric Eel Shock - Rock & Roll Can Rescue the World!

I picked this split picture disc up at a local record store a few years ago. If you're from Texas you're probably already familiar with The Riverboat Gamblers. The Electric Eel Shock side of the split is the only song by them that I've heard. It's a little more on the rock side of punk rock but that's okay by me. This record doesn't fall under "hardcore" at all, but I'm yet to meet a fan of hardcore or punk that doesn't enjoy The Riverboat Gamblers.

The Riverboat Gamblers originated nearby in Denton, TX but have since moved to Austin, TX. They've gone through a slew of members, most of who have been in other awesome bands. All I really know about Electric Eel Shock is that they're from Japan.

This is my first solid attempt at ripping a record with my new record player. I think it sounds fantastic. There's a bit of noise at the beginning and end of The Riverboat Gamblers' track but I couldn't seem to get it out without degrading the rest of the audio. It's not terribly distracting and might actually be from the recording not the record itself.

Download: The Riverboat Gamblers/Electric Eel Shock - split (LAME 3.98r V0) Multiupload

Download: The Riverboat Gamblers/Electric Eel Shock - split (LAME 3.98r V0) Mediafire